"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

"Wally" wrote in message
...
Keith G wrote:

... Contrary to something mentioned a while back, I
don't seek to convert anyone and, more often than not, advise people
to be cautious when considering valves. (They ain't for everyone....)

Except for when you wrote...

------------------------------
Right, sounds like you've got the signal best part sorted. To cap it off
now, go the next step and get it routed through a decent valve amp. Beg,
borrow or steal summat that'll push out about 25-30W a side, switch it on
and give it about 20 minutes to get the 'trons organised, put on something
'full bodied', crank it up about halfway and strap yerself in
tight.......!!

(Then come back here and tell me you *didn't* like it!!!)
------------------------------

:-)



Ah, but I *knew* you were a 'suitable case for treatment' - the proof was
that you *already* have got a valve amp!

;-)

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 19:05:44 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:

Its not hard. if it sounds crap, its bad. since upgrading to my DAC
and replacing my old amp, I can *clearly* hear defects in recordings
that were bad before.

Well there ya go, concentrating on the recording rather than the music
:(

Sorry? note, in the above sentence, the bit where I said:

'if it sounds crap, its bad'

Which has nothing to do with specs at all.

I can also hear that my good recordings all sound much better.

Is it significant you mention "recordings" and not "performance"?

I can only play recordings, because I have no radio with which to
receive the (very few) live broadcasts available. By definition anything
coming from my speakers has been recorded.

Me too.

I suspect you and I are enjoying different things.

I enjoy the sounds coming from my speakers - what are you enjoying? the
colour of the casing?

You know far more about your gear than I know about mine.

I thought I just made it clear I know nothing about my gear except the
make and model (and in the one case of my amp, I have a rough idea of
its utter nonlinearity, but only because it sounded so bad one day that
I decided to put the scope on it)

To me they [specs] are pretty much unimportant. All that matters is
how I like the sound.

I differ only in that to me, I like to know the gear is as linear as
possible (in my budget) over the audio range, which (hopefully) means I
get as close an output as possible to the original.

If I dont like an accurate reproduction of the original music, I should
probably bin it.

I must admit I do like to 'enhance' some of my tracks by adjusting the
tone to taste, but at least Im doing it from a reasonably good baseline.

My right speaker still has a bad pair of drivers though, sadly. I
cant afford the repair just yet. fortunately they arent THAT bad yet
and still intermittent.

So why didn't you use the money you spent on the DAC? Surely any
benefits you would gain on the DAC would be lost via the knackered
drivers?

No, fot two reasons:

1) bargains on DACs dont grow on trees.
2) the speaker problem is intermittent and even when happening only
shows on *some* program material.

Hope this helps.

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with
ketchup.

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 19:05:44 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:

Its not hard. if it sounds crap, its bad. since upgrading to my DAC
and replacing my old amp, I can *clearly* hear defects in recordings
that were bad before.

Well there ya go, concentrating on the recording rather than the music
:(

Sorry? note, in the above sentence, the bit where I said:

'if it sounds crap, its bad'

Which has nothing to do with specs at all.

I can also hear that my good recordings all sound much better.

Is it significant you mention "recordings" and not "performance"?

I can only play recordings, because I have no radio with which to
receive the (very few) live broadcasts available. By definition anything
coming from my speakers has been recorded.

Me too.

I suspect you and I are enjoying different things.

I enjoy the sounds coming from my speakers - what are you enjoying? the
colour of the casing?

You know far more about your gear than I know about mine.

I thought I just made it clear I know nothing about my gear except the
make and model (and in the one case of my amp, I have a rough idea of
its utter nonlinearity, but only because it sounded so bad one day that
I decided to put the scope on it)

To me they [specs] are pretty much unimportant. All that matters is
how I like the sound.

I differ only in that to me, I like to know the gear is as linear as
possible (in my budget) over the audio range, which (hopefully) means I
get as close an output as possible to the original.

If I dont like an accurate reproduction of the original music, I should
probably bin it.

I must admit I do like to 'enhance' some of my tracks by adjusting the
tone to taste, but at least Im doing it from a reasonably good baseline.

My right speaker still has a bad pair of drivers though, sadly. I
cant afford the repair just yet. fortunately they arent THAT bad yet
and still intermittent.

So why didn't you use the money you spent on the DAC? Surely any
benefits you would gain on the DAC would be lost via the knackered
drivers?

