|
Search of All Forums Enter your search criteria. Click here for tips on using our search |
For Sale Ads |
1: General Asylum, RE: Can't play my CDs without one... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2016-12-24, 11:03:30 (71.237.216.148)
Me too. Shoot, some folks even still play records... Rick .......
2: General Asylum, RE: Paging Rod M : What happened to my Zerostat posting below? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2016-10-16, 15:06:33 (71.237.216.148)
Rod, if it's of any value I was using an ipad running ios 10.0.2 for the post and am willing to try and help replicate the problem if it might help. Best, Rick .......
3: General Asylum, RE: Zerostat (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2016-10-15, 15:07:02 (71.237.216.148)
"So using any form of de-static device including a Zerosat could help improve matters." I agree. And you did a good job explaining the (IMHO) most likely mechanism. I did, or at least started, an exp .......
4: General Asylum, RE: heat? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-12-13, 10:21:31 (71.237.216.148)
"If you cannot easily hold your hand for ~5 seconds..on the warmed up Heat sink. Then there is something Seriously wrong." Well, I suppose. I was actually thinking die temperatures and agree that is t .......
5: General Asylum, RE: Is there, or should there be, a DIY amp/preamp forum? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-12-11, 10:15:22 (71.237.216.148)
200F's a little warm. You want to stay But if the unit was in regular use before you acquired it that's likely a good omen re. reliability. The heat sinks look pretty good so if you get the quietest, .......
6: General Asylum, RE: Is there, or should there be, a DIY amp/preamp forum? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-12-11, 08:17:39 (71.237.216.148)
Why not on our "tweaks/DIY" forum? Or here? If you have a schematic be sure to post that also. And mention what is "hot" and how hot it is. Details matter. i.e. how do you know it's too hot? If you d .......
7: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: So what's the deal with CD demagnetizers? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-11-26, 09:38:21 (71.237.216.148)
"The other problem of course is, even if there were sufficient ferrous impurities in the metal or the ink to produce a "mild" magnetic field WHAT would the magnetic field affect that changes the sound .......
8: Digital Drive, RE: Agree completely... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-11-23, 09:20:21 (71.237.216.148)
"Must sound heavenly" Absolutely! After all what can beat "Absolutely pure sound"? Remind me again, just what ARE the units of sound purity, and, for that matter, what establishes their upper limit? I .......
9: Inmate Central, RE: Update on Medford pot growing ban (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-11-21, 16:33:11 (71.237.216.148)
"As if the voters of Oregon did not already vote on legalizing a grow." Different state. They're in Jefferson... Don't worry if that doesn't make sense, just a little local color. Rick .......
10: General Asylum, RE: There's some place out in West Virginia (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-10-21, 07:59:06 (71.237.216.148)
"That's the quietest place in the country for receiving whatvever signals are being detected by the rather large antenna there. Can't recall the kind of antenna, maybe HF." There's something to be sai .......
11: Cable Asylum, RE: Noise cancellation and resonance control (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-10-20, 19:24:18 (71.237.216.148)
"it could be very dangerous if implemented as a user-made electrical insulating material." Thanks for the warning, I'll keep it in mind. I believe that you are concerned about it cold-flowing off a s .......
12: Cable Asylum, RE: Noise cancellation and resonance control (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-10-20, 17:10:32 (71.237.216.148)
"Oatey FASTape (model #306220) available at Home Depot" That sounds like just what I need. I've use the thin white stuff since the late 60's but it's too wimpy for the low impedance end of things like .......
13: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Questions about size of resistor ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-10-16, 09:42:47 (71.237.216.148)
"I notice is that these new 0.5W resistor was rated at 25C degrees . I just wonder it is common that resistor will work at temp above 25C. So 0.5W at 25C is simply not telling the whole story." I'd ju .......
14: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Indeed (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-27, 11:43:51 (96.25.74.167)
"If one of them says something, I give it a lot of credence." "Victor Khomenko, John Curl, Charles Hansen are quailifed EEs who know whereof they speak. ... If one of them says something, I give it a .......
15: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: I would say nearly all amplifier designs are conceptually WRONG! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-18, 18:26:04 (96.25.74.167)
"Just for the sake of discussion where do you disagree?" Well, naturally no distortion is the ideal all right... the goesouta should look like the goesinta, just bigger and with a consistent delay. In .......
16: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: I would say nearly all amplifier designs are conceptually WRONG! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-18, 08:18:06 (96.25.74.167)
Great post! Thanks for boiling your notions and study down to a digestible batch. I follow your posts and while I don't see eye to eye with you on some of the root cause and implementation issues, I d .......
17: General Asylum, RE: a crock (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-18, 07:50:21 (96.25.74.167)
Hmmm, looks interesting. Tnx for posting... Rick .......
18: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: You Already Posted In "DIY Audio Forum" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-12, 19:47:10 (96.25.74.167)
"The plate in a typical capacitor is actually as long as a gymnasium...." That's one way to build capacitors but not the only one and is suitable for some applications especially where cost is a big i .......
19: Digital Drive, RE:Wiki answer (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-10, 09:23:02 (96.25.74.167)
"For a 10 bit converter, even using 0.1% precision resistors would not guarantee monotonicity of output." OK... And that could be a lock-up nightmare in a digital feedback system. But just listening? .......
20: Digital Drive, RE: "Vinyl is fo the weekends, but it is a treat." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-09-04, 09:57:15 (96.25.74.167)
Enjoyment is what it's all about! I've used everything but Elcasets from 78's onward and they all have their strengths, weaknesses and artifacts. And it's not like they are uniformally expressed beca .......
21: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Another Quote From MSA... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-26, 09:24:58 (96.25.74.167)
"Another tweek that does nothing for me. I have gotten to the point that if there is no reasonable explanation of how something works it usually doesn't." An interesting notion. You have probably trie .......
22: General Asylum, The NC-303 was pretty good. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-21, 17:17:38 (96.25.74.167)
But I tended to lean towards Hallicrafters... 73, Rick .......
23: Critic's Corner, RE: And yet... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-21, 09:12:24 (96.25.74.167)
"I've listened to many speakers, mostly tall line sources that do create a lifelike image height." Me too, including my current ones. BUT I believe that that's due to the characteristics of our pinnae .......
24: Critic's Corner, RE: Measurements vs. Reviewers (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-20, 20:01:07 (96.25.74.167)
"Are you saying that stereo can't do depth?" Damn, that's an interesting question! I don't know if it helps that aspect or not but it shouldn't hurt. My sense of it is that depth (real depth, not reve .......
25: Critic's Corner, RE: Measurements vs. Reviewers (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-20, 18:56:34 (96.25.74.167)
"not well represented in measurements: coherency and image size:" Well, they aren't well represented by Stereo capture or reproduction either. Stereo at best only manages localization along the horizo .......
26: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "Sure glad I was wrong this time." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-18, 16:14:15 (96.25.74.167)
Me too... It is refreshing occasionally, isn't it? R. .......
27: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Once again the lower end offering sounds better than their premium piece (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-17, 09:21:08 (96.25.74.167)
"I think I figured out why. It's like it was over engineered to death!" Maybe. I used to design products with similar sensitivities as stereos and we had similar issues. You try to write performance s .......
28: General Asylum, RE: I'm Gobsmacked (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-16, 07:52:53 (96.25.74.167)
"Presumably sound is best propogated in a vacuum?" Sure, that's why many folks still use tubes... R. .......
29: General Asylum, RE: "and it is not made w/SMD." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-15, 18:54:38 (96.25.74.167)
"Resistor quality makes quite a difference with SMD being inferior." In what manner? I've used both over the years in various things and believe that they are largely the same given the same ilk of re .......
30: General Asylum, RE: "and it is not made w/SMD." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-14, 07:07:32 (96.25.74.167)
What difference does that make? R. .......
31: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Yes, someone gets it! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-09, 07:41:07 (96.25.74.167)
"Again, what I have been saying all along....there is no absolute, universal, one and only, best...only what is best for you!" OK... If that's what you really believe then why do you incessantly post .......
32: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "all our senses work the same...." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-07, 20:01:37 (96.25.74.167)
No they don't! Not by a huge shot. They're not even stable, they crap out with age, use and abuse. Unfortunately... Rick .......
33: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: You may (inadvertantly?) be onto something. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-04, 08:39:29 (96.25.74.167)
"This is not really true. The correlation with THD is not too bad when there is no negative feedback applied to the amplifier and the circuitry from the amps on test are similar." WELL! How dare you s .......
34: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Appliance operators. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-03, 17:05:44 (96.25.74.167)
In my day they were "plug-in appliance operators". But it was ALMOST all in fun! True, my 80m, sweep-tube CW transmitter along with my two crystals wasn't quite as versatile as a KWM-1 and maybe my s .......
35: Amp/Preamp Asylum, You may (inadvertantly?) be onto something. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-03, 08:29:30 (96.25.74.167)
"I would say that the real trolls are those who hide behind their measurements in defense of their election to just keep using negative feedback until the measured performance in various aspects cease .......
36: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Rod Elliott's treatise has available for years (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-08-02, 07:10:07 (96.25.74.167)
"if feedback were truly instantaneous, no such distortion would be introduced" You've nailed it. If the amplifier had infinite GBW (gain-bandwidth) then there would be no residual distortion products .......
37: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Not seeing the innards or even the bak hook ups. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-29, 10:19:56 (96.25.74.167)
"And unless there is an equipment ground fault inside a piece of equipment no current should be travelling on the safety equipment grounding conductor back to the source, the electrical service neutra .......
38: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: I think heck iruit... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-26, 09:09:53 (96.25.74.167)
"connecting it via a USB socket (obviously, V- only)" Dave, is the case (in your case) also connected to V-? Just curious... Tnx, Rick .......
39: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "I know more than a few tooby guys using chip amps now on their Horns" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-26, 07:36:15 (96.25.74.167)
That's because they're unbiased... Sorry, couldn't resist. R. .......
40: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Ars Technica dissects an AudioQuest Vodka ethernet cable (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-25, 08:26:57 (96.25.74.167)
Can you share your construction technique? CRUDE Do you just hold it all in place with the masking tape? YES What's your wire spacing? HOPEFULLY there is an attached picture of it. How close do you .......
41: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Ars Technica dissects an AudioQuest Vodka ethernet cable (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-24, 15:29:34 (96.25.74.167)
"Regarding your "open lines". You must be talking about speaker cables judging by your termination values." No, they're interconnects actually. I wanted to get away from the dielectric absorption AND .......
42: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Ars Technica dissects an AudioQuest Vodka ethernet cable (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-24, 11:14:17 (96.25.74.167)
"Paper tape probably isn't the worst dielectric they could have used. Probably better than some pvc electrical tape." I suspect so also. I've had excellent luck making interconnects out of masking tap .......
43: General Asylum, RE: More proof of activity on the quantum level.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-20, 10:21:56 (96.25.74.167)
"the textbook characteristics of L, C, and R"... Are not the least in conflict with any underlying mechanisms because they simply don't address them at all. They are useful characterizations that desc .......
44: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "Then was then; now is now." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-14, 19:51:20 (96.25.74.167)
"most likely have wear components like diodes, capacitors, and resistors that have gone out of spec." I certainly don't regard modern passives to be "wear components". In general they last about forev .......
45: General Asylum, RE: many ways to skin a cat (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-08, 17:36:25 (96.25.74.167)
"It is unfortunate that the review magazines (SP in particular) tend to think so little in terms of system synergy and review components as such." Well, in a way I think they're kinda stuck. The poten .......
46: General Asylum, RE: actually material costs are higher now... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-08, 09:56:49 (96.25.74.167)
"At the retail level, only the very low volume stuff can be really good" The deal is (IMHO) that to this day we still don't have a comprehensive handle on the factors and their limits that are necessa .......
47: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Faceplate tweak (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-06, 08:36:20 (96.25.74.167)
Felt washers between the knob and faceplate work well also. You can adjust the tension by how far the knob is down the shaft. We used to use them on aircraft radios to keep the volume knobs from adjus .......
48: General Asylum, RE: "price/performance correlation." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-06, 07:26:21 (96.25.74.167)
"you are assuming that there is a strong price/performance correlation. There is not, Amen! Rick .......
49: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: I agree with Abe....Computers are hardly 'fading from the scene'....... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-05, 07:58:25 (96.25.74.167)
"The discussion here is the use of computers as transports, which is a perquisite of using Roon." Then Roon is Doomed. Leastwise if you're thinking actual desktops. However Windows or 80xx archecture .......
50: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: I agree with Abe....Computers are hardly 'fading from the scene'....... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-04, 19:46:50 (96.25.74.167)
"Tablet sales sales will surpass computers by years end." "Tablets" are just a computer form-factor. For most of us the necessity of using a desktop is now greatly reduced, but is yet to be eliminated .......
51: Cable Asylum, RE: "DIY 16awg .999 silver, ladder line uninsulated" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-07-03, 11:01:54 (96.25.74.167)
You might want to try terminating it. Ladder line has very very low loss through UHF (no dielectric is good dielectric) and a fairly large capture area. This can result in more RF at the power amplif .......
52: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "Behavior," yes. Sound? Not always. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-25, 08:33:48 (96.25.74.167)
"With a good design, better parts will usually improve the sound. A poor design they won't matter much because there is too much obscuring the (relatively) subtle differences." Maybe. Or maybe the "po .......
53: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Just compared 16awg vs 10awg (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-24, 16:04:53 (96.25.74.167)
"Actually, when the volume is low everything should still sound good. If it sounds bad you got issues in your setup." That's an interesting notion and I think that I agree. But I also think that you a .......
54: General Asylum, RE: OP Amps, Whats Your Opinion? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-24, 10:27:36 (96.25.74.167)
You really can't generalize. Sorry. Op Amps have gotten better and also more specialized so that helps. Implementation still rules however so it really boils down to the goals and competance of the d .......
55: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: ported speakers (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-24, 09:02:30 (96.25.74.167)
"I abhor front ported speakers." Me too Stu, so I don't use them... For me ported speakers are a poor compromise compared with "acoustic suspension" styles for home use. No ports is good ports! Rick .......
56: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "Behavior," yes. Sound? Not always. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-22, 08:14:53 (96.25.74.167)
"Absolute numbers are meaningless since machines aren't listneing to hifi." You may want to rethink that as it flies in the face of the rest of your posts. Perhaps something like: "absolute numbers ar .......
57: General Asylum, RE: "where can I buy the audiophile hi-end version"? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-19, 07:02:39 (96.25.74.167)
"Why not use your finger like most audiophiles do? " Because "REAL" Audiophiles eschew digital... R. .......
58: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Measurements for Men (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-15, 11:17:23 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks Dave. Looks like interesting stuff and I look forward to reading it. Having done my share of working the gap between ideal capacitors and real ones it should resonate... Just like the damn capa .......
59: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: LOL !!! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-15, 10:41:18 (96.25.74.167)
"Perhaps the smaller 8PR doesn't lose the bass quite as much." I don't think that's it Abe. I think it is largely resistance MAYBE along with lower inductamce. When I was experimenting I tried both 8P .......
60: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: LOL !!! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-14, 19:00:43 (96.25.74.167)
Gosh Abe, I'm using 8PR which is just a vinyl version and the bass is fine and the highs dead flat as opposed to the Audioquest cable I was comparing which was down over a dB at 20K. The other thing I .......
61: Inmate Central, RE: Canadian bird (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-14, 18:42:31 (96.25.74.167)
Clark's Nutcracker. Common in the high conifer mountains. Always looking for a handout at Crater Lake. Rick .......
62: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Yes, Apple is about one theing, PRODUCT... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-14, 08:28:04 (96.25.74.167)
"There are dozens of alternatives to iTunes..." Really? I loath iTunes and had no idea that you could avoid it. Do you have one that you would recommend? TNX, Rick .......
63: General Asylum, RE: Peter is largely correct...err Not ..... well (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-14, 07:42:19 (96.25.74.167)
"What would you define as well-structured testing?" Performing a series of tests designed to assess the performance and suscepibilities of the system. Essentially trying to sort out which variables ar .......
