Leaderboard

Finally made me to Northern Michigan five hours later than planned. Too much time in a mask but hopefully I was not infected because I was very careful and sat in my own row for both flights. 🤞🏼

I missed you Fitz! This place is definitely better with you in it!

The times that we've flown together have gone off without a hitch. I must be your lucky charm. In the future take me wherever you want to fly. Problem solved. You're welcome!

That time is now. The Soncoz LA-QXD1 I purchased is pure garbage, and I can't believe I ever thought it would be a good idea. It gibbers and pops constantly, loses sync whenever my AC condenser cycles on, and defaults to minimum volume every time it does so. The interface is inscrutable, and I had to find direct links to the driver downloads through the Wayback Machine (!!) because the manufacturer's site is currently down. I ended up just buying the thing I wanted in the first place, the RME dac.

Nah, it's an old repair tech trick. Helps quite a lot actually if you have the proper technique. 🤪

This guy is incredible. Let's all be like him.

There is no way to say that and have it sound right.

My six-year-old daughter just asked me today if I ever played Minecraft. There is a direct line between that question and me being her favorite parent.

Dunhill's favorite place.

Brad Mehldau, Finding Gabriel unholy carp, Brad’s wielding a synthesizer and he sounds angry! Nice! I’ve been...schizophrenic in my listening lately, but have started revisiting Legendary Pink Dots and Tear Garden, which were two of the gateways to that whole world of Mimir, H.N.A.S., SPK, Chris and Cosey, et al, and I won’t say it’s hitting the spot, but it’s certainly more cathartic than Camel. Don’t get me wrong, loved Moonmadness, listened to it 6 tines today, but wondering how much more I would have loved it if I was in a more sedate/less ragey frame of mind.

This

Same as above, but in picture format: SR-007 Mk1 SR-007 Mk2.9 Blu tack SR-009 SR-009S Here is how the SR-009 reacts to having a bad seal on the sides of your head (and thus 009S as well). Again, thanks to oratory1990 for his detailed testing.

Pretty lackluster actual birthday day. Taught my genetics lecture at 8:15, Intro. Research Stats. at 9:45, Zoom office hour 11:00, Research Stats. Lab at noon then stupid paperwork shit until I left work 4:00. Rested for about a half hour at home and then took Peter to soccer practice. The birthday weekend was pretty good. On Friday our new family room couch was delivered and on Saturday, the garage refrigerator was delivered. So all in all a pretty good birthday, and as Al pointed out, much better than the alternative. Thanks for all the good wishes.

I published a modification for the Stax SRM-T1/T1S/006 in AudioXpress July 2017, which is just out. The modification adds 5.1 kilohm output safety resistors and cascoded constant current output loads, which with their heatsink fits the space vacated by the plate resistors - see photo. Spritzer did something similar a few years ago with an SRM-007, adding constant current loads, but he also changed to 6S4A outputs. Unlike plate resistors, constant current loads burn up practically no signal current, so while the stock amp burns up 9.2 mA signal current in the plate and feedback resistors at its specified 300 VRMS maximum output, the modified amplifier only uses 2.8 mA driving the feedback resistors, leaving much more current available to drive the headphones. Since the output tubes are much less stressed, distortion is decreased and 2 dB of extra headroom gained. The modified amp circuit is very similar to a KGST or KGDT. This is no accident, as the KGST was designed to be “a Stax SRM-007t with no cost or retail considerations,” and the 007t is a higher power T1. The modification lacks the KGST’s regulated power supply, but larger power supply caps have been fitted. Since the amplifier is fully differential pure class A with current sources or loads at every stage, the current draw is pretty constant, minimizing power supply effects. The modified T1 can drive demanding headphones like the SR-007 Mk I, something that the stock design strains to do. The relatively flabby bass, somewhat dark tonality and soft treble are largely eliminated. Replacing all the old electrolytic power supply caps should also be done as routine maintenance. Parts cost for the modification is about $35, so total parts cost is around $100. With T1 amplifiers going for $400-$700, this is the best bang for the buck, a good starter project for someone wanting to get into electrostatic amp DIY without going to a full build.

I'm really sad the see the devastation these latest Napa and Sonoma County fires are causing. A lot of places I know are getting hit and I hope all the people made it out ok.

Oh wow! No, I haven't seen that. That'll be playing on the big screen as soon as wifey and doggos are out for a walk. She's definitely not a fan of this stuff. Also, thanks for mentioning some more bands. Most I've heard but not all, so I'm on a mission to check them out.

Also, you've seen this, right? He did a concert with a small orchestra! Several of the other tracks from this concert are also up on YouTube, but unfortunately, not all of them. Love is my favourite album of his, so would've loved to have seen "(not adam)".

