[Puma Cat]

 
Mr. PumaCat,  
 
I think Tim would laugh over my charactorization of him, he's a funny kind of guy, at least as I remember him.  I got on quite well with these Brits, so much so that I imported Containers of their stuff to the US.  
You'd have to be a "Nutter" to make Tim's kind of product and a "Nutter" to Import it!  I specialized in auditioning various Wires, Cramolin usage, we had grades of Carbon Brushes, three manufacturers of Record Cleaning Machines: Nitty Gritty, Monks and VPI, for cristsake I was way deeper than you are at now.  It was a crazy time, we compared all manner of nichey, we pioneered AB test Panels of Puma Cats, we had a realllllly good time with all this, it was great fun.  
 
[size=x-small]"Was" is the operative word here,  I only know of Jon Iverson [/size]belonging[size=x-small] to a nice Audio Club, maybe there are others out there, somewhere, perhaps Iceland but none around here, except for headphone meets ( if you can consider them Audio Clubs ).[/size]
 
[size=x-small]Anyway, the your Michell is beautiful , what is that Red Cart? a Grado or Koetsu Rosewood ?[/size]
 
[size=x-small]I'm glad Tim survived and is still out there, I'll have to drop him a message, he'll fight to make a sale and I'll have to beg-off, my world's North shifted to South somewhere.  He always promised everything and anything, nobody ever felt him to be bashful or modest. [/size]
 
[size=x-small]Tony in Michigan [/size]

Okay, Tony, I understand now you were being facetious about the transformer winder comment!

 Sometimes it is hard to tell simply from text in a posting. Personally, I think Tim is a bit of a genius, along with Nelson Pass, Gordon Rankin, and Herve Delatraz of DarTZeel, And our own inimitable Jason, of course!
 
I went down all that path of craziness (Fulton cables, Cramolin, etc, etc.) the first time I got into high-end back in the Golden Age of Audio. I then got out of it for literally 20 years when I was riding and road racing motorcycles. Got back in in 2008, but things are much more sensible now. I've got a very nice 2-channel system based on Conrad-Johnson tube gear that is stable, and I don't suffer from GAS or "system churn". I am done, the only change I might consider is getting a pair of Harbeth 30.1s. 
 
Fortunately, I never threw out any of my LPs. I use a Spin-Clean and occasionally a VPI to clean my LPs, but the vast majority of these wonderful new remasterings and pressings are dead quiet. 
 
The red cartridge is a Koetsu Urushi Vermilion...absolutely sublime and works well with the SME V. Japanese Urushi lacquer applied over rosewood. 
 
And you can call me Stephen, my real name, or just PC...a lot of friends refer to me that way. 

 

[dr cornelius]

Puma Cat, I haven’t heard the 30.1’s yet, but I highly recommend a pair of Harbeths!  

 

[Puma Cat]

  Puma Cat, I haven’t heard the 30.1’s yet, but I highly recommend a pair of Harbeths!  

Dr Cornelius, if you get a chance, you really need to here the 30.1s. Even for Harbeths, this is an incredible speaker. They have the most ravishing mid-range of any two-way loudspeaker I've ever heard. 

 

[AManAnd88Keys]

Vinyl records wearing out is an imanginary anxiety. Somebody else will be able to listen to my LPs long after I'm gone. Clean records in good sleeves and played on a properly set up turntable don't lose fidelity over time. I mean, sure, eventually friction and heat will damage the grooves, but that's like curling up in a ball of fear because the Second Law of Thermodynamics and the heat death of the universe spells doom for everything around us someday.

Well, I hope you are right. There are some analog records that I would like to check out, as chances are low they'll ever become available in digital form...

 

[dr cornelius]

 
Dr Cornelius, if you get a chance, you really need to here the 30.1s. Even for Harbeths, this is an incredible speaker. They have the most ravishing mid-range of any two-way loudspeaker I've ever heard. 

I think they’re the only model I haven’t heard!  I have P3-ESR’s and I think the 30.1’s will be a good upgrade at some point...  But I have to say that for the last few years the P3’s are so good, I have had no inclination to try anything else!
 
So... now I’m getting into headphones - which is why I’m here.. 

