[-Richard-]

Ah yes skrivis...you have stated one of the
polarities...along the path toward musical bliss...
that drives many music lovers to wanting to
“gather” the entire musical spectrum
like so many lovely flowers in the garden...
all the “colors” so-to-speak of the musical
gamut...

And why not?

An old audio friend called last night and gave
me hell for my contention that a single driver
could render anything near musical bliss...
he felt compelled to point out that I was missing
more than was tolerable for someone who
professes to be really interested in scaling the
heights of what is possible...potentially...in the
current possibilities of high end audio...

So what is going on here?...am I deluded?
have I gone off the deep end?...is it a chemically
induced delusion of sorts, too much stimulation
for my brain to handle with a proper measure
of sobriety?

Well I stopped ingesting all stimulants many years
ago in favor of the thrill of sobriety...of knowing in
absolute terms what is really going on in my mind...
and taking myself off the merry-go-round of allowing
anxiety to build toward a reward...so that rules
out the idea that I am deluded through alcohol
or drugs...

Of course I could be mentally compensating for
the purchase of equipment that I may feel the need
to justify in psychological terms...the opposite of
buyers remorse...perhaps I am suffering from a
buyers manic high...only to find myself plunging
back to earth when I realize that I have been
pumping energy in a fantasy of sorts in order to
keep my ego intact...for yet another cycle of delusion...

Except I had a friend over that is a composer and
recording engineer along with his wife who plays
the cello in an orchestra and they really like what
they heard...and they are more sober than I am...

Could it be skrivis that there is a threshold to musical
delight that once reached renders the entire question
of “absolute” frequency extension mute?

What I am suggesting...is that musical reproduction is
a trick of sorts...we are trying to trick our minds
(collectively) into thinking that what we are hearing
is real...or very close to real...and if you think
about that...that is a silly idea in and by itself...
it suggests a split in ones consciousness...as
if one part of our mind is trying to convince
some other part of our mind that magic is taking
place...the inner adult speaking to the inner
child?

I will let that go for now...although it is a very
interesting vein to mine...perhaps in the future...

Once one is aware...that it is really
possible to “...open the window all the way...” as
you said so nicely...it becomes part of our
hunters instinct to want it all...why shouldn’t I
want to have the full spectrum of the frequencies
that are available to me...why should I miss anything
that is on the recording...doesn’t that imply that I am
missing something musically as well...can we really
separate the frequency from the music?

All very interesting questions.

But honestly...I feel my musical interests for the moment
lie outside the implications that those questions point to...
I am quite content to “feel” the music...to be swept away
so-to-speak by the sea of musical waves...to enter into the
“dialogue” that the music is imposing on me...to turn
myself inside out and become for the duration of the
music a musical instrument myself...a resonating,
vibrating emotional being...

And that is what is happening with my current setup...

I am hearing a certain amount of exaggeration...but it
all seems to benefit my musical experience...the resin
on the bow strings...the wooden chamber of the violin
or cello...the nuances of Ray Charles’s voice...the strange
relationships that occur as various singers mingle there
voices with different accompanying instruments...

It does not always work...but it works most of the time...

And the strangest thing of all is that the voice and the
instruments never interfere with one another...each
exists in its own space and each is just as compelling
which creates a powerful magnate that pulls you into the
inner mystery of the performance...

So I am afraid I am not terribly interested to “measure”
if I am capturing the full spectrum of what is potentially
on the recording...I am moved...I am thrilled...and that
seems enough for me...for now...

Warm regards -Richard-

[miklorsmith]

How many of us can Truly say we are Happy with our systems?

Good for you.

[ludavico]

Well, I guess I am not very happy at the moment.

I have read many reviews over the years that just gush with praise over how well the midrange is done by Brand X amplifier "

Anybody have the URL for Brand X amplifiers?

[skrivis]

Well, I guess I am not very happy at the moment.

I have read many reviews over the years that just gush with praise over how well the midrange is done by Brand X amplifier "

Anybody have the URL for Brand X amplifiers?

