Edwood

RMHCF?

Ani Difranco - Red Letter Year

Talked to Jerry today. Rather than rush the high end custom carry case, we're going to take our time and get it perfect. In the meantime, Jerry liked immtbiker's Otterbox 1000 case, so he's making a Carbon Fiber case that is about that size. It will basically look like a smaller version of the existing big one. He is using the same company that makes the existing case to make this smaller version. Should take about 3-4 weeks to get them produced. He will offer them up for sale to existing customers, and will be putting an option on the Order Form for picking Big Case or Small Case. As for the High End Carry Case, it will likely only be included with Flagship products, namely the JH13. And will, of course be available for purchase separately. It will be significantly more expensive to produce. But trust me, it will be worth the wait. -Ed

My next JH13 is going to have "boom".

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v74/imagemonkey/Funny/Ari_GTFO_01.gif

Trying to get an intial prototype made. -Ed

Be aware that any custom mold that makes the balanced armatures farther away from your inner ear than when you used regular ear tips will make them sound worse, not better. -Ed

I would've loved it if they left the ending at the episode when they found Earth, completely desolate. Actually, because of the WGA strike, it very well could've been the ending. Kind of like suddenly half way through a movie, everyone dies. Roll credits. Probably why I don't get asked to direct TV shows or features.

How crazy lazy would it be for me to buy 3 of these and slap them into an enclosure, with a single big ass toroid transformer? It would be an 6 channel amp, I'd probably not use the 6th channel, as my speaker set up is 5.1 right now. Any recommendations for a Toroid feeding 3 of these? AMP5 kit - Tripath TA2022 41Hz Audio:AMP5 kit Although, I might just get one for starters and build a small desktop amp for 2 channel speaker set up for my computer workstation. -Ed

Some Macro shots. -Ed

Well, I've packed up my JH13 for shipment. It's going to be angonizing wait. Only thig worse than waiting in anticipation for the first time is waiting after you've had them for awhile. -Ed

Since I wear glasses, I have a lot of issues with microphonics with the JH13's because they are a flatter profile (not as deep/thick) as my ES3X. Also, the stock cable that JH Audio uses is not as good (ergonomically) as the custom one Westone uses. Particularly the Yoke slide clear sleeve is a bit too long and difficult to use compared to the molded disc part that the Westone ES cable has. As a result the JH Audio cable chokes up under your chin more tightly than the Westone cable, unless you wear it behind the head, which is how they were designed to be used initially. I just ended up using the Westone cable, but if I wrap the cables behind my ears, it's microphonics city. I think a longer section of memory wire would probably help. I usually let the wires hang down my ears, rather than behind my ears. -Ed

Any truth in the Wharfedale Diamond Pro 8.2 Active being nearly a clone (albeit fugly looking one) of the Quad 12L Active? It's a fraction of the price, and front facing port seems like it might be more tolerant of being closer to a back wall. -Ed

Happy Birthday, Tyll! -Ed

I'm having to send back my JH13 for a minor refit for my right ear. I'm going to go through withdrawal. When the fit is perfect, I don't think it would be too crazy to get another JH13 as a back up. They are seriously THAT awesome. On a different note, I have been working with a good friend of mine that is car designer for Daimler Chysler to finalize the design of the JH Audio Portable Carrying case. I chatted with Jerry yesterday, and he said it would be OK if I "leaked" a few images to get some feedback from some of you. I figured Head-Case would be a good place to start in it's early stages. It's basically inspired off of high end cigarette lighters. If you are at all familiar with Ultimate Ears new Super.Fi line and it's new plastic carry case, This is basically a big, ultimate high end version of that. I'll resize my concept sketches and post them later, but the upper lid would have a plastic insert that holds the 3.5mm plug (to keep it from rubbing up against the ear pieces) and possibly the cleaning tool. We are initially speccing it out to be Carbon Fiber with a metal lip and hinge assembly (for the hell of it, we asked what it would cost to make it titanium, but I know it will be way too expensive.) The inside would be lined with some sort of softer finish or cloth of some sort. Because this case is going to be quite expensive to produce, in the future, JH Audio will probably only include this small carry case with the JH Pro Audio customs, and offer the Big Carbon Fiber case for purchase separately. Or perhaps maybe customer's choice. -Ed

The 990 looks comparable to the Emotiva DMC-1. There aren't any listed on Audiogon. Cheapest 990 is over $100 more than the Emotiva DMC-1. And the 997 is over my budget (need to leave some money for that Oppo BDP-83, afterall ), and who knows how long until it comes out? Most likely sooner than the Emotiva XMC-1 by a few years probably.

