AudioCircle
The Commercial Zone => Audio Shows and Events => Lone Star Audio Fest => Topic started by: rjbond3rd on 14 May 2011, 02:16 am
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Please post your photos. And if you're near Dallas this weekend, don't forget to attend.
http://www.lonestaraudiofest.com
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46647)
Raven Audio (main room).
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46648)
Audio Kinesis room. Very clear, plenty of bass.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46649)
Kim's hand-crafted planar speakers. Clear and open-sounding as you would expect.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46650)
Oddwatt makes really interesting tube and solid state amp kits.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46651)
Pi Speakers' Wayne Parham. Source was Blu-ray. Subs were subtle with no boom. Wayne said he mainly was using them to even out the room modes. Really deep and wide soundstage.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46652)
Uriah Dailey (udailey) had a fascinating room. Sub gave a solid foundation, Audio Nirvana Super 12's sound completely different from what you might expect. The cabinet did not vibrate at all (very solid thanks to shelf bracing). Made me want to get a pair.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46654)
Mind-blowing. Yes, a pair of cellos retro-fitted with 8" Fostex with custom cone mods. The creator also mods other (any) gear and builds tube amps.
I have to give this the "most innovative" award. It just sounded great to me, nothing like I expected at all. Don't debate, just listen to these if you can.
The creator's web site is http://www.audibleimprovements.com
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46656)
These rebuilt (possibly re-engineered?) Quad ESL's sounded spectacular when I heard them. Perfectly blended subs. I believe the amp was a vintage Yamaha. This room sounded so musical that it left me nearly speechless. I could not believe my ears.
The gentleman's website: http://www.innerurban.com
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46657)
Polk Audio had a very surprising room. I expected more of a home theater sound but I was surprised by the rock-solid soundstage. Definitely credible for certain kinds of music. Not the most "subtle" in the hifi sense but sturdy and capable. The power amps are modular (you add cards or modules to get more watts). The gentleman running the room also runs the Polk forum. He gave me a t-shirt (thank you again!)
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46658)
The YG Acoustics Carmel (I think) at $18k. Actually, it's the only YG I have enjoyed and this was my third time hearing it. And it's not bad. The aluminum cabinet gave off just subtle vibrations (not absolutely dead but deader than wood). The image was rock-solid as you would expect. The gentleman running the room was very gracious and smart.
Quibble (since they were the show's most expensive): I thought I was hearing compression during one of the Jack Johnson tracks. Source was computer, the Luxman amp had tons of headroom so I was left wondering if the speakers were just barely starting to strain. But still, this room sounded good.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46659)
I'm sorry I did not catch the vendor's name but it was a killer vinyl setup and really nice amps. The Vandersteens I've heard twice previously and they are good.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46660)
Brines Acoustics, Bob Brines. The smaller speakers are very muscular and room-filling. The larger speakers had a different, perhaps more traditional single-driver sound which I loved.
Bob's room always sounds excellent because he uses a computer front-end and EQ's to perfection. Customers can get these set up for non-computer systems of course.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46661)
Manzanita brought this fantastic OB (and two others). It's hard to believe the deep bass and clear sound these produced. The proprietor is friendly and extremely knowledgeable about speaker design and freely shares his expertise and the rationale of each of his designs.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46662)
Econowaves (Google 'em). Fantastic bang for the buck. The gentleman running the room modded the crossover to bring the treble a db down from flat, and will post his crossover and parts list on another forum. Stevie Ray Vaughn sounded perfect. Retro looks but a very modern, room-fillng sound.
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Post #11 looks like Von Schweikert Audio speakers.
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Post #11 looks like Von Schweikert Audio speakers.
It's the Unifield Model 3.
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Here's a link to all the pics I took this year. Too many, too big to post on the forum. If you roll over the pic it will give you options to see them in different sizes. Enjoy!!!!
LSAF 2011 Pics (http://shanemoorephotography.smugmug.com/Electronics/LSAF-2011)
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Blooze / Shane, those photos are outstanding.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46659)
I'm sorry I did not catch the vendor's name but it was a killer vinyl setup and really nice amps. The Vandersteens I've heard twice previously and they are good.
