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RIP Hilary Mantel, author of the Wolf Hall trilogy about Thomas Cromwell, and his slow fall from grace with Henry VIII to execution at the stake (in Oxford). She was age 70, and died suddenly. One of the very few people to have won two Booker prizes. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-63005841

A Funny Mishap On A Famous Monk Recording https://lewisporter.substack.com/p/an-audible-and-funny-mishap-on-a

So, as my soap opera story with the X9000 is coming to a close (for now), I have to correct a few things after I visited a friend yesterday. Originally, I wanted to hear it on analog, but due to a technical glitch it wasn't possible, I forgot that the Carbon only has XLR, I assume an XLR-RCA plug converter would have worked, but we didn't have one. Anyways, in some ways this was better, as I could listen to various recordings that I am more familiar with (and get annoyed by how much better they sounded compared to home). The test setup was the Linn Klimax Renew DS with the KGSSHV Carbon (also a cheap IC that might not completely suit the X9000, but the source did that, so it was fair). The experience with this DAC is much different. Now the Carbon can flex its muscles, the sound has also levelled up compared to the standard KGSSHV I carried last time, that was something that we agreed on. Before at home, when I pushed the volume to bring up the bass, it became strident and unpleasant. Remained clean this way. While at the start, I liked the 007 Mk1 most of the time, as we switched back and forth, my bias toward the old Stax house sound started to lessen, and I tended to gravitate more towards the X9000 on occasions, and appreciate more of what it was doing. It also took no prisoners in revealing what it's old nemesis is doing wrong, there is definitely a fair amount of leeway still to tweak the sound of that to a more optimal level, but it is always going to be more towards "romantic, sculpted", rather than "modern, engineered". These two headphones do seem to work quite well as a combination, because it's basically an either-or situation. Either the X9000 still sounded a bit bright, dry and analytical and just generally revealed things about certain recordings that weren't great. Or, even though it was possibly best the 007 Mk1 sound I heard, it was still too warm - coloured towards slightly V-shaped - soft and slow, particularly in the bass. The X9000 bass is much higher level, far ahead with regards to detail, if a bit too little at times. To be fair, most of the time I would have lowered the volume on the 007 to reduce the bass-heavy character with the Carbon, which made it a little tiresome this way. Simply enjoyable to listen to, if one gets used to it and stops analyzing - and if it is a question of which one to choose, it does give a much higher budget to the rest of the chain. There is a particular difference with male vocals, which sounded more accurate on the X9000. With female vocals, differences were still there, but seemed less exaggerated. The textures of each instrument are rendered incredibly on the X9000 with much higher dynamics, although in same cases, the more compressed 007 MK1 did seem to keep the music altogether better with more of that meaty fullness the 007 was designed for. One particular oddity about the X9000 that did not seem to change from what I had observed the first time, is that for me, it is weird to have a brighter sound but with high frequencies that are a bit subdued with too little sense of attack and decay. While the treble isn't perfect on the 007, it seemed to render much better. As soon as the music had "no treble", the X9000 instantly sounded way more impressive. Would they tweak this in the next evolution and potentially take a step backwards with regards to sheer resolution? I have my doubts. I might actually revisit the 009 at some point, maybe if I loose the rest of my sanity to trade up for a T2, which from my understanding is a little warmer than the more neutral Carbon. Obviously even brighter than the X9000, but I don't recall this problem, could be be a decent headphone to build upon that is not valued highly on the used market. I am personally not a big fan of this X9000 and 009 character in that I have to have a really solid, well-tweaked chain (maybe go full analog even), otherwise they just bother me. I can still scale back to the DA11+727 mod+007 Mk1 and enjoy a reasonably decent (highly compressed, muddied up, smaller scale) sound that is mostly free of brightness (rounding off the V-shape a bit). But on the other hand, they do incentivize tweaks chain that may take away a big amount of time and energy, but they can be also improve other headphones. I could have carried quite a few other headphones that would have sounded really great on this chain - will do this on the next occasion for sure. It was more of a question of comparing two headphones that sound great in different ways, rather than one being better than the other. So in the end, no matter what headphone you try to voice an opinion, you need to see it from all angles, which was part of my overly hostile attitude towards the X9000. On this occasion, I didn't listen to rock music, which I think is where it's just not the best at. The massive variability regarding the chain adds complications, but I just fail to sense that in most cases. I was just randomly sleuthing for opinions about the Qualia which I feel has arguably more interesting treble rendering with even more exaggerated, explosive dynamics than the X9000, but more pressing issues elsewhere), and I found this from Asr, whom I always enjoyed reading, basically why I bother writing these in the first place: "Er, I wouldn't call my SR-009 review "scathing" and if that's how you took it, then I clearly have to explain further. Most of the reviews I write are attempts at balanced counter-opinions (because nothing is perfect—I operate from the assumption that just about everything is subjectively flawed in some way), while "scathing" for me would be more like my review of the HiFiMan HE-400 where I had very few positive things to say about it. The SR-009 is a very good headphone by any consideration, and I was comparing it to the OII MKI, which for me was the closest ever that got to sonic perfection (but still missed the 100% mark in some key areas). If I'd compared the SR-009 to something like the HD800 on the GS-X, the review would've reflected way more positively in its favor." Then I also looked up some more and found this: "If you play an instrument (from the orchestra, that is), I think you'd find that the SR-007 would convey a much more natural & realistic tonality than the SR-009. I typically find that people who don't play an instrument but listen to classical music seem to prefer headphones like the SR-009, and other similar ones like the HD800, for their soundstaging (which isn't unsurprising, as they both do a credible job of reproducing "concert hall"-like imaging). So it depends on what you want from your listening of classical music—accurate tonality, or the concert hall soundstage? In contrast to the SR-009's concert hall, the SR-007 puts you on the stage with the orchestra, and pretty much right at the conductor's position. And of course, to get the most benefit from the SR-007 you need to pair it with the HeadAmp BHSE and a really good source component. The BHSE is overkill for the SR-009 though." This one I am not sure if I can agree with, since the 009 may need a different source than what the 007 may be happiest on and I feel like every Stax likes power. For instance, one could have a Carbon as the middle element, and then try to vary the other two things in tandem with each other. I was listening some classical tracks I auditioned with the HE90/HEV90 in 2016 and before that, an audio engineer gave me some explanations about how it "should" sound - which unfortunately I forgot a long time ago, but I do have some recollection about that sound as I continued using these tracks for evaluation. While the 007 had much more of that "vintage-like" resemblance to that sound than the X9000, compared to how I remember the HE90, it was heavier in the bass, less forward (more coloured in general) and even when supported by the Carbon, it was still a bit soft and not as dynamic. Once again, this is where the X9000 might have the lead over the HE90 - but again. that wasn't necessarily driven by amp that realises its full potential. In any case, on these "budgetary" Staxes, the music itself still sounded really excellent at the very least. Happy listening!

