Another super quiet night in Lipa,IM ON XMAS BREAK...been putting this together for the last 2 or three days...just musing really...wanted to think out lod as it were...
Another ultra quiet night to think about my collection of gear and all the combos I've gone through...
I cant, in the quiet and stillness of my farm, help but analyze and really enjoy the many ways all my gear, my collection of modern and vintage tubes, classic equipment can be combined to modern (or recent production) gear to achieve optimal performance (to my choosey ears) ...SOMEHOW, THEY REALLY COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER...REALLY....
Its too quiet here in this farm...the stillness of this place place is conducive to analyzing what session I most enjoyed and the gear combinations i used during that time. its so conducive to remembering what works best...boredom and audio deprivation will do that to any hobbyist...
it makes me reflect on the sound that transported me... the quiet makes me replay my various setups mentally and emotionally...without any of the the equipment performing or pumping away as I write my thoughts...for me, its best to reflect on performance while away from the system. ...its the best way to recall what I enjoyed the most. Being away from my music room (parang Hogwarts) of assorted gear combinations from eras past and ears present, I can close my eyes and remember what Combos produced the most pleasure and satisfaction....the most disembodiment...
It makes me happy about some of my combos...proud, too. Proud in achieving a sound that really made me feel like I have gotten somewhere...sound that made me feel proud of my my efforts and learning over the years. Being away from my music room is like a retreat to allows me an opportunity to reflect on my audio journey...to love and appreciate my gear and how the many components can works together to produce music that pleases me, music delivered to me the way I think it sounds best!! Absence makes the heart grow fond.
We all have budgets, we all have dreams. We all have gone through countless combinations, tuition fees, upgrades, trade-ups...we have all crawled on the floor and perspired litres and gallons of bodily fluids to hook up or arrange, organize, beautify our collection of stuff (thats what women call it...STUFF!!!), We have all had to to hoist colossal amplifiers unto platforms and stands that we think will optimize performance, we've all had to undo the tangled octopus of interconnects...cables, powercords.. compliance matching and switching silver and copper to fighter-plane grade wiring ...our painstaking efforts to combine components from front end to back...the slipped discs, the painful knees...the galit ng asawa....all for our quest for audio bliss.our toil and hard work and expenditure of hard earned money...
Well...I'm going to write about what combos I find work best together... hope my experience proves interesting and entertaining...and maybe even somewhat instructional to those new to the journey.
Speaking from my own personal approach and collection only- the following thoughts to share and open to criticism and as always.
I find that a synergy is best discovered through a combination of vintage amplifiers from golden era push pull amps with the purest metals...with various legendary vintage tubes or modern replicas COMBINED WITH new new, high performance gear... pre-amps, front ends, and matching speakers either vintage or speakers equipped with the best available state of the art materials (new developments in speaker materials, to me, are the single most progressive area in audio technology) ...but always, I like musical speakers..not technically analytical speakers...not pin-drop accurate speakers, not larger than life speakers that over-qualify in acute detail straining the range of human auditory senses) BUT musically voiced, soul-filled speakers, artful and subjective...for exaple, British sound of Spendors and Harbeths or Guarneris or Von schweikerts, or ESLs,... in all their models. I (my opinion only) find push pull vintage (1950-70s) tube amps provide the most natural, warm, engaging reproduction and deliver. I found that they truly work well with modern LSAs, ESLs, large monitor type horn and paper combo speakers from the 80s (JBs) or newer even newer types such the ProAcs, Triangles, VRs and the great over achiever, the LSA's and even the cutting edge VR...yes even the floorstanderss.
Im not really going to list down specific vintage /modern equipment combos as the major goal here...only sharing as examples, really. I want to stress how vintage and modern equipment work so well together...the SYNERGIZE and that they produce an extremely surprising and sometimes very pleasurable results . This is not about brands or tubes or SET VS PushPull, its about modern mixing with vintage...hope you enjoy!!!!
The Benz Micro SilverCartridge- An MC Cart with an MM level output....think of this....A modern day MC detail hooked up to an MM tube phono-stage of a Conrad Johnson....full spectrum cutting edge transducer technology (although only at 300 US$-mid priced but with superb swiss technology) precision action warmed up by vintage tubes...can you picture how this could balance things out...
This idea of old working with with new is rally far from original its just that I'V ENJOYED IT SO MUCH...I've really followed on that path in search for Synergies...There really are so many solid state/tube hybrids...so many re-issues its a well known fact.
My respected friend Jovy (old foggey) is convinced that aside from digital technology and DACs, nothing has really, really essentially changed technologically since the 1940s. Perhaps the electronic process of reproductions has remained largely constant...but I cannot help but disagree with my friend, with all respect and affection to my audio uncle, Jovy. Many technological advances in materials.. new alloys, speaker surfaces, electronic processing imagery, cabling alloys...just so many advances...but perhaps he is right in terms of musicality. As Jovy, as himself as an individual, he assesses his preferences, he finds that the early technology was of the best possible quality and much to his liking. I respect his opinion but I differ when faced by the immense R&D in our hobby. However, When I read audio magazine publications, I cannot help but agree with Jovy..Much of the technology is the same shit in a different packaging...pitched differently at the reader...meant to impress...hard sell, soft sell...Truly, though, negligible changes in technology but more on just voicing. But, really, lots of advances in materials, especially in speakers.