Completely missed this room in a day and half there. Where the heck was it?
And this one!!!! Did they have any signs up or anything? I feel bad not getting any pics of their rooms and the fact I didn't get to listen :duh:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46656)
These rebuilt (possibly re-engineered?) Quad ESL's sounded spectacular when I heard them. Perfectly blended subs. I believe the amp was a vintage Yamaha. This room sounded so musical that it left me nearly speechless. I could not believe my ears.
The gentleman's website: http://www.innerurban.com
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Blooze / Shane, those photos are outstanding.
+1 :thumb:
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+1 :thumb:
Thanks!
It really hacks me that I missed those two rooms though. I was pressed for time trying to take pics and listen, but I've never missed a room before in the 5-6 years I've been going to this show.
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I missed TurboFC3S's room (Vapor Audio): http://www.vaporsound.com/#all
I tried to get in a few times but it was packed with other people.
Turbo, how was the show for you?
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46662)
Econowaves (Google 'em). Fantastic bang for the buck. The gentleman running the room modded the crossover to bring the treble a db down from flat, and will post his crossover and parts list on another forum. Stevie Ray Vaughn sounded perfect. Retro looks but a very modern, room-fillng sound.
Really? could you compare the sound to the Unifield 3 room?
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Thanks for the pics and impressions.
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Awesome pics, looks like a really interesting event. (Poor cello... :bawl:)
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Thanks for the pics. Makes up a bit for not being there. :D
John, the Cello's are still making music, just a bit differently. Still could be passed down to the generations to come.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46656)
These rebuilt (possibly re-engineered?) Quad ESL's sounded spectacular when I heard them. Perfectly blended subs. I believe the amp was a vintage Yamaha. This room sounded so musical that it left me nearly speechless. I could not believe my ears.
The gentleman's website: http://www.innerurban.com
In the Quad room the Yamaha was doing preamp duty only, later a bottlehead line was put in for the line stage, sounded even better, the power amp was a Rouge Atlas with 6L6s. These Quads have the refurbished PK panels, the art of audio hasn't advance that much since 1957 has it? the room was standing room only all day.
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Bloody nice coverage, dude. Thanks a heap! That guy with the electrostats, or planars as you called and with whom I visited with last year- and if I am correct- can build them to suit any size room. And they are very affordable and sounded like no speaker was present . . good to see him back. Did Uriah Dailey have his peanut size and peanut cost pre-amp? Duke used them last year in his set-up and I was impressed, yes sir.
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Great pics!
Anyone know what amps those are in Dukes room?
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Those are Richard Gray's quad parallel 10 single ended amps.
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In the Quad room the Yamaha was doing preamp duty only, later a bottlehead line was put in for the line stage, sounded even better, the power amp was a Rouge Atlas with 6L6s. These Quads have the refurbished PK panels, the art of audio hasn't advance that much since 1957 has it? the room was standing room only all day.
Kudos to that guy who rebuilt those Quads and shared them with anyone who wanted to listen. An absolute treat that one does not experience often. Outstanding sound, great tunes.
I didn't catch his name but it was the Innerurban room.
THANKS!!
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Really? could you compare the sound to the Unifield 3 room?
Hi Bear,
Comparing the Von Schweikert room to the Econowaves is a difficult comparison.
The VS room was a high-end vinyl / tube system (where the turntable probably weighed 100 pounds). I think the VS speakers are $12k or something? I've heard those speakers a total of three times now and they are good in many ways.
The Econowave room was a DIY type of room, no fancy source or amps, just straightforward and the materials list was under $500. Bang for the buck, I thought it was unbeatable if you like the sound of constant directivity horns. If there's one aspect you don't love, you can always upgrade that one part (e.g., the woofer, the box, the compression driver) and then do whatever tweak on the xover. Endless possibilities.
So they are two different extremes of hifi. (Great avatar, if that's Eastbound and Down).
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Did Uriah Dailey have his peanut size and peanut cost pre-amp? Duke used them last year in his set-up and I was impressed, yes sir.
