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OK - I have filed a report with Action Fraud. I spoke to someone rather than do it on-line because I needed to know how to do this under the circumstances of a UK criminal preying on US victims. The way this all works nationally (copied from their website) is: City of London Police The City of London Police is the national lead police force on fraud. It provides a central resource for counter-fraud policing and runs the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) and Action Fraud. National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) The NFIB is where cases of fraud are reported to and was created by the police to help them catch fraudsters. All confirmed reports of fraud from Action Fraud are passed on to the NFIB. I have a case number. NFRC 161 201 671 640, against which victims can report their particular circumstances. So we need to encourage as many of those to go on-line and enter their data. The process for adding victim data is as follows: 1. Generate a new fraud report http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/report-a-fraud-including-online-crime-questions 2. Use the reference number NFRC 161 201 671 640 (not sure where that is added, but I assume it is obvious at some point in the process) 3. The data entered by the victim will be associated with the data I supplied them

Well I don't know where to start really. It's not that there is profit to be made, it's how they go about doing it. Now not all makers are bad, some sell good quality cables at good prices which will last for a long time. This is usually accomplished by using pro type parts so instrument cables and pro connectors that have been made for decades. Then we have the other lot, often selling stuff at insane prices with more BS claims than Cavalli or MSB. I mean seriously...how can a cable cost 5k$? How could it possibly cost more to make than a complex amplifier with hundreds of parts? This is just fraud, plain and simple. MIT selling "impedance networks" which are just resistors from ground to hot in a molded plastic case. The whole point here is that through the sheer profit involved in peddling cables, they have created something which might seem to the casual buyer an actual legitimate part of the system. Something which should not be skimped on for best performance. Sure, it's better to have cables than not have any but will they make or break the system? Fuck no!! For me it is equally retarded as is tube rolling. They play on the highly subjective nature of audio and the sheer ignorance/arrogance of the buyers. There will be differences, if you switch a highly capacitive cable for one which isn't, there will be a difference. Same with tubes, you switch out a fresh set with a "NOS" one with very little life left and even compromised vacuum and it will ofcourse be different. Better though, that's more doubtful. This is the same as tubes vs. transistors, analog vs. digital or what ever people want to compare. To even think things can be generalized like that shows an utter lack of understanding of the underlying mechanics at play. Throw up something simple and then marvel at the differences, not really wanting know if one is an improvement or not.

When did Cavalli release all of these amps? ;-)

Dat was spicy - mine was not so hot - but very good. (and the Ringo Star (okay cocktail))

Spicy tan tan raven last night with Mikey. Forgot I took a picture.

Shhh!!! Let this be our little secret...

Had the Holo Spring on loan for the last week. It is quite good but I think the Yggdrasil is slightly better.

if you don't mind a warm case, this seems to be enough heat sink 3.5" x 9" + case bottom after one hour its 40 degrees rise from ambient 70/110

the cavalli liquid helium definitely sounds a lot like daffy duck.

Speaking of TDA1541A, anyone want to share experiences with them? Particularly DACs with single and double crown units. The prices are insane! Funny how audiophiles at the start of digital kept saying digital sounded worse than analog ("digititis" and whatnot) and ever since, audio companies use that as a selling point ("my design sounds more like real analog than all the other audio companies trying to make stuff that sounds like real analog!"). 30 years later, people are saying the old DAC chips sound like analog and the new ones don't.

Temps warmed up to a balmy 18 degrees this morning so I decided to go out for a ride. New winter gloves and bibs are not in yet, nor are the pedals so not opportune but fun. Going to head out now to pick up some Dillinger 5 studded tires as these Specialized tires have zero grip when I hit all the tracks of previous bikes that have made slick grooves everywhere in and below the snow. Bike tried to slide out from under me quite often. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You're making the mistake of taking seriously audiophile-ly anything Patrick did. He wasn't using reason, he was an online performance artist. He did things just to get reactions.

