|
Post by bencat on Apr 17, 2024 14:18:54 GMT
Nearly missed Dave,s comment regarding playing music . In truth I do not really play cd,s anymore ,when I buy anything new it is ripped in Flac straight to my server hard drive . I then have linked players in every system and when I switch on I use Random Mix / Song mix which creates a list of 100 songs randomly selected from entire library and starts them playing . I have the selection choice settings that it favours tracks that have had the fewest plays and so new things keep coming up . I know there is little if any chance that I will be able to play most of what I own but I find myself unable to stop adding new music every month . Cerys Mathews on Radio 6 music on Sunday often plays artists I have never heard and this can set me off looking at Amazon , EBay , Qobuz to find them often if they have cheap used CD,s then I will buy as many as I can find . Radio Paradise is another source often the World and Eclectic mix .
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 21, 2024 18:31:23 GMT
The weather has been lovely in Wolverhampton today, but even so, the system has called me back from the sun a few times to listen to some music.
What i am noticing since the introduction of the Mini Vaders is a lack of severe attention to the choices i make regarding what to play. Previously i would sift albums out due to feeling they had particular issues that made them less enjoyable. One such album is Ray Lamontagne's "Trouble" which always boomed and bloomed. I listened today as i realised i hadn't played it since the speakers arrived.
Wow, how utterly different it was!
The album was liquid gold into my ear and resulted in a listening session made up of previously neglected albums. What a fantastic afternoon with the sun on my neck through the window and some greatly loved albums.
Interestingly i have been using my Sterling Silver Coaxial cable rather than USB or AES. My dalliance with USB appeared to be over last week when i sold the Acoustic Revive and Supra USB's. However, one caught my eye yesterday. I found a Gourd Numero Series 4255AB for less than a piece of badly pressed vinyl, so i bought it. I also have some pure Copper XLR plugs for my Wireworld 8 AES cable, which i will fit this week sometime. I then plan a 3 way comparison of all three cables. Once i have finished, that will probably satisfy any question i may still have of digital cabling.
The Silver Coax is going to take some beating. It's exceptionally detailed, but rich and solid sounds with that cable in place. Kind of reminds me of having the Mutec in the chain without losing that modicum of texture. So far it's also a bargain as it's my cheapest digital cable!
We should also see a LPSU in the Novafidelity X50D at some point soon. Alan has kindly offered some of his time to work his magic and get this X50D up to the standard of my old silver one.
In other good news the vinyl rig is now on Angus's timetable for the mods to the tonearm. This should mean i have vinyl back and playing in a month or two, which i am really excited to hear. It's been a long wait for vinyl to return. There may also be some interesting cartridge news attached to that....but i'll disclose that nearer the time.
|
|
Arke
Moderator
Posts: 1,259
|
Post by Arke on Apr 21, 2024 18:51:02 GMT
The weather has been lovely in Wolverhampton today, but even so, the system has called me back from the sun a few times to listen to some music. What i am noticing since the introduction of the Mini Vaders is a lack of severe attention to the choices i make regarding what to play. Previously i would sift albums out due to feeling they had particular issues that made them less enjoyable. One such album is Ray Lamontagne's "Trouble" which always boomed and bloomed. I listened today as i realised i hadn't played it since the speakers arrived. Wow, how utterly different it was! The album was liquid gold into my ear and resulted in a listening session made up of previously neglected albums. What a fantastic afternoon with the sun on my neck through the window and some greatly loved albums. Interestingly i have been using my Sterling Silver Coaxial cable rather than USB or AES. My dalliance with USB appeared to be over last week when i sold the Acoustic Revive and Supra USB's. However, one caught my eye yesterday. I found a Gourd Numero Series 4255AB for less than a piece of badly pressed vinyl, so i bought it. I also have some pure Copper XLR plugs for my Wireworld 8 AES cable, which i will fit this week sometime. I then plan a 3 way comparison of all three cables. Once i have finished, that will probably satisfy any question i may still have of digital cabling. The Silver Coax is going to take some beating. It's exceptionally detailed, but rich and solid sounds with that cable in place. Kind of reminds me of having the Mutec in the chain without losing that modicum of texture. So far it's also a bargain as it's my cheapest digital cable! We should also see a LPSU in the Novafidelity X50D at some point soon. Alan has kindly offered some of his time to work his magic and get this X50D up to the standard of my old silver one. In other good news the vinyl rig is now on Angus's timetable for the mods to the tonearm. This should mean i have vinyl back and playing in a month or two, which i am really excited to hear. It's been a long wait for vinyl to return. There may also be some interesting cartridge news attached to that....but i'll disclose that nearer the time. Crazy isn't it?! Same with my system too. The SEAS drivers and Purifi do something special. Previously, many recordings were too 'poor' to bother with... Or perhaps I was wrong? Perhaps the recording was perfectly good, but my system couldn't do it justice? Whatever the reason, it's just a pleasure to choose any music and it all sounds great! Enjoy!
