Superpredator
-
Posts
32 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Posts posted by Superpredator
-
-
Happy Birthday! Did I do it right?
-
-
I probably won't use the line or sub outs except to play around, as I mostly wanted it for its main function. Anyway, it's here. I just set it up, so I don't have much to report. It's certainly no dud, that's for sure.
-
The other day while driving we saw a guy riding a bike toward us, making a right as we were making a left. To our astonishment, we saw what looked to be a child sitting in a basket above the handlebar. "That couldn't be a kid, could it?" we said. As we passed, extra cautiously, we saw that in fact it was a child-sized doll. The guy looked rather unkempt. We simultaneously marveled at both his creepiness and his ingenuity--what better way to make people notice your bike and not run you over than to put a fake toddler in the basket above your handlebar? On the drive back from the grocery store we passed him again at that very same intersection, and that's when we noticed his fluorescent orange construction vest. This guy was hardcore for safety. There's a possibility that he was homeless, which makes me a little sad, but I'm glad he has a strong sense for best bicycle practices.
-
HBD!!
-
I moved gigantic rocks that the previous owners' son formed into a shitty walkway years ago. My neighbor told me he learned how to make paths while interning at some parks and recreation agency, and it shows.
-
PriceJapan was sourcing them for somewhere around $580 when I was looking to buy, IIRC. Definitely where I'd purchase for $555 if I hadn't bought used.
I posted some early impressions elsewhere, comparing the W1000X to the W2002, W11JPN, and (from memory) W5000 and W100. Essentially, and this is an oversimplification, the W1000X sounds like a hybrid of the other ATs I've owned. It isn't limited to one side of the genre spectrum or the other the way the 2002 and JPN are, and it takes the better qualities of the 5000 and 100 while leaving most of their considerable flaws behind. Great performance without the pitfalls that come with specialization. A very nice release from AT.
-
Why?
Because. The longer I wait for something to come, the less likely I am to write about it. And I like to write about stuff. It happened with the Yamamoto, and it could happen with the Trafo. By the time I've had a chance to thoroughly listen to it, I will have spent many delirious hours hauling boulders, knee-deep in worm shit, obsessing over tomatoes, inundated with vegetables, fruit, and chicken from my CSAs, and returned from two weeks in SF. In other words, my mind and life may be somewhere else. I will barely be indoors until October.
It takes 2 months to get an unusual piece of gear that you want, ans that's just how it is. People wait a year for some luxury cars, people reserve tables months in advance at good restaurants, people do lots of things that just take time.You could get a Honda Accord, A seat at a nice diner, or whatever else right now if all you want is whatever you can get right now. There is nothing really wrong with those they are just not exactly what you want... so you gotta wait.
I for one hate waiting for head-fi to come back online, but its worth the wait so people will have somewhere to complain about a rare thing not being instantly available.
If I didn't know that, would I have ordered amps with lead times in the first place? No. I've been babying 300 seedlings I started in March that I'm only just planting now. I don't need your tips on patience.
Very much looking forward to comparisons to Cayin HA-1A sound signtature.Also how much did it cost Superpredator? Are the line-outs passive or active?
I'm looking forward to the comparisons myself.
$1250 + $24 shipping. I specifically requested all latest revisions when I ordered, since there seem to be several iterations. I passed over the unit Eng Vista had in stock, as it lacked the ground lift. Not sure about the line-outs.
-
Reading only goes so far with all audio gear, but it does help. Read some other forums to get a broader idea, don't limit yourself. Find people with experience you can understand and trust a little. Going to meets, retailers, and/or buying/trying/selling what you don't like is a more viable strategy if you have those options. Try to form an idea of what sound really floors you by contaminating yourself with the best stuff possible before you judge, it helps to gain experience yourself.
/enabler
Keyword there is 'seem' -- there were always a plethora of DACses, but fewer FOTMses (flavors of the month). Now there just seems to be more.Yes, pretty much.
Seriously -- the questions are: how good is your hearing, and where is the point of diminished returns for you? I have found that most material sounds pretty much the same out of a several hundred dollar DAC and a several thousand dollar DAC, so my point is somewhere less than a thousand. I might pay more for additional functionality (Cambridge Audio 840c seems like a bargain, considering what it does), but unless I win the lottery, I just can't bring myself to 'dew et'.
The only way to do this -- the only way, those that claim they can tell good from bad in a short listen are lying -- is to somehow arrange for an audition in your own system for a weeks-long period of time. This is usually done by actually purchasing the item. I have found that my best bet is to purchase used, and sell used, that way there's minimal financial outlay to me. (I consider shipping and any loss of value the price I pay for the in-home audition.)
Sure, one can look at the specs and the reviews -- how else are you going to determine which ones to audition -- but ultimately you have to hear it for yourself to decide for yourself.
Good advice. I didn't make it clear, but I'm not actually in the market for a new DAC, as I'm pretty satisfied with the M24 I've been running for the last few years. Of course, contentment didn't stop me from impulse buying a new amp, so you never know. I try to stay on top of new gear, and I feel like I have a decent sense for amps, since their design usually corresponds with the headphones they should be paired with. DACs don't really offer such clues; they tend to either be very capable, capable or half-capable. I was able to note pretty obvious differences in the DACs I've owned, but I'd never try to match them with phones the way I do with amps. It's usually clear when you've got a headphone/amp match/mismatch, and I think this makes it simpler for people to comprehend and communicate what it is they're hearing. Not so easy with DACs. When people talk about DACs, the best DAC they've heard is the best DAC ever... for very few communicable reasons. It gets pretty nebulous, and useless. I should organize another Philadelphia meet and demand moar DACs.
