[Biesas]

It looks like that list covers It all Anybody travelling with a car from East/Central London? I am not bringing much stuff, everything will fit in my backpack.

 

[Somnambulist]

1) Please treat others' gear with the utmost care and respect. - agree
2) Do not unplug headphones without asking permission from the owners first. - agree
3) Do not turn anything on or off without asking permission first. - agree
4) Do not move anyone's gear from their established area without asking permission. - agree
5) Always treat other headfiers with the utmost respect. - agree
6) If a woman shows up - DO NOT GAWK. They are part of the human species and also deserve the utmost respect. Do not fear that this is the only one. - this wasn't a problem last time
7) Do not bring food or drinks near any equipment, including your own. - agree 
8) If you eat, please WASH YOUR DIRTY, GREASY HANDS BEFORE touching other people's equipment. - agree (although one can eat without using their hands)
9) Do not ask the vendors too many questions. They want to have fun too and others may want to ask questions as well. - ehhhh, I wouldn't imagine this would apply to most, if not all of us, common sense etc.
10) Always follow the rules of the host. He/She/They have been gracious enough to host a meet so he/she/they deserve the most respect and if you don't follow any of the above rules, AT LEAST follow this one. - agree
11) No shirt, no shoes, no headfi meet. - unless this means 'don't come naked', disagree. As long as you're wearing clean clothes and footwear, common sense please. A string wife-beater and speedos, no, but many people last time came in t-shirts and trainers. Most of the US meets you see people in shorts and sandals
12) Do not put screw drivers in electrical outlets. - lol, or start touching exposed components in the DIY gear on show
13) If it's summer - please wear deoderant. - agree
14) If it's winter - please wear deoderant.- - agree
 
This list misses one important one - wash your hair in the morning and don't put any gunky gel in it which could come off on people's headphones.

 

[Somnambulist]

Here's last year's rules btw:
 
 
 
 

These are the standard set of rules for a Head-Fi meet. Please review before the meet, and observe at the meet, to ensure everyone has a good time, we don't have any problems, and that we can continue to enjoy meets in the future. Many thanks.
 
Personal Hygiene is important.

1. Wash your hair and your ears--and behind your ears.
2. Avoid the use of products like hair gel, hair spray, mousse, etc. some of the headphones you'll have the opportunity to try cost more than a good used car.
3. With all the gear & other members, it could get warm in the room. Dress accordingly.

 
The most important thing of all is to have fun.

1. Meets are Great, so be prepared to have a great day with fellow Head-fi members.
2. If you don't have any gear to bring, that's OK. Just bring your ears.
3. You can try whatever gear you want but be polite, ask permission, don't be a gear hog, etc.
4. If you have any questions about gear, look for the owner and ask. Or just ask whoever is listening (after they're done).
5. Everyone is very friendly and will be glad to answer you.
6. Do not be shy.
7. Mingle.
8. You will find everyone to be very friendly & helpful.
9. Most of all enjoy yourself & take the opportunity to hear gear you normally wouldn't get a chance to, or are thinking of buying.

 
Get organised.

1. Take a mental (or written) list of what you want to hear. If you do this before the meet, leave some time to look around and listen to some surprises.
2. You'll be overwhelmed with the amount of gear that will be at the meet.
3. Read the impressions thread afterward. You'll realize you missed listening to something you wanted to hear.
4. Time Flies at these meets.

 
Remember that you're trying out another member's gear.

1. Treat all gear with the utmost respect.
2. Ask if you're not sure how to operate any gear, or you're just curious about the system setup. Some gear requires headphones to be plugged in at all times, some gear doesn't like it when you unplug headphones unless the volume is turned all the way around. Don't just assume that everything works the same way. Just ask, it can save a lot of heartache.
3. Respect the owner's wishes.
4. Give it all the velvet cushion treatment.
5. If you have any doubt or questions, ask.
6. Do not place headphones on top of other gear--if you're not sure where to put it, ask the owner.
7. Do not remove any gear from a setup without the owner's permission.
8. Do not remove any cables or make any other changes to the setup without the owner's permission.
9. If you do take gear away from a table, or borrow cables, adapters, or power strips, try to remember where you got it from, and bring it back when you're done. In all the excitement, it's easy to forget where you got that 1/4" to 3.5mm headphone adapter.
10. If you listen loud remember to lower the volume for the next person.
11. If you don't know or are just curious about something, ask someone. Anyone. Someone knows, or knows someone who knows.

 

[MrQ]

^This.

 

[smial1966]

Guys,
 
Thanks for your posts regarding meet etiquette as they're very useful and serve as a poignant reminder to us all. 
 
Raffle update 1...
 
David - http://www.mains-cables-r-us.co.uk/ - has kindly offered to donate the following items to the prize draw.
 
