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DrJ
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Posts posted by DrJ
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So I take it nobody ever heard back from Michael Cuscuna about this inquiry?
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Ray Bryant - TRIO TODAY (Emarcy Japan)
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Well Lon I for sure hope you're right!
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I agree with you, porcy62. What I love about the Audio Note silver connectors is that, at least in my system, they are very neutral. The Apetures made everything harsh on the high end and thin sounding. The Monster Cables, while suprisingly good for the price, don't transmit all the sonic details and tend to make the low end really boomy. The Audio Notes are detailed without being harsh, very "true" sounding. To me that's ideal but having said that sometimes one might want a cable that colors the sound one way or the other to address problems elsewhere in the system. I can forsee, for example, that when I get my vintage gear, it may seem like some of the high end is lacking - since the older gear wasn't really designed to transmit information in that frequency range. It's possible a brighter sounding cable could compensate for that. We'll just have to see...that's the fun of this to me, the experimenting and process is as enjoyable as the end product to me, just uses a different part of the brain.
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This is my favorite of the Hutch piano/vibes/drums/bass records...I think better than HAPPENINGS by quite a large margin.
RVG sounds fine but this is one instance where I prefer the older version of the CD...something is funny on the RVG, though it could simply be that the higher sampling resolution is bringing out flaws in the master tape that were there all along (and thus technically it could be the more "correct" sound). I think the old CD sounds fine. The original recording is a trifle dark and nothing will change that.
I'd love a King pressing of this one...I only have the Kenny Burrell FREEDOM title in that series but it sounds fantastic.
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Dmitry...I honestly don't know, though it would be fun to test out. What I can tell you is that when I A/B'd with the AN connectors/speaker cables and prior stuff that I have had, it was a huge, obvious difference. I'm confident you'd get a blindfold test there right 10/10, no problem.
I would imagine that there are definitely other cables out there that would sound as good as mine, possibly better depending on your preferences - some would sound similar to the silvers, others would not but would also be pleasing to the ear. I make no claim at all that what I have is "best" as I have not listened to everything available.
Without knowing what you have though, I do suspect we'd both be able to hear differences with your stuff and mine hooked up and blind comparing. What each of us would PREFER is impossible to know though. You might hate the way my stuff sounds.
The system matters a lot. I bought the cheaper Apeture silver/copper hybrid cables from my dealer because I thought they sounded pretty good in his system. But it's different than mine...when I got 'em home they sounded awful with my gear. Probably a function of him having a much more powerful amplification set up (he has higher end Audio Note SET monoblocks with around 20 W per channel or more output) and speakers with more bass reproduction (Zingali .4s, a much bigger speaker able to reproduce frequencies down a bit lower than my .2s model). My Meishu SET amp has more modest (8 W per channel) power output and I have speakers with less bass repro - so a little thinner sound to begin with and with those Apeture cables, THIN CITY. I clearly need a less bright sounding cabling in my system, while in another system they might be just perfect to counterbalance stuff that colors the sound to be a little too dark.
With gear this revealing, you definitely notice EVERY change. Differences between my Audio Note silver connectors, the Apeture connectors, and regular old Monster Cable connectors between my tube DAC and amplifier are HUGE - you WOULD hear those, I'm sure.
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You need 'em both. Essential, IMHO.
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Dmitry - I've looked and looked and can't find my receipts for the Audio Note silver cables. If you're interested, Deetes Andersen in Sacramento is the local Audio Note dealer and he could tell you for sure - (916) 334-7000, that's who I got 'em from.
All I can say is that they are very expensive, well over $100 per meter for sure. I have very short runs which helps, but they are just flat out expensive, no two ways about it. I did a lot of comparison listening before buying and they were good enough to where, for me, it was worth the investment.
Silver interconnects/cables are sometimes given a bad rap as being overly bright and thin sounding. I would say that is true for lesser cables...I had some Apeture cables (in fairness, those are not pure silver, but a copper/silver hybrid design) that sounded horribly thin and bright, I got rid of them in a hurry - regular old Monster Cable from Best Buy sounds a mile better than those, and yet they were about $100 per meter! So you can't go by price alone, got to listen. The Audio Notes, which are pure silver and better designed and made, are wonderful. With one coming from my amp output to CD recorder, I can make CD-Rs that sound basically exactly like vinyl.
