Social Media and High End Audio

[wil]

I’d research a thing called paragraphs, it might help you articulate an argument. I’m not going to read a OCD stream of consciousness rant.

Good luck to you.

I think it was actually more articulate than some posters here who are positively un-readable.
He makes his point clearly.
I agree though that the paragraph is a great idea!

 

[Verastarr]

Mr. Powell,

May I introduce myself? My name is Mr. Sami. That covered may I propose a wager that involves pain and loss?

A shootout to be judged by a panel of say five listeners to visit us both and assess a predetermined list of say ten titles?

We, that is you and I, would cover all their travel and accommodation costs.

Winner takes all.

Should you wish to publicize the contest on Youtube you may do so.

Kindest regards, G.

Pain and loss ? What's your problem Sami ??
That sounds like crap... you want to have fun in the spirit of enjoying HiFi, I'm in. For boasting rights.. Why don't you say something kind to get my respect. You sound like a person I would not like at this point. I'm about FUN in HiFi... unlike what you offer .... "pain and loss"..
Listen to yourself man. You are what kills this hobby for most people...

 

[Verastarr]

To say it bluntly .

Leaders in the industry are the succesfull manufacturers .
All the rest are just spin offs trying to make a buck off of their efforts

Without a product there is nothing to write about and nothing to sell.


In Belgium they have a honest word for dealers its called " verdeler".


Reviewers have way too moch influence in the industry because they pretend to know something .
Most of it is BS as they are describing their own version of the truth / preference and nothing more
Americans usually know Whats best for the world and in audio its no different .


Ps im not bashing TAS , if its a interesting read it certainly ads value but people shouldn t take it too seriously imo regarding purchases

I agree wholeheartedly.

 

[Al M.]

Perhaps. But i also think it’s been building since Covid. Maybe one effect of an undiagnosed case of very long Covid is that the general level of maturity lowers and otherwise well-grounded adults get into big-DAC contests on-line. I am still gobsmacked at the cross-thread stalking perpetrated by those who can’t stand that not everyone agrees with their own sense of superiority.

Don't worry, this has little to with Covid. You should have witnessed the viciously aggressive analog vs digital debates on this forum around 2015. A sight to behold.

 

[Lee]

A healthy industry should be able to withstand and even welcome a bit of stirring up. The rebel in me welcomes it. That said, I tend to avoid ranty videos. I prefer set up videos, or tear downs or even component comparisons, even though they are limited by the video playback.

Mikey does seem very knowledgeable, loves music and says what he thinks without filters, to a fault even. Most importantly though, he is smiley and genuinely feels like a dude I would enjoy hanging out with. I like when his channel passes through phases of more of a balance of rants and exploration . If you step in understanding that he is a bit jaded by the industry, and understand why, his channel makes sense. That said, I truly would hang out with him and know we’d have a great time of it And that says something. I get the feeling that we wouldn’t argue at all and end up best buds. To Mikey (if you are still reading): The Playback is a stellar dac. Wonderful. But the Horizon is better . With dialed in tubes, it is the boss…

I think Jay brings up some good points and I second a second chance for him to share here on WBF. Perhaps he could promise to abide by the rules he broke. Not knowing what he did makes it hard to say, though. I especially liked the way he pointed out that magazines, reviewers and manufacturers are all way too sensitive. They always dismiss criticism or blame the one who is offering criticism, even on these forums. The magazines in particular need to get with it and start creating more varied content. TAS seems to finally be doing this with YouTube and Fremer, which I like. I enjoyed the Shunyata tour and the tour of Fremer’s system, for example. More journey, more system building and less best box, next best box and then next even better bestest box. In general, Jay’s channel focuses too much on price and too little on music for me. I prefer music over gear. The video editing/quality needs work, as others have said. But that is another issue. His is not a videographer.

On a final note, I love the WBF YouTube videos. Ron is an excellent listener and interviewer. His interview with Emille and Karen were stellar and he asked all the right questions, being neither harsh nor fawning and poking like a good journalist, but listening and facilitating learning about the brand and about audio in general. I learned a ton from these videos. I like the way Ron thinks. Two thumbs up.

I appreciate that you are enjoying our videos. There is a lot of effort put into them.

 

[Verastarr]

A healthy industry should be able to withstand and even welcome a bit of stirring up. The rebel in me welcomes it. That said, I tend to avoid ranty videos. I prefer set up videos, or tear downs or even component comparisons, even though they are limited by the video playback.