I have a taste for the macabre, and while Evan Peters did a fine job, he didn't quite embody the odd traits of JD. Still, an intriguing watch. I did like the soundtrack. Niecy Nash definitely impressed me.

Not real, but I wish it was.....

You mean you can't use the digital crown to adjust it to a value more of your liking?

Well this should be fun to test out on the trails this weekend! That number next to SPY on the other hand... that is not a number we like to see.

For the Better Call Saul fans… https://9to5mac.com/2022/09/22/apple-tv-plus-vince-gilligan/

The Elvis banana bread, peanut butter, black pepper bacon, wildflower honey Wildflower Honey Ricotta on Sourdough Toast Whipped ricotta on sourdough toast, California peach, bee pollen, basil https://www.helenaavenuebakery.com/about-2/

Blue Train: The Complete Masters John Coltrane 1957 https://album.link/i/1636572781 Example: A good expansion set of a classic album. I like the addition of the alt takes (like the example). It really makes me think, how did they pick the one for the original album? They just liked it better?, because they all rip and they are different. I don't really need the mono versions, I listened to a couple of the mono tracks and compared them to the stereo, and I way prefer the stereo mix. And not just for the soundstage, but the dynamics. There are times when mono mixes are the ones to listen to. This one was not for me. I will probably use this set for future listening though, to have those extra tracks from the '57 sessions are gold for me.

^I get why you'd want the front company logo & model numbers noir-ed. But darkening the top-dial values seems counter-intuitive in a practical use-case (my eyes are bad enough as it is ) Ric - you are lucky to have such a great & willing subject. My wife has no patience for me taking photos of her.

Previously From Now By

Yeah, I had that backwards in my head. Very similar design but I was thinking Grizzly was the better version. And as for the mantle, I meant to say that I am leaving it the way it is for now and will let it age and grow on us.

Agree. Helical heads are nice, but not necessary. People jointed boards for a long time without them. The shopfox is 2x the hp, has more knives, and has some other features that might be worth having. Either should be great. I think the simplicity belies the amount of consideration and thought that went into it. We went through a lot of design ideas before coming to this. Minimalism is harder than maximlism.

