Funny that used to be at the bottom of Tom Bearden's page IIRC about $3M was needed (old widows welcome).
EDIT - Still there in some form.
EDIT - I can't resist.
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I like the 'show me a working model' part, more than anything else. Tough gig to pass muster on.
Townsend Brown got a gig the other day. They're putting the band back together!
"Hey idjit, don't touch that wing. No, don't even get close to it."
"The rest is just engineering."(<-last sentence in the article) Yeah. So you people get back to being chained to your desks. Simple enough! After all, it's just ditch digging.......
Townsend Brown got a gig the other day. They're putting the band back together!
"Hey idjit, don't touch that wing. No, don't even get close to it."
"The rest is just engineering."(<-last sentence in the article) Yeah. So you people get back to being chained to your desks. Simple enough! After all, it's just ditch digging.......
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Toby, only a closed circle of trusted friends have access to my 'goop' at this point in time and development, sorry about that for now.
JC and I had a conversation a good while back, and during the conversation I had my filter clipped around the cable/plug of the standard Samsung in-ears headset.
Toward the end of this conversation I demo'd to John by removing the filter, talked a little more then refitted the filter to which JC instantly proclaimed 'it's clearer !'....he got it right despite the limitations of an ISD call and the budget microphone !.
John is correct on one hand that my filtering method is indeed a shortcut to gaining better sound (on any system from BT speakers through to Hi-End HiFi through to concert PA), and on the other hand this mode of filtering provides a uniquely clear, detailed and satisfying/pleasing sound that is simply not attainable by any other method that I know of.
Mr Merrill is correct also in his comments regarding dynamic/signal modulated noise floor -
Yes, this is a key, noise modulation is one factor that subjectively differentiates otherwise 'blameless' systems.
Portable/Low-Fi/Mid-Fi systems are typically dynamically quite noisy, preamps/amps for example that JC designs have very low level intrinsic noise and dynamic noise behaviours....this is one of John's 'secret sauces' that has led to his deserved successes.
I find that it is not so much the absolute magnitudes of the intrinsic and dynamic noises that intrude, so much as the 'nature' of these noises.
By appropriately controlling the nature of these current noises they can effectively subjectively disappear and then the 'magic' happens.....every sound, every note in a complex/chaotic mix becomes 3D discrete as per the headphones review I quoted.
The breakthrough is in rendering system excess noise to be subjectively 'blameless' or indeed exciting and energising......there are biological reasons that this is so, and this extends to lighting and RF transmission/reception also.
As per my signature line, "Never ignore the noise, it carries information"......wise words.
Dan.
You must remember J. Naudin's electro-gravitics at least the anti-gravity is not present here. They use to have a model plane club at MIT 40yr. ago that made ultra light model planes that would fly all day powered by a single small rubber band. The physics does not scale very well i.e. take one of these outdoors in a 5mph wind.
BTW the ion wind does not work in a vacuum so no space shuttles.
Ubiquitous..ubiquitous...
I love that word.
Ubiquitous current.
Ubiquitous energy.
Ubiquitous flim flam.
Ubiquitous victims.. No, I mean targets... No, no, Investors..
You know, all the particle physicists I work with never mentioned this free energy stuff. I can only conclude that it's a conspiracy on their part to hide the truth from mere mortals so they can get funding for their projects.
Jn
They must have discussed the Casimir effect, IMO the godfather of 90% of the free energy scams. You have to admit the physicists have their own form of "poetry" such as the "chiral bag model of the nucleon", "6 quark bag s-channel mechanism using the P matrix."...
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I beg to differ.
The Eymorgs from Sigma Draconis (6th planet) had ion drive. Which of course
was far more advanced than mere warp drive and impulse power(according to Scotty).
I had the hots for Kara of course.
Well, at least when she was smart....um, no wait, as I think, intelligence wouldn't have mattered.
Edit: kinda like Billy Joe, Betty Joe, and Bobby Joe.
Jn
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When I ask them about it, they exchange furtive glances, then one of then points and says " look, a squirrel.
Jn
Hi guys, lots of action today! I actually think that Parasound would prefer that I not be on this thread. I could only embarrass them, and take away from the 'image' that their marketing wants to build around me.
