Hey why does old Art D think BOC is metal? Sure they inspired some metal acts but the music while great is not metal it hard rock. So you say [BOC partly redeemed this genre]I asume you mean metal not hard rock. Metal gets no respect though it deserves much. So many audiophiles listen to 60-70s rock, little girl with piano or whatever the press praises at the moment. To me over looking metal and its huge contribution to modern music just shows a narrow musical mind set. Sure we all have likes and dislikes but metal never gets anything but slamed by the audio press.
Reader Dismord is curious about your reading and spending habits: How much, over the years, have you spent on audioporn magazines?
I just finished replacing all my one-meter ICs with AP's Solo Crystal Oval Interconnects. The run between my CDP and integrated amp is fully balanced and the runs between the TT and integrated and integrated to headphone amp are RCA (unbalanced). Of course, the TT/cartridge is grounded to the integrated chassis.