64: Critic's Corner, RE: Don't go JA! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-12, 14:52:25 (96.25.74.167)
"All reproduced sound is colored. We choose our own combinations and compromises" I'm more in favor of trying to fix the problem (the colorations) rather than "tuning" them to taste. But lacking perf .......
65: Critic's Corner, RE: Don't go JA! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-12, 06:20:23 (96.25.74.167)
"JA is the glue that holds it all together. His open-mindedness and reasoned objectivity is what makes Stereophile the best read in this field. I'm afraid that Art (a terrific writer) will wander too .......
66: General Asylum, RE: Life is going on ... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-09, 08:20:30 (96.25.74.167)
"Is this a hobby or an exercise in spending and conspicuous consumption?" Can't it be both? The great thing about being an "audiophile" is that you can do it at any age and price point and it can be e .......
67: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Digital/computerized audio has taken me from a 'better sound' kind of guy... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-07, 06:55:33 (96.25.74.167)
"some will experience just as much enjoyment listening to 78rpm digital transfers of long-dead, obscure Russian conductors and long ago orchestras as anything we've experienced in high-end audio. " Bu .......
68: Vinyl Asylum, Yes. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-07, 05:46:32 (96.25.74.167)
Well, until it was played a few times on a changer... R. .......
69: General Asylum, RE: Peter is largely correct...err Not ..... well (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-05, 15:16:36 (96.25.74.167)
"IMO, it is the critics job to CRITIQUE what he hears. He can then speculate as to why..." Nicely put! Us peons try to identify aurally kindered spirits to be our stand-ins at shows and equipment eva .......
70: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Damping factor is overrated, really all you need is the power (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-04, 07:37:41 (96.25.74.167)
"Now if it was me I would not be using a solid state amp to begin with (because I find that tubes often have better bass; not as 'tight' which is a good thing, along with more body and tone), but to e .......
71: Isolation Ward, RE: Because you are dealing with present and past? NT (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-02, 07:41:35 (96.25.74.167)
What's the difference? Well, the photons you see from the target aren't the same ones. The original ones are destroyed upon impact and new ones are generated from the material. Maybe that's the deal? .......
72: General Asylum, Nice! -nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-06-01, 07:10:08 (96.25.74.167)
.......
73: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: How could two stereos sound so good yet so different (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-30, 15:27:29 (96.25.74.167)
"To get the best of (or compromise of) both worlds some folks couple a vacuum tube preamp to a quality solid-state amp." I don't think I've ever heard that configuration. But in terms of playing to th .......
74: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: And of the three, USB, WiFi and Ethernet... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-27, 07:33:16 (96.25.74.167)
"Some argue that I2S was never really designed, just cobbled together as a temporary fix but that it sort of stuck around." And was (at least initially) only aimed at on-board chip-chip communication. .......
75: General Asylum, RE: I wouldn't go to that audio show again..... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-26, 16:02:22 (96.25.74.167)
Right on! I want to listen to performance and talk Tech. Haven't been to a show for many longs, need to correct that. It's really fun to listen to systems and talk to the manufacturers. And other nut- .......
76: General Asylum, RE: No, John, my ears are not so "untrained" as you put it... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-24, 07:42:08 (96.25.74.167)
"exactly what measurements I should be looking at" If you take the dive, try looking at read-latency variations and powersupply current variations and spectra. I think that at least the large drives d .......
77: Critic's Corner, RE: Thanks for all the kind words.. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-22, 08:30:01 (96.25.74.167)
And here's mine: Great review. We must be of similar vintages since I'm quite familiar with your references (but didn't care for them). You did a fine job of describing their problems and it appears t .......
78: General Asylum, RE: For Me, Yes..... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-17, 10:04:31 (96.25.74.167)
"a "lacking of confidence" of the designers in their own efforts." Todd, I don't think that's quite the right spin. I designed hobbiest consumer electronics for a decade or so in a similar market to o .......
79: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: LOL! There's an app I like. The Q is..... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-16, 11:59:38 (96.25.74.167)
You'd prolly have to switch the drive cable polarity. Or just lay it upside down. The "Doormat of Discouragement" (tm) has a grand future worldwide... Rick .......
80: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: That's very interesting! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-15, 07:05:52 (96.25.74.167)
The generator was lower than the "nominal" frequency but I'm not sure just how much. I was in the middle of something else and just did the trial for the hell of it. I was shocked as could-be that th .......
81: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: The antenna (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-15, 06:41:59 (96.25.74.167)
"What leads you to that bizarre conclusion? (that folks quit using Schumann generators). Jess' from reading the threads on AA when it was an active topic. Do you still use one? R. of O. .......
82: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: That's very interesting! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-14, 19:46:10 (96.25.74.167)
"So what frequency cleared up the wooziness?" I don't recall exactly but it was in the direction of the nominal frequency, maybe about 1 Hz. "how finely can you tune the thing?" Well, I didn't know s .......
83: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: The antenna (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-14, 18:32:00 (96.25.74.167)
You've got the right dimensions of the loop I used. It wasn't anything optimum, it was just laying around from a project I did some years ago and looked like it would be good enough for a quick test. .......
84: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: The antenna (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-14, 08:33:02 (96.25.74.167)
The best antenna is just a loop and it doesn't have to be very big. I'll attach a picture of one rather than go the thousand word bit. (the major squares are 1") You can calculate the B field using .......
85: General Asylum, RE: Applied Cryogenics Inc...Website (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-13, 17:28:56 (96.25.74.167)
Do you happen to know if cryo-treating Cu wire changes it's DC resistance? Just curious and you seemed like a chap that might have actually measured some before and after. TNX, Rick .......
86: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Is There Any Hope for Linux Audio? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-09, 09:36:57 (96.25.74.167)
"good one. At least you are here to set us all straight." Yup, I feel better already. I've got a whole mental locker of such tawdry aphorisms including such golden oldies as Nixon assuring me that "yo .......
87: Digital Drive, RE: About depth of field (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-05-09, 08:48:25 (96.25.74.167)
"Boosting the highs then rolling them off at the end." Back in my day we called that: Preemphasis. And as I'm sure you know, it's included as part of the Red-Book standard. However unlike records and .......
88: Computer Audio Asylum, RE:"the Micro is more sophisticated sounding." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-26, 08:48:14 (96.25.74.167)
And the units for that are? R. .......
89: Cable Asylum, RE: Test for cable shielding (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-23, 14:02:43 (96.25.74.167)
Turn up the volume and grab hold of the cable in the insulated area. You Bod acts like an antenna for hum and noise and you can get an idea of the cable's shielding effectiveness. Rick .......
90: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: "if you don't hear anything just return the cable." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-22, 08:08:16 (96.25.74.167)
But the problem is that you SHOULDN'T hear a difference, not that you do. The power line looks horrible on a scope nowadays, way different than it did in the 50's when power factor was the main conce .......
91: General Asylum, RE:For some reason Schitt Audio... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-21, 18:58:09 (96.25.74.167)
Seems GOOD to me... I've never heard their gear but I like what I see and read, their philosophy, their engineering experience, their production et. al. From every angle they appear to have priorities .......
92: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: connecting audio gears directly to ac without plugs (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-19, 08:54:48 (96.25.74.167)
"In conclusion, every bit of metal and contact after the meter counts." So why don't the ones before the meter? At the risk of stating the obvious wouldn't working on the PSRR of your system really be .......
93: Vintage Asylum, RE: Recommendations for a signal/function generator (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-18, 22:48:56 (96.25.74.167)
Really just about any Fn generator will probably suffice. If you ever need a faster signal than they produce you can always just run the output through a high-speed logic gate with a Schmitt trigger i .......
94: OTL Asylum, RE: There is a reason for that (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-16, 15:58:28 (96.25.74.167)
"I just sent a letter to theaudiobeat.com about this very issue;" What a super site! Why they already have reviews from 2018 posted! Must mean they are forward looking... Good exposition on balanced X .......
95: General Asylum, RE: As I think you know ... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-16, 07:27:25 (96.25.74.167)
"Nothing beats the here and now." That's good since it's all we got! And it IS good indeed, better than the 50's & 60's in every way. Been there, done that, wouldn't go back for all the tea in China. .......
96: General Asylum, RE: Total disconnect between price and quality (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-15, 08:21:30 (96.25.74.167)
"My issue is mostly with the bass. Yup, that's right, an area where we would expect Class D to shine since so many subwoofers use Class D technology." I'd suspect problems in the reconstruction filter .......
97: General Asylum, RE: REVIEW: Class D Audio SDS-470C Amplifier (SS) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-15, 08:03:50 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks! Well done review of an interesting product. Couldn't ask for more. By and large I think it pays to be a late adopter of new technology and it sounds like "Class-D" may be getting safe for us L .......
98: Tubes Asylum, RE: Do tubes get "tired"? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-14, 07:09:26 (96.25.74.167)
"like some resistors and caps do they [tubes] loose their physical function?" Sure, that's one of the reasons we don't use them anymore. They get gassy, their cathode emission craps out, the grids sta .......
99: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Gosh, that's inspiring. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-13, 21:51:10 (96.25.74.167)
"Do you have an extra $1300 for a 1.5GHz entry model Spectrum Analyzer? Rigol..." Well, maybe not "extra" exactly but I could scrape it up. That do look interesting, have you any experience with their .......
100: Critic's Corner, RE:Good point! However, how much are interconnects limiting factor in separates? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-10, 09:32:03 (96.25.74.167)
"I like apples ...:) " And I like Lattes! (sipping one now...) I'm not a car fancier but I do love electronics and so know a great deal more about the latter than the former having plied the trade for .......
101: Critic's Corner, RE:Good point! However, how much are interconnects limiting factor in separates? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-08, 22:49:44 (96.25.74.167)
"you're talking apples and I'm talking oranges" Seems like it. But at least we tried... Rick .......
102: Critic's Corner, RE:Good point! However, how much are interconnects limiting factor in separates? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-08, 18:09:09 (96.25.74.167)
"if "high-end" audio generally fails miserably with 2 speakers, 2 pairs of IC's, and 2 or 3 components, how in the world could more speakers, more connections, and more components bring a system any c .......
103: Critic's Corner, RE:Good point! However, how much are interconnects limiting factor in separates? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-07, 09:06:17 (96.25.74.167)
"then the question is, why hasn't this less-is-more concept [integrated amplifiers] caught on in the supposedly performance-oriented high-end audio industry?" I long ago went with the seperate power-a .......
104: Critic's Corner, RE: Looking to S'phile's Rec. Comps. for help choosing preamps to audition/buy? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-07, 08:47:38 (96.25.74.167)
"The pricing of so much of high end audio equipment on the market today is an utter FRAUD and everybody knows it (including you I would imagine)." Fraud? Not really, but it's mostly just a marketing t .......
105: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: patent -t (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-03, 15:48:00 (96.25.74.167)
"I apologize as my knowledge here is a bit limited, I also didn't want to stray too far away from music, and music royalty IP." Well, you prolly have a lot better grasp of the issues for electronics t .......
106: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: patent -t (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-02, 20:25:32 (96.25.74.167)
While I admire terseness, there's such a thing as too much of a good thing. Are you saying that PCB's should be patented rather than copyrighted? I just did what the lawyers said and for what they cha .......
107: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: copyright only applies to written word/language -t (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-04-02, 08:07:26 (96.25.74.167)
I don't think so, it must be broader than that as we used to always copyright-mark PCB's. Rick .......
108: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Gosh, that's inspiring. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-30, 15:53:40 (96.25.74.167)
"But seriously, do you use an oscilloscope routinely for audio or is this one of those work related things? ;-)" Absolutely! I can't see what's going on otherwise. My bare eyes have a hard time direct .......
109: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: What to do with an Oscilloscope (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-30, 12:46:50 (96.25.74.167)
"I mean, could I look at waveform distortion and really tell something about the circuit?" Damn, that's a good question. I can for sure and couldn't imagine being without one. BUT... transferring you .......
110: General Asylum, RE: We're a dying breed, I'm afraid. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-30, 09:07:49 (96.25.74.167)
"big 'stats had to go away, and be replaced by some good quality monitors.They're nice, but they just don't quite have that holographic quality that I used to find so engrossing with the 'stats." Try .......
111: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Left and Right Hands... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-28, 19:35:28 (96.25.74.167)
"This website is not to be mistaken for a lamppost and abusively marked with personal self-dissatisfaction." Best line I've heard in years. When I caught my breath from laughing I read it to my better .......
112: Critic's Corner, RE: The world of acoustics (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-25, 14:36:06 (96.25.74.167)
"But as schroedinger wisely pointed out quantum mechanics reaches to the macro. That's kind of the whole point. And that's just what I wish to understand! Thanks for the pointer. Rick .......
113: Critic's Corner, RE: The world of acoustics (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-24, 18:49:05 (96.25.74.167)
"Boltzman's constant is kind of the right idea" Perhaps it was Planck's constant, that would make more sense. I'm reading a book on thermodynamics and have Boltzmann on the brain. And it's not a prett .......
114: Critic's Corner, RE: Just thought it was worth pointing out. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-24, 13:15:02 (96.25.74.167)
"S'phile has reached new lows of irrelevance for me." Not for me! I think it's a cheap thrill and very entertaining. It's the only magazine I still subscribe to. As far as acting on reviews as reliabl .......
115: Critic's Corner, RE: The world of acoustics (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-24, 08:45:29 (96.25.74.167)
"There is no fine line between quantum physics and classical physics. How small can something really be and still affect the sound seems like an excellent title for a new thread. Lol" Yea! Well put! I .......
116: General Asylum, RE: Pioneer Exits Audio (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-22, 08:34:56 (96.25.74.167)
"But it's OK - anything they can do for $300 some guy can do in his garage, slap on a 1/4' lasercut front and charge $10,000." Sweet! But I thought the panels were CNC milled... Rick .......
117: Critic's Corner, RE: PS! I never said that the panels had astonishing bandwidth (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-21, 18:38:30 (96.25.74.167)
"a product that jabs its thumb in the eye of physics" Here's an idea... pretend it was your job to design to those Specs. and contemplate what you would do. I think the rub it they said it "controls" .......
118: General Asylum, RE: 3D Audio Standards (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-13, 08:55:01 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks for the info. I think the availability of good headphone audio reduces the future risks for us old-timers. Obviously your pinnas don't work properly scrunched up against your head or bypassed .......
119: Digital Drive, RE: " implementation details override the particular underlying technology employed " (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-10, 08:33:45 (96.25.74.167)
"But then why select a such expensive part ?" Well... because the part IS important, it's the "heart" of the design, the place where the actual conversion occurs and how well it does that forms an upp .......
120: Digital Drive, RE: Schiit Yggdrasil - a real game changer ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-09, 11:25:30 (96.25.74.167)
"My opinion is that implementation details override the particular underlying technology employed." YES! While general opinions are intrinsically noisy, you've just stated my own view of all things h .......
121: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Of course it exists, It's just irrelevant to audio (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-07, 16:51:12 (96.25.74.167)
"It's irrelevant for an audio signal in a typical speaker cable" I wouldn't take that as given. Audio is a very wide bandwidth signal and it's frequency span is just right to modulate the penetration .......
122: General Asylum, RE: Main factors: speaker dispersion and placement, and room acoustics (and of course the recordings) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-06, 08:21:43 (96.25.74.167)
"the wall behind them (about 6')" I think that's a big deal. The speakers should be on or in the front wall or well spaced from it. There's a term for it... what? Anyway the idea as I understand it is .......
123: Digital Drive, RE: Using an old EAD TheaterMaster Ovation as a dac preamp - a bad idea ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-06, 07:19:32 (96.25.74.167)
"can EAD gear still get serviced/repaired?" I have no idea if there is anything resembling "factory service" still available for them. Mine has never needed any work. However in general the electronic .......
124: Digital Drive, RE: Using an old EAD TheaterMaster Ovation as a dac preamp - a bad idea ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-05, 09:42:20 (96.25.74.167)
Try it if you can and then YOU can decide how you like it. I'm still using my ancient EAD DAC and still like it's sound. Of course that doesn't mean that there may not other units out there that I wo .......