Actually, I was invited to this thread back more than 15 years ago by the late Charley Hansen when it was more 'progressive' and many more serious designers frequented the thread, compared to amateurs and DIY constructors as is promoted here in general. However, Charley dropped out early, not comfortable with the constant criticism by others here. I stuck it out, because as Ed said, I have admitted to enjoying an intellectual 'bar fight', more than many. This is true today, and I still can't get some of my most accomplished engineers to continuously contribute to this thread, although they may still 'monitor' it silently. Is this what everyone wants?
Actually, I was invited to this thread back more than 15 years ago by the late Charley Hansen when it was more 'progressive' and many more serious designers frequented the thread, compared to amateurs and DIY constructors as is promoted here in general. However, Charley dropped out early, not comfortable with the constant criticism by others here. I stuck it out, because as Ed said, I have admitted to enjoying an intellectual 'bar fight', more than many. This is true today, and I still can't get some of my most accomplished engineers to continuously contribute to this thread, although they may still 'monitor' it silently. Is this what everyone wants?
I emphasize noise floor modulation (NFM) above all other possible issue that might affect low level detail because it is my experience it fits with the evidence I see from others - it's what is called the "theory of the case" in legal jargon i.e what fits all the evidence.
It has so far been only hinted at in stock measurements & is generally not followed up because people don't realize its importance to auditory perception - mainly because it's not their area of expertise.
I haven't heard any of John's creations but I can well believe that is one of his "secret sauces"
As KBK is hinting at - the stock freq, amplitude & timing have been pretty much reduced to levels that are not affecting our perception but yet we are hearing improved devices that seemingly measure no different. Because of this exemplary performance in these areas other issues, such as NFM, are now being perceived as improved sound, only when they are removed.
Yes, I believe the characteristics of this noise (pattern, amplitude, spectral makeup, etc) can lead to different perceptions of the music signal
Yep, agreed - I never noticed your sig before - very relevant
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yes - at last!
I have been following this mosh pit of a thread for several weeks now, and what you have just said finally strikes a chord for me.
Let me explain ....... I am keenly interested in building full range front loaded horn speakers, because they can look beautiful and, when they are good, they can sound really wonderful. I am also very much aware of the distortion, or the so called distortion you describe. I do not use measurements, I just use my ears.
This (mono) horn speaker is made solely from paper, took a long to build, and almost as long to test. After a lot of experimentation, I eventually found that a combination of an alnico guitar speaker driver, coupled with a modest amount of eq and a valve buffered preamp put the experience of listening to music into a realm that I have never experienced before, that is:- until I remembered hearing music in cinemas way back when I was a child, at a time when it was still all horn speakers and valve amplification. It goes without saying that I was profoundly influenced by this formative experience of cinema.
Where I live is very isolated, a bit like Canada, but with smaller mountains. You get to know people slowly here. A friend of mine, having shown an interest in what I was doing, was invited last weekend to a listening session. I put together a carefully selected and very eclectic playlist for him, with an emphasis upon vocals and mainly acoustic instrumentation of different genres, time periods, and ethnic cultures. This is someone who loves music, but is completely untutored in audio. We listened to the music for nearly two hours, and barely a word was said, except he couldn't stop grinning.
When the music finally stopped, I asked him to tell me what he thought and felt about what he had heard. The first thing he said was he was enchanted by the sound emanating from an invisible sphere suspended halfway in and out of the horn, that the vocals came from the centre, and the instrumentation and bass radiating outwards from the sphere's perimeter. He also said that the absence of stereo was irrelevant, as everything sounded so real - and - so musical. I asked him about the lack of extreme bass and treble, and he said it was something he hadn't really thought of until I mentioned it, and was not important.
What he did say, was that it was an unexpected, almost transcendental and highly emotional experience he would always remember and never wanted to forget. He never mentioned any distortion. He also asked unprompted if he could take away the printed copy of the playlist. That to me said everything.
So in my mind, I feel that yes, there is a lot to be said for the incredibly complex discussion (or perhaps sometimes a distinct lack of discussion) in this thread - but - in the end it is about the music. I can appreciate that the very rich can and do spend millions on high fidelity audio playback, I'm sure it sounds great, but I doubt that I will ever get the chance to experience it. What I have though, is the beginnings of something wonderful. A celestial horn orchestra in the middle of nowhere. Extremely cheap and very cheerful. Something that I could tour as a successful cultural phenomenon.
tapestryofsound
I have been following this mosh pit of a thread for several weeks now, and what you have just said finally strikes a chord for me.
