shameless shill!

shep · « **on:** 26 Feb 2007, 02:32 pm »

For those of you who like smallish, beautifull, great speakers. I was just informed by the shop in Holland that he will soon be able to send these free of charge anywhere! Don't ask me how, I don't know. So now, the full price for spkrs and shipping will be 599 euros (sounds less than 600). That's 790$. You have only my word for this aa but this speaker is WAY above its price class. Here's their site http://www.crafty.nl/. The owner speaks excellent English. I wrote a wishy washy review for them

It doesn't need a sub unless you are a bass freak, is an imaging champ, extreemly revealing but nicely so and would have a high WAF factor. I love my blue one!

shep · « **Reply #1 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 02:35 pm »

ps. Nooo affiliation, just a very happy customer aa (I wish he would do something nice for all the good press I give him

Aside from my speaker wires, I never wholeheartedly recommend audio gear (no not even my Trends T-10) I know how subjective this is and I don't need enemies! But these...yes absolutely.

jqp · « **Reply #2 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 02:44 pm »

And what speaker wires do you recommend (just so we can guage your shilling)

Brad · « **Reply #3 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 02:48 pm »

Those look pretty nice - excellent finish, but is 85db a good match for your Trends amp?

shep · « **Reply #4 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 05:15 pm »

"And what speaker wires do you recommend (just so we can guage your shilling)"
My contribution to the Anti-Cable and co. crowd is http://www.ahfartaudio.com/
Occ solid. Wouldn't have it another way. I here those snickers

for you info., "fart" is a rough phonetic for the Chinese "fragrantly audible rear transmission". Satified?
"Those look pretty nice - excellent finish, but is 85db a good match for your Trends amp?"
For sure not. Which is why the Trends is sold and I await my 100watt tubed Tripath.
http://www.little-tube.com/forum, when M. Mardis has finished modding it.

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #5 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 05:23 pm »

Shep , I would guess the little Trend amp would do better with their horn speaker.....which will be 92db sensitivity......

shep · « **Reply #6 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 05:37 pm »

Yes it surely would. I know nothing about this speaker, which just came out, excepting that he spent a couple of years working on it. I'm not sure of his logic in proposing this, other than the fact that he likes Tripath sound, SET and obviously wasn't selling the right speaker for that.

mca · « **Reply #7 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 05:47 pm »

Who is this M. Mardis you speak of

Brad · « **Reply #8 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 05:48 pm »

Cool - eager to hear about your tube tripath.
If someone can successfully combing the detail/silence/depth of the tripath with the texture/midrange wholosity of tubes, that's going to be a winner.

shep · « **Reply #9 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 05:52 pm »

Why the

? Michel is a laid back Hawaiian wizard, who has a site
http://www.michael.mardis.com/sonic/news.htm.

mca · « **Reply #10 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 06:18 pm »

Quote

Why the Scratch Head? Michel is a laid back Hawaiian wizard, who has a site

Just because you have mentioned his name many times, but I had no idea who he was.

Thanks for the link to his site, now I know!

So, does he have the amp yet?

shep · « **Reply #11 on:** 26 Feb 2007, 11:24 pm »

i mis interpret this

as annoyance. My bad. Yes he has the amp. I don't want to prejudice anything but thus far everyone (that makes 4 I think I have heard about) who has received this amp has had some problem or other. Mine is no exception. One of the tubes was blown and there is a bad hum when using the direct (amp stage) out connection. Since I was expecting something like this, I'm not worried. M. will sort it all out. I said this before: it appears, in this case anyway, that in their hurry to get this unit on the market, they fluffed the tube circuit/type badly. I suppose (cynically) they expect the low price and interest in this kind of "integrated" amp sufficient to have "us" buy them and do the fix-it stuff for them so they can learn what the mistakes are and what to do to get it right. Insane, inscrutable. Well that is exactly what will happen, at least for me. I'm not sure how keen M. is to partake of his knowledge with them for free, nor do I intend to write on the moribund forum they started, how it was made right. Wether or not a super, reliable version of this interesting concept will ever be sold is another matter. I think they have shot themselves badly in the foot. I took the gamble, a. cause I got it cheap (off the shelf in HK) b. because M. was enthusiastic about the potential.

Gordy · « **Reply #12 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 12:06 am »

Correct if I'm wrong... Michael Mardis is panomaniac, who used to post here on AC quite a lot. At one time he had a really wild looking switching amp he had built and was thinking of marketing

lonewolfny42 · « **Reply #13 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 12:12 am »

Quote from: Gordy on 27 Feb 2007, 12:06 am

Correct if I'm wrong... Michael Mardis is panomaniac, who used to post here on AC quite a lot. At one time he had a really wild looking switching amp he had built and was thinking of marketing

....

.....http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?action=profile;u=4625

Russell Dawkins · « **Reply #14 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 12:20 am »

Quote from: Gordy on 27 Feb 2007, 12:06 am

Correct if I'm wrong... Michael Mardis is panomaniac, who used to post here on AC quite a lot. At one time he had a really wild looking switching amp he had built and was thinking of marketing

That would be the Mauna Kea 1.2!

http://www.octopusamps.com/gallery/maunakea.html

Gordy · « **Reply #15 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 03:59 am »

Thank you Russell! That would be the one

James Romeyn · « **Reply #16 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 05:28 am »

Those look fantastic! Visiting AC is hard on the wallet. How do you not buy those for $790 delivered? U sure? Is that each or pair?

Nuts, does he do piano black? I love TL's, esp so nice, small & sleak. Somebody buy a pair near No Utah so I can hear them...please!

What speaker we may have heard sounds closest to these?

shep · « **Reply #17 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 07:47 am »

He posted here before my time. We met in the ether when I was persuing my initial curiosity about T- amps,, chips amps etc. His site had this warning "when you enter here there's no escape". Prophetic words! Originally I was going to order one of his designs, in a French chocolate box

(a "cheap prototype) then the Trends popped up on the screen and we were off and running (it looked more like audio gear!) This Will be our second project together. My half of which consists of financing the nuts and bolts and generally pestering him endlessly "try this, try that". He had a very solid understanding, to say the least, and is one of the resident gurus on Forum. He lived near me for a few years so we have more in common than just insatiable curiosity about "sound boxes".

shep · « **Reply #18 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 07:52 am »

"Those look fantastic! Visiting AC is hard on the wallet. How do you not buy those for $790 delivered? U sure? Is that each or pair?

Nuts, does he do piano black? I love TL's, esp so nice, small & sleak. Somebody buy a pair near No Utah so I can hear them...please!

What speaker we may have heard sounds closest to these? "

Price is for the pair, I swear. My mom came from N. Utah! never thought about there being speakers there as well

They are coloured with some kind of laquer. I've never seen the black but the finish on mine is perfect. I asked about TL's here a few days ago. The topic dried up.

Thebiker · « **Reply #19 on:** 27 Feb 2007, 01:12 pm »

Ribbon Speaker,
Isn't that a high gloss black on the left in the smaller picture? Got to agree, they look great and Shep is certainly hooked on them.

You should order them so we can get another opinion on AC

. Consider it a service to the other members.