Audio Accessories

Hi everyone. I have a brief story: my CDP was playing some beautiful Mahler last night. I was putting my finishing thoughts on my BA thesis, when a rude reminder of the derelict nature of my city towards its own infrastructure forced me to use my laptop's battery. While i was fulminating at Berkeley a thought came over me: what affect this might have had on my gear. Thanks to the knowledgeable advice from this forum, I had connected my ZD straight to the wall, and now I was regretting it. While I'm sure the ZD is alright, I really want something to protect it that will not compromise my dynamics... So... what are your recommendations? Thanks everyone...

Hi! id love for anyone to share pics and recs of some quality listening chairs. I’ve been using an old wood rocker which actually isnt too bad, but it’s a bit of a family heirloom piece and I should get my ass out of it. As I’ve been looking, the search has been harder than I thought - I’m looking for an armchair but most I’ve found are so bulky they would just dominate the room. Many nice chairs seem to be made for dining table sets or kitchen tables which look odd. I would say I like the mid century style the most but know those can get pricey. Something classy but not bulky, definitely wanting something on the sleeker side but hopefully still comfy. My liste…

Hoping to find a digital stylus force gauge accurate to 0.01. Really don't want to pay more then $100. Needs to last forever and ever. Any suggestions?

Hey Guys, I came across a pair of Mullard EL84s from the good old days. I understand these tubes to be awesome and I think would be fun to listen to hooked up to my single driver crossover-less speakers. I'm looking for a EL84 based amp and was wondering if anyone has some nice recommendations? Since I have a pair of EL84's, it would be best to suggest amps that use just 2, and not 4 el84's (I am guessing those amps would work in a push pull configuration). Amps can be integrated OR plain jane amps. I see that the Almarro 205mkII is well regarded which sparked my interest. Any others that you guys like? Thanks!

I like these headphones but I think the bass would sound better with deeper earpads plus they would keep my ears from bottoming out in the earcups. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot! Gene

My Google ability has failed me -- I am looking for a TRRS to TRS adapter that has a built in mic (perhaps that can clip onto the cord of headphones) so I can use my regular phones to talk via Google Voice. If that is not clear, I imagine it would look like a TRRS male to TRS female jack, with a cord coming out the side with a mic on the end. Does such a thing exist?

Hi All, I'm thinking about tweaking my setup but I'm not sure which option will make the biggest difference in increasing sound quality. I'm a newb so I'd appreciate any advice or comments from knowledgeable people that have made any of these changes. My current setup is MacBook Pro-> Pure Music->Optical-> DacMagic->Luminous Monarch II RCA->Schiit Lyr-> LCD2 I've heard a lot of people say that a good coaxial cable beats an optical cable in terms of SQ, which is why I'm considering the HiFace. However, I've also heard that the optical and coaxial inputs on the DacMagic sound pretty much the same. So, my question is whether or not it wou…

I've been tempted by the Manley Skipjack selector switch for a while now. It's not your basic A/B box and seems like it can do some neat things. The reason I am thinking about it is that it looks like I'll have 2 amps and 2 sources for a while and it would be nice to be able to switch easily and on the fly. It also could be useful for comparisons when I borrow gear. That said, the Skipjack is very expensive at $900. I know it's overkill, but is it ridiculous for what it does?

Monster Cable Sends Cease and Desist Letter to Small Cable Maker for Patent Infringement. President (who used to be a lawyer) Writes a Response Refusing to Stop Making Cables and Makes Letter Public. Kurt's letter is printed below: RE: Your letter, received April Fools' Day Dear Monster Lawyers, Let me begin by stating, without equivocation, that I have no interest whatsoever in infringing upon any intellectual property belonging to Monster Cable. Indeed, the less my customers think my products resemble Monster's, in form or in function, the better. I am evaluating your claim that the connectors on certain Tartan brand products infringe Monster'…

I have been using an optical cable to feed a DAC that is about 18 feet from an iMac. The optical cable has bit the dust and rather than getting the same I am thinking of streaming the music wirelessly from the apple extreme base station by the iMac. Specifically I am thinking of the AirPort Express Base Station which in turn would feed the DAC via the optical out. Any other suggestions? Thanks.

I got these cheap adapters on ebay from a real nice guy, but they are not working right. I know, you get what you pay for. He replaced the 1st pair with the same problem. I think I see the issue now. The pins are not the same length and are rocking in my sockets creating a static-like noise. I think the longer pin (1st picture right tube middle) is bottoming out in the socket? And the other pins have junk on the ends, solder? Can I just make the pins even length by sanding, grinder, snips, or another method? Is it possible to make them too short?