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 21, 2024 18:54:19 GMT
The weather has been lovely in Wolverhampton today, but even so, the system has called me back from the sun a few times to listen to some music. What i am noticing since the introduction of the Mini Vaders is a lack of severe attention to the choices i make regarding what to play. Previously i would sift albums out due to feeling they had particular issues that made them less enjoyable. One such album is Ray Lamontagne's "Trouble" which always boomed and bloomed. I listened today as i realised i hadn't played it since the speakers arrived. Wow, how utterly different it was! The album was liquid gold into my ear and resulted in a listening session made up of previously neglected albums. What a fantastic afternoon with the sun on my neck through the window and some greatly loved albums. Interestingly i have been using my Sterling Silver Coaxial cable rather than USB or AES. My dalliance with USB appeared to be over last week when i sold the Acoustic Revive and Supra USB's. However, one caught my eye yesterday. I found a Gourd Numero Series 4255AB for less than a piece of badly pressed vinyl, so i bought it. I also have some pure Copper XLR plugs for my Wireworld 8 AES cable, which i will fit this week sometime. I then plan a 3 way comparison of all three cables. Once i have finished, that will probably satisfy any question i may still have of digital cabling. The Silver Coax is going to take some beating. It's exceptionally detailed, but rich and solid sounds with that cable in place. Kind of reminds me of having the Mutec in the chain without losing that modicum of texture. So far it's also a bargain as it's my cheapest digital cable! We should also see a LPSU in the Novafidelity X50D at some point soon. Alan has kindly offered some of his time to work his magic and get this X50D up to the standard of my old silver one. In other good news the vinyl rig is now on Angus's timetable for the mods to the tonearm. This should mean i have vinyl back and playing in a month or two, which i am really excited to hear. It's been a long wait for vinyl to return. There may also be some interesting cartridge news attached to that....but i'll disclose that nearer the time. Crazy isn't it?! Same with my system too. The SEAS drivers and Purifi do something special. Previously, many recordings were too 'poor' to bother with... Or perhaps I was wrong? Perhaps the recording was perfectly good, but my system couldn't do it justice? Whatever the reason, it's just a pleasure to choose any music and it all sounds great! Enjoy! I like to think that we've unlocked the system to be honest. Whether that's true or not I don't know, but there has been a lot of kit here which I think has always been subjected to the room, which in turn has probably made a lot of it sound poor, and explains why so many people have disagreed with my findings on certain "legendary" bits of kit. There's no doubt though that since this system/room interaction has been addressed, the recordings are all way better than I've experienced before....so maybe they weren't bad at all.
|
|
|
Post by macca on Apr 21, 2024 19:22:31 GMT
Your system sounded very clean to me, not a trace of distortion or even slight roughness, but it was not smooth at the expense of the detail and resolution.
I seen people say you can only have one or the other and that's bollox, but it's not so easy to do it and you can't get there swapping cables and DACs.
|
|
Arke
Moderator
Posts: 1,259
|
Post by Arke on Apr 21, 2024 19:31:45 GMT
Crazy isn't it?! Same with my system too. The SEAS drivers and Purifi do something special. Previously, many recordings were too 'poor' to bother with... Or perhaps I was wrong? Perhaps the recording was perfectly good, but my system couldn't do it justice? Whatever the reason, it's just a pleasure to choose any music and it all sounds great! Enjoy! I like to think that we've unlocked the system to be honest. Whether that's true or not I don't know, but there has been a lot of kit here which I think has always been subjected to the room, which in turn has probably made a lot of it sound poor, and explains why so many people have disagreed with my findings on certain "legendary" bits of kit. There's no doubt though that since this system/room interaction has been addressed, the recordings are all way better than I've experienced before....so maybe they weren't bad at all. Maybe we've unlocked the system. However, my rooms have been less problematic, but only with the Vaders and Purifi has my music collection been completely unlocked... I think we've sorted the system and then got it working in your room. Either way. It works and works very well 😀
|
|
Arke
Moderator
Posts: 1,259
|
Post by Arke on Apr 21, 2024 19:33:51 GMT
Your system sounded very clean to me, not a trace of distortion or even slight roughness, but it was not smooth at the expense of the detail and resolution. I seen people say you can only have one or the other and that's bollox, but it's not so easy to do it and you can't get there swapping cables and DACs. You've nailed it there Martin. Exactly, what I've been striving for for 30 years too!
