The diary entries of a little girl in her 30s! ~ Part 2
Sep 11, 2012 at 9:53 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 21,761

MuppetFace

A Special Snowflake
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The Diary Entries of a Little Girl Nearing who is now In Her 30s!

Or: How I Learned to Stop Being Productive and Love Posting in MF's Thread
 

Part 2: Electric Boogaloo
 
 

[for Ardgedee]
 
 

 
 
 
 

Welcome to the new new diary thread. The old one was a little overwrought in places, so hopefully this will amount to something like a fresh start while still retaining the spirit of the old thread that made it so enjoyable.
 
 
Given the rather underwhelming (and cryptic) first post of the last diary thread, there seemed to be some confusion as to its nature and purpose, so this time around I think a quick explanation would prove helpful for those who may be stumbling through the gates for the first time.
 
Q. What is this thread?

A. As the title suggests this is a public diary for me, MuppetFace (aka "MF" or "Mupps" or Romy). It is a creative space for me to post my impressions of audio gear, more general musings concerning anything that might interest me, and also the mundanities of everyday life. It's also a place for the small community that grew up around these threads to hang out and chat in a relaxed and hopefully drama-free manner. Others like to discuss their interests and share their impressions and thoughts as well.
 
Some like to imagine this thread as a coffee house for enthusiasts.
 
Q. Can anyone post here?

A. Of course. This is still head-fi, still a public forum, and we welcome anyone who wants to genuinely participate. We're all pretty close-knit here, so give us a chance to warm up to you if you want to be a regular too.
 
Q. What's the topic of conversation?

A. Just about anything that isn't restricted by head-fi's rules. We tend to discuss audio gear a lot, but also popular culture, underground culture, music, film, literature, philosophy, and sociology. Sometimes the conversation can get a bit heady; other times it's cathartically stupid. With the being said, this isn't an "anything goes" type of place, and you should keep in mind that we're all a rather colorful bunch taken collectively, so try not to be offensive to peoples' sensibilities.
 
For example: I'm a feminist. Gender is an area of conversation that comes up from time to time, and some of us here like to discuss these types of issues in a thoughtful way. We don't mind viewpoints being questioned in a logical and sincere debate. However blatantly sexist comments, even made jokingly, aren't going to go over well here at all. Just something to keep in mind.
 
Q. What's the story about this whole 'diary' thing anyway?

A. As with most stories, I suggest starting at the beginning if you really want to understand... 

 
* * * * * * *
 ​
~The Story So Far~
Chapter 3 - You Are Here​
 ​
 ​
* * * * * * *

 
Anyway, have fun!
 ​
 ​
* * * * * * *
 
Dear Diary,

 
So on an audio-related note, I've discovered a truly stunning combination of gear:
 
Cavalli Audio Liquid Lightning + Stax SR-Omega
 
This definitely ranks among the best pairings I've ever heard. Specifically, in terms of spatial presentation, it blows away my previous setup. I'd place my order for one of these amps right now if it weren't for the Eddie Current Electra looming on the horizon. I'm really hoping I can get a demo of it before deciding on my 'stat setup.
 
Then there's the Liquid Glass, which has been pairing extremely well with the HD800. There's a depth and level of involvement to its sound that I don't hear in a lot of amps. Two factors contribute to this for me: a holographic presentation, and a level of micro-dynamic detail and nuance. Not to open up a whole can of worms, but I feel this is one of the biggest "differences" or "deciding factors" for certain amps at this level (Balancing Act, Manley Neo-Classic 300B, DNA Stratus, etc.) compared to others which may cost a lot less and have a fairly transparent sound. In other words, the tentative and somewhat hesitant answer to the question of "why spend any more?"
 
Anyway, the LG is a chameleon, and it changes quite a bit depending on which tubes one uses with it. The current tubes aren't as good of a match with the Qualia 010 as with the HD800, so I'm hoping to get a second set in to experiment before I finish my evaluation. With the HD800 and the right set of tubes however this is definitely one of THE amps in my opinion.
 
Really I'm trying to sort out my feelings toward tube amps in general right now. I have something of an aversion to tubes, mostly due to issues with noise (I'm obsessed with having an abyssal, black background) as well as tube rolling and having to replace them. It just... bugs me. Certain experiences to that end (Leben and Woo) have left a negative taste for me. However my Zana Deux SE has been a trusty, quiet companion, and thus I haven't written off owning tube amps completely. On the one hand I feel compelled to go with something like the Electra, Liquid Glass, or Manley. On the other hand I feel a certain comfort in sticking with solid state like the Liquid Lightning.
 
