Audio Catalogs & Morita's Memorabilia

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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Sun Jun 26, 2011 8:11 am

The 'magic puck' even comes with a reddish jewel case. ('Snake oil' products usually have decent packaging) :lol:

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And the all-important 'notes' from the manufacturer.

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And now, the funny part. :lol:

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"If you cannot obtain any improvement after using this disc, your audio system is MOST LIKELY out of alignment. Call your Shun Mook Dealer." :D :D :D

They key words are 'most likely'. At least di naman 'certainly and completely'. :D And I wonder what kind of 'protractor' they use to 'align' a complete system. :D
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Tue Jul 26, 2011 5:39 pm

Long before the invention of USB sticks and the inkjet printers there were the Floppy Disks and the Dot Matrix printers, respectively. :D

Circa 1988, I finally printed out a project I painstakingly endeavored in the form of a 'computer cataloged' list of my LPs then. I remember I had just thrown away my Apple IIc to obsolescence and borrowed my younger siblings PC just to print out the hard-saved list. :lol: I found a few of them stuck under some folders (the yellow cardboard and not those you put in Drive C). :lol: Printer papers then were already yellowish in nature so it's not to say that the paper had aged through time. :lol: And the lack of sharpness is really a tribute to the authenticity of the Dot Matrix printer - even the Photo Shop cannot help it. :lol:

I remember I started with the 'audiophile labels' - because they were the ones that drained my salary.

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When I got to the miscellaneous labels, I did 'transcribe' a few, but when I saw the volumes that remained to be filed, I remember I just threw in the towel. It was then that I invoked the famous Mañana Habit. :lol:

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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Wed Aug 03, 2011 4:25 pm

'TUBEN BOXEN' :lol:

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Tube boxes, in other words. There's nothing inside that's why they just belong to the memorabilia section. :lol: What were once inside were brand new GE 6550 power tubes, today costing a mini arm and leg, :lol: as they have been long out of production. They came with my Jadis JA200 power amp, and when I sold the amp I retained the boxes as the buyer didn't really need them. For all intents and purposes, they make nice shelf decors, specially if you're trying to impress tube lovers. 'Wow pare, ang daming mong NOS na GE 6550s!'.... 'Oo nga eh, di ko na nga binubuksan ang mga yan. Noon pa nasa shelf lang.' (Kasi walang laman sa loob)... :D :D
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Thu Aug 04, 2011 9:12 pm

MAY LAMANEN BOXEN... :lol:

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These boxes have been dangling in my shelf too, giving visitors the 'shock effect' kuno when they see the label - BLACK SABLE CRYOGENICALLY TREATED VACUUM TUBES. :o :o Matindi ang dating nito. :lol:

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A very good friend had given them to me, not just the boxes, but there are tubes inside, only it's not the cryo KT88s (because they are all in his ARC amp which I helped him install). :lol: But he was so gracious to give me the stock SED 6550s which I used briefly in my old VS110 amp.

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But with the arrival of my new VS115 amp last April, these tubes were returned back to the boxes that do not fit their names :lol: but nevertheless, will be valuable 'reserves' when the need arise for them to see action. These reserves are valuable because it prevents us from hitting the 'debt ceiling'. :D
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Sun Aug 07, 2011 8:46 pm

While listening to a CBS record, I took interest in the paper inner sleeve which again has some amusing 'open declarations' aka HYPE, about man's best friend at home - the vinyl record. :)

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The hype is 'Here's How Records Give You More Of What You Want'.

Except for reasons 3, 6 and 8, strangely I began to think they were talking about the SERVERS of today instead of records of yesteryears. :D

1. Best for Less: 3000 songs in a server, I read somewhere. :lol:

2. Allow Selectivity of songs and tracks: Isn't this the much ballyhooed SHUFFLE of the servers? :lol:

3. Top Quality in Sound: Server? NAHHH!!!! Vinyl is king! :lol:

4. Hours of Continuous and Uninterrupted Listening Pleasure: Another point for the server. :lol:

5. Attractive, Informative and Easy to Store: I agree with the 'easy to store' part. (Advantage Server) :lol:

6. If it's on recorded form, it's on records: Servers lose. Pang downloading lang sila. :lol:

7. Best Entertainment Buy: Thousands of songs in one box. Server wins this. :lol:

8. They Make a Great Gift: Record wins here. Downloads are invisible. Can't give what you can't see. (Or maybe you can, via email and bluetooth.) :D :lol:
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Re: A Nude Review

Postby jadis » Wed Aug 24, 2011 6:18 pm

RATED R18 - A NUDE REVIEW :lol: :lol:

Before I get reported to the MTRCB for spreading nudity in an audio forum, :o let me just tone down the excitement by stating that the subject at hand is just a phono cartridge and not anything of the female persuasion. :lol: You see folks, a long long time ago, audio hobbyists had taken the task of 'de-nuding' the cartridge by removing its shell and exposing the 'bare essentials', pretty much like what happens inside a dark bedroom with 2 people of opposing polarities, :lol: although the reasons are not the same, as you will find out below.