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 21, 2024 20:58:15 GMT
Your system sounded very clean to me, not a trace of distortion or even slight roughness, but it was not smooth at the expense of the detail and resolution. I seen people say you can only have one or the other and that's bollox, but it's not so easy to do it and you can't get there swapping cables and DACs. I agree The goal was that everything in the system is made/purchased to be as transparent and distortion free as humanly possible. The theory being that if it was, it wouldn't get in the way of the recording, and I don't believe any of it does. I think I have equipment that does exactly what I wanted it to do, which I did for a lot less outlay than most would expect which is greatly satisfying! The speakers have been the key to getting it all to work here though, because before that, the system sounded pretty harsh with a Purifi in. The room tuning is paying dividends, and whilst I'll admit that flogging everything to get here is probably one of the biggest squeaky bum ideas I've had, it's been worth the concern. Everything is a total joy to listen to. I honestly thought I'd be box swapping forever. You are right though, swapping cables and DACs may be enjoyable and may make things "better" to listen to, but a proper room tuning speaker will take you much further than anything you do with cables and DACs. I'm just playing with cables for fun really. The silver Coax is a beast.
|
|
|
Post by antonio on Apr 22, 2024 4:50:20 GMT
Is the sterling silver cable from China?
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 22, 2024 5:41:07 GMT
Is the sterling silver cable from China? Yes, Dave. It's Monosaudio with two WBT RCA plugs I fitted. Nothing particularly fancy, but it's quite simply superb. It's like putting the Mutec back into the system, which I was a big fan of. Substantially less money though. Seems there is more vibrancy, space in the soundstage and detail is excellent. I usually find LF to bloom a little with any silver cable, but in this system it's as tight as ever. Under £100 for the DIYers out there. Cable: a.aliexpress.com/_mLytK7g
|
|
|
Post by antonio on Apr 22, 2024 12:37:02 GMT
@bigman80 You may remember making up an interconnect for me which was sterling silver but had four cores, using Monosaudio pure copper RCA plugs. It was branded Xangsane and you did say how much you enjoyed that, but it was a bugger to make up. I use still use that cable but in my system in Cambodia.
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 22, 2024 15:38:01 GMT
@bigman80 You may remember making up an interconnect for me which was sterling silver but had four cores, using Monosaudio pure copper RCA plugs. It was branded Xangsane and you did say how much you enjoyed that, but it was a bugger to make up. I use still use that cable but in my system in Cambodia. Yes, I do remember. It was pair of cables that got me looking at AE silver cable supplies. That Xangsane was excellent.
|
|
|
Post by antonio on Apr 23, 2024 6:07:24 GMT
I'm using Xangsane OCC cable with pure copper RCA's in my uk system.
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 28, 2024 20:31:57 GMT
Friday, I had an epic listening session take place with the GOURD USB cable in situ. I'm not ready to declare a winner in the digital cable shootout, but leaving it in place for a few days has really benefitted it. I am now questioning whether i was bit hasty moving the Acoustic Revive USB on.
Either way, the GOURD is a superb cable in it's own right. Superbly textured sound with real solidity in the lows and speed and detail hin the highs. I'm really impressed.
The postie should be delivering the Gothic Silver AES cable tomorrow, so all being well i will be unwinding from my first day in the new job tomorrow evening whilst giving that a listen.
I somehow feel i will end up needing a silver USB for comparison....anyone got a spare lying around for scientific purposes?
BTW, for anyone wondering...the Topping D70S is a wonderful dac. Keep your eyes peeled...it's a keeper
|
|
|
Post by robbiegong on Apr 28, 2024 20:51:01 GMT
Friday, I had an epic listening session take place with the GOURD USB cable in situ. I'm not ready to declare a winner in the digital cable shootout, but leaving it in place for a few days has really benefitted it. I am now questioning whether i was bit hasty moving the Acoustic Revive USB on. Either way, the GOURD is a superb cable in it's own right. Superbly textured sound with real solidity in the lows and speed and detail hin the highs. I'm really impressed. The postie should be delivering the Gothic Silver AES cable tomorrow, so all being well i will be unwinding from my first day in the new job tomorrow evening whilst giving that a listen. I somehow feel i will end up needing a silver USB for comparison....anyone got a spare lying around for scientific purposes? BTW, for anyone wondering...the Topping D70S is a wonderful dac. Keep your eyes peeled...it's a keeper Acoustic Revive makes some good stuf, as you know Olster. Burn in, is essential with this stuf, in my experience. You have to have tons of patients which we dont always have when looking to properly evaluate. I found this when I went all top notch IeGO IEC's and triple C power cable and speaker cable etc - boy did all that stuf take a long time to burn in!, but when it had ..........