Unfortunately, many solid state amps sound flat and lack that depth I spoke of in comparison to tube amps. That is, of course, a generalization; it's more a matter of individual topology. The Liquid Lightning for instance sounds very involving and has a depth to it that my KGSS, another solid state amp, does not. I'm really hoping Cavalli releases the Liquid Gold, his hardcore solid state amp designed to compete with the likes of the Beta-22. The market is a bit unfavorable for these types of high-cost solid state amps at the moment, but maybe someday.
 
XoXo
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 10:09 AM Post #2 of 21,761
I like that your church is an accommodating enough environment for her to feel okay doing that!


We attend a Roman Catholic church, they don't really care what you're wearing as long as you aren't indecent. I've even seen that same girl wear PJs to services, on occasion.
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 10:16 AM Post #3 of 21,761
Oh, and the left channel on my GES croaked last night. :frowning2:
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 10:36 AM Post #4 of 21,761
I've recently tried out Beat Audio's Titan (silver) and Sahara/ Chronus (SPC) cables with my ASG-1s. To be honest, I didn't hear anything different with the Titan, but did with the Sahara. I couldn't explain it though - it was like I could pick out parts of music easier. I wouldn't know if the correct way to describe was that it made the sound clearer. I wouldn't call myself a cable skeptic because I am open to possibilities in this hobby.
 
As cool and ergonomic were the Saharas, I can't imagine spending the same amount I paid for my ASG-1s for cables for them.
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 11:31 AM Post #6 of 21,761
Quote:
Really I'm trying to sort out my feelings toward tube amps in general right now. I have something of an aversion to tubes, mostly due to issues with noise (I'm obsessed with having an abyssal, black background) as well as tube rolling and having to replace them. It just... bugs me. Certain experiences to that end (Leben and Woo) have left a negative taste for me. However my Zana Deux SE has been a trusty, quiet companion, and thus I haven't written off owning tube amps completely. On the one hand I feel compelled to go with something like the Electra, Liquid Glass, or Manley. On the other hand I feel a certain comfort in sticking with solid state like the Liquid Lightning.
 
Unfortunately, many solid state amps sound flat and lack that depth I spoke of in comparison to tube amps. That is, of course, a generalization; it's more a matter of individual topology. The Liquid Lightning for instance sounds very involving and has a depth to it that my KGSS, another solid state amp, does not. I'm really hoping Cavalli releases the Liquid Gold, his hardcore solid state amp designed to compete with the likes of the Beta-22. The market is a bit unfavorable for these types of high-cost solid state amps at the moment, but maybe someday.

 
Tube longetivity is kind of both overhyped and underhyped. It seems to depend a lot more on how certain amps use tubes, and how well the owner maintains the bias. If the tubes are running safely within spec rather than at extremes, don't face a temperature fluctuations or extremes while running, and the bias is never allowed to drift much (autobias circuits ought to help), most tubes should be able to outlast the owner. That sounds like a lot of conditions, but it should be manageable in most indoor spaces. I've got a couple amps with tubes in 'em older than me, and they were used hard up until the owners put the amps away some decade or two ago.
 
On the other hand, the inventory of NOS tubes is finite and depleting, and the stock can only get older. Certain tubes will continue to be made, but there will at some point in the future be a lot of obsolete amplifiers as the tubes they require have become more valuable than the amps they go in.
 
This makes me wonder whether anybody will come up with something like tube emulation units: Little solid-state bricks on Amphenol plugs that replicate a given tube behavior. With little glass tops and LEDs to get some of the glow back, too...
 
