1: Critic's Corner, Huh? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-27, 12:28:10 (65.153.249.86)
>> In the wider world, there are far, far more people eager to criticize MQA than have taken the time to understand it. Seems to me to be a bizarrely far-fetched assertion (to the point of a paranoid .......

2: General Asylum, Some Clarity on an Extremely Confusing Topic (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-27, 12:09:56 (65.153.249.86)
Hello Chocolate Lover, You ask a great (and seemingly straight-forward) question. Unfortunately the actual answer is absurdly complex. The first problem is that the Federal Trade Commission has only c .......

3: General Asylum, RE: Marantz Tube Receiver and Speaker Recommendations (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-25, 23:27:11 (65.153.249.86)
>> What might be the best bang for the buck for an all in one system? Would be nice to keep this maybe in the 3-$500 range not even sure if its possible As far as speakers go I think I would prefer to .......

4: Critic's Corner, RE: Previous Winners Aren't Eligible (stupidly long) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-24, 16:43:26 (65.153.249.86)
>> Thank you responding at such length, Charley. But all I was doing was humorously pointing out to "inmate51" that he was criticizing Stereophile's "Products of 2017" for not being Stereophile's "Rec .......

5: Critic's Corner, +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-24, 16:21:34 (65.153.249.86)
nt .......

6: Critic's Corner, Excellent Advice + Survey on Zero Feedback and Break-In (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-24, 16:16:50 (65.153.249.86)
Excellent advice is what I've come to expect from PAR. About the only thing I can add is that some systems take more than 24 hours to fully break in. When I could still travel, my experience at trade .......

7: Critic's Corner, RE: Previous Winners Aren't Eligible (stupidly long) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-24, 11:57:44 (65.153.249.86)
And by logical extension, we should also have speaker of the season (quarter), speaker of the month (issue), and so forth? One may try to make an argument that after a full year that there is somethin .......

8: General Asylum, Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-23, 08:38:31 (65.153.249.86)
Please refer to the link below for one view on measurements. .......

9: General Asylum, RE: Marantz Tube Receiver and Speaker Recommendations (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-23, 08:20:23 (65.153.249.86)
I would recommend looking at the photos available on vintage Marantz equipment sites. A receiver comprises three components into one box: 1) FM/AM tuner 2) Preamplifier (including RIAA equalizer for p .......

10: Critic's Corner, RE: MQA's claims, published in the January 2018 issue of Stereophile? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-22, 15:14:50 (65.153.249.86)
Thanks for the link. That is truly scary. Talk about an organization obsessed with power, control, and money. Where does music fit in to their equation? Or the artist? Or the end user? Equally scary t .......

11: Critic's Corner, RE: Previous Winners Aren't Eligible (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-22, 14:43:43 (65.153.249.86)
You make a strong case. That is how JGH used to run the recommended components in Stereophile. .......

12: Critic's Corner, RE: Lexicon (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-22, 14:42:02 (65.153.249.86)
>> Us roadies didn't engage in drugs, until after everything was back in the truck. Then we'd light a joint and head home. Makes total sense. While the show may have been more enjoyable in altered ci .......

13: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Thanks for keeping me honest (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 19:36:09 (65.153.249.86)
>> Even if there was a distinction, I still don't understand how placing a wooden block in proximity to an electrical signal can change the electrical signal. To my knowledge, wood is not an electrica .......

14: Critic's Corner, RE: MQA's claims, published in the January 2018 issue of Stereophile? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 19:00:37 (65.153.249.86)
>> In this context, it means the "framer" is closing their mind to the possibility that the forthcoming article may have legitimate information that they would actually find relevant, perhaps even per .......

15: Critic's Corner, RE: False canard - is that fake news for ducks? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 18:51:58 (65.153.249.86)
I even looked up "canard" to make sure I was using it correctly - but I must have forgotten it pretty quickly. Coming right at you from the Ministry of Redundancy Department. Sorry! >> As for objectiv .......

16: Critic's Corner, RE: Lexicon (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 18:40:00 (65.153.249.86)
>> Add in the literally swinging mirror ball lighting effect, and, well... everybody had a great time! I think there was likely one more indispensable element - drugs. When I look at the old concert .......

17: Critic's Corner, RE: That business model works for an artist whom has a fan base... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 18:28:58 (65.153.249.86)
Just as with any new ventures, there are more questions than answers. I think all we can do is to wait and see. I plan to keep an eye on it, as it seems to me that there is some potential. And I could .......

18: General Asylum, RE: YES, the ADC XLM phono cartridge (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 10:53:24 (65.153.249.86)
As I recall, the top-of-the-line Shure (V-15 Type III) was somewhere around $100 street price. The next one down was the M-93 ED - street price around $20, but a big step down sonically. (The bonded d .......

19: Critic's Corner, RE: MQA's claims, published in the January 2018 issue of Stereophile? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 10:47:24 (65.153.249.86)
>> I was gently pointing out that as the article he was criticizing had yet to be published, "framing" was all he could be doing. And precisely what is "wrong" with framing? I used to be extremely fr .......

20: Critic's Corner, RE: Feedback ubiquity (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 10:21:06 (65.153.249.86)
>> Negative feedback is part of nature In my opinion this is a false canard, regularly trotted out to defend the use of negative feedback. Here is why I believe it to be false: While it is obviously .......

21: Critic's Corner, RE: In Letters to the Editor in this month's Ab Snd, MQA is explained very simply. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 10:08:14 (65.153.249.86)
>> I remember back in the 1970s when you could buy a little reverb unit to add into to a stereo system Yes, while others probably also made these, Pioneer was the biggest exponent of this type of box. .......

22: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: False equivalence (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-21, 09:49:17 (65.153.249.86)
Thanks for the excellent, thought-provoking post. I appreciate your approach to intellectual rigor when making arguments/investigations. I find them to be of vital importance - *especially* in the are .......

23: Critic's Corner, RE: In Letters to the Editor in this month's Ab Snd, MQA is explained very simply. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 12:20:15 (65.153.249.86)
Simply, yet incorrectly. .......

24: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: False equivalence (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 08:15:45 (65.153.249.86)
>> But, if I've misrepresented your position, do please say so. It's OK - even though I didn't say it, I've heard the same differences between wood species when used as cable risers. I don't even try .......

25: Computer Audio Asylum, Better yet, watch this TED talk by Evelyn (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 08:06:15 (65.153.249.86)
See link below. She has obviously trained her body to hear things most of us can't hear with our ears. Also I met a man who had been blinded for about 6 months. During that time his other senses becam .......

26: Critic's Corner, Kal was pointing out the fact that I mixed up Geerslutz and the Steve Hoffman Forums... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 07:49:15 (65.153.249.86)
...even after he left me a clue. .......

27: Critic's Corner, I agree with Dave K point-by-point. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 07:47:16 (65.153.249.86)
I read it a bit too quickly, and Dave spent the time it deserved. For me the basic take-away is that we (as audiophiles), have come to appreciate recordings with a lot of "air" and "space", while much .......

28: Critic's Corner, RE: Dear Jim Austin, (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 02:15:51 (65.153.249.86)
>> I'm not seeing BS on the part of the people developing MQA. They did look at a lot of things in an old fashioned or old school way. The BS started with the marketing of MQA. I think this is someth .......

29: Critic's Corner, RE: Leaping to conclusions (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 01:59:16 (65.153.249.86)
I'd say we were both guilty of leaping to conclusions. Lots of "highly regarded" companies have gone out of business. My example of Halcro going out of business was not due to a lack of "business mana .......

30: Critic's Corner, RE: RE Your "take-home points" #3 (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 01:31:11 (65.153.249.86)
>> Nevertheless, measurements can be helpful. Yes, for example Ayre publishes the measurements for electronics that we think are helpful, including things like: Weight - will I need a friend to help .......

31: Critic's Corner, Thanks for the clarification. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 01:10:07 (65.153.249.86)
If he actually were a pro engineer, he likely wouldn't have mixed up the role of the mixing engineer and the mastering engineer like he did in that post. Still I found it helpful, as I wasn't really s .......

32: Critic's Corner, RE: So depending on how the recording was mastered.. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 01:07:18 (65.153.249.86)
As VinylHeathen points out, the answer is "no". Unless MQA has been "cheating", the only way their process could possibly change the sound is by using a digital filter. Products have had user-selectab .......

33: Critic's Corner, Sorry, I missed my earlier error. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 00:56:12 (65.153.249.86)
I goofed on the original post. I rarely visit the Steve Hoffman forums and have been on Gearslutz a lot lately. Clearly I got mixed up. I'm not really sure if most of the people on SH are pros or look .......

34: Critic's Corner, RE: Interesting article... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 00:49:55 (65.153.249.86)
>> What artist only wants income from streaming their music? I think this highlights the inherent conflict of the current situation. The artists hate it, as they make next to nothing on streaming. In .......

35: Critic's Corner, RE: Let's have some clarity, ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 00:45:38 (65.153.249.86)
>> I don't see anything about this announcement, the backers, nothing in particular to suggest this is "It". ... then again, could be ;) I agree completely. It's just that this is the first thing I'v .......

36: Critic's Corner, RE: Are Record Labels Irrelevant? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-20, 00:41:30 (65.153.249.86)
>> I somehow don't see UMG, Sony and Warners simply folding up their tents and moving away. I don't either. The horsewhip and buggy makers didn't just instantly stop, and they weren't multi-billion do .......

37: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: VERY interesting! Even speakercable, huh? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 08:14:39 (65.153.249.86)
The more revealing your speakers, the more obvious *any* differences will be. The time I tried it was with three-way Avalon Ascents with a low-mid crossover around 400Hz. All the cables were identical .......

38: Critic's Corner, RE: What does this have to do with Gearslutz? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 07:53:51 (65.153.249.86)
Yes, I'm sure GearSlutz wants the clicks just as Stereophile does. JA is clear that it's not good manners to simply copy the text from another website, and I agree with him. .......

39: Critic's Corner, RE: Are Record Labels Irrelevant? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 07:51:26 (65.153.249.86)
>> The internet really created a new frontier regarding the music biz. And this seems to be the first serious response to those changes. (Obviously downloads that eliminated the need for physical med .......

40: Critic's Corner, RE: Also seems that the streaming services are keeping track of what we listen to.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 07:46:24 (65.153.249.86)
Agree! >> who thinks my name is Pierre and that I live in France I'm not so sure about that! Possibly if you are using a VPN or a proxy server or Tor, but I've been surprised at how they can identify .......

41: Critic's Corner, RE: Are Record Labels Irrelevant? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 07:24:27 (65.153.249.86)
Hello Peter, I cannot argue with any of the points you have made, especially that the labels are definitely not currently irrelevant. So I suppose that one could argue that my subject heading is merel .......

42: Critic's Corner, RE: by "expert in the area of analog circuit design", I presume you mean (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 04:25:10 (65.153.249.86)
>> His analog designs relied on the use of as much feedback as possible. Thanks for the additional info. It is possible that this is why Deltec no longer exists. That was also the philosophy of Bruce .......

43: Critic's Corner, RE: no (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 04:19:10 (65.153.249.86)
>> record labels to filter out the rubbish from the good stuff Yes, that is a fair point. That would be one of the challenges of any new label - which this clearly is. I doubt they will be like BandC .......

44: Critic's Corner, Are Record Labels Irrelevant? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 01:19:58 (65.153.249.86)
A new powerhouse was announced this week that could seriously weaken the strength currently enjoyed by record labels. (link below) .......

45: Critic's Corner, Mastering Engineer Explains MQA (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-19, 01:14:30 (65.153.249.86)
Gearslutz is a forum for the "pro" community and has a forum dedicated to mastering engineers. One of them explains very modern mastering engineers would have a very different reaction to MQA than eit .......

46: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Life is a balance......................... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-18, 12:28:17 (65.153.249.86)
>> I am pretty impressed with the P-5xe when using the balanced inputs given the unit's reasonable cost. I agree - given the caveat. On the other hand, I don't believe your other components need any .......

47: Digital Drive, RE: In the market for a new DVD player 4K etc.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-18, 12:13:39 (65.153.249.86)
>> I have several DACs but I thought the Oppo only puts out Dolby etc. so I never tried that. The digital audio out is limited (true for all sources). Almost all can do 96/24 two channel, many can do .......

48: Critic's Corner, RE: by "expert in the area of analog circuit design", I presume you mean (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-18, 11:58:48 (65.153.249.86)
>> Rob Watts who has his own DAC IP and consults for Chord. He began his audio career designing analog products for Deltec that were highly acclaimed in the UK but are not well know in this country. .......

49: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Life is a balance......................... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-16, 17:24:55 (71.218.5.4)
>> Trust me when I say he is not going in circles! Hi Steve - thanks for the kind words. I would be pretty happy with that system, too! I've found that good electronics can make pretty much any speak .......

50: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: I stream to my Lap Top using WiFi... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-16, 15:52:14 (71.218.5.4)
>> and can tell no difference from WiFi and Ethernet. Yours is the first report I've heard like this. Everybody else I've spoken with has heard a big improvement with the wired connection. Obviously .......

51: Digital Drive, RE: Off topic question (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-16, 15:42:59 (71.218.5.4)
>> I'm also looking into class D due to their high watts, light weight and small size. Although back 10 years that also meant high failure and bad sound. But it's been awhile so perhaps new technology .......

52: Digital Drive, RE: In the market for a new DVD player 4K etc.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-16, 15:35:01 (71.218.5.4)
>> I currently have an OPPO BDP-83 which has served me very well but the audio isn't too pleasing. I would strongly recommend purchasing an external DAC. Buying a newer Oppo will be only a sideways m .......

53: Critic's Corner, RE: "Problem Solving" to the existing Dac "Paradigm" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-16, 14:48:07 (71.218.5.4)
>> I looks to me like that is what is happening (in the language of Thomas Kuhn). In some cases, it seems like designers are creating problems with the existing Dac paradigm, that don't really exist i .......

54: Critic's Corner, An interesting review/interview (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-15, 21:40:20 (71.218.5.4)
Linked below is a very interesting review between a reviewer/user and a designer/manufacturer. It is not of an audio product, but the similarities between this field FPV (First-Person Viewing) of remo .......

55: Critic's Corner, There is a guy who is excellent with this type of thing (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-15, 17:47:09 (71.218.5.4)
>> if someone were to state they were going to actually provide the scanning and publish it, some of us might be willing to donate old issues. Please see the link below for a super-helpful and super- .......

56: Critic's Corner, RE: Blind Test (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-13, 21:23:28 (71.218.5.4)
>> I can't speak on behalf of Robert Harley, but both Peter McGraph and I have done a lot of comparisons and feel that the MQA versions do tend to sound better. It seems to me that the biggest proble .......

57: Digital Drive, RE: Off topic question (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-13, 20:45:15 (71.218.5.4)
>> Are your power amps (VX-5 Twenty) voltage switchable Unfortunately, no. It would simplify our inventory and production tremendously (power transformers are one of the single most expensive parts i .......

58: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Life is a balance......................... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-13, 20:31:02 (71.218.5.4)
>> I don't know why so many, including competent electronic engineers (though few who are genuinely innovate in audio) find it so hard to grasp that key parameters in perception and the engineering as .......

59: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Life is a balance......................... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-13, 07:49:27 (71.218.5.4)
>> If I started playing with wooden blocks, I would not be 'Balanced'. That's fair enough. What makes for a "balanced life" clearly varies from person-to-person. When I first became an "industry prof .......

60: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: What If?.. Oppo 205 v Accuphase DP560 v Esoteric K03X v Marantz SA10s (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-12, 23:26:46 (71.218.5.4)
Here's a link to a video that shows how hard it can be to support something made with "obsolete" technology. Long, but may be of interest. .......

