| Columns Retired Columns & Blogs |
January 8, 2008 - 9:19am
#1
CES/T.H.E. Show amateur blog.
| Loudspeakers Amplification Digital Sources | |
Analog Sources Accessories Featured | |
Music Columns Retired Columns | |
Show Reports | |
Features Latest News Community | |
Resources Subscriptions |
© 2024 StereophileAVTech Media Americas Inc., USA
All rights reserved
Buddha,
Do you work for a manufacturer? What are those satellite dish speakers? Are they any good?
I'm curious about the green thing in the middle of the room between the dishes ---- aaahhh.... that must be Buddha
Hi, AlexO!
We have no commercial interest(s) or affiliation. Just looking for a good time.
The speakers are Ferguson Hill FH001's. They use a modified Lowther DX3 driver as the full range reproducer. Our room is actually too small for them. At home I listen from about 20 feet away with them about 15 feet apart. Here, the imaging is more central, with a much smaller sweet spot. These rooms are easy to 'over load.' Still, a good descrptor for these speakers is 'fast.' They just seem to be almost like an electrostat or ribbon with their ability to stay ahead of things. Lots of detail, but being an "open baffle" design, not much low end...which is OK in a 13 X 19 foot room.
As I type this, we are violating our second rule of hi fi shows: "Once everything sounds OK, don't f**k with it."
We were running a Krell KAV300i, but as I type, Mike is at work switching in an Audio Magus T-amp. A cool guy from Royal Device (named Randy) lent us a "Sara" integrated tube amp that uses 300B's, and tonight we will play with that. (the people here are so nice, it's almost enough to take the edge of my curmudgeon-ness!
There is also a grand gentleman named Charles, from Palm Springs, who has been a lifelong classical LP collector. This evening, he will be letting us spin a bunch of LP's that I would otherwise never be able to afford to even look at while window shopping. I'll post his pic in a bit.
What's the point of spending the money on a room, dealing with the logistical issues of setting up equipment and all the rest if you don't have commercial interests? What are you trying to achieve?
Hilarious! Have a great time!
Alex,
you should have figured out by now that buddha makes his money selling certain substances which we can't name here.
I mean, just look at the room.
Only an altered mind could come up with that :-)
Looks like fun! But do be careful, some may suffer conceptual discomfort should they take that "coherent light traveling through the air..." business seriously!
You're right! I thought there was something peculiar about that room setup especially when he turns off the lights...
On Thursday Jan. 10th I will be returning to the Netherlands after a nice visit back to the US. Buddha and any of the other forum regulars are more than welcome to stop by The Hague for a visit. Just remember that in the Netherlands some of those "certain substances" are basically legal, so a good time is guaranteed for all!
Buddha, Hope you have a great time- wish I could check it all out. Report when you can. roger
People should come to Ann Arbor! We have record stores, a couple hi-fi dealers, and marijuana possession is a $25 fine. True story.
A^2 is the whip.
Car City Records. I hope it's still going strong.
Does this fine apply to those using MJ for medical purposes?
In 2004 there was a referendum approving the use of medical marijuana. It passed with 74 percent voting for the referendum. The rest of the voters quickly voted randomly so they could go buy munchies.
Great stuff, Buddha. Looking forward to listening.
Any post-show report, Buddha? Did you have anyone asking to buy your lights?
Hi, BillB!
Good response on the lights.
However, serving up two-carbon hydroxyl based system enhancing solution in a non-laboratory environment (and the ensuing ruckus) did not have a salutary effect on the audibility of the tweak during show hours. Plus, me being me, essentially nobody took my claims seriously.
However, however, many people did dig the lights, and I think that their auditory charm had an effect that enhanced people's over-all responses. So, there's still hope.
I ended up giving several people info on the basic lights, which come from the factory without the sonic enhancement mod.
Some visual analogies for the effects of our mods on the sound of the system:
The sound of the system with no system enhancing solution or lights...
The sound of the system with Limoncello based system enhancing solution...
The sound of the system with just the absinthe based system enhancing solution...
The sound of the system with just the lights...
The sound of the system with the proper amount of system enhancing solution of either type, with the lights...
As you can see, each tweak had it's own unique effect!
That door blind, here have I seen it before?
Oh yeah! A documentary on Nature about the discovery of the Dupdullis Tribe in Africa, an indigenous people who had lived a completely sheltered existnce for 1000s of year.
Amazing story, it wasn't that they were difficult to find, not at all, rather they had one of those blinds hung at the entrance of the village and passerbys were too scared to enter! Truly amazing.
Oh! Another cool thing...
We became friendly with a couple of the Japanese manufacturers, and one of them had extensive experience with Lowther drivers, to the point of being an enthusiastic collector of original Lowther drivers dating to their inception!
He first heard our system using a Royal device 300B 8wpc tubed integrated, and then on the Krell integrated.
(No naming names, but just let me add that he was listening under 'show conditions' and was flying with progressively more sheets to the wind as the day/night would go by. At some point, we reached an equilibrium where I understood his Japanese about as well as he understood my English, and vice versa...
...)
Around 10pm on the Krell night, in the middle of 25 people hanging out and talking over the music (he did not know we had changed amps,) he got a look on his face, cocked his head, and approached a speaker. He squatted at on-axis height and listened, then he stuck his head way down the horn for a bit.
He came back over to me and said, "Something is different from last night. The midrange is greatly much cleaner, yes, but the highs do not have as much sparkle, but sounds more 'accurate.' It seems there is less distortion, yes?"
That guy listened through the haze of limoncello, absinthe, cabernet, pinot noir, and the din of his fellow man and honed right in on what we had thought that morning to be a very subtle difference.
The only thing different was the amp, and this was listening on a speaker with 100dB sensitivity. So, essentially, we were listening to around a half to a quarter watt at any given moment!
He then proceeded to tell me that he is a solid state aficionado, and is very adept at hearing 'the problems of tubes.'
Other people preferred the tubed amp when we had listened in a more quiet situation. I did not mean to disparage one amp, I just wanted to mention his amazing ear.
Next year, I want to spend more time hanging with the Japanese. Great audiophiles and very companionable show-mates!
Having spent time with people like this I fully believe your story and am humbled once again by the abilities of some to perceive.
I learn a great deal each time.
I have only read about these speakers. I would love to hear them. I think you are exaggerating however when you so readily claim you were listening to a quarter watt. On the peaks perhaps, but not certainly RMS.