SUMMER IN THE CITY
Hot town--summer in the city
The a/c’s running and it don’t sound pretty
Actually, it’s nearly Labor Day in the St. Louis suburbs as I write this.
It was a hot summer in St. Louis (God help me!). I think peak electrical
usage hit a record high some time in July. We had a 52-hour power outage
in August as well. Replacing everything in the freezer and most of the
refrigerator was not too exciting. I don’t think we saved quite as much on
electricity as the food cost. Still, I’m sincerely thankful I’m not living in New
Orleans. Those poor people, especially the truly poor people. I think it’s
utter insanity to even consider rebuilding the city. Say what you want
about tradition, history, location, or whatever, no city should be built below
sea level.
The stereo system just did not sound right from late July until fairly
recently. It did not sound bad but that indefinable difference between
sounding very good and just knocking me out was gone. I think it had to
do with all the air conditioning in the area running all the time. We keep our
house about 80 degrees but the a/c still seemed to be cycling constantly.
I also discovered that one channel of the Hafler was not putting out full
power. The Hafler has two gain controls on its front that I frankly forget
are there. Turning these back and forth a few dozen times restored full
output. Given that it was only the bass in one channel that was affected
and then only partially, the effect on the overall sound of having everything
working again was surprisingly noticeable. The weather has cooled down
and the sound has been restored to what I had been enjoying before mid-
July. Happily, the knockout factor has returned.
I have finally finished both the Tweaks page and the evaluation of the G&W
TW-03D Power Line Noise Filter for Tube Amplifiers. In truth, the tweaks
are never finished around here but some idea of what I have played with
and how I felt about it are now on the web site.
I have been using the Belden 1694A/Eichmann RCA Plug digital cable since
it went into the system in early July. I recently replaced it with the cable it
had replaced to reassess its sound. I still think that it’s the best sounding
digital cable that I have had the chance to use. Compared to the prior
cable, the Belden sounds clearer and slightly louder with low-level detail that
is slightly louder as well. This has reduced the sense of depth on some
recordings very slightly but the improved clarity of those sounds makes it a
worthwhile trade-off. I still have a pair of Eichmann plugs so I continue to
look for other cable to try as the next trick digital interconnect.
I like to browse Audiogon fairly regularly. I was pleased to see some
Magneplanar MG 10s sell this summer in the $600-650 range. Magneplanar
resale value is certainly one of the speaker’s strengths. My speakers have
lost only about 40% of their value in the eleven years I have owned them,
which makes me feel pretty good.
I was also happy to see a VTL 50-50 that didn’t appear to be any better
than mine sell for over $600. I paid $400 for mine in 1994 and it has never
really gone down in value. It’s nice to see it appreciating. I’m really not
surprised, though. One of the strengths of the VTL, beyond sounding very
good, is that the company is still in business. Most of the power amps in
the under $600 dollar range have been out of production for years. While
there are a lot of interesting new integrated tube amps that are fairly
inexpensive, reasonably priced new tube power amps are few and far
between.
If the budget allows it, I hope to be writing soon about the Sovtek
6L6WXT+ RCA black plate copies. It’s time to replace the VTL’s power
tubes and these bad boys look like the hot ticket. I also want to listen to
some Maxjazz recordings, a local jazz specialty label.
I’ll be letting you know all that I know as soon as I know it.
Let’s hope we have a good fall—no more disasters natural or man-made.
Kent Johnson
September 2005
Hot town--summer in the city
The a/c’s running and it don’t sound pretty
Actually, it’s nearly Labor Day in the St. Louis suburbs as I write this.
It was a hot summer in St. Louis (God help me!). I think peak electrical
usage hit a record high some time in July. We had a 52-hour power outage
in August as well. Replacing everything in the freezer and most of the
refrigerator was not too exciting. I don’t think we saved quite as much on
electricity as the food cost. Still, I’m sincerely thankful I’m not living in New
Orleans. Those poor people, especially the truly poor people. I think it’s
utter insanity to even consider rebuilding the city. Say what you want
about tradition, history, location, or whatever, no city should be built below
sea level.
The stereo system just did not sound right from late July until fairly
recently. It did not sound bad but that indefinable difference between
sounding very good and just knocking me out was gone. I think it had to
do with all the air conditioning in the area running all the time. We keep our
house about 80 degrees but the a/c still seemed to be cycling constantly.
I also discovered that one channel of the Hafler was not putting out full
power. The Hafler has two gain controls on its front that I frankly forget
are there. Turning these back and forth a few dozen times restored full
output. Given that it was only the bass in one channel that was affected
and then only partially, the effect on the overall sound of having everything
working again was surprisingly noticeable. The weather has cooled down
and the sound has been restored to what I had been enjoying before mid-
July. Happily, the knockout factor has returned.
I have finally finished both the Tweaks page and the evaluation of the G&W
TW-03D Power Line Noise Filter for Tube Amplifiers. In truth, the tweaks
are never finished around here but some idea of what I have played with
and how I felt about it are now on the web site.
I have been using the Belden 1694A/Eichmann RCA Plug digital cable since
it went into the system in early July. I recently replaced it with the cable it
had replaced to reassess its sound. I still think that it’s the best sounding
digital cable that I have had the chance to use. Compared to the prior
cable, the Belden sounds clearer and slightly louder with low-level detail that
is slightly louder as well. This has reduced the sense of depth on some
recordings very slightly but the improved clarity of those sounds makes it a
worthwhile trade-off. I still have a pair of Eichmann plugs so I continue to
look for other cable to try as the next trick digital interconnect.
I like to browse Audiogon fairly regularly. I was pleased to see some
Magneplanar MG 10s sell this summer in the $600-650 range. Magneplanar
resale value is certainly one of the speaker’s strengths. My speakers have
lost only about 40% of their value in the eleven years I have owned them,
which makes me feel pretty good.
I was also happy to see a VTL 50-50 that didn’t appear to be any better
than mine sell for over $600. I paid $400 for mine in 1994 and it has never
really gone down in value. It’s nice to see it appreciating. I’m really not
surprised, though. One of the strengths of the VTL, beyond sounding very
good, is that the company is still in business. Most of the power amps in
the under $600 dollar range have been out of production for years. While
there are a lot of interesting new integrated tube amps that are fairly
inexpensive, reasonably priced new tube power amps are few and far
between.
If the budget allows it, I hope to be writing soon about the Sovtek
6L6WXT+ RCA black plate copies. It’s time to replace the VTL’s power
tubes and these bad boys look like the hot ticket. I also want to listen to
some Maxjazz recordings, a local jazz specialty label.
I’ll be letting you know all that I know as soon as I know it.
Let’s hope we have a good fall—no more disasters natural or man-made.
Kent Johnson
September 2005
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