by Michael

Drug-like Systems I Have Known

I thought it might be useful to list some systems that I found drug-like, and you are invited to as well, and see if there are some commonalities.

If there are commonalities, then we should be able to retrofit existing systems so that they, too, can have that little extra mind altering something that is so inspirational, transformational and, dare I say it, orgasmic.

We are going to assume that a system first has to be, not just Enjoyable, but Emotional – and mildly drug-like even during the normal course of listening.

Going back in time, … back…. back… to the dim recesses of my memory.

… about 7 years ago.

Tenor OTL 6C33C-tube based amps on various Kharma speakers. Audio Aero and Emm Labs as digital sources. These had extreme micro-dynamic detail and very good midi-dynamics as well. Very exhilarating and can make a person giggle. Not aware of drugs like this [well, I’m not! :-)] but maybe it is like someone you are interested telling you they feel likewise. Slightly on the mind side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Joule Electra OTL 6C33C-tube amps on Talon speakers, Elrod power cords, Audio Aero Capitole CD player, probably HRS rack. Forget the cabling. Lots of harmonics and PRaT. Very good micro-dynamics. Very engaging and warm, like a quick glass of wine or a shot of Bourbon. Way on the heart side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Lamm ML2.1 amps on Marten Coltrane speakers, Jorma Prime cables, various power cords, HRS MXR rack and platforms everywhere. Very good midi- and micro-dynamics and nice color. Hypnotizing and engaging. I don’t know, kind of looking up at the stars where there is no light pollution for the first time. Slightly on the mind side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Audio Note Kegon amps on the Acapella Trilon speakers, Jorma Prime cables, various power cords, HRS platforms. Very open, harmonics, and great midi-dynamics. Kind of like being King (or Queen) of the world. Slightly on the heart side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Bladelius amps and pre and CD player on Marten Coltrane Supreme speakers. All Jorma Design Prime cables. Extremely detailed and accurate. Neli and I both found this system to be extremely hallucinogenic [we wrote about this extensively in the CES 2003? 2004 show report]. Somewhat on the mind side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Audio Note Ongaku on Marten Coltrane speakers, wired directly from an Emm Labs player with Nordost ODIN interconnects and power cords. Jorma Prime speaker cable, HRS or Acoustic Dreams platforms. [This is our show system at RMAF 2010 this year, and an evolution of the Lamm ML2.1 system above]. Very pure, very quiet background, extreme micro-dynamics, good midi-dynamics. Like a breath of fresh mountain air after living in the city for a year – clears the mind and makes you feel like things might make sense after all [yeah. right. Just trying to communicate a little about what I think the drug-like effect is, as bizarre as this is turning out to be]. Slightly on the mind side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Lamm ML3 amps and L2 Reference pre on the Marten Coltrane Supreme speakers. HRS everywhere, Jorma Design Prime and AN PALLAS cables. This is a very high resolution system [the RMAF 2008 system]. Very good micro-dynamics and mini-dynamics. This is like finally understanding Calculus [:-)]. Slightly on the mind side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

Audio Note Gaku-On amps, M9 Phono pre, DAC 5 Signature, S9 stepup on the Marten Coltrane Supreme speakers. HRS everywhere, Nordost ODIN powercords and interconnects, Jorma Design Prime and AN PALLAS cables. This system is significantly better than any system we have heard, here or anywhere. Resolution not as high as the Lamm ML3 version, but extreme midi- and macro-dynamics, extreme harmonic truth, very good micro-dynamics. Really have not been able to grok this system yet. This is like taking a hotrodding spin in the Space Shuttle. Somewhat on the heart side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

And a special note about 100% Audio Note systems setup correctly [we do not have corners here, which they require to perform at their peak, and most rooms in hotels have things in the corners, like air conditioners, etc]. These systems have excellent midi- to macro-dynamics, very good micro-dynamics, great harmonics and PRaT. These are mostly fun and playful, but can quickly turn into one being awestruck, then into an adrenaline high, then into numerous other mind-bending states. Definitely on the heart side of the Mind-Heart spectrum.

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I know, some of these descriptions of how these systems make me feel belong more in the humor category. 🙂

As you can see, they are very different systems, some are only medium resolution, some are not very accurate, some do not have perfect bass, some are expensive and some are not so much.

But there are obvious commonalities:

* Very good to great Micro-dynamics

* They are also fairly accurate, so that we can suspend our sense of disbelief.

* They have something(s) special going for them, something extreme: midi dynamics, or harmonic color or harmonic truth, or extreme accuracy or detail. Perhaps something that is hard to hear even with live music, for all the reasons that make the sound of live music not quite perfect.

As I remember some of the most transformative experiences I have had, it seems to me it helps to be a little tired and worn out [not a problem these days, I imagine, for most of us :-)].

So what do you all think? Any of this resonate with your own personal experiences?

