[IPodPJ]

Originally I thought I'd have my RE7.1 by the end of March but then it was April 15, and now it's looking like April 23.  Apparently Audio-gd turn-around time now is 1-2 months.  I remember my RE1 and RE7 only took about 2 weeks.  Edwin said they are short staffed so I'm wondering if they are so busy why they don't put more people on.
 
I'm sure the DAC will be excellent and I'm excited about getting it.  It will be wired with 24awg OCC silver in teflon.  The HE version is too rich for my blood plus there are several reasons (some of which I've mentioned in the past) about why I probably wouldn't get one.
 
I'm also really upset that I had a PPP that died and went crazy and damaged my Transporter (which is now out for repair), computer speakers, internet router, and cable modem.  PS Audio is being very good about it though and will make sure they take care of the damages to my other gear, in one manner or another.  My PPP was under warranty so getting that replaced isn't even an issue; the damage to my Transporter is my main concern, as it did the following stated by the company who did my mods:
 
"I found a weak resistor in the switching power supply, non-working diodes, fluctuating rectifier bridge (might be caused by a weak blue transformer which I will have to test with the circuit board loose), the high quality R-core Transformer is gone, the Audio-gd power supply isn't working and it looks like its rectifiers are gone."

 

[ccschua]

In the first place, the people who owns the audio-gd product line are educated one who knows what they are looking for. This is stated very clearly in my post the function and purpose of my choice of gear.
 
rgds

 
Quote:

 

Well I was more just talking about the general mentality around here nothing personal with ccshua really and more just that he used the word "pity" which I am increasingly associating with head-fi.
 
It is a real pity people spend large amounts of money only to want more...and more... and more. Can't say I have never been guilty of this in my life or that people are actively aware of the damage they are doing to themselves.
 
If these wants do not have an end, I think there is a real problem that is not associated at all with "golden ears" but rather the reward that comes with a new toy. If you follow the logic that dopamine is release as a reward, and a new toy would/could cause the release of dopamine the line between hi-fi hobby and drug addiction becomes scarily blurry for some people around here. Enjoyment of music does this, so we are all guilty on some level, but some (many) people's focus has shifted from the reward of buying rather than listening in the aim of feeling good.
 
Tweaking offers people a way to theoretically make improvements and thus a situation to feel rewarded about - they made their gear "better". For those who are fully blinded this is great as they have a perpetuated sense of happiness even if it is complete lunacy. There seem to be those who are in a circle of losing though - it can never be good enough, there is ALWAYS something that could be better.
 
I would never want to associate a pleasurable activity with one of the biggest paradoxes of life - happiness. Or "Paradox of hedonism".
 
The less we perceive as problematic with regards to music, the more we should be able to enjoy it... which is probably why I have friends who are also musicians that do not buy into the hi-fi thing and probably enjoy music even more than I do..  because they are not worrying about the quality of their experience, they are simply enjoying. I like where I am now which is kind of in the middle, I have high end gear but I refuse to worry about the superfluous.
 
I also don't doubt for a second my decision to purchase my phoenix and Ref-7 were more to relax anxiety on some level about performance, rather than lack of ability on my previous system -my previous set up was great (and so is this one). It has not increased my capacity to enjoy at all (well maybe my LCD-2), it has merely reduced reasons to worry about my system if you get my drift. It is expensive, good looking, and over designed so I "know" I am getting a good performance. Whereas before I was constantly wondering what a better source and amp would sound like. It ruins the experience if you let it. I know I did for a while. Know that I have spent crazy amounts of money I no longer feel that way and might actually go back down to a cheaper system.
 
All in all I think it was a great purchase but I am very aware of the true motives which many here life to actively blind themselves from.... Why else would you tear apart multi-thousand dollar components to throw in better caps and ETC? Why else would you indulge is a huge luxury at a time of economic crisis only to wish it was more, or you had spent more on another.
 
Finally the supreme irony lies in the fact that most of these tweaks and changes do not make a sonic difference, rather a psychological one.

 

 

[trevorlane]

Quote:

In the first place, the people who owns the audio-gd product line are educated one who knows what they are looking for. This is stated very clearly in my post the function and purpose of my choice of gear.
 
rgds

 


 

I, and many others don't own any audio-gd products. Does that make us uneducated ones? I'm not sure what threshold of education one needs to achieve whatever level of gear knowledge that you'd find indicative of informed purchases. It's blanket statements like this that continue to propagate responses like that from sokolov91, no less another shake of my head.

