Ohh and I forgot to mention Terry's line array. Very cool, we were all eager to hear it and were not disappointed. Even if you are not in the sweet spot they sound good. Consder the budget, the sound and the result is excellent. In the sweet spot which is basically being in the chair inbetween the two speakers, they were clear, sharp and sounded wonderful. As you get up it looses that clarity, but still it sounds good. I stood in different places all over the room and it was fine. But that sweet spot is where is at its best. Wonderful example of creativity on a budget with excellent results. Again great stuff.
This is a picture of Gary getting ready to measure the "Big Money" speakers brought by some strange person who obviously spent his entire life savings on the opulent finish on these 2 ways. They simply "reeked" of money!
Gary deserves a lot of credit for his efforts on getting good phase and FR measurement for the contestant's entries. John Nail was driving from Eastern Washington and ran into traffic problems. As he was running late, Gary set up his own gear and went to town. I might add that John later told me that Gary is just excellent at taking measurements, high praise coming from an accomplished speakerbuilder!
Best Regards,
Terry
Gary deserves a lot of credit for his efforts on getting good phase and FR measurement for the contestant's entries. John Nail was driving from Eastern Washington and ran into traffic problems. As he was running late, Gary set up his own gear and went to town. I might add that John later told me that Gary is just excellent at taking measurements, high praise coming from an accomplished speakerbuilder!
Best Regards,
Terry
This is a picture of Gary getting ready to measure the "Big Money" speakers brought by some strange person who obviously spent his entire life savings on the opulent finish on these 2 ways. They simply "reeked" of money!
Gary deserves a lot of credit for his efforts on getting good phase and FR measurement for the contestant's entries. John Nail was driving from Eastern Washington and ran into traffic problems. As he was running late, Gary set up his own gear and went to town. I might add that John later told me that Gary is just excellent at taking measurements, high praise coming from an accomplished speakerbuilder!
Best Regards,
Terry
I had a great time. Tons of fun and thanks to the PNW Audio Society for hosting the event.
My personal favorite speakers of the event where the $35 PVC/rope speakers. It is a hoot to see someone struggling with duct tape to get their loudspeakers to stay on a stand. It was an even bigger hoot to see the look on people's faces when they made music.
I would love to know how that finish was done on the "big money". Is one of Mod Podge decoupage projects? Very, very cool. I want to do Lady Gaga over the side of my new project speakers. Any tips on the finish would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Dan
Thanks,
Dan
No Terry, I was referring to the ones on the other left side of post 40 with the "beautiful yet rugged" finish - Dave R's. The three way silver flutes.
Yes, those "diamonds in the rough" fared pretty well. They were a close 2nd behind Gary's 3-ways, as far as overall scoring. Nonetheless, it was very satisfying to see that placement in the scoring with the blind judging setup. Gary's 3-ways sounded very good.
hmmm . . . maybe if I had only used more bondo so that the sound would have been smoother . . . 😀
I decided to skip ahead and answer this posting.
First of all, I'd like to thank Kevin for the kind words about our event. Kevin really came through for me time and time again, as I was bogged down with some family matters earlier this spring. I tend to give him a lot of flack, but he is indeed a true long-standing (long suffering?) friend. He not only got the word out about the Contest while I was tied up, but also served as a member of our technical committee and as an alternate Judge. He was also kind enough to donate some great prizes, including some Hypex amp modules.
While I'm on the subject, I'd also like to thank Dave Rosgaard for all his help, which was considerable. Dave not only created a spread sheet for scoring the Judge's evaluation sheets, he also created and printed out the certificates and served as the Technical Assistant in the Judging room, setting the SPL levels and passing out the eval forms. He's a superb Speaker Designer and is one of a very (very) small handful of people in the world that can successfully design Series Crossovers. Dave and I are old Audio Buddies and have traveled to many meets together over the years. He also served on the Technical Committee.
John Nail is from Eastern Washington, so we don't get to see him as often as we'd like, but he's attended a number of our meets and Contests. John is a dedicated and very knowledgeable speaker builder, with a highly developed degree of Craftsmanship thrown in. He is probably best known for his "Purple Puppies" which featured a Watt Puppy style cabinet with a fabulous (and unforgettable!) Imperial Purple paint job. John has served on our Technical Committee, as well as volunteering to do the measurements. He also brought some great prizes for the contestants.
Jerry Pomeroy is the former long-standing President of the Pacific Northwest Audio Society. His dedication and enthusiasm is contagious and he deserves a great deal of credit for making things gel. It's hard to overestimate the contributions that Jerry has made over the years in our efforts to keep things moving. I might add that Jerry made his debut as a diy speaker builder this year, entering a kit design that looked and sounded great! Great work!
Probably the hardest, and most important job, of the whole Contest is that of our Judges.
We've been extremely fortunate in having some of the best people around staffing our panel.
Winston Ma, the owner of First Impression Music (perhaps the finest Audiophile label in existence) was unable to be here this year due to a prior commitment. Winston was a well known Music and equipment reviewer in Asia for several decades before immigrating to the United States. He has served with distinction as a Judge in all our prior Contests and was missed.
Mike Lavigne, who writes for Positive Feedback is an Audiophile in the finest sense of the term. He has uncanny hearing and auditory memory, perhaps the best I've ever seen, along with an encyclopedic knowledge of music. His critique of the "unseen" speaker entries almost exactly matches what is subsequently measured. What a track record!