125: General Asylum, RE: I find that response lacks thought. ... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-03, 20:42:26 (96.25.74.167)
Well, think about this: That very metal case also keeps the RF from escaping so once in it can bounce around and have many more chances of being detected by a susceptible node than if it were just pas .......
126: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "there is no good reason for going Class D" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-03, 10:43:03 (96.25.74.167)
Abe, you forgot one I think... If you are auditioning amplifiers you should buy the one that you like the best in your system no matter it's "class". Well, that's my opinion anyhow. The bottom line at .......
127: General Asylum, RE: automatic chicken waterers (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-03, 09:55:31 (96.25.74.167)
"No idea what it is but, what a great phrase." Even automatic chickens get thirsty... Rick .......
128: General Asylum, RE: VARIAC Question (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-02, 09:38:42 (96.25.74.167)
Mine is an ancient 18A genuine General Radio one that has probably never been touched. BUT now that you bring it up I just tried turning it from end to end and it isn't turning as smoothly as it used .......
129: General Asylum, RE: I jumped into digital files and regret it too (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-01, 17:41:47 (96.25.74.167)
"with the digital books, I buy a few and get distracted and can't finish it." Huh! I've noticed that also... I'm an inveterate reader and getting set up with the local library was very high on my list .......
130: General Asylum, Same here! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-03-01, 07:17:27 (96.25.74.167)
Wish I had those skills too. Alas... R. .......
131: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "Recorded music in any form is a convenience relative to live music." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-28, 20:30:04 (96.25.74.167)
"the famous conductor, soloist, whoever walks on..." Can't argue with that Dave. Being a "first time" can make many experiences extra special! In the early 80's our area opened a decent performance ve .......
132: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "Recorded music in any form is a convenience relative to live music." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-27, 09:33:53 (96.25.74.167)
Well put! Even the idle rich of the past had less musical access than today's teenager with an iPhone. It's like electricity. Who want's to go back to wood stoves and kerosene lamps? Well, some do an .......
133: Critic's Corner, RE: Thoughts on Stereophile (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-25, 15:39:59 (96.25.74.167)
My apology. You did indeed say essentially the same thing but it apparently didn't register. OMG, maybe I AM gettin' old... I've been fascinated with home-audio since the 78 days but wasn't aware of t .......
134: Critic's Corner, RE: Thoughts on Stereophile (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-25, 13:21:21 (96.25.74.167)
"The fact remains that magazines like Stereophile and ultimately even TAS will eventually evolve into serving one master above all others and that master is the audio 'industry', because 'industry' pa .......
135: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "rick_m", for your consideration... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-25, 07:24:08 (96.25.74.167)
That pole at 500 Hz is awesome. You probably need a rather good "voltage source" if you want to damp that critter. Rick .......
136: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Thsoe look great... But... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-24, 08:14:45 (96.25.74.167)
"40 WPC, which just isn't enough to get my speakers up and about..." Then neither would be 70 WPC. It's not even 3dB, barely noticible. Have you actually MEASURED what sort of voltages that you are ap .......
137: Speaker Asylum, RE: Infinity Renaissance 90 speakers in piano black. WOW (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-21, 15:42:45 (96.25.74.167)
I can't tell from your post but if this is something that you are considering acquiring be sure to get and use the grills. They actually form part of the speaker and you'll have near-field diffraction .......
138: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: RPi-2 + Volumio (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-20, 07:48:23 (96.25.74.167)
"I do think that the CT slowly but surely moves into its EOL phase." Right! EOL begins when stability, support, reliability and usability begins... Abandon all hope ye who live in this era which will .......
139: General Asylum, RE: What about Mercury..n/t (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-19, 11:37:17 (96.25.74.167)
"will installing Murcury do anything to my Safari browser." No, their operations are independent. I think that Apple forces everyone to use some of their core code but the applications operate indepen .......
140: General Asylum, RE: What about Mercury..n/t (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-19, 09:52:14 (96.25.74.167)
Mercury is what I use... Using it right now and I like how it works and aren't having any font problems that I know of. This one is running iOS 8.1.3. I also have an ipad 1 and use Mercury or Atomic b .......
141: Digital Drive, RE: PS Audio DirectStream DAC - an extremely interesting video. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-14, 11:07:50 (96.25.74.167)
"My Hex has no analog filter as do most NOS dacs." Odd, it should, it's simply part of a properly implemented sampling system. Maybe it has a low bandwidth stage that is one in effect but called somet .......
142: Digital Drive, RE: PS Audio DirectStream DAC - an extremely interesting video. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-14, 08:16:40 (96.25.74.167)
"NOS dacs like my metrum Hex have no digital or analog filters and use ladder dacs to recreate the signal from redbook." No way. It has to have an analog "reconstruction filter" to block all the alias .......
143: General Asylum, RE: zeros more zero-ey or your ones more one-y (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-14, 06:00:20 (96.25.74.167)
"The key word is buffering." That's it allright. But you need to expand it's scope to encompass secondary effects. It's tough to design gear with enough isolation to insure that the inevitable irregul .......
144: General Asylum, RE: That's the advertised price but how much can you really get them for? Lol. Nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-13, 08:03:04 (96.25.74.167)
You know... The weird thing is that most of that's true. And well understood. The source of the directionality has not, to my knowledge been chased to ground but most likely is related to how the cry .......
145: Speaker Asylum, RE: " better EMI/RFI rejection " is it really an issue for speaker cables ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-12, 14:26:42 (96.25.74.167)
"the output stage should effectively become a sink for any induced noise currents at frequencies within the bandwidth of the output stage" Yes, spot on! The rub is that the interfering signals, at le .......
146: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: No more Format-Wars for me! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-12, 09:31:45 (96.25.74.167)
"I can listen to CD, any Download, SACD, Cassette, BluRay Audio and LP. They all sound good, I'm glad I've got 'em." Amen! "I don't buy CDs anymore, but I've got lots, more than I want to Copy to the .......
147: Speaker Asylum, RE: " better EMI/RFI rejection " is it really an issue for speaker cables ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-12, 07:35:40 (96.25.74.167)
My experience with RFI problems in stereos and such is that the interfering signals usually enter the system through the speaker cables. After that typically the power cords then the interconnects. It .......
148: General Asylum, RE: Rod M: Unsolicited Asylyum Mail (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-11, 07:07:29 (96.25.74.167)
So I just checked mine and it had changed also. No idea when, I virtually never look at it. Rick .......
149: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Minimize the parts count. Maximize parts quality. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-09, 08:02:56 (96.25.74.167)
Heck with stereos... That's great advise for life in general! Rick .......
150: Critic's Corner, RE: Like anything... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-05, 06:40:36 (96.25.74.167)
Football Fanning! Don' forget Football Fanning. The level of insanity in these parts is chilling to the soul and depressing to the mind... About the only bright spot is that they make the worst audiop .......
151: General Asylum, RE: Question about static (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-05, 06:32:45 (96.25.74.167)
"Suddenly.... the volume of the DAC jumped up right after that static zapp and both sources were now identical volumes." My guess is that you just forced a reset clearing some precious volume setting. .......
152: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Coolest amp I've seen in a long time (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-03, 06:56:40 (96.25.74.167)
"The Devialet is approx 90% Class D 10% Class A." Percent of WHAT pray-tell? Rick .......
153: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Any scope photos of different resistors... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-01, 21:22:59 (96.25.74.167)
"Excess noise" is simply everything else beyond the (4kTRB)^1/2 thermal noise voltage. It's just of a way of thinking about noise and keeping score. You can't avoid the thermal noise but you can work .......
154: General Asylum, RE: I don't get it.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-02-01, 07:14:34 (96.25.74.167)
"So what is it I don't get?" Considering that I vehemently disagree with the notion that home audio is all that bad then I'd say what you don't get is that your sources are just rambling. And getting .......
155: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: I do not purchase snake oil products (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-31, 09:49:41 (96.25.74.167)
"I do not contend that anyone who uses and believes in these or similar products is wrong in any way. I choose to not partake." Boy do I understand! If the choice is sanity or sound the obvious answer .......
156: General Asylum, RE: "Thus simply throwing out old newspapers and magazines in and of itself will usually improve the sound." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-26, 18:33:53 (66.189.145.22)
Wow! If tossing newspapers helps imagine how my sound will bloom when I delete your post! Oh wait... Since the 'information field' doesn't decrease with distance and it still exists in your sent file .......
157: Digital Drive, RE: Yeah, but (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-26, 07:28:34 (96.25.74.167)
"digital volume controls work by throwing away bits....." And normal analog volume controls work by throwing away signal energy. 'bout the same thing Stu. Seems like a better idea is to not over-ampli .......
158: General Asylum, RE: They do matter but only when they correlate with subjective results (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-25, 12:18:33 (96.25.74.167)
Great summary! Of course a set of links would REALLY make it easy for us lazy folks. But I have read at least many of them at some time or another and likely can find em' again. I know there are quit .......
159: General Asylum, RE: You lost me there..... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-24, 16:22:23 (96.25.74.167)
"Does the number of posts I've made provide some legitimacy?" Of course, that and their content. How else do we know one another? Rick .......
160: General Asylum, RE: i am on a iPad....... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-24, 15:10:55 (96.25.74.167)
Just double tap the post. If you are using Safari try tapping the "reader" button at the left of the address bar. I normally use an iPad running 'Mercury browser' for AA with quite pleasing results. .......
161: General Asylum, RE: Trolls - And How To Recognize Them (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-24, 07:13:09 (96.25.74.167)
Oh... You mean like someone who isn't a contributer, has been a member less than three months, has less that 100 posts (virtually all off-topic) and just posted yet another completely off-topic diatri .......
162: General Asylum, RE: "Believe" is most definitely an appropriate term... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-22, 06:54:53 (96.25.74.167)
"What I have found is that by reducing the number of wires and cables in the system the sound can be improved considerably. My small portable system has no power cords, no (big) speaker cables, no Int .......
163: General Asylum, RE: "Believe" is most definitely an appropriate term... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-21, 22:39:27 (96.25.74.167)
"they [cables] ought to be a minor factor. If they're not, something is really wrong with them and/or the components they tie together." Very well put! I couldn't agree more. The interfaces that we se .......
164: Cable Asylum, RE: Length of IC's? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-21, 09:03:13 (96.25.74.167)
"Too my understanding the shortest IC you can find to do the job without straining the ends is usually always the best!" Typically, yes. "What about being able to have the same brand and length for al .......
165: General Asylum, RE: Actually....... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-20, 08:41:10 (96.25.74.167)
"And what I find is that it always seems that if X is more expensive than Y and it comes from the right label it will be viewed as sounding better than Y - always. And that to me smacks of a bias lead .......
166: General Asylum, The Audiophile! -nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-20, 06:58:08 (96.25.74.167)
. .......
167: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Questions about balanced and unbalanced interconnects (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-19, 09:16:20 (96.25.74.167)
"I was not previously aware that internally balanced amplifiers loose power if fed with an RCA-to-XLR adapter and I would be interested to know why this is." They don't necessarily lose power, they lo .......
168: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: PONO... "Will it be around 3 years from now?" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-16, 10:37:18 (96.25.74.167)
Three years from now Abe? Not a chance. Nobody could be more old-school and behind the times than I am and yet my goal is to reduce that amount of stuff that I walk around with, not increase it, and s .......
169: Inmate Central, RE: Read and heed to read. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-16, 09:16:49 (96.25.74.167)
"Use that Kindle for a door jamb." Nah, too thin and light... We are voracious readers and my wife and I have books everywhere, always have more checked out from our library and each have both iPads A .......
170: Tube DIY Asylum, RE: Polystyrenes as coupling caps (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-15, 19:40:16 (96.25.74.167)
They are what I would use for most small-signal applications, very low dielectric absorption and cheap. For production they can pose problems because they melt at a low temperature and will disolve ea .......
171: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Try google...speculation has it's limits... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-14, 09:17:02 (96.25.74.167)
"And power from a 'd' amp? Totally up for grabs since I don't think ANY of them can survive an FTC style test with a preconditioning period at some %age of 'rated' power." Well then... If that's distu .......
172: General Asylum, RE: Technology, for instance (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-14, 07:33:50 (96.25.74.167)
"Opamps have always done a great job in the right hands" Not really. Of course the first opamps used tubes but I'm guessing that you are thinking of monolithic ones. The Fab. technology and design kno .......
173: Inmate Central, RE: Nike (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-14, 06:52:15 (96.25.74.167)
I don't care for Nike or their business model. Or sports in general for that matter... However you do have it backward, Knight and what's his face got interested in making shoes optimized for running .......
174: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "four cheap home grade switches" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-12, 11:04:23 (96.25.74.167)
What would be the minimum price that would insure that the switches were sufficiently transparent? Rick .......
175: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: LMAO...It isn't science, it's subjective opinion.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-12, 10:40:08 (96.25.74.167)
"I'm not pushing the class d option" You sure are. And: "try it! you know you want to!" is the proof. At first I just thought it was a parody of the death-by-smoking cigarette manufacturers of my yout .......
176: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Any scope photos of different resistors... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-09, 11:26:29 (96.25.74.167)
Well, we agree... I didn't mention metal foil because I don't have any experience with them. Resistors are like any other passive: despite what we call them they are all multi-pole, temperature (actu .......
177: General Asylum, RE: What's easier to achieve in YOUR system... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-09, 07:32:57 (96.25.74.167)
"Is it RIGHT though? Who knows?" Isn't that always the case with studio recordings? There is no "right". They are a success if you enjoy them, a failure if you don't. One way to think of it is that th .......
178: General Asylum, RE: Articulating differences is as hard to do for many ... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-07, 15:35:50 (96.25.74.167)
"I gave up listening critically to equipment a while ago, which may explain why I haven't made any changes to my system in so long and why I have no desire to make any changes." Right on! Critical lis .......
179: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Outstanding Cone Speaker Tweak! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-05, 22:25:31 (96.25.74.167)
Hey, no problem, I just couldn't figure "where you were coming from" as the younger folks say... Actually maybe now it's the older folks. Anyway I'm almost certain that I've heard it somewhere! Vibrat .......
180: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Outstanding Cone Speaker Tweak! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-05, 15:03:49 (96.25.74.167)
"Unlike Rick_m, manufacturers live in the real world." Odd comment... My point was simply that the steps that you are taking basically have to do with improving the integration of the speaker driver i .......
181: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Outstanding Cone Speaker Tweak! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-04, 08:51:55 (96.25.74.167)
It's an application issue, not an attribute of the "drivers" themselves and one design can be utilized in many different ways. As far as the final speaker system goes there are numerous trade-offs and .......
182: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Sweet! Reminds me of my 807 CW Transmitter (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-01, 20:41:36 (96.25.74.167)
Yup, downright nostalgic... With 6SN7's and 807's and maybe a 5U4 or 5Y3 rectalfire you could build all your ham transmitters AND audio things. The transformers WERE a little different though... But I .......
183: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Output Impedance for HK 3380? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2015-01-01, 08:45:49 (96.25.74.167)
It seems to have a headphone jack so they should just plug in. I vaguly think that it's common practice to put 300ohm build-out reaistors to headphone jacks so that may be what they are talking about. .......
184: General Asylum, RE: My New Years resolution: stop writing for Stereophile. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-31, 17:32:37 (96.25.74.167)
Thank you for the good-times and good advice. We are often advised to find a reviewer who, somehow or another, shares our what? Tastes? Sensibilities? Hearing? Budget? I don't know, but I discovered t .......
185: General Asylum, RE: I religiously maintain the IMpurity of my bodliy fluids!! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-30, 13:07:13 (96.25.74.167)
I'll drink to that... "my list is long of what's wrong with audio, starting with the fact that I can no longer afford a really good system!! :))" If "really good" refers to performance, I bet you can. .......
186: General Asylum, RE: A funny story. A funny infant-Baptism story, if such a thing is possible (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-29, 17:02:29 (96.25.74.167)
What fun, great story! "PS: No slight intended, my tone was my imitation of the movice." None taken, after all, slighting isn't allowed in the war room... Regards, R. .......
187: General Asylum, RE: That's PRECIOUS bodily fluids! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-29, 11:14:51 (96.25.74.167)
Oh Man... Is there NO tolerance for human fallibility in this internetized day and age? You ARE RIGHT! Now do you feel better? In penance I shall dig out the DVD and force myself to watch it again. T .......
