It is impossible for anything digital to sound analogue, because it isn't analogue!
Arkless Electronics-Engineered to be better. Tel. 01670 530674 (after 1pm)
Modded Thorens TD150, Audio Technica AT-1005 MkII, Technics EPC-300MC, Arkless Hybrid MC phono stage, Arkless passive pre, Arkless 50WPC Class A SS power amp, (or) Arkless modded Leak Stereo 20, Modded Kef Reference 105/3's
ReVox PR99, Studer B62, Ferrograph Series 7, Tandberg TCD440, Hitachi FT-5500MkI, also FT-5500MkII
Digital: Yamaha CDR-HD1500 (Digital Swiss army knife-CD recorder, player, hard drive, DAC and ADC in one), PC files via 24/96 sound card and SPDIF, modded Philips CD850, modded Philips CD104, modded DPA Little Bit DAC. Sennheiser HD580 cans with Arkless Headphone amp.
Cables- free interconnects that come with CD players, mains leads from B&Q, dead kettles etc, extension leads from Tesco
Indeed - and that's the whole point!
Unlike, for example, here, when someone you've met and heard their system (often on numerous occasions), have conversed with on the forum for many months or years, and so have a good understanding of their sonic priorities, and whether they align with yours or not.
I'm far more likely to listen to them, and perhaps buy something on the strength of their advice, than I would with some 'unknown entity' elsewhere.
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!
Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!
Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!
Location: Sussex
Posts: 324
I'm Simon.
I agree you can't rely on them fully unto themselves as single reviews, but you have to understand that people who have bought the product have tried it and tried others, thought is it worth it for the price etc. You can rely on it if lots buy, as it's very persuasive of quality, just as you'd buy a focus if lots buy and not a Trabant. Or if people are eating the fish in a restaurant if it's just been caught etc. It's not junk either, as pmc or naim is not a junk brand for instance.
I'd buy if magazines rate it - a number of magazines, if dealers sell a lot, if company websites have customers rating it, and then I go to the shop and I make my own mind up if this is true or not. If it is I buy, if I don't then it isn't in sink with others views. But I certainly wouldn't go to buy 'obscure or relatively unknown electronics' amp because all this information would be less. It's just common sense and within the sphere of audiophile offerings I think most people buy this way. But I somewhat agree you do get some people who go for any old crap.
Location: Sussex
Posts: 324
I'm Simon.
No I know best, as I make the purchase decision, because I'd go and listen to the rated ones i mention and those that aren't as well, in the sphere of shop offerings, but what I can't do is drive to every unknown manufacturer or dealer with these unknowns because they will be few and far between and some way away and their distribution won't be so good. If they all did free trials or a nominal fee in postage costs, I'm right with them, but sadly I don't see many doing this. I go to audio t instead and trace out dealers of products being raved about by a decent number of people.
Absolutely you are right the Lithuanian car may be better. But I'm not going to drive to Scotland or milies elsewhere to find the one dealer who sells them, and then go to another dealer who sells an obscure make miles away too. I'd check out my local garages, then I might go and pick up from them or a dealer nationwide.
I'm happy to chat to people on this forum, but I do find this kind of obscurism shall I call it, rather odd. As by your own assertion its a person judgement, it's not about what is good, but different to the norm, so you cast out pmc etc because they sell a lot. That seems counter to your own position and shouldn't hi fi be non exclusive, that you say it's down to individual judgement. If the obscure is good buy it, if the common stuff is, buy it too. I'm just explaining the reality of what's possible with these products.
Location: Sussex
Posts: 324
I'm Simon.
I'd agree but I'm not talking about Bose which are crap relatively speaking to audiophile brands - I'm talking about brands like pmc, harbeth, atc, spendor, naim, musical fidelity, etc. All very decent. I don't know what a lot of the brands in signatures are. But I could also say Bose are good for what they do, but most people on this forum have spent considerably more than a £1k Bose soundplayer on their hi fi.
I'm not 'casting out' anything. I happen to rate some of PMCs speakers. However, if a talented DIY-er, or small-time specialist speaker manufacturer, produced a design that to my ears was better (and worked better with my equipment), than the PMCs in question, then that's what I'd buy, and I'd care not a jot about who had the 'best established reputation', or how 'well reviewed' their equipment was.
As for your comments about "obscurism", if you've read Our Ethos and followed the discussions here from regulars, you'll know that on AoS we champion the 'little guy', and also the weird and the obscure, simply because that's often where one finds truly great products. It's got to be *really* good though, not just simply obscure for the sake of it!
Also, some of us (me included), providing it sounds superb and ticks all the right boxes, really enjoy owning bespoke-made equipment, designed and/or modified for us, thus making it unique, than something commercially produced in its 100s or 1000s. Almost every part of my system is like that, and that provides me with almost as much satisfaction than the fact that to my ears, it bests everything else I've heard so far, at a price I'm willing to spend.
In fact, I actively go out of my way to BE DIFFERENT from the majority of people, as I hate having the same stuff as everyone else!!
Anyway, I'm dodging between jobs at the moment, so will tackle some of your other points later.
Marco.
Main System
Turntable: Heavily-modified Technics SL-1210MK5G [Mike New bearing/ETP platter/Paul Hynes SR7 PSU & reg mods]. Funk Firm APM Achromat/Nagaoka GL-601 Crystal Record Weight/Isonoe feet & boots/Ortofon RS-212D/Denon DL-103GL in Denon PCL-300 headshell with Funk Firm Houdini/Kondo SL-115 pure-silver cartridge leads.
Paul Hynes MC head amp/SR5 PSU. Also modded Lentek head amp/Denon AU-310 SUT.
Other Cartridges: Nippon Columbia (NOS 1987) Denon DL-103. USA-made Shure SC35C with NOS stylus. Goldring G820 with NOS stylus. Shure M55E with NOS stylus.
CD Player: Audiocom-modified Sony X-777ES/DAS-R1 DAC.
Tape Deck: Tandberg TCD 310, fully restored and recalibrated as new, by RDE, plus upgraded with heads from the TCD-420a. Also with matching TM4 Norway microphones.
Preamps: Heavily-modified Croft Charisma-X. LDR Stereo Coffee. Power Amps: Tube Distinctions Copper Amp fitted with Tungsol KT-150s. Quad 306.
Cables & Sundries: Mark Grant HDX1 interconnects and digital coaxial cable, plus Mark Grant 6mm UP-LCOFC Van Damme speaker cable. MCRU 'Ultimate' mains leads. Lehmann clone headphone amp with vintage Koss PRO-4AAA headphones.
Tube Distinctions digital noise filter. VPI HW16.5 record cleaning machine.
Speakers: Tannoy 15MGs in Lockwood cabinets with modified crossovers. 1967 Celestion Ditton 15.
Protect your HUMAN RIGHTS and REFUSE ANY *MANDATORY* VACCINE FOR COVID-19!
Also **SAY NO** to unjust 'vaccine passports' or certificates, which are totally incompatible with a FREE society!!!