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Dmitry, I'll check for you on the cable pricing when I get home...these were pricey for sure, but not nearly as expensive as some of Audio Note's silver cables...they have a range of different ones, with the differences involving number of silver strands and stuff like that. Mine were kind of in the middle price wise.
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It's been very interesting re-reviewing this thread...more than a year since I posted about my system, and in the past year it's changed a bunch!
My current system is now completely different, centered around a single ended triode (300B) tube amplifier, the Audio Note Meishu integrated. A whopping 8 watts per channel and that's all you need for wonderful near field listening with sensitive speakers (Zingali Overture .2s, a pretty esoteric Italian speaker - gorgeous sounding and nice to look at too). Other stuff:
Audio Note Signature 2.1 DAC
Audio Note CD Zero transport
HHB BurnIT Professional CD recorder
Audio Note silver interconnects and speaker cables
Nottingham Spacedeck turntable with Space Arm
KAB Souvenier Retro, a nifty little passive circuitry box that has a mono switch as well as left/right switching capability - handy for vintage records
I can't say this step up has made me love music any more, but it's certainly allowing me to enjoy it to the fullest.
I also ran across the mother of all audio opportunities recently and bought an entire vintage audio system...long story, NOT something I was looking to do (I was hunting for McIntosh MC30s and found this and couldn't let it go). Basically an older gentleman who was a long-time hi fi fan assembled a dream system in around 1960-61 and kept it in immaculate condition, no mods on the vintage amps etc, looks like the day it was made. He passed away a couple years ago and his son is just getting around to selling it off. Shipping arrangements are still underway so I don't have it yet, but it's gonna be so much fun! Here's the tally:
McIntosh MC30 monoblocks
Marantz 7c preamplifier/phono stage built in
Bozak 302-A "Urban" speakers with matching equipment cabinet (styling looks VERY 1959-1960, I love it!)
Fisher 101-R tuner
Thorens TD 124 turntable
The guy "threw in" 500+ records, if I want them!!! I'm awaiting a listing to see which if any I'll want, but I know for sure there's some Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and possibly some other jazz titles in the collection...we'll see.
So a once in a lifetime lucky break...though not a "steal," I paid pretty much fair market value for the stuff. It's just great to get a system that was actually assembled at the same time in 1960 or so and is in such great shape. I'll post impressions after I get it all set up.
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I love that whole damn JUDGEMENT! LP..."Siete Ocho" is one of the best tracks but for some reason I just keep coming back to "Reconciliation," that melody simply haunts me, I love that sort of mechanical yet very hip ascending scale bit that Hutcherson does during his "solo" section (really more collective improv), and talk about an Elvin Jones tour de force! That has to be THE beefiest brush work I've ever heard, there's guys who don't sound that forceful playing with the handle side of regular sticks!!!
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jazzbo posted:
In my opinion Rudy's remasering of the Monk, Jackson, Davis et al disc and tape material he did not record is the best sounding cds of the material.
Yes inDEED! That's why there should be a whole lot more RVGs of earlier material like this, late 40s/early 50s vintage, using the same approach of going back to the original masters.
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Thanks for sending this query to Michael Cuscuna, Chuck.
Yes Bertrand, this is what I was thinking - it could well have happened with Roulette. We can only hope Williams did record this date AND that the tapes can be or have been located and are in decent shape.
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THANKS for looking this up in your discography resources, Chuck - well, the plot thickens.
I'd initially thought that maybe Mr. Stewart's memory may have been faulty, but when I searched for ANY listed session with both Williams and Ed Thigpen, I found none...so I'm thinking he's probably remembering correctly and this was a forgotten about session.
Will watch this space for further developments!