Blue Horizon - spiked shoes
Blue Horizon - clean it
Deflex Audio - pollipods
MCRU cartridge cleaning putty
Anti-static record sleeves
Isotek - ultimate set up CD
 
David will add more donations later and I'll probably pair up various items if there's an obvious synergy, e.g. cartridge cleaning putty and anti-static record sleeves. 
 
Cheers,
 
Andy. 

 

[smial1966]

Raffle update 2...
 
I received a nice PM from a guy called Oscar informing me of his newly launched range of hi-fi accessories. Oscar makes really nice handcrafted headphone stands from solid hard woods and quality birch plywood. Aesthetically the stands are understated, stylish and very reasonably priced. Do have a look -  http://www.oscarsaudio.co.uk/headphone-stands.html - as in audio accessory terms these stands are an absolute bargain.
 

 
Oscar has generously donated a headphone stand to our raffle prizes - though I don't know which model yet.
 
Cheers,
 
Andy.

 

[jr41]

6) If a woman shows up - DO NOT GAWK. They are part of the human species and also deserve the utmost respect. Do not fear that this is the only one. - this wasn't a problem last time

 
This made me laugh. We did have a few female attendees last year, which was nice to see, and I hope the same is true this year. Everyone was very well behaved and any 'gawking' was rightfully directed to the headphones and other gear - as it should be!
 
Quote:

13) If it's summer - please wear deoderant. - agree
14) If it's winter - please wear deoderant.- - agree
 

 
Looks like I'll be buying some deodorant then!

 

[smial1966]

jr41,
 
Don't waste money on deodorant, as a kitchen scouring pad liberally sprinkled with Vim powder and vigorously scrubbed on one's sweaty bits works a treat, chafes a bit though!
 
Cheers,
 
Andy.
 
Quote:

 
This made me laugh. We did have a few female attendees last year, which was nice to see, and I hope the same is true this year. Everyone was very well behaved and any 'gawking' was rightfully directed to the headphones and other gear - as it should be!
 
 
Looks like I'll be buying some deodorant then!

 

[jr41]

Quote:

jr41,
 
Don't waste money on deodorant, as a kitchen scouring pad liberally sprinkled with Vim powder and vigorously scrubbed on one's sweaty bits works a treat, chafes a bit though!
 
Cheers,
 
Andy.
 

 
So that's how everyone is able to afford all those expensive headphones!

 

[smial1966]

It's raffle update time again folks...  

 
As the thread has received over 10,000 hits I have decided to donate the following gear to the prize list...
 
Beyerdynamic T50P - portable headphones with Tesla technology 
 
Headstage - Arrow 12HE 3G
 
Calyx - Kong USB headphone amp
 
All of the above kit has been purchased new by me, used very little and then stored. All items are in excellent condition and will be bundled together.
 
Cheers,
 
Andy. 

 

[Biesas]

Very nice items you are putting up for the raffle 

Soon the list of raffle prizes is going to be longer than the list of the gear that everybody is bringing 

 

[smial1966]

Biesas,
 
It'd be great if virtually every raffle ticket purchaser won at least something, so I'll keep contacting retailers/manufacturers requesting prize donations.
 

 
Cheers,
 
Andy.
 
Quote:

Very nice items you are putting up for the raffle 

Soon the list of raffle prizes is going to be longer than the list of the gear that everybody is bringing 

 

[Ra97oR]

Fully supporting the non-stop list of nice stuff to come, really appreciate all your hard work organizing this event.

 

[smial1966]

Ra97oR,
 
Thanks for your support as it's greatly appreciated. 
 
It's an interesting process approaching audio manufacturers, as the larger brands invariably ignore my correspondence (a notable exception being ARCAM who are very keen to attend the meet) whilst the smaller `boutique' concerns are far more receptive and generous donating gear. 
 
Cheers,
 
Andy. 
 
Quote:

Fully supporting the non-stop list of nice stuff to come, really appreciate all your hard work organizing this event.

 

[FragmentedGod]

Thanks so much or all the hard work.  Every time I read on here I can't believe the new prizes/participants that are being added! 
 
It's occurred to me that my setup is all running from my PC and I don't have a good laptop.  I should be able to bring a little laptop with USB to output to my DAC but it won't have digital out for comparison of the components on the DAC.  I don't know what other people are bringing but it would be useful to have it setup alongside someone who has a PC/laptop with SP/DIF outputs.  Not a requirement obviously but would let people try the different parts of the dac!  I personally have it setup to switch between the coax digital connection and the USB.  The coax sounds better but the treble (with my amp/headphone combo) can be harsh for playing video games, so I use the USB when I'm doing that. There is also less interference noise from my computer when I use the USB than using the coax out, which is just onboard sound on my motherboard.
 
If someone has a setup that would work like that and is interested in being able to try it out with a vDAC II and a valve headphone amp then let me know!