No, fot two reasons:

1) bargains on DACs dont grow on trees.
2) the speaker problem is intermittent and even when happening only
shows on *some* program material.

Hope this helps.

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with
ketchup.

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

Keith G wrote:

Except for when you wrote...

Ah, but I *knew* you were a 'suitable case for treatment' - the proof
was that you *already* have got a valve amp!

Retrospectve 20-20 hindsight claims aren't valid here - you have to bull****
your way out of it properly. :-)

Anyway, I only have a valve amp because I wanted one, and because my ability
to operate a soldering iron meant that I could get one quite cheaply. I
still maintain that the best way to hear the valve sound is to crank up a
guitar amp - but I wouldn't want my hi-fi amp to go into a mode like that.


--
Wally
www.art-gallery.myby.co.uk
On webcam: Black Cat In Coal Cellar

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

Keith G wrote:

Except for when you wrote...

Ah, but I *knew* you were a 'suitable case for treatment' - the proof
was that you *already* have got a valve amp!

Retrospectve 20-20 hindsight claims aren't valid here - you have to bull****
your way out of it properly. :-)

Anyway, I only have a valve amp because I wanted one, and because my ability
to operate a soldering iron meant that I could get one quite cheaply. I
still maintain that the best way to hear the valve sound is to crank up a
guitar amp - but I wouldn't want my hi-fi amp to go into a mode like that.


--
Wally
www.art-gallery.myby.co.uk
On webcam: Black Cat In Coal Cellar

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 21:00:00 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:


Exactly my point. So why have a system that highlights a bad recording
thereby distracting one from the performance?

It ain't rocket science.

If I went to a bad performance I'd walk out, not put in earplugs so I couldnt hear the awful treble racket from the 3rd violin.

Same goes for a recording. when my gear was crummy I couldnt hear the problems. I couldnt hear the full benefit of the performance either, of course.

Now my gear is good, I can hear the full benefit of the performances, but my bad recordings sound like they should - bad.

I will now do what I would in a bad concert (walk out), to my bad recordings (delete).

Do you get it now ?

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with ketchup.

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 21:00:00 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:


Exactly my point. So why have a system that highlights a bad recording
thereby distracting one from the performance?

It ain't rocket science.

If I went to a bad performance I'd walk out, not put in earplugs so I couldnt hear the awful treble racket from the 3rd violin.

Same goes for a recording. when my gear was crummy I couldnt hear the problems. I couldnt hear the full benefit of the performance either, of course.

Now my gear is good, I can hear the full benefit of the performances, but my bad recordings sound like they should - bad.

I will now do what I would in a bad concert (walk out), to my bad recordings (delete).

Do you get it now ?

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with ketchup.

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 19:10:30 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:


The point has disappeared over your aging head once again. Why would you
*want* to hear the bad recordings?

No. the point is going over YOUR head.

*NO-ONE* wants to hear a bad recording.

MANY people like to hear the full depth of a good recording though, and buy kit that can do this.

A side effect of having good kit is that it (sadly, in some cases - I liked one CD I have but its full of clicks I couldnt hear on my old gear) makes bad recordings sound like what they are - bad.

so the answer? dont keep the bad ones - replace them and enjoy the BETTER copies *MORE* than the old crappy ones.

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with ketchup.

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 19:10:30 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:


The point has disappeared over your aging head once again. Why would you
*want* to hear the bad recordings?

No. the point is going over YOUR head.

*NO-ONE* wants to hear a bad recording.

MANY people like to hear the full depth of a good recording though, and buy kit that can do this.

A side effect of having good kit is that it (sadly, in some cases - I liked one CD I have but its full of clicks I couldnt hear on my old gear) makes bad recordings sound like what they are - bad.

so the answer? dont keep the bad ones - replace them and enjoy the BETTER copies *MORE* than the old crappy ones.

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with ketchup.

"What HiFi" - can it be trusted?
 

On Sun, 11 Jan 2004 19:10:30 +0000
Kurt Hamster wrote:

I'd say that you are the dumb one wasting time with pointless exercises
like DBT.

just for the record I have never done a DBT on my gear. I can still hear which of my recordings are bad now my gear is better than it was...

--
Spyros lair: http://www.mnementh.co.uk/ |||| Maintainer: arm26 linux

Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are tasty and good with ketchup.