While rummaging through my voluminous archives of papers about audio, I found a piece which was my first (and probably my LAST) review of an audio product. Written 20 years ago, when we desperately tried to mimic an audio journal, I am surprised now that I even know such things as 'octaves'. So don't ask me what it is. :lol: I must have picked it up from fellow 'hobbyists/reviewers' back then. :lol:

(The Naked Truth About A Nude Koetsu)

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PS: Some audio 'terms' may not apply in these modern days anymore, meaning, the may not mean then same anymore. But sometimes they still do. That's the beauty of audio - Pwedeng mali, pwedeng tama. :lol: That's why I classify this under the memorabilia section - something like the X-Files. :lol:
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Tweaker's Paradise

Postby jadis » Sun Sep 04, 2011 6:07 pm

TWEAKING - 20 YEARS AGO...

Another article of sorts that I wrote for a local journal 20 years ago, this time, on the merits of tweaking. Most of these items are not available today save for Tiptoes. Tweaking with the use of not too costly things are a lot of fun in the audio hobby. I am amazed today that I was able to make some kind of 'tubetraps' using fiberglass panels from ACI in those days. Makati lang ang mga fiberglass to make but it's very much worth it. :lol:

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My favorite quote from the last page: "Never set your speakers there because your mouse doesn't play in that area." :lol: I'm trying to think what prompted me to say that before. :lol:
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby audiostar » Sun Sep 04, 2011 7:14 pm

Hi Phil, nice take on this very important yet often ignored endeavor in making do with the audio equipment yo have, without necessariy emptying your pocket. Some of the terms you used maybe obsolete, but the concept still rings to this day: it's not your equipment, but it's what you do with them. Tweaking your system can't only save you money and the headache that goes with every upgrade. By tweaking you can maximize the true potential of each audio component in the chain. Really nice weakender read :-)
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Sun Sep 04, 2011 8:08 pm

audiostar wrote:Hi Phil, nice take on this very important yet often ignored endeavor in making do with the audio equipment yo have, without necessariy emptying your pocket. Some of the terms you used maybe obsolete, but the concept still rings to this day: it's not your equipment, but it's what you do with them. Tweaking your system can't only save you money and the headache that goes with every upgrade. By tweaking you can maximize the true potential of each audio component in the chain. Really nice weakender read :-)


Thanks, Val. Agreed absolutely. :)
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JADIS

Postby jadis » Thu Sep 08, 2011 8:04 pm

The Raison d'être for the Non de Guerre :lol:

As my French is as bad as my German, :lol: that's as far as I can go in explaining my handle - Jadis. With the advent of the internet in the 90s, I didn't want to think hard on what to choose as my username so I decided to just adopt the name of my electronics then. Below are old pics from a local audio magazine that I took using my P&S cam.

The Jadis JA 200 Mono Blocks:

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In those days, these 4-chassis babies were imposing, to carry. :lol: The ones at the rear are the power supply blocks, joined to the front main chassis which houses a total of 20 hot mama tubes in Class A mode. The grills were taken off for nudity's sake. And heat dissipation was a secondary purpose. :lol: At the back are 2 white bass traps, situated near the corners of the room.

The Jadis JPL Line Stage:

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The gold face plate thing that I seemingly was adjusting its volume knob is the lowest line pre-amp from Jadis, but is a long standing 'soldat' in the old arsenal. Actually my eyes were focused on the British Sarah Brightman, the Norwegian Ranveig Eckhoff, and the Swedish choral Kornet Har Sin Vila. One can say I'm not really an audio hardware guy, even though the 'nom' is 'Jadis'. :lol:
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby O.D. Yeo » Thu Sep 08, 2011 9:32 pm

Hi Phil,
I am enjoying your very well-documented trip down your personal memory lane.
Here's a nice nostalgic article from audiophilereview.com, which you might enjoy:
http://audiophilereview.com/the-history ... audio.html
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Thu Sep 08, 2011 9:54 pm

