Hola,
Friday afternoon I drove from here up to Reno - not that far; but there's no radio coverage, and even though I bring discs, sometimes picking your own music lacks that certain "je ne se qua" of being surprised by the next song.
So, lots of time to think about Hi Fi. Late that night, I got to the place where I was going to stay - no power.
More time to think during the long cold night.
Driving home last night...BLAM!...rock falls onto desolate two lane highway along the deep and dark shores of Walker Lake.
We're talking pitch black, about 32 degrees, loss of front right tire "at speed."
More time to think.
Finally, hours later, limping home in the stinking gorgeous moonless sky of central Nevada, with no company other than a few Leonids, I think I figured out some Hi Fi stuff to bounce of y'all:
1) If there were a Hi Fi Zen, one of the classic koans would be: "What is the sound of single ended?"
I like SET sound, but I've never had a good way of describing the "feeling" of listening to it.
Jeff Wong said a wonderful thing on another thread about Hi FI having a little bit of synesthesia to it, and I agree. His take popped into my mind about 5 miles south of Tonapah, with a trace of Goldfield 20 or so miles away.
So, SET...
You know the sound that vinyl makes when you put the needle into a really fine lead-in groove?
Nothing is happening yet, but there is some low level sound that you can get a feeling for.
It feels like "something is about to happen."
It's very very low level information, way way down at the level of almost more felt than heard. (I know, it's something I hear, but keep in mind this is 2am in the high desert as I think about it.)
Anyway, I find that almost "invisible" feeling of "sound about to happen" to be one of the great sensations in Hi Fi.
I wonder if others get that feeling, and I wonder if that's part of the "sound of vinyl" that many of us enjoy.
Well, anyway, then it occurs to me that, "Hey! SET sound is kind of like that!"
SET, even when it's not "playing," gives me the sensation that something is about to happen.
The instant before experiencing a live note is like that, too.
Paul Simon might describe it as: "Here comes something and it feels so good..."
Yeah, that's maybe what I like about SET - maybe it captures the "subliminal noise" or "subconscious sound" that renders live music so...so...well, you know.
Yikes, that went long.
Gotta cook dinner, but I'm feeling chatty!
OK, OK, I gotta remember to mention some stuff about the car stereo later.
Hola,
Friday afternoon I drove from here up to Reno - not that far; but there's no radio coverage, and even though I bring discs, sometimes picking your own music lacks that certain "je ne se qua" of being surprised by the next song.
So, lots of time to think about Hi Fi. Late that night, I got to the place where I was going to stay - no power.
More time to think during the long cold night.
Driving home last night...BLAM!...rock falls onto desolate two lane highway along the deep and dark shores of Walker Lake.
We're talking pitch black, about 32 degrees, loss of front right tire "at speed."
More time to think.
Finally, hours later, limping home in the stinking gorgeous moonless sky of central Nevada, with no company other than a few Leonids, I think I figured out some Hi Fi stuff to bounce of y'all:
1) If there were a Hi Fi Zen, one of the classic koans would be: "What is the sound of single ended?"
I like SET sound, but I've never had a good way of describing the "feeling" of listening to it.
Jeff Wong said a wonderful thing on another thread about Hi FI having a little bit of synesthesia to it, and I agree. His take popped into my mind about 5 miles south of Tonapah, with a trace of Goldfield 20 or so miles away.
So, SET...
You know the sound that vinyl makes when you put the needle into a really fine lead-in groove?
Nothing is happening yet, but there is some low level sound that you can get a feeling for.
It feels like "something is about to happen."
It's very very low level information, way way down at the level of almost more felt than heard. (I know, it's something I hear, but keep in mind this is 2am in the high desert as I think about it.)
Anyway, I find that almost "invisible" feeling of "sound about to happen" to be one of the great sensations in Hi Fi.
I wonder if others get that feeling, and I wonder if that's part of the "sound of vinyl" that many of us enjoy.
Well, anyway, then it occurs to me that, "Hey! SET sound is kind of like that!"
SET, even when it's not "playing," gives me the sensation that something is about to happen.
The instant before experiencing a live note is like that, too.
Paul Simon might describe it as: "Here comes something and it feels so good..."
Yeah, that's maybe what I like about SET - maybe it captures the "subliminal noise" or "subconscious sound" that renders live music so...so...well, you know.
Yikes, that went long.
Gotta cook dinner, but I'm feeling chatty!
OK, OK, I gotta remember to mention some stuff about the car stereo later.