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At the Steve Hoffman forums, there was a discussion about Capitol Studio in NYC, and in that thread someone posted a link to the following site which has some pics from the studio:
Upon taking a look several of us noticed Mary Lou Williams in the pics, as well as Ed Thigpen and Melba Liston. But the part that really really got my attention was the note at the bottom about this having been a session for Roulette and that it was NEVER ISSUED.
I've Googled a few on line discographies and nobody mentions this Mary Lou session.
OK experts (Mike Fitzgerald, where are you?) - can anyone confirm this session, complete musician listing, and whether or not it has ever been issued?
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One last comment: for static electricity problems, I would suggest a soft dust-removing brush like the one made by Hunt (a British company I believe). It works like the old Decca brush but way less expensive. Every time I put a record on the table, I use this 3 rotations. It removes the dust that settles on the record while you're futzing around with your CD recorder settings, taking a swig of scotch (!), etc - and this is important if you don't want a fuzzball to accumulate at the tip of your stylus by the end of each side, which will most definitely cause a degradation in sound! - AND, just as importantly, it cuts down surface static electricity. If the static is real bad it won't completely remove it but it is greatly reduced. In dry climates record cleaning machines like the VPI can actually introduce some static (particularly if you over-use the vacuum - 2-3 rotations is plenty, more than that you start getting static) so this is invaluable, and it's a cheaper solution than the anti-static guns (which never made great sense to me and seem like one added step/hassle - you really should use a soft brush on the table with each play anyway, takes about 15 seconds).
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They're pricey but the VPI record cleaning machine (16.5) has been one of the best audio-related purchases I've ever made. If you clean a few dozen LPs in my opinion it's already paid for itself.
The huge advantage over the "DIY" cleaning methods that involve tubs of solution on the kitchen counter (which I used to use and I think work quite well if done carefully) is that it makes cleaning WAY less of a hassle - especially if you use something like the Record Research Lab (RRL) fluids - these are highly volatile, don't damage the record, and don't require a water rinse step - you just use a brush (the stock VPI one is fine IMHO) and then the VPI vacuum arm and you're done. Some other cleaning fluids that people like, e.g. Disc Doctor, require distilled water rinsing and that to me adds a huge hassle for very little reason given that the RRL stuff leaves no residue.
So using the VPI with RRL fluids, it takes me about 2 minutes to clean a record - and that's assuming I'm doing a first-time, deep clean (RRL has a deep cleaning fluid for this - you wouldn't need to do that step on a record you cleaned a while back and just want to remove new surface-type sediment from - that would take maybe a minute). One reason people don't clean records, I think, is the hassle factor with DIY methods - I know I used to dread/avoid it.
My advice to folks who are skeptical about cleaning records is to try it and then relisten to your vinyl. It's hard for me to imagine you won't hear improvements, assuming the record is in decent or better shape. If it's whipped, it's whipped, no cleaning will fix that. If nothing else you ought to notice a reduction in crackle and pop as you get all the grunge out of the groove. I personally think the vacuuming adds a lot of benefit above and beyond the fluids.
It's just common sense - you have this stylus mechanically tracing the groove, and there are things going on at the micrometer or smaller level that impact on tracking and, thus, sound, so grunge - certainly visible stuff - is most definitely going to impact on sound, usually in a bad way. By contrast I'm NOT a believer in cleaning CDs unless they skip - it's never passed the common sense test for me though I know people will swear by that too - I'm sure at some nanolevel it makes a difference but it's just not an audible one to me.
Couple other things to note:
1) Leaving grunge in the grooves accelerates both stylus and record wear - the latter being my main concern. Repeatedly playing a record that's really dirty will eventually cause permanent damage. But even records that look pretty clean usually are not - assuming you haven't cleaned them yourself. You should see the stuff that I drain out of my VPI fluid collecting tank (the place the vacuumed up fluid from the record goes). Usually it's an amber-looking fluid (the RRL fluids are crystal clear when applied!) with a bunch of chunks of debris floating in it. And that's after cleaning really well-cared for, NM used records and brand new audiophile pressings! I won't even describe what comes off used records that have been in the homes of smokers for years...lets just say laboratory rats run screaming! No way that stuff cannot impact on stylus tracking at the micro level. As another, quick and coarse gauge of how much you may need to clean your records: if you find that at the end of each side you have to remove a big debris/fuzzball from your stylus, your records are DEFINITELY in need of cleaning.