Let me explain ....... I am keenly interested in building full range front loaded horn speakers, because they can look beautiful and, when they are good, they can sound really wonderful. I am also very much aware of the distortion, or the so called distortion you describe. I do not use measurements, I just use my ears.
This (mono) horn speaker is made solely from paper, took a long to build, and almost as long to test. After a lot of experimentation, I eventually found that a combination of an alnico guitar speaker driver, coupled with a modest amount of eq and a valve buffered preamp put the experience of listening to music into a realm that I have never experienced before, that is:- until I remembered hearing music in cinemas way back when I was a child, at a time when it was still all horn speakers and valve amplification. It goes without saying that I was profoundly influenced by this formative experience of cinema.
Where I live is very isolated, a bit like Canada, but with smaller mountains. You get to know people slowly here. A friend of mine, having shown an interest in what I was doing, was invited last weekend to a listening session. I put together a carefully selected and very eclectic playlist for him, with an emphasis upon vocals and mainly acoustic instrumentation of different genres, time periods, and ethnic cultures. This is someone who loves music, but is completely untutored in audio. We listened to the music for nearly two hours, and barely a word was said, except he couldn't stop grinning.
When the music finally stopped, I asked him to tell me what he thought and felt about what he had heard. The first thing he said was he was enchanted by the sound emanating from an invisible sphere suspended halfway in and out of the horn, that the vocals came from the centre, and the instrumentation and bass radiating outwards from the sphere's perimeter. He also said that the absence of stereo was irrelevant, as everything sounded so real - and - so musical. I asked him about the lack of extreme bass and treble, and he said it was something he hadn't really thought of until I mentioned it, and was not important.
What he did say, was that it was an unexpected, almost transcendental and highly emotional experience he would always remember and never wanted to forget. He never mentioned any distortion. He also asked unprompted if he could take away the printed copy of the playlist. That to me said everything.
So in my mind, I feel that yes, there is a lot to be said for the incredibly complex discussion (or perhaps sometimes a distinct lack of discussion) in this thread - but - in the end it is about the music. I can appreciate that the very rich can and do spend millions on high fidelity audio playback, I'm sure it sounds great, but I doubt that I will ever get the chance to experience it. What I have though, is the beginnings of something wonderful. A celestial horn orchestra in the middle of nowhere. Extremely cheap and very cheerful. Something that I could tour as a successful cultural phenomenon.
tapestryofsound
One possible aspect of the magic of horns is their efficiency? This means that the electronics driving them do not require much current. I find that it is the dynamic current demands of the electronics that causes noise on the ground (reference) plane & the result is noise floor modulation.
It may also be a partial explanation for why tubes can sound so good - they swap voltage for current
It may also be a partial explanation for why tubes can sound so good - they swap voltage for current
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Horn throat distortion at home listening levels is almost nothing. It is only when a horn is supplying a very high SPL from the horn mouth, that you can find high distortion. Once I measured a JBL 1" throat horn speaker at 2W in at 1KHz. I got 3% distortion (mostly 2'nd). Kind of high, but that implied an SPL at 1 meter of about 112 SPL. Kind of loud for the home.
Yes, this horn is extremely efficient. The driver has an efficiency of 92db, the compression chamber is at 3:1 and hornresp (suggests) an overall efficiency of 108db. It's an all battery powered rig, with (what appears to be!) a 20watt 3amp class D mono power amp run at 12 o'clock from a 24volt 10amp power supply. At 3 feet away, I cannot hear any background noise at all. The valve buffered preamp takes away the perceived harshness, and replaces it with the illusion of effortlessness.
I can and do listen to it all day in my workshop, and just love the sound of it.
Right, efficient horn + battery powered amp + valve preamp - ticks a lot of boxes - no wonder you have excellent sound
One suggestion - try LiFePO4 batteries for another step up in sound - are you currently using a 24V SLA battery?
I come from a family of the deaf and profoundly deaf, and the reduced dynamic range of my own (congenital) hearing means that I have pain threshold of just 105db. So I am acutely aware of sound pressure levels - maybe this helps me appreciate the complexity of music reproduction in a home environment, I don't know, but I can spot harshness almost immediately. Perhaps this explains why I loath the sound of power tools- they really do hurt!
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