61: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: After Reading (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-12, 08:15:04 (71.218.5.4)
>> Stepping back out of the 'sound' and into the 'music' is so much more enjoyable. Taking that to the logical extreme, just buy the cheapest thing that makes noise (a Chinese Bose copy?) and spend a .......

62: Critic's Corner, RE: And Also a Shame (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-12, 07:40:09 (71.218.5.4)
>> they could probably make money by refurbishing appliances, electronics and other household goods by making things that last, replacing internal parts as needed Sorry. By law, all publicly held US .......

63: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 07:21:47 (71.218.5.4)
>> can you recommend cables? do they REALLY make a difference, or is that concept just nuts? After you have listened enough and developed your skills ("practice makes perfect"), oddly enough *everyth .......

64: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Just say "NO!" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 06:36:54 (71.218.5.4)
>> I understand that I can biamp the Salon2s very easily While the Salon 2's are not perfect, they are much more revealing of upstream changes than most loudspeakers on the market. As such, if there .......

65: Critic's Corner, RE: And Also a Shame (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 06:22:48 (71.218.5.4)
>> Makes me wonder why Meridian is still in business. Did you miss the part about the bulk of their revenue coming from designing OEM car audio for Jaguar/Land Rover, but that the products themselves .......

66: Critic's Corner, Bizarre... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 06:17:35 (71.218.5.4)
First you completely dodged my polite questions. Then you link to a speaker review that I had nothing to do with. Finally you make a ridiculous analogy: >> saying only pistonic drivers can make a good .......

67: Critic's Corner, RE: "About the only people that do are the minions of the ultra-rich" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 06:07:43 (71.218.5.4)
Hi Shovel, No arguments from me. I suspect that at one time Jesse Jackson was sincere but eventually became corrupted by money and power. I don't know that much about Al Sharpton, but the little I do .......

68: Critic's Corner, +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 05:44:39 (71.218.5.4)
nt .......

69: Critic's Corner, RE: And Also a Shame (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 05:41:33 (71.218.5.4)
>> I thought i once read that Bob Stuart married into a very influencial publishing family. Yes, Bob's wife is one of many Taylors - heirs/heiresses to the fortune of the founder of The Boston Globe. .......

70: Critic's Corner, RE: Blind Test (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 05:23:18 (71.218.5.4)
>> Either way, if there's a difference, MQA has changed the sound, and that's not good. Apparently not so, in the opinions of Robert Harley, John Atkinson, and Peter McGrath... Their position is that .......

71: Critic's Corner, And Also a Shame (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 05:09:22 (71.218.5.4)
I started downloading them. I was hoping to get the very first issue, but the earliest one on Archive.org was July 1947 and the editor's introduction made reference to a May 1947 issue... :-( Then the .......

72: Critic's Corner, Stellar! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 04:52:47 (71.218.5.4)
Whoa, that is absolutely amazing!. Too bad the newest issue I could see was 1969. I would *love* to have the entire collection. You may have noticed that the original title was "Audio Engineering". I .......

73: Critic's Corner, RE: LOL! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 04:42:51 (71.218.5.4)
>> AA needs a "Critic's of the Critic's Corner"...where no "reviewers" are allowed to post. That might be fun. :) I'm not so sure about that. Nobody from TAS has posted here in years (as far as I kno .......

74: Digital Drive, Please don't put words in my mouth (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 04:20:11 (71.218.5.4)
I never said that $500 for a "lifetime" (I have no idea whose) subscription to Roon or any piece of software was "a steal". You are correct that it is only a program that organizes and plays music tha .......

75: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Mine lasted 7-8 years (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 04:07:44 (71.218.5.4)
>> Then the LED display went bonkers. It's actually a VFD (Vacuum Fluorescent Display). Even in non-working condition, you will likely be able to sell it on eBay for $20 to $50 for someone to either .......

76: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: What If?.. Oppo 205 v Accuphase DP560 v Esoteric K03X v Marantz SA10s (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 04:01:12 (71.218.5.4)
Yes. Contact the factory at 303-442-7300 x0 if you have one that needs help. .......

77: Computer Audio Asylum, Apologies (stupidly long yet likely educational) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-11, 03:58:10 (71.218.5.4)
If either your ears are insufficiently trained or your system is so low resolution that you can't hear the difference these make, you have my condolences. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. .......

78: Computer Audio Asylum, Nice post! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 10:57:29 (71.218.5.4)
It all boils down to personal preferences and personal priorities. The only problem comes in when the information required to make an informed decision is suppressed. .......

79: Computer Audio Asylum, Esactly (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 10:54:36 (71.218.5.4)
>> It's difficult to filter out the facts from fiction Especially here in the US where both the media and the government are controlled by giant mega-corporations whose sole motive is profit. If you .......

80: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: he most recent research shows that it requires less than 10 years (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 10:46:32 (71.218.5.4)
Um. The reason they know is *because* they have spiked. Four times more common brain tumors in heavy cell phone users than no or light cell phone use. Based on studying people at age 30 who began usin .......

81: Computer Audio Asylum, That's rich (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 10:43:40 (71.218.5.4)
Using an internet link to discard things posted on the internet - "Don't believe everything you read on the internet". As Rafiki told the young Liong King, "Look deeper..." .......

82: Critic's Corner, LOL! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 10:33:14 (71.218.5.4)
That is hilarious for those who know the context of "Dr. Lirpa". For those who don't I will explain: Audio magazine used to be the 3rd largest audio-focused magazine in the US for decades, following S .......

83: Critic's Corner, True, just as you would be shocked... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 10:08:21 (71.218.5.4)
...by the fact that amplifiers can sound far better than your apparent reference, the Benchmark power amp. But just like any skill, honing it requires years of practice (except for those naturally gif .......

84: Critic's Corner, RE: It ain't just a claim. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 09:57:35 (71.218.5.4)
Hi Will, It doesn't seem that hard for most people to admit to making a mistake. I don't understand those who do find this to be not just difficult, but darned near impossible. We are all just flawed .......

85: Critic's Corner, RE: Glad I didn't waste precious time learning about MQA (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 09:51:42 (71.218.5.4)
Good for you! Many people smelled something wrong about the whole thing from the very beginneing. MQA was able to stifle most of the dissent through completely lop-sided NDAs, while at the same time u .......

86: Critic's Corner, One of the problems of the internet (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 09:40:53 (71.218.5.4)
I assume that your post was being satirical, and if so was quite funny. But with a "smiley face", it could be easily misinterpreted as a serious post and therefore offensive. Just speaking from experi .......

87: Critic's Corner, In my opinion... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 09:34:19 (71.218.5.4)
Both Rick W. and Shovel1973 are *both* right. The example of the white readership of Ebony magazine mirroring the black readership of Stereophile perfectly illustrates a problem in the hi-fi industry. .......

88: Critic's Corner, Completely agree (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 09:04:53 (71.218.5.4)
And I love your signature line as well! .......

89: Critic's Corner, LOL! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 09:03:18 (71.218.5.4)
Thanks for the great reminder. In my old age I keep forgetting even some of the best details from superb films. .......

90: Digital Drive, Kind of (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 08:41:54 (71.218.5.4)
Oppos are very good quality for the money, and even reasonable performance for the money, but they are not even close to reaching the level of performance (audio or video) that more expensive equipmen .......

91: Digital Drive, +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 08:31:09 (71.218.5.4)
nt .......

92: Digital Drive, Interesting... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 08:28:51 (71.218.5.4)
...that you had to spend nearly 3x the price of the product for an "accessory" power supply to get the full benefit of the product. Every electronic circuit in the world, from audio to video to comput .......

93: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: What If?.. Oppo 205 v Accuphase DP560 v Esoteric K03X v Marantz SA10s (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 08:21:02 (71.218.5.4)
>> As far as I could tell, the DX-5 was never really aimed at the home theater crowd anyway. It was foremost a stereo universal player. I can see why you would think that, but it is not accurate. Wi .......

94: Computer Audio Asylum, PS (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 07:42:56 (71.218.3.216)
I absolutely love your signature line! (As with all of my favorite humor, it's only funny because it's true.) .......

95: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Actual Bluetooth Answers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 07:39:55 (71.218.3.216)
>> As I understand it, the mutagenic effects of radiation are cummulative so fortunately at my age the damage going forward should be minimal :) Yes, this is true for both ionizing radiation (eg, ra .......

96: Computer Audio Asylum, Actual Bluetooth Answers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 04:30:07 (71.218.3.216)
Sorry there is so much misinformation out on the internet. The fact is that Bluetooth is more-or-less a lower powered version of Wi-Fi. It was developed so that battery-operated devices (such as mice, .......

97: Critic's Corner, +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 03:14:03 (71.218.3.216)
mt .......

98: Critic's Corner, RE: Sorry if this was posted earlier (didn't find it) - "Schiitting on MQA". (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 02:54:07 (71.218.3.216)
>> I don't think that NDAs are that unusual and they have a long history. True... *But*, I have talked with many, many companies before about novel ideas I wanted to commercialize with them in a part .......

99: Critic's Corner, Great advice! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 02:04:05 (71.218.3.216)
Unfortunately, I'm too old and too busy to try and learn more about more things. I've done my best to be a "Renaissance Man" while trying to avoid "jack of all trades, master or none". But I think I'm .......

100: Critic's Corner, Thanks so much for holding the hand of an old dense person (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 01:58:35 (71.218.3.216)
Cheers! .......

101: Critic's Corner, Perfectly stated (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 01:56:36 (71.218.3.216)
I suspect we agree on much more than would seem apparent from what is posted on the internet. .......

102: Critic's Corner, RE: For a pie you have a thin crust (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 01:52:06 (71.218.3.216)
FWIW, I thought that you had mis-posted and meant to attach your comment to Atkinson't reply. My perception is that BGCP "won" that round. I guess you concluded the opposite. I do have to admit that t .......

103: Critic's Corner, RE: Reading with amusement the last few weeks' worth of threads, some observations - and a question: (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 01:46:51 (71.218.3.216)
>> researchers at McGill University that they would be performing blind testing of MQA As there have been literally zero DBTs accepted by the scientific establishment that show any possible audible d .......

104: Critic's Corner, RE: Ooooo.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 01:38:04 (71.218.3.216)
And I've been threatened with lawsuits for posting things on forums that are true. In some cases I backed down and in other cases did not. .......

105: Critic's Corner, RE: Sorry if this was posted earlier (didn't find it) - "Schiitting on MQA". (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-10, 01:24:51 (71.218.3.216)
>> I do not feel that I am able to name him as he pointed out to us that he is under an NDA in respect of MQA Let me take a wild guess - Tony Faulkner. And in a phrase that every Brit will understand .......

106: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: To make it worst, the OPPO 83 BDP player has a ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 22:04:43 (71.218.3.216)
>> OPPO 83 BDP player has a prone to fail CD-rom mechanism. Many last only a year or two and they fail Not in my experience. Oppo lied to Ayre about being able to supply back-up transports, and when .......

107: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Thank for the additional info! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 21:22:55 (71.218.3.216)
Excellent information - thanks for sharing! .......

108: Digital Drive, Completely agree (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 21:17:00 (71.218.3.216)
Thanks for stopping in. .......

109: Critic's Corner, RE: Pretty much already happening... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 21:02:32 (71.218.3.216)
I think we are basically on the same page. Many of the audio manufacturing jobs have moved back to North America (NAFTA) - especially in car audio, which is the biggest profit center of them all - ove .......

110: Critic's Corner, All great quiestions! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 20:08:20 (71.218.3.216)
Unfortunately I don't have any great answers. Not even any "hand-waving" ones. Sorry. There is an interesting interview with digital audio engineer John Swenson linked below. I'm still trying to figur .......

111: Critic's Corner, RE: Oh dear. Social justice warriors descending upon the proud progressives at Stereophile to... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 19:16:08 (71.218.3.216)
>> fresh milk is markedly superior in taste than homo homogenized. Also healthier. The homogenization and pasteurization of milk both break down many micro-nutrients that help keep us healthy. Humans .......

112: Critic's Corner, Thanks very much! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 19:07:45 (71.218.3.216)
The links you provided seemed to be to PDFs and such. Are there any links to the podcasts themselves? Cheers! .......

113: Critic's Corner, RE: comprise (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 19:02:07 (71.218.3.216)
>> There is no problem using comprised to mean composed of, or made up of. The original definition of comprise meant "wholly inclusive". So when using comprise in a sentence, my understanding is that .......

114: Critic's Corner, Yep! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 18:22:31 (71.218.3.216)
Another good one that I also used to misuse with great regularity. It's amazing what one can learn from a dictionary... :-) .......

115: Critic's Corner, Huh? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 17:16:47 (71.218.3.216)
>> You honestly believe that the woman in your scenario would be shunned simply because she's a woman? I guess that's one thing that is less-than-helpful with the internet instead of actual human com .......

116: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 16:20:15 (71.218.3.216)
>> The garage system, however, takes me back to my first "serious" system when I was 15 using New Advents. I am amazed at how good they can sound once I replaced the Logitech Touch player using its bu .......

117: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Part of the decline of the "high-end" in audio (stupidly long, but possibly worth it) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 15:27:15 (71.218.3.216)
>> i thought i was buying a HIGH END CD player the OPPO, for ?? $1500.?? Yes, for any "normal" person, $1500 *is* very high-end for a disc player! That was the entire purpose for the Chinese governme .......

118: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 05:58:19 (71.218.3.216)
>> Is their any place in NYC one may hear the Ayre K 5xe (mp)? As listed on Ayre's website, the NYC dealer is: New York Ciamara 71 Nassau Street, Suite 15C New York, New York 10038 Tel: 844-CIAMARA s .......

119: Critic's Corner, RE: False assumptions lead to false conclusions (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 02:47:59 (71.218.3.216)
>> I am unclear here, as I thought, in response to your comments to Sue above, that the B&W speakers are underdamped in the critical midrange, which, you claim, explained her preference for the Meridi .......

120: Critic's Corner, RE: Pretty much already happening... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 02:09:00 (71.218.3.216)
>> Great Western manufacture may require high prices because of high labor cost, in which case they will always play to a small market. Think Maserati. Um. Did you know that Maserati went out of busi .......

121: Critic's Corner, OMG! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 01:15:19 (71.218.3.216)
That is brilliantly hysterically funny on so many levels... I was LOL for a full minute - great job, and thanks for sharing that! .......

122: Critic's Corner, RE: Question for all industry Insiders (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 00:23:45 (71.218.3.216)
Hi Stehno, I am good friends with John Curl and we converse regularly, both via e-mail and telephone. If you would kindly give a link to the thread (DIY Audio?), I would be glad to read and comment. C .......

123: Critic's Corner, RE: Man, its 2017. How many black reviewers does S'phile have? How about other hifi mags/e-zines? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 00:19:28 (71.218.3.216)
Here's another scenario with which anybody who has ever worked retail in an audio shop can relate: Imagine you are an intelligent, attractive, single white female, with a good income, and you walk una .......

124: Critic's Corner, +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-08, 00:11:40 (71.218.3.216)
mt .......

125: Critic's Corner, Rick is not trolling (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 23:23:36 (71.218.3.216)
Rick is simply stating the obvious truth. Open your eyes and wake up. .......

126: Critic's Corner, Exactly my point (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 23:16:55 (71.218.3.216)
>> That's an old Yamaha CA-1010 integrated amp. Probably the best $400 I've spent in a very long time. Highly recommended if you can find one in decent condition. That is exactly one of the points I .......

127: Critic's Corner, +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 22:15:14 (71.218.3.216)
nt .......

128: Critic's Corner, Touché (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 22:11:55 (71.218.3.216)
nt .......

