Miscellaneous

I now have two headphones whose foam is deteriorating. (0) What causes this? (1) Is there any way to prevent this? I suspect not, since I've had foam inside an anvil case (the kind that's valenced and is practically hermetically sealed) deteriorate purely out of age. (2) Does it "run"? I.E. once the foam starts deteriorating, should one just throw out the entire batch? Or is there a way to save the foam that hasn't deteriorated yet? (3) Is it "contagious"? I.E. Can it be transfered from one to another? (4) Is there a way to determine ahead of time how soon foam is going to deteriorate? (5) Best way to fix? Are there different kinds of foam? I know with Grado…

When I was in SFO last weekend for the meet, I bought a pair of Vibram Five Fingers KSOs at In-jean-ious. I had gone up there with the intent of trying a pair on and possibly buying some, and when I got to the meet, it turned out that Icarium and his whole posse were outfitted with them. Their good recommendations didn't hurt to seal the deal. Anyway, the 47s fit me well enough, so I bought a pair in black. I've been wearing them exclusively ever since. They are totally fucking awesome. They do look kinda funny though, and in black, they look like some sort of water shoe, so be prepared to get shit from your friends. And people who don't give you shit have 1,000,000 quest…

As posted in another thread, the coverage offered by AT&T in Manhattan (especially lower Manhattan) is laughable. My iPhone will continue to suffice for personal email and stupid apps, but now I need something that will actually work as a phone. I was considering a blackberry, as I have grown accustomed to them and find them excellent. However, I don't really want to pay for the data plan, and I won't have corporate support for email, so that seems to be a waste. So I'm thinking that I need one of them smart phones? I'd like something that is a solid phone, and ideally with a keyboard so I can text without learning to type on a numeric keypad like a teenage g…

News Release VIA and ArcSoft Bring Full HD Audio to Home Theatre PCs - VIA Technologies, Inc.

ADS floorstanding speakers (have an 8" mid range driver and a tweeter) paired with some sub (didnt get a chance to get the name) Bang and Olfusen Beogram 5500 CDP (couldnt find the remote) Bang and Olfusen Cassette Player (forget the model # but it seemed like it was mated with the 5500 CDP) ADA PF 200 Power Amp (US built) Perreaux PMF 1150B Power Amp(New Zealand built) some kenwood cdp...looked like something from bestbuy. might be wrong on this though. some surround sound processor. didnt catch my eye. might be able to get all of the above. only brand ive heard of is B & O and i know brand name usually doesnt mean much in terms of quality. if anyone has…

such a wrong forum

Pretty cool. He says elsewhere they'll probably give it away for free in the end. I'll post a link if that happens. I can think of some places where it might be able to do quite a bit of good! Audio Musings by Sean Olive: Harman's "How to Listen" - A New Computer-based Listener Training Program

My main PC and audio rig in the home is located in the masters which is above the kitchen. Whenever the garbage disposal is turned on, my Link DAC III goes mad and makes several clicking sounds in rapid succession (mechanical switch on/off, correct?). Other than relocating my equipment to a different room, is there a financially reasonable (under $500) solution? Would something like PS Audio Duet work for me or do I need a full blown active power conditioning?

Folks, My cousin is looking for some advice to build a computer based system for around $2000. Thats going to be some sort of DAC/Preamp/Amp, cables/wires and speakers. I'm thinking of: 1) Peachtree Nova: Signal Path International - Era Speakers & Peachtree Audio - Introducing Nova 2) Used speakers with minimum 91db efficiency. 3) Bluejean cables or Signal cables. Any thoughts?

Seeking some advice here. I traded some of my stuff for Symphonic line RG2 Preamp. It's in OK condition and sounds good, but shiny steel front plate and body are covered in patina. What can I use to clean it to restore to it's shinny condition. It should look like this: It's also missing two screws from the back plate that hold two RCA jacks to the back panel. Do you guys now a good store to order various crews. These amps are made in Germany so all the screws are hex.

I am in need of recommendations for a P&S digital camera. It would be a bonus if it is a fast camera and on the smallish side. Budget under $350. Thanks!

The obvious solution to using US voltage electronics in Japan is a step up transformer. Or a different AC adapter if that's possible. But say I wanted to use this in Japan. Is it doable without a step up transformer? The IEC inlet on top right says EMI Filter 115V/250V~ 50/60Hz

Yeah, moar power is always needed. The SR-007 also likes silver IC's so some DIY could be in your future.

any pointers about where to look, while in shanghai, for what kind of audio gear? any ideas welcome... thanks in advance

Do you guys have any recommendations for a good headset? I'm tired of making Skype phone calls from my integrated MacBook microphone so I'm looking for something that will make my voice sound good to my interlocutors. Thanks!

Just went to look at audiogon and I'm sure not in Kansas anymore. I don't have alot of time at the moment to navigate through the site, but everything seems to be a link to other sites. I'm not entirely sure the 'gon is up and running.

I have a guy (overseas, who has good feedback) interested in buying my cd player from agon. I was wondering if anyone has used this or knows anything about it http://escrow.com/ Thanks

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.

I'm not much of a photographer, but the cameras in this article in the NY Times that can shoot 30-60 frames per second seem interesting. Definitely could be useful for kids/sports/nature stuff.

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 think a few people heard this at CanJam last year? Anyway, it's now shipping. Obviously the focus is home theater, but I wonder if it can be applied to "simulate" out-of-head stereo listening? EDIT: I just RTFA more closely, and it can indeed do stereo.

Did anyone order any music from Grooves Inc: http://grooves-inc.com? I ordered a CD that no one else seems to have but they had in stock, and now I am being quoted "The order will be ready for dispatch in about 20-22 working days." This makes me worried, if they had it in stock why does it take them 20 day to dispatch it.

Hey all- So I need some advice. My pre (99) only has one set of preouts which is currently running to my power (909), and I need to get my sub back in the system somehow. At first I was running the power with the Quadlink and the sub with the regular preout, but the Quadlink really does sound as bad as everyone says it does, so thats not an option. The sub can be run with either interconnects or speaker wire, and it has outs for both. So this leaves me with three options: 1. Use a Y-splitter from the pre. For some reason this feels like a bad idea, feels like it would degrade the signal. Anyone ever done this? 2. Run interconnects to the sub and then from t…

My trusty Sony a100 bit the dust the other day and it's well out of warranty at this point so I figure it's time for a new camera. I'd like to keep the cost under $1k (body only or w/ kit lens). While I liked the a100 I'm thinking it might be a good idea to go with a Canon or Nikon this time due to the large of amount of available lenses and their seemingly better performance at higher ISO levels. Any suggestions/recommendations are appreciated

So I've been a long time Norelco user and I have one that I've reasonably liked... but the blades are pretty dull and replacements aren't cheap and it's an old model. Thinking about jumping ship to Braun as most of my friends that go electric seem to prefer Braun. Looking at their top of the line with self cleaning et all.. it's ~220 on Amazon.com Any people have experience in the Braun/Norelco dealio? Yeah I know manual is superior and all that, but I'm not particularly hairy and even though I have to make a lot of motions I only shave 2x a week and it's still pretty speedy.