I'll be darned... there is a Brand X amplifier. They talk about it here:
http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=254589

[TheChairGuy]

Well, the Coby DVD-707 arrived an hour ago...and it sounds pretty dang nice.  Perhaps it will get better with seasoning...I'm running it with the analog outs to my JVC F10.  It's on too low to meaningfully know much as the little one in the house is sleeping nearby.

It plays CD's better than my Pioneer 656 and the Sony DVP-S7700 as I remember them....I have it hooked up to AC thru my BPT unit (which is probably cleaning up that natty switching power supply)

It's surprisingly well built for $60-odd dollars and slim.  One of the reasons is that the power supply is outside the box.

Time will tell if it's a good platform for a DC transport....

[Vinnie R.]

TCG,

Not to be a damper, but I tried something very similar to the product that you ordered and the digital output signal quality was aweful!  Yes, a battery powered transport is a great thing, but Coby (and the cheap brand that I tried) tend to have the crappiest designs and the results can be terrible (even if battery powered).    

Of course, I didn't try the one you purchased and it would be incredible if it actually makes for a good battery transport!  Please keep us posted!

Thanks,

TCG,

I forgot to mention, the similar product that I tried also has a 12V adapter, but I was sad when I opened the unit up and found that monster that I feared would be living in there...a friggin' switch mode power supply to "hack apart" the pure 12V battery power that I was feeding it in order to efficiently generate the 2.5V, 3.3V, 5V, 12V, -24V etc. etc. that is used for all the dvd processing, florescent backlighting, and other stuff.  Doh!  

My guess is that the Coby uses the same thing, which pretty much defeats the use of battery power.  

I'm still very curious about your findings!

Thanks for keeping us posted,

[TheChairGuy]

Hey Vinnie,

Bienvenue!

Hey, I'm not sure if I'm just having a good day (good things happened at work today), but I'm liking this DVD player a bit.  It's much more likeable than my Pioneer or Sony (which has $800 or so of Turbo-mods by Empirical and is used as a pretty neat transport full-time, no clock installed however).  I'm really surpised a bunch at this music I'm hearing - I'm comparing only to how (awful) the Sony is as a standalone - no comparo's have been made as a transport....yet.

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

The 90 day warranty does not bring comfort, however  

[doug s.]

...I got hooked on mega buck medical equipment power supplies for audio awhile back, and this was a big mistake. There is a reason why heroin is addictive, and the First Law of Audio is You don't know what you're missing.

After I had to give up the power-freebasing plugs-on-wheels, anything else I tried didn't sound quite right....

why, dmason, didja have to give up "the power-freebasing plugs-on-wheels", as you call the med power supplies?  i am curious, as i am presently addicted to them.    but i find they're extremely cheap, awailable for pennies on the dollar, on ebay...  and, they don't seem have any other negative affects, like bouts of violence, keeping me from my yob, etc...  

doug s.

[Dmason]

"I find they're extremely cheap, for pennies on the dollar.."

I think you are referring to isolation transformers, like OneAC et al. I was referring specifically to a large-scale AC re-generators, the one in question also carried  a deep cycle battery system, used for supplying clean, uninterruptible power for ICU equipment in a hospital setting. It also worked wonders for sound quality in home audio ( ) and sports a price tag of $XX,XXX. I gave it up because its owners needed it. It was a totally decadent, self-indulgent solution to the AC power conditioning thing, and the sound sucked, thereafter. Where I live, the AC has so much hash in it that I can barely listen in the day time if I have a stereo drinking from the tap. Apart from superior sonics, there is a very practical reason for me to want to get off the National Electrical Grid.

"If AC were water, then your components are drinking from a sewer."

[doug s.]

"I find they're extremely cheap, for pennies on the dollar.."