129: Critic's Corner, PS and OT (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 22:09:00 (71.218.3.216)
>> comprised of Completely off-topic and part of my OCD is the misuse of the word "comprised". The word you meant to use was "composed". They are two different words with two different meanings. Unfo .......

130: Critic's Corner, Thanks very much! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 21:13:07 (71.218.3.216)
It's great to get a peek behind the curtains at TAS. .......

131: Critic's Corner, Help? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-07, 18:24:52 (71.218.3.216)
>> While listening to Performance Today on APR, I noted a story asking a similar question about the dearth of black performers in the classical music world. Fred Childs interviewed one performer who i .......

132: Critic's Corner, RE: Pretty much already happening... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-06, 23:20:40 (71.218.3.216)
>> And we will no longer pay big bucks for mediocre Asian goods with Western names on the face plates. I guess that's why Classe is out of business. Lets's see, where should we draw the line? Is it O .......

133: Critic's Corner, Ouch! That Hurts! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-06, 22:09:49 (71.218.3.216)
Here's what real mastering engineers think about MQA .......

134: Critic's Corner, RE: Question for all industry Insiders, Pistonic drivers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-06, 20:20:07 (71.218.3.216)
>> Hope you are not describing those unnatural sounding Ceramic drivers or dynamic limited dome midrange /tweeters , Pistonic in the bass is a big advantage, but you will have a hard time beating the .......

135: Critic's Corner, RE: Question for all industry Insiders (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-06, 08:21:57 (23.24.137.117)
Great questions, all. I wish I had a crystal ball to answer them for you. The only thing I can point out is the fallacy in your questions. For example, it is only logical to question the efficacy of ( .......

136: Critic's Corner, RE: Let's have our hearing tested and see who wins that one (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-06, 08:04:33 (23.24.137.117)
Hi Sue, Thanks for responding. I've no doubts whatsoever that your tested hearing acuity exceeds mine - probably by a long way. >> That Ayre CD player I reviewed was a little rough around the edges, a .......

137: Critic's Corner, Thanks for the link (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-06, 02:01:24 (23.24.137.117)
A very interesting conversation, somewhat reminiscent of "My Dinner with Andre". My brain doesn't work nearly that quickly - it amazes me how people can "think on their feet" like that. Cheers! ::: TO .......

138: Critic's Corner, RE: Am I missing something? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 22:54:58 (23.24.137.117)
Wow! That's some heavy reading. I clicked on the link to the IEET and it was even heavier. Thanks for the links. .......

139: Critic's Corner, RE: ... don't care about finding the next big thing (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 22:23:40 (23.24.137.117)
>> It seems to me that the appropriate thing is to just accept that this particular reviewer doesn't care about the next big thing. Along with some other reviewers, as Rick W suggests below. You could .......

140: Critic's Corner, Thanks very much! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 21:13:47 (23.24.137.117)
Thank you for clarifying, as I did not see my error. You are right - I made a big blunder. Deep apologies to all. .......

141: Critic's Corner, RE: Not trying, but succeeding ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 20:09:11 (23.24.137.117)
>> The fact that Sue may be an outlier in the reviewer population in so far as responses to "M/F/Other", that implies nothing about whether she's an outlier as a reviewer. I know this is politically .......

142: Critic's Corner, RE: What Happened in the Last 30 Years? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 19:51:05 (23.24.137.117)
One of the problems almost everyone faces is that 99.9% of all loudspeakers ever made are horribly colored due to diaphragm resonances. Then one is left trying to build a house of cards by balancing d .......

143: Critic's Corner, RE: Glass CDs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 19:34:33 (23.24.137.117)
The system in use that day comprised: Ayre DX-5-DSD Blu-ray player used as a transport Ayre QX-5 Twenty DAC Ayre KX-R Twenty preamplifier Ayre MX-R Twenty monoblock amplifiers TAD Ref One loudspeakers .......

144: Critic's Corner, RE: Glass CDs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 19:21:34 (23.24.137.117)
>> downloading the digital files should technically even be better In theory, yes. In practice it means that you have to have a computer attached to your audio system to play back that "pristine" fil .......

145: Digital Drive, Much like automatic anything, it almost always does the wrong thing - automatically. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 19:00:07 (23.24.137.117)
This applies to automatic transmissions in cars, auto-correct spell checking and everything in between. It does the right thing MOST of the time for MOST users, but there is nothing like having full c .......

146: Hi-Rez Highway, Thank for the additional info! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 18:53:13 (23.24.137.117)
I would have thought that Sony would have relaxed the restrictions once they dropped SACD and essentially made it open source. To the best of my knowledge, the earlier generation players would play a .......

147: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: What If?.. Oppo 205 v Accuphase DP560 v Esoteric K03X v Marantz SA10s (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 18:36:07 (23.24.137.117)
>> So are you saying mods for the 205 would be a waste of money? I'm saying that both the media and the consumers have been brainwashed into thinking that this junk is even remotely capable of true h .......

148: Computer Audio Asylum, Best answer (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 02:56:50 (23.24.137.117)
Abe has the best answer - you want your USB DAC on the port that has the least other traffic on it. This is one of the problems with the Audio Asylum software - old topics drop out of sight and out of .......

149: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Marantz SA-10 Plays SACD-R discs? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 02:43:27 (23.24.137.117)
If it will play DVD-R's it will play SACD-R's. The only difference between SACD and DVD is an added layer of encryption, usually called "pit-width modulation. This affects the strength of the reflecte .......

150: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: What If?.. Oppo 205 v Accuphase DP560 v Esoteric K03X v Marantz SA10s (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 02:33:56 (23.24.137.117)
Video especially contributed to the decline of the high-end world. The only people who could afford the licenses were the Japanese (and now Chinese) giants, that don't know how to design something tha .......

151: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Comparing SACD ISO and converted to PCM on foobar (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 02:26:45 (23.24.137.117)
>> Can inmates here confirm my observation? In my experience, almost any processing applied to the digital audio signal will degrade its sound quality. My strong recommendation is to play any music i .......

152: Digital Drive, It's not just the voltage selector switch (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 02:19:08 (23.24.137.117)
>> That switch is often overlooked and can be a weak link The Oppo products all use switching power supplies (except the SE versions which use linear supplies for the audio circuitry only). I've never .......

153: Digital Drive, RE: This modification is dangerous! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 02:00:43 (23.24.137.117)
So is life. At any moment you could be killed by a meteorite. Or on your next trip to the convenience store (probably to buy cigarettes), an out-of-control semi-truck could run a red light and kill yo .......

154: General Asylum, RE: Troubling Copyright Practice and Question....... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 01:58:38 (23.24.137.117)
I'm not so sure that "The 5th Dimension" was the "original artist", as the song was written by Jimmy Webb, according to your link. If that is really the case, the The 5th Dimension must have been one .......

155: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Cary SLP98P- F1 vs. Atma-Sphere MP-3 (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 01:52:29 (23.24.137.117)
I haven't heard any of the components you've listed, but the Atma-Sphere is definitely zero feedback, while the Cary is possibly zero feedback for the line stage, but almost certainly not for the phon .......

156: General Asylum, RE: Powering a tube amp without speakers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 01:20:38 (23.24.137.117)
Thanks for the info Abe. That fits with my observations posted below. .......

157: Critic's Corner, Thanks! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 01:14:19 (23.24.137.117)
That was one of the all-time great movie scenes. Did you know that the actor, Rutger Hauer, improvised those lines? An absolutely amazing performance. It is also the inspiration for ex-Stereophile col .......

158: Critic's Corner, RE: Aargh. Stop digging. nt (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 00:54:45 (23.24.137.117)
Hi Rick, I can only presume that you are telling me that I've dug myself into a hole with an earlier post, and this post is only digging myself deeper into the hole. I honestly don't understand, so th .......

159: Critic's Corner, RE: Guilty of... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 00:50:34 (23.24.137.117)
Thanks for the post. Even though this episode happened just earlier this year, I had never heard of it. The first link I found was to Wikipedia, where it states "According to Wired, Google's internal .......

160: Critic's Corner, RE: Well, here is a start... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-05, 00:34:58 (23.24.137.117)
>> I am missing the fact here. I've read Fremer during the course of his tenure at Stereophile, and I've not seen any evidence of his idolizing Payor. If Mr. Hansen has some inside information, then i .......

161: Critic's Corner, RE: "And I know that feedback steals the soul from the music"... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 21:12:54 (23.24.137.117)
>> Isn't a tonne of negative feedback utilized to linearize cutting head response? Absolutely true. There are some places where the sonic effects of negative feedback are far less deleterious to soun .......

162: Critic's Corner, Nice post (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 21:02:43 (23.24.137.117)
Thank you for being honest. >> I'm retired now, but while working I had the chance to spend some time in mainland factories and... They are coming for us all! I agree 100%. The Chinese culture genera .......

163: Critic's Corner, RE: False assumptions lead to false conclusions (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 20:43:58 (23.24.137.117)
>> A little backstory would be nice. When submitting products for review to Stereophile, manufacturers are not allowed to pick the reviewer. That is the decision of the editor. We had no idea who wou .......

164: Critic's Corner, RE: So please elaborate... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 20:19:33 (23.24.137.117)
Clearly I have touched a nerve. Many apologies, as offending you (or women in general) was absolutely not my intention. I am quite sincere in my questions and truly hope that you will answer: 1) In wh .......

165: Critic's Corner, RE: What might be a mistake to you could be a way of life for Atkinson, et al (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 20:12:35 (23.24.137.117)
>> Once again, I'm sure that there are people that hear things that I don't. I don't know how to tell the difference between those that really do and those that only pretend to without some sort of pr .......

166: Critic's Corner, Nice post (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 19:54:09 (23.24.137.117)
My least favorite form of humor is "slapstick". Watching people actually physically hurt other people is not funny to me in the least. Wordplay is much funnier to me, and the ability to laugh at one's .......

167: Critic's Corner, RE: Oh ye of little faith... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 19:03:06 (23.24.137.117)
You're getting warmer... .......

168: Critic's Corner, RE: Pretty much already happening... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 18:58:41 (23.24.137.117)
>> And while it is fashionable to say that mostly the Chinese are exporting cheaply built copies of crap to the Audio world, remember we used to say the same thing about the Japanese. Both you and th .......

169: Critic's Corner, Can't view your post (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 18:47:19 (23.24.137.117)
One needs a Google account (which now also mandates that G-Mail be your primary e-mail address) to view the image you posted. Fuck Google. They are not your friend. In fact they are the enemy of virtu .......

170: Critic's Corner, RE: What might be a mistake to you could be a way of life for Atkinson, et al (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 18:35:21 (23.24.137.117)
I, for one, have to defend JA somewhat on this issue. I used to routinely perform blind tests, and less occasionally perform double-blind tests - simply to make sure I am not deluding myself from expe .......

171: Critic's Corner, RE: So please elaborate... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 18:15:55 (23.24.137.117)
Hi Sue, With all due respect (and not trying to be sexist) as a woman reviewer (let alone interested in high-end audio in the first place), you are clearly an outlier. Is it possible that the lack of .......

172: Critic's Corner, Glass CDs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 18:02:39 (23.24.137.117)
I recently heard a *glass* CD that is the current rage in Hong Kong. A reviewer played it for us at the factory on a highly resolving system, comparing against the polycarbonate equivalent. The differ .......

173: General Asylum, RE: Powering a tube amp without speakers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 17:53:56 (23.24.137.117)
I used to own (heavily modify) tube amps, as well as work in a repair shop for years. I've never had any problem with a powering a tube amp without a load and no signal. As posters noted, it is possib .......

174: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 17:42:18 (23.24.137.117)
Hi Bob, Your e-mail address is at New England Biolabs, which according to their website is located 30 miles north of Boston. There are still some good brick & mortar retailers within driving distance .......

175: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Kind of hard to do (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-04, 17:27:52 (23.24.137.117)
First of all, I opined that the OP should KEEP his all-tube integrated amplifier. Second of all, I am sure that he has never heard of my employer. Third of all, I doubt he is familiar enough with this .......

176: Critic's Corner, RE: I don't think Atkinson gets it....agreed (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 21:16:55 (23.24.137.117)
>> I wouldn't have expected you to confuse then with than as so many do in audio threads Apologies. I am fairly neurotic about correct spelling, grammar, and typos. But a bout with viral meningitis s .......

177: Critic's Corner, RE: Oh ye of little faith... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 21:09:41 (23.24.137.117)
>> Could it be that the days of artisanal audio design are coming to an end? Where are the really high quality discrete components going to come from when everything seems to be going the way of cheap .......

178: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 20:11:03 (23.24.137.117)
>> Yet, none of your product use tubes? No, I love the sound of well designed tube products, but I'm too old for that any more. The tubes are either sounding better (breaking in) or sounding worse (w .......

179: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 19:53:08 (23.24.137.117)
Hello Bob, Yes, Oppo is a fantastic bargain for the money. Not only are labor costs lower in China, but there is no EPA or OSHA or worker's comp, or unemployment insurance. Skilled workers can be had .......

180: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 19:26:15 (23.24.137.117)
>> Tosh from a biases manufacturer that doesn't build speakers! I used to build speakers and I would tell people the same thing - if they don't have good electronics, the speakers are just going to l .......

181: Amp/Preamp Asylum, I like that! Mind if I steal it? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 19:13:54 (23.24.137.117)
>> The speakers make the most difference to the sound of the music. The front end makes the most difference to the music. That is absolutely brilliant and too good not to steal. I wish I could say I .......

182: Critic's Corner, RE: Thanks for your editorials on SS (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 15:01:59 (23.24.137.117)
>> Are you suggesting that MQA's listening evaluations need to be held to a higher standard than, say, your own loudspeaker reviews? Hi Jim, You bring up a good point. Let's use loudspeaker reviews .......

183: Critic's Corner, RE: Keep your hands where I can see them while you take off that tinfoil hat! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 07:34:26 (23.24.137.117)
>> When are you going to admit your mistake and move on? We are all imperfect human beings with faults and flaws. I have never once seen JA admit to making an error (other than a typo or similar). A .......

184: Critic's Corner, RE: Really (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 07:27:41 (23.24.137.117)
>> Are MQA files actually smaller than Hi rez flac or Apple Lossless? Not for equal resolution. Please see long time technical contributor to Hi-Fi News, Jim LeSurf's explanation at the link below. It .......

185: Critic's Corner, Great post! +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 07:05:47 (23.24.137.117)
nt .......

186: Critic's Corner, RE: Really (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 05:43:57 (23.24.137.117)
>> While I don't know Jim personally, he has always impressed me as an ethical writer. By declaring that two different DACs made by two different manufacturers using two completely different technolo .......

187: Critic's Corner, RE: Oh ye of little faith... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 05:39:07 (23.24.137.117)
>> you might be underestimating your audience. I'm sure some of us would love to hear your thoughts on the matter. I've said it before many times over the decades. Arguing about which op-amp sounds .......

188: Critic's Corner, RE: Really (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 05:27:43 (23.24.137.117)
>> starting with Stereophile's January issue, Jim Austin will be on-by-one examining the technical claims made for MQA. I sincerely hope that it's not too little, too late to salvage Stereophile's re .......

189: Critic's Corner, RE: eh? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 05:21:22 (23.24.137.117)
>> So now your are trawling through old posts to find where JA has criticized equipment containing op-amps in the past to show Stereophile as hypocritical? No, there is a post down the page that ment .......

190: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Pass Labs (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-03, 05:09:30 (23.24.137.117)
For decades, Linn said that the most important component in the signal chain was the source. Having now designed sources, preamps, integrated amps, power amps and loudspeakers, I would tend to agree. .......

191: Critic's Corner, False assumptions lead to false conclusions (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 20:22:08 (23.24.137.117)
>> Perhaps Stereophile was okay so long as they were reviewing and helping to move Ayre gear. And now..... This might have some weight if Stereophile had recently given Ayre a bad review. Their most .......