188: General Asylum, RE: Good sound has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the market.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-29, 08:45:17 (96.25.74.167)
"The important things these days are pollution of the air with all kinds of EMI/RFI and digital nonsense, mid fi is now really expensive, and we're forced to read all the same nonsense from the audio .......
189: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: baffled: my low powered SS vs high powered SS eye-opener (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-27, 11:13:32 (96.25.74.167)
"You would certainly want more dynamic power, leads to better inner detail." I don't know. Really the point I mostly wanted to make is that I don't think the actual maximum power is of much interest .......
190: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Any scope photos of different resistors... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-26, 07:45:15 (96.25.74.167)
Well, I don't have any pictures for but have experienced all sorts of resistor issues over the decades. Mostly the issue is excess noise but microphonics happen also. Carbon composition resistors are .......
191: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: baffled: my low powered SS vs high powered SS eye-opener (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-26, 07:07:04 (96.25.74.167)
"Have I missed an audio truth" No. Forget the idle speculations and either just trust your ears or dig out the test gear and really see what's going on by looking at the deltas. IMHO 60W is a ton of p .......
192: Digital Drive, RE: "Go figure" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-24, 15:43:19 (96.25.74.167)
"Are you convinced that quality sound is proportional to price? I had a $5000 DAC but my $1000 DAC sounds better to me. Go figure." Well, your audiophile credentials are now just tettering on the prec .......
193: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "Running up and down a flight of stairs" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-23, 17:06:21 (96.25.74.167)
Man that should be worth at least $10-20K! I think that at least some of the value of hyper-expensive gear is psychological. Perhaps some of your scheme is of the same ilk. If I had to run downstairs .......
194: General Asylum, RE: I guess I am an idiot?? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-23, 08:28:41 (96.25.74.167)
Well... yes and no. Is the idiot the fellow with no fire insurance policy or the one with ten? After all, how many houses burn? I live in BPA country too and we don't get much lightning here. But how .......
195: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: I agree that cables can make a difference... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-22, 06:28:47 (96.25.74.167)
The things I got were the feet. Sort of constrained-layer damping gadgets, very flat on the top and a metal ball on the bottom with a rubbery coating. I have a Nakamichi power amplifier with rather ri .......
196: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Linear Power Supply on Mac Mini (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-21, 08:18:26 (96.25.74.167)
"goes over the top on an EM meter such as the Trifiel..." Oh, this one I just Googled up?... ============ The TriField EMF Meter, Detect Stress and Ghosts www.coreonehealth.com/trifield-100xe-meter.ht .......
197: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: I agree that cables can make a difference... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-20, 17:12:48 (96.25.74.167)
I've found that also. "flowery language and drool-stained photos of the fancy box it was packaged in" OK, I'm laughing. Sounds like the opening (or is it the debouching) of an Apple product. It pains .......
198: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "...and all speakers will be active" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-19, 13:46:51 (96.25.74.167)
You know, I was thinking multi-driver speakers... I don't see as many advantages for single driver solutions performance-wise. Regards, Rick .......
199: Critic's Corner, RE: Croft Acoustical? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-19, 11:42:12 (96.25.74.167)
"bigger f'up than this one". In what manner? I dug up the review and nothing jumps out at me. Which measurements do you believe were wrong, or where was an inappropriate conclusion drawn from them? A .......
200: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: The whole post reads as a joke, but the last sentence takes the cake. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-19, 07:46:48 (96.25.74.167)
"Class D will never surpass the sound of a well designed linear amp" "never" is never a good bet. In any realm... My bet is that our kludgy topology will go away and all speakers will all be active. A .......
201: Critic's Corner, RE: Got mine yesterday...(nt) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-17, 17:14:59 (96.25.74.167)
OK, now I'm set too. Now what was all the fuss? Oh yea some speaker, let's see, OMG it has a port! Well that's it for me, I don't do speakers with a zero at DC. Ahh, the power of the press, one pictur .......
202: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Speaking of Linear Power Supplies.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-17, 08:48:47 (96.25.74.167)
"You'll find out about very evident flaws. And that's about it." I couldn't disagree more. Looking in the time domain is far more likely to reveal tricky problems than anything else remotely affordabl .......
203: Critic's Corner, Me neither! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-17, 08:07:05 (96.25.74.167)
So I don't have a damn thing to complain about... Rick .......
204: General Asylum, RE: Why is a square wave test a validtest for speakers? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-17, 07:08:52 (96.25.74.167)
"What do you hope to measure with a square wave test on a speaker?" Why not? You can tell a lot about hopefully linear systems using a squarewave and a scope. It has nothing to do with music, it's jus .......
205: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Dry Condo...BAD static electricity...affects CJ Pre... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-12, 09:41:31 (96.25.74.167)
Ralph is right, See my reply to Dave Pogue below. Not only is this easy to fix, they really have no choice. Best, Rick .......
206: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Same thing happened to me. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-12, 09:15:40 (96.25.74.167)
"Their customer service chief actually brought over a brand new 17LS2, I put it in the system, touched it ... and it muted!" And then? If that was the end of I'd never deal with the company again! The .......
207: Cable Asylum, RE: Tellurium Q Interconnects capacitance value ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-10, 08:14:20 (96.25.74.167)
"they have a policy not to share data about their cables." They're probably just hacks and don't have any to share. My policy is to not share money with that ilk of vendor. But sometimes I succumb. Ri .......
208: General Asylum, Rock and country are SO pedestrian compared with... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-09, 15:15:17 (96.25.74.167)
Change ringing. It's the next wave! Rick .......
209: General Asylum, Well put! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-08, 08:13:33 (96.25.74.167)
I like to think that most of us are looking for performance, not pumping up our egos. And yet the only metric commonly bandied about is price... Rick .......
210: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: HDPlex Linear Power Supply is no Firewall (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-07, 09:25:42 (96.25.74.167)
"Coming full circle, modern PC's, streamers etc whatever are full of local Switched Mode Supplies that power some part of the circuit, often they are even designed into chip's themselves." True... But .......
211: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-05, 18:43:01 (96.25.74.167)
"AND all mass is equal to energy times a constant." Yea, but I still blanch when particle physicists measure mass in eV's. While accurate, it just ain't RIGHT! I want folks to meet me in my own terms. .......
212: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: use (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-05, 18:09:39 (96.25.74.167)
Ah, I was wondering if something like that might be available. Thanks Stu... Rick .......
213: Digital Drive, RE: Just ordered a Lampizator Amber output stage "kit" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-05, 09:46:40 (96.25.74.167)
"I measured them with my digital scope and each + and - leg of each module was putting out a 5V sine wave (I was feeding a 1Khz digital test tone). I just wasn't sure what the output impedance and/or .......
214: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Outstanding Cone Speaker Tweak! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-04, 19:06:30 (96.25.74.167)
Nice... I like the tweak and your clear description. Despite being a prodigious rope caulk user it never occurred to me to use it to smooth out steps near speakers. I've always used adhesive backed fo .......
215: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: JPlay now blocked by JRiver (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-04, 08:34:38 (96.25.74.167)
I suppose that's a reasonable approach to reducing tech-support calls Steve. No more "foreign" software AND fewer customers to complain! It's a win-win... Years ago when I was evaluating SW JR only ma .......
216: Amp/Preamp Asylum, Me neither. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-03, 07:55:35 (96.25.74.167)
Maybe it's taste? R. .......
217: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Boosting my turntable's audio (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-12-01, 06:57:07 (96.25.74.167)
Actually I'd make sure that it's not just defective first. Listen to another instance if you can or let your dealer hear it. If you do the latter you can then AB it with another table and preamp whic .......
218: General Asylum, RE: talking about tube, Tektronix, IMO, had set the standard (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-30, 10:10:03 (96.25.74.167)
HA! You got me. I was sort of poo-pooing this whole thread but those scopes really were exceptional. I had a friend whose uncle worked there so managed to get some of the ceramic terminal strips for .......
219: General Asylum, RE: Personal experience (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-28, 08:50:19 (96.25.74.167)
Norm, Did the ones that were improved already have a clean Accuraterip checksum? I can't fathom how two error-free data sets can sound differently due to having fussed with the media characteristics .......
220: General Asylum, RE: Tone Controls (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-26, 15:24:13 (96.25.74.167)
"Human hearing is sensitive to polarity of asymmetric waveforms. There is undisputed scientific evidence of this" I'm pleased to know that Tony, since I can normally sense it. Sometime back a poster s .......
221: General Asylum, RE: Tone Controls (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-26, 07:01:14 (96.25.74.167)
"once had an Adcom preamp where you could use the tome controls or bypass them and the bypass sounded better." I've got one of those. And one "feature" is that turning on the tone controls inverts the .......
222: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Tightening HDMI Connection with Teflon Tape = Improved Audio/ Video Quality (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-25, 11:07:18 (96.25.74.167)
Good, thanks for the shot, it did the job. I figured that was likely it but being sure has it's merits. Glad it helped. I don't have any experience with HDMI connectors but from what I've read they ar .......
223: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Tightening HDMI Connection with Teflon Tape = Improved Audio/ Video Quality (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-25, 07:08:35 (96.25.74.167)
"wrapping the upper stem of the HDMI connector" What are you refering to as "the upper stem"? Thanks, Rick .......
224: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: A big reason why electronics sound better is .... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-25, 06:48:58 (96.25.74.167)
"Bottom line: good parts SHOULD make for good sound. But yes design can mess things up at times too." Parts selection is always a significant part of the design cycle whatever the application. That's .......
225: General Asylum, And you can get colored plastic slip on thingys for them. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-25, 06:34:43 (96.25.74.167)
What sre you buiilding, a ladder atttenuator? Rick .......
226: Critic's Corner, RE: December Stereophile - Allnic D-5000 DHT (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-24, 10:59:59 (96.25.74.167)
"those of us who are sensitive to digital artifacts and dislike digital sound" That's a tricky one allright. Without a live source at hand how the heck do you sift out analog "sweetening" from digital .......
227: Critic's Corner, RE: December Stereophile - Allnic D-5000 DHT (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-24, 09:01:42 (96.25.74.167)
"Why assume that JA is even measuring the right things?" He certainly does measure the right things. Just not enough of them... Basically those sorts of measurements largely just confirm that the uni .......
228: Digital Drive, RE: Would you return this “new†DAC with stain? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-22, 08:55:17 (96.25.74.167)
I'd try it first. If it works well and sounds good. who cares about the rest? By your criteria almost ALL of my gear was used. And I like it that way! By and large it was purchased from my local deale .......
229: Critic's Corner, RE: Wastefull. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-18, 08:29:36 (96.25.74.167)
Whether you mill-off unwanted material with a CNC machine or shear it off with notchers and punches the result is the same, a bin of very pure Al. to be remelted. The difference is labor, with CNC yo .......
230: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Insulating AC Outlets from Wall Vibration (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-12, 10:29:19 (96.25.74.167)
"Are we still talking about audio frequencies?" Well... both RF and audio actually. Especially if the cable is sort of stiff. The RF end of things is just electrical reflections and resonances from th .......
231: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: thank you for your time Rick. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-12, 09:01:54 (96.25.74.167)
"what forums do you post in?" Actually none regularly. But the ones I scan daily are General, Amp/Pre, Critics, Digital, PC, Cables and Tweaks. And I review the New Posts list daily. I am far more in .......
232: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: thank you for your time Rick. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-11, 22:10:10 (96.25.74.167)
"I think this is indeed the wrong asylum for me. I use my head too much. I need proof sometimes. If you want to be credible sometimes you need more proof than "because I said so" -Well, I wasn't attem .......
233: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Insulating AC Outlets from Wall Vibration (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-11, 18:04:04 (96.25.74.167)
"I want to be the student for awhile. I do remember once I was in a small airplane on a dirt runway. The gauges were shaking so much that we could not read them. I still don't think that electricity f .......
234: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Insulating AC Outlets from Wall Vibration (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-11, 14:52:46 (96.25.74.167)
"If you research deeper I think you will find that vibration does not affect current flow. At least that is what I learned in college." Really? Medieval literature? Let me assure you from too many dec .......
235: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-10, 21:49:18 (96.25.74.167)
"I don't necessarily agree with the author that if you don't know how to improve the detectability (SNR) then the hypothesis probably not scientific." I suspect it may just be a rule of thumb. Perhaps .......
236: General Asylum, RE: iPad Oscilloscope & iPhone FFT just for grins.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-10, 14:12:40 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks again Abe. I have a good scope but sometimes it's quite handy to have a second one. Especially an isolated battery powered device. The ipads are isolated and tidy and if they had so much as an .......
237: General Asylum, RE: iPad Oscilloscope & iPhone FFT just for grins.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-10, 12:06:28 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks Abe. I suppose that the microphone is the only input device, leastwise I don't know of any other way to connect a signal to it... Even though I use an iPad 99% of the time I don't think my anti .......
238: General Asylum, RE: iPad Oscilloscope & iPhone FFT just for grins.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-10, 11:05:22 (96.25.74.167)
What FFT application do you use or recommend Abe? TNX, Rick .......
239: General Asylum, RE: F.....ingly Loud (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-10, 08:57:06 (96.25.74.167)
"I haven't gone to one in over 8 years because they are just too bloody loud!" INCOMPLETE... partial credit only. They are ALSO just too bloody cold! And usually too drafty. While the larger screen ( .......
240: General Asylum, RE: SACD info sought (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-09, 06:57:06 (96.25.74.167)
I was just listening to some yesterday. I like them even just using two channels. Since Borders folded I can't buy them locally but Amazon still has them. Enjoy! Rick .......
241: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Balance of Trade (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-08, 06:52:20 (96.25.74.167)
"But Schiit is one those those relatively few companies that charge realistic sums for delivery" Exactly! And I admire and want to support that. Engineering appeals to me more than mysticism and GOOD .......
242: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Schiit Decrapifier - the poor man's reclocker? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-07, 16:14:39 (96.25.74.167)
"I'll probably end up buying two..." From the bottom of our hearts and wallets: Thank you. And if two are good, wouldn't three be better? America's balance of trade, especially in consumer electronic .......
243: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-04, 18:19:02 (96.25.74.167)
"I always assumed you were one of those people who was pretty satisfied with things, audio wise." You are correct in that assumption. But that hasn't always been the way of it and one of my concerns i .......
244: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-04, 09:05:08 (96.25.74.167)
"Not only do we not know what the solution to the problem is we don't even know what the problem is. We are chasing squirrels down the wrong rabbit hole. What is required is a whole new paradigm shift .......
245: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-03, 19:30:18 (96.25.74.167)
"the removal of particular sound corruption/ distortion only serves to reveal another previously hidden sound defect ad infinitum. The next defect may get smaller but the hearing adapts and becomes mo .......
246: Propeller Head Plaza, RE: Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-03, 19:07:54 (96.25.74.167)
I doubt he is an "uber skeptic", but maybe. In many ways skepticism (along with the scientific method) is about all that stands between us and chaos. Maybe it should be thicker... And you probably not .......
247: Propeller Head Plaza, Searching for truth? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-11-03, 09:52:30 (96.25.74.167)
I ran across a link to something yesterday whilst noodling around on my local university's web-site that got me thinking. Since at my age that's pretty impressive I thought I'd pass it on... "All scie .......
248: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "optional batter supply" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-28, 08:26:01 (96.25.74.167)
Go for it! My touch makes music but I'm on my own for the donuts. What a great feature... Rick .......
249: General Asylum, RE: Ironic, don't you think (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-28, 08:04:14 (96.25.74.167)
"When I was growing up we only had music. The kids have so many options nowadays and music is at the bottom of their list." I think you've got it! I grew up pre... well about pre everything. No TV, t .......
250: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Tell us more about the Plasmatron (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-27, 06:58:15 (96.25.74.167)
"It is different than any other AC power conditioner." Which I take to mean different in effect. How can you resist trying to measure and understand the mechanism? It may not be subtle at all... Rick .......
251: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Simple Demos (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-26, 07:41:10 (96.25.74.167)
Oh I agree with you Fred, I suspect most of our gear has an insufficient PSSR to fend off today's environment. Maybe even yesterday's but at least at my place the line now looks gross. I'll do a reche .......