I've been able to listen to a couple different Woo amps at meetups and they always struck me as technically very good but lacking engagement. It's hard for me to say anything bad about them, but hard for me to feel desirous of one, either. On the other hand, my Fisher amp is smooth like a warm cognac and whatever it lacks in audio fidelity it more than makes up in engagement. Where a balance can be struck, that's where I want to be.
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 11:52 AM Post #7 of 21,761
Quote:
I am sad because this thread does not include "Electric Boogaloo" in the title.

biggrin.gif

 
Sep 11, 2012 at 12:26 PM Post #8 of 21,761
Can't...stop...laughing...in ...class
 
 
 
 
[size=small] 7,349 of 7,436 people found the following review helpful[/size]

[size=small] 1.0 out of 5 stars I have only a little time..., November 15, 2010[/size]

[size=small] By 
Whisper (CA USA) - See all my reviews

 
[/size]

[size=x-small] This review is from: AudioQuest K2 terminated speaker cable - UST plugs 8' (2.44m) pair (Electronics)[/size]

[size=small]We live underground. We speak with our hands. We wear the earplugs all our lives.[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]PLEASE! You must listen! We cannot maintain the link for long... I will type as fast as I can.[/size][size=small][/size]
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[size=small]DO NOT USE THE CABLES![/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]We were fools, fools to develop such a thing! Sound was never meant to be this clear, this pure, this... accurate. For a few short days, we marveled. Then the... whispers... began.[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]Were they Aramaic? Hyperborean? Some even more ancient tongue, first spoken by elder races under the red light of dying suns far from here? We do not know, but somehow, slowly... we began to UNDERSTAND.[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]No, no, please! I don't want to remember! YOU WILL NOT MAKE ME REMEMBER! I saw brave men claw their own eyes out... oh, god, the screaming... the mobs of feral children feasting on corpses, the shadows MOVING, the fires burning in the air! The CHANTING![/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]WHY CAN'T I FORGET THE WORDS???[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]We live underground. We speak with our hands. We wear the earplugs all our lives.[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]Do not use the cables![/size]

 
 
 
 
[size=small] 362 of 374 people found the following review helpful[/size]

[size=small] 5.0 out of 5 stars Reveals the hidden treasures in familiar music., November 28, 2010[/size]

[size=small] By 
Audiophile - See all my reviews

 
[/size]

[size=x-small] This review is from: AudioQuest K2 terminated speaker cable - UST plugs 8' (2.44m) pair (Electronics)[/size]

[size=small]Using these cables, and only using these cables, I was finally able to hear an auditory gem that has been long rumored among music connaisseurs - Aretha Franklin's stress-fart just prior to her high A in her recording of "You're All I Need to Get By".[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]Worth every penny.[/size]

 
 
 
154 of 165 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Customers who bought this item also bought...., November 28, 2010

By 
J. Albergo - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

 


[size=x-small] This review is from: AudioQuest K2 terminated speaker cable - UST plugs 8' (2.44m) pair (Electronics)[/size]

Customers who bought this item also bought....

- the Brooklyn bridge

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- signed photograph of Harvey the rabbit [size=small] [size=x-small]Help other customers find the most helpful reviews[/size]

 
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[size=small] 107 of 115 people found the following review helpful[/size]

[size=small] 5.0 out of 5 stars YES!, December 3, 2009[/size]

[size=small] By 
Steve - See all my reviews

 
[/size]

[size=x-small] This review is from: AudioQuest K2 terminated speaker cable - UST plugs 8' (2.44m) pair (Electronics)[/size]

[size=small]Help! They've come to life! The cables... they're... they're eating my daughter! Call an ambulance! Great price though. .. And her screams! I've never heard such crystal clarity! This is totally worth it![/size] [size=small]  
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[size=small] 93 of 102 people found the following review helpful[/size]

[size=small] 1.0 out of 5 stars Good in a pinch, November 27, 2010[/size]

[size=small] By 
Landon Dyer (Bellevue, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

 
[/size]

[size=x-small] This review is from: AudioQuest K2 terminated speaker cable - UST plugs 8' (2.44m) pair (Electronics)[/size]

[size=small]Happy with this product. We had to make emergency repairs to our Gxlxthp Drive, and (by Quarphlg!) this was virtually the same as the the official replacement part (lost in a Fizzbin game by our first mate, during that disasterous mission on Philonius M). The quantum alignment needed a little tweaking, but hey, electrons are electrons, so off we go.[/size][size=small][/size]
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[size=small]Also, can be used to jump-start an Army Jeep. Long story there, no time.[/size]

 
Sep 11, 2012 at 1:05 PM Post #9 of 21,761
So, this company gave me a little thing to do. When I talked to them, I specifically said that I know ASP.NET (in C#), Javascripting and basic HTML, but not much else when it comes to web developing. Of course, I know a bit about CSS and such, but well, incredibly basic stuff. Anyway, they told me to take two json-files, create one clickable table from them, and so on and so forth. I am not allowed to use anything but HTML, jQuery and AJAX. 
 