192: Critic's Corner, RE: Not surprising in the least. This is why it's so easy to dup... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 20:04:46 (23.24.137.117)
>> For example, check out the video linked below, which features Stereophile writer Erick Lichte conducing Canadian male-voice choir Chor Leoni in an unpublished work by Lee Hoiby. And that makes him .......

193: Critic's Corner, Great post! +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 19:41:28 (23.24.137.117)
nt .......

194: Critic's Corner, RE: What Happened in the Last 30 Years? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 19:33:26 (23.24.137.117)
>> Where's Scotty Wurcer ...? Scott Wurcer posts a lot on DIY Audio under his real name. Even though decades ago he designed and built an all FET, zero-feedback (I believe) phono stage for his own us .......

195: Critic's Corner, RE: NB: The 5534 is also externally compensated... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 19:26:07 (23.24.137.117)
>> NB: The 5534 is also externally compensated. It can be. How many people do you know that actually do so? Perhaps a better question is how many people reading this, including you actually know what .......

196: Critic's Corner, RE: The lower end Oppo players (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 19:24:19 (23.24.137.117)
>> The lower end Oppo players such as the 103 (I have one myself) and the 203 also use 5532 op amps in their analog stage. DVD was one of the other factors that led to the decline in the true high-en .......

197: Critic's Corner, What Happened in the Last 30 Years? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-02, 00:18:33 (23.24.137.117)
Way back in November of 1989 (nearly 30 years ago) Stereophile heavily panned the Waveform Acoustics loudspeaker designed by Paul S. Barton (PSB Speakers) and built by cabinet maker John Otvos. Review .......

198: Critic's Corner, RE: One big difference (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 20:57:28 (23.24.137.117)
Well, it is a disease. Even the Bible says "The love of money is the root of all evil". If you want some good historical perspective, read the fascinating book by Jack Weatherford, "Indian Givers". Of .......

199: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 20:46:03 (23.24.137.117)
Neither Leak nor I had laser scanners at our disposal. It's kind of a tough nut to crack. I thought I had figured it out in 1985, but was wrong. Once I got serious about building loudspeakers and star .......

200: Critic's Corner, RE: One big difference (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 19:41:55 (23.24.137.117)
>> Gold and silver has intrinsic value from their ( Money) rarity and historical significance I disagree. "Rarity" and "historical" value are not the same as intrinsic value. A Stradivarius violin ha .......

201: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 17:24:22 (23.24.137.117)
I actually had a pair. But they were in non-working order. This was about 1985 or so - so long ago that don't even remember how I got them - maybe a dealer trade-in. I looked at them and realized it w .......

202: Critic's Corner, RE: Number? Dunno, but I do know that something's wrong with this..... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 16:52:14 (23.24.137.117)
There used to be a law in Japan that the wage difference between the highest and lowest paid people in a company was 7x. They got around that to a degree by using loopholes - issuing stock or retireme .......

203: Critic's Corner, RE: One big difference (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 16:44:37 (23.24.137.117)
>> You mean currency , not money, our feds create Currency ...... That's what the dealers in precious metals want you to believe, anyway. They want you to believe that gold and silver have an inheren .......

204: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps I wasn't clear but... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 16:16:43 (23.24.137.117)
>> Stereophile went to a monthly publishing schedule more than 30 years ago, Charley. Perhaps your glasses are a touch rose-tinted :-) I still remember the quality dropping off sharply when that happ .......

205: Critic's Corner, Great point. (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 15:12:36 (23.24.137.117)
nt .......

206: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps I wasn't clear but... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 15:10:24 (23.24.137.117)
>> The reviewer is always faced with the conflict between system "churn" and changing just one component That is exactly my point. The quality of both print magazines dropped sharply when they went m .......

207: Critic's Corner, That is a breand-new one on me! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 15:02:08 (23.24.137.117)
I was thinking of some place (a dealer or a big fan) that bought the tooling and the diaphragms had to be tensioned with dozens of weights tied to strings while they applied the glue. After dozens of .......

208: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 14:57:29 (71.218.3.216)
In all my years as an audiophile, or working in retail, I have never known a person that owned Quads, never seen a store that carried them, and never seen a trade-in pair in the used section. This was .......

209: Critic's Corner, Excellent movie. +1 (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 14:48:45 (23.24.137.117)
nt .......

210: Critic's Corner, RE: Absolutely!... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-11-01, 14:28:09 (23.24.137.117)
>> ...from where the fibers originated to location of final assembly. Even ordinary US cotton is *extremely* damaging to the environment. They use more pesticides on cotton than almost any food crop. .......

211: Critic's Corner, RE: Fascinating analysis from over 20 years ago (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 21:28:49 (23.24.137.117)
Yes, I hadn't read that for at least 15 years when I sent a PDF copy to PRP for their records. (The original was faxed on thermal paper, well before the invention of PDF or plain paper faxes!) As I re .......

212: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps right, definitely partially wrong. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 21:16:11 (23.24.137.117)
No I didn't forget about Bongiorno. He just didn't make my list. .......

213: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps you're not aware about a little known industry secret about musicians.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 21:15:22 (23.24.137.117)
Great post! I have finally figured out why it is that musicians are well known for having horrible music systems. It's because we all have a memory of the music in our heads already. Musically talente .......

214: Critic's Corner, One big difference (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 21:06:05 (23.24.137.117)
All of the "Class D" speakers are made in China with slave labor, no OSHA, and no EPA. The workers are starving peasants recruited from the countryside and they send their $3 a day salary back to thei .......

215: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps I wasn't clear but... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 20:28:48 (23.24.137.117)
>> Which is something I didn't get until a couple of years ago despite Charlie having made that claim years ago. :) Thanks for the shout out. When I was at Avalon I just designed from first principle .......

216: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 19:32:12 (23.24.137.117)
>> Richard Vandersteen is rated and not Peter walker ....! That's crazy Charles Obviously any list is going to be incomplete and imperfect. I included Richard Vandersteen as I live in the US. He has .......

217: Digital Drive, Great information, thanks! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 16:04:06 (23.24.137.117)
It's good to know of a high-quality glass fibre Toslink cable that doesn't have the "audiophile" markup. Think I'll order one. Thanks! .......

218: Amp/Preamp Asylum, System matching (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 16:01:43 (23.24.137.117)
When you are an end user, it's about the only thing you can do. As a manufacturer, you try to make something that is as neutral (in the best sense of that word and not the way it has come to mean "acc .......

219: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: motorized volume control (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 15:54:30 (23.24.137.117)
No, I gave Jim White of Aesthetix full permission to use it and helped him adapt it for his circuit. It even has a similar "bar" for up/down, although he used the display lens - a clever touch that wi .......

220: General Asylum, Please watch this video (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 15:48:36 (23.24.137.117)
I'm pretty sure this is the one I watched that was the perhaps the best explanation on population I've seen. If not this one, another one by the same guy. .......

221: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: motorized volume control (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 11:58:35 (23.24.137.117)
By far the easiest component to run a bypass test on is a switching element. When inserting a single switching element into a a system with NO other switching elements, it becomes easy to hear the eff .......

222: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: motorized volume control (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 11:49:59 (23.24.137.117)
FWIW, the Aesthetix Calypso has a volume control derived from the one Ayre developed for the AX-7. .......

223: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: motorized volume control ? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 11:48:16 (23.24.137.117)
Hey, prime numbers can be fun. Also turning it up to "11". Or "33" or "45" to honor vinyl. But I know what you mean. "27" just seems wrong... :-) .......

224: General Asylum, RE: losing ground (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 11:38:39 (23.24.137.117)
Every civilization ever eventually collapsed under the weight of the military required to maintain dominance - except the Aztec, Inca, and Maya who were slaughtered by the Spaniards. Currently the US .......

225: General Asylum, RE: A dangerous stance perhaps... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 11:30:43 (23.24.137.117)
Ayre buys everything it can from US companies, preferably that is made in the US. Silinx FPGAs are designed in the US but made and packaged in overseas facilities. On Semi closed their last Arizona fa .......

226: Critic's Corner, RE: Thanks for the correction (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 11:07:53 (23.24.137.117)
Well, you are definitely the master of ESLs! I've never seen (let alone heard) any of the Stax loudspeakers. When I was a teenager I had a pair of Stax SR-X Mk. II headphones that I adored. I would la .......

227: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps right, definitely partially wrong. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 10:52:05 (23.24.137.117)
>> oDo audio equipment reviewers get their hearing checked on a regular basis? Not that I know of. Many designers don't listen to their equipment. They either design by theory alone (and are proud of .......

228: Critic's Corner, Thanks for the correction (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 10:23:34 (23.24.137.117)
You are correct, I had forgotten you already correcting me on this several years ago. Apologies if it sounded like my intent was to insult Walker. My point was that I most admire designers who have cr .......

229: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 10:05:48 (23.24.137.117)
>> ASRC applies to USB inputs only, right? No, all inputs. John Siau's theory is that the DAC chip works best at a certain high speed that is deliberately unrelated to any of the audio sampling rates .......

230: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps right, definitely partially wrong. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-31, 00:40:40 (23.24.137.117)
>> Who's JH? Julian Hirsch. The greatest solid-state circuit designer of all time (IMO) has been John Curl. A severely underrated designer (mostly of tube gear) was the late Allen Wright. Another gre .......

231: Critic's Corner, RE: Do you think it's possible.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 22:55:21 (23.24.137.117)
>> Unfortunately most of us don't know much about Mr. Hanson What would you like to know (that would make any difference whatsoever as to your opinion)? .......

232: Critic's Corner, RE: If only we could follow the money... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 22:53:34 (23.24.137.117)
>> Should we add your company to that list? Of course. All manufacturers are crooks (except MQA) and all companies are crooks (except magazines). Everybody knows that. .......

233: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 22:51:48 (23.24.137.117)
>> whether the third generation Benchmark got rid of the asynchronous conversion, which IMO is a "feature" to avoid in any DAC, if it cannot be defeated. I know that the Benchmark has at least one AS .......

234: Critic's Corner, Huh? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 22:44:37 (23.24.137.117)
I just told you that I found JH to be a very intelligent and curious man. I think he had heard enough stuff in that one day at the "high-end wing" (which I believe was the first time he'd ever attende .......

235: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 22:38:53 (23.24.137.117)
>> I'm sure he hears things that very few others do. Possibly, although I've never had anybody listen to my system, and say "I don't get it - it sounds just like every other system I've ever heard". .......

236: Critic's Corner, Thanks! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 20:56:30 (23.24.137.117)
I think that it is pretty credible evidence that there are still audible, yet not measurable differences - so much so that a resistor manufacturer was willing to make a complete new product line based .......

237: Critic's Corner, RE: Absolutely... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 20:34:27 (23.24.137.117)
>> being so accustomed to hearing small minute changes when others simply lack that same extensive training and experience Which I think is one reason the audio magazines have consistently gone down t .......

238: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps right, definitely partially wrong. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 19:42:23 (23.24.137.117)
I met Julian Hirsch at a CES when I was with Avalon. We had carefully set up an excellent sounding system. When he came into the room he was clearly impressed with the sound we were achieving. He aske .......

239: Critic's Corner, Here is why I have overlooked that possibility (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 19:37:00 (23.24.137.117)
>> having performed countless comparisons, know by now pretty close to exactly what to expect when making a single config change. I've definitely performed countless comparisons, always trying my bes .......

240: Critic's Corner, Perhaps right, definitely partially wrong. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 19:19:40 (23.24.137.117)
As you say there are all kinds of things that seem to be outside of our control. Here is one stupid example. When Ayre was developing the DX-5 Blu-ray player, based on the Oppo BDP-83 player, we were .......

241: Critic's Corner, Thanks, I did overlook that one! (n/t) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 18:51:46 (23.24.137.117)
nt .......

242: Critic's Corner, Please don't get sidetracked (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 18:25:03 (23.24.137.117)
While I admit that I think one of the biggest jokes in the high-end industry is that many so-called "circuit designers" no longer design circuits, but instead just use pre-packaged boxes of circuits - .......

243: Critic's Corner, RE: Funny I think I see just the opposite of you.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 12:24:46 (23.24.137.117)
>> If he wanted to attack him like he did, Mr Hanson should have done it privately, not here. For nearly 2 full years I have been warning JA that MQA was a technical fraud - with zero effect. He would .......

244: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: motorized volume control (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 01:29:49 (23.24.137.117)
>> Do you know if a CMOS solid state switch - CD4066 IC - might sound better? Do these analog CMOS switch devices exist specifically for audio applications... with and without internal resistor networ .......

245: General Asylum, Brilliant post, thank you! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 01:01:40 (23.24.137.117)
That's putting about as simple and straightforward as anything I've seen. One does not need an MBA or degree in economics to understand this. Cheers! .......

246: Critic's Corner, RE: The power of the audio magazines may have been true 20 years ago.. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-30, 00:20:09 (71.218.3.216)
>> I doubt very strongly that anyone now makes their choice based solely on a Stereophile or TAS review. Take a look at Stereo5's system and tell what source you think influenced his purchasing decis .......

247: Critic's Corner, RE: One can easily load up on The Absolute Sound. for doing the SAME DAMN THINGS (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 22:44:59 (71.218.3.216)
I told the truth about them a decade ago - and nobody cared, least of all Robert Harley or owner Tom Martin. They are just like our Federal government - the best democracy money can buy. .......

248: Critic's Corner, Thanks very much! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 22:42:10 (71.218.3.216)
Interesting reading. I remembered that it wasn't a review that I would have been happy to receive. The fact that they rushed the "S" version into production so quickly (along with the excuse of "unpre .......

249: Critic's Corner, Huh? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 22:09:48 (71.218.3.216)
You felt that you were present at the birth of a new world 3 times: 1) When the prototype of CD was introduced. OK, that did transform the music industry, and not in ways that we (or the record labels .......

250: Critic's Corner, RE: I appreciate your well-reasoned perspective. We will agree to disagree. Nt (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 21:55:19 (71.218.3.216)
It is clear to me that Mr. Stuart & Co. are quite familiar with the book linked below. If you have read it, you will understand why MQA needs the "high-end" community to break through to "mainstream s .......

251: Critic's Corner, RE: Speaker Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 21:47:48 (71.218.3.216)
>> There's little to no value, except for readers who have even less knowledge than the one performing the measurements. Actually I disagree (with this part, at least), quite strongly. I have gotten .......

252: Critic's Corner, RE: Wow, such drama ... Yeah, folks sure would be surprised by negative review after 10,15, 20 ? positive ones!!! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 16:06:03 (71.218.3.216)
bjh, you just love to make a spectacle of yourself with regards to things you know nothing of. The Ayre proucts use 5x20mm fuses everywhere, as the larger 3AG (1/4" x 1-1/4") glass fuses are almost im .......

253: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Quicksilver V4 newer version question (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 15:56:19 (71.218.3.216)
It could do 95 to 110, but that is pushing those tubes really hard and probably won't last long. Remember that a pair of EL34s in a Dyna Stereo 70 put out 35 watts pwer channel, whie a pair of KT88s i .......

254: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: motorized volume control (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 15:46:51 (71.218.3.216)
Twenty years ago, you could find all kinds of them. Now most things use digital or chip-based volume controls - cheaper but they don't sound as good. The only player left from the Far East is Alps. Th .......

255: General Asylum, RE: Yikes! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 15:27:10 (71.218.3.216)
If you ever get a chance, I recommend that you watch the made for Netflix film "Pirates of Silicon Valley". It was released some years ago and is free to view on Netflix. It does not paint a flatterin .......

