If anyone is looking to do a trade with me for their non modded LP for my cap modded one I’d be up for it. Not that I have anything bad to say about the cap mod but I like a warmer more laid back tone which is what I think the stock caps give you. I got good trader feedback. If interested please PM me.
Also
@Wes do you know of a good bassy gain 12AU7 tube? I’m pretty sure I’m going for the Aeolus and want something that contributes to their slam.
You know what's weird! I also got the mod done on my original LP, and when it came back I was a little startled by the extra "edge" and "rawness" added to the notes, and also by the apparently enhanced detail retrieval, and I confess that I have caught myself second guessing myself, regarding what to think about the mod and its effects : Was it a good thing, or maybe too much of a good thing, so to speak? I have not been able to answer this question satisfactorily or definitively until now, but even then, I think it is better to say that I am only *beginning* to get the answer I am looking for, and that the process is not yet complete. This hesitation or wavering between the two options is to be expected, since I was not among those who initially found anything to be wrong with the sonic status quo of the og LP before going for the mod. I opted to go for the mod, because I found its "early adopters" to be quite persuasive in touting its benefits, and that was, at least enough to pique the curiosity of the "mad scientist" half of my audiophile brain, so to speak.
Now as I said before, since getting the modded LP back, I have not completely stopped wondering whether I liked the new sound of it, or whether I found it to be too much of a good thing. Well I happened to take advantage of the $484 sale, and the arrival of the new unit is allowing me the opportunity to compare the modded with the un-modded sound, and guess what I am now thinking:
First of all, I am now discovering for the first time the "muffled sonic quality" of the non-modded version, which the early adopters were complaining about. Yes, so I was not aware that my og LP sounded in any way "muffled" until I sent it out for the mod. Since getting my modded unit back, I have been wondering whether the mod has made the notes from the LP too "raw", edgy, or "un-muffled" for my tastes... Yet now that I am having the opportunity to listen to an un-modded version from the $484 sale, I am slowly discovering that I prefer the relatively "unveiled" character of the notes on the modded version, in many areas, especially in the area of most high frequency notes, and in the way the modded version can seemingly retrieve additional granular details and "plankton" from within the sound field, so go figure!
The only sonic aspect(s) I still prefer about the unmodded version is that the notes at the lower end of the spectrum, i.e in the bass and sub-bass regions, sound somewhat (by which I mean veeery slightly) meatier than those of the modded unit, which sound sightly less meaty or full as compared to low-end notes from the og LP, but also somewhat "cleaner", and and less "veiled," comparatively speaking. This difference is rather subtle, and does not imply that bass on the modded LP is taking any egregious "hit" from the mod, or that it has become"thin" or "lean" in any way that is unacceptable. Still there are times when I wish I could get this "low-end" of the og LP with everything else from the modded version in the same box, but I am guessing that this relative "meatiness" of the og's low end is exactly what produces the slight "muffled-ness" or "veiled" haze that the mod sets out to address, and addresses so well, in the first place, so what's a guy to do?.
This input is being offered not to convert you or convince you to change your mind about wanting back the sound of the un-modded LP, or anything of the sort. I am just adding it to the information you might need to consider as you weigh your options... Of course, the following question is included, but I am not pretending to supply any adequate answer here:
"What if you discover, after getting an un-modded LP, that you prefer the sound of the modded version after all."?
The "lesson" I seem to be taking away here is that one cannot un-hear what one has already heard, and that the memory of what one has heard might always or often come back not only to haunt the present, but also spoil any parties one is having in the present. Obviously, this insight does not only apply to the LP, or even to this hobby alone...
Personally, I am not planning on selling or getting rid of either version of my LPs. The new one will not get modded, and the modded one will not get "un-modded." I am just trying to decide which one of them to retain in my near-field rig at home, and which one to send to my office, and the decision is not easy. To complicate mattes even further, I do not think either version has completed its "burn-in" journey as both the modding and the $484 sale acquisition are way too recent still.
So far, I just feel I can really live with both quite easily, and besides "the mad-scientist half of my audiophile brain" is quite content and seems to enjoy such conundrums and quandaries a bit, perhaps even too much.