What the heck do I know about jQuery and AJAX?
 
So, after looking it up, I think I can actually handle most of jQuerys methods with a little help of the script file itself and admittedly, some googling (although less and less for each problem I meet). AJAX is still a bit of a mystery, except for the fact that it's Javascript and XML - at least from my understanding. On the other hand, I haven't really looked into AJAX completely yet either, so my lack of knowledge is pretty logical.
 
Anyway, when I succeed, I may just be able to get a job there. It would be as a developer. They seemed to like me and my CV so far, so I guess it's only up to my skills to seal the deal. My deadline is on thursday when I have a date with the CEO of the company. My interpretation of the way they handled this whole thing, is that if I succeed (or fail, being able to still understand the technology and see clearsighted why I failed) I get the position - as long as I explain logically how I solved the problem.
 
Also, I think they gave me a test to do something I haven't done before just to test how I handle new technologies (and problems).
 
Edit: how come we got a new thread?
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 1:15 PM Post #10 of 21,761
Quote:
[size=small]We were fools, fools to develop such a thing! Sound was never meant to be this clear, this pure, this... accurate. For a few short days, we marveled. Then the... whispers... began.[/size][size=small][/size]
[size=small][/size]
[size=small]Were they Aramaic? Hyperborean? Some even more ancient tongue, first spoken by elder races under the red light of dying suns far from here? We do not know, but somehow, slowly... we began to UNDERSTAND.[/size]

 
The whispers!
 
The whispers!
 
The whispers!
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 1:30 PM Post #12 of 21,761
Quote:
So, this company gave me a little thing to do. When I talked to them, I specifically said that I know ASP.NET (in C#), Javascripting and basic HTML, but not much else when it comes to web developing. Of course, I know a bit about CSS and such, but well, incredibly basic stuff. Anyway, they told me to take two json-files, create one clickable table from them, and so on and so forth. I am not allowed to use anything but HTML, jQuery and AJAX. 
 
What the heck do I know about jQuery and AJAX?

 
Odd test for them to give you.  Do you think it's supposed to be like one of those "Microsoft interview" kinda things?
 
Quote:
Edited the first post. Now it's a proper first post. Oh yes...

 
A fresh start?
 
Kind of an ominous day for that...
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 1:43 PM Post #13 of 21,761
Quote:
Kind of an ominous day for that...

 
Come on, mav. Don't say stuff like that (I have superstitious tendencies).
 
Starting a new thread was always on the table in my discussions with the mods, but it was their decision to do it at this point. They felt the old thread had too much drama and that it would continue to cause friction, so here we are. I'm just running with it, making the most of the situation.
 
There are benefits to a fresh start. For instance, the old thread had a lot of good content, but due to its ever-growing size, it was becoming more and more difficult to find anything if one decided to look. Also it preserves the thread in a fairly stable state, and now there's no risk of the "narrative" up until that point collapsing or degenerating, as it's preserved effectively.
 
Edit: Ironic that this is post 13, and I was talking about superstition.
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 1:43 PM Post #14 of 21,761
Who the what now?

No wonder the old thread hasn't been updated. It seems to have been locked while I was pissing myself out watching someone LP Amnesia: Justine or something.
-----------------------

Also all that hullabaloo for reaching 1000th page and we're off on a new start!
.
.
.
.
.
.
That means we can race to another 1000th page party! YEAH
 
Sep 11, 2012 at 1:54 PM Post #15 of 21,761
Quote:
 
Odd test for them to give you.  Do you think it's supposed to be like one of those "Microsoft interview" kinda things?
 
 
A fresh start?
 
Kind of an ominous day for that...

I'm not sure what a Microsoft Interview is to be honest. On the other hand though, the more think of it, the more correct you are about it being a bit weird. In their ad, they looked for someone who knew .NET, C# and Java - and that's pretty much me. Now they give me a test to see my AJAX, jQuery and HTML skills. Although, IF it is a test to see how I handle new technologies and to see if I tackle the problem ahead of me logically or not. I'm not sure if they're after the correct solution or the correct way of tackling it.
 
My mother in law got a job as a Java developer some ten years ago, and they didn't even test her Java skills, but merely her logic. Could be something like that?
 

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