252: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "and lets be clear, no musical signals pass through these units" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-25, 09:12:31 (96.25.74.167)
"It's not a question of musical signals passing thru but a case of harmonic and intermodulation signals passing to and from the mains into the signal path" Well... I'm not convinced of that. While I a .......
253: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Explanation of Digital Noise (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-25, 08:48:23 (96.25.74.167)
"The real cost would be incurred leaving non engineering audiophiles to solve the problems on their own." Amen! Especially true since the only specification that they "understand" is price and all rea .......
254: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "and lets be clear, no musical signals pass through these units" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-24, 13:26:33 (96.25.74.167)
Would that you were right... Rick .......
255: Tweakers' Asylum, RE:"It's amazing how noisy our homes are, internally." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-22, 12:35:34 (96.25.74.167)
No kidding! We had a pole-pig melt down several years ago in the heat of late Summer. With no A/C, TV, Internet, suddenly all we were left with was... each other! So slowly everyone in the neighborho .......
256: Critic's Corner, RE: On a pad device... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-21, 07:14:50 (96.25.74.167)
"I have a 1920 x1200 hires 28 in screen!" Wow, you must have a big lap... Tablets are really pretty nice for reading things, especially for dyed-in-the-wool book-lovers. For typing (as in right now fo .......
257: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: The problem is the method used to evaluate DACs and digital sources (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-19, 09:15:12 (96.25.74.167)
"One would think that vendors selling "high end" components would have addressed these issues." Yes, one would. I surely do. Traditionally "audio engineers" think that the world stops at 20Kc and tha .......
258: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "try before you finally buy" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-19, 06:55:18 (96.25.74.167)
Best recommendation possible... all else pales as there's too many variables. Rick .......
259: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "SD card itself already is a computer," (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-18, 18:54:04 (96.25.74.167)
Wow! I'd never really considered that. Stupid I suppose but somehow even knowing about wear leveling and defect detection and correction didn't quite ring the bell that there might be a hackable contr .......
260: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Considering that for YEARS we've had to put up with our Moderator's poll dancing cow... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-17, 10:39:37 (96.25.74.167)
"a cat .gif or two can't possibly hurt us, can they?" Sure. Two wrongs right. Rick .......
261: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Sources of RFI (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-17, 09:25:55 (96.25.74.167)
I think that you have already done a good job of reducing interference possibilities. At this point, unless you have some actual evidence of an issue, I wouldn't worry about it. Regards, Rick ::: TOPI .......
262: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "those damn-fool, over-sized "animated gifs" of cats and the like" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-17, 09:20:19 (96.25.74.167)
Well that surely helped me! I couldn't believe that I was the only one who hated those wretched, valueless, annoying, damn things. Last time I renewed I mentioned dumping the animated GIFs in the "ho .......
263: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: I've been threatening to post my amplifier short list for some time... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-16, 07:31:28 (96.25.74.167)
With that impedance curve I presume that you are looking for a serious voltage source. When evaluating gear I routinely look at the I/O impedances if they aren't specified and the NAK PA-5's output wa .......
264: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Very nice! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-15, 16:43:43 (96.25.74.167)
"I was thinking more like Nackamichi PA-5..." I have one that's about 30 years old (I bought it new) and have never had the top off. Most of the years it has been on 24/7 but the last few I've been tu .......
265: Digital Drive, RE: No, the line is rather clear (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-13, 13:21:33 (96.25.74.167)
"the PC Audio forum should perhaps become the "Configuration and Maintenance of Computers Used For Audio" forum and Digital Drive becomes a strict "Digital Devices That Spin Discs" forum. :-)" Hey, th .......
266: Digital Drive, RE: No, the line is rather clear (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-13, 08:29:30 (96.25.74.167)
"I see a day when network streaming audio could access the web without the need for a "computer". Basically a stand-alone streamer; the tuner of tomorrow." Good one... At least I suppose that you are .......
267: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Any problems lengthening a ribbon cable? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-07, 06:59:07 (96.25.74.167)
No. Should be nothing critical in that application. Best, Rick .......
268: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: In addition to the Sonore, the Bryston also does not (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-06, 09:59:54 (96.25.74.167)
"Why don't you ask the same of the numerous Apple fan boys who "defend" apple on a daily basis" They just seem more obvious I suppose... Nothing wrong with being a happy customer, I was just curious. .......
269: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: In addition to the Sonore, the Bryston also does not (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-06, 08:40:36 (96.25.74.167)
"There is so much misinformation spread on the digital boards." Towards clarity and light, just what is your relationship with Bryston? You seem pretty defensive for a mere customer... Rick ::: TOPIC: .......
270: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "what Bryston itself stands for..." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-03, 16:19:13 (96.25.74.167)
"Have they changed considerably?" I wouldn't know, I don't recall ever having heard one. Naturally that means I've formed no opinion either. I was just curious what Carcass was referring to. Rick ::: .......
271: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: AIFF push: good point if true (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-03, 08:45:46 (96.25.74.167)
"The REALITY is that the 1 song model is horrible for the artist and for the development and creation of new music & new artists." The REALITY (ie mine) is that your preferred reality is a quirk, an a .......
272: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: I'm willing to throw away $300 (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-03, 06:53:41 (96.25.74.167)
"Do I really expect that to be the case? We'll see. :)" Good man! Rick .......
273: Critic's Corner, RE: Ladder DACs for volume controls. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-02, 19:44:56 (96.25.74.167)
"Yup. AR implemented that in their System Remote Control decades ago. They used the R-2R ladder as a controllable voltage divider." Thanks! I thought I had seen it done in audio and that was probably .......
274: Vinyl Asylum, RE: 70s Vinyl (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-02, 15:57:38 (96.25.74.167)
"It was the oil crisis that sent vinyl to hell in the 70s." Could be. Surely annoying whatever it was. Tower records would cheerfully take them back but it got to the point that buying them was stress .......
275: Vinyl Asylum, RE: Older vintage wax (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-02, 10:00:07 (96.25.74.167)
I'm not clear what "older" means to you but I experienced LP's going to hell in the mid '70s. Most of the problems appeared to be an abject lack of QC at pressing. Regrinds sticking out, melted tracks .......
276: Critic's Corner, RE: Ladder DACs for volume controls. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-02, 07:24:42 (96.25.74.167)
"DAC's operating in the analog domain???" Yup. Some are, or at least were, just R-2R networks and transmission gates so you could use them for four quadrant multipliers (one axis being digital, the ot .......
277: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: OLD Tweak (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-01, 21:11:56 (96.25.74.167)
I suppose that it may be the field Stu but I'm inclined to put my money on mechanics, at least for woofers and mid-ranges. Their screws are far from the gap and not well aligned with the field so ther .......
278: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "manufacturer is compromising performance for "better" measurements" - not necessarily conciously, but.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-10-01, 10:59:47 (96.25.74.167)
"It's almost like the only reference they have is their own products" Darn good point. However I suspect most companies do keep an eye on their competition. In my (non-audio) consumer electronic days .......
279: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Measurements first, second and third, with reliability and long warranty being #4 and #5. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-30, 21:10:13 (96.25.74.167)
OK, I don't really see where you are coming from re measurements. You apparently believe that the manufacturer is compromising performance for "better" measurements and while you may be right, it's no .......
280: Critic's Corner, RE: Ladder DACs for volume controls. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-30, 14:24:13 (96.25.74.167)
" that's all (volume control) handled with nasty Ladder-DAC's that convert your yummy analog signal into a shitty digital one, and then back again." That seems unlikely. If they are using ladder DAC' .......
281: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: "what Bryston itself stands for..." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-30, 12:01:05 (96.25.74.167)
And that would be what? You must have some history in mind that I'm not privy to. How about a clue? Tnx, Rick .......
282: General Asylum, RE: Thoughts about the Asylum Trader..... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-30, 09:03:58 (96.25.74.167)
I'd hate to see the focus of AA shifted to being a brokerage. I rather like it as is... Rick .......
283: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Apple to shut down beats.. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-28, 07:31:19 (96.25.74.167)
"Perhaps Apple has even bigger and better plans we're not privy to?" You bet, why they'll even bend over backwards for you... Although on my second ipad (only due to forced obsolescence, the first sti .......
284: Cable Asylum, RE: Teflon burn in. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-27, 09:30:40 (96.25.74.167)
"A Teflon dielectric tends to take far longer to burn-in than other polymers" Hmmm, you might try warming the cable during break-in, nothing huge maybe to 50C or so. I suspect that would cut down the .......
285: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Romex (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-26, 08:37:36 (96.25.74.167)
"My electrician made me a couple power cords out of the same type Romex used in the house. Power sounds like it did in the wall. Very natural." That's an interesting idea. Other than the short glitch .......
286: Computer Audio Asylum, Why I'm reading your post on my iPad! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-24, 10:05:46 (96.25.74.167)
And surely IT has something to do with audio... Rick .......
287: General Asylum, RE: I'm not so sure we have... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-24, 07:35:50 (96.25.74.167)
"in 50 years I have only noticed 3 BIG changes.. 1)the digital format. For once we could copy something and then copy the copy 100 times with no conquences. 2) 5.1 surround HT systems. Quadrophonic so .......
288: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: How can an external mains filter-But-Well (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-22, 10:08:21 (96.25.74.167)
"I prefer an isolation transformer with measured and stated isolation spectrum than a $2000 filter full of MO components, capacitors and whatnots without any form of performance information." Agreed. .......
289: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: How can an external mains filter-But (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-21, 08:33:46 (96.25.74.167)
"I am now assembling an all linear supply powered thru an isolation transformer" Ooooo you're using linear rectifiers? Excellent! Just something to keep in mind. Your isolation transformer may add eno .......
290: General Asylum, RE: I have completely explained this several times; I guess you weren't tuned in (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-20, 08:42:52 (96.25.74.167)
Technology, especially of the entertainment ilk and mating are tightly linked. Stereos were very important to folks of my age who may very well have gotten started in the backseat at a drive-in movie. .......
291: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: CD player level control & preamp gain (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-16, 07:52:34 (96.25.74.167)
"all I need to know is if using the CD player output level control does any harm to the sound (not that I can hear any" Seems to me that you already know... Maybe it's time to just enjoy! Rick ::: TOP .......
292: General Asylum, RE: Have you ever heard this criticism of the audio hobby.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-15, 07:06:00 (96.25.74.167)
No, I've never heard it. Now that I've pondered it, I think it is without merit, at least WRT other more mainstream hobbies, in particular watching football... But who cares? That's the beauty of hobb .......
293: Headphone Heights, Noise cancelling headphones for fixed listening? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-13, 12:51:38 (96.25.74.167)
I am facing probably at least three years of construction starting 40' from my deck where I'm currently sitting. As I type a Cat, dumptruck, and roller are all rumbling about with their exhausts and b .......
294: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Noise is bad-LT1083 100VA (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-13, 10:35:02 (96.25.74.167)
"Just think how great it would be to have CG actually doing the reviews." Maybe, but I like yours. Experiencing is a different process than analyzing and I at least can't do both well at the same time .......
295: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Noise is bad-LT1083 100VA (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-13, 08:36:59 (96.25.74.167)
"My friend CG provided this explanation to me." LOL. I read your post in wonder as rarely do I see viable (ie ones I agree with) "technical explainations" on AA. While I very much enjoy your reviews, .......
296: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: No one is talking about these boxes (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-12, 17:59:00 (96.25.74.167)
"You may have missed his post..." I certainly seem to have missed something. It appeared a simple case of overgeneralization but apparently in full context makes much more sense. In hindsight... Thank .......
297: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: No one is talking about these boxes (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-12, 10:08:22 (96.25.74.167)
"many inmates seem to speculate actively, energetically and at times in defiance of reason and science both almost all the time. They stop only to make enough time to call on other people to do measur .......
298: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: No one is talking about these boxes (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-12, 09:26:01 (96.25.74.167)
"My comments are from extensive first hand experience." Oh. With the very gear, or at least another instance of it? That would be reasonably transferable outside of environmental issues. Usually when .......
299: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: No one is talking about these boxes (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-12, 07:09:44 (96.25.74.167)
"Whatever you might gain is nullified by the need for a digital cable and the cheapie power supply in the DAC." And you know that how? Superstition is a poor substitute for science. True a new DAC may .......
300: General Asylum, RE: Red Alert, Red Alert... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-11, 10:03:59 (96.25.74.167)
I believe that the question is the experiment's validity, not the causation. Rick .......
301: Cable Asylum, RE: "Shielding never adds anything good" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-10, 09:14:22 (96.25.74.167)
Well put and unfortunately true for our extant home audio systems topology. I don't know how much of it is due to forcing all of the electric field to live in an iffy dielectric, how much is due to ad .......
302: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Metal film recommendations (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-09, 08:27:39 (96.25.74.167)
I can't really recommend any particular brand from recent experience. Caddock is probably the oldest supplier as I remember using their parts in the 60's so I'd probably look at them or just go with a .......
303: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Can resistors actually "sound crappy"? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-09, 07:43:22 (96.25.74.167)
Well, you have determined that they can. For that matter you have also determined that it's an implementation issue. While the latter is always a risk metal films are far and away your best bet becau .......
304: General Asylum, RE: They are here, You are there (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-06, 06:58:26 (96.25.74.167)
"Have any of you heard what I am talking about" I think so, but not via DACs. My neighbor has a band and somehow manages to make a living as a musician. Actual horns and drums just sound differently t .......
305: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "What are the most common logical errors that you notice audiophiles make?" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-05, 16:11:44 (96.25.74.167)
I'm either having tablet problems or it is having operator problems as you can prolly tell by the messages that I THINK it sent to you again' my will! I think audiophiles are rather inclined to pick u .......
306: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "The ASIO driver for Windows does not use DoP nor does the ASIO driver for OSX." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-05, 10:19:16 (96.25.74.167)
"You look at people's feet for a living. Why do you think that makes you more qualified to pass judgments on these products than the people who actually have to pay money to listen to them? " I certai .......
307: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: metrics of amplifier quality/value? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-02, 10:43:28 (96.25.74.167)
"look at my post about REACTANCE and how amplifiers are seldom measured for performance INTO such loads" Yup, right on. And it isn't just power-amps either, preamps have the similar issues. They don't .......
308: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: metrics of amplifier quality/value? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-09-02, 08:29:08 (96.25.74.167)
"In another life, I am a data analyst, so my instinct still tells me..." That it's really the corrolation coefficients that matter? Probably. But how the heck do you establish it? Many years ago I go .......
309: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "incredible!!!!!!!" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-31, 07:01:59 (96.25.74.167)
Sure is. Just checked and I have one by golly.... And I'm keepin it! With a failure rate of Rick .......
310: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: worse thing is (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-29, 19:17:38 (96.25.74.167)
"i'm supposed to avoid high RF devices: car ignition systems, strong magnets as in speakers..." Stu, contact the manufacturer and get some real information. Neither of those restrictions are sensible. .......
311: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Under my skin, (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-29, 18:11:31 (96.25.74.167)
"titanium wire ceramic coated" Sounds like pretty "high end" cables to me Stu... From what I read (in the renowned medical journal, Wickipedia) apparently they also have them where they are rather lik .......
312: Computer Audio Asylum, Guilty I am! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-29, 11:05:32 (96.25.74.167)
I wasn't really responding to the thread, just Abe's post. I should have looked more carefully at the context... Rick .......
313: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Understand. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-29, 08:37:54 (96.25.74.167)
"I'm just a little surprised that an inmate here, without the necessary test equipment, would make a blanket statement that ferrite chokes on USB cables cause errors." Why on earth would that surprise .......
314: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: amen (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-28, 18:54:30 (96.25.74.167)
"just had an ICD implant so now I am considered to be a cyborg..........." So, are we at risk of assimilation into the collective if we post to you? I just did a quick google and now that I sort-of k .......
315: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: That second paragraph! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-28, 16:55:20 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks, glad it resonated with you. The line between man and machine seems to grow thinner every year... Rick .......
