[aik]

I was stunned and honored to find myself mentioned in James Tanner's recent thread.

What a wonderfully warm community -- thank you for the generous welcome!


If I may reply individually to some of your comments from that thread:

vegasdave: "I guess not all youngsters have succumbed to ipod-mania!"

I did succumb to iPod mania, though have never purchased a nano or a mini. My library is all in ALAC or AIFF, so I typically purchase the old/large (classic) iPods.

BrysTony: "Aman's love of audio fidelity and his optimistic viewpoint is great to hear. It is such a well written letter by this young man."

I'm humbled. Thanks for the kind words.

larevoj: "smart kids/parents make smart choice"

Definitely got lucky with parents.

Phil A: "It's great to see younger people getting into the hobby and appreciating quality playback vs. MP3s"

Some of us (a tiny minority) were never ever happy with 128k MP3s. We tended to be the geekier of the bunch (I studied computer science in school).

redbook: "I too would like him to join the forum."

Be careful what you wish for!

John Casler: "I have posted his father and asked he be made aware of this thread."

Wouldn't have known it had existed without you! Thanks for letting me know -- and for the 4bsst2, of course!

SoundGame: "If he's got a Bryston 4B-SST/2 - he's already begun to drink the proverbial "Kool-Aid".  Getting him on this Circle will indoctrinate him completely."

In that case, the seeds of my destruction (er, Kool-Aid overdose?) have just been sown.

Stu Pitt: "Don't congratulate him on his Ive League diploma.  He may get offended."

Not at all -- I was lucky and grateful to be able to attend.

ltr317: "Oh please, Leland Stanford was no saint.  And it's Ivy."

Agreed! Stanford has always marched to its own drummer -- part of why it has been so historically entrepreneurial.

headshrinker2: "Stanford---->Good job---->sweet hifi system!"

Uh oh, you've just discovered my life plan.


And to throw out some other observations and questions of my own: as I get into the hobby I find a couple myths and considerations that I'd love your perspective on. I apologize in advance if I'm opening up a can of worms! Let me know and I'll gladly shut up.

Bits are Bits
Everything I've learned as a computer science/electrical engineering major tells me this is true. But if so:
* the quality of digital cables, from USB to HDMI, shouldn't matter. Do you guys believe this?
* DACs should use serializable interfaces instead of streaming. So why do DACs use streaming interfaces (AES, SPDIF, async or even adaptive USB) instead of just trying to get the data into a RAM buffer inside the DAC all at once (via Ethernet or even SD cards)?
* Folks like Steve Nugent at Emperical Audio have said that recordings that are bit-for-bit identical except for the number of leading 0s sound different. Why is this the case?

Measurement versus Sound
Have you guys read The Audio Critic? What do you think? If you believe him, then:
* All cables at short lengths are RLC circuits and (as long as you maintain the  right R, L, and C) don't make a difference
* All intrinsic component coloration and differentiation other than speakers wash out in double-blind dB-normalized tests
* Most power conditioners are useless
* Something that measures good should sound good, and vice versa. Differences in how something sounds are caused by issues in a specific characteristic: noise, phase, frequency, etc.
* All amps with the right impedance/frequency/distortion characteristics sound identical. In that case, I bought my Bryston for quality, craftmanship, and warranty -- which I gladly pay a premium for.
Is there some kernel of truth to this? Or is it hogwash? If so, why?

Again, thanks very much for the kind words and warm welcome!

[Stu Pitt]

Glad to have you around aik.

I think you misinterpreted what I was saying about your "Ivy League" diploma.  I meant that you may not like Stanford being mistakingly called an Ivy League school.  More of a joke than anything else.

Congrats on your Stanford degree.  It's one of the best and most prestigious institutions in the world.  It takes an extremely intelligent and disciplined person to accomplish what you have.   

[aik]

Thanks again, Stu. Definitely got the joke, and laughed

[vegasdave]

You're welcome, man. Glad to have you here. You sound like a pretty smart guy.

[Phil A]

Great to have you here!

[John Casler]

Hi Aman,

Very happy that the gear you received fullfilled expectations, and glad to be a part of helping a whole new generation of Audiophiles enjoy the hobby.

I see you are quite analytical and hope you enjoy the coming internal "ping pong" you might occasionally experience as your subjective and objective natures attempt to challenge each other.

You ask some VERY pertinant questions and be prepared for some to offer rather strong opinions on BOTH sides.

In the end, the most enjoyment will likely result from that connection you can create to your favorite artists and works, when you are thinking less of the technical and more of the movment or feeling the the artist wanted to evoke.

Enjoy your gear and the fellows you connect with here.

[Laundrew]

Be most welcome 

Be well...

[Stu Pitt]

Sorry I skipped over your questions...

I think my feelings about that stuff are similar to what John Castler said.  At the end of the day, it's all about what you hear and how much you connect with the artist/music being played.  There's no right or wrong.  Actually, the only wrong thing is telling yourself you don't hear something that you actually do just because someone else told you you can't/don't hear it.

Everyone's ears are different.  Different shapes change the sound going in.  To test this, put a finger behind each ear without blocking the sound.  Push your ear forward very slightly.  Notice a change?  Now push them back without blocking the sound.  Notice a difference?   If you know anything about how the internal parts of the ear work, you'll understand how some people hear things differently, and that's independent of the shape of the outer ear.  Then there's how the brain interprets what nervous signal it's given.

So in a nutshell, no one's going to hear anything the exact same way you hear it.  Listen for yourself and let your ears and brain decide what makes a difference and what doesn't.  Just because someone else can't hear a difference doesn't mean you can't either.  Just because you hear a difference doesn't mean anyone and everyone else can too.   Too many people ignore this IMO.  A shame if you ask me.

I agree with some of what The Audio Critic says, and disagree with other things they say.  But at the end of the day, I let my ears come to those conclusions.  You're an intelligent guy who's on the right track thus far.  You don't need to be spoon fed anything.  I say all that in the most respectful way. 

[VOLKS]

I agree Stu.....trust ones own ears indeed.

[redbook]

Got my wish!...welcome aboard...Redbook.

[ltr317]

Aman,

Welcome to AC.  Chris Russell flew down to NYC to demonstrate an all Bryston system (sans speakers) last month for our audio club meeting.  The Bryston flagship system consisted of a BP26 c-series preamplifier, 28B SST c-series mono block amplifiers, BCD-1 CD player, and various Bryston cabling.  The sound was very impressive musically.  So, after you work for a while, you can start thinking upgrade! 

Cheer,
Paul