I would never trust a quick change to determine anything myself. I want to hear what the change is doing to the music that I play in my system. Not a track of this or a track of that.
I built all of my storage units as I love woodworking too. Never had a problem with CD's falling out of the racks. Where di you purchase your rack? Maybe time to invest in something a bit more substantial 🙂
Misdirect. The first two accomplishments are decades old, not today's forefront. The Sony of 1980 is not the Sony of 2009. The final judgment on the long term impact of Redbook on a generation's musical heritage is still out. Sony's hi-def format is arguable more an exercise in IP licensing than technology. Toshiba's top non-TV consumer product is a $230 portable DVD player. As forces pushing audio forward, they're not on the radar screen.
I thing to agree would be insulting to those, but in reality, I meet more percentage of poor people that smoke heavily than rich people. So why spend such money that raises medical expenses was always a question in my mind.
More fuel to the fire.
Sub-Debye Phase-Distortion
A New Distortion-Source Model for Conductors
http://aetheraudio.com/Sub-Debye Phase Distortion.pdf
Sub-Debye Phase-Distortion
A New Distortion-Source Model for Conductors
http://aetheraudio.com/Sub-Debye Phase Distortion.pdf
Possible, yes it is even probable.
First, we need to find out if you can obtain the exact same source material.
Next, we need to find out if some reasonably competent headphones (such as Grado SR80) can make a close approximation of this experience--because if they can't do it then it was specially rigged equipment modifying a signal.
Plan "B"
Generically clean yet built to purpose:
If you have luck with the headphones then its fairly easy to offset your room effects and get some good hifi audio going. System symmetry between the equipment is good; but, its probably also important to get symmetry between the program material and the type of equipment used.
Type of equipment? Yes, for example: Classical at the nightclub doesn't work well. Dance/rock on the full-range single speaker driver systems doesn't work well. Sure, these types of equipment can be added together, but that is a compromise. Fortunately, such combinations are workable with a simple toggle switch or two.
Plan "A"
Described below is "branding the sound" having already been named thusly by the radio industry:
If you Don't have luck with the headphones, then the equipment used at the time had a distortion of some sort, and that is simple after it is identified. It IS difficult to identify beneficial distortions and make only that. Although the end result may be more compatible with one style of music the caveat is that its less compatible with other styles of music. There may also be a very slight coloration, as the name of this method implies. In order to avoid an obvious coloration, one has to start with VERY clean precision equipment in order to "get away with" the approach of making only the distortion that you want and none other. Its doable, but it takes more time. The equipment for this has to be so clean that its "needlessly clean" because that is like a "budget" and you spend the difference to please your ears. It takes much better quality equipment to make a distortion and get away with it too. Perhaps that's what the sample "irresponsibly designed" amplifier was doing. I've made a few. Two survived to this date. They're not boring.
Last edited:
The worst kind of tactic. Mix classic physics knowledge, add some half baked consideration to impress the n00bs, call assumptions as "predictions" and finit coronat opus, propose a 'test protocol' that is nothing but laughable.
It would be worth considering if the author would implement the 'test protocol' and then publish the results supporting his assumptions (ok, "predictions"). Meantime, if this would be a physics student assignement, the author would get a clean F.
What cracked me up about this paper was the phrase, "In contrast, video signal and other VHF/UHF frequency transmission systems require close attention with regards to the characteristic impedance of a given conductor...". The characteristic impedance of a conductor? LOL! I suppose one could define the characteristic impedance of a conductor much like one does for the 377 Ohm characteristic impedance of free space. But waves don't travel very far in a good conductor 😀. Clearly, from the context, he isn't talking about the rapidly attenuated wave propagation inside an imperfect conductor, but rather he's referring to the characteristic impedance of the transmission line structure of which the conductor is a part. In the classic case of transmission line structures like coax and circuits that match their impedance to them, the characteristic impedance has no dependence whatsoever on the conductor properties. The conductors are assumed to be ideal.
So this clown is revealing major ignorance of classical physics here. WTF is it about audio that brings these people out? And even worse, how come there's so damned many of them?
can't blame aetheraudio (former SP Tech). they certainly know what they are doing, most of their customers will buy that new black box after reading this article..
