Dusty Chalk

ph0rk and boomana -- exactly. A wiki would solve the reference aspect that Tyll describes, but wouldn't solve the "knows just enough to be dangerous" types. I mean, let's say I were just starting out -- I happen to know that my tastes differ from others, and I know what's important to me, and what's not -- is a wiki going to be able to tell me what has the most straightforward frequency response, the best prat, handles busy music well, but I couldn't care less about soundstaging and imaging? No, only if someone else who cares about those same things happens to post those same things. I'm going to have to ask someone more experienced about that. Hey, look, they talk a lot in this "head-fi" forum, I'll just go in there, pour a cold one, and chat with the locals. The funny thing is, it works in real life, too. Haven't you ever just chatted someone up, just because they seem to know a thing or two in your topic area -- say, standing in line waiting for concert tickets ("dude, you should totally check them out, they sound exactly like Gabriel-era Genesis")? Or responded to a conversation to which you were a stranger ("I forget whether it was the Moody Blues or Pink Floyd...I need to find out, because I was told I really need to hear the rest of the album")? So...why not? Other than it annoys the locals. But the people who run the tourist traps like tourists. So...there ya go.

Anyone live in New York? I need someone to go to Barney's for me...

Oh, they know how to use it alright, they just don't. They prefer to start their own personal thread about it.

Uh, no -- first of all, we don't all agree on that. Secondly, n00bs are called that because they are new to the forum -- of course they don't know yet, they just started researching the topic.

Slightly -- I think Stereophile rated the A3^CR as somewhere between Class A and Class B (their rankings), and the A3.2 was solidly Class A. I think the sentence I remember (from the Recommended Components?) was something like "the a3.2 fixed that which the A3^CR didn't quite get right". I think they still recommended an outboard phono preamp in either case -- that qualification stood, but the line-level preamp functionality was considered (a3.2) reference quality, and (a3^cr) almost reference quality. Thin? Struggling? I guess. When I heard it on my system (went from a Jolida JD102b tubed integrated to A3^CR solid-state separate pre and power), it was more like overkill -- trying to shove more water into a tube than it was capable of (speakers were Spendor S3/5's). The only struggling I heard was the speaker not to explode.

That's what I figured, not a problem. Yeah, not exactly their best high-end preamp. I used to own that one, and it was really good, certainly better than anything I had owned up until that time. But in hindsight, it lacked subtlety compared to many other high-end amps. I hear that everything from the A3.2 and after, excluding the A5/A3 split, is supposed to be better, but I've only briefly heard the A308, myself, so that's hearsay. (The A308 is certainly very good, and if I see one at a reasonable price, I'll probably get one for my Dynaudio system...except that I'm selling the Dynaudios, so maybe I should rethink that...)

I don't know -- I'd be hesitant if I were you. I mean, I agree that they were not the best sources/amps that you tried them out on, but the infamous Sennheiser house sound ("laid back") was there -- that may have been what you disliked. Though, at US$120 -- you could probably flip them if you still didn't like them for minimal financial loss to you.

Yeah, that's the way I took it. And Nate -- I'm only defending him, because sometimes my posting style is similar -- I give extensive impressions from what is actually very little data (or perhaps data from a very specific set of circumstances and/or upwind gear), so I feel obliged to qualify them at the end of my post. It doesn't render the entire post moot, it just establishes context.

I need a preamp. I'm thinking Conrad Johnson, any other recommendations? Are any of the entry level Conrad Johnson tubed preamps particularly good values? They seem to range in price, used.

It doesn't exist. He still needs it. And yeah, in the context of sig, it could be construed as a patch one wears, such as the nicotine patch, but I think it's intended as a patch as in patching a hole or patching something with a bug. Either way, I think it applies. And neither one exists. Alas.

See sig.

Thanks everyone -- I have my moments. -10 reading comprehension points -- did you even read the fucking thread? There is no place in the profile for one's gear. You need the patch.

I never saw the pics, and I never did get an answer to my Musical Fidelity preamp question (I.E. which one). Where were they hosted? Are they still there? Because I do have some places like imagevenue or imageshack or something like that blocked at work (especially ones that have a large amount of NSFW images, even if that's not how they're always used).

That's not entirely fair. I mean, suppose I were shopping for a car, and by some miraculous dip in snobbery, someone offered me a F1 GTR (or whatever it's called) to test drive. L yeah, I'd drive it as fast as I could, but without driving it on a test track, that "as fast as I could" would be a measly 65 miles per hour legally. I'd be underwhelmed with the amount of trunk space, and conclude that I did not like the car. You could come back and say, "Well, you certainly didn't determine what it was capable of", but I think my real-world test drive was perfectly indicative of the future driving habits I would have in that car. I would say that my conclusion in this hypothetical situation would be valid, neh? Back to the amp analogy, if that's what he's going to feed the thing, then that's what he should test it out on. And it's not like he didn't tell us.

But we'd have to have at least one discussion as to whether or not any of these make any difference whatsoever. Perhaps Wilson?

Actually, I think it'd be more in character for him to look around the room, find something, limp over to the person, and then whack them with it. As a tribute to your professor, you could stage the scene in a room with a skeleton in it, and he could take the bone and whack the person with it.

They shipped last Wednesday (right before the holiday), 5-10-ish days, so best case scenario, I get them this week.

That is our way.

I didn't find the DT880 light in the bass at all. Not heavy, neither, but certainly not bass-lite. And I have heard bass with the K501, but that's still probably the direction I will go. Or perhaps one of the "bad" W100's -- anyone have one of those they want to sell me? I've heard those (L, I used to own them), and they might be perfect. I'm not getting her another limited headphone.

Or maybe a Beta-22.

Wanker.

I'm going to have to use that line.

Sounds like Seuss: I put it there for you to read; I put it there, though there's no need; I put it there with a smile on my face; I put it there to put you in your place; I put it there -- that's my sig's role; That's why I put it there, you assfacehole.

As a seller, it is fiscally irresponsible to put the buyer at risk of being out both his money and his product. I don't know about you, but I want my buyer to receive his merchandise -- underdeclaring it is just asking for trouble.

That's quite slow -- you've got time.