I like it as is but for any additional interest I would go Mitre across the front and some finish that won’t see the wood non-uniformly darken with smoke for my vote. I found a woodworker neighbor that used to have a cabinet shop. He is offering my choice of these for a set of chairs. Both older models but fairly heavy duty and appear to be in good shape. I typically have about $450 invested in a pair of chairs at this point so either would be worthwhile, just not sure if I want anything that I have to try to track down helical heads for. https://www.grizzly.com/products/grizzly-8-x-65-super-heavy-duty-jointer/g1018 https://www.woodstockint.com/products/w1741w

Well, it seems one person is anxious for this report on the simple mantle. The original idea was to make a mirror to cover a niche over the fireplace that had been occupied by a Madonna and Child sculpture for many years at Claire's family place in Michigan. The other idea was to incorporate decorative tiles made by a local artist that Claire's mom had collected. I built the mirror up here using vintage mirror glass that was in a basic frame and had Sat in the attic for decades. I milled some curly walnut from a chunky board I bought locally and also some nicely figured walnut from a chunk that was in the shop here for many years. Here is the mirror, with one place holder for a tile we have to add later: I didn't like how high the mirror Sat in order to cover most of the niche. Doug was here visiting for a few days so we decided to make some kind of mantle to add to the fireplace. I was thinking about walnut like the mirror but ultimately felt it did not match the simple room or the paneling that is pine, fir, or cedar or something in the soft wood family. The winning idea was to match the paneling to blend it in. In the shop, Doug immediately pointed out a 2 x 12 that was 6.5' long. I never would have thought about it but we used that to make the mantle. It was *just* wide enough and long enough to make a 6" deep top and the tapered legs. We drew out the legs on opposite ends of the remainder and used a jigsaw to separate them before using a tapering jig screwed to a long board to run it through the table saw. I also managed to get Doug to use the Kreg pocket jig and pocket screws to attach the top to the legs and the mantle to the wall. I still felt the mirror was too high. Claire and Doug separately suggested flipping the paneling boards above and below the niche so that the longer bottom boards were on the top and the pierced boards were on the bottom. Hard to explain without a before photo but here is the niche after I flipped them and made a new middle board from the former ledge shelf. I also really like the metal low profile French cleat I got for the mirror. So here's the mirror and the mantle as it is now. We are debating a little stain for the mantle versus waiting until it ages a bit, and secondly whether to chamfer the mantle edges or perhaps make a miter cut across the front to give the simple mantle a little visual interest.

Blood Free Banana Bread (& Latte) with the Brits.

You didn't buy puts this week?

R.I.P. Shaun Kitka! I met my friend Shaun in 1996. He was 18, and he a several other young gay guys were leaving an underage dance club in downtown Anchorage, just as I and a friend were riding past on our bikes. He and his friends were immediately physically and verbally assaulted by two larger and older, homophobic assholes. Nothing gets me to a rage state faster than homophobic bullies! I dropped my bike and grabbed the biggest guy and started telling him what I thought of him while poking my finger into his chest quite aggressively. Two cops that were at a flop bar next door came up and pulled me away from this jerk and started detaining me, when Shaun explained what had happened. One cop actually acted like it wasn't a big deal that young gay guys were being hassled, which further pissed me off! However, the second cop was having none of that bullshit, and after explaining that putting my finger in his chest wasn't allowed, he basically ripped the two bullies a new asshole. Shaun and his friends were very thankful for my intervention, and insisted on buying me breakfast. We all got to know each other, but Shaun and I became good friends immediately. I became a kind of pseudo Father figure. I introduced him to a long term boyfriend, and later actually moved in with him in Sacramento after that relationship ended. We got along well, but the new boyfriend didn't understand our relationship and was crazy jealous. To the point of being mean to my dog Suzy. I couldn't have that, and that's how I ended up moving to Fairfax the first time, in 2014. It did strain our friendship some, but we did manage to keep that friendship alive, especially after he told me about his cancer diagnosis a few years ago. He called me on a regular basis. I think that he could share his fears and his hopes with me in a way that he couldn't with his boyfriend. And I think the length of our friendship provided a degree of trust and familiarity that he didn't have with anyone else. He never knew his Father, and in many ways he looked to me for that kind of relationship. I also knew his entire family, as screwed up as they were. I last talked to Shaun two weeks ago. He sounded great. Things were going well medically, and he was really excited about a new flight simulater he was putting together. I just read about his passing today on Facebook, so it's a real shock! I've been losing siblings the last few years, and that's tough, but Shaun was 42 years old, and that's different. I had some time to prepare with my Brother. This came out of nowhere!