 

[haloxt]

Sokolov, when someone says "it's a pity" he doesn't actually mean it is pitiable, it's a phrase to say you would prefer it another way.

 
Quote:

I, and many others don't own any audio-gd products. Does that make us uneducated ones? I'm not sure what threshold of education one needs to achieve whatever level of gear knowledge that you'd find indicative of informed purchases. It's blanket statements like this that continue to propagate responses like that from sokolov91, no less another shake of my head.

If I said I know enough about a dish that I can season it with salt, does that mean I said people who don't order that dish don't know enough about food to season food?

 

[macrog]

Quote:

I, and many others don't own any audio-gd products. Does that make us uneducated ones? I'm not sure what threshold of education one needs to achieve whatever level of gear knowledge that you'd find indicative of informed purchases. It's blanket statements like this that continue to propagate responses like that from sokolov91, no less another shake of my head.

It would seem reasonable to suggest that people that own products are more educated about those products than people that don't.
 
This is after all a Reference 7 forum.
 
Regards
 
Macrog
 
 

 

[udailey]

RE7 just beat Wavelength Cosecant. Well, maybe not 'just. It was last weekend, but thought you guys might want to know. Transparency and detail retrieval similar but tonality best in the RE7. Smooooth compared to Cosecant.
Was there with 5 Houston Audio Society members. I had a head cold so I am relaying what they told me. Both sounded wonderful to me but I rely on their ears for that day and 4 of these guys I know well for having a very good ear. The 5th I just met.

 

[Currawong]

 


 


Quote:

I, and many others don't own any audio-gd products. Does that make us uneducated ones? I'm not sure what threshold of education one needs to achieve whatever level of gear knowledge that you'd find indicative of informed purchases. It's blanket statements like this that continue to propagate responses like that from sokolov91, no less another shake of my head.

I understand what he meant -- I know when I bought a Reference 1 that it was what I was looking for, having a similar design to a vintage DAC I'd had the chance to try.  However, sokolov has a point, if one I don't entirely agree with, as I think tweaking, rather like DIY, is better value than constantly buying new gear.  I've posted his rant and a reply in my blog, as I think it is worth discussing.
 

 

[Nada]

Quote:

RE7 just beat Wavelength Cosecant. Well, maybe not 'just. It was last weekend, but thought you guys might want to know. Transparency and detail retrieval similar but tonality best in the RE7. Smooooth compared to Cosecant.
Was there with 5 Houston Audio Society members. I had a head cold so I am relaying what they told me. Both sounded wonderful to me but I rely on their ears for that day and 4 of these guys I know well for having a very good ear. The 5th I just met.

Thanks for letting us know.
I wonder what the source was?
The Wavelength has the excellent asynchronous USB ability - was it being run off USB source? The REF7 can sound quite different depending on the source.

 

[sokolov91]

It is reasonable... but I own a Ref - 7 and Phoenix... I might be completely missing the point, but the statement was nonsensical to me.
Quote:

It would seem reasonable to suggest that people that own products are more educated about those products than people that don't.
 
This is after all a Reference 7 forum.
 
Regards
 
Macrog
 

 
Quote:

Sokolov, when someone says "it's a pity" he doesn't actually mean it is pitiable, it's a phrase to say you would prefer it another way.

 
If I said I know enough about a dish that I can season it with salt, does that mean I said people who don't order that dish don't know enough about food to season food?

Oh I know, just me rambling about something that crossed my mind. Was just thinking 1700$ DAC + pity shouldn't really be mixed in a sentence... especially when what he was wishing for is not really an upgrade or anything at all really other than a reassurance.
 
The food analogy is a good one, but I am not so sure it applies to anything other than transducers at this point in my head-fi career. That, and often people hear what they want to. It is a very fickle thing.
 
I think the tweaks we are discussing here are kind of like... seasoning dishes with air if we are to continue with that mentality. You might spend tons of money on your tank, spend great time to apply it properly etc... but at the end of the day it is just air and the tongue can't taste it same way our ears can hear many things we put a lot of effort into. But to some, without the ritual before the meal, it is not as enjoyable when really the food (music) is the same.
 
At some point people here have to realize a kid with an iPod is enjoying music worry free and might even be more in touch with the music than they are if they are constantly worrying about cables, capacitors, i2s ETC.
 