Anyhow - if someone wants to get a good taste of that multibit goodness, get the soekris board. Some come up cheap 2nd hand, just make sure that you out-ninja other folks who might also get their multibit sweetooth on. I got mine right after they became available. At first it sucked ass and was borderline a disaster. The guy who designed them is pretty experienced in digital electronics, but not so much in analog, so there were fuckups. And by fuckups I mean a few guys got their stuff blown up because of asymmetrical PSU loading which spat out an uber nasty DC transient on powerdown. Also initially digital filters sucked, so they had to be swapped out. Same for Vref capacitance, which used to be lacking. Supposedly that's been sorted for rev4, so if you're up for it, get a half decent +/-12V DC PSU and try to find a good input board from my compatriot Normunds at DIYA. Some folks say that, if done right the DAM can trade punches with Yggy and come out on top. In the leaner implementations it's still one of the best diy DAC options out there. However, if you hate hassle/adventure, just get the Modi Multibit. I think that it's a much better option than half of the old multibit big iron DACs out there. P.S. Should any of you need info about working with Soekris boards, drop me a pm. I've gone through DIYA threads, so you don't have to. P.P.S. I killed my board by lifting one of the Vref cap pads.

OK - there is a UK National Fraud Reporting Service called ActionFraud. That acts as the first point of contact in reporting fraud, and it is then routed to the police force in the area in which the crime has been committed. http://www.actionfraud.police.uk/ . I'll phone them this morning, and find out how this is best reported - whether I can report it, or whether it has to be reported by the victims. If it is possible to report this on behalf of multiple victims, it would sure help if I had as comprehensive list of victims as possible. I'd need a steer on that from someone in the US to unpick this guy's trail of financial destruction. The UK police would ultimately need to phone up victims as part of evidence gathering.

Chores of a mechanical nature reinforce the Wife's notion that you're needed. Bravo!

Still not a good sign though, right? Dodging a bullet still means you got shot at.

Today I came home to find our screen door lock broken. The part that engages to the frame lying on the stoop (white and silver in the picture below) It was held in by this broken pin. I managed to MacGyver the hell out of it and replace it with a bolt and nut and some other stuff. The first picture was post repair. Works perfect. My DIY for the day.

We'll have less of your Kiddie Filth, if you please!.

Going over the handlebars sucks bad enough, but a direct hit to the head is pretty serious and might need some doctor visit action. Spent $540 dollars on mountain bike tires. These motherfuckers better allow me to ride up the side of a frozen building for this cost. Any of you cycling know the best small tire pump to frame mount or throw in a frame bag. Would like to keep pressure higher on the ride to and from the park and drop down to nothing while in the snow. Was looking at Lezyne, but I thought you guys might have found something you like.

@spritzer - I guess you're going to tell me "proper" Hi-fi fuses don't improve sound either?

Yes. I practically Brent'd all over that fucking trail. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So you are saying your ineffective tires almost caused you to do a Brent?

I think Patrick82 did this, didn't he once have a cable that he kept on or in ice? It MUST have been superconducting.....or maybe it was his version of constant-cryo effect.

Or high temperature superconducting power and speaker cable? http://www.amsc.com/documents/hts-cable-systems-for-ac-networks/ . Might be a problem in terminating it into Stax 'phones though

actually the MIT cables are more than a resistor to ground. There is all that hot-glue. Dripping piles of hot-glue. And a couple of very small value caps. the guy at double-helix cables clearly has absolutely no understanding of electrostatic anything. Unlikely to have ever opened a quad56 or quad63 because if he had he would know that there is a reason why the wires are so thick. and so goes with his fancy silver wire in a high capacitance dielectric. Go to his website and count how many turns on the braiding and figure that the capacitance of his cable would be at least 3 times that of a stax cable. and then the BS about not plating the silver with gold because gold "slows down the signal" and yet all his connectors are cheap gold plated crap. etc. No one should help idiots like this mess up other peoples stuff.

