Miscellaneous

I have been so good for so long - no new purchases. However, now I feel that itch for an upgrade / new product. Here is my current set ups: Speaker System Denon 3910 Thorens TD160S with ATML440 Muscial Fidelity X-LPS Aksa GK-1 Preamp Aksa Power Amp Speakers Main Headphone Rig Denon 2910 RSA Raptor (no flames, I like it!!) Headphones HD580 with Cardas AKG701 HD590 with SAA cable (ditto the Raptor). Desktop Computer Rig Monica11 USB DAC M^3 diy job Work Setup Bithead with the HD590's These are the options I am considering: (1) A Pico. I am finally ripping my CDs to Flac on a laptop for portability. Pros - sho…

So I'm slowly putting together a computer, and I'm thinking about the soundcard, and I read this blurb in the lastest "Maximum PC" about the Asus Xonar Essence STX, which claims one of the highest SNR (124dB) I've ever seen on a card (yes, yes, I know you can't hear it, whatever) -- anyone familiar with this card or with this line of cards? Looking through NewEgg, they have others that they claim have low noise floor/high SNR (E.G. Asus Xonar DX). Any other recommendations? HT Omega seems to be rated pretty highly over there, too.

...with iTunes! Just realized it was just over a year ago that I, the Luddite IT Guy, finally caved and began the arduous task of importing my CDs into That Infernal Computer Thing. It started with the iPhone... when the 3G came out in Canuckistan in July '08, I knew I had to have one... I needed the e-mail functionality for work and it was just so much cooler than a Crackberry... oh and coverflow looked pretty darn neat as well. I did throw a few albums in to iTunes as soon as I got the iPhone just to have some material on there, but didn't get serious until the end of September. Rather than sleeping for two nights in a row, I schlopped in about 200 CDs. I was…

I suppose it's well known, but I like that someone is pointing out the films lost with every expensive new video delivery format. Hopefully, online distribution will shift in the opposite direction. The Ballad of Blu-ray - A Cinephile Takes Stock - NYTimes.com

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?cat=Mens&pid=043J0315000&vertical=CLTH&subcat=Novelty+T-Shirts&BV_UseBVCookie=Yes I'm going to put this in the Misc. forum, because I consider it a necessary tweak/add-on/accessory for our hobby. Cheers

I'm wondering if I would be in a better position by buying a USB memory (64GB around 200$) or a new iPod exclusively for the car at 275$. I have no experience using USB stick for listening to music files and I'm a bit concern for the sound quality. Presuming the USB device will be more cold resistent if left (forgot) for a longer period of time in the car, I dont want to sacrifice too much for the sake of durability. Have you any idea on wich one will be ahead in this comparaison when using large files (lossless exclusively). Thanks in advance, Amicalement from the North....

Hey! So, I'm looking for a portable player of sorts to placate the babies on the way to China. Requirements are long battery life, or the ability to take AA or another battery pack, and pretty much kid proof. Doesn't have to play DVDs directly, if the ripping process is pretty smooth. I prefer the tablet style. Seems like there aren't many options out there... so, I figured I'd ask around.

I'm getting some weird grounding issues with my system. Any static discharge on my headphones/DAC/amp/computer (which is connected to the DAC via a USB converter) often causes my music to skip momentarily. Even ESD through my desk does it sometimes (and my desk is not electrically connected to my audio setup). One time, a particularly strong discharge caused my USB converter device to be unusable until a reboot. Anyone have suggestions on what to do? My apartment's flooring is all wood.

They are quite cool looking, not sure if anyone up here ever tried them, but USD 15k, wow, that must be something, considering they going to make 120 of them only... McIntosh Reissues Classic 60s Amps, Price Adjusted for Inflation — Reviews and News from Audioholics

I will soon have an RA1 for my RS1. It will be a pain to switch batteries every now and then though. I would like an AC adapter with 9V connectors to supply the unit with power. 1. What do I need to look for in that AC adapter? 2. Would 9V be enough? Since the RA1 uses two 9V batteries, would I have to use one 18V adapter? I think the batteries are in parallell in the RA1 but I'm not sure. If they are would 9V be enough? 3. Is it okey to split the adapter output cable into two 9V connectors, or would I have to have two AC adaptors? 4. How much mAh does it have to have to be enough for the RA1? 5. I read somewhere that it have to be regulated, is that true? 6. …