Bruce Brown, is the owner of Puget Sound Studios, a SOTA Recording/Mastering studio which serves some of the best known high-end labels and artists. He has served several times as a judge in prior Contests. Bruce has a degree in Music (among others) and is also a musician. He has been the person responsible for mastering/producing Hi-Rez discs with the Judge's Music selections for the contests. As a technical aside, this year's disc had a tested Block Error Rate (BLER) of under 5, whereas Audiophile Labels are usually happy with a Block Error Rate between 20-40. It's my understanding that JVC's R&D Lab in Japan is (sometimes) able to get a BLER of 3!
Renan Jefferies is a retired Software Engineer from one of the giant firms based in Seattle (you can probably guess which one). His father was a music lover, who instilled a life-long love of the same in Renan. He listens primarily to Jazz and Classical music and has excellent taste in music and can easily distinguish flaws in a performance or it's reproduction. Renan has also served several times as one of our Judges.
The people that helped set up the rooms on Friday night and clean up after the event should also get credit, quite simply because if these important tasks weren't performed, there'd be no Contest. However, as my level of "Brain Gain" is has become somewhat diminished, I'll leave it for now, to be continued tomorrow.
Best Regards,
TerryO
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The event was quite fun. I'll make sure to avoid mentioning anything to his wife about the 3 way. 😉
I'll second the comment about the very cool line array terry built.
I'll second the comment about the very cool line array terry built.
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I never got to hear Gary's speakers, but they must have been pretty nice to edge out yours. Yes, I believe that some Bondo treatment would have made the difference. As the World's Foremost Authority on Bondo Technology and Bad Speaker Design, I can't recommend it highly enough for it's sonic qualities, aside from it's exquisite aesthetic appeal.
As we're in the first decade of a new Century, one would think that the old fashioned use of veneers, etc., would finally be abandoned and the "New, Vibrant Look" of Bondo adopted.
Remember: "Bondo is the new Rosewood!"
Best Regards,
TerryO
Actually I just have a good memory. I made that mistake at the beginning of the last Century.
Hah! I beat you to the Smart A$$ comeback! 😕
Best Regards?
TerryO
Oh goodness you're suckering me into this now. Terry might actually remember this. We seemed to go from 1 BC to 1 AD in one year so we still start the 2nd next year. Are you just having fun with me Michael? 🙂
Cal,
You mean we're now missing two years?
😀
I think somebody needs to get some sleep.
Best Regards,
Terry
No, I'm serious. It's not really "year zero". It all just depends on where you start counting. You were not 1 year old the day you were born, were you? You had to wait a year for that. Just like it's not 1911 until one year after 1910.
Year Zero is the first year. As in "He's in his first year of life." After you turn 1 (year old) you are in the second year of your life. Semantics, really. The 1900s were the 20th century, don't you know.
Year Zero is the first year. As in "He's in his first year of life." After you turn 1 (year old) you are in the second year of your life. Semantics, really. The 1900s were the 20th century, don't you know.
Cal,
Let me help you🙄
The first century started with one and went to the year 99. The start of the 2nd Century it was 100 and lasted until 199, the the 3rd Century started in 200 and so forth............
As you can see, we've lost a total of 20 years by the year 2000. As the Law of Thermodynamics states that nothing ever actually disappears, we know that those years are out there somewhere, in a sort of Galactic Lost and Found, probably with Elvis and the missing socks from the original pairs, many unique buttons and a whole bunch of cigarette lighters and sunglasses.
Now that certainly clears it up, doesn't it!
(Actually, Mike is correct, although in many Asian Societies you were considered to be a year old when you were born. The Gestation period evidently was rather casually calculated.)
Best Regards,
TerryO
Let me help you🙄
The first century started with one and went to the year 99. The start of the 2nd Century it was 100 and lasted until 199, the the 3rd Century started in 200 and so forth............
As you can see, we've lost a total of 20 years by the year 2000. As the Law of Thermodynamics states that nothing ever actually disappears, we know that those years are out there somewhere, in a sort of Galactic Lost and Found, probably with Elvis and the missing socks from the original pairs, many unique buttons and a whole bunch of cigarette lighters and sunglasses.
Now that certainly clears it up, doesn't it!
(Actually, Mike is correct, although in many Asian Societies you were considered to be a year old when you were born. The Gestation period evidently was rather casually calculated.)
Best Regards,
TerryO
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Cal, It's like a ruler, it's not 11 inches long as everything before the one inch mark is part of the first inch.
Maybe that's a bad example because all the rulers, with inches and feet, have also disappeared from Canada. Oh Dear! Isn't there going to be anything left?
Maybe that's a bad example because all the rulers, with inches and feet, have also disappeared from Canada. Oh Dear! Isn't there going to be anything left?
After looking at all of the pictures of both the Vancover Island the and Mercer Island get togethers I can confidentaly say that Cal is more handsome that I had imagined, and Terry is older.
Nope
I love sleep.
Thanks, that's not what we're even talking about.
Nope, there was no year zero. Look it up.
Please do, I have learned much from you and hope to continue.
Nope, it started with 1 and went to 100. Ask Michael to look it up while he's checking on year zero.
I am all too familiar with the concept, having an Asian wife as I do. But again that has nothing to do with what we are discussing.
I wore make-up and I'm actually quite ugly on the inside. Terry? Well, Terry must have been having a bad day. He's really like my brother. My older brother maybe but still like a brother. 😉
Man we're waaaayy off topic.
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