Visit to Marc C.'s (SpiritOfMusic's) House in England

[KeithR]

I still remember you going to sit back and relax in 2019

 

[spiritofmusic]

What can I tell you, Keith? I like to relax by torturing myself.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Seriously Keith, I'm taking great pride in sticking w the same core components now for 4-6 years, getting the environment right for them ie the room, and optimising the sound a lot further than I could have hoped for. The recent changes on the tt have really been eye opening, and I'm a little embarassed to admit that after 22 years w high end tts, I wasn't anywhere close to getting it right even 6 weeks ago.

 

[PeterA]

Marc, Have you invited Mik to come over and help you with your turntable set up? He has a great deal of experience.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Peter, that's a good suggestion. However, I don't know Mik that well and I live 100 miles from him. Additionally, I'm pretty confident I've covered all the bases. So, I've sorted full isolation from my suspended floor (180kg of slate and pneumatics), full levelling of support/plinth/platter, much more precise cart setup (easier than I thought with a linear tracking arm), and azimuth (my armwand now sports a handy mini spirit level).
All of this, plus advantage of lighter carbon fibre armwand, has really pushed things on. Audiophile Bill got me on the right track here.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Throw in multiple layers of isolation btwn spkrs and floor (Revopods footers/Panzerholz slabs/Symposium Svelte shelves), judicious use of GIKs acoustic panels on walls, and fastidious experimentation in placement of spkrs, the last 3-6 months of system optimisation has really paid off.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Just returned from one of the most enjoyable days listening to another person's system, Animas horns at Mani. The sound was consistently suprising and enjoyable (just my usual caveats on adjusting to non cone bass, and horns torturing the primitive aspects of prog rock mastering, notwithstanding).

In this 100% fun aspect it joins the AG Duos of Blue58 and Apogee Duettas of User211 as slam dunk great transducers (usual considerations on careful setup apply, nothing this good happens by accident).

In the past I've returned to my system after being wowed elsewhere, and been down for a few days, or even longer as I've realised my system would be lacking in many areas.

But in the last couple of years I've returned from Apogees/211s at User211, Pnoes/Mayers at The General, many AG Duos/45s demos at Blue58, recent top Ares Cerat system, all Thrax hybrid system, and now superlative Animas, and gone on to fire up my system.

And realised much as I love what I hear w these horns and ribbons, and how certain aspects properly trump mine, my efforts have really provided massive dividends as I realise I would not swap my sound easily. To feel like I'm not any longer in these guys' slipstreams is an important place for me to have got to, and justifies in my eyes at least the extra mile I've gone to in tweaking out and optimising my sound.

Now, add a pair of Animas for purely classical and jazz listening. I could be open to that...

 

[asiufy]

Now, add a pair of Animas for purely classical and jazz listening. I could be open to that...

I'm truly puzzled by all this. I love horns, but mostly for rock, specially the old, quirky kind (prog). Classical and jazz didn't do anything for me on the horns, on the contrary. But rock had a special charm though them.

The big Anima in Munich was great when they cranked some Zeppelin. Not so much when they put the tinkly jazz.

 

[the sound of Tao]

I'm truly puzzled by all this. I love horns, but mostly for rock, specially the old, quirky kind (prog). Classical and jazz didn't do anything for me on the horns, on the contrary. But rock had a special charm though them.

The big Anima in Munich was great when they cranked some Zeppelin. Not so much when they put the tinkly jazz.

I’m also puzzled... but more just because horns are best (I don’t usually use that word) at jazz and can also clearly be amazing at some smaller scale classical (sonatas and chamber especially) and some of them even nail large scale orchestral.

Though I think for me it’s more about how they connect you with the music rather than a purely sonic assessment. I’m listening to even more classical and jazz than usual since getting the horn n set combo up and running.

 

[asiufy]

I’m also puzzled... but more just because horns are best (I don’t usually use that word) at jazz and can also clearly be amazing at some smaller scale classical (sonatas and chamber especially) and some of them even nail large scale orchestral.

Though I think for me it’s more about how they connect you with the music rather than a purely sonic assessment. I’m listening to even more classical and jazz than usual since getting the horn n set combo up and running.

Exactly! Well, go figure, but for me, old rock music and horns is an almost immediate connection

 

[Ron Resnick]

Just returned from one of the most enjoyable days listening to another person's system, Animas horns at Mani. The sound was consistently suprising and enjoyable (just my usual caveats on adjusting to non cone bass, and horns torturing the primitive aspects of prog rock mastering, notwithstanding).

In this 100% fun aspect it joins the AG Duos of Blue58 and Apogee Duettas of User211 as slam dunk great transducers (usual considerations on careful setup apply, nothing this good happens by accident).

In the past I've returned to my system after being wowed elsewhere, and been down for a few days, or even longer as I've realised my system would be lacking in many areas.

But in the last couple of years I've returned from Apogees/211s at User211, Pnoes/Mayers at The General, many AG Duos/45s demos at Blue58, recent top Ares Cerat system, all Thrax hybrid system, and now superlative Animas, and gone on to fire up my system.

And realised much as I love what I hear w these horns and ribbons, and how certain aspects properly trump mine, my efforts have really provided massive dividends as I realise I would not swap my sound easily. To feel like I'm not any longer in these guys' slipstreams is an important place for me to have got to, and justifies in my eyes at least the extra mile I've gone to in tweaking out and optimising my sound.