I ask because the AKG K1000 uses one configuration (i was told it was this anyway): 1 - left channel live 2 - left channel earth 3 - right channel live 4 - right channel earth Which I duplicated when i reterminated my Ergo AMT and made a Hirshmann adapter: pin 1 - no connection to headphone pin 2 - dotted line - left channel negative (2) pin 3 - unmarked inside - left channel live (1) pin 4 - no connection to headphone pin 5 - unmarked outside - right chennel live (3) pin 6 - continuous line - right channel negative (4) ...and duplicated again when I replaced the panel and connector on the TakeT H2/TR-2. Except that the TakeT H2 paperwork, and …

So, I recently stumbled on this site (http://src.infinitewave.ca/) where they compare various software-based SRC implementations. The tests compare 96kHz conversion down to 44.1kHz. Clicking on "Help" brings up an interesting article on the whole subject of SRC in general. Just by clicking through the results of a few popular DAW and audio editing apps, there are noticeable differences in the results that come out of that. That leaves me wondering...how good are the hardware-based upsampling algorithms in DAC's today? From DAC's such as the PSA DLIII's to dcs Purcell's, just how good are those hardware-based upsampling algorithms? If someone were inclined, would the…

Is anyone in the UK using a Zerosurge or Brickwall surge protector ? I've asked zerosurge and they say they can fit it for 240v, (though with the standard US plug type and receptacles,) if anyone in the UK is using one of these I'd be greatful for some feedback on your experiences. :I know only a few of the members are UK residents but am ready to be suprised by relevant insights : This will be for protecting the beta22, mini-dac and any other audio related goodies I later acquire. I'm currently looking at getting a http://www.zerosurge.com/HTML/modsres.html 1MOD15WI thanks

I'm thinking of getting one for my HDTV, but I'm confused. What does it actually do when you play a dvd? If the dvd is widescreen will it just resize the actual picture part to fit the screen, keeping the ratio but getting rid of the bars and giving a higher resolution? Or is it someting else?

Hello, Wife's birthday Friday, and I've been wanting to get her a quality point and shoot for a while. I got her a nice Nikon DSLR a while back but notice she sometimes doesn't bring it as its somewhat bulky. I'd love to get her something I know she will use more portably, take quality pics and she can do all her downloading and Facebook uploading with ease thanks for any recommendations!

Just to alert others of this as I have an alert set up for any data breach of all my accounts. I had a message that there was a possible data breach for my head case password so have changed it

I'm currently setting up my desktop system in South Africa and will need to run my Ayre DAC off a step-down transformer, since it couldn't be converted to 240V. On the back it says 120V, 50/60Hz, 20 W max. I have a modest 60 W compact/travel step down to hand. To those of you who actually understand this stuff, am I likely to be OK powering the DAC off that? Many thanks.

Nate, this is for you for the upcoming La Nina winter. $2600 Meyer Home Plow

Any good ones to recommend for a ground floor bedroom? Thanks.

Julie and the girls just moved into an apartment and I'd feel a lot safer if the apartment had some sort of security system. The ADT type subscription services seem less expensive per month but start to add up over a bit of time. Has anyone set up a system themselves or has suggestions for a diy system? 2 bedroom with windows, a living room door and a main door need to be covered essentially. I am thinking buying a cheap netbook and throwing a couple of tb drives in an enclosure and connecting them to some cameras. However, if there is a break in, I don't see why someone would leave the netbook behind. Cloud based services all require subscriptions at which point we might…

http://news.softpedia.com/news/The-S2-Audio-Dockit-Affordable-Luxury-iPod-Docking-80422.shtml

Being a bit of a sports junkie and football fan, I find myself recording games that I feel/hope will be special. Keeping them as part of a sports library has been a bit of a hobby of mine. It was a snap with VCR(yeah, that's way old school) but it's become very difficult with the DirecTV/TIVO situation. For the games now, I have to record the content on to my digital camcorder and then use my computer to burn the DVD. A royal pain IMO. So, I'm interested in a DVR but know little about them. What should I look for in features/specs? Is there anything that's a "must have" for getting the best results for what I want to do with it as outlined above? Specific models I shou…

I've run into the need for some sort of shipping account a few times in the past, and recently ran into this again. Is this something that's hard to setup, or perhaps not worthwhile for occasional use? If I were to find someone that had an account I could use, is there any sort of authorization, or do you just give the shipping party the number and an address and the package shows up and the account is charged? Seems like that could be abused pretty readily. Anyways, if anyone might be able to help with an account number, PM me Otherwise, I'm trying to talk the vendor out of this requirement or seeing what it takes to set one up on my own. Thanks!

http://www.danleysoundlabs.com/technical%20downloads.html Download the sound files, crank the volume to "11", and enjoy. I need to go find a speaker dealer with some big-ass bass horns so I can crank the fireworks recording to real life levels & get the full dynamics without clipping or compression.