Mikey does seem very knowledgeable, loves music and says what he thinks without filters, to a fault even. Most importantly though, he is smiley and genuinely feels like a dude I would enjoy hanging out with. I like when his channel passes through phases of more of a balance of rants and exploration . If you step in understanding that he is a bit jaded by the industry, and understand why, his channel makes sense. That said, I truly would hang out with him and know we’d have a great time of it And that says something. I get the feeling that we wouldn’t argue at all and end up best buds. To Mikey (if you are still reading): The Playback is a stellar dac. Wonderful. But the Horizon is better . With dialed in tubes, it is the boss…

I think Jay brings up some good points and I second a second chance for him to share here on WBF. Perhaps he could promise to abide by the rules he broke. Not knowing what he did makes it hard to say, though. I especially liked the way he pointed out that magazines, reviewers and manufacturers are all way too sensitive. They always dismiss criticism or blame the one who is offering criticism, even on these forums. The magazines in particular need to get with it and start creating more varied content. TAS seems to finally be doing this with YouTube and Fremer, which I like. I enjoyed the Shunyata tour and the tour of Fremer’s system, for example. More journey, more system building and less best box, next best box and then next even better bestest box. In general, Jay’s channel focuses too much on price and too little on music for me. I prefer music over gear. The video editing/quality needs work, as others have said. But that is another issue. His is not a videographer.

On a final note, I love the WBF YouTube videos. Ron is an excellent listener and interviewer. His interview with Emille and Karen were stellar and he asked all the right questions, being neither harsh nor fawning and poking like a good journalist, but listening and facilitating learning about the brand and about audio in general. I learned a ton from these videos. I like the way Ron thinks. Two thumbs up.

Thanks Sampajanna for having the awareness to understand me. One people get past thier own bias they understand I am an end user advocate as well as a dealer. It's an uncommon combo. As skip said, I don't go to distributors as a "brand collector" and use the distributors line to feign experience. I hand pick certain items from different brands as best in class TO ME... some folks don't understand its my channel to talk how I want to my subscribers. People can hang out or leave. Your point about hanging out is spot on. I make friends first, then hook them up with audio systems later... I've got great buddies all over the globe from my career which is my favorite part. HiFi is just a part of the experiences and conversations we share. Feel free to call me anytime and I'm happy to talk !! ;-)

 

[zerostargeneral]

Dear Mr. Powell,

Firstly that should be "Mister Tibbs" secondly nobody puts Jeffery "in the corner".

Thirdly I have fewer dollars than you have excuses to avoid a prop bet.

Kindest regards ( I will take the above as no ), G.

 

[Verastarr]

That must be a recent change in gear for MoFi, then. In August '22 TAS interview, MoFi said: "Any title cut from DSD64 was captured from 2011 to January 2014, using the Meitner A/D. When better technology became available, we upgraded to the Merging Technologies Horus A/D which captures in DSD256."

MoFi President Jim Davis Addresses the Digital LP-Mastering Controversy - The Absolute Sound

MoFi President Jim Davis Addresses the Digital LP-Mastering Controversy - Jim Davis, president of Mofi, gives JV and RH insight into the company's mastering process in this exclusive interview.

www.theabsolutesound.com

Yes, it is brand new. PBD beat out Meitner and Merging. ;-)

 

[Verastarr]

Dear Mr. Powell,

Firstly that should be "Mister Tibbs" secondly nobody puts Jeffery "in the corner".

Thirdly I have fewer dollars than you have excuses to avoid a prop bet.

Kindest regards ( I will take the above as no ), G.

What city and state ?

 

[zerostargeneral]

Perthshire and Kinross

The Saltire abounds you will know it when you see it.

Kindest regards, G.

 

[Verastarr]

AMONG.

I can tell you I hear much more clamor from my clients pertaining to the four guys I listed than I do any of the ones you list. In fact, Darko may get mentioned once a year, but I've not had a single client mention the others. I don't deny their status, but their influence is not felt in my small segment of the market.

Yes, and I may add, don't confuse reach with Influence !! Lol. And give us "little guys" who don't leverage Amazon links for subs nor buy subs a few years to catch up. People are sick of bought and paid for industry shills. Even if they are not, they sure look like it...

 

[Verastarr]

Perthshire and Kinross

The Saltire abounds you will know it when you see it.

Kindest regards, G.

Wow. So you're suggesting I fly to UK for "pain and loss" and pay for others to get there plus lodging if they even had the time or desire ? Do you see why I don't take this seriously...?? I'll respond to Lavigne or Elliot.. makes much more sense...
Cheerio !

 

[Verastarr]

Many of you - some of whom i have developed great respect for over the past year - are doing a solid job of reminding me why i left the on-line "community" of music and equipment lovers years ago, and make me question why I returned. I don't know what's in the water these days, but maybe you all should sit down in a comfy chair with your favorite cocktail or other drink and have a good listen to some music you love. There's way too much crankiness here.