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 28, 2024 21:10:24 GMT
Friday, I had an epic listening session take place with the GOURD USB cable in situ. I'm not ready to declare a winner in the digital cable shootout, but leaving it in place for a few days has really benefitted it. I am now questioning whether i was bit hasty moving the Acoustic Revive USB on. Either way, the GOURD is a superb cable in it's own right. Superbly textured sound with real solidity in the lows and speed and detail hin the highs. I'm really impressed. The postie should be delivering the Gothic Silver AES cable tomorrow, so all being well i will be unwinding from my first day in the new job tomorrow evening whilst giving that a listen. I somehow feel i will end up needing a silver USB for comparison....anyone got a spare lying around for scientific purposes? BTW, for anyone wondering...the Topping D70S is a wonderful dac. Keep your eyes peeled...it's a keeper Acoustic Revive makes some good stuf, as you know Olster. Burn in, is essential with this stuf, in my experience. You have to have tons of patients which we dont always have when looking to properly evaluate. I found this when I went all top notch IeGO IEC's and triple C power cable and speaker cable etc - boy did all that stuf take a long time to burn in!, but when it had .......... I think I got impatient, in fact...I know I did.
|
|
|
Post by antonio on Apr 29, 2024 5:58:59 GMT
|
|
|
Post by lurch on Apr 30, 2024 11:09:39 GMT
Oli I know in the past you've tried a Supra usb, but I belive it was their lower spec 2.0 at ~£35. I have one of their top of the range (~£105) Excalibur USB cables here doing nothing (well 2 actually plus an Uptone Audio USB Regen) if you want to have a play with it.
|
|
|
Post by misterc on Apr 30, 2024 12:11:10 GMT
The supra is a nice cable, avoid the diamond AQ usb, best usb cable at semi senible money I've listened to is the Muon for a commerically available product takes on the big boys and then some if you can you won't regret it imho
|
|
|
Post by brucew268 on Apr 30, 2024 13:23:04 GMT
Oli I know in the past you've tried a Supra usb, but I belive it was their lower spec 2.0 at ~£35. I have one of their top of the range (~£105) Excalibur USB cables here doing nothing (well 2 actually plus an Uptone Audio USB Regen) if you want to have a play with it. John, if Oli doesn't go for it, I'd be interested to play with it and see what effect it has on my setup.
|
|
|
Post by lurch on Apr 30, 2024 16:47:02 GMT
Oli I know in the past you've tried a Supra usb, but I belive it was their lower spec 2.0 at ~£35. I have one of their top of the range (~£105) Excalibur USB cables here doing nothing (well 2 actually plus an Uptone Audio USB Regen) if you want to have a play with it. John, if Oli doesn't go for it, I'd be interested to play with it and see what effect it has on my setup. No probs Bruce, you wanna play with one of the USB Regens aswell?
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on Apr 30, 2024 18:43:31 GMT
Oli I know in the past you've tried a Supra usb, but I belive it was their lower spec 2.0 at ~£35. I have one of their top of the range (~£105) Excalibur USB cables here doing nothing (well 2 actually plus an Uptone Audio USB Regen) if you want to have a play with it. Yes please John. Happy to pay the postage (and Dave's) if required.
|
|
|
Post by brucew268 on Apr 30, 2024 18:51:42 GMT
John, if Oli doesn't go for it, I'd be interested to play with it and see what effect it has on my setup. No probs Bruce, you wanna play with one of the USB Regens aswell? No thanks on the Regen. I see Oli has said Yes, so i can queue behind him on the Excalibur unless you have two spare.
|
|
|
Post by lurch on Apr 30, 2024 19:36:57 GMT
Yep have 2. @bigman80 brucew268PM full names and addy please. Oli did you also want a Regen to play with or just the cable?
|
|
|
Post by lurch on May 1, 2024 15:17:16 GMT
Forgot to say, both cables for sale if you like them. I'm now using a Chord Epic USB I picked up dirt cheap as the muppet selling it on fleabay mislabelled it.😄😄 Didn't like it when tried one a couple of years back, but now I have a full Epic loom it seems to play nicely with its cousins.
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on May 3, 2024 20:03:38 GMT
I spent a few hours doing some cable comparisons today and decided nothing is quite doing it for me.
I got fed up, put the silver Coax on the Kenwood x9010 and popped a CD on. Listened to the whole thing and enjoyed every second of it.
I think it's time to get serious about CD and knock this streaming/file based music on the head.
|
|
|
Post by mikeyb on May 3, 2024 21:32:11 GMT
Have you tried vinyl 😂
|
|
|
Post by robbiegong on May 3, 2024 22:28:34 GMT
|
|
Bigman80
Grandmaster
The HiFi Bear/Audioaddicts/Bigbottle Owner
Posts: 16,400
|
Post by Bigman80 on May 4, 2024 4:51:16 GMT
Not for a while, but my TT should be back in the next few weeks. I just need a cartridge 🤣
|
|
|
Post by antonio on May 4, 2024 5:00:02 GMT
|
|