Test Your Gullibility

[trurl]

^^^^^^^^^

Is it a blessing or a curse though I'm happy with good ears. Golden Ears would drive me nuts.

[simon moon]

Depends on your listening habits... I don't know how they are now but back in the day the ones I heard were very clean and airy but didn't have a lot of thump; they didn't move air, so to speak. Perfect for jazz and maybe classical but not necessarily rock.

There are electrostatics that are able to play quite loud, and move quite a bit of air also. But there is a pretty high cost involved.

There also some pretty impressive hybrids available. Electrostatic mid bass, mids and highs, with a dynamic woofer. With the improvement in dynamic drivers, the mating blends quite a bit better than it did a couple of decades ago.

Sanders Sound Systems makes a system called the Model 11 for $14K, but it includes a digital crossover and an amplifier (500 watts per).


Janszen makes the zA2.1, a hybrid at about $9K. REALLY impressive!


220561d1381316736-janszen-electrostatic-loudspeakers-za2-1-za2.1-ra-d.jpg

[trurl]

There are electrostatics that are able to play quite loud, and move quite a bit of air also. But there is a pretty high cost involved.

There also some pretty impressive hybrids available. Electrostatic mid bass, mids and highs, with a dynamic woofer. With the improvement in dynamic drivers, the mating blends quite a bit better than it did a couple of decades ago.

Sanders Sound Systems makes a system called the Model 11 for $14K, but it includes a digital crossover and an amplifier (500 watts per).


Janszen makes the zA2.1, a hybrid at about $9K. REALLY impressive!


220561d1381316736-janszen-electrostatic-loudspeakers-za2-1-za2.1-ra-d.jpg

I would love to hear those. Sounds like the best of both worlds!

[Dusty Chalk]

Yes, there is a point of diminishing returns for just about everyone. But for someone who is not spending the extra money to tell others what expenditure for what level of improvement is worth paying for and what is not worth paying for, is kind of presumptuous, and maybe even a bit arrogant.

You're so polite. Too bad we can't have this kind of civilized discussion here, I've otherwise given up on threads like this here.

[simon moon]

Thought some might enjoy this.

Hitler upset because he finds out cables don't make a difference.

[rcarlberg]

"she is my Yentl." Nice touch!

[rcarlberg]

If we're resurrecting old threads with civil discourse, this one was a good one.

[Rune Blackwings]

Test Your Gullibility, Part Two.

Count the clues.

I have a frequency equalizer. Looks like every other equalizer. By Optima...

[Rune Blackwings]

Thought some might enjoy this.

Hitler upset because he finds out cables don't make a difference.

As I have said before, at what point do you enhance for pure sound to the point you have ruined the actual sound coming out of the speakers? And if the band records in the studio bathroom using a cheap equipment and heavy feedback, exactly how do you "improve" that?

And in the HFT video, the "blue tack" is known as museum putty. You use it to adhere sculpture to tables and shelves so it's not easy to knock shit over.

[Rune Blackwings]

i want that mask in the HFT video...

wait "level four" deals with the speakers? isn't the objective to have the best sound coming out of the speakers? And how are these little watch batteries "fixing" the sound if the stereo does not have a component (besides the frequency equalizer which is clearly "optional") to receive information from them? This is Jedi trickery!

[Rune Blackwings]

^^^^^^^^^

Is it a blessing or a curse though I'm happy with good ears. Golden Ears would drive me nuts.

"golden ears" exist when we are younger. I find it odd we have the best hearing when our tastes in music are fairly crappy and we have no money, but when we get older and our hearing is deteriorating and we have the money, we try to fix stuff only bats and dogs hear.

[3LockBox]

Hey, we're living in a time where used cassettes are starting to cost more than a used CD. You have people willing to spend $20 to $40 on blank metal cassettes when they could easily buy the source material for half as much or even a tenth as much. I guess home audio wouldn't be a hobby if there weren't unnecessarily expensive items associated with it.

[progmatist]

Another thing I think is a total rip-off are Hi-Res certified headphones. That's from a dyed in the wool Hi-Res enthusiast. These headphones are "certified" because they're capable of reproducing the full Hi-Res frequency range. That's totally missing the point...the fact Hi-Res is "capable" of a wider frequency range is neither here nor there when considering the true differences from 16bit audio.

[3LockBox]

if the band records in the studio bathroom using a cheap equipment and heavy feedback, exactly how do you "improve" that?

So, you own a copy of Thin Lizzy's Jailbreak then.

[rcarlberg]

You have people willing to spend $20 to $40 on blank metal cassettes when they could easily buy the source material for half as much or even a tenth as much. I guess home audio wouldn't be a hobby if there weren't unnecessarily expensive items associated with it.

And it wouldn't be a booming industry without willing consumers. It buggers explanation it does. Hey, it might even "redefine the way we live."

[Rune Blackwings]

So, you own a copy of Thin Lizzy's Jailbreak then.

I was thinking most of Hawkwind's material from 1969-1995

[rcarlberg]

And how are these little watch batteries "fixing" the sound if the stereo does not have a component (besides the frequency equalizer which is clearly "optional") to receive information from them? This is Jedi trickery!

Its worse than Jedi trickery. It’s flat-out fraud.

Note that the “little watch batteries,” the HFT, the so-called “high frequency transducers,” are described as PASSIVE devices. That means there is no power to them at all, not even battery power. They therefore cannot be “transducers” by any stretch of imagination, without power — and they admit there is no source of power to them. In fact there is no connection to the stereo at all. They’re just little buttons that you tack to the wall with double stick tape. Somehow — not explained — they’re supposed to fix the sound in your listening room.