Now, add a pair of Animas for purely classical and jazz listening. I could be open to that...

That sounds like a very fun day Marc!

 

[Ron Resnick]

I'm truly puzzled by all this. I love horns, but mostly for rock, specially the old, quirky kind (prog). Classical and jazz didn't do anything for me on the horns, on the contrary. But rock had a special charm though them.

The big Anima in Munich was great when they cranked some Zeppelin. Not so much when they put the tinkly jazz.

Very i n t e r e s t i n g , Alex! On this one, I am with Marc: I especially like horns for jazz and classical.

 

[spiritofmusic]

I’m also puzzled... but more just because horns are best (I don’t usually use that word) at jazz and can also clearly be amazing at some smaller scale classical (sonatas and chamber especially) and some of them even nail large scale orchestral.

Though I think for me it’s more about how they connect you with the music rather than a purely sonic assessment. I’m listening to even more classical and jazz than usual since getting the horn n set combo up and running.

Alex, the issue is not so much that horns don't do prog or fusion, it's just that there is so much disparity btwn tracks, and critically to the stuff that horns lap up ie classical, jazz, vocals.

So, on Barry's well sorted Duos, Genesis, Wind And Wuthering: Los Endos sounds compelling. But Trespass: The Knife sounds cut into a zillion pieces.

Rush, Marillion sounds flat and glassy, whether its original or remastered Hemispheres or Clutching At Straws.

These albums sound juicy, textured and dynamic on my lowly tt and Zus.

Just forget about Magma or Voivod on horns, the pulling apart of things is painful.

But put on Snarky Puppy, Nils Frahm, London Grammar or Needlepoint, stuff I'd consider pretty good modern prog related/post prog, and the Duos are commanding and communicative, I'm sure better than my Zus could ever be.

My dilemma on horns in a nutshell.

 

[Ron Resnick]

Alex, the issue is not so much that horns don't do prog or fusion, it's just that there is so much disparity btwn tracks, and critically to the stuff that horns lap up ie classical, jazz, vocals.

So, on Barry's well sorted Duos, Genesis, Wind And Wuthering: Los Endos sounds compelling. But Trespass: The Knife sounds cut into a zillion pieces.

Rush, Marillion sounds flat and glassy, whether its original or remastered Hemispheres or Clutching At Straws.

These albums sound juicy, textured and dynamic on my lowly tt and Zus.

Just forget about Magma or Voivod on horns, the pulling apart of things is painful.

But put on Snarky Puppy, Nils Frahm, London Grammar or Needlepoint, stuff I'd consider pretty good modern prog related/post prog, and the Duos are commanding and communicative, I'm sure better than my Zus could ever be.

My dilemma on horns in a nutshell.

I am puzzled how your reaction to your music on horns could vary so much artist by artist?

 

[spiritofmusic]

It really really does.

One analogy is the black coffee without sugar one. This is horns. You can taste every blend directly, some aromatic (classical, jazz, well recorded modern stuff like Nils Frahm), some bitter (prog, fusion, flat multitracked/ProTools eg Queen, Adele).

You become a coffee addict, only happy w the best.

Box spkrs, incl my Zus, more forgiving of poor recordings, could be coffee, white w sugar. More palatable of blend. But disguising or colouring that blend too.

I struggle a little w strong, black unsweeted Expresso double shots, as I do 95% Cacao pure chocolate etc etc.

 

[Ron Resnick]

It really really does.

One analogy is the black coffee without sugar one. This is horns. You can taste every blend directly, some aromatic (classical, jazz, well recorded modern stuff like Nils Frahm), some bitter (prog, fusion, flat multitracked/ProTools eg Queen, Adele).

You become a coffee addict, only happy w the best.

Box spkrs, incl my Zus, more forgiving of poor recordings, could be coffee, white w sugar. More palatable of blend. But disguising or colouring that blend too.

I struggle a little w strong, black unsweeted Expresso double shots, as I do 95% Cacao pure chocolate etc etc.

Thank you for trying to explain. I guess I am having trouble with some of your generalizations.

For example, I definitely don’t think that box speakers as a class of speakers are more forgiving of poor recordings than are horn speakers as a class of speakers. I agree that your Zu speakers in particular are more forgiving of poor recordings than is maybe the average horn speaker.

 

[spiritofmusic]

At the sharp end of overly engineered multi driver, lowish sensitivity, complex crossover, v fussy to partnering amps, box spkrs, those featured heavilly on WBF w price tags North of $50-100k, maybe the same fussy "jitteryness" would also be present on reproducing so much "poor sounding" material from late 60s onwards.

Maybe the Zu signature of being extremely affable w poorer recordings is indeed their USP. In my case, I've also managed to eek out more openess and transparency and neutrality w the better sounding, more acoustic-based material too.

It's totally telling that the Zu Crew, Sean Casey esp, will never play audiophile based material at shows.

 

[Audiophile Bill]

To be “forgiving” of bad recordings is to be homogeneous and Lo-fi. To hear differences across LPs and artists is the essence of hi fidelity. As long as we can collectively agree on this basic premise.

I am not saying that one should not wish for homogenous lo-fi - that is a matter of taste.

But to be homogenous limits the ability of the system to sounds magical imho ymmv. The latter is what separates average systems from the best imho ymmv.

 

[Audiophile Bill]

I forgot one last imho ymmv

 

[bonzo75]

All this money on cables and isolation to play bad recordings and make them sound homogenous