 

[Chris J]

People that call computer audio simple are completely wrong. Computer audio is just as hard/complex as vinyl. Here are just some of the issues concerning computer audio:

1) computer vs streamer
2) NAS vs local storage
3) 16/44.1 or 24/96 or 24/192
4) AIFF vs WAF, vs FLAC vs apple lossless vs MP3
5) PCM vs DSD
6) software vs hardware up/over sampling
7) up/over samplings vs NOS
8) setting up a network
9) regular patches required
10) buy a tablet for control
11) hoping your streamer actually has an app for you tablet
12) WASPI vs Kernel streaming
13) Jrviver vs Foobar vs iTunes
14) Using free software to rip vs dBpoweramp
15) endless problems with meta data

ad nauseam

you got that right!
100 % right!
I find computer audio to be an utter PITA! :mad:

USB connections seem to an endless stream of drama.
I'm not much of a computer geek!

 

[superjawes]

If you have a good set up you vinyl will never ever wear out. If you use a warn out card or screw up the setting completely then vinyl wear is not an issue. Not saying all those points are necessary for everyone. But say digital play back is easy is a lie.

You're right. I just finished listening to an album on Spotify and I had to click THREE TIMES to start a new one.

So difficult...

 

[Eee Pee]

I'm simply fascinated by the mechanics of the entire vinyl record process and pretty dumb with the computer stuff. Hence being an Apple user my whole life since the IIe. I find the mechanics behind vinyl much simpler and like an awesome car can be, just cool as heck.

VPI Traveler > Mani > Mjolnir or Vali

Pretty sweet.

 

[Puma Cat]

  I think they’re the only model I haven’t heard!  I have P3-ESR’s and I think the 30.1’s will be a good upgrade at some point...  But I have to say that for the last few years the P3’s are so good, I have had no inclination to try anything else!
 
So... now I’m getting into headphones - which is why I’m here.. 

I've heard nothing but great things about the P3-ESR's. 
 
The British really have to do something about audio product nomenclature. Both Harbeth and PMC's product nomenclature is hopelessly confusing. 
 
It's like nomenclature for Harley-Davidsons.

 

[johnjen]

Analog and digital 'require' an understanding of two quite different skill sets to be able to optimally setup and use either system.
Some folks have both sets while others may have only one or the other, and some don't have either and so 'need help'.
 
And for those who get frustrated while fussing, it is all to easy to view an alternative as 'easier'.
 
But once setup and functioning I find digital to be considerably 'easier' to use, and with a greater range of choices that covers functions and features that are, or can, be quite helpful.
Take DSP for instance.
Some of the available options are simply not available in the analog domain, and the degridation of the signal can be orders of magnitude less than adding another active/passive analog circuit into a 'tweaked' system.  Often to the point that they simply aren't even considered.
 
Certainly digital has less fussing with physical 'stuff', well other than a mouse.
 
But I gotta say that analog does promote a more 'active' involvement, which helps keep ones bladder from becoming 'too full'.  

 
JJ

 

[tonykaz]

Mr. Puma Cat, 
 
Harbeth? you are a Brit fan.  
 
I never had any of these, I sold a ton of Tablettes which could outperform the World of 1985,  Thiel CS3s were a Pro-Ac Tablette with a built-in Subwoofer.  Great stuff.
 
 PMC?, can you swing a pair of these?, they were talking $150,000 last time I was brave enough to ask.  
 
Tony in MIchigan

 

[Delirious Lab]

So what would a Schiit turntable looks like?  And what name would they give it?  I propose Snotra, Norse goddess of wisdom, as in "You'd be wise to buy that new Schiit turntable and dust off your old Snotra records." 

 

[Puma Cat]

  Analog and digital 'require' an understanding of two quite different skill sets to be able to optimally setup and use either system.
<SNIP>
JJ

 
True, but it's not rocket science, either. Folks can and do learn how to do these two setups, and often, both. 

 

[Puma Cat]

 
Mr. Puma Cat, 
 
Harbeth? you are a Brit fan.  
 
I never had any of these, I sold a ton of Tablettes which could outperform the World of 1985,  Thiel CS3s were a Pro-Ac Tablette with a built-in Subwoofer.  Great stuff.
 
 PMC?, can you swing a pair of these?, they were talking $150,000 last time I was brave enough to ask.  
 
Tony in MIchigan

I'm just a fan of good sound. Hence the C-J amplification chain, and Danish loudspeakers. 

 

[drez]

Personally I am starting to think that maybe it would be easier to just call quits and buy a turntable.  I think most people who have experience outside of computer audio will agree that a computer as a source is very difficult to get good sound from.  The ideas of "bit perfect" and measurements are cold comfort.