It’s been a hectic week upon my return from the spectacular Northwest, thus my delay in being the last to chime in about the experiences of the traveling audio nerds. First, it always helps when the weather is kind, and although I know Seattle fairly well and have visited often, I don’t recall being there for three days with more perfect weather. Cloudless skies in Seattle are relatively rare, yet we had three in a row. Being able to look in one direction at the unobscured Olympics and another to catch Rainer and the Cascades is a rare treat anytime in Seattle.
As you all know by now, the first stop was the Shunyata factory and a visit to Caelin Gabriel’s home. I was impressed that he had a formal schedule for us and was both eager to lead a “show and tell” as well as express genuine interest in our feedback and thoughts. I’ve mentioned before that the scientist part of me was very impressed with reading Caelin’s numerous patents. They are actually not that hard to understand, even to a layperson, although there is necessarily some technical language to overcome. Reading them and then meeting the inventor simply reinforced my long held belief that there is genuine substance in what Caelin professes and practices. So much of audio is what we often refer to as snake oil salesmanship. Although I have admittedly drunk the Shunyata Kool-Aid, the trip reinforced for me, my feeling that so many of Shunyata’s products are indeed based on solid engineering for designing and building a better mousetrap for delivering conditioned power and reducing noise to our audio components. Caelin’s persona is easily recognizable among many superb scientists I know and admire. He’s just an obsessed engineer whose creativity and energy is incessant and boundless. In other words, my kind of guy! In particular, I had the most fun in their demo room as we listened to the wonderful Giya 3 loudspeakers with varying numbers of daisy-chained Typhons driving the system. Oh, thanks a lot guys for showing me yet another way to spend my money. Grrrr.... And the trip was just beginning! There is a lot more future new product to come from Shunyata as we were privileged to get a glimpse of, but most importantly, these future products all appear to be based on the same commitment for excellence and continually improved audio performance that is the hallmark of their current product line.
Anytime I visit someone’s system and can learn or hear something I have not heard before, is a treat. So it was with Caelin’s home system. The turntable set-up (ZYX cartridge played through a very modest Ayon amp and the Wave 40 loudspeakers) produced some of the most beautiful top end treble I have heard to date. It’s not a system for power music by any means, but it was also something not to dismiss lightly for what it did do correctly. Kudos, Caelin.
Friday night was, as everyone knows, the big Genesis party. I enjoyed meeting Gary Koh and we had some great discussions such as about timing errors when subs are set back from the main speakers. But in addition, he too, did a great job of helping me spend money I had not planned on, as he introduced me to some spectacular software. Make no mistake, this guy knows music and his taste is impeccable regardless of format or style. The big Dragon’s obviously have tremendous potential, but I can’t for one minute envy the effort of setting these beasts up in a warehouse environment and expecting them to sound flawless. Yet there were some pieces Gary played that were astonishing realistic, even though I’m sure a more refined set-up awaits them in their future home halfway around the world. Finally, how many parties have you been to lately with more great sushi than you can possibly consume. Thank you for your generosity, Gary and Carol.
Saturday morning ‘s first stop was at Bruce Brown’s mastering studio. Impeccably crafted and with more audio toys than you can shake a stick at, our drooling was significant and prolonged. Anchored by the Alexia’s driven by Pass amps, Bruce played a few showpieces for us that left us shaking our heads in admiration for what he has achieved. Yet I was not prepared for the secret wine cellar whose door we were unknowingly staring at for about an hour without seeing it as such. “Hidden in plain sight” as they say. On the way out, I gazed lovingly at the Studer 820 he has for sale and realized that the price of divorce is even higher. Oh well…..
The next stop on the tour was to Ki Choi, renowned King of Studer Tape decks, part mad scientist, part very real scientist (nuclear physicist), part audiophile, part anti-spendthrift and genuinely nice guy. I have heard a lot about Ki, but was totally unprepared for the system he first played for us. Ki is very much from the “spend money only if you have to” school of audiophilia, and for everything else, consider bargain basement and utility options. I think its fair to say he finds spending money on fancy interconnects, speaker cables and speaker stands simply unreasonable. Why spend money on interconnects when some used cable taken from a nuclear reactor will work just fine? Speaker cable- try using some decent copper modestly dressed that you can get on bulk rolls from you local electronics store. As far as speaker stands (and this was my personal favorite)- can you say “plywood”? If you don’t like the way your Maggies are slanted, just shove some unfinished plywood under them until you achieve what you want. The system also featured the raw chassis of a stripped down German tube pre-amp sitting on a piece of Tupperware, and a $300 Crown PA amplifier. Oh yeah, there was a Nagra tape deck playing original and master tapes. My first thought after hearing the result? We’re all crazy, plain and simple. Ki has got it right. Spend money where it counts (i.e. the Nagra) and cobble together everything else as if it were salvation gear.
