Hopkins' System

[Johan K]

LOL Johan. My source was also there and heard it in person. He is in the hifi media. he was mightily impressed. Perhaps they gave him the sweetspot

Shane @XV-1 , It’s kind of interesting how different people view / hear a setup like the D’ag - Wilson system in Munich. Some say bling bling, some say yeeek, and some say it’s the best they ever heard… Well that’s the name of the game in this hobby. Nobody is either right or wrong. It is up the beholder what to think or like.

 

[Holmz]

Why would anyone buy a Bugatti, when you just can have a regular VW? Why go into space when you can stay on earth…? Maybe because the space is there. Maybe because you like the challenge, and see how far you can take it.

If you got the money and muscle - why not.

The number of people that identify as rocket scientists seems to be greater than the number of rocket scientists.

 

[Johan K]

The number of people that identify as rocket scientists seems to be greater than the number of rocket scientists.

Could be… LOL !!

 

[Alrainbow]

Analog is not only complex because of continuity > behavior and processing are highly dependent on physical properties such as voltage, current, temperature and noise - but also chaotic due to the (near)infinite amount of subsystems involved.
Whereas digital - as long as the signal (datastream) remains in the digital domain, is predictable and reconstructable.

Sorry for a late reply. I'm not stating one is better , I simply said to me I find it odd that anytime I return to analog be it tape or vinyl then reaction time is very fast . Digital return can be rewarding but takes a bit longer.
This i would like to know if I'm alone in my observation.

 

[D.Duttilleux]

Why would anyone buy a Bugatti, when you just can have a regular VW? Why go into space when you can stay on earth…? Maybe because the space is there. Maybe because you like the challenge, and see how far you can take it.

If you got the money and muscle - why not.

It's a matter of 'choice'.
I could reflect on this topic from many perspectives, but I'll limit myself.

However, one may wonder about the intrinsic connection with 'the gear' - whether it's a Veyron or a 3 million high end setup - and what it's supposed to provide in terms of the experience.
Apart from top speed (that you can hardly experience these days, not even on the Autobahn), a Veyron isn't necessarily 'better' than a Aston Martin Vantage, or a Lamborghini.
The Veyron is one of the brainchilds of Ferdinand Piech, just like the VW Phaeton, of which the W12 version, I can say from experience, was actually astonishingly good - also compared to the competition. Still, the original Audi A8, with the improved 3.7 V8 in the non-quattro version, was a much better car for high speeds and in terms of overall ride/handling.

If you're willing to spend:
$20,000 to $30,000 for a basic service, $40,000 for a yearly fluid change, around $60,000 for a set of new tyres and $75,000 for a set of wheels that need to be replaced every 16.000km, go ahead.

My brother knows someone who has installed several pairs of Living Voice Vox Olympian + Vox Elysian for cinema use in a superyacht, the acoustic conditions of which limit the performance to Altec VOTT-level.

Above a certain level, (exorbitant) material wealth rarely adds anything substantial to the 'experience'. On the contrary, because if you cannot intrinsically connect with the technology, or at least its performance (on a deeper level of understanding), emptiness will eventually overtake you.

 

[hopkins]

I could reflect on this topic from many perspectives, but I'll limit myself.

Good idea I say this jokingly, but I am sure all these thoughts would find more of an audience in a serrate thread...

 

[D.Duttilleux]

That's pointless, because everything in life revolves around personal experience, gaining inspiration, learning and ultimately development.

 

[hopkins]

That's pointless, because everything in life revolves around personal experience, gaining inspiration, learning and ultimately development.

Yes, but I encourage you to start your own thread to share your journey and projects. I wouid certainly be interested in following it - you mentioned a speaker prohect, for example. That being said, feel free to contribute here as well.

 

[D.Duttilleux]

...You mentioned a speaker project, for example. That being said, feel free to contribute here as well.

Working on it. Here's a hint:

Red indicates THD at 8V (5.52%) of a typical high-end woofer, as found in Wilson speakers.
Green (1.1%) is from (almost) the same woofer I have in mind.

 

[hopkins]

Reading about Munich and watching a video of one of the systems made me want to listen to the same track on my system.

The Munich video can be watched here:

Post in thread 'MUNCHEN 2025 MOC / MARRIOTT The final Chapter !' https://www.whatsbestforum.com/thre...marriott-the-final-chapter.40231/post-1055030

Here's my recording (Qobuz connect):

I played the music loud, and there's some distortion in my recording which I did not hear while listening.

I am honestly satisfied with the sound I get at this stage - even if it can certainly be improved upon. Obviously these huge 95k€ speakers are going to deliver something entirely different than my 1k€ (modifications included) speakers. But are those differences fundamental? I don't think so. I can enjoy and appreciate whatever music I listen to (my family does as well).

I don't really relate to the discussions about high-end audio any longer, so I'm going to take a little break. If I come across interesting new equipment I will continue to mention them in this thread.