Perhaps I’ll describe the actual experiences we/ I had with these systems… Certainly are fun to remember! But here I really wanted to point out the variety of systems that I found to be at least somewhat Drug-like

in High-end Audio HiFi and Stereo / Philosophy 3 comments
 by Michael

RMAF 2010: Wrapup

We came, we saw, we listened, we reported, we come away a little smarter.

We are now dividing systems into categories based on their purpose:

* Boy Toys: systems that are designed to make loud noises

* Gee Whiz: systems that amaze through their use of new technology

* Practical: systems that make music, no fuss no muss

* Drugs: systems that expand the soul and take us to wonderful new worlds

[have to work on the mixed plural and singular cases here]

Previously we have categorized personal basic preferences as points on a linear scale:

* Heart < -----> Mind

And previously we have also categorized system sound as a combination of [more or less linearly independent] flavors:

* Impressive, Natural, Real/Accurate, Emotional, Sweet, Sophisticated and Magical.

We talked about Soul and how many of the ‘touted’ systems at the show were soulless [100% Mind] or Boy Toys.

================================

Next we will talk about:

* Why the industry pushes Boy Toys to the almost complete exclusion of the other 3 types of systems.

* The relationships between the Soulful/Emotional aspect of a system, Heart/Mind preferences and Drug-like systems

(interestingly, there may be no relationship. Emotionally communicative systems tuned to our Heart-Mind preferences may just be there to keep us happy with our system between Drug-like Magical experiences that reveal the deep beauty and mystery of life [kind of like spouses and friends :-)]. In this characterization, good systems are like glasses of wine that are periodically, but infrequently, spiked with something a lot more powerful. For me, this is much more manageable a characterization than systems that are always powerfully Drug-like. Opinions?)

* Methodologies we can use to create Drug-like systems

[and can they be made affordable?

Are they addictive (yes. Doesn’t everybody get the shakes when looking for that new album that will really thrill us, and failing to find it time after time, as the months go by… making us more and more desperate and frustrated? Maybe it is just me…)

Do we need more and more powerful (likely expensive) Drug-like equipment over time? (I think no, thankfully(!) because we can change the music we listen to, perhaps radically, to shock us out of our familiarity. But we need more tests and more test subjects :-))]

* The categorization of small tube amps into various lists based on their performance characteristics (one of which is how well they drive typical speaker loads)

* The categorization of equipment and cables in terms of their usefulness in making Drug-like systems

* The categorization of Drug-like systems

(into beer, wine, whiskey, and other drugs none of us is supposed to be familiar with. Well, we will just all have to pretend we are familiar with these drugs, OK? 😉 In some sense our system at RMAF was like a marathon runners high(?). I have never run a marathon, so I am pretending, extrapolating from the feeling I get after lots of exercise. Similarly we shall invite all of you to help us describe the kind of experiences that you want, and those that you have experienced in the past, while listening to music)

Well, ambitious but really fun topics, I think…

Next show: CES 2011!

in High-end Audio HiFi and Stereo / RMAF 2010 / Show Reports 0 comments
 by Michael

Shootouts CAN be Dangerous

You know, I was thinking about how dangerous these shootouts are becoming.

We do them in the evening, and sometimes we order out some food [usually Vietnamese] and we draft somebody [Neli. :-)] to go pick up it and bring it back.

We then consume mass quantities and listen to a CD or LP kind of casually and chat about how cool it would be to have X, Y or Z for the next shootout.

Then it is back to the shootout proper: listening, going up to the system and switching cables, powercords, whatever back and forth. More listening.

Ponying up to the system, my tummy being overly full to the point of me whining about it to everybody who will listen [that would be, as it always is, nobody] I then had this terrible waking nightmare:

The button pops off my shorts, goes sailing through the air like a button who really hated being under extreme pressure all these years, and strikes one of the tubes on the most lovely sounding, exquisite, amps we have ever heard.

And the tube *explodes* from the impact. Glass is everywhere. Sparks are flying. The lights in the kitchen are flashing off and on.

I start wondering if Neli is going to kill me with knife or pistol.

Then an extremely unlikely and not very nice event occurs. The exploding tube generates some kind of freak surge and the dying amp takes out not one but both speakers. Drivers are now sailing across the room in cannonball like trajectories.

One lands in the bowl of Red Curry Stew with extra Tofu, and splashes Red Curry Stew with Extra Tofu all over the stack of LPs we had brought upstairs for the demo.

The other hits the floor and starts rolling across the room like the old Bridgestone Tire commercials, continues until it encounters the stairs going down to the other listening room – which it then starts plopping down ‘plop’ ‘plop’.

It then continues to go ‘plop”plop’ down the stairs in the now very, very quiet listening room as I look at everybody else in the room and present them with the stupidest grin I can come up with.

All this to say that I am resolving to be on the safe side and eat less take out at our shootouts from now on.

[Even though that take out *is* really, really yummy… Hmmmm, maybe I’ll just walk up to the system sideways, facing any buttons AWAY from the system.]

in High-end Audio HiFi and Stereo / Humor 0 comments