You know all that money you spent upgrading your stereo?

[herr_oberst]

It will never be enough if you keep chasing sonic perfection.
Check out this little snippet from an article in Copper magazine:

"After listening to some of Michael’s music choices he asked me if there was anything in particular I wanted to hear. He has thousands of albums and somehow the conversation came around to a very rare pressing of Led Zeppelin II. Mike had an original Bob Ludwig master of the album that was recalled because it was cut “too hot” and the tonearms of the day (1969) couldn’t keep track-pun intended!

Michael assured me that his current go-to arm (the new Swedish Audio Technologies $52,000 pickup arm mentioned above, and no, that’s not a typo) on a Döhmann Audio turntable could easily handle this recording.

It did. Boy did it.

I heard cymbal hits and a spread of the cymbal placements that was beyond anything I had ever heard before, and trust me, I have heard the opening cut “Whole Lotta Love” hundreds of times. Never, and I mean never, did I know that this was buried and what it must have actually sounded like at the mixing desk.

Both Ken and Michael have incredible gear and that is what made me think about writing my thoughts down after I came back from Michael’s house.

I came home and I put on my Mobile Fidelity copy of Zep II.

I currently own a Pass Labs X250.8 amp, PS Audio Signature BHK Preamp, Moon 810LP phono stage, Marantz SA-10 SACD player, VPI HW-40 direct drive turntable w a 12-inch Fatboy arm, Magico A3 speakers, Wireworld Platinum Eclipse 8 interconnects and WW Gold Eclipse 8 speaker cables, PS Audio DirectStream P20 power regenerator and assorted power cords by Echole, PS Audio, Triode Wire Labs and Nordost.

Compared to what I had heard at Michael’s house, however, my Mobile Fidelity Led Zep II sounded like I was listening to a cassette tape. My system, as resolving as it is, just couldn’t retrieve this information.

No, it wasn’t just that pressing. While my system is damn good, it still wasn’t well…that.

Close to what I heard at Ken and Michael’s? That is a relative term.

Close enough for me to understand what limitations I have. But here’s what it comes down to:

I sit and look at my current system, a system with a list price of nearly 100K.

It’s a system that, by all rational measure, anyone could listen to and say, “Wow, I have never heard anything sound so good!’"

But…

It ain’t like what these guys have the unique ability to play with and listen to.

Whether it was Ken’s set up or Michael’s, artists and songs that I have heard hundreds of times have, perhaps because of the care of tonearm cartridge alignment, vibration control, quality of mega-dollar amplification and sophistication of the speaker systems and room damping, exposed much more in those grooves or on those reel-to-reels then I have ever heard.

It’s like listening to different mixes. Vocals that you never knew were there suddenly appear, as well as a horn part or a drum fill or a cymbal crash."





This guy is comparing his 100K system spinning an audiophile quality LP to a cassette tape! Hah! Even the wealthiest, savviest stereo junkies are chasing a dream that they will never catch!

I'm so glad I made my peace with that grail a long, long time ago. Good enough is good enough for me. Depending on the circumstances, a cassette of Led Zep II is probably just right!

Here's the whole article if you have an interest...

https://www.psaudio.com/article/the-high-end-in-the-time-of-coronavirus/

[KFC911]

If ya listened to Zep properly back in '72....you can't hear schit now .

[Cajundaddy]

Originally Posted by KC911

If ya listened to Zep properly back in '72....you can't hear schit now .

^^ Grim reality!

I did a detailed hearing test and had a device modeled to replace the lost frequencies through my reference headphones. The difference is quite startling even through a $1000 sound system. My gear is plenty good enough but my ears have taken a serious beating.

[pavulon]

It is a sort of crummy day when you realize more ships have sailed from you life than will return to port.

[pete3799]

What?

[Chocaholic]

I too spent many $ chasing sonic nirvana some 20 years ago. I woke up one day and sold it all. There is no grail. Does one setup sound “better” than another, or just different? The tinnitus set in from too much loud music from my youth and that was it.