Hi Jim, I'm afraid I don't know but maybe he (other others) can chime in? Are you coming next year? We had a nice chat last year.
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Did Uriah Dailey have his peanut size and peanut cost pre-amp? Duke used them last year in his set-up and I was impressed, yes sir.
Duke was using Uriah's newest prototype this year. It has dual digital displays, remote control, and a host of other goodies.
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Good job on the pic's Robert and Shane.
Robert: I'm sorry we couldn't connect before you had to skat, I was looking forward to a chat....
Shane: How did I miss seeing you? we must've passed like 2 ships in the night...
John
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Good job on the pic's Robert and Shane.
Robert: I'm sorry we couldn't connect before you had to skat, I was looking forward to a chat....
Shane: How did I miss seeing you? we must've passed like 2 ships in the night...
John
I should have stuck out fairly well Sat. wearing the bright blood-red oxford. Who knows though as I was on limited time and was jumping from room to room.
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Mightym! I wanted to hear more about the Dallas as well. Next cappuccino is on me in 2012, harf :)
So John, what did you end up liking best? Did you hear the bg OB's (Manzanita)?
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Robert: It's hard to say what my show favorite was. I did hear the Manzanita's with the Seas fullrange,and the big Eminence woofer. I always like the OB's anyway.( did the boys from Houston bring the Hawthorne's this year, I missed them if they did ) I felt like everyone had their S#&t together this year, really good sound almost everywhere I went. I've been kinda turned on to vintage stuff this last year, and I thought the vintage Quad 57's were a treat. I thought I saw the entire show too, until I get home and find out I cruised right by Bob Brines' room, I was a little bummed about that. I've enjoyed chatting with him in the past.
I'm going to try really hard to work out a way to go to RMAF in the fall. Maybe we can get together there.
I've been toying with the idea of building an HTPC for about 6 months, my fevered brain was trying to figure out how to stuff additional Class"D" amps/powersupplies into the same case so I could have a complete computer front end with everything in one case. Stereo Clarity shows up with something very similar to what I had envisioned. I'm almost as excited to see where they go with this concept, as anything else I saw at the show. Crescendo is doing a build of a pair of his ESL's on the web, and I'm looking forward to following that too.
Shane: I don't know what to say, except maybe that I was in disguise this year, I didn't wear my Tropical print shirts with the cargo shorts I usually make my leisure uniform....
GTG Play in the traffic for 5 or 6 days,
John
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Hi Jim, I'm afraid I don't know but maybe he (other others) can chime in? Are you coming next year? We had a nice chat last year.
Thanks for asking. It would be good to visit again, but at this time, I just don't know.
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Hi Bear,
Comparing the Von Schweikert room to the Econowaves is a difficult comparison.
The VS room was a high-end vinyl / tube system (where the turntable probably weighed 100 pounds). I think the VS speakers are $12k or something? I've heard those speakers a total of three times now and they are good in many ways.
The Econowave room was a DIY type of room, no fancy source or amps, just straightforward and the materials list was under $500. Bang for the buck, I thought it was unbeatable if you like the sound of constant directivity horns. If there's one aspect you don't love, you can always upgrade that one part (e.g., the woofer, the box, the compression driver) and then do whatever tweak on the xover. Endless possibilities.
So they are two different extremes of hifi. (Great avatar, if that's Eastbound and Down).
Thanks for the feedback! The avatar is indeed Kenny, from Eastbound and Down. :thumb:
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Just got back into St Louis this morning. I'd say the show went well, we had a nice stream of traffic on Saturday ... Sunday was totally dead, but that let us get back on the road earlier than I'd planned. I got to meet a few people that I had been wanting too for years, which was one of the best parts of the show. In all, it was definately worth the drive down.
We received a ton of great feedback about our room, as always that made me feel great! I'll let you all say what you thought of the sound. Here's a couple shots I took:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46734)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46735)
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Oooh! I see a Dodd Audio Battery Buffer in that setup! :thumb:
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Oooh! I see a Dodd Audio Battery Buffer in that setup! :thumb:
Yea, Trung was nice enough to let me use his for the weekend. The Eastern Electric M88 has a switch that lets you bypass the pre section and use it as just an amp. So flipping that and using the Dodd buffer as the pre instead made for a nice upgrade. Nice little piece that I think I might have to add to my own system at home soon.