Just my opinion. Sony has the resources to design the best Hi end audio anywhere, but no one can tell them what that means. (other than it has to sound great, (read this thread)). They used to make high end studio gear, they still make the best professional video equipment available. (lets see 3 guys in a garage design and build a Hi-def video tape machine. (you can sell them for $50,000). They see whats going on and shake there heads. Why build the best amp (or whatever) they can when Hi end audio is so fickle and more about image than substance. As soon as the audiophools here it was designed by a team of professional engineers with more experience in the audio design field than you can imagine (many with Phds) they will run away in droves.
Of the many companies highly rated by 'audiophools' that would disagree:
Bryston
Shure
AKG
PMC
Benchmark
... someone else take it from here...
Another Bryston was just recently well received. One reviewer (TAS or Sph, can't remember) last year proclaimed the new Benchmark DAC/Pre the 'end of preamps', signaling effective perfection. You lost me.
Your turn. Are Krell, Pass, McIntosh, etc., etc. poorly engineered junk taking back seat to QSC, Alexis, Tascam, Behringer...? Know that I've been inside many of these pieces.
Your turn. Are Krell, Pass, McIntosh, etc., etc. poorly engineered junk taking back seat to QSC, Alexis, Tascam, Behringer...? Know that I've been inside many of these pieces.
The Debye model looks really good to me. In fact, it fits our experience, and trends in new wire.
That paper was gibberish. Perfectly typical of snake oil.
I've heard several Jadis amps. Effects box, not an amplifier. Aphex is cheaper, doesn't blow up, and has far less treble distortion.
Panasonic/Technics. Their strain gauge cartridge was innovative and astonishing. Their moving magnets (like my beloved EPC100, the EPC205...) put the lie to the idea that MCs are a superior technology. But yes, as rdf points out, in the past. Hifi today is the eentsiest niche imaginable; the action is elsewhere and these guys aren't stupid.
I've heard several Jadis amps. Effects box, not an amplifier. Aphex is cheaper, doesn't blow up, and has far less treble distortion.
Panasonic/Technics. Their strain gauge cartridge was innovative and astonishing. Their moving magnets (like my beloved EPC100, the EPC205...) put the lie to the idea that MCs are a superior technology. But yes, as rdf points out, in the past. Hifi today is the eentsiest niche imaginable; the action is elsewhere and these guys aren't stupid.
Those were commercial successes weren't they 🙂 I guess those that truly listen did not share a similar opinion about these products either. Actually I have never seen or heard any of these products before your mention.
On the Jadis, yes they were absolutely tragically flawed in terms of their stability, but I do not think that I have ever heard anyone mention an issue with "treble distortion" before? The JA-80 and Ja-200 were incredibly musical and stood out for their engaging presentation of music. Frank alluded to this fact earlier and that sentiment was shared by a great many. This was indeed a dichotomy, but outstanding sonics was never an issue with Jadis.
Last edited:
Your opinion based upon what? Have you ever worked in the audio field? Image has extremely little to do with anything in my experience. In mid-fi, absolutely! No one really listens to anything. They would prefer to look at a spec sheet that listen seriously.
I guess Krell, Rowland, Levinson, ARC, etc. are just "pretty faces" 😀 Hardly. They offer extremely good sound vs. other products. You have to want to hear them first though or else you miss the reasons for their existence. Somehow I feel envy has to be at the root of all of this somehow.
Last edited:
Yes, they were. Technics sold a boatload of the 205s. It was the standard cartridge in their high-end linear tracking turntables and quite a sleeper. For the audio salesman set, Stereophile put both the 100 and 205 in Class A. The 205 was one of the favorites of HFNRR and sold very well in England.
The strain gauge cart (as we saw) now commands a price about 10x higher than the original. Two different high end companies incorporated it into their products (Robertson was one, can't remember the name of the guys in Colorado). Its main problem wasn't performance or sound, it was standards. It couldn't be plugged into a standard phono preamp, so audiophiles by and large ignored it (except Gordon Holt, who rated it Class A).
I simply never heard of it(100 and 205) or seen them in use before. Strain gauges were unique animals for sure, but did require additional electronics that resulted in extremely expensive options to the more well regarded MC cartridges available for less money. I have yet to gear any MM cartridge come close to a great MC in terms of resolution or musical presentation.
"Technics linear tracking turntables".............no wonder I never heard of the 100 or 205, we did not sell mid-fi 🙂
Last edited:
- Status
- Not open for further replies.