I have a friend who works at Circuit City. Earlier this year we were talking about making him a line stabilizer and he started egging me on to get a power conditioner. Well I am going on a cruise next summer, so all of my cash is tied up there so I mentioned I couldn't buy for at least a year. So he calls me yesterday. "I have a Monster Power Center, you want it?" "How Much?" "$40" "...!" I had to jump all over this. http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/details/752246098 That is the center I got. For $40 I figured I couldn't go wrong.

It was built by the craftsman swt61 based off a design I sent him. The stand is made from gaboon ebony (the blackest of woods), bloodwood and quilted maple. It will be the resting place for my ps-1's once it arrives. Biggie.

Nice Sola MCR Iso transformer, DH Labs power cable, with a box and some outlets and plug I stole from my brother-in-law. It regluates, isolates, filters, and steps up and down should I need it

Need something to use with my surface pro 4 (usb or something wireless). I also have a cheap 1 square inch usb dac that I can plug in a 1/8" Jack for headphones and mics. Purpose is to record talks, presentations, lectures etc while I present/write on the surface pro. I currently have a zalman zm1 mic from my gaming days that I am currently using but I have to hold it to my face the whole time which is unprofessional and well, after holding the mic there for ~2 to 3 hours, my arm cramps pretty bad (it doesn't have a clip that I could use to clip it to my shirt/lapel). Google search has led me to mics and receivers and Wi-Fi extenders and god knows what else. Budget is $30…

How about ​The McIntosh McAire Yours for only ... $3000 http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/us/Products/pages/ProductDetails.aspx?CatId=LifeStyle&ProductId=McAire Oh, and don't forget the stand http://www.mcintoshlabs.com/us/Products/pages/ProductDetails.aspx?CatId=Merchandise&ProductId=McIntoshST1AccessoryStand A Bargain at only $50 (or use an aptX enable bluetooth audio receiver and some (active) speakers ...)

As the title says, I'm needing a 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter so I can get rid of the cheap/awful buds that came with my cell phone and use some decent IEM's. Unfortunately, I'm having trouble finding these. Radio Shack(mine anyway) and the cell phone companies in my area don't have any. I ordered an expensive one ($20) from Pocket PC Techs only to find that it was defective upon arrival so back it went. I see lots of adapters in mono but I'm not finding a lot of options for stereo. Anyone have one that they're happy with? Where did you find it? Any help would be appreciated.

I've got a family member getting ready to spend a year or two in Seoul. He's been advised to pick up a couple of converters in the US before he leaves. Seems a couple of his colleagues picked up a unit or two that were of suspect quality which led to some equipment damage. Anyone here have some top flight units they'd recommend? I'll confess to knowing nothing about the converters, what's out there or what's good. Thanks in advance. Hope things are well with the Head Case gang!

OMG!!!1! Better than "studio quality"!!!1! How do they do that?!?!?

I need a pair of standard RCAs, 2M length. I prefer copper vs. silver. I want something shielded and with decent strain relief. This is to go between my source (Adcom) and amp (Gilmore Lite), it is arguably the most important single connection in the house. I have used Kimber products extensively in the past, and I've been very happy with then. Unfortunately, they completely lack strain relief and are rather fragile. I'd like to keep my budget under $100. Suggestions?

Is there anywhere in the US or close by that sells the HI-Fi 2000 cases, specifically the black 2U Pesante Dissipante 300mm or something similar. Decent quality, not like the crappy Par Metals case I have now. Preferably priced in $US and not cost an arm and leg to ship like it would from Italy, or is there no way around this pickle?

Hey guys, Do you have any ideas/recommendations/links to a nice, sturdy, protective case for my hp2's to store when not in use? I searched and saw what postjack used, a quantary camera case, but seemed a bit bulky and overkill. Though it looked nice, and you could cut out the foam. I saw something like this on HF in the pic below, up top: That seems to fit it perfectly, and not be as tall as the one postjack used.

My wife and I are at the Louis V store and she's shopping for a new travel bag for yours truly. Seems she's sick of seeing me carry my electronic gear in a Canon camera bag when we travel. While I'd love to get a nicer case for my gear(we travel a lot), there's no way I'm going to carry that thing....at $1200 with NO compartments! So we struck a deal....I find a new/nicer bag to replace my camera case or I carry a Louis V on my next trip. I need a bag with secure compartments, zippers or velcro, dividers...etc. Something a geeky gear junkie like me can store all his goodies in and still slide it under seats on flights. The Louis V has a great big space for a main comp…

Hi, Newbie at head-case - please enlighten me with your wisdom! I

ALO USB Cable Does it even comply with USB2.0specs? I guess I should start making cables too... 500 for this?