256: General Asylum, RE: Fractal Music - John Coltrane (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 15:15:59 (71.218.3.216)
What is so bizarre about this is it is hard to imagine that Coltrane did this consciously. Yet the odds of him doing this accidentally are probably trillions to one - that speeding up the notes by a f .......

257: Critic's Corner, Wrong (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 11:26:40 (71.218.3.216)
>> the MQA train has pulled out of the station and they are not on it Sorry to disappoint the MQA fanboys, but there are much larger forces at play than the $10 million MQA has left to play with, or .......

258: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (Stupidly, Painfully Long) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 10:56:36 (71.218.3.216)
>> I deleted two sentences that, in my opinion as the moderator of the Stereophile website, were nothing more than flames. That is certainly your right as moderator of your own website. You have post .......

259: Digital Drive, RE: Got the recommended cleaning procedure (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 06:59:42 (71.218.3.216)
>> Lifatec is the US outlet of a cool German firm marketing high-spec optical borosilicate glass fiber in the US 99.9% of all Toslink cables use plastic fibers, as that is the cheapest (and possibly .......

260: Critic's Corner, RE: Link or admit your slander (NT) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 06:32:36 (71.218.3.216)
False dichotomy. .......

261: Critic's Corner, RE: Actually on Speaker Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 06:30:11 (71.218.3.216)
Bzzzt. It does not compute. Must not have cognitive dissonance. Justify. Justify. Justify. Justify. Justify. It reminds me of the original series Star Trek episode when the Enterprise found the "Veeje .......

262: Critic's Corner, Stereophile Reaches a New Nadir (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 06:23:44 (71.218.3.216)
Recently the new review of the Benchmark 3 DAC by Jim Austin was published in Stereophile. This is probably the single most incompetent review I've ever seen in my life. Austin makes so many sub-amate .......

263: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Sorry, I've yet to find any measurment for electronics... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 05:06:03 (71.218.3.216)
>> It's only too bad there wasn't some formula to follow. If it were easy, everybody would be doing it. The funny thing is that Keith Johnson takes a fairly different approach than mine. Probably the .......

264: Critic's Corner, RE: Speaker Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 04:54:42 (71.218.3.216)
>> Do you know which review that was? Sorry, I do not. It was many years ago, but just one of the many times that I am left shaking my head when reading the "Measurements" section. I just remember th .......

265: Critic's Corner, RE: Speaker Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 04:09:17 (71.218.3.216)
>> I recall a Hi Fi News Dahlquist test where they found a correlation at 115Hz and ringing in the angled bars that supported the panels holding some of the upper drivers One has to be extremely care .......

266: Critic's Corner, PS (Very Long) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-29, 04:00:29 (71.218.3.216)
There actually is a small "wrinkle" in the impedance curve that you published. Look at the large impedance peak centered around 1300Hz (which I know from experience is due to the crossover used, despi .......

267: Critic's Corner, RE: Actually on Speaker Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-28, 20:15:46 (71.218.3.216)
>> We measured [the Harbeth] 30 about 8 years ago and it's impedance curve is pretty wrinkle-free, despite having walls that really resonate like hell at certain frequencies. Pretty strong evidence t .......

268: Critic's Corner, RE: Speaker Measurements (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-28, 20:13:48 (71.218.3.216)
>> I can see panel resonance adding to this but i would first suspect driver resonance as the main culprit... Yep! But JA has never taken the drivers out of the enclosure and measured their impedance .......

269: General Asylum, What About Money Grubbing Internet Retailers? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-28, 16:05:40 (71.218.3.216)
>> I don't waste much sympathy on money-grubbing small business retailers, (or big business retailers either, e.g. Sears) What about money-grubbing Internet retailers such as Amazon. The owner is wor .......

270: General Asylum, Fractal Music - John Coltrane (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 20:43:19 (75.171.246.107)
There is a super-fascinating video on YouTube that shows the fractal nature of John Coltrane's saxophone solo on "Giant Steps". Very cool stuff - enjoy! .......

271: General Asylum, Yikes! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 16:39:40 (75.171.246.107)
>> 83% will go to the Bill Gates Foundation I certainly don't consider that to be a "good cause". .......

272: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Thanks very much! nt (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 16:37:04 (75.171.246.107)
nt .......

273: Computer Audio Asylum, Sorry, I've yet to find any measurment for electronics... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 12:32:29 (75.171.246.107)
that correlates with sound quality - with the possible exception of gross frequency response errors. Even these are generally audible with quick (1 second or so) A/B back and forth. If you listen to o .......

274: Digital Drive, Agreed! (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 12:25:40 (75.171.246.107)
nt .......

275: General Asylum, RE: To be fair... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 12:17:49 (75.171.246.107)
>> Otherwise, a massive revolt would ensue. Yes, exactly. The ancient Romans called this "give them bread and circuses". So as long as we are not starving and have football games and movies to watch, .......

276: General Asylum, RE: Can/Do historians measure? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 12:12:00 (75.171.246.107)
Yes, definitely a continuum and not a binary choice. There were two major articles in the HBR 30 years agao: https://hbr.org/2004/10/executive-psychopathshttps://hbr.org/2004/10/executive-psychopaths .......

277: General Asylum, RE: Warrne Buffet seems pretty normal for a multi-billionaire. nt (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:42:08 (75.166.126.87)
He definitely *seems* to be the most normal of the billionaires. Yet he has a personal fortune worth $81 billion. If you had $81 billion, wouldn't you try to do *something* good with it, instead of ju .......

278: General Asylum, Good questions (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:39:15 (75.166.126.87)
Those are excellent questions and deserve more of a reply than I am currently able to give. I would suggest watching at least the first 15 minutes of the video I linked as a start. Stehno linked anoth .......

279: General Asylum, RE: Yeah, well... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:32:36 (75.166.126.87)
>> Old age and financial security are, as far as I can tell, mostly for the sociopaths. Everybody wants to enjoy as much of this amazingly beautiful universe as we can get. Traditionally societies we .......

280: General Asylum, Thanks for the link (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:25:05 (75.166.126.87)
I've not yet watched the video, but I know that the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 was a complete scam to give private bankers control over the entire monetary supply of the entire country. It started wi .......

281: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Add one more... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:15:10 (75.166.126.87)
>> Many amplfier designers dont like doing pre-amps , most have told me its far more difficult than doing power amps, layout is king Really? That is a bizarre attitude to me. "I'm not gonna try to do .......

282: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Whoever That eBay Seller Is, He Is Clearly Unqualified (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:10:44 (75.166.126.87)
I don't understand why anybody would buy a product from someone completely unqualified to do even the simplest of things correctly. As Davey pointed out, it doesn't cost a single extra penny to mount .......

283: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Thanks for the laugh! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-27, 00:04:24 (75.166.126.87)
Touché! That is pretty funny, in at least a couple of ways: 1) It is only the recent McIntosh team that would dare release a product with such piss-poor heat dissipation capabilities that it would shu .......

284: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Just clueless :) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 23:56:49 (75.166.126.87)
>> Since he did little other than to wire the Hypex module, I would turn to them for any real problems. So now Hypex has to do warranty support for all of the kitchen-table "manufacturers" out there? .......

285: Critic's Corner, RE: Privacy Alert (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 23:30:46 (75.166.126.87)
>> Apparently, our quotidian habits are worth money! No it is your viewing habits that are worth money to advertisers. The more they know about you, the more focused they can make their advertising. > .......

286: Critic's Corner, Thanks for the great info! (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 23:25:47 (75.166.126.87)
nt .......

287: Computer Audio Asylum, No, you are completely misunderstanding my post (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 23:21:58 (75.166.126.87)
>> Aren't the Pacific Microsonic ADC's most valued by mastering engineers for their sound? Yes. >> isn't it kind of contrary to the philosophy of an archivist, who is presumably seeking the utmost in .......

288: Digital Drive, RE: IME, it all makes a difference. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 20:11:32 (75.166.126.87)
>> over an equivalent design using a Sabre DAC That is a huge problem. There are two main points that ESS seems to be chasing: 1) Ridding the algorithm used in the modulator (that reduces the 32-bit .......

289: Digital Drive, RE: Not many have complained about the 5400 (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 19:20:12 (75.166.126.87)
Yes, the later generation red lasers used on DVD players (as opposed to the IR lasers used for CD) seemed to be much more reliable than the earlier generation ones. At least this seems to be true for .......

290: Digital Drive, RE: SACD player (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 18:05:43 (75.166.126.87)
Should probably be posted in the HIgh-res forum, which is pretty much focused on SACD. That is around the original brand new list price. I have no idea if it is still worth that, nor if replacement la .......

291: Digital Drive, RE: Yes, Of Course! Those Kindly Record Labels and MQA Only Have Your Best Interests in Mind. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 18:03:39 (75.166.126.87)
I don't think anybody thinks that they can become a professional musician simply by watching YouTube videos. But for all professional, semi-professional, former professional, and strictly amateur musi .......

292: Digital Drive, RE: Yes, Of Course! Those Kindly Record Labels and MQA Only Have Your Best Interests in Mind. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 17:56:33 (75.166.126.87)
This was intended to be a jab at all of the MQA supporter who apparently honestly believe that MQA, Bob Stuart, and the record labels are all offering the "vastly superior sound of MQA" at "no extra c .......

293: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Add one more... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 17:37:00 (75.166.126.87)
If Nelson made First Watt amps with power, it would likely infringe heavily on his business with Pass Lab amps. I think his designs for First Watt are deliberately "crippled". It's a way for him to h .......

294: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Add one more... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 17:29:39 (75.166.126.87)
Yes, that would sound far better than most. The design is inherently compromised by the need for two coupling capacitors, one each at the input and the output. The input cap can be a fairly low (and r .......

295: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Veritas... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 17:15:54 (75.166.126.87)
>> anyways where can someone who has some skills find some lower power 25wpc real zero feedback SS amplifier schematic? The rumor I heard was that the original Krell KSA-50 schematic was taken straig .......

296: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Refused? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 17:06:09 (75.166.126.87)
Thanks for the link to the "manufacturer" of your amplifier. Clearly the guy knows just enough to be dangerous. I certainly would not count on him to be around to give support for any longer than a fe .......

297: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Legitimate Manufacturers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 16:59:06 (75.166.126.87)
Apologies, I was confused. I meant E-Stat and I inferred from your dialog with him that you knew both knew the manufacturer of E-Stat's amps. When I inquired directly, both of you dodged. Now E-Stat h .......

298: Digital Drive, RE: lossless protocol implementation (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 06:32:55 (75.166.126.87)
>> Even if I am wrong, it makes for a good Sifi novel. Well, I don't think we are quite at that point - yet. But things are definitely headed that way. .......

299: Digital Drive, Yes, Of Course! Those Kindly Record Labels and MQA Only Have Your Best Interests in Mind. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 05:56:34 (75.166.126.87)
Here is a short video of one person who is not happy with the actions of the record labels. .......

300: Digital Drive, RE: lossless protocol implementation (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 05:50:08 (75.166.126.87)
Hi BH, No I'm not familiar with her work. A brief glance at her website showed that she is on top of a lot of topics. It is popularly called the "truther" movement, as the internet allows the free sha .......

301: Critic's Corner, RE: Privacy Alert (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 05:30:13 (75.166.126.87)
Sorry, I don't really know the answer to this question. I tried using a Mac in 2009 specifically because I was so sick of Microsoft's policies, quirks, bugs, and business practices. I really, really w .......

302: Digital Drive, RE: lossless protocol implementation (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 02:20:51 (75.171.244.113)
Microwave pollution is a serious problem, and it will become radically worse when they activate the 5G networks. I live in a suburban area and there are perhaps a half-dozen Wi-Fi signals strong enoug .......

303: Critic's Corner, RE: Privacy Alert (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 02:07:46 (75.171.244.113)
I think I understand what is going on. For many years, websites would write "cookies" to your computer's hard drive. It used to be that you could just turn cookies OFF in your browser, but now they ar .......

304: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Veritas... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 01:54:01 (75.171.244.113)
Many speakers are very good at hiding the defects of upstream equipment. The Thiels tend to be more revealing, with their very best design of all time being the CS-5 (a close second is the CS-3.7 with .......

305: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Legitimate Manufacturers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 01:18:16 (75.166.119.165)
Well the world has changed a lot over the last 25 years, and things are now possible that should not be (in my opinion). If some guy in China is "building" Hypex amps on his kitchen table simply becau .......

306: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Good idea. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 01:03:21 (75.166.119.165)
FenderLover's idea of motorboating (positive feedback through worn-out power supply capacitors) is plausible, but when I've heard it it is definitely a "lub-lub" type of sound. Your idea is much more .......

307: General Asylum, RE: Dumbest remark of the week from an audio dealer (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-26, 00:59:29 (75.166.119.165)
>> Last couple transactions were cash deals and for discount. Yes, times are slow for many dealers as both the internet undercuts by not charging sales tax (this is starting to change) and less traff .......

308: Digital Drive, RE: lossless protocol implementation (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 19:38:36 (75.166.119.165)
There are lots of manufacturers of computer-based audio hardware that communicates via Ethernet, by far the dominant networking protocol in use today. Ethernet can be hard-wired or used wirelessly (Wi .......

309: Critic's Corner, RE: Privacy Alert (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 19:20:24 (75.166.119.165)
Hi Jeremy, Privacy on the internet is certainly a troubling issue. I am unsure as to what you mean by "internet trackers". Can you please provide more information? Perhaps there are ways to defeat the .......

310: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Thanks for the kind offer! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 19:05:11 (75.166.119.165)
>> What is the definition of a "legitimate" manufacturer? Not to sound racist, but I would automatically exclude 99% of all Chinese "manufacturers". The bulk of these are just garage (or kitchen-tabl .......

311: General Asylum, Harry, you are NOT a sociopath (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 18:58:43 (75.166.119.165)
The fact that you recognize and acknowledge your role in the structures set up in this society proves that you care about others than yourself. And you also acknowledge that it is painful to do so. An .......

312: Digital Drive, Very interesting data point! Thanks. (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 03:11:45 (75.166.119.165)
nt .......

313: Digital Drive, RE: One Interesting Point (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 03:08:39 (75.166.119.165)
I can't argue with anything you say. And I still repect Mike Moffat's opinion (in general). I guess the way to find out would be to buy one and see, but it's hard for me to imagine that the digital si .......

314: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Thanks for the kind offer! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 02:57:58 (75.166.119.165)
Hi Dave, I read the whole thread and couldn't figure out the "manufacturer" of E-Stat's Hypex-based amplifier. What am I missing? Also, why is it that you know more about the proper implementation of .......

315: General Asylum, RE: If the doors are open, the business is making money, turning a profit. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 02:39:56 (75.166.119.165)
>> I've known more than a few that kept the doors open LONG after what would have been advised, because the owner felt a responsibility to the employees, or to the customers they served. Yes, those .......

316: General Asylum, RE: Your Math is Correct, But You Conclusion Is Not (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 02:07:55 (75.166.119.165)
You done good. That was a nice-sounding rig for the money. You deserved your "reward"... :-) I think Kensington was either the original store or the biggest store. I think they put the HQ in Richmond .......

317: General Asylum, RE: Your Math is Correct, But You Conclusion Is Not (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-25, 02:04:25 (75.166.119.165)
>> What was your job/position-Charles? There were only three people per store - that's one way they kept the overhead down - the manager, the full-time salesperson, and a part-time sales person to he .......

318: Computer Audio Asylum, Here is another take on the same topic (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-24, 21:11:04 (75.166.119.165)
This is a post from the Hi-Res forum (SACD). To put it in context you can go up one level. Then go down to my reply and then his response (assuming you are in "Classic" view). It's all a mystery to me .......

319: Digital Drive, RE: One Interesting Point (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-24, 17:10:55 (75.166.119.165)
>> Perhaps I am missing something If you don't go to YouTube, you have probably missed out on a recent phenomenon whereby there are many, many people claiming that A = 440 sounds wrong, but that A = 4 .......

