[Goldlion973]

Also, regarding this Micro SD cards; are these something that you could potentially keep five or six around to store music on and use interchangeably?

 
That's the idea, yes... once the device has scanned a card it shouldn't have to do so again or at least the process shouldn't take as long as it would do initially. Not sure about hot swapping while the device is running. Suppose you could do a library scan if you did again, should be quicker given that its already scanned it in the past.
 
Am not sure what cards people are recommending, a good brand should perform the same as the rest although in the solid state drive world Samsung is currently doing well, expensive though... some are saying that its best to buy an SD card reader to upload files onto to then use in the device... A&K say that its best to use their program to access their products. So I'm assuming that people are using an SD card reader with the iRiver software and writing files in that way and that it works well for them.... would otherwise have assumed that A&K's advice meant using the device with the software for the best results. Testing the device via drag and drop it read the individual file names and the album/bit rate etc in the play menu but didn't show the title or artwork in the main album menu, no artwork in general, am worried about people saying it has a liking for 500x500 sized images as mine are varied.
 
I doubt iTunes would work.

 

[captacoustic]

Thanks Goldlion.

I also see some claims by A&K that the 'new' generation of music will be sold via SD cards. But if that were the case, why would anyone choose that vs. a download? To save storage space on a hard drive maybe?

 

[Goldlion973]

Yeah... speculation... Sony once thought Minidisc was the future and spent a lot of money going that way before the iPod and MP3's became the new medium... think the issue is that people like to have something they can hold and pass around, you can't do that with digital files... Rant starts here ---> Music has devaluated over time, in its audio quality from Reel to Reel and Vinyl down to CD's and then MP3's as well as its monetary value in comparing what a CD is worth in comparison to the same on Vinyl or worse, what someone's MP3 collection is worth and how fast an MP3 album devalues once purchased... while many would pay £15 for a vinyl with its art work and audio quality I'm not too sure people will be willing to pay the same for a DRM encoded SD card but there you go.... DRM will stop digital files from devaluating so fast but it won't be/isn't popular at all. <--- End Rant.
 
.lol. Sorry, used to work in a record store.

 

[Goldlion973]

... original rant was a bit longer than that .lol.

 

[Goldlion973]

Ordered a pair of Alpha Dog headphones.... am now wondering whether or not to go for the RW-B mod with the AK120, the idea of it no longer being portable is an issue for me, it would have to be tethered to an amp for the rest of its life and I'm suddenly not sure I could do that to such a well crafted piece of equipment.... figured if I want a portable balanced device then perhaps its a matter of getting the HM-901 or using an amp that simply outputs balanced.
 

 

[spitfire777]

Hi goldlion
I spoke with Vinnie re the 901 and he said this...The 120 feeding the RSA is going to be better than the 901.  The quality of a RSA amp is better, and the quality of the modded output of
the 120 is better.  You won't look back!
I am saving up for mod. I am using the AK120 with the RSA 71a and it's amazing. Hope this helps. I hear the 901 gets quite hot when using it.

 

[Goldlion973]

True... thanks for the encouragement.

 

[cladane]

I think also that an RWAK120 -B will sound better through an RSA or Mk3 but people going for the HM901 want an all in one lighter device at the first point.
Vinnie should have received my RWAK120-B to correct the sound problem and I will tell you how it performs.

 

[Goldlion973]

Have to admit I'd be a bit peeved if I got mine and had to send it back... am literally recording all of my vinyl to 24/192, buying in new headphones and portable amp just to open them all open at the same time .... think I'll explode .lol.
 
Has changed my opinion on high resolution files Vs vinyl though, can't beat the quiet background with high res files... the static of vinyl can be annoying to record and listen to... shaving it off with DeClick and other programs just isn't worth the loss in audio quality.

 

[Sam Edwards]

  Have to admit I'd be a bit peeved if I got mine and had to send it back... am literally recording all of my vinyl to 24/192, buying in new headphones and portable amp just to open them all open at the same time .... think I'll explode .lol.
 
Has changed my opinion on high resolution files Vs vinyl though, can't beat the quiet background with high res files... the static of vinyl can be annoying to record and listen to... shaving it off with DeClick and other programs just isn't worth the loss in audio quality.

Have you thought about a record cleaning machine? The VPI works really well. 

 

[Goldlion973]

Yeah... started steam cleaning them and it helped with some but its only after that I realised that some are just bad pressings or something, my Herbie Hancock - Man Child album, my Shuggie Otis Inspiration Information LP are unrecordable.... my Alice Coltrane Eternity album also has distortion running through it. At times its fine when its on a turntable platter but through a high fidelity audio player with reference headphones? Decided to leave many of them out just to save my ears .lol.
 
Heard that sanding them down with ultrafine sand paper works if you follow the grooves.

 

[Sam Edwards]

Vinyl is definitely a mixed bag. About a quarter of what you buy, especially used should go right into the trash. Only about 25% are better than the CD, and with high res it goes down from there. Japanese pressings seem to be the best mass market disks. Usually the audiophile pressings are good, but I have a few that totally suck. I wish I'd bought the classic records Led Zep 45 rpm box. 
I think it's a big mistake to select components based only on a few amazing audiophile recordings. I had a ClearAudio cartridge that could pull incredible detail out of disks that sounded so-so with other cartridges. But I don't spend that kind of cash on cartridges anymore. My current Lyra Delos isn't bad. 
You can probably say the same for headphones. There are cans that are so ruthlessly revealing that they take the fun out of some recordings. 
I had a friend with a super-fancy Mark Levinson system in his living room and an old turntable with a marantz receiver in his barn. He listened to more music in the barn. 

 

[goodvibes]

This is going off topic a bit but the best vinyl is generally an original pressing (first stamper batch) from the country of origin. Later ones or those made with dubs in other countries almost always tend to be worse. The Japanese pressings seem to be the quietest but they're not as good in other ways though better than most of what's out there, especially used. I tend to prefer a good transfer of rare Vinyl with top kit to even HiDef downloads. Not that the download shouldn't be better than a rock in a trough but the tapes are old, tend to be messed with a bit and the transfers are done with various A2Ds.
 
Oh, and my prodigal AK120 has returned in great shape. Just a couple more minor marks on the leather.

 

[Goldlion973]

s a toughie, even now listening to a recording of 'I'm your mechanical man' its riddled with pops and clicks so I'm smiling and frowning at the same time... some say it adds character but the deep velvet background of a high quality audio file tops it even if it is digital and needs processing IMO and I'd never think to have said that a few months ago.... you gonna mod your 120 for super-prodigal-ness?

 

[goodvibes]

My partner does most of ours and we generally get nice pressings to choose from so things with too high a noise floor are just rejected. Any major clicks and pops are removed manually in Wavelab. Pretty remarkable. Doesn't alter the sound like noise programs do and you can't tell it was ever there. Years of editing lets him see and remove them very quickly. Can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear but a clean record with a few some pops becomes great. The other thing about a great TT setup is that the noise is very separate from the music. You obviously can hear it and don't want it but it's easier to hear past when it's character it's a separate entity from the recording.