316: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: What kind of oscilloscope is useful for audio work? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-28, 09:03:12 (96.25.74.167)
Actually, any scope is infinitly better than nothing. But some are better yet... I know, it's hard to argue with "logic" like that but there it is. Test equipment vaguly falls into two catagories in .......
317: General Asylum, RE: Get your pliers (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-27, 11:16:02 (96.25.74.167)
"The point is ICs should never be used as an effective means for an AC power ground fault circuit current path." OK. Yet they typically will do the job just fine, especially the shielded ones which is .......
318: Vinyl Asylum, RE: You make a good point! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-26, 12:59:14 (96.25.74.167)
"I like to think about alternative pickup mechanisms which do not involve moving a magnet through a coil. An optical cartridge with embedded IC comes to mind." Well, you still would have a huge list o .......
319: Vinyl Asylum, RE: Short signal paths, but not sound-optimized? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-26, 10:51:21 (96.25.74.167)
"I do not think the form-factor of an op-amp is any limitation to sound quality." Actually there are issues. Big deal, there are issues with everything especially tubes. But back to op-amps three pop .......
320: General Asylum, RE: Get your pliers (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-26, 08:16:12 (96.25.74.167)
"those from the 40's, 50's and 60's and later that died from not having safety grounds" We were rugged in those days... And I'm from them and I agree that at least for home audio the risk is minuscule .......
321: General Asylum, RE: Major ground loop problems after construction on new house (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-25, 09:35:54 (96.25.74.167)
If you have a voltmeter and some wire you may be able to measure the various voltages between your grounds. I agree with Jea48 that voltage differentials are the rub, the question is why and where. Ev .......
322: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Beware bringing music in to work! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-25, 08:22:57 (96.25.74.167)
"Whether small but perhaps critical-in-audio-terms differences between waveforms are readily detected visually, let alone measured, is of course a different matter." I find it largely a one-way street .......
323: General Asylum, RE: Major ground loop problems after construction on new house (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-25, 07:44:43 (96.25.74.167)
I'd take a look at the subpanel wiring. The "safety" grounds should all be connected next to each other and preferably on the tail end of the bar away from the input so that power current doesn't flow .......
324: General Asylum, RE: ".., especially those made in China." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-24, 08:59:20 (96.25.74.167)
"I would not be surprised if those Chinese-made LEDs were designed to sap and impurify your top end." YES! And can you imagine what they do to the purity of your bodily fluids? "Flourescent light fixt .......
325: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Agree, I am a Bluesound owner (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-23, 13:59:47 (96.25.74.167)
"it's [an SBT] a convenient option and I hate to say that I seem to be choosing convenience a lot more these days than I used to..." That's simply a sign of maturity and honed judgement! "So it's not .......
326: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Agree, I am a Bluesound owner (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-23, 07:13:59 (96.25.74.167)
"Maybe it is time to sell mine as it will be useless for me when their cloud shuts down." I'm concerned about that too. I bought an RPi to use as a local server but haven't finished the project since .......
327: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Agree, I am a Bluesound owner (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-22, 21:19:27 (96.25.74.167)
"I sometimes forget there's another SBT world of people using the device pretty much as-is. That wouldn't be good enough for me either." I wonder what vintage SBT you had. I bought one and wasn't sati .......
328: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: You will find that it may be very little (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-22, 10:35:52 (96.25.74.167)
"Always accepted it. As I recall, you went from metal heat transfer to plastic, or thereabouts." Excellent! I'm happy to stand corrected. It's such a useful and intuitive concept that I think it belon .......
329: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: You will find that it may be very little (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-22, 07:43:54 (96.25.74.167)
"It's only ambiguous to you when you are unable to grasp practical engineering concepts." Does this mean that you now accept the concept of thermal resistance? I know, it was years ago that we kicked .......
330: Tube DIY Asylum, RE: How do I double the voltage on diodes? Parallel or series? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-21, 13:38:27 (96.25.74.167)
"One cap per diode right?" Right. The notion is to keep the voltage sane while the diodes have a chance to clear out their stored charge or start conducting. Actually it wouldn't hurt to parallel them .......
331: Tube DIY Asylum, RE: How do I double the voltage on diodes? Parallel or series? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-21, 08:13:00 (96.25.74.167)
Series, but put a 0.001uF disc ceremic Cap across each of them to keep fast transients from exceeding their PIV ratings due to tolerance and strays. Rick .......
332: General Asylum, Good post! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-21, 07:19:32 (96.25.74.167)
"musical reproduction tends to take on a certain life of it's own, either by accident or by intention. It is related to (sometimes very closely related to) actual music, yet it is different enough to .......
333: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Thanks for the link (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-20, 10:33:55 (96.25.74.167)
"most people here can't measure anything, let alone complex problems that well educated designers, engineers, and physicists can't totally explain" Insightful statement Steve... We humans seem driven .......
334: General Asylum, RE: "I will go with 2."... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-19, 08:09:14 (96.25.74.167)
"If Québec has one thing in abundance, it is hydro power." Oregon too! Let me tell you, it doesn't help... Bummer. Whatever turns the turbines is fine (power-wise) and in my case it's mostly the Colum .......
335: General Asylum, RE: Yes, it's a Hallicrafters S-120 (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-17, 22:07:22 (96.25.74.167)
"a crappy antenna HOA restricted antenna!" What sort of sorry patriot are you? Proudly fly old glory from the tallest flagpole in your neighborhood. The attractive bottom plinth containing the motoriz .......
336: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Tube amp Or Preamp (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-17, 11:36:33 (96.25.74.167)
"Which contributes most of the sound of tubes." I'd say typically the power amplifier. In general the output topology is quite different as most SS Amps. look like a voltage source, i.e. essentially .......
337: General Asylum, RE: Yes, it's a Hallicrafters S-120 (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-17, 07:24:33 (96.25.74.167)
"It's an AC-DC, series string, transformerless, "killer" chassis -- and an K radio." In those days every radio we had in the house (and this was pre-TV) were "AC/DC All-American fives". How did it go .......
338: General Asylum, Is that an SX-120??? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-16, 18:05:57 (96.25.74.167)
My first communications receiver.... Used to listen to the L.A. police dispatch on it and propaganda from Radio Moscow, Radio Havana and AFRTS and VoA! And used it for 80m CW after I got my ham licen .......
339: General Asylum, RE: A Lot Of Hearing Aide Discussion Lately. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-16, 14:01:16 (96.25.74.167)
"I'm 46 so I'm a ways away from severe hearing loss" Not necessarily... By the time that you have noticible, persistent symptoms it's too late. If you ears ring or get de-sensed until the next day th .......
340: General Asylum, RE: Hearing aid batteries. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-14, 12:05:29 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks May, I'll keep it in mind. I don't want to rock the boat just now but it would be interesting to try and indeed easy. Next time I order parts I'll see if I can pick up a couple of cells cheaply .......
341: General Asylum, RE: Hearing aid batteries. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-14, 08:08:38 (96.25.74.167)
Hi May, Out of curiosity do you happen to know if using primary cells in digital hearing aids "sound the same" as rechargeables? Hopefully I'll never need 'aids' but my wife recently got ONE. She has .......
342: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Some simple facts (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-09, 08:02:25 (96.25.74.167)
"One thing that CMC's do tend to encourage, is the use of a VERY large inductance in the filter circuit. However, what a lot of people overlook is that placing 1 mH in the AC line actually degrades th .......
343: Cable Asylum, RE: Mogami 3104 lack of transparency? Break in time? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-09, 07:31:07 (96.25.74.167)
"I can't imagine this mogami being an inferior cable to the megacable." Don't imagine, trust your ears, heart and network analyzer if you have one, not your walllet. Rick PS: As I'm sure you know, "s .......
344: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: REVIEW: Musical Fidelity A308cr Amplifier (SS) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-09, 07:21:58 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks for the compelling review. I simply don't usually read or pay much attention to these sorts of things since they tend towards silly blather and vacuous opinion. BUT I couldn't quit reading you .......
345: Speaker Asylum, RE: hi-rez acoustic suspension minimonitors? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-08, 17:58:38 (96.25.74.167)
"i just can't abide by ported speakers. "if it's ported, it's distorted" as i like to say." I can't help you in your quest but I love your sentiment. I only have acoustic suspension speakers in the jo .......
346: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "I wouldn't want to be in the "PC business"." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-07, 14:53:35 (96.25.74.167)
"Apple is hardly just a 'toy' maker today but some folks like to believe that's the case. And that's fine." Toy is good. From my experience all great tools also have a high toy factor and the converse .......
347: Cable Asylum, RE: MSA The First power cord review (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-07, 09:55:28 (96.25.74.167)
"That Does not mean I dont believe but I am a bit skeptical" Good position. This isn't a church so "believing" isn't required. Think of it this way: If a power cord makes a significant difference then .......
348: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "I wouldn't want to be in the "PC business"." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-07, 09:32:51 (96.25.74.167)
Nope, better to be in the bling business. Apple started out making toys. So did Radio Shack. The notion that you could actually use them for work was foreign in those mainframe days. I think more than .......
349: Cable Asylum, RE: Any experience of smooth sounding XLRs (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-05, 09:09:20 (96.25.74.167)
"placing a 100ohm damping resistor across the tweeter terminals will also help to tone down and smooth out a harsh/lively treble. 100 ohms is a starting point" I like your advice... Taking a broadband .......
350: General Asylum, RE: Hearing loss (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-05, 07:24:29 (96.25.74.167)
"I wonder how many realize average hearing acuity peaks by our early 20s so after that the decline begins?" If only it were just hearing... But I recall reading long ago about some African folks who .......
351: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: Cable lifters....Just stick it in your ear. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-08-03, 14:49:32 (96.25.74.167)
NOT so far that you, say, puncture your eardrum, but up against the ear canel opening. Then tap your cable with a pencil or such and see what you hear. Tap the connector (the one not in your ear) in t .......
352: Digital Drive, RE: Laptop vs. Squeezebox? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-31, 07:33:38 (96.25.74.167)
"can someone explain to me the advantages of going with a Squeezebox Touch over a Laptop" In two words: No fan. In a few more: No moving parts period. Remote control iOS application off the shelf. I l .......
353: General Asylum, Amen. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-31, 07:18:06 (96.25.74.167)
"By your own token, as much as one can say that people who rely on measurements do it because they can't hear properly, people who tout hearing do it because they can't measure properly." Perfectly pu .......
354: General Asylum, RE: Compression - you hardly ever see measured (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-29, 13:45:26 (96.25.74.167)
"I do not like under damped woofers at all." I don't usually either and especially dislike ported speakers. "Hey, your speakers have a great bass note!" I think having a Zero at DC is just a bad idea .......
355: General Asylum, RE: Compression - you hardly ever see measured (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-29, 08:04:27 (96.25.74.167)
"the fact that the voice coils heat up thus increasing resistance which in turn changes the response of passive crossovers" Well... That would change the response of the system due to the DC impedance .......
356: Critic's Corner, RE: Web site a mess. Try another profession. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-27, 09:11:50 (96.25.74.167)
"Unreadable site. Who cares if he charges or not." Yup. A real PITA. Rick .......
357: General Asylum, RE: Ear vs. Microphone (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-27, 08:33:22 (96.25.74.167)
"He would run all kinds of tests and measurements, but the ultimate test would always be to listen." Absolutely, gotta close the loop. I've been enjoying your comments, I think trying to clear up some .......
358: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Some ADC advice please (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-26, 16:53:19 (96.25.74.167)
"I use an EMU0404 for my in-room speaker measurements. A lot of functionality at an affordable price, but measured resolution is limited to around 17 bits, ie, the bottom 7 LSBs of its 24-bit output a .......
359: General Asylum, RE: Good luck To Bose (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-26, 11:33:06 (96.25.74.167)
"Let's hope Bose wins as it is a pioneering company with many achievements." Ahhh so, what does that have to do with the case? All that's at issue is the scope, priority and obviousness of whatever th .......
360: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Yes, seems to be so (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-26, 08:41:58 (96.25.74.167)
"I think the wait is too long with some hot running Class A SS amps. It could be due to thermal mass and everything needing significant time to reach thermal equilibrium." Absolutely! My Nak. Amp. tak .......
361: General Asylum, RE: Wouldn't stop anything. Matter of fact people can do what you suggest but don't. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-26, 07:48:35 (96.25.74.167)
"once a system has been properly selected and voiced to fit a listening room." That's an excellent viewpoint Tony. The speakers that I have were bought knowing three things... -That I liked the "house .......
362: Digital Drive, RE: For the Audio Note NOS guys - New technology coming from AN. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-24, 09:13:39 (96.25.74.167)
"I have as much experience as any 66-year old man who has been an audio enthusiast all his life and attended numerous audio shows for the express purpose of listening to the finest sounding and most e .......
363: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: EMU0404 (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-22, 09:39:38 (96.25.74.167)
"Don't, but I'll sell you mine if you insist." Thanks Fred, But I'm trying to become more trendy and it seems as though that line's star has set... Rick .......
364: Critic's Corner, RE: No, this is called marketing. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-22, 09:33:14 (96.25.74.167)
And there is nothing wrong with being honest that that is what you're doing and getting compensated for. Despite all of it's grey flannel wackiness, it's really a good thing for both manufacturers and .......
365: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Some ADC advice please (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-22, 08:59:01 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks Dave... Sorry I got the model wrong. I'll be very interested in seeing what you come up with. Rick .......
366: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Some ADC advice please (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-22, 07:22:26 (96.25.74.167)
I was thinking it was time to get going on mine and was thinking of getting a EMU0404, or their current equivalent because both you and John S. liked them. Has your's turned on you? Rick .......
367: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: you place (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-21, 21:34:51 (96.25.74.167)
"How bout your alarm clocks, or cell phones, or ipads, etc.?" They are class 2 devices Stu unless the alarm clock plugs directly in, so they don't need approval... Only the thing that changes the powe .......
368: General Asylum, RE: Move to Threshold Sl-10 from BAT VK-31SE (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-21, 08:30:08 (96.25.74.167)
"perhaps it's the 6H30 tube compliment that conveys the veiled darkness, perhaps it's the intrinsic nature of the circuit design. I simply do not and can not know." Bravo! Knowing that you don't know .......
369: General Asylum, RE: Is that a new experience for you? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-20, 07:36:41 (96.25.74.167)
"Two speakers simply are not enough to make a room disappear, unless that is there is magic involved." You nailed it! There IS magic involved and it's all in your head. The stereo just creates a sound .......
370: General Asylum, RE: I have a strong aversion to religious cults of any kind - which means.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-19, 09:02:56 (96.25.74.167)
"... no Linkwitz for me in the near future." When did you hear them? I've always wondered how they'd play... Rick .......
371: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: My response was already paraphrasing the post I responded to, so... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-14, 11:27:29 (96.25.74.167)
"... it's a bit redundant, don't you think?" Well... I do now that you've pointed it out. My apologies. Rick .......
372: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Good thing that everyone has freedom to test for themselves, to decide... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-14, 07:38:14 (96.25.74.167)
"the usual suspects prefer to just run their mouths instead, proclaiming that nothing really matters, and then that BS gets repeated by others, and so on.. Well, then how about... the usual suspects p .......
373: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: KRELL VANGAURD COMING!! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-14, 06:31:21 (96.25.74.167)
"variable bias to maintain class a with variable bias that tracks output is not a new concept." Not at all. The first instances I recall were some "Technics" seperates and receivers from Panasonic ma .......
374: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: I don't have time to try everything (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-13, 13:19:39 (96.25.74.167)
"My experience suggests a true understanding in a given situation better helps me effectively deal with it much more quickly than the know nothing knee jerking try everything approach." And you call y .......
375: General Asylum, RE: "There is freedom of speech also for the incompetent." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-13, 08:33:56 (96.25.74.167)
Fortunately our competence is not quite, totally, absolutely determined by your opinion... Or mine. Rick .......
376: General Asylum, RE: Why not keep bad personal experiences personal ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-13, 07:33:33 (96.25.74.167)
"Then out of the blue they mention a particular product with extremely negative words without mentioning by the way the conditions of listening. In some cases i know the product and i am sure it does .......