I think you are referring to isolation transformers, like OneAC et al. I was referring specifically to a large-scale AC re-generators, the one in question also carried  a deep cycle battery system, used for supplying clean, uninterruptible power for ICU equipment in a hospital setting. It also worked wonders for sound quality in home audio ( ) and sports a price tag of $XX,XXX. I gave it up because its owners needed it. It was a tota ...

thanks for your clarification.  but, i am also referring to hewlett packard dc power supplies like hewlett packard, lambda, etc., which i have used to great effect.  i would certainly look to using one of these in lieu of using a sla.  plugged into an iso trans, of course.    especially for something like the clari-t amp, where some folk feel better performance can be gleaned from feeding it 15v.

also, btw - even the power supplies like the one yure referring to, can be found on ebay.  tho not cheap, they aren't any more expensive than many typical "audiophile approved" supplies...  

doug s.

[Dmason]

thanks for that; However, my goal is for a battery powered transport, and to get off AC once and for all. With a reclocking circuit in a battery DAC, or coming USB signal injection, jitter will become a thing of the past as well.

I wouldn't have need nor interest in AC power conditioning in an entirely battery driven system. The adherents to this way of going tend to be the ones using it. Adherents or "converts."

Most reference grade test amplification either for lab work or audio testing tends to be battery driven.

[TheChairGuy]

Good Doctor, here on Day 2, without the benefit of alcohol, cannabis, snuff or a big order today, I am enjoying the little Coby DVD-707 player.

It's still on AC, thru the BPT, but it is playing real music.

I'm truly shocked at it right now...it is far better than my Pioneer 656 or Sony 7700 as players - far and away better. I have not looked within, but the adaptor is a switching power supply (says it right on the case)...and is located on the outside, not within.  The unit is DC operable (comes with a car lighter plug) and has remote (a nice, simple Bose sized one, at that).  Specs are stingy and slight in the manual, but it sounds shockingly good for $67 +.

Here's a further interesting note....the remote has a volume control; allowing one to run straight into a power amp of choice if that's your idea of simplicity.

[Dmason]

Divan Dude,

This surprises me not. It is another anecdote in a growing pattern, especially with respect to newer digital electronics. My little Samsung HD841, (identical to Toshiba 4960,) is really quite a stunner. We tried it out recently next to a five year old Uber Theta DAC III which sold for about $3,500 at the time. Known to have a thick and creamy, bassy presentation, the Sammy is CLEARLY the  better, more agile, lithe, musically delicate, faster, more sparkly and able to present complex harmonics of wind instruments, whatever the expletive, it has more, whatever "it" is, the Samsung has it in spades over the Theta, which sounded truly monochromatic, and rather dull, after the Samsung, which I bought for $150 at Fry's, while looking at other stuff. The Samsung makes an even better transport than the modified Sony DV7700 or Sony DV550S, by quite a margin.

As far as SLA vs. AC conditioning goes, I expect to have my balls-to-the-walls Reali-T amp from Vinnie, with all the best of everything, and none of the bad, and nowhere a plug in sight. That should indicate my preferences. I also have some opinions on speaker aligments to take greatest advantage of the ClariT SLA sound. AC conditioning? Turn the page. I don't even want crossovers, or enclosures or any of that stuff to get in the way of this good stuff, using "slow" capacitors.  

[TheChairGuy]

DM,

The Coby can be run on DC/SLA's....allowing you to sever your last audio link to Pacific Gas & Electric.

I need to try it as a standalone transport (on SLA) vs. the Sony 7700 sooooooon.

The sound I am getting is akin to your Samsung....'lithe' is a good word for it. I am listening to Herbie Hancock's Headhunter and I am enjoying the bass whacks immensely...so it's not bass shy, it's tone is pleasant and images are solid and well defined.  I hear cymbols rising thru the mass of music often now....I find higher frequency instruments to add a lot of my excitement in music...and it all seems to be there.

It's only be burning in for 15 hours or so now, mind you  

[Dmason]

Ass Tray Auteur,

Again, this doesn't surprise me at all. There have been so many advances in microelectronics even in the last year, that it is a whole new ballgame. Take the book and throw it away. Then turn and plug that thing into your car if you have to. Although I would bet there is a switching PSU in there somewhere. Maybe this is what we need.