Because I have other sources like the XBox 360 and an HDTV set top box. And the Oppo does not support NTFS file format via USB input, so that rules out all full length HD .mkv files. If it could play those, it would replace my Home Theater PC for sure.

Ooooo. Now that's a nice feature. I'd love to be able to have a receiver that cools the shit ton of heat that comes from my Pioneer plasma set.

I read through the Denon manual. Doesn't say anything about being able to set speakers to off with analog 7.1 input. I ended up pulling the trigger on that Emotiva DMC-1. Either way it will be quite a step up from my dying HK AVR 85. If anything I could sell it off for $50-100 loss later perhaps if I want to upgrade to something else. I would've waited longer, but the dying receiver is getting really annoying. Thanks for the suggestions, guys (even though I didn't take them) I like weighing my decision against alternatives. -Ed

It would make sense that it would mute the Pre Outs as well, since as a Pre amp, it's supposed to control the volume of an external amp. Hmmmmm. I just got a response from the Seller of the DMC-1. Seems that there are a couple of offers (well, according to him). Was trying to save $25, oh well. So would an Emotive DMC-1 be worth $450 shipped? I heard it's essentially a Sunfire Theater Grand IV clone, minus a few DSP options. Having balanced Pre outs would sure be handy if I decided to upgrade to active monitors in the future.

Yeah, that would be the problem with using a receiver with the Smyth Realiser. Unless there was a way to turn off all the speakers on the receiver when using the Pre Outs. That's why I was favoring getting a Pre Pro vs. a receiver. But if there is an easy way to shut off speakers (rather than using a cludgy external speaker switch box), then a receiver would be fine for me as well. -Ed

Would the Denon AVR-3808ci sound better than the Emotiva DMC-1 with older formats like DD, DTS, DD+, etc? Especially considering it costs 50% more than a used DMC-1. Is there an easy way to shut all the speakers off via a front panel button and/or remote control, and only have the Pre Outs working? (remember, I want to use this with the Smyth Realiser primarily). That would make the Denon appealing for me, as I wouldn't have to get a separate amp in the future. *Edit, I lowballed a bit on an Emotiva DMC-1 on Audiogon (trying to beat another lowball offer they had). If the seller bites, I figure I could resell it at a little bit of a loss if I changed my mind. I think in the long run having separates rather than a receiver would be better for my system as the Smyth Realiser is designed to be used in the "loop" from Pre outs to Amp.

So which Onkyo or Denon would you recommend over the Emotiva DMC-1? If it has integrated amp in it, I'd like to be able to disable the speakers easily with the push of a button or switch. The main reason I wanted a Pre Pro is to be able to put my Realiser inline because it automatically mutes the speakers (signal to amp) when in use, and has a pure analog bypass (relay switch) when the Realiser is not in use. Also, a receiver usually gets hotter and uses more power than a Pre Pro, as I wouldn't have use of the Amp section the vast majority of the time. -Ed

Well, my Harmon Kardon AVR 85 is giving up the ghost faster than I had hoped. Since I have the Smyth Research Realiser and plan to use that inline with pre outs from a surround processor to speaker amps (not for awhile, may end up with active monitors mainly in the future), I am focusing on separates now. No need for amp(s) yet, just the front end processing. HDMI switching is not a priority for me at all, since my TV has 4 HDMI inputs, and I'm only using one right now. So, I have plenty of room for expansion. I also plan on eventually giving in and getting an Oppo BDP-83, which from what I hear has excellent onboard decoding of lossless high res audio (DD True HD and DTS Master Audio), so I guess that opens up the door for older and used Pre Pros with a excellent analog pass through for 7.1 audio. I've been eyeing the upcoming Emotiva UMC-1, but since the only DD True HD and DTS MA I'm going to upgrade to in the forseeable future is the Oppo BDP-83, I'm considering getting the older DMC-1 instead. I'm wondering if the DMC-1 will still sound better than the UMC-1 with older codecs like DD, DTS, DD+, etc. The vast majority of my content will be older Dolby Digital and DTS, so from a digital standpoint, I'm thinking older, higher end Pre Pros might be a better buy, than a newer, cheaper Pre Pro with more bells and whistles, but not as good analog output stage. I'd like to keep my budget limit at $1000, preferrably closer to $500 or less even with used Pre Pros. -Ed

If it's capacitive touch it could be the problem. I use a Tablet PC with only a Wacom digitizer, and don't have problems.