377: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: HDtracks 24/96 download vs same ripped from remastered CD.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-12, 09:58:23 (96.25.74.167)
"I got to wander about the empty churches and try out a variety of listening positions and find the position I liked best for the music being played at the time." Yea, there you go, optimizing informa .......
378: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: with the data going over the SATA cable to RAM (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-12, 09:37:12 (96.25.74.167)
Wow, that internal mounting is pathological. It's bound to shuffle the EMI environment around even if unplugged. True, the compulab boards tend to have pretty tight current loops but still... No matte .......
379: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: HDtracks 24/96 download vs same ripped from remastered CD.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-12, 08:19:25 (96.25.74.167)
"No. That does not follow. Some music is more demanding than others. Also, you don't know how much better that great CD could have been. It might have been "out of this world"." All true Tony... But t .......
380: General Asylum, RE: the sound of mono returns? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-12, 07:10:08 (96.25.74.167)
Oddly, probably anything BUT Mono. I have a tiny Bose speaker (it was a gift, I'm INNOCENT) that is likely similar and actually I listen to it quite a bit. It has sort of a table radio sound that I ra .......
381: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: I have always wondered and find no info on thte net.. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-11, 12:50:51 (96.25.74.167)
"what if both are used at the same time?" Exactly what will happen depends on where you set the corners, the order of the filters, and the response of both your main and sub. But what the heck, it's a .......
382: General Asylum, RE: Totally agree about the cover... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-11, 09:01:39 (96.25.74.167)
"Maybe it's a set decoration from "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea"." I think you're close but maybe more 'Twenty thousand leagues under the sea'. Very Verneish. Obviously it's mainly an I.D. product .......
383: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: HDtracks 24/96 download vs same ripped from remastered CD.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-10, 10:06:44 (96.25.74.167)
"This reinforces the thought that the source mastering process is more important than the difference between CD resolution and large "hi-res" files." I think that's true. For whatever that's worth... .......
384: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Not surprised even w/o the fancy test gear and measurements.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-09, 23:04:58 (96.25.74.167)
Well, I happen to concur with him, he IS an idiot... 73, Rick .......
385: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: At the time, I did not consider the incident humorous. :-) nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-09, 10:24:55 (96.25.74.167)
I did that once... (forgot to turn the 'fridge back on) No real harm but I was "reformed" and in my new form I set the timer when I turn it off. Reformed Rick .......
386: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "things of that nature" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-08, 14:42:03 (96.25.74.167)
Ah Yes: Exercises in futility! But if it keeps you off the street... Rick .......
387: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: You're funny guy. If you could kindly point... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-08, 11:58:08 (96.25.74.167)
"at my posts that qualify for "consumerist fringe" or "HydrogenAudio dog" definitions - we'll have something to discuss." Well, it was actually the "protecting audio enthusiasts from assaults" clause .......
388: Computer Audio Asylum, Why would you want to be banned? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-08, 07:17:11 (96.25.74.167)
Jes' curious... R. .......
389: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Sound Quality Changes caused by Sata cables. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-06, 11:16:04 (96.25.74.167)
"What should we be listening for?" Good question. No singular answer. In general it's out-of-band amplitude variations that may get "detected" at various spots in the audio gear and the ilk of errors .......
390: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Sound Quality Changes caused by Sata cables. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-06, 08:33:06 (96.25.74.167)
"spread spectrum techniques create large numbers of harmonics that may excite and which will be absent otherwise. So, it is not really a statement of goodness." Spot on Fred. About the only thing spre .......
391: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: damping factor (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-06, 07:53:09 (96.25.74.167)
"Often they are Inversely correlated (THD at high freq. increases and the damping factor drops). " Seems to me they'd virtually always be correlated since their common cause is decreasing loop gain du .......
392: Critic's Corner, RE: Perhaps not having a port... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-06, 06:57:32 (96.25.74.167)
"Long live sealed boxes." Amen! Rick .......
393: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Memoirs of a hounding dog (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-05, 20:15:16 (96.25.74.167)
"Almost every time, I wearily end up citing an article by the Burr-Brown engineer responsible for developing the PCM270x USB Audio chips nearly 15 years ago." And I'm glad you did even though it was a .......
394: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-05, 17:52:53 (96.25.74.167)
"Sorry, but that's classified." Bummer, you reverted. Oh well... Rick .......
395: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-05, 13:51:37 (96.25.74.167)
"I have a non magnetic frame and non magnetic door. There are a number of, uh, treatments inside around the romex and breakers as well, you know, unmentionables." COOL!.... Aluminum? Is the main box s .......
396: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-05, 12:01:46 (96.25.74.167)
Not the door, have you ever tried removing the front panel itself which would take the door along with it? Along with all the steel between the breakers. Just curious, I'm not advocating such a thing .......
397: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-05, 07:57:51 (96.25.74.167)
"opened the door of your breaker panel box" LOL! Of COURSE I've never opened the panel door' How could I? It's never been closed... I store my ladders propped in front of it and couldn't reach the bre .......
398: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-04, 20:34:30 (96.25.74.167)
"Are the wires coming into the breakers and leaving them thermal, too? ;-)" Sure, I just loosen the screws a little... Seriously, I've never paid a bit of attention to the loop areas, or their positio .......
399: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-04, 09:06:54 (96.25.74.167)
"Good reaction." Thanks. "For the same reason that the (magnetic) breaker panel door hurts the sound." What? You don't care for the Phasy sound of Eddy and the Currents? Actually I didn't know they d .......
400: Hi-Rez Highway, RE: The idea of "graduating" to computer audio .. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-04, 07:17:24 (96.25.74.167)
"I'd suggest that the computer audio fans might try graduating to vinyl or, better yet, reel-to-reel tape." On the other hand having had many years of experience with vinyl and RR tape, some of the mo .......
401: Cable Asylum, RE: "power cords don't add distortion" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-04, 06:45:39 (96.25.74.167)
"One of the primary culprits is the distortion produced by the self induced magnetic field produced by current flowing through the cord as it interacts with the AC signal." Oh please professor, tells .......
402: Cable Asylum, RE: Follow up.. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-03, 22:11:35 (96.25.74.167)
"I find I need a couple of hours on many BD products." I hear you. I actually think mine sounded a little harsh at first then improved after a couple of hours to rather nice. But the next day, not so .......
403: Cable Asylum, RE: Follow up.. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-02, 22:23:09 (96.25.74.167)
Hi Stu, The cord has been connected for days with some run-time. The input voltage was applied continuously but during the Summer I've gotten into turning off the amplifiers when I'm not listening ver .......
404: Cable Asylum, Follow up.. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-02, 20:50:50 (96.25.74.167)
"Note: I've found that putting samples on power cords can sometimes improve things, but often has the opposite effect." OK... Unfortunately that appears to be the case with mine. Bummer. Does this for .......
405: Cable Asylum, RE: Just do it! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-02, 17:07:40 (96.25.74.167)
"The power cords position the devices in the right place with correct orientation, so they tend to be more reliable in their action." Well... Maybe mine's in the wrong spot. It's about 7in. from the s .......
406: Cable Asylum, Just do it! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-02, 08:22:25 (96.25.74.167)
I'm actually having, er, odd results just using the samples on a power cord. An AAer whose opinions I trust has been posting that it may be possible to use too much (or is it too many?). Regardless th .......
407: General Asylum, RE: And when have YOU found a manufactured CD fail due to rot??? (me never) nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-01, 22:30:53 (96.25.74.167)
I've had one fail. I can dig around and probably find it if you want more info. It was in a two disk set, a Mercury I think that I had listened to them many times when one just developed a bad spot a .......
408: Cable Asylum, Spot on... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-01, 07:56:17 (96.25.74.167)
"Synergy is determined by the entire signal chain, including how the I/O of particular components behave with particular cables, so it's best to swap-out different make/model interconnect cables..." P .......
409: Asylum Feedback/Support, Animated GIFs (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-07-01, 06:30:30 (96.25.74.167)
Hi Rod, I noticed that the post of someone griping about them was just deleted. Well.. While I've never mentioned it, I hate those damn things! And the killer is I can't turn them off because I'm usin .......
410: Cable Asylum, RE: Weird question ... you have a very good IC and an average one (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-30, 07:26:11 (96.25.74.167)
"Not so with cables where suck it and see is ulthimately all that you can do." Just like the rest of the components, huh? The electrical interfaces of home audio gear are essentially undefined. The em .......
411: General Asylum, RE: Then, what if the measures you take in attempting to reduce distortion just "sound bad" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-28, 14:07:28 (96.25.74.167)
"You could also read Audio Note's take on this..." OK, I just did. And I agree with them. Global feedback can also work fine if you have enough GBW in the first place and force an appropriate dV/dT l .......
412: General Asylum, RE: AFAIK, Hervé Delétraz believes solid state output stages should not use multiple driver pairs (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-27, 20:06:20 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks for the link. I especially liked the bit about matched transmission lines not having losses... Would that it were true! And I'm not sangiune about lumping jitter with TIM into one puddle as "TD .......
413: General Asylum, RE: Then, what if the measures you take in attempting to reduce distortion just "sound bad" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-27, 12:37:32 (96.25.74.167)
"darTZeel approach: "Timing errors"" Do you happen to have a handy link to this topic? I'd like to hear from the horse's mouth (or in the Internet age, hoofs), just what they are referring to. I have .......
414: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: JPlay 5.2.1 (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-27, 09:06:12 (96.25.74.167)
"- 2x smaller UltraSize (i.e. can go down to 10 but realistically seems 12-15 is minimum on most setups that could do 20 with 5.2)" To an outsider, me, that is the most meaningless assembly of words a .......
415: General Asylum, RE: What I have started doing to make it slightly harder for the scamsters... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-27, 08:43:50 (96.25.74.167)
"How some people sleep at night is a mystery to me." The truly corrupt believe that they are typical... R. .......
416: General Asylum, RE: Is it all simple as that ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-27, 08:40:52 (96.25.74.167)
Not quite... There's output power and impedance, emissions, susceptibility, PSRR... That sort of thing. Most electronic gear has far more inclusive and detailed specifications and requirements than do .......
417: Computer Audio Asylum, Excellent! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-26, 16:40:34 (96.25.74.167)
Looking forward to reading of your results Steve... Thanks, Rick .......
418: General Asylum, RE: Antenna? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-26, 07:46:41 (96.25.74.167)
"From your post I gather that the device picks up the frequency using an antenna, and somehow amplifies it?" Nope. Sorry for the confusion, as I see Geoff has already posted the Schumann resonance is .......
419: General Asylum, RE: Good catch. Actually, I have a bigger gripe. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-25, 07:52:04 (96.25.74.167)
The picture is in the link in Tom Schumans's post above. The affect was initially sort of a discomfort and inability to concentrate on the work I was doing at my computer across the room. I changed th .......
420: General Asylum, RE: Per Track Downloads = Fall of the Album (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-25, 07:35:53 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks Tony, I don't do a lot of Internet commerce and always use the same card to try and keep problems isolated should they occur. The system's pretty good and the CC fraud group at the bank are gr .......
421: General Asylum, RE: Good catch. Actually, I have a bigger gripe. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 22:32:49 (96.25.74.167)
"Someone might say, well, the proliferation of radio communications, cell phones, TV signals, etc. Drowns out the natural Schumann frequency, shielded us from the natural SF. But that can't be right b .......
422: General Asylum, RE: Per Track Downloads = Fall of the Album (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 15:19:33 (96.25.74.167)
I don't see a problem there. I haven't actually bought any downloads for years having had a very bad experience with my credit card being hijacked as a result of dealing with HD Tracks long ago. But o .......
423: General Asylum, RE: OT - "Every time I bought a 45 there was also music (loosely defined) on the back but not ONCE... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 11:25:37 (96.25.74.167)
"I suspect you never bought any Stones, Beatles or Motown 45's, amongst others." Yep, you're right. By the time I was in a position to really buy much of these sorts of things I was buying LP's. Rick .......
424: General Asylum, RE: iTunes declining sales? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 11:18:37 (96.25.74.167)
"The deal didn't materially change when moving from CD to iTunes. What artists were upset about was the lack of full-album downloads that came with the move. People were only downloading the tracks th .......
425: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Zero Jitter (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 09:12:28 (96.25.74.167)
Oh that is just GREAT! Ah, I miss the Comet era. I loved the gun-sights on the front fenders so you could get clean pedestrian kills... And no computer! I think our Toyota runs more MIPS than all of o .......
426: General Asylum, RE: iTunes declining sales? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 08:49:42 (96.25.74.167)
"If an artist gets 5% of the revenue, a million selling CD at $15 is a respectable $750,000. A million iTunes downloads at 99¢ a track might net an artist a few thousand." Approximate # of tracks/CD=1 .......
427: General Asylum, RE: iTunes declining sales? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-24, 06:36:38 (96.25.74.167)
Fun analysis, but it's not clear to me that royalties are causually elated to the method of distribution. The biggest thing missing is that plenty of other entertainment options were being created alo .......
428: General Asylum, RE: "the Sound of Sand" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-22, 07:44:19 (96.25.74.167)
And the vagaries of vacuum. Or, for those given to Mag. Amps., the feeling of flux. So what about "class D"? Hard to say for sure, they are an on and off again thing... I say implementation rules! Ric .......
429: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Like the good old days. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-21, 07:56:22 (96.25.74.167)
These ARE the "good-old-days"! Look, I'm solidly from the thermionic era also. They were all we had and I built all sorts of ham and audio gear with tubes, knew their pinouts by heart and still have s .......
430: General Asylum, LOL (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-21, 06:54:55 (96.25.74.167)
And that's rare. Our experiences match others: Store bad, UPS depot good. And only a couple miles away. Of course now I shall always think of it as FedUP... Rick .......
431: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Passive Preamp (Transformer Based) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-19, 22:07:27 (96.25.74.167)
Well... You are right a Zo=500ohms is prolly fine. But I think what the 500 ohm Spec. really means is that's the general impedance region the transformer is designed for. What can really be achieved .......
432: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Passive Preamp (Transformer Based) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-19, 07:49:12 (96.25.74.167)
"I presume it is voltage gain, not power gain then?" I think that's a good bet. About the only time you run into a conjugate match in home audio is if the listeners are up to something on the couch... .......
433: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Passive Preamp (Transformer Based) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-18, 21:39:48 (96.25.74.167)
Transformers don't have power gain, only loss. So the stage driving them has to be able to drive the interconnect and the power amplifier and the transformer leakage flux. The transformer will give yo .......
434: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: nodes (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-18, 09:05:31 (96.25.74.167)
"I think the best bet is ensuring there isn't a possibility of standing waves from forming in the enclosures in the first place" Right! And that means improving the impedance match to the air or incre .......
435: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: nodes (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-17, 07:49:37 (96.25.74.167)
"repurposed unwanted mechanical energy." Or, as they say in the profession: R.U.M.E. Colloquially 'rummy'. I'm not too sure just which profession that would be but I've worked on lots of rummy stuff i .......
436: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Boom, sizzle, Flash! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-17, 06:53:10 (96.25.74.167)
Probably just a tube gone short. Common as fleas at a dog show. If you have access to a tube tester run them through and tap them in the process. Look around for cooked resistors, blown (literally) ca .......
437: Critic's Corner, RE: Jeez. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-17, 06:42:30 (96.25.74.167)
"Amplifiers and CD players etc can be packaged great but the sheer jarring of such a drop can easily knock loose a solder joint and it only takes one to be knocked loose or even ajar. " Nope, that's j .......
438: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: REVIEW: Schiit Audio SYS Preamplifier (SS) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-15, 08:43:24 (96.25.74.167)
"Still, how many consumer brands can you name that mimic a curse word?" None, isn't that's the point? Can you to come up with anything better for both name recognition and retention. It's shocking, fu .......
439: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: REVIEW: Schiit Audio SYS Preamplifier (SS) (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-15, 06:35:09 (96.25.74.167)
"Still, a marketing blunder is to have the brand name of Schiit" What you call 'blunder' I call 'brilliance'. Guess it's a matter of perspective... Rick .......
440: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Squeezebox ... too cheap to be good ? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-14, 10:10:07 (96.25.74.167)
"The only thing that i still do not digest easily is the digital output" Well, the touch has optical and electrical (RCA) SPDIF outputs in addition to USB. Rick .......