There it is Robert...there it is....

 

[Verastarr]

Completely agree. Makes me ill when people cannot use the most basic of writing skills, sentence and paragraph structure.

Lol. Boy... another uptight guy in HiFi.. the erosion of the hobby in plain sight...Hifi is no refuge for the uptight and undersatisfied.. this may just be the root of our issue... let it go man, let it go... see past your idiosyncrasies.. pay attention to the natural world for what it is with all its uniqueness and stop trying to make it all fit into your perfect little soulless structure of format.

 

[Robert Young]

Don't worry, this has little to with Covid. You should have witnessed the viciously aggressive analog vs digital debates on this forum around 2015. A sight to behold.

Yes, i’ve heard about that kerfuffle. Few learn from their own mistakes, let alone the mistakes of others. It takes a degree of self-awareness that very few posting here demonstrate.
Perhaps it is time to skip this altogether and spend more time enjoying the things i like and the people i love. Not much enjoyment to be gained from little boys shouting about their toys. All i ever seem to learn (with exceptions already noted) is that i generally don’t like the people in this hobby.

 

[jeff1225]

Lol. Boy... another uptight guy in HiFi.. the erosion of the hobby in plain sight...

Even the Unabomber had the decency to use paragraphs whilst spreading his nonsensical theories.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/unabomber/manifesto.text.htm

 

[Elliot G.]

Mike,

i'll take a piece of this.

--bring your Playback Designs over and we will do a direct head to head with my Wadax. i'm sure the Playback Designs is really fine digital. not dissing it. but that is the first step. we both have our opinions which is all they are until we do the compare. done that compare with the MSB Select II, others have done it with other digital top levels. not seen it done with the Playbacks. but all the others only had one result.

---then we will go direct from the winner to my vinyl. which will be superior to the digital.

---i know how that goes as i do it every day. and the vinyl when directly compared wins 95% of the time and it's not close on the better pressings (70% of my 12,000 pressings).

what good will 24 track 2 inch do you? not relevant for our purposes other than for a door stop.

some of my vinyl beats some of my tape. you gotta listen case by case. the tape has to be very good to beat a top level pressing.

as far as tape, know the Studer, know the Doshi, know the Flux Magnetic heads, prefer my hot rodded ATR-102 with Flux Magnetic heads and the MR 70 pre's. on my better tapes it is superior to vinyl, but on many tapes the best vinyl is better or different/equal. only had the ATR-MR 70 for a short time and still need to do more compares, certainly this level tape performance is higher than my 3 Studer A-820's with the King Cello. might prefer your tape set-up too to what i had before. probably.

love my vinyl, and i have my references too.

we can agree to disagree. but bluster does not replace experience. vinyl kicks ass. in a system with top level references for all the formats.

sounds like you need to upgrade your vinyl reference. it is not cutting it.

as far as MoFi and Playbacks, i get that. i know Andreas Koch, he has been a guest in my home. brilliant guy. i owned the first Playback Design retail unit back in 2005. it was my digital reference for 9 years. i respect that Andreas is a dsd expert, and that MoFi uses that for mastering. makes sense. but it's not proof of what is the best sounding dacs and servers. the recent MoFi pressings i own from the last 10 years which include the quad dsd step, are pretty 'meh' sounding. so whatever they are doing, not my cup of tea. i did hear the Playback Designs at the last Axpona and was impressed by what i heard. it certainly is very good. but it's not vinyl in respect to my reference for vinyl. maybe yours.

and if you really cannot hear a difference between the Playback Designs digital and the tape....well....er......something is not right somewhere. maybe the tape was sourced from the quad dsd file?

i do have a tape from a session where there was a quad dsd master and a 1/2" 15ips master also from the same mic feed. the tape wipes the floor with the digital in direct compare. not close. the quad dsd is very, very good....for sure. but is not the tape.

OTOH.....if i owned top level digital, jumping into vinyl or tape would be a question. the digital is good enough that you don't need analog. but analog does go to another level with the better media. but it's a hobby, and does not need to make sense, if we are having more fun.

An audiophile over the top rope hell in the cell cage death match! Where is Michale Buffer , the Rock and Vince McMahon? LOL

 

[andromedaaudio]

Verastar can make himself immortal by taking up the challenge ( if victorious)
It seems like only 1 box needs to be transported which is fair enough .


Ps Afaik this whole thread is a dealer battle for marketshare being fought in a new arena called YT

 

[Robert Young]

There it is Robert...there it is....

You are a major participant in this problem.

 

[marty]

A shootout to be judged by a panel of say five listeners to visit us both and assess a predetermined list of say ten titles?

Where do I apply to be on the listening panel?