...also I have been grooving out to some heavy garage rock on vinyl most of the night Black Keys and now The White Stripes... and drinking high alcohol winter beer.  Apologies if anything comes off as anything less than friendly.  Fired up!! Wheeeee!

Fair enough... but I suppose that is further parting out the whole vinyl/TT experience.  The tone-arm (tonearm?) is another piece that -at least in my system- can be swapped out and certainly adjusted.  But I think specific stylus shapes can get into grooves better at the same tracking weight as...

I am gonna chime in with my opinion on a few recent topics.   Spin Clean is something that I (so far) stand 100% behind.  Unless I don't have any distilled water on hand, nothing touches my TT without going through a spin clean.  If I could afford one of those fancy vacuum cleaning systems...

It is, indeed, the Pro-Ject RM-1.3.  I don't know if I was sold some snake oil, but I dug that for a slightly inexpensive TT, I got some higher-end(ish) features.  Conical feet, motor that is detached, and it looks kinda purdy.   As far as 32 ohm, I believe you can still visit all of those...

  Sorry, forgot about the most important part to head-fi.  Here is the headphone inventory.  Grados started it, ie8s cemented it, LCD-2s finalized it.

  This is my personal shrine to head-fi.org and the now-gone-to-a-better-place-but-still-sorta-lives-on-through-alo 32 ohm store in my city of Portland, OR.  Somewhere in my research of audio reproduction at home I came across an article by Henry Rollins that was best summed up by a quote...

  It just feels like it's been a while since a pic was posted.  Consider it the tt pron equivalent of comic relief in a serious story.

I'll take the complement on the pics, thank you.  I am meticulous about cleaning everything (around my TT, at least), but that photo was taken while the table was turning.  I wonder if that helped with the reflection (took a few tries to get the pink near where I wanted).   The table, aside...

Can't resist.  From near to far... cue Grover, y'all!   Near: Far:    

Quote:   Ha!!  You weren't lying about you and the Expedit, you even have the same model/size set up all horizontal like.  What are you using as "spacers" for the vinyl, to prevent it from sliding in too much?  Or are you not worrying about it.     

  The first is the Benchmade that is my favorite overall one to carry.  So many of the things I love: wood, carbon fiber, titanium...  I had lost it and was super bummed.  Cleaning out the old car before selling, I ended up finding it sandwiched in between the seat and console.  Have kept a...

Those are the JB3 by John Blue.  As with many of my purchases through my local store, I went in kind of wanting something different, but with the ability to "test-drive," I quickly ended up with these.  I bought the dac/amp combo at that store (before diving into the Lyr/Havana combo), and I...

...thanks for that Head-Fi (and 32 Ohm Audio in Portland).  

I certainly could care less, truthfully.    To be honest, I got the only stamp of approval I wanted a few days ago.  My dad listened to the system on his recent visit.  When I put "Breakdown" on by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, the deal was done.  He realized I had done some research or, at...

Aw, man!   Don't put me in a category I ain't ready for yet.  I would rather be at the upper border of the mid-fi than the very bottom of the hi-fi category.    Everything in my setup is sub four figures, doesn't that qualify me for mid-fi status?  I HAD to get the LCD-2s recabled and...

  I feel like Ikea furniture is the appropriate mid-fi option to match my comfortably mid-fi listening station.  I am finally able to have all my pieces together, including using the Lyr as a pre-amp.    I ********* heart music!

Ha!  So funny.   I suppose the Nirvana was hard due to demand, but your Big Star pick is certainly a more limited run.   On an awesome note, I walked into a store on my way to work... just to see what might not have been picked up.  Guess what, my regret was erased as they had one last...

  I got nearly everything I wanted (which was obviously a lot).  Missed out on Pink Floyd 66/67 and The White Stripes.  Passed on Foo Fighters "Medium Rare" (even though it was on my list).  That will likely be my one regret.  C'est la vie.

So I am not sure how related to the "pop" that is being currently discussed this is.  And if it is a laughably new-to-tubes question, my apologies.   In the past couple weeks I have been noticing almost a "crystal-like" sound as the Lyr powered down.  At first I thought it the LCD-2s were to...

Before:   After:

  So...  This crazy hobby has made me finally plunge into the evil(ly delicious) black discs.   Unfortunately the mid-fi turntable I purchased, the Pro-Ject RPM 1.3 'Genie', started dropping the right channel within the first few tracks when I got home.  Took it back and got a free RCA...

Quote: I don't know if this was in response to something I said before.  I think I did say the tube changes were "minimally different."  How can I better word it?  My intent was to state that I wouldn't necessarily run out and seek new tubes.  The changes are noticeable.  If you have...

Interesting, I only got (the faintest) buzz/hum when I switched to my Amperex tubes.   I rolled back and forth from them this morning, essentially to confirm.  Those tubes just sound so great, I want to keep them.  My hum is quiet enough I don't notice it while listening to music, and I seem...

Quote: No need.  Tubes are packed in their own little box with foam.  One of the nice things about the packing of the amp for shipping.