So, to Vintage and modern equipment combos...some exapmles...I wish I could discuss High end VPIs, ClearAudios, Mark levinsons...etc...but I'm not in that market...and I just want to share the Sunshine On My Love...my happy hobby... at my own level of audio gear...Cheers to the high end boys!!!! So glad you take the time to share your rare equipment with me....however...gotta stick to what I know well...just my own equipment
Front End Combos:
Cud we respectfully skip ipods, pls...
How about hooking up that Benz Micro Silver (circa 2003) a pinpoint sharpshooter analytical cartridge...dare I say a poor man's clear audio (I welcome debate) with a circa 1971 SME 3012...the speed of the modern Cartridge put through this clasic tonearm changes things...the sound of the Benz Micro is, to me, observably gentled and paced, and painted with soul and character and perspective by the vintage SME [the legendary copper wired 12 inch, mellow, vintage, approach and charm of the SME...Benz Micro accuracy and range combined with natural decay and musicality from the SME?
How about a 1950s mellow, steady, and sonorous, silky, timber filled workhorse, the Thorens TD 124 (broadcast reference quality, 1950s-1960s)...BUT...think of this matched with a masterful, stiff, unyielding, unforgiving, lush, detailed, and musical but unforgiving and accurate late 1970s Fidelity Research 64 arm (in my opinion, one of the bestestestest arms ever)...Old table, new Tone arm...a cooperation and synergy, clearly! Wonderful and complete output...awesome!!!...This combo can really nail you to your seat (IMHO) I have this combo...it a lot of fun!!!!
The you get the Pie in the SKY Vintage EMT turntable...used in recording Laboratories and broadcasting...used when sound recording technicians wore lab suits and spoke english and not EBONICS...This table is Finicky!!! allowing only a select number of tonearms: Ortofon Arms, EMT arms or Fidelity Research arms, you have a turntable table that will simply not synergize with too many tonearms or cartridges at all. I've only hear it play well with Ortofon Carts and Denon 103ds not 103rs...hardcore vintage yet unsurpassed, as far as I am concerned!!! best turntable I've heard...ever...in my opinion....Its just magic...the rig is as ugly as a meat slicer in a grocery ...but it sounds awesomeEST I cant explain just yet.
How about a mellow mellow Dynaco Mark IV perked up by a set of modern speakers (in my case the LSA 1s). Speakers that help enhance or assist or emphasize the the upper and lower spectrum of frequencies (so lacking in the typical EL34) lending the amp some punch beyond the normal expected output of midrange rich EL34 Mullards? So now, EL34 warmth and musicality helped allong in the low bass and high tweeter sections...
I even even even seem to remember Jack D excitedly using vintage rectifiers on his cutting edge Lamm system...wonderful improvement...1950s mullard tubes, 2008 equipment!!!
How about using modern cryo-treated peanut tubes as input tubes on a vintage pre-amp to clean up the input sound and reduce muddiness?
Also, The VPI, top of the line turntables and ultra high end nightingale arms sound beautiful BUT with a retro Koetsu to add soul and timber to the ultra high tech turntable and space age tonearm...Heard at Jack Ds...Also, In PaoloP's setup, I have heard a 1980 cutting edge Dynaco tonearms play a modern Clear Audio Cart wonderfully!!! 80s tonearm tech and 2007 German Catridge tech...Awesome!!!
An what about the new CD players armed with tubes...another piece of strong evidence of synergy between old technology and new.
Pre-amps-
i don't really have enough experience in solid state preamps..actually I am only familiar with a few brands: Lamm Hybrids, Conrad Johnson, Audio Research, Dynacos, Eicos, Harman Kardons, Marantz, and some other tube based Japanese brands...but really I know only tube driven types. This said, i cannot truly discuss modern pre-amps to vintage amps at all. I do realize that the Pre-amp central and directive to both the system and it output quality. However, is suspect the same...there is still a vintage to modern synergy to be had, given a few experiments.
But the trick I found in my own collection and experience is really quite simple. Identify the strengths and weaknesses of certain components...speed, detail, soundstage, frequency range and other characteristis.. PRAT, smooth digital delivery, musicality, warmth, analytical, unforgiving, endearing, taba, payat, etc. and the match the components to compliment the weaknesses along the chain.
Of course, this canbe done with pure modern or pure vintage setups...but when you get both types to work together...its not just a pleasure...it's a reak achievement!!!! And its fun, and you can brag about it and wow your buddies at how you arrived at this
I havn't really gone into power supply, isolation line conditionitng, speaker cables and interconnects...ther does not seem to be any era or period type combos here, really. However, I would follow along the same thinking where the accessories and cabling shuold somehow enhance (to your taste) the inherent weaknesses in the combos as described above.