Walls that no man thought would fall
The altars of the just. Crushed.
Dust in the wind.                           -Greg Lake

This is how I feel about the "high end" audio industry right now, and I believe the winds of change are beginning to breeze.

One other thought about SLA juicing and practicality; in working with my DarkStar UAV, (Unorthodox Audionic Vortex) design, the system is SO revealing, and so sensitive, that I doubt any AC powered stuff would but hinder the sonics.

[lonewolfny42]

My little Samsung HD841, (identical to Toshiba 4960,) is really quite a stunner...... The Samsung makes an even better transport than the modified Sony DV7700 or Sony DV550S, by quite a margin.
   

Dr., [/list:u]I do wonder about this statement...a modded  7700. Which modded 7700 was that ? Thanks !!

[Dmason]

Phil,

Minor kitchen table mods; usual common sense DIY stuff, caps, diodes, insulation, better terminations, rewiring.....don't get me wrong, the Sony 7700 is a fantastic transport, I regard it as a "friend," it has never even hiccuped, and it ain't going anywhere. I just somehow feel the Samsung is more to my liking [right now.] Bottom line: Samsung HD841/Toshiba 4960 [seem to] work well as a transport, [* for a perfect-pitch music-lover/multi-instrumentalist,] perhaps not so well for an audio vivisectionist, however. As always, YMMV. It may very well change yet again when I get the Reali-T from Vinnie and hook it up to the prototype DarkStar...(please excuse the pedantics, I am careful now to carefully qualify my observations on these boards, anymore.)

 * Based on measurement in room using Mark II Tympano Cochleometer.

[Vinnie R.]

Where I live, the AC has so much hash in it that I can barely listen in the day time if I have a stereo drinking from the tap. Apart from superior sonics, there is a very practical reason for me to want to get off the National Electrical Grid.

"If AC were water, then your components are drinking from a sewer."

If audiocircle ever starts a quote board, PLEASE make sure that ths one gets submitted!  

[TheChairGuy]

Well, I've got 4 full days burning in the $67 Coby DVD-707 and it's a rewarding experience.  It is a real over achiever, but there are a few caveats.

I haven't tried in on DC, nor used as solo transport, so my observations are as strictly a standalone player into the Little Wonder JVC F10.

As Vinnie pointed out, this has a natty Switching Power Supply...pretty much mucking up your chances of a great DC-fed player.  However, as I learned from Mark Hampton of ZCable time and time over, these switching power supplies become rather respectable with enormous filtration/conditioning efforts.

The difference between plugging the Coby into the wall and the BPT is startling.  It is simply a piddling mass player thru the wall - irritating to listen to.  Thru the BPT, it's giving my 97% of the pleasure of 50x more expensive main front end.  Yesterday, I added ZSLeeves to the IC's....didn't hear any noticable benefit.  Then, I added another ZSleeve to the power cord leading to the outboard switching power supply/adaptor...performance took a significant leap forward.  In fact, it's the first time I could listen to Celine Dion's 'A New Day Has Come' without wincing from the glare.

Cleaning up things well in advance of the Coby's power supply will vault this to a remarkably decent player. One thing it seems to get right is it's solid...it seems to not share the common problem of digital jitter with other players I've tried (Pioneer 656, Sony DVP-S7700 and various CD Walkmen)

I wanted to share my experience because I know the continual drum-beating I've made about the JVC has been responsible for a few of you buying it...and to nearly a man, a good experience for all.  However, I wanted to caution any of you thinking of buying the Coby that it is less of a budget buy than the JVC out of the box and into the wall.  The JVC has a linear power supply - so it sounds pretty good any way you power it...tho benefits from substantial conditioning.

The Coby is barely average out of the box.....but with substantial conditioning becomes an entirely different animal.

So now you know and my conscience is clear.  OHenry, I hope you're reading this.....

[Dmason]

Celine Dion appreciates your efforts. I'm sure.

No amount of power conditioning could make that woman sound musical to me. But I digress. Thanks for your insights on this new piece.