320: General Asylum, RE: YThe single company in the world that operates with the lowest gross profit margin is Costco. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-24, 12:09:05 (75.166.119.165)
I don't know anything about that business. But if a company doesn't make 10% *net* margin (after payroll, taxes, rent, insurance, telephone, yellow-pages, and on and on) they usually go out of busines .......

321: General Asylum, RE: Your Math is Correct, But You Conclusion Is Not (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-24, 12:03:34 (75.166.119.165)
>> where did Dixie Hi-Fi/ Circuit City originate? I worked there in the mid- to late-'70s. At that time the HQ was in Richmond, Virginia. However I have a vague memory that the first store may have be .......

322: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: I have five. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-23, 23:50:15 (75.166.119.165)
>> direct tape head output to a tubed deHavilland 222 tape head preamp, then to an Aesthetix Calypso Signature linestage and on to a pair of 845 SET monoblocks designed and built by a friend There ya .......

323: Digital Drive, One Interesting Point (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-23, 23:44:21 (75.166.119.165)
According to Mike Moffat, C = 256Hz sounds best, while the much more popular (at least on the interwebs) A = 432Hz is wrong. However A = 432Hz with equal-temperament tuning yields a C = 256.87Hz. It's .......

324: Digital Drive, I liked this part of the post, also (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-23, 22:32:16 (75.166.119.165)
"Unlike some recent attempts to improve recorded music, The Gadget does not incorporate any possibilities for DRM, including phone-homes, algorithmic degradation, or device serialization/deauthorizati .......

325: Critic's Corner, RE: It will be interesting to hear John Atkinson's response (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-23, 22:02:41 (75.166.119.165)
>> "People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices." Yes. As in .......

326: General Asylum, Your Math is Correct, But You Conclusion Is Not (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-23, 18:41:30 (75.166.119.165)
The single company in the world that operates with the lowest gross profit margin is Costco. Their margin is a flat 18% on everything. But look what they have to do to make it work: 1) Stock a limited .......

327: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: I have five. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-22, 23:13:02 (75.166.119.165)
Interesting to note. But the results will clearly be influenced by the quality of the playback electronics in your tape deck (probably good if it has half-track heads!), your entire vinyl front end, a .......

328: Digital Drive, Yes, Vinyl Studio is Brilliant, and Extremely Affordable (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-22, 23:06:23 (75.166.119.165)
nt .......

329: Digital Drive, Wow, Lynn Olsen Got This One Completely Wrong! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-22, 23:00:00 (75.166.119.165)
I haven't finished reading the full article, but he is basing his conclusion on an *extremely* faulty assumption - he listened to one ladder DAC chip with a zero feedback analog tube stage, and compar .......

330: Critic's Corner, RE: Why Can't The Audio Magazines Do This? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-22, 21:29:25 (75.166.119.165)
Thanks very much for the kind words. I think that what you are describing about other industries is happening to high-end - and it didn't used to be that way. It seems that all industries are headed t .......

331: Critic's Corner, Please stop Jim, you are embarrassing yourself (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-22, 00:03:58 (75.166.119.165)
1) You point to an article from 12 years ago. It is clear to me that the overall quality of Stereophile has declined in those 12 years. 2) To draw a false equivalency between MQA and the Intelligent C .......

332: Critic's Corner, RE: Sorry, Charley. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-21, 13:06:03 (75.166.119.165)
>> You got it wrong. It was never monthly but began as a quarterly and was later increased to occurring every two months. You got me there. Doesn't change the fact that Stereophile briefly covered su .......

333: Critic's Corner, I think he already did so. (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-21, 12:56:30 (75.166.119.165)
(nt) .......

334: Critic's Corner, RE: It will be interesting to hear John Atkinson's response (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-21, 12:49:57 (75.166.119.165)
>> as long as the unprocessed original PCM files are available for download or streaming, I don't see this as a major issue Sure, John. No need to worry. After all, in 1989 when there were dozens of .......

335: Critic's Corner, RE: If MQA is the "new world" of audio, I want no part of it - I'd rather dig ditches (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-21, 12:10:36 (75.166.119.165)
>> Stereophile did, Charley. Yep, buried in the middle of a column that is so irrelevant that it was reduced to every other month. That gives you (in the words of one Richard Milhaus Nixon) "plausibl .......

336: Critic's Corner, RE: Google? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-21, 03:01:49 (75.166.119.165)
>> Stereophile didn't break that story about oppo and luxicon, but they certainly acknowledged it. All of Kal's "Music In The Round" columns are on the Stereophile website. It turns out that he did m .......

337: General Asylum, Feel sorry for you (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-21, 02:22:46 (75.166.119.165)
>> reminds me of old dudes who will omly drive vehicles with stick shifts The best thing you can say about almost anything automatic is that it will automatically do the wrong thing, sooner or later. .......

338: Critic's Corner, If MQA is the "new world" of audio, I want no part of it - I'd rather dig ditches (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-19, 21:46:22 (75.166.119.165)
If MQA is successful, audio will be distributed and rented in the same way that video is distributed and rented. Look at what happened with video - they made it so that only giant mega-corporations co .......

339: Critic's Corner, RE: Check out the MQA newsletter (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 18:54:17 (23.24.137.117)
Yes, but what the MQA newsletter doesn't tell you is once TAS posted the article on line, it drew 10x to 20x more comments than typical articles and that 99% were negative comments. .......

340: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: yes, but ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 11:58:15 (75.166.119.165)
If you look closely you will see that the first step in the chain is the Tidal stream, and it clearly says "MP3". This means it was encoded with lossy compression that discards most of the actual audi .......

341: Computer Audio Asylum, Thanks very much! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 11:46:52 (75.166.119.165)
And, yes, I do find that cables make a difference. I truly appreciate all of the information, it's very helpful. .......

342: Computer Audio Asylum, Thanks very much! nt (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 11:42:05 (75.166.119.165)
nt .......

343: Computer Audio Asylum, More super interesting data points (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 04:37:47 (75.166.119.165)
Without knowing which albums you digitized (let's assume that they were pre-digital era analog recordings), then the only conclusion I can reach is that you were able to achieve audibly superior resul .......

344: Computer Audio Asylum, More interesting information (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 04:19:07 (75.166.119.165)
You prefer to use micro-SD flash cards over hard drives. I know that the flash cards have a much simpler file structure than do hard drives. I wonder if that helps the sound quality of your playback. .......

345: Computer Audio Asylum, Still very interesting (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 04:15:42 (75.166.119.165)
Thanks for sharing the extra details of how you are doing your comparisons. It still doesn't change my basic point. Either: 1) There is something special about double-rate DSD that allows inexpensive .......

346: Critic's Corner, RE: Charles, I'll bet dollars-to-donuts you already know the answer ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 02:19:40 (75.166.119.165)
One magazine is paid to tell whatever stories their financial supporters (mostly advertisers) write, and the other magazine got suckered by fake demos and refuses to admit to ever making mistakes. ::: .......

347: Critic's Corner, Anybody can look up the history and financials of Meridian (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 02:16:44 (75.166.119.165)
Please see the link below, courtesy of Her Majesty, The Queen: .......

348: Critic's Corner, RE: There is this: (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 02:09:10 (75.166.119.165)
>> Of course, this begs the question of whether an integrated circuit op-amp, which relies on a high amount of negative feedback to work, is a justifiable choice to use in a high-end audio circuit. W .......

349: General Asylum, RE: Nice story! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 01:29:02 (75.166.119.165)
Isn't it weird? Not only how great that particular guitar sounds - and clearly the player is competent but no amazing "guitar hero", so the player is not the "secret" - but also how you can hear the g .......

350: General Asylum, RE: Violin, old vs new (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-18, 01:14:38 (75.166.119.165)
Thanks for the info. Makes sense to me. The string thing is funny, as they must subsidize the fractional sized strings to make it affordable for the parents - going from the 3/4 size string to a 3" lo .......

351: General Asylum, RE: The "feel" of an instrument (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-16, 08:18:48 (75.171.251.100)
Nice post! Have you seen some of the videos about Willie Nelson's guitar, "Trigger"? I'll link to one good one below. There are others out there, showing the annual repairs that are done to keep it go .......

352: General Asylum, RE: Violin, old vs new (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-16, 08:07:28 (75.171.251.100)
Very nice post! My two sons play violin and I was learning with them until I was paralyzed in an accident. I too became fascinated with the tone of different violins and ended exploring that quite a b .......

353: General Asylum, RE: Ultrasonics? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-16, 07:24:15 (75.171.251.100)
>> would trust just about anything JH said over the ad biased reviews regularly printed in Stereophile I would disagree with you on that point. The problem with Julian Hirsch (and I met the man in pe .......

354: Critic's Corner, RE: Not all editors are like Harley. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-16, 06:59:36 (75.171.251.100)
Tru-dat! Unfortunately he is not the only one - just the largest and most visible of them. .......

355: Critic's Corner, RE: There is this: (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-16, 06:49:03 (75.171.251.100)
>> MLP is the standard lossless compression method for DVD-Audio content Yes, it seems that is Bob Stuart's goal - to be in the position of a Dolby, where he makes money forever and ever based on lic .......

356: Critic's Corner, RE: I stand corrrected (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-15, 19:13:39 (75.171.251.100)
Wikipedia is an interesting animal. I think the key information concerning the company comes from this section: "2006 saw the retirement of both Sales & Marketing Director Colin Aldridge and Managing .......

357: Computer Audio Asylum, Very interesting (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-15, 18:42:30 (75.171.251.100)
>> sound exactly like vinyl. I use a TASCAM DA-3000 DSD recorder That is very interesting. You don't specify the DAC you use, but the photo shows an Oppo BDP-103. If I am understanding you correctly .......

358: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Depends on how serious you are (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-15, 08:33:44 (75.171.251.100)
>> second hand availability close to unobtainable I think there were around 150 units world-wide. Only 3 markets are "low" voltage - 100 VAC for Japan, and 120 VAC for Taiwan and North America. The r .......

359: Computer Audio Asylum, Sound in this clip is not likely a door-bell (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-15, 08:08:27 (75.171.251.100)
The sound in this clip sounds much more like a telephone to me, not a door-bell. Perhaps one of your neighbors has either: a) An old mechanical telephone. b) A modern mobile phone with the ring-tone s .......

360: Critic's Corner, RE: Glowing reviews from the audio press (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-15, 07:41:48 (75.171.251.100)
>> Meridian has been one of the leaders in digital technology for the past 40 years Huh? In the first place, CD is only 35 years old - in Japan only. It wasn't released to the rest of the world until .......

361: Computer Audio Asylum, Depends on how serious you are (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-15, 07:10:59 (75.171.251.100)
When digitizing an analog signal, one is faced with the exact same problems when converting from digital to analog - just in reverse order. If one just wants to have background music available and sav .......

362: Digital Drive, Thanks for the link (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-14, 17:09:56 (75.171.251.100)
Exactly what a blog should be - a long, detailed, and thoughtful analysis of an issue by a well-informed individual. It is not meant to be "the truth" about anything (and there are certainly areas whe .......

363: Critic's Corner, RE: So who's the industry in this case? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-13, 02:29:12 (75.171.251.100)
Please don't lump Ayre with an organization designed to extract money from the entire playback chain via marketing mumbo-jumbo, deceptive "comparisons", and back-room deals with the labels to sneak in .......

364: General Asylum, RE: Annoying Ultrasonics (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-12, 18:18:10 (75.171.251.100)
HI Abe, Good call. I'm not sure how flat or extended the frequency response of those once-ubiquitous tweeters was, but they were everywhere for about a decade. The first speaker I saw that used them w .......

365: General Asylum, RE: Ultrasonics? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 21:41:55 (75.171.251.100)
Thanks for the image! I've not seen a Stereo Review for a long time... :-) I don't remember what equipment Stereo Review used to use to measure loudspeakers, as I stopped reading it in the 1970s. Meas .......

366: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Time to upgrade? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 16:24:45 (75.171.251.100)
Hello - As Abe noted the "DSD" upgrade for the QB-9 was mainly a sonic improvement (as all of Ayre's upgrades normally are). That was the first time that Ayre added a "feature" (DSD capability) along .......

367: General Asylum, RE: Ultrasonics? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 15:48:54 (75.171.251.100)
Hello Kingshead, Those tweeters were originally made by the OEM company Bohlender-Graebener, in Reno, Nevada. Soon Infinity had copies made in Taiwan, and later (when trade relations were "normalized" .......

368: General Asylum, RE: Ultrasonics? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 11:39:05 (75.171.251.100)
>> Infinity Emit-K is flat to 45khz. Possibly, but I doubt it. The only way to measure this properly would be with an 1/8" Bruel & Kjaer measurement microphone. While there *may* be some output at 45 .......

369: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: ripping input USB audio stream to FLAC's (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 01:56:49 (75.171.251.100)
You just need to have an optical drive for your computer. Since most of the laptops have eliminated them, just buy an external USB drive. CD-only is probably $20, DVD + CD is probably $30, and Blu-ray .......

370: General Asylum, High-Power Infrasonic Source (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 01:19:15 (75.171.251.100)
Danley Labs has built high-power infrasonic sources for military weaponry usage. 105dB at 250 meters. Probably $50,000 or $100,000. See link below: .......

371: General Asylum, Ultrasonics? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-11, 01:12:00 (75.171.251.100)
Going past 20kHz is possible, but more difficult. Currently the easiest thing to do is to purchase a 1" beryllium dome tweeter from Scan-Speak. This will give flat frequency response to about 30kHz an .......

372: Computer Audio Asylum, Compressed Audio Formats Are Encode/Decode Systems (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-10, 14:36:39 (75.171.251.100)
When you take a 44/16 file (1411kb/s) and run it through (say) an MP3 encoder, it will discard much of the data and reduce the datastream to usually 256kb/s or 320kb/s. Then on the receive end it is s .......

373: Critic's Corner, RE: Is that what I'm doing? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 17:45:04 (174.16.123.185)
It's quite obvious that is precisely what you are doing - defending Stereophile's utter lack of any type of critical investigation as to how MQA works and what they are actually doing to the files. If .......

374: Critic's Corner, RE: That's what I'd do if I were in the 'label's' position.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 17:32:00 (174.16.123.185)
>> That's what I'd do if I were in the 'label's' position.... You and the labels are just like a dog licking up the food they barfed up. The reason they are in their current position is their own dam .......

375: Critic's Corner, RE: My position (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 08:51:57 (174.16.123.185)
>> I've never felt any pressure toward conformity from JA Hmm. Sure didn't seem to stop you from leaping to his defense with many, many posts (while he remained silent). .......

376: Critic's Corner, RE: My position (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 08:13:57 (174.16.123.185)
Well, Jim, that is by far the worst piece of writing I've ever seen from you. Everything from incomprehensible sentence structures to logical fallacies to contradicting the conclusions of your boss (e .......

377: Critic's Corner, RE: Well apparently ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 07:51:04 (174.16.123.185)
>> If this little bit of "DRM", if that's what it is, is all it took to unlock the vaults, then I'm all for it. Be careful what you wish for. If MQA is widely adopted, I can assure you that "this lit .......

378: Critic's Corner, RE: DRM in this case is quite simple.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 03:08:31 (174.16.123.185)
>> You'd just need an MQA DAC to decode them Yes, to date the only DRM that MQA has applied is that one need to purchase new (licensed and royalty-paid) hardware to listen to a dumbed-down version of .......

379: Critic's Corner, RE: So it SHOULD sound better... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 02:23:48 (174.16.123.185)
Bingo - good call, Ivan! .......