Still appreciate good sound quality but the price tag to play with esoteric tube amplifiers and speaker cables like garden hoses carefully suspended on mpingo discs no longer fulfill the gadget jones. My 70’s Sansui AU-717 and 90’s Music Hall ‘table scratch the itch just fine.

[SiberianDVM]

I've got a Sansui 8080DB that I love.

[astrochex]

That is some pricey audio nervosa.

I am happy with my system but have I have a few items that I will to upgrade that will not compete with paying the mortgage.

[KFC911]

I purchased most of my gear used...for a fraction of what it sold for new. Now I've decided I don't really "need" a stack of 1k watt amps and a wall-of-sound, speaker towers....but alas...

It freakin' rocked...just like a live show .

Huh?

[MBAtarga]

I had a manager I worked for about 25 years ago that swore that he could hear fluctuations in AC current frequency on his home audio equipment!

[onewhippedpuppy]

There’s always somebody with more free time and available money than you. Always. I don’t care what the topic is. Lots of people have gone broke trying to keep up.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by MBAtarga

I had a manager I worked for about 25 years ago that swore that he could hear fluctuations in AC current frequency on his home audio equipment!

I've "seen" that a couple of times too ....but at live shows !

[asphaltgambler]

Really no different than most any form of racing. You always want to go faster, quicker, handle better, move up to the next class, etc. It's the human condition the drive that is inherent in all of us. I'm not sure I could tell if a high-end $100K home set-up is $80K better than a $20K system just by listening. I would recognize the engineering and quality of a $100K unit and appreciate that aspect of it.

[Mike Andrew]

My youngest bro is a stereo guy. Dual tube monos and preamp, giant gold cables, conditioners, and more. He plopped me in a chair, dropped on an LP of Pretenders Isle Of View and I could hear things I had never picked up on before like location of musicians left to right and fore/aft. All very nice and reasonably cheap used from a buddy who was a super high end stereo sales/installation guy in Raleigh.
I am happy with my Marantz, Phillips table, Bose 301's for the house and Klipsch bookshelf's in the garage setup. Like some of you, too many concerts in the 60's and 70's so I am good with what I have,
He has great sound, I have a great Pcar. All relative.

[stevej37]

My 'High Fidelity' Alexa system consists of one Echo, one Dot, and a powered Echo Sub...all for less than $400 I use it to stream Prime Music and Sirius XM
Plus..I can ask it questions and it'll answer me back!

[KFC911]

It was always about "the music" for me....and recreating what happened at a live show...no doubt that tubes and vinyl rule....but I went the route of digital...live stuff that's like you are there. Vinyl is limited to "pressed" studio efforts for the most part.

I hope Ian doesn't see this thread....he's too classy to comment on "our" juke box stereos .

Purchase for a fraction of retail ($700) I do have thick hose-like Tara Labs bi-wire cables....solves the "snake skin effect" of pedestrian stuff....and buys Ferraris for the salesmen

[flipper35]

I still have the set of Fisher speakers from the late 80s. 12" woofers are plenty and I have a powered sub to go with it. Sounds good enough to me. I only wish I had not given the 8" Fishers away. They would have been great rear surround speakers.

[Mike Andrew]

Wish I had not gotten rid of my Big Advents. Perfect for blasting Humble Pie. Too lazy to install new rubber on the woofers. Paid big bucks for those back in the early '70's that should have been spent on University expenses.
Love to have a $50K system like my bro but ........

[KFC911]

^^^^ Lemme guess...Cary Sound?

I used to live near there...but alas....I wuz poor .

I spent more on albums and CDs (before I got into live recordings) than I ever did on the equipment tho'...

Thirty daze in the hole !

[Rtrorkt]

From the day, Yamaha C6 pre amp, Yamaha M5 amp, Yamaha tangent tracking turntable with a Grace moving coil cartridge pushing a set of Time Windows built by a bunch of alternative guys in Ann Arbor. Lasted for 40 years. Thinking of McIntosh tubes now for the expensive blue lights