I've been digging my teeth into Wasteland 3 and having an amazing time. A modern take on an old school-style RPG in the vein of the old Fallouts and Baldur's Gate games set in post-apocalyptic Colorado. I'm about 10-15 hours in. Highly recommended, and it is on Games Pass so free to check it out if you are already a subscriber.

For the electrolytic caps, if they are original they should be replaced as they are nearing, if not at the end, of their life. The most important things are the voltage rating needs to be the same or higher than the originals, and the size and lead spacing has to be similar so they will fit in the space. The brand is not really important as long as the electrical and physical parameters are similar. In some cases (i.e. the four big power caps) you can find caps with higher capacity that will fit in the same space, which can be an upgrade. In terms of tube replacement, both Hirsch and spritzer have recommended Japanese short plate tubes as the "best" sounding. No idea how they compare with Gold Aero. You can recognize the short plates as they physically occupy slightly more than half of the glass envelope, as opposed to most 5CG7/6FQ7 tubes where the plate occupies most of the glass envelope. Also, if you are into DIY at all, a good modification is to replace the 8 plate output resistors (the pinkish banded round cylindrical things in front of the power transformer) with 4 constant current loads. This will more than double the effective output power by eliminating the signal current wastage in the output resistors, tighten the bass, extend the highs and lower distortion.

Fleet Foxes - Shore

Ric, I had meant to mention that I think you should give 'Kris Kristofferson The Austin Sessions' a listen, if you haven't already done so. As for me now... Junior Brown 'Guit With It'. Kind of retro country. Think Red Foley or Earnest Tubb, but with the picking abilities of Chet Atkins and Jimmy Hendricks bastard love child.

Why Stax does anything... is always up for debate but now they have gone into full bastard mode with 100V only transformers being sold in Japan. Not impossible to swap out the transformers but an utter pain.

It hardly counts as "building", but I am snapping together a Pootie Pie.

Sounds like your aim could use some work then.

Here's to hoping! I know I don't want to be anywhere near a plane right now, quite the change from my recent history.

Yup, pull it out and set it to 117V and it will work perfectly. Also, top tip... remove that 100V sticker and see what is underneath...

Finished the BOM, I'm pretty sure I got it all. This is for one board. Take a look and let me know if I missed anything or there are better part choices Dynalo MkII 1.2 Mouser.xls

Want to share some measurements of a few Stax. These were measured by oratory1990 on an industry-standard GRAS 43AG rig. All but the 009S were my personal units. SR-007 MK1 SR-007A (2018 aka MK2.9 version) - with blue-tack mod SR-009 SR-009S My personal favorite without EQ was the 007 MK1, but the 009 with EQ is my favorite overall. They all become more similar than different with EQ, of course. Plus the 009 ergonomics agree more with my head More here: https://www.reddit.com/r/oratory1990/wiki/index/list_of_presets

Decided to finally see if I can fix up my HP 3582a spectrum analyzer that's been out of commission for a while since a water leak in the basement soaked the back panel. It would let out an impressive amount of magic smoke when plugged in. Fortunately, seems the water only really got into the IEC inlet and destroyed the EMI filter, as I haven't been able to see any signs of damage anywhere else (and it wasn't powered on when this happened). Lots of melted plastic and even a hole straight inside the filter: Corcom still make the same right-angle inlet/filter to fit the narrow space in the back of the chassis, so fingers crossed that once I install a replacement, it'll power back up like normal.

I'm sorry sir but there's gonna be an additional fee if you want to upgrade to a working plane.

Man, it's been a long time but I still have most of his stuff on vinyl. Back in the eighties, CBC Radio had a late night program called Brave New Waves that introduced this country boy to Foetus , Nurse with Wound, Psychic TV, Current 93 and on and on. Good times, for sure.

I've never seen a T1 or T1S without the voltage selector. Have you removed the bottom panel and looked?

is there no voltage changer jumper build in your amp? normally at the back panel, or on the bottom from inside.

Ahh Morgan!

Why do both of those bands remind me of something I'd see on Wacky Races, on Saturday mornings, as a child? NTTAWWT!

Here is my T2 power supply, now with Pro Bias Maida regulator style. The small board with three blue filter capacitors is the 21st Century Maida Regulator by Tom Christiansen producing 580 volts after change of resistor. The Maida regulator replaces the 10m90s current source with Zener string and filters. I feed the regulator with unregulated 660 VDC. Only 5.1M resistor on psu board is used. Works great. P.S. still need some wire clean up… will probably never happen

I'm taking my first airline flight since early March, and my airline luck has picked up where it left off. We took off almost right on time even though the flight crew was late to arrive. After flying for a few minutes the captain came on to say that the cabin could not be pressurized properly so we had to turn around. Now back on the ground and not sure if or when we can get going again. My layover is only 90 min and the next/last flight of the day to my destination is five hours later. Fucking airlines are still fucking up.