Of course, we then went upstairs to hear his “big rig” consisting of MBL amps and speakers driven once again by tape, except this time it was the Studer A820. Interconnects and speaker cable were once again things no audiophile in his right mind would ever be caught dead owning, but then again, what audiophile is in his right mind? Nothing made that point more vividly than Ki’s systems, and he did it all without saying some much of a word that would have made us feel foolish for spending money on things where he simply would not. Performance is what counts, and Ki’s systems exemplified that in spades. Very cool indeed.
Ah, but now we journey to the opposite pole of sanity completely. But before I describe Mike Lavigne’s superb system, I’d like to say a few words about Mike. I first heard about this “fringe lunatic" audiophile (meant strictly as a compliment!) from Steve many years ago, and this lead to my first visit to Mike’s magnificent listening room about 8 years ago. I was as impressed then as I am now, with his total dedication and devotion to creating the ideal listening environment for reproduced music. Mike’s approach and thinking is readily apparent on the WBF as well. One can readily see that he is driven by passion and commitment to what is certainly more than an avocation for him. But spending time with him is where his energy and enthusiasm is best seen and appreciated.
To begin, it must be said that if one is lucky, you may some day hear a better audio system than Mike’s (I have not heard every great system on the planet). But one thing I am damn sure of, is that you will never find a host as extraordinary as Mike. From the moment you arrive, his high level of hospitality is on display, with offers of single malt scotches and other refreshments that are all designed to make you feel at home. What a pleasure. Then there is the room. There is an old adage that says there is no substitute for taste. Mike’s room is the living embodiment of that adage. Much has been said elsewhere about the room, but what impressed me is that even though most folks would be happy to call it their own just as was right after it was built, Mike is constantly working to improve it. This is the hallmark of a true perfectionist, and is the basis of the admiration I have for his yeoman and singular efforts. I’ve known about some changes he has described in the forum through the years, but even now, there are some recent fabric additions to deal with reflection points that only serve to make a great room even better. The quest never ceases. And that’s the key to appreciating Mike, the ever-vigilant, obsessed audiophile. It is the appreciation of the drive and passion Mike has to make these seemingly minor but meaningful changes, that can only be admired and appreciated by those of us with a similar affliction. While the quest for perfection is continual in Mike’s case, it is also refreshing to hear him acknowledge what is most important, which is, not the state of your listening environment but rather to accept what you have and simply enjoy the music. Now those are surely the words of a wise audiophile and lover of music and words we often forget when we’re in “equipment critique” mode.
Mike’s collection of music is impeccable, with an obvious focus on analog LP and tape. Yet even when he demo’s, he is so considerate that he will ask you what you wish to hear, rather than pull material out that he has chosen. But honestly, you soon realize the best approach is to sit back and let him play the stuff he knows will float your boat. We went from Jazz to Classical to Rock seamlessly throughout the evening. It should also be noted that while most audiophiles have “the chair” (and Mike is no exception), Mike’s music room was able to accommodate 7 or 8 people easily, all with the ability to enjoy the system simultaneously, which is almost unheard of in my experience for a bonafide stereo lair.
However, there is indeed, “the sweet spot”. And it’s a helluva great one. When sitting in the spot, I was impressed by a midrange that was remarkable for its clarity and realism. Voices in particular, such as Ella’s or Nat King Cole’s, were frighteningly good, as was the midrange register on the piano (a true benchmark test for any system). The system’s macro and microdynamics were as good as I have heard. Even though Mike remains silent during most demonstrations, it was not lost on me that he couldn’t help himself as he leaned over to remind me on a few occasions, “Marty, remember there are no tubes in this system!” I certainly have a new- appreciation for his darTZeel electronics, that’s for sure.
At the end of the evening, I couldn’t help feel for Mike’s wife, who commented aloud that she thought with everything he’s done to put together such a magnificent sound room at Chez Lavigne, that he’s done spending money now. I then thought seriously whether I should put her in touch with my wife to straighten her out, but I declined only because I was convinced that her outburst was just wishful thinking. I am pretty sure that after 41 years of marriage to Mike, she really knows the truth lies elsewhere! Takes one to know one, as they say.
So it was that 3 days of audio merriment came to an end. Upon reflection, I realize now what a great privilege it was to meet and listen to the systems we did. From manufacturers to uber-audiophiles, I found the differences among us to be far less than the bond that unites us in the singular passion which drives our love of this hobby. When you realize that there are almost certainly less than about 100,000 folks worldwide with the same passion as we have for this hobby, it makes occasions like this very special indeed. I’d certainly participate in more trips like this to other cities to meet and listen to audiophile’s systems if such a thing were possible. I’d also volunteer to be a stop on the road show for others who would like to do something similar in the NYC area. Meeting other hobbyists in their listening environment beats the hell out of going to shows to hear good equipment that is often not set up well under show conditions, or which cannot be heard to best effect because of the demo in the room next door is the dinosaur scene from Jurrasic Park that is on terminal “repeat”.
And there you have it. Among the things this trip taught me, one of them is pretty obvious. We audiophiles simply gotta get out more often!!