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Yea, Trung was nice enough to let me use his for the weekend. The Eastern Electric M88 has a switch that lets you bypass the pre section and use it as just an amp. So flipping that and using the Dodd buffer as the pre instead made for a nice upgrade. Nice little piece that I think I might have to add to my own system at home soon.
Trung is a good dude. Got a rain check from him for some Vietnamese food. Love the stuff. That's another reason for me to carry my hiney back up there next year. What I'm workin on now, FYI, is a video (a friend will shoot) of me in my room walkin and talkin (educating, hopefully) about my small product. Then I should have less to do at the show. Heck, I might even attend RMAF?
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Jim
Yes, I do have your "rain check Vietnamese food" here. :wink:
Please let me know if you heading this way gain.
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Jim
Yes, I do have your "rain check Vietnamese food" here. :wink:
Please let me know if you heading this way gain.
Definitely, T, thanks.
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Oddwatt makes really interesting tube and solid state amp kits.
How do they sound? I've never heard of Oddwatt.
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How do they sound? I've never heard of Oddwatt.
I thought they sounded quite nice, especially for the money. They make no bones that they will not sound like a $5K amp, but they do sound like some amps I've heard that cost 3-4 times as much. A very good buy for the money, IMO, if you are into kits.
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(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46659)
I'm sorry I did not catch the vendor's name but it was a killer vinyl setup and really nice amps. The Vandersteens I've heard twice previously and they are good.
This was my room, Found Music (www.found-music.com). The speakers are Von Schweikert Unifield 3's on gracious loan from Scott Warren at Advanced Home Theater. I am sorry we didn't get a chance to meet and chat more!
Scott Sheaffer
Found Music LLC
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Little late :duh:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46766)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46767)
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46768)
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:D
Nooo... take the pictures down, i fell in love with the melody equipment. :icon_lol:
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I was hoping to make it up to the show to hear Wayne's pi3 speakers.
Any additional comments on this room?
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I was hoping to make it up to the show to hear Wayne's pi3 speakers.
Any additional comments on this room?
I'm a Pi speaker fan. I have a pair of the Two Towers, which were my first "DIY" speaker attempt. I've heard all of the models and many with the different upgrades. My personal favorites are the Pi 3's with the best drivers. I think they just do more right than any of Wayne's others. Especially if you've got a pair of subs to run with them. I suck at making audiospeak descriptions so I'll let others do that.
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I'm a Pi speaker fan. I have a pair of the Two Towers, which were my first "DIY" speaker attempt. I've heard all of the models and many with the different upgrades. My personal favorites are the Pi 3's with the best drivers. I think they just do more right than any of Wayne's others. Especially if you've got a pair of subs to run with them. I suck at making audiospeak descriptions so I'll let others do that.
Thanks, i am actually interested in the pi4 and Wayne said the pi3 exhibit very similar traits.
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I was hoping to make it up to the show to hear Wayne's pi3 speakers.
Any additional comments on this room?
I've owned the pi3 speakers and have heard both the pi3 and the pi4's. Their sonic signature is very similar. My pi3's had the Eminence woofer and tweeter. The pi3 pair Wayne exhibited at the show had the upgrade woofers and tweeters, which take the midrange and treble clarity to another level. With either set of drivers the pi speakers don't have that signature "horn" sound you hear in some older non-CD horn designs. If you didn't see the horn you wouldn't know you're listening to one.
The pi3's with the Eminence drivers don't have the treble resolution you would hear from a "high end" speaker with an expensive dome tweeter, but their constant directivity waveguides image better, and they are far more dynamic than conventional speakers. Even with the less expensive Eminence drivers a tweeter capacitor upgrade provides an audible sound improvement.
If I had to live with one speaker pair for the rest of my life, the pi speakers would be on my short list. :thumb:
(http://www.audiocircle.com/image.php?id=46820)