380: Critic's Corner, RE: Hmm.... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 02:17:45 (174.16.123.185)
>> 2017 - buy a freaking turntable to get better sound. It's funny because it's true. It can be true, but not necessarily. The main difference between mastering for vinyl versus digital *used to be* .......

381: Critic's Corner, RE: You'll need to help me out here. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 01:50:42 (174.16.123.185)
>> To my ear, MQA's effect on sound is much smaller than the effect of using different masters, which sometimes is night and day. That is exactly the point. The Absolute Sound and Stereophile have co .......

382: Critic's Corner, RE: You are free ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 01:45:27 (174.16.123.185)
>> You are free to use the word, and to think of it, however you wish. Stormy wrens tugboat running hurling moonbeams Mouse-ka-teer. There, I've used any word and think of it however I wish. How does .......

383: Critic's Corner, RE: So the I guess the question would be... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 01:31:36 (174.16.123.185)
According to MQA, if you download the HD 192/24 track (from which the MQA files was apparently made) the MQA file will sound identical. Please try it and let us know if you agree with MQA's claims. Th .......

384: Critic's Corner, RE: Why Can't The Audio Magazines Do This? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-08, 01:24:39 (174.16.123.185)
Yes, many apologies, I should have included the qulifiers "US print" before magazines. For those who have not kept up with SoundStage, Doug Schneider has just written his 3rd excellent editorial quest .......

385: Critic's Corner, Why Can't The Audio Magazines Do This? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-06, 23:06:58 (174.16.123.185)
There is a post on the Super Best Audio Friends forum where someone was comparing MQA files to 44/16 files, both streamed by Tidal. She was shocked at how big the difference was and loaded them into A .......

386: General Asylum, RE: The B&W that bought Classe isn't the same Bowers and Wilkins... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-02, 00:47:18 (71.218.2.243)
>> That's just normal capitalism. I wouldn't call it "normal capitalism". I would cal it "predatory capitalism" or "crony capitalism" or "capitalism eating itself" or something similar. Just my opini .......

387: General Asylum, RE: Yes! - but that's mostly because of inflation - both average income AND price points (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-01, 21:30:14 (71.218.2.243)
Excellent example! The Marantz was high quality, but did not have all the things we take for granted these days: Multiple egulated power supplies for the audio circuitry. Regulated DC for the filamen .......

388: General Asylum, RE: I think the picture is much bigger than that (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-01, 21:16:22 (71.218.2.243)
Yes, that's true. He doesn't have much market presence so it's easy to forget about him - my bad. But he only has to support one person. (I don't know who builds the actual equipment, but I think it m .......

389: General Asylum, RE: I think the picture is much bigger than that (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-01, 19:09:46 (71.218.2.243)
>> Your comments on dealer margins kind of confirms why I was seeing huge discounts on certain brands. Exactly. Twenty years ago there were at least two good dealers in every large city - one would s .......

390: General Asylum, RE: I think the picture is much bigger than that (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-01, 18:41:25 (71.218.2.243)
Hi John, An excellent essay and very insightful. Unfortunately it seems that things have only gotten worse since then, with an ever-widening gap between the haves and the have-nots. I also don't see a .......

391: General Asylum, RE: Saving 25% is "literally killing people on the other side of the world." (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-10-01, 18:25:26 (71.218.2.243)
Ayre gear is made in the USA, largely of USA components and materials: - Chassis: Made in California and Colorado, including anodizing and silkscreening. - Transformers: Made in California and Jamaic .......

392: General Asylum, RE: I think the picture is much bigger than that (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-30, 10:11:04 (71.218.2.243)
>> Rogue Audio, Schiit, Odyssey, Magnepan Hi Abe, Good questions. I know a little bit about Schiit, and they are very smart about keeping costs of everything very low. Direct sales only which has nev .......

393: General Asylum, RE: I looked at inflation rates vs price hikes (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 18:23:36 (71.218.2.243)
Sorry Abe, but the inflation index is based on things like energy prices and food prices. Both are kept artificially low due to government subsidies and the like. In the meantime the actual cost of bu .......

394: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Cleaning the switch won't help (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 18:04:57 (71.218.2.243)
If you look at the schematic, the 49.9kohm resistor is *soldered* to the PCB. It is the other values that are connected in via the switch. It is 99.9% chance that the input JFETs have gone bad. As lon .......

395: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: commercial service for ripping sacd (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 17:15:03 (71.218.2.243)
Hi DB, A bit of an apples to oranges comparison, as the Acoustic Sounds downloads are not only in DSD but have also been remastered by a "master". That likely makes more difference than the file forma .......

396: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "the huge dynamic range of many LPs" - Which ones? [nt] (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 17:02:41 (71.218.2.243)
Hi Chris, It turns out that due to the RIAA pre-emphasis/de-emphasis process that LPs can reach a dynamic range of over 90 dB in the mid-band - where our hearing is the most sensitive. Add to that th .......

397: Computer Audio Asylum, Yahbut... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 16:50:51 (71.218.2.243)
>> an ADC that supports 32/384 MQA! The problem with MQA is that everything is downsampled to 96/17. There is only *one* fold, regardless of their marketing claims. All audio information above 48kHz .......

398: Computer Audio Asylum, Way too many variables (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 16:38:22 (71.218.2.243)
Hi Jerry, The fact that you are using an add-on USB controller card makes a huge improvement in sound quality. You can get this same improvement in sound quality by using a USB 2 add-on card for your .......

399: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Why do you, or anyone, want a 32 bit audio recording? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 16:20:29 (71.218.2.243)
Hi Jerry, Even if you are using the ASIO driver to send 32-bit fixed point into Windows, as soon as it goes to Audacity it is converted to 32-bit floating point - which has only the same resolution as .......

400: Computer Audio Asylum, Difference between fixed point and floating point (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 07:28:18 (71.218.2.243)
Don't forget that there is a big difference between fixed and floating point digital numbers. Virtually all computers (and digital audio workstations) turn fixed point audio samples into floating poin .......

401: Digital Drive, RE: Ayre QX-5 & C-5xemp (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-29, 07:11:54 (71.218.2.243)
As noted in the owner's manual, there are two different sets of firmware for the QX-5 Twenty. The main firmware is updated by downloading a file from the Ayre website to your computer and then transf .......

402: Critic's Corner, RE: Questions for JA on the "sound" of truly "time-aligned" speakers with perfect step response (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-28, 19:20:26 (71.218.2.243)
Thanks for the details of your testing. It would seem that the marketplace agrees with you. About the only company left making "phase coherent" loudspeakers is Vandersteen. While they are no doubt exc .......

403: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Ayre VX-5 On/Off control via AyreLink Level Signaling (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-27, 01:57:36 (71.218.2.243)
I like to use "The Golden Rule" and treat people the way I would like to be treated. When you are happy, then we are happy. I'm glad you were able to find a solution that worked for your situation. Ch .......

404: General Asylum, RE: Nothing so pure as the voices of children (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-25, 20:31:52 (71.218.2.243)
Yes, the local production of "The Nutcracker" has always used a children's choir during the "Waltz of the Snowflakes". There really is nothing quite so beautiful as children singing. (To the point whe .......

405: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: The Very Best LM3875 Gainclone (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-25, 20:10:37 (71.218.2.243)
All "Gainclones" are just like almost all cables - colored to some degree. What is "best" in one system won't be "best" in another system. If you are getting "incredible sound", then don't worry - be .......

406: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Here's the schematic (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-25, 20:02:21 (71.218.2.243)
Hi SOR, It looks like you have blown the input FET. There is a weird feedback op-amp that is some sort of filter. My guess is that the blown input FET has a really high gate leakage current that makes .......

407: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: For MC the high loading just changes the frequency response. tilting it 'up' a bit. nt (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-25, 19:50:08 (71.218.2.243)
I agree that 47k loading gives the best soundstage. I find that "loading down" an MC to tame its treble is something of a band-aid. As far as the problem you are having with your SP-11, it sounds to m .......

408: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Ayre VX-5 On/Off control via AyreLink Level Signaling (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-25, 19:44:48 (71.218.2.243)
Hello Dan, Depending on the "brick" you are using, it may be possible to modify it - if it is openable... Almost certainly there is a 3-pin regulator inside. If you are really lucky it will have a 4th .......

409: Digital Drive, RE: Ayre QX-5 & C-5xemp (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-25, 19:21:34 (71.218.2.243)
>> Is there a reason why Ayre did not stock pile those Pioneer drives for the C-5xe? It is always difficult for a small company to sit on "dead" inventory. Each year taxes must be paid on inventory - .......

410: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Ayre VX-5 On/Off control via AyreLink Level Signaling (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-24, 16:50:52 (71.218.2.243)
>> Is the AyreLink port in level sensing mode looking for some other electrical characteristic other than voltage float down to zero e.g. some amount of resistive pull down value across trigger input .......

411: Critic's Corner, RE: Charles, you don't have to apologize for liking your own products (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-22, 14:16:31 (71.218.2.243)
>> If you didn't think your products were the best you shouldn't be selling them. Am I right? Hi Sue, Yes, and even deeper than that. If we didn't feel that they were markedly better than what is al .......

412: Digital Drive, Thanks for the correction (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-22, 12:41:55 (71.218.2.243)
One of the problems with the internet is that there is no body language or vocal inflections to aid in interpretation. My apologies. .......

413: Critic's Corner, RE: So I should just relax and listen to some music? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 17:33:24 (71.218.2.243)
>> "Violence is always right when you're the winner" - Wonder Warthog Geez, I haven't seen a Wonder Warthog comic book for at least 40 years. I had forgotten who he even was. Wikipedia helped clear o .......

414: Critic's Corner, RE: So there were only one or two failures, yet owners now have to hunt down another unit, ... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 17:08:22 (71.218.2.243)
>> I guess having backup stock for repairs was overlooked, eh? Bad guess. If you actually owned any Ayre equipment, I would be glad to assist with any problems you are having. But since are just some .......

415: Critic's Corner, RE: "... and had the best sound quality at anything up to twice its price of $5950" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 05:53:47 (71.218.1.79)
>> Does Linn and Ayre still provide parts and service for the CD-12, C-5xe, respectively? I've no idea about Linn. Just this year Pioneer stopped supplying all repair parts in the US (the C-5xe is ba .......

416: Digital Drive, RE: Ayre QX-5 & C-5xemp (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 05:34:18 (71.218.1.79)
>> is Ayre going to make a successor to the C-5xe spinner? I've learned it is a very bad idea to announce product plans - for many reasons. However it is fairly trivial to purchase drives that will p .......

417: Digital Drive, RE: and that 30 cent cable really paid off (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 05:05:55 (71.218.1.79)
Zacster was just being ironic, but Tidal does offer 2 tiers - $10 for MP3 and $20 for CD quality (plus a very small percentage in lossy high-res - or is that an oxymoron? - MQA). .......

418: Digital Drive, Another data point (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 05:01:16 (71.218.1.79)
One of the best ways to compare the effects of various sample rates on recording quality was with the (sadly discontinued) Pono Player. One firmware update added a feature called "The Revealer". The c .......

419: Digital Drive, RE: Furthermore (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 04:43:55 (71.218.1.79)
>> I see DAC manufacturers wishing to get on the MQA bandwagon have to hand over the design/workings/etc of their products As the Chinese manufacturers have shown, it is pretty much impossible to kee .......

420: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: VERY Interesting.. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 04:20:25 (71.218.1.79)
>> when I take some early digital CDS that sounded terrible back in the day and play them on todays equipment they sound very good Yes, exactly so. Just as with a classic LP from the '50s, today's te .......

421: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Don't know for positive, but (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 04:11:15 (71.218.1.79)
>> I think they went back to the original tapes as source just as they did originally for the cutter OK, that makes sense. The Soundstream must have been exactly like the 3M machine - no digital inpu .......

422: Critic's Corner, RE: So I should just relax and listen to some music? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 00:08:52 (71.218.1.79)
>> I do miss the good 'ole days when people would just insult your mother if they were upset with you rather than threaten lawsuits. Me, too. Heck, I'd rather someone throw a beer bottle at me than t .......

423: Critic's Corner, RE: "... and had the best sound quality at anything up to twice its price of $5950" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-20, 00:03:38 (71.218.1.79)
Hi BJH, I know you love to think that all manufacturers are just whores who will say anything to get their hands on your hard-earned money. When I make a statement like that, it is based on the opinio .......

424: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: VERY Interesting.. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-19, 05:18:55 (71.218.1.79)
>> it's my belief that the sampling rate of even 44.1kHz is responsible for most of the lack of satisfying sound of cd It is my belief that most of the problem with 44kHz sampling is the poor quality .......

425: Digital Drive, RE: Question (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-19, 05:14:45 (71.218.1.79)
>> My argument is playing back the same file at different rates will add little if nothing to playback quality. OK, I can kind of see your point, but people playing music at shows are not trying to sh .......

426: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 21:29:09 (71.218.1.79)
>> I'm pretty sure that by the time electrical recording machines were becoming popular for the commercial recording industry, balanced circuits were already being used in telephone communications bec .......

427: Critic's Corner, No problem (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 21:18:44 (71.218.1.79)
The world is apparently full of guys who are happy to threaten with lawsuits. Even when there is no merit, it can be a large waste of one's time, resources, and money to defend oneself. Life is short .......

428: Digital Drive, RE: Question (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 20:59:02 (71.218.1.79)
How about in the link below? John Atkinson reviewed the (now discontinued, so this is not a shill) Ayre A/D converter and listened to rips of LPs: "I tried a variety of sample rates with these LP rip .......

429: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: In the case of Telarc, however (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 20:36:06 (71.218.1.79)
Hello, Interesting! Do you know if there was an analog intermediate step, or were the DSD modulators somehow connected directly to the 50/16 PCM digital signal to create the SACD? Thanks, Charles Hans .......

430: Hi-Rez Highway, Interesting.. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 20:31:08 (71.218.1.79)
>> i kept the record as an example of how bad early digital was. Interesting that 32/13 sounded so bad. Now MQA wants to make 96/13 CDs. Some say that transferring a digital recording to vinyl will m .......

431: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: While never a "standard" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 09:48:14 (71.218.1.79)
>> Dr. Stockham's Soundstream recorder used by Telarc starting in the late 70s was 50/16. As was the 3M recorder used on Donald Fagen's "The Nightfly". It only had analog inputs and outputs, so there .......

432: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Actually (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 09:41:20 (71.218.1.79)
Hello Pete, Sorry, I had something else in the "paste" buffer. I meant to quote: >> actual 24 bit files available to the general public for commercial sound recordings date from only the past few year .......

433: Critic's Corner, RE: Arthur Salvatore (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-18, 09:08:44 (71.218.1.79)
In my opinion, Arthur Salvatore is one of those guys who would talk out of both sides of this mouth at the same time. While he would make valid criticisms of the audio press, at the very same time he .......

434: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: History of digital RECORDING (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 20:46:42 (71.218.1.79)
Please see the post entitled "Actually" for some information. By 1998 dCS were making high-resolution A/D and D/A converters for the pro market. They may have been developed a year or two earlier, but .......

435: Hi-Rez Highway, Actually (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 20:41:19 (71.218.1.79)
>> I had assumed the OP was using the term "balanced" in the more traditional sense. Actually it happened *far* earlier than that. Once they finalized the DVD spec in December of 1995, the next year .......

436: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 20:30:18 (71.218.1.79)
>> I had assumed the OP was using the term "balanced" in the more traditional sense. I disagree with your assertion that a balanced impedance relative to ground was the "traditional sense". Balanced .......

437: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Tarantulas (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 20:16:06 (71.218.1.79)
>> When not in the cage you'll experience all kinds of things others never will, some not necessarily good lol. Dat true, dat true! .......