441: General Asylum, Thanks, that was a fun read. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-14, 09:57:15 (96.25.74.167)
Loved the dowsing part! Oddly enough we perhaps used to use the technique to help find underground irrigation pipes on the golf course where I worked summers in high school and college. Nothing fancy .......
442: General Asylum, RE: A little over two years ago I lost interest in one entire style of music and never regained it. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-13, 19:02:27 (96.25.74.167)
Wow. Classical and opera is about all I listen to so that would be a real rend. However the genera you mention have a lot of great music also. Just different and after all what good is listening if yo .......
443: General Asylum, RE: Can I get the cliff notes version of 'inverting phase'? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-13, 17:45:30 (96.25.74.167)
"Think of a flash light battery one end is positive one end is negative, if you were to reverse the battery, you have reversed the direction of the current." Not in my flashlights! Them-thar newfangl .......
444: General Asylum, RE: Each 'stage' of a pre or amp .inverts' so even sets end up OK odd stages invert. Got it? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-13, 13:19:25 (96.25.74.167)
" Every stage inverts. just the way they work. But the staged are added up so some make components with three, some with four stages.. So first stage invert second invert the invert thus back to norma .......
445: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Building a better Squeezebox or DLNA streamer? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-13, 07:36:01 (96.25.74.167)
Wow, what a great post... My SBT is my streaming audio receiver and is just plugged into the preamp, prolly with the cables provided. But I've saved a copy of your post as a topology reference as you .......
446: General Asylum, RE: of all the $*&@^#%$!^# stupid things I have ever done! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-10, 06:09:59 (96.25.74.167)
-Line fuse -Filaments in tubes -Filter Caps You just need to have a Tech go through it. It's very unlikely to have taken out a transformer or be not worth repairing. Good luck, Rick .......
447: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: That's my job :-) nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-09, 08:18:21 (96.25.74.167)
"the story's in our local paper: "Top SoCal foot wallah in Cleb Cable sleaze probe" If only the Register-Guard was as trendy... Life's tough here on the frontier. R. .......
448: Critic's Corner, RE: ATC transponders (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-07, 20:27:36 (96.25.74.167)
"Antiquated modulation schemes would be rendered unworkable, even if not illegal, per se." So, you've turned against CW huh? My point was really that what constitutes "progress" in communications seem .......
449: Critic's Corner, RE: ATC transponders (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-07, 16:58:02 (96.25.74.167)
Arrgh! How did I manage to morph transceiver into transponder? Sorry about that. As I was reading your description of the radio I was struck that we made a very similar one which was an older design .......
450: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: never bothered to measure (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-07, 16:22:54 (96.25.74.167)
"I believe the two different cables are inductively coupled: the field of one is coupled to the other and vice versa." Really they're bound to be, but I can't intuit an approximate result. Even if I k .......
451: Critic's Corner, RE: ATC transponders (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-07, 15:26:02 (96.25.74.167)
Hi Tony, Just happened across this post. Having actually designed a transponder in the mid 70's I may have a warped view, but I don't recall any special VSWR requirements. In those days the outputs we .......
452: Tweakers' Asylum, RE: best of both worlds (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-07, 09:16:37 (96.25.74.167)
Interesting Stu... And is has that ever-popular bordello look about it! Have you ever tried listening to speaker wires laterally? If I hook up a battery powered Amp. between the ends and listen away .......
453: General Asylum, RE: Audiophiles will pay ten times what something is worth if it is 'High End' enough nt (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-06, 11:02:25 (96.25.74.167)
Audiophiles know beyond any shadow of a doubt that price is the only true arbiter of high-endedness in home audio. This while they excoriate all other quantifiable parameters... The obvious conclusion .......
454: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Sometimes we forget... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-05, 06:43:25 (96.25.74.167)
"The fact that even $100K speakers do NOT sound the same indicated that the public is simply not interested in perfection." I don't think that argument is very applicable to speakers Stu. Electronics .......
455: Digital Drive, RE: reading materials (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-04, 19:34:02 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks Tony, I've read some of Oppenheim and Schafer as it was sort of the bible and we had one at work. The book that I really started with was Hamming's digital filters. Killed a vacation's evenings .......
456: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: WHY convert PCM to DSD? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-04, 14:16:09 (96.25.74.167)
"You do realize that DSD as well as all the common "PCM" formats are all pulse code modulation" I guess it's OK for me not to know this but I thought DSD was PDM. No? Rick .......
457: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Adcom 545 simple(?) repair question (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-04, 08:24:22 (96.25.74.167)
They don't slip on, if the connector is damaged you have to replace the whole thing. I can't really make out what's going on from your picture, can you take a close up? Rick .......
458: General Asylum, RE: Effect of Speaker Magnets on Jet Navigation Systems? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-04, 07:48:24 (96.25.74.167)
No. Essentially the magnetic compass is only a last resort and any deviation would be very small anyway unless perhaps they were stuck in some sort of nose cargo hold. Rick .......
459: General Asylum, Thanks! (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-04, 07:41:02 (96.25.74.167)
Just like being there... Why even the virtual experience gave me blue-lit bling saturation but at least I could gaze at the grossness without risking hearing damage thanks to your efforts. I guess wi .......
460: Critic's Corner, RE: For me one thing has become clear (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-03, 13:16:53 (96.25.74.167)
"many of those so-called "artisan tinkerers" are nothing less than very highly trained but also highly scientific engineers that often came from big industry in the first place." Good point. However c .......
461: Critic's Corner, RE: For me one thing has become clear (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-02, 08:09:04 (96.25.74.167)
"the path to the objective IS important it seems." I don't think so. The correct technical definition of the objective is what's important. If the path matters then the requirements are insufficiently .......
462: General Asylum, RE: Downsized my listening room. A bit too much bass. Best Solution? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-01, 20:57:14 (96.25.74.167)
Along the same line as the other posters, but more moderate.... I'd try moving the speakers forward and inward as much as possible until their grills essentially form an extension of the front panel o .......
463: Digital Drive, RE: Why does a ten year old NOS DAC sound so good? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-06-01, 07:43:59 (96.25.74.167)
"It seems that whether an audiophile will prefer NOS over OS or not, depends upon the kind of subjective faults that audiophile finds the more annoying. Rather than one approach always being subjectiv .......
464: General Asylum, RE: The main knock against headphones is that they cannot reproduce a sense of "air." But, how many here listen to (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-30, 16:45:39 (96.25.74.167)
"I absolutely have my preferences, but as long as I can hear my tunes, I'm good!" Well... I wonder if that isn't happening to me also, at least to some extent. Maybe my hearing is losing it's edge as .......
465: General Asylum, RE: The main knock against headphones is that they cannot reproduce a sense of "air." But, how many here listen to (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-30, 08:17:42 (96.25.74.167)
"The orchestra in the middle of one's head is the worst part." Interesting. That just doesn't bother me at all. You might try different cans. I have several but often use the Koss one's that clip to y .......
466: Critic's Corner, RE: Let me expand .... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-29, 11:54:54 (96.25.74.167)
"Ok. But what constitutes a good engineer? LOL" Well, a bunch of factors of course. Just how is that germane to this discussion? Rick .......
467: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Finally a USB Cable test setup that is working (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-29, 08:19:25 (96.25.74.167)
"It continues to amaze me that people here refuse to accept the fact that what they think they hear is often a placebo effect." The only fact is that you are just making assumptions. Let's see YOUR pr .......
468: Critic's Corner, RE: Let me expand .... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-29, 07:50:56 (96.25.74.167)
"After I read Art's column I didn't particularly agree with him about 'artisinal' designers (I am an engineer after all) but wouldn't hold that against him." I read, I am and I do. I've now consigned .......
469: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: If the first watt is hot, (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-29, 06:47:20 (96.25.74.167)
"why do you need 249+ more?" Me? I largely don't being anything but a head-banger. The point of my post was really to just try and clarify a little what "AB" means as I felt the OP was a mite confused .......
470: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: High powered SS amp with cleanest "First watt" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-28, 21:58:40 (96.25.74.167)
"I believe all the Parasound Halo amplifiers operate in Class A for the first few watts before transitioning into Class AB." All "class AB" amplifiers start out 'A' for small signals down in the bias .......
471: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Effects boxes... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-24, 08:58:17 (96.25.74.167)
"I'm willing to give up some resolution, bass definition and bandwidth overall to be able to enjoy CDs that are otherwise irritatingly brittle." That sounds like a great idea to me: Corrective distort .......
472: General Asylum, RE: computers have to "recognize" headphones?!? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-24, 06:54:18 (96.25.74.167)
Make that 'old-school analog' with an older-school switch, activated by the physical presence of a plug. Rick .......
473: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Impedance matching question (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-23, 19:34:08 (96.25.74.167)
While ears are the final arbiters they are not too hot at sorting out causation. I'd do a simple sweep with a signal generator and meter or equivalents to get a better idea of what's happening. May w .......
474: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "I would go with the battery approach to the extent possible" (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-23, 07:32:31 (96.25.74.167)
Yup. Nothing else comes close to batteries for isolation. Or for bother, unfortunately, but for T&M from the perspectives of both safety and performance batteries rule! Rick .......
475: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: A good preamp properly matched can sound that way (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-21, 08:16:38 (96.25.74.167)
"I've found the biggest issues is unwanted, unneeded gain." Makes sense to me. Every stage adds noise and distortion so that's all that's left at the limit. Chaos strikes again... Including temporally .......
476: General Asylum, RE: Wow... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-20, 16:24:04 (96.25.74.167)
You are not, in my estimation, a man easily wowed and yet you were. This is the first time that I have ever wished that I could hear something solely based on another's burbling superlatives! I wonder .......
477: Critic's Corner, RE: Could you do a review of a borrowed product? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-19, 06:56:17 (96.25.74.167)
"that's rather odd; can't anyone - with suitable equipment - perform those measurements" Absolutely! And if a competitor were really concerned about matching some attribute of their performance, buyin .......
478: General Asylum, RE: Digital sound hurts my ears. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-14, 13:40:27 (96.25.74.167)
"Here is a series of tests..." Great post Tony. Rick .......
479: General Asylum, RE: Yes and no (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-12, 19:14:49 (96.25.74.167)
"I certainly hope whatever befell you doesn't ever happen to me." Don't worry, I think your risk is minimal... Rick .......
480: General Asylum, RE: Yes and no (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-12, 17:31:24 (96.25.74.167)
OK, looked at the fuse Spec. Not sure that's very transferable but I do appreciate it, maybe a 2% drop in resistance as I read it. "I realize that you will not ever get around to cryo, regardless of .......
481: General Asylum, RE: Yes and no (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-12, 13:05:24 (96.25.74.167)
"Gee Whiz, are you saying you won't accept the evidence that almost every high end cable manufacturer, at least the ones who are still competitive, use cryo?" Well, don't have that evidence and it pro .......
482: General Asylum, RE: Yes and no (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-12, 11:22:08 (96.25.74.167)
"i realize you're just kind of starting out, but cryogenics is also used for the following audio applications to improve the conductivity of metal conductors in cables and wire. improve the performanc .......
483: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: Anyone know why Logitech has not sold the rights to Squeezebox (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-12, 07:14:09 (96.25.74.167)
"SQ doesn't sell in the mass-market. " I think it's a factor, but often not the prime one. For instance: no matter how good that LP sounds the first three plays on a turntable with a new needle, that .......
484: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Does it matter that LEDs seem to wear out like tubes? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-08, 12:18:39 (96.25.74.167)
Sorry for any confusion, by "signaling LED's" I did indeed mean the one's used as indicators and not for illumination. Guess our experiences just vary, mine are that they last virtually forever in DC .......
485: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Does it matter that LEDs seem to wear out like tubes? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-08, 07:51:20 (96.25.74.167)
"the LEDs in my system tend to get dim and fail, over time" Really? Signaling LED's? That's odd... The light from LED's in the attenuators drive the CDS cells affecting their on-resistance. So, if the .......
486: Critic's Corner, RE: Stereophile skating close to the edge. (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-08, 07:12:16 (96.25.74.167)
"But it does garner a positive sonic review with caveats relating to reliability issues." I found the review a bit strange also, but effective none the less. Would you, after reading the review, likel .......
487: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: Leave Amp Camp Amp Powered ON or OFF?? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-03, 20:49:55 (96.25.74.167)
Does it make any difference if I leave my Amp Camp Amp powered on or off when not in use? I'm not familiar with the Amp. but in general... Does the sound sound sound when first turned on or does it i .......
488: Cable Asylum, RE: The weakest link? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-03, 10:31:27 (96.25.74.167)
The conductive length of the banana plugs amounts to nothing compared to the cables. The most important thing is that they fit firmly into the sockets. Rick .......
489: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "even for Windows XP users."-Even (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-02, 11:43:21 (96.25.74.167)
"You can always get a new computer and run a new version of Windows and then run WXP as a virtual machine" I rather like that notion Tony. I recently read a post where someone was doing that under Lin .......
490: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "even for Windows XP users."-Even (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-02, 07:49:29 (96.25.74.167)
Thanks, I'll try to do mine. Like others have mentioned it would cost kilobucks to replace my engineering Apps in addition to a steep learning curve for an old dog like me. Rick .......
491: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: "even for Windows XP users." (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-01, 14:21:14 (96.25.74.167)
You gotta be kidding! They already PROMISED to dump us on I5 during rush-hour. You just can't believe anything... Doubting Rick .......
492: Cable Asylum, RE: Uhmmm... could someone explain this to me? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-05-01, 06:54:41 (96.25.74.167)
Sure... You're paying for the box, the cables are only $100. "If we can't call out foolishness here, where can we?" What foolishness? Had you actually bought them that would be a different story, mean .......
493: Cable Asylum, RE: is a power cord actually carrying a signal? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-30, 15:22:58 (96.25.74.167)
"Do you worry that your equipment cases are ungrounded?" Well, no actually. However as it happens my power Amp. is grounded so there is at least that. And it's not much of an issue performance-wise si .......
494: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: The Cutting Edge (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-30, 07:20:54 (96.25.74.167)
"I , personally, would never buy any gear that is junk-sourced to China" Well, if you are thinking Asia in general when you say "China" then you won't have to be bothered by ever buying anything elect .......
495: Cable Asylum, RE: is a power cord actually carrying a signal? (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-29, 19:25:01 (96.25.74.167)
"I heard the theory that signals will take any return path to ground that is available, so they will actually go through the chassis and power cord. What do you think?" I wish it was otherwise, but al .......
496: Amp/Preamp Asylum, RE: BiAmping Speakers with Built in XO (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-28, 07:20:39 (96.25.74.167)
If your speakers have two sets of binding posts that are normally jumpered, just remove the jumper and hook an amplifier to each set. The internal crossovers still do their job so you can feed both am .......
497: Cable Asylum, RE: speaker jumper cable to tighten the bass of my Duntech Princess C5000 (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-27, 08:22:32 (96.25.74.167)
I'd be inclined to do some experimentation to try and evaluate the limiting condition. That would be essentially no DCR between the power amp and woofer binding posts. If the problem is clear using ju .......
498: General Asylum, RE: Can the industry return to the glory years? First off, (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-23, 10:29:33 (96.25.74.167)
"I'm exhausted with change." Me to. Fortunately for most folks the solution already is in hand. Literally. And the good news is that compared to, say, transferring records to tape, data migration is a .......
499: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: It is most definately a computer using low-profile 12volt Mini ITX motherboard and.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-22, 22:31:30 (96.25.74.167)
It's fun to see where things go over time and to be involved in the early days as you were. I was simply struck with how well the motor:computer (for lack of a better generic term) analogy actually wo .......
500: Computer Audio Asylum, RE: It is most definately a computer using low-profile 12volt Mini ITX motherboard and.... (0.00)
Posted by rick_m on 2014-04-22, 18:27:39 (96.25.74.167)
"the observation that there would be as many computers in the world as fractional horsepower motors..." That's a very insightful comparison, was it your's truly? I suppose that motors have already lon .......
Found total of 500 records, Query: , Author: rick_m in All Forums, Time: 4 sec.