I think middle ground is best in terms of absolute enjoyment but focusing on the music, and not the gear is the most pivotal choice anyone here can make.
 
 

 

[sokolov91]

For some positive:
 
The Ref - 7 phoenix combo is really great as a value... I have my computer, CDP, 360/ps3 (so bluray) all feeding the Ref - 7 and the Phoenix can output to my balanced headphones and to my Muse 100 amp... it is an extremely convenient solution and sound fantastic.
 
I am highly tempted to sell them off and get a NFB 10ES or something though as I am most likely going to sell off everything except my LCD-2 and maybe go Stax...
 
That being said, those sexy black chassis give me a sense of satisfaction every time I look at them... they are gorgeous. Even turning them on is a joy so while it might be a waste of money compared to the performance a NFB10ES would give...but the psychological ramifications would not be as powerful as with my current set up.

 

[IPodPJ]

Quote:

The REF7 can sound quite different depending on the source.

Isn't that the truth.  Most DACs will sound different depending on the source you use with them, but the RE7 is much more sensitive to the source than other DACs I've had like the PS Audio DL3 (with mods including a Superclock 4).  The DL3 varied quite a bit between sources but the RE7 has even more variance, which doesn't seem to jibe with Audio-gd's description of the DSP-1 module.
 

 

[udailey]

Hi Nada,
My friend had a small laptop. One of those netbooks. It played into the DI for the RE7. Good question because it is important here. I tried playing the Cosecant via the DI but it would not work that way. The computer still saw the TE7022 but the Cosecant would not play unless plugged directly to the computer via USB. So the Cosecant did not benefit from the DI as the RE7 did.
Uriah
PS I agree that source helps/hinders RE7. My laptop, even running only battery, can not come close to my audio server I built a few months back. The server runs from a 'high quality' computer supply that is very under loaded. I was quite surprised, although pleasantly so, that the server sounded better. If I had it all to do over again I would buy a MacMini. No work, small and polite looking and from what I have heard (word of mouth and with my ears with other DACs) they are a very nice source. I also wish I could use Amarra or Pure Music. I use J.River. Its a lot of work to get it running great. Running good, no problem, great is another story. I guess my biggest problem is that it has tagging issues so it doesnt see lots of my music. Wow, getting OT here.
 
Quote:

Thanks for letting us know.
I wonder what the source was?
The Wavelength has the excellent asynchronous USB ability - was it being run off USB source? The REF7 can sound quite different depending on the source.

 

 

[IPodPJ]

Quote:

Hi Nada,
My friend had a small laptop. One of those netbooks. It played into the DI for the RE7. Good question because it is important here. I tried playing the Cosecant via the DI but it would not work that way. The computer still saw the TE7022 but the Cosecant would not play unless plugged directly to the computer via USB. So the Cosecant did not benefit from the DI as the RE7 did.
Uriah
PS I agree that source helps/hinders RE7. My laptop, even running only battery, can not come close to my audio server I built a few months back. The server runs from a 'high quality' computer supply that is very under loaded. I was quite surprised, although pleasantly so, that the server sounded better. If I had it all to do over again I would buy a MacMini. No work, small and polite looking and from what I have heard (word of mouth and with my ears with other DACs) they are a very nice source. I also wish I could use Amarra or Pure Music. I use J.River. Its a lot of work to get it running great. Running good, no problem, great is another story. I guess my biggest problem is that it has tagging issues so it doesnt see lots of my music. Wow, getting OT here.
 


 

I have a Mac Mini running Audirvana (which sounds much better than Amarra or Pure Music, and even better than Play or Decibel) with the optical output and it is better than any other Mac's optical out, but it still doesn't compare to my modified Transporter with Audio-gd clocks and power supply.
 

 

[Nada]

Quote:

I have a Mac Mini running Audirvana (which sounds much better than Amarra or Pure Music, and even better than Play or Decibel) with the optical output and it is better than any other Mac's optical out, but it still doesn't compare to my modified Transporter with Audio-gd clocks and power supply.

 
I wonder if you have heard the Audiophilleo2 USB-SPDIF?
Its giving my DI a scare at the moment.
 
 

 

[Currawong]

Quote:

 
I wonder if you have heard the Audiophilleo2 USB-SPDIF?
Its giving my DI a scare at the moment.
 
 

I've been seriously tempted to get one of these. Do tell me more.