O.D. Yeo wrote:Hi Phil,
I am enjoying your very well-documented trip down your personal memory lane.
Here's a nice nostalgic article from audiophilereview.com, which you might enjoy:
http://audiophilereview.com/the-history ... audio.html


Hi Billy,

Thanks for reading. And thanks too for the link, lovely walk down the lane of olden audio brands and personalities. As much as we enjoy the music, we appreciate the people too who take pains in designing gears to suit our homes. Names like Fisher, Scott, Marantz, etc will always be cemented in our audio life. I used to read Steven Stone's reviews when he was with TAS. Good to see him still active in the net.
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Fri Sep 09, 2011 8:59 am

The Raison d'être of having this poster then... :lol:

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The 'British King Kong' of Loudspeakers:
The B&W 800 Matrix


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Good thing I still have the magazine that has this picture, as there were no digicams then, and I only use my film type P&S on family outings. :lol: This is a prime example of the Anglo-Francaise union, (when they were not at war with each other) - sort of like the English-French Channel Tunnel link :lol: - The Jadis JA200 driving the B&W Matrix 800. Ooh La La... :inlove:

PS: I should point out that the B&W800 allows QUAD Wiring and/or QUAD amp-ing, although I don't think anybody ever did the latter. I'm a simple guy, and one amp (of 4 chassis) was complex enough. :lol:
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Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Fri Sep 16, 2011 10:02 am

I continue to be surprised at myself. :lol: In the Stone Age of Audio, one George Tice came out with a so-called 'white paper' of power line conditioners. I had tried a few and some of these actually work in that I found improvements in my own system when hooked up to my electronics. Here is a sample of my first (and only) attempt at being a 'technical writer'. :lol: And it's a short one. :lol:

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PS: Prior to this, I thought EMI was a British record label. :D
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DIY Maggie Spikes

Postby jadis » Fri Nov 04, 2011 10:44 am

Jadis becomes JA(D.I.Y)... :lol:

Over the long holidays, I stumbled into a box which yielded 8 pcs. of spikes that look like this:

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They were one of the 2 sets of spikes that came with the B&W800 and I gave the aluminum set to the guy who bought the speakers while retaining these for 'future use'. They would have come in handy for the Maggie steel feet but the problem was there was no hole in the stand of the Maggies, and to drill it and thread it would be too tedious for me. So it went on hibernation mode for 14 years.

Suddenly, I thought of an idea when I saw them again last week. Why not screw them in some small 1"x 1" wood cubes and put them under the Maggies via Blue Tack? Light bulb was flashing. :lol: Problem next was to find some wood to cut them to pieces. Scoured around the house for some stray wood pieces till I thought of the old reliable 'chopping board' that was lying around in the pantry. It was a spare. :lol: (The next time the kitchen commander looks for it, it will be short by one inch in length, no problem) :lol: Yanked out my small wood saw and hand drill and as luck would have it, the drill bit fit the spike thread to a T. I thought this must be 'destiny'. :lol: After a few drops of sweat and some lefty muscle build up, the D.I.Y. accessory now looks like this:

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Definitely not ISO or export quality but what the heck, so long as it works, that's all that matters. :D And putting them under the Maggies were a breeze. Unlike the 800s where I had to summon the entire house help, this time, I was able to do it alone, with one hand even. Just kidding. :lol:

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I was so excited to hear the effects this morning, and I put on my favorite reference LPs to hear the effects. At this point, I'm just happy to be able to do a little diy'ing at this point of my audio life. :) Some people like to pronounce Jadis as Jadi, but now they can say Ja(diy), with a Y. :lol:

Next Up : The Sound. :)
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby dafos » Fri Nov 04, 2011 11:51 am

Philip, maybe you should add another spike in between the two cuz the speakers weight is suspended between the two outer positioned spikes. In time, the maggie feet, which from my recollection are not that thick, may flex.
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Fri Nov 04, 2011 12:38 pm

dafos wrote:Philip, maybe you should add another spike in between the two cuz the speakers weight is suspended between the two outer positioned spikes. In time, the maggie feet, which from my recollection are not that thick, may flex.