438: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Slight correction (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 20:12:53 (71.218.1.79)
>> I don't care for high end low cap cables. Use cheap cables. Those are usually higher impedance. Not that it matters for sound quality, but the "impedance" of a cable refers to its characteristic im .......

439: Critic's Corner, Nice post (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 12:58:12 (71.218.1.79)
nt .......

440: Critic's Corner, RE: Excellent story and magazines (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 12:48:54 (71.218.1.79)
Thanks for the extra information. I agree that the point of the story is completely unchanged. I just like to make sure the details are correct when telling stories so that they can't be challenged on .......

441: Digital Drive, RE: 24/96 IS Hi-Res. And MOST people who have HEARD MQA like it. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 12:34:44 (71.218.1.79)
All public demos have been done by playing MQA processed versions of true high-res versions of songs. Then they either don't compare it any other format, or compare it against MP3 (in the early days) .......

442: Digital Drive, RE: "MIA", the more bit-perfect name? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 12:23:48 (71.218.1.79)
I always thought "MQA" stood for "More Questions than Answers". .......

443: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Yes, sample rate. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 12:21:41 (71.218.1.79)
>> But the Dacs I use all read out whatever I select in Midi Audio, there's no Automatic Detection. This is true of every DAC in the world. The DAC can only report the received sample rate. Unless us .......

444: Computer Audio Asylum, Thanks for filling in the information gap (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-17, 12:16:15 (71.218.1.79)
>> use a WASAPI or ASIO session or use kernel streaming. Hi PAR, Thanks for adding this in. It's been so long that I've done anything besides this that I took it for granted and forgot this was a nec .......

445: Computer Audio Asylum, Computer Audio Basics (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-16, 23:55:37 (71.218.1.79)
All modern operating systems convert all incoming audio streams to one common sampling rate so that they can be mixed together. This is so you can hear (say) an e-mail alert while you are listening to .......

446: Digital Drive, Yes but MQA is not 96/24 (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-16, 23:32:20 (71.218.1.79)
When a 96/24 high-res file is fed through the MQA processor, the first thing that happens is that the bit depth is reduced to approximately 17 bits. I say approximately because the noise floor varies .......

447: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Tarantulas (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-16, 23:12:52 (71.218.1.79)
The only time I ever saw a tarantula (outside of a zoo or exotic pet shop) was about 35 years ago on the side of the road. I can't remember if it was New Mexico or west Texas, but it was a 2-lane blac .......

448: Critic's Corner, RE: Interesting post from another forum (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-16, 22:24:28 (71.218.1.79)
>> you can say you trust Stereophile because hey they fired a corrupt reviewer - but they ALSO hired the corrupt reviewer in the first place Hello RGA, just like almost any company, when you are hire .......

449: Critic's Corner, Excellent story (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-16, 21:27:31 (71.218.1.79)
Is it true? According to Wikipedia, Ridge was acquired by Japanese investors in 1987.The original "fun" days must have been in the early 1960s. Thanks, Charles Hansen .......

450: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-13, 13:23:11 (75.171.240.70)
>> The outputs ability to supply appropriate power and it's common mode impedance to ground seem like fairly unrelated topics. Yep. But that is one of the problems with audio - there are far more cir .......

451: General Asylum, RE: Precisely so! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-13, 13:16:25 (75.171.240.70)
>> When I got there I coudn't believe that the people had nothing. Not even refrigerators. If you wanted cold milk you put it outside on the window ledge Hi PAR, And all of these kinds of things were .......

452: Critic's Corner, RE: Herb Reichert/ Linear Tube Audio ZOTL40 MkII (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-13, 09:44:15 (75.171.240.70)
>> Thanks for being honest Herb! Isn't this the same amp that Dick Olsher just gave a rave review in TAS? Thanks, Charles Hansen .......

453: General Asylum, Precisely so! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-13, 09:37:51 (75.171.240.70)
>> I can hazard a good guess why it came late but it is an economic reason rather than a national characteristic. That is exactly so, and one of the more shameful episodes of US history that is almos .......

454: General Asylum, RE: The Roy Buchanan enigma (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-12, 13:29:40 (75.171.240.70)
Much of Roy Buchanan's original "mystique" was that at the time he was "discovered", all of the major rock/pop/blues acts were really just kids. George was only 17 when The Beatles became famous, Hend .......

455: Critic's Corner, RE: Interesting post from another forum (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-11, 00:28:24 (75.171.240.70)
>> As for the many e-zines, I don't trust a one of them. I actually have found at least two webzines to be trustworthy, although one of them curiously seems to restrict the brands they review to only .......

456: Critic's Corner, RE: How is that link evidence for pay for play? n.t. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-11, 00:18:20 (75.171.240.70)
>> You're right, comparisons don't matter. Actually I think that fair comparisons are essential, which is what I did when evaluating MQA. As noted MQA apparently goes out of their way to perform unf .......

457: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-10, 22:01:06 (75.171.240.70)
>> Are you saying there is a Marantz with some "differential bridged output" n-core configuration, and it hits current limit too early? I have no idea of what is inside of the N-Core modules inside t .......

458: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-10, 11:14:10 (75.171.240.70)
Also look at this thread earlier on this page: .......

459: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-10, 11:06:01 (75.171.240.70)
>> Are you saying the proposed n-core configuration is not up to your definition of what is worthy of being called a "true" balanced circuit? How so? Please refer to the many other posts in this thre .......

460: Critic's Corner, RE: How is that link evidence for pay for play? n.t. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-10, 10:59:15 (75.171.240.70)
>> Just don't get your expectations too high as far as MQA is concerned Why not? Haven't you seen the latest TAS? MQA is featured at nearly every turn, including Harley's 10,000 word essay invoking K .......

461: Critic's Corner, RE: How is that link evidence for pay for play? n.t. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-10, 00:40:14 (75.171.240.70)
>> So tell me, how do I hear that same level of improvement in my own system? According to Robert Harley, John Atkinson, Peter McGrath, and the MQA marketing materials, you just have to buy an MQA-e .......

462: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-10, 00:10:08 (75.171.240.70)
>> "A balanced circuit is a two-conductor circuit in which both conductors and all circuits connected to them have the same impedance with respect to ground and to all other conductors. The purpose of .......

463: General Asylum, RE: Not to put too fine a point on it (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-08, 21:30:57 (75.171.240.70)
HI John, When I listened to it briefly just now with my 1" laptop speakers, it sounded like it was double-tracked. I stumbled across a guy who does a darned good job of playing both parts at once by u .......

464: Critic's Corner, RE: How is that link evidence for pay for play? n.t. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 21:30:24 (75.171.240.70)
>> Where does one hear a valid comparison? Robert's house? From the way that RH writes about it, one wouldn't think a valid comparison would be necessary, would it? From his written descriptions, it .......

465: Hi-Rez Highway, You there! (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 21:05:11 (75.171.240.70)
nt .......

466: Digital Drive, RE: Ayre QX-5 & C-5xemp (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 20:57:17 (75.171.240.70)
>> makes me wonder if we can expect a CX-5 Twenty Certainly no plans at this point. It is still possible to make CD players, but to make something that will play more formats than that becomes extrem .......

467: General Asylum, RE: I quite like the guitar solo on Black Friday (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 18:37:43 (75.171.240.70)
I went back and listened to all of the guitar solos Becker played, and IMO "Black Friday" was probably the best of them all. But I also found a few other *amazing* tributes: Walter's daughter Sayan's .......

468: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Nice analysis - thanks! (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 15:51:45 (75.171.240.70)
Hi BigShow, Sorry, I don't work for PS Audio. They moved into my neighborhood when they found the rent in a ski resort town (Vail) too high for their liking (along with a distinct scarcity of skilled .......

469: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Copy Protection? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 15:44:21 (75.171.240.70)
I'm too tired of this to engage in a debate of semantics. Call it whatever you want, MQA is specifically designed to let somebody other than you control how, when, and on what equipment, and at what q .......

470: Hi-Rez Highway, Thanks for the good information! (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 14:21:41 (75.171.240.70)
nt .......

471: Hi-Rez Highway, Nice analysis - thanks! (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 14:20:01 (75.171.240.70)
nt .......

472: Hi-Rez Highway, WTF? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 14:17:33 (75.171.240.70)
You were too lazy to read the article JA linked, then he went to all the trouble to copy and paste the relevant sections, and then you have the balls to say "See how easy that was"? That is pathetic. .......

473: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Copy Protection? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 14:09:34 (75.171.240.70)
>> I still do not see copy protection as part of the hypothetical MQA DRM scheme. I would suggest that you are not looking very hard. Why would MQA spend tens of thousands in direct costs and hundred .......

474: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: "slow-rolloff, minimum phase" (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 14:07:23 (75.171.240.70)
>> The ESS ES9038PRO DAC chip has 7 built in PCM filters, one of which s the "slow roll-off minimum phase" Although to be fair, "slow rolloff" is relative. The one built into the ES9038PRO is about 5 .......

475: Digital Drive, RE: Ayre QX-5 & C-5xemp (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 13:59:17 (75.171.240.70)
>> I'm looking for the easiest solution, plus I've only got one set of interconnects! I hear ya'! I'm lazy, too. But since you will be using the C-5xe as the transport, it will be a lot easier to jus .......

476: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Bill Waslo is Right - Your Amp is Oscillating (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 13:45:16 (75.171.240.70)
If a solid-state amp is running hot for no apparent reason, it is almost *always* because it is oscillating - usually in the MHz range - so you will never hear it. The fact that it does so with certai .......

477: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 13:08:17 (75.171.240.70)
>> I didn't even mention any circuit topology. You are right - the marrow definition of "balanced" you used was extremely limited and defined only one aspect of true differential balanced circuitry. .......

478: General Asylum, RE: I quite like the guitar solo on Black Friday (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-07, 12:51:35 (75.171.240.70)
>> BTW, where did you find the credits? I trusted Wikipedia - not always a good idea, but in this case, probably not too far off. If you go to the main Steely Dan page, there is a list of albums. Cli .......

479: Digital Drive, That makes more sense (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 19:45:37 (75.171.240.70)
>> I think the skip feature was included to null and void badly recorded LP tracks That makes a lot more sense. I was only thinking of copying CDs. With modern computer software like Vinyl Studio, it .......

480: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: So. . . you ARE serious? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 18:11:05 (75.171.240.70)
I have no problem balancing out any "political commentary" - I'm an equal opportunity basher... :-) How about this instead, "Listening to Bob Stuart's misleading claims on MQA is a lot like listening .......

481: Hi-Rez Highway, LOL! (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 18:02:29 (75.171.240.70)
Thanks for the laugh! I don't think I can zap you like Apollo did in that Star Trek episode did, as my nipples are still intact... :-) FWIW, I would go for The Beatles. I've seen both the original St .......

482: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Copy Protection? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 17:39:22 (75.171.240.70)
Hello Fitzcarraldo, I'm unsure if you've been keeping up with the discussion on this topic at the Computer Audiophile forums under the "MQA is Vaporware" thread. Bob Stern posted an interesting US pat .......

483: Digital Drive, Found it (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 17:25:13 (75.171.240.70)
According to the Pioneer service manual, the "skpped ID" tracks use a different part of the ToC to figure out where each track starts and ends: "When the INPUT selector is set to ANALOG, you can chang .......

484: Digital Drive, RE: Any Pioneer PDR-* users out there? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 16:53:06 (75.171.240.70)
Hello Guelpher, Based on what tketcham explained to me about "skipped ID tracks" I don't eve know how the Pioneer player would be able to do this. The way that the ToC (Table of Contents) works is tha .......

485: Digital Drive, Seems bizarre to me.. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 16:43:19 (75.171.240.70)
>> The Pioneer PDR series CD recorders have the ability to edit the TOC of a CD-R and insert a "skip ID" for tracks you want to automatically skip while playing. Thanks for the information. I remembe .......

486: General Asylum, Correction (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 14:26:31 (75.171.240.70)
>> But to the best of my knowledge "Reelin' in the Years" was the only track he ever played on. After doing some research, it turns out that Elliott Randall played on several other Steely Dan tracks: .......

487: General Asylum, You are right - my bad. (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 14:21:35 (75.171.240.70)
Hi John, I did some research and found that Becker played the solos on the following tracks: Black Friday - Katy Lied Bad Sneakers - Katy Lied The Fez - The Royal Scam Home at Last - Aja I Got the New .......

488: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-06, 13:46:37 (75.171.240.70)
>> "It's all about the circuitry's impedance as seen by a common mode signal." This is a cheap trick used to save money in some very low-priced equipment. For example if the problem is that one has a .......

489: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "differential bridged output " balanced or not? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 21:41:53 (75.171.240.70)
>> If the circuit responsible for the positive part of the signal has the same impedance with respect to ground as the impedance of the circuitry responsible for the negative part of the signal with r .......

490: Critic's Corner, RE: TAS Legacy: Vendetta Research SCP-2 Phonostage (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 21:38:51 (75.171.240.70)
>> I am very glad to learn that Parasound is not one of the villains. Yes! Richard Schram of Parasound is what one of my mentors would call "a Prince among men". Great guy, great company, great produ .......

491: Critic's Corner, RE: TAS Legacy: Vendetta Research SCP-2 Phonostage (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 21:35:19 (75.171.240.70)
Hi John, Thanks for the corrections! I am always happy to be corrected, especially when it is coming from the horse's mouth... :-) Thanks again for everything! I was 21 when you published the schemati .......

492: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Copy Protection? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 21:22:24 (75.171.240.70)
>> whether this applies to MQA as it's rolled out is speculative True. And when they rolled out debit cards I could get cash from an ATM in Europe in the local currency and not pay any fees. Not any .......

493: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Copy protection and DRM are not the same thing (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 21:17:51 (75.171.240.70)
>> What after you bought your first cd player they stopped making CD's? This is one of the reasons that Stereophile will not review a product with fewer than 5 brick-and-mortar dealers - to protect t .......

494: Hi-Rez Highway, I think you are starting to get it... :-) (nt) (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 21:15:26 (75.171.240.70)
nt .......

495: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: LOTS of new MQA on Tidal (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 17:27:00 (75.171.240.70)
>> Since we're dealing with high sample rate PCM, I would argue there is no good reason to use a brick wall filter anyway. We don't need the pass band response to be ruler flat all the way up to 44 KH .......

496: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: Copy Protection? (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 17:16:31 (75.171.240.70)
>> Have I missed something? It would seem so. You are also active at Computer Audiophile, so try checking out this post: https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/30381-mqa-is-vaporware/?page=1 .......

497: Critic's Corner, RE: TAS Legacy: Vendetta Research SCP-2 Phonostage (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 17:02:33 (75.171.240.70)
Hello - John is too circumspect to name names, but you know me - a born trouble-maker... :-) 1) Mark Levinson (the man) stopped paying royalties to John for the JC-1 (MC head amp), JC-2 (preamp inclu .......

498: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Exactly (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 16:37:57 (75.171.240.70)
>> I did lots of listening with and without TV and never felt the TV made things worse. Sorry for the late reply. Please remember that your tests were only meaningful if you completely unplugged the .......

499: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Lower frequencies require larger transformers (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 16:31:26 (75.171.240.70)
>> How do you manage the Japanese situation at Ayre? Sorry I didn't see your post until just now. We use 50Hz cores for all voltages. The only one where we *might* get away with a 60Hz core would be .......

500: General Asylum, RE: Never bought an SD recording after AJA... (0.00)
Posted by Charles Hansen on 2017-09-05, 16:24:17 (75.171.240.70)
>> And I had 'em all. Just lost interest. I've listened to some of them, but none hold up as well as the earlier recordings. A LOT of that has to do with the guitar solos, which became an integral par .......

Found total of 500 records, Query: , Author: Charles Hansen in All Forums, Time: 2 sec.

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