Moreover, take the FEQ, the “frequency equalizer.” It’s not a passive device; it actually comes with a 30-volt power supply (which “must be plugged in the proper way” or somehow you’ll get the “wrong polarity.” On line voltage. Which is alternating current. Uh-huh). The FEQ also comes with “something they developed” called a “ground plane.” Which plugs into another AC outlet and provides a ground wire to the FEQ.

Just like ANY 3-prong power supply in the world. The idea of grounding your equipment to eliminate 60Hz ground loops is not new.

What *IS* new is an equalizer which has no connection to the stereo. Watch the video again. The EQ simply plugs in and is placed NEAR the stereo. No real connection.

Flat out fraud, to milk money from self-proclaimed “audiophiles” who do not understand the first principles of audio. It’s appalling.

[3LockBox]

Its worse than Jedi trickery. It’s flat-out fraud.

Note that the “little watch batteries,” the HFT, the so-called “high frequency transducers,” are described as PASSIVE devices. That means there is no power to them at all, not even battery power. They therefore cannot be “transducers” by any stretch of imagination, without power — and they admit there is no source of power to them. In fact there is no connection to the stereo at all. They’re just little buttons that you tack to the wall with double stick tape. Somehow — not explained — they’re supposed to fix the sound in your listening room.

Moreover, take the FEQ, the “frequency equalizer.” It’s not a passive device; it actually comes with a 30-volt power supply (which “must be plugged in the proper way” or somehow you’ll get the “wrong polarity.” On line voltage. Which is alternating current. Uh-huh). The FEQ also comes with “something they developed” called a “ground plane.” Which plugs into another AC outlet and provides a ground wire to the FEQ.

Just like ANY 3-prong power supply in the world. The idea of grounding your equipment to eliminate 60Hz ground loops is not new.

What *IS* new is an equalizer which has no connection to the stereo. Watch the video again. The EQ simply plugs in and is placed NEAR the stereo. No real connection.

Flat out fraud, to milk money from self-proclaimed “audiophiles” who do not understand the first principles of audio. It’s appalling.

Its audio reiki

[Rune Blackwings]

Its worse than Jedi trickery. It’s flat-out fraud.

Note that the “little watch batteries,” the HFT, the so-called “high frequency transducers,” are described as PASSIVE devices. That means there is no power to them at all, not even battery power. They therefore cannot be “transducers” by any stretch of imagination, without power — and they admit there is no source of power to them. In fact there is no connection to the stereo at all. They’re just little buttons that you tack to the wall with double stick tape. Somehow — not explained — they’re supposed to fix the sound in your listening room.

Moreover, take the FEQ, the “frequency equalizer.” It’s not a passive device; it actually comes with a 30-volt power supply (which “must be plugged in the proper way” or somehow you’ll get the “wrong polarity.” On line voltage. Which is alternating current. Uh-huh). The FEQ also comes with “something they developed” called a “ground plane.” Which plugs into another AC outlet and provides a ground wire to the FEQ.

Just like ANY 3-prong power supply in the world. The idea of grounding your equipment to eliminate 60Hz ground loops is not new.

What *IS* new is an equalizer which has no connection to the stereo. Watch the video again. The EQ simply plugs in and is placed NEAR the stereo. No real connection.

Flat out fraud, to milk money from self-proclaimed “audiophiles” who do not understand the first principles of audio. It’s appalling.

Thanks! I could not fathom how sticking doohickeys that have no sort of anything connected, either physically or by some sort of frequency, to a wall magically "fixes" a sound. Apparently, I am supposed to look at those high end cabinets and cuff links and think "these cats know the deal". This is proof you can sell anything if you use big technical terms and act like you know what you're doing. This is the audiophile version of quackery.

[Rune Blackwings]

Its audio reiki

"The sound resonates better if you have the proper feng shui..."

In fact, I would say you could more easily improve sound if you change a chair than if you stick little "sucker badges" all over your room.

[Rune Blackwings]

speaking of gullibility, I am curious on what a "water cooled" computers have that would be better than my computer. I mean, the idea of water in an electronic device just screams potential disaster...

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/

[rcarlberg]

speaking of gullibility, I am curious on what a "water cooled" computers have that would be better than my computer. I mean, the idea of water in an electronic device just screams potential disaster...
https://www.aliexpress.com/store/

404 error, page cannot be found

Supercomputers have reached the stage where waste heat becomes the limiting factor, so I can see more-efficient cooling mechanisms taking over. Having a fan blowing is pretty low-tech. Volkswagen gave that up years ago.

I could not fathom how sticking doohickeys that have no sort of anything connected, either physically or by some sort of frequency, to a wall magically "fixes" a sound.

"Magic" is the key word you used.

[Rune Blackwings]

404 error, page cannot be found

Supercomputers have reached the stage where waste heat becomes the limiting factor, so I can see more-efficient cooling mechanisms taking over. Having a fan blowing is pretty low-tech. Volkswagen gave that up years ago.

try this one
https://www.aliexpress.com/store/431...22d33c00boyNiG

[rcarlberg]

LOL. How much heat do the lightbulbs put out?

[markwoll]

Water cooling allows for a quieter way of removing heat from the CPU and GPU of a computer.
You can have a big fan running at lower speed rather than several high speed fans.
They are closed loop, so no leaks. And pretty efficient. Lots of HTPC systems use this to be quieter if they can get away with passive cooling.
Most laptops use a 'heat pipe' system with some interesting chemicals to move heat away to the fans.
The really crazy systems immerse the system board in mineral oil and circulate that to a refrigerator, or actually use a cryonic cooler on the cpu for extreme overclocking.