No but you could probably hit a DAC-shilling ignoramus. I'd suggest not taking the advice of almost anyone over at HF because let's face it, most of them are either shills or recommend substandard gear solely because that's all they have experience with. I would also recommend staying away from Audio-GD stuff, just because it's constantly shilled to the hilt by IPodBJ, as if he's their spokesperson (which he certainly acts like).DACs that the HC collective usually recommends are made by Parasound, Assemblage, and Sonic Frontiers, if you don't mind vintage stuff from the 90s. DIY is also a good solution I've heard.
Exactly. The Source forum over there is filled with that kind of noise--threads that go on forever about how amazing a DAC is, with very few pauses to compare it to anything else. Unless they're all equally amazing, something doesn't smell right. I can't understand Audio-GD's huge lineup at all. It seems masturbatory. How about offering one or two DACs that you believe in completely?
A little vintage would be nice. I hate that people seem to expect audio technology to advance at the same rate as computers and cell phones--always looking to buy something new, shunning the old. Such a retarded habit.
Nah, the only DAC that matters is the Buffalo II.
I have had my eye on that one.
-
Around the time I first joined over there it seems like there were fewer choices in DACs. Benchmark and Lavry seemed to be the go-to options, though there were certainly other contenders: Apogee, HeadRoom, Grace, Bel Canto, Monarchy, Channel Islands, and others, as well as various experiments in NOS: Ack!, Lite, etc. Then came Zhaolu, and it seemed to usher in a new micro-era of willingness to tread away from the beaten path. Audio-GD's extensive DAC lineup is a good example of the proliferation of options these days. I really have no sense for what the standouts are anymore (among similarly priced products). I'm not sure review reading is terribly illuminating, since people usually seem to have less experience with DACs than amps. Can you throw a rock and hit a good one?
-
US distributor received my Trafomatic on Monday. Ordered Apr 11. Not too bad, considering the 7-8 weeks I waited for a Yamamoto. However, I need to stop ordering amps with long lead times.
-
Lost
Hey me too.
-
Caprica is indeed pretty good. I was expecting a sort of live-action exploration of a Ghost in the Shell-type world based on the pilot, then it slowed and got a little dull. It did pick up several episodes ago, but I think they spent too much time trying to create human drama that wasn't entirely convincing. It really flowed effortlessly in BSG.
-
I've been enjoying Justified and Southland. The latter is sort of like The Wire Lite in terms of quality, perhaps like a cross between Cops (which I hate) and The Wire in terms of content. There was a nearly cinematic scene involving a cop protecting a witness that took me back to some of the most intense moments in LA Confidential. Justified keeps peeling back to the layers to reveal offbeat, fascinating characters played by highly competent actors. Every last one of them can keep up. Both shows are very refreshing after the horrendous CSI-type programming that took over during the mid-2000s and sapped what little faith I had left for humanity.
-
Cat petting guide == inaccurate -- beyond kittenhood, you shouldn't pick up a cat by the scruff of the neck. The rear support part is good, though.
I pick up one of my cats by her love handles. She used to be fat, so her skin is pretty stretchy.
-
Cat petting guide = awesome.
I bought seedlings from my CSA. Pretty lousy selection this year, but for 25 cents it's hard to complain.
-
I think I'm a mix of fetus with freefaller arm positioning, soldier, and starfish. Whatever it takes to maximize contact with the cool side of the pillow. I've found that I fall asleep faster in fetus, but sleep more deeply (with fewer wake-ups) when I start in soldier. Hard to say whether the descriptions are accurate. Maybe, what with the slight bipolar tinge and macro ADD attributes to my personality.
-
My uncle's newest creation, as posted to Facebook. I was tagged as being in this photo, along with about ten other people.
Solar Panel Passivly Bio-mimicing a Heliotropic Flower - Automated squirt bottle delivers a jet of water at a frequency of every 10 sec., 6 x / min., or 360x / hr. This little solar panel ( 2 cells in series ) produces 13v and @ 80 milliamps - charge is stored in the blue capacitors in the yellow sandwich box and is released every 10 sec. driving a solenoid triggered squirt bottle. The panel is to track the sun with out any power consuming motor(s) via bio-mimicry. So far everything works but the passive tracking. Considering Nitinol Springs in conjunction with Fresnel-style lensing in the form of a curved strip in order to achieve the tracking effect.
-
Found out there's yet another possible development in plan for woods behind/next to our house. Now I need to find out exactly where in the woods they're are actually planning for this development as there are 2-300 acres of woods behind/next to our house.
That bites. Some asshole just built a house on the magical little wooded half acre at the bottom of the street where I grew up. We used to engage in heady summer games of flashlight freeze tag there. Asshole.
-
Planted leftover CSA potatoes from last season.
-
Half of a duck.
-
Pioneer SX-3700. It looked so shiny amidst the other electronic junk at the thrift shop. Also a sweet $1 RCA coax. Sounds like peanut butter.
-
-
Dungen - Ta Det Lugnt. Kind of forgot how much I like this one.
Stargate Universe
in TV
Posted
I've sporadically enjoyed SG-1 over the years. Atlantis turned me off instantly. I've watched all of SGU in the hope that it would be SG's answer to BSG, as it's clearly intended to be. It's been a mixed bag so far. Whereas BSG exploded my brain episode after episode, SGU often merely feeds my brain Chef Boyardee. I will say though that it has picked up since the start of S02.