Hmmm. I have no mechanical skills. I'm in trouble

Birgir, I generally agree, but as much as some companies are deceitful it takes an equally foolish person to make the purchase, particularly in regards to exotic expensive cables, you’d have to be pretty naive not to have known the controversies involved in todays marketplace.

RIP Craig Sager. Fuck cancer

Oh, c'mon, we all were thinking it.

Oops I should have explained that the inner main security door was fine.

They are going to Kevin to play with but yeah, a DAC will be built at some point.

If I'll answer it will be something along the lines of that cat pic and "buy a clue". I loved the part of "affording to blow up ten 009's" as if that was some mark of greatness. Also, all electrostatics post 1985 use ribbon cables...maybe that is a clue?

You are not alone my good sir. I prefer 44.1/16 PCM but the things Dr. Gilmore told are quite interesting. I'd like to try the ideas when i got a capable dac. Did you even answer to him, Birgir? Why the fuck he wants especially LITZ silver for 009? Why the fuck he even wants recable them? Too many stupid questions have been inserted my brain, I doubt if I can sleep now.

RIP, Craig. We all knew it was coming, and you were so strong, so brave, and such an incredible inspiration to so many. This one is going to hurt for a while.

well this guy clearly has no clue, and does not understand capacitance. or the voltage ratings on the wire. and i'm not going to sell him any 5 pin stax plugs reminds me of the idiot that made a krell ksa5 power cable filled with magic pixie dust and managed to get the wiring wrong and did a number on that amp.

RIP Craig Sager. One of the all-time greats ever to work a sideline, even if his outfits were a little much. He had been sick with cancer for a long time so glad he can finally be at peace. Boy, it is hard not to think of the great interview Greg Popovich gave to Craig Jr. without tearing up a bit.

Got this gem today... I mean we all know the cable makers are idiots but this is just priceless:

This seems like it should be a euphemism for something indefinite. "How was the film, Stretch?" "Yeah, alright Steve mate. But it didn't mow my grass, eh?" * wink * leer *

And I was asking for a friend!

Ran a check on the IBAN code ( GB67BARC20253680571172). It turns out to be a valid code, and refers to the bank account he quotes 805711792, so that checks out. Except the bank that this account is held at is Barclays in Leicester (LE87 2BB)! Now the sort code he quotes 20-25-36, which cross validates with his account number and leads back to an account at the Barclays Leicester LE87 2BB branch. So - Coventry is a scam - the account is actually in Leicester; the IBAN, account number and sort code all lead there. By the way, the SWIFT code he quotes is incomplete. BARCGB22 simply says it is Barclays. There should be an additional three digits that identify the branch - but I guess that he did not want to make it too easy to find out where his account was.

My nuts hide themselves when they hit the cold.

Desserts from Office Buildings owner's Christmas Lunch

Heading out for a Werewolf (Full Moon) shop ride from the shop to the Two Brothers Roundhouse brewery on mostly snow packed bike trails. -7 windchill predicted, not sure if this is awesome or asinine.

Didn't need a pain pill last night, though because of that I think I needed a deeper toilet this morning. TMI? I'm starting to see some healing happening too. Less blood on the gauze every time I change dressings. The part with no skin seems to be filling in and scabbing over, so that's good news. BTW, Back in 80' when I started college the US had a nice grant called the BEOG (Basic Educational Opportunity Grant). As my parents had no money to help with college, and I had no money myself, I qualified for full tuition and extra for books and such. I never had to take out a loan. Oh, the good ol' days.

Being 6 years removed from school and all too aware of how much longer I'll be paying off loans, I'd recommend going to whichever school makes it cheapest for him ;). Good luck Andrew!

Continued work setting up my new apartment

Poulet à la Normande with a flambé in progress Et fini

Spicy Italian sausage and broccoli rabe frittata Add ricotta Add parmesan, provolone and smoked mozzarella Add 16 eggs And bake