2) Brand new records really DO benefit from cleaning, at least that's what my ears tell me. Just carefully visually inspect one sometime near an incandescent bulb...they usually have all kinds of sediment and debris from the factory and there's also mold-growth suppressing chemicals that you can't see but that do coat the grooves and can impact on sound. Use the RRL deep cleaning fluid for brand new records on first cleaning and you'll be amazed at how much quieter and more "present" they sound. IMHO most brand new, out of the sleeve audiophile pressings sound crackly and veiled until properly cleaned, only then do they really shine sonically.
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jazzbo posted:
I was just thinking what I would do would be say "Here's your vinyl set, merry Xmas, and hey. . . here's a set of cdrs so you can listen to it other places!"
GOOD idea!
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I bought this set as a Christmas present for my dad, who is a huge fan of the Condonites AND vinyl - he's going to be stoked! I sneaked a quick listen to one of the sides and sonically the LPs are superior to the CD version of the set I have by quite a large margin (and the CDs ain't bad).
So is it bad form to hand someone a vinyl set as a gift and then say, in the same breath as "Merry Christmas," "Can I make CD-Rs?"
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I love LEGRAND JAZZ. Given the range and number of players involved, what he pulled off is kind of remarkable. Webster's contributions are wonderful, as are just about everyone's.
I do agree very much with Larry K. about OP with Webster - I'll take Rowles backing him up any day of the week, though nothing "bad" about OP with Webster to my ears either. Just that with Rowles it was a match made in heaven.
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Not a bad idea, Chandra, worth trying, but in my gut I feel that it's not going to turn up the answers. So much of good medicine is done with the patient right there in front of you, laying on hands, etc. E-medicine is a nice supplement at times but I would say your money is going to be with sticking with the doc or docs you trust over time and that's your best chance that eventually things will get resolved.
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Ben Webster, a great, great artist. Wonderful in all periods but certainly that run for Granz was magisterial. Particularly fond of the first few sessions for Verve especially.
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Jim sorry that things are not going better...as everyone can probably tell, life has been so crazy for me with my little boy (though fun!) and my work schedule being such a bear, I hardly get to drop by here anymore. Once I finally did get a moment, I was really surprised disappointed to see things were still in limbo for you guys.
I looked through all the update info you presented and honestly can't think of anything else this could be that your doctors aren't already considering. It's a very tough case for sure. Medicine is humbling for us docs every single day, as we're so often confronted way more than we'd like with things we simply don't currently have the ability to explain. I hope something declares itself eventually.
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Having gone full bore back into vinyl in the past year, I have to say that XTC's vintage stuff really is best heard on vinyl. The newer CD remasters are fine but just can't compare. The "pastoral" ones in particular sound really good in the vinyl format.
Your audio equipment?
in Audio Talk
Posted · Edited by DrJ
Yes, I DID fire up the MC30s and I am totally smitten by the sound. In fact my Audio Note Meishu amp is now currently up for auction on eBay! The MC30s are just friggin' unbelievable...yes they are "slower" and less accurate than modern amps but what you gain in terms of midrange presence, tonality, and overall musicality is just amazing. And the Marantz 7 preamp is amazing too, though it needed a MM cartridge for the phono stage to really sing...so I'm also selling my Sumiko Blackbird high output MC cart on eBay, after having replaced it with a Shure V15VxMR MM cart. This is such a great cartridge it makes me nauseated that I ever screwed around with a MC cart, and one that cost twice as much as the Shure to boot...the tracking is unbelievable - NO inner groove distortion, NO sibilance on passages with a lot of hot highs...and tonally neutral. No wonder Steve Hoffman and many other audio engineers use it as a reference standard cart in mastering and record cutting labs.
To say the least, I'm a wee bit happy with this new set up!