Good observation, Gerry. You're right, it may bend on the middle part, and at first, I put the spikes even at the extremes, and I thought of what you just said, then I moved it closer towards the middle of the Maggie feet. Problem is, I do not have extra spikes left, so I'll just observe in time how the middle of the bar holds up. I can space them closer still if there are signs of bending down.
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Fri Nov 04, 2011 1:33 pm

The Sound:

I remember the effects of adding 'pointy' stuffs under audio components from before. They have a 'house sound', so to speak. Products like Tip Toes and its spin off relatives have proliferated the market in the past few decades, some even come with nice plastic hard cases and the spikes are gold plated, for the Asian market who loves the color of gold. :)

And right away, I noticed the effects - improved imaging stability, focus, and tighter bass; which were evident in the first LP I used, Michael Hedges' Aerial Boundaries on Windham Hill. The width seems to even have expanded due to the sheer spaciousness of the sound field. Amazing. The guitar tones also have better decay and air. Amazing, Amazing. I was looking out for some nasty effects that may have come out but thankfully, I heard none. I actually expected some 'thinning out' in the highs, and lean-ness in the mids, but again, negative.

I tried some Command Records, Tony Mottola Strings and Strum and Toots Thielemans' Contrast LPs, looking out for some thinness in the guitar tones but didn't hear any. The overall sound is much cleaner and a bit more laid back than before the spikes were in. Pass.

Next up, Pigs Eye Jass. I have always harped (to myself) that this LP, when played in a 'mini-mouse' system, tends to be 'sleepy' - that is, nakaka-antok. :lol: And truly, it has been that way in my system. I've heard it in other dynamically healthy systems and it flew with flying colors. Knock your socks off, as they say. Today, with the spikes on, the album almost spiked my hair. :D In my mind, I was going "$%%$%)$^^##_%%^^(_$_%(!!!****$#$#$#&%!!!" in various languages at that. :lol: The drums came alive!!! And more detailed too! I heard lots of things I never heard before and I can really bop with this dixieland type music. The bass clarinet has suddenly sprouted out to whereas before it was just a ghost of itself. Triple amazing.

Since the amp is really warming up, I decided to put in a few more killer tracts to make sure I'm not dreaming. Decca's Mysterious World of Bernard Herrmann was played, the opening track of Side 2, Gulliver's Theme. The bass of the orchestra at the opening seconds come in with incredible attack, power and dynamics I had never heard before from my 1" deep speakers. I thought I was listening to an entirely new pair of speakers. :o The entire orchestral sound has never sounded more exciting. All for 8 pcs. of spikes? Wow. I wonder why it took me this long (14 years) to do something like this but as they say, 'it's never too late to start anything'. The next test was to try my demo copy of Mallets Melody and Mayhem LP and frankly I was getting blown away as the minutes passed in each cut. The mallets were now pounding in a 3D formation in its given space. Subterranean bass that were faint are now more pronounced though not in the manner of those produced by dynamic woofer systems. And needless to say, the focus and imaging are rock solid and very stable, with slight increase in overall height as well. The improvements are not small, I say it's quite fantastic, after all these years.

Finally, I have to end the session with a female vocal track. As always, my favorite cut When I Dream by Carol Kidd. I want to know if she is still a sweet nightingale and not a flat 'un-syrupped' pancake. :lol: I have been adjusting to the evolution of my power amp, with still 200 hours to go till its manufacturer's self-proclaimed 600 hours break-in period, and I must admit sometimes, it drives me crazy as the sound is morphing like a roller coaster ride - giving me 'new looks' every 100 hours. Still, I'm waiting for that 'bloom' and 'lushness' to surface but I guess it's wishful thinking as the 6550 tubes probably will not transform itself to a KT88 any moment now, or ever. At least it's good to know that nothing was taken away from Carol Kidd's voice even with the spike on. More clarity which translates to a little more sibilants here and there, but overall, very acceptable and nothing detrimental caused by the addition of the spikes.

In the end, the question lingered in my mind as to why Magnepan never allowed for spikes to put on its 'feet'. I know there are many after-market products (stands), and even modifications that can strip its basic 'digestive system' to the gut, but I am not up to those things. I like to judge, and own a product based on its factory design and not by some external modification, and that is just me. Putting on spikes and other small tweaks are my cup of tea because if they fail, one can always remove them, easily. If anything, my only lament is that I wasted so many years not fully realizing the potential of these speakers all because of neglect and oversight. I'm glad I discovered something before I even went on to another speaker. Small things can make big wonders, and my own personal case, it was just sitting around in a corner, just waiting to be 'tapped'. :lol: Some good things in life, can be 'free'. :)
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby joejet » Fri Nov 04, 2011 5:08 pm

Wow! A simple threaded spikes dormant for fourteen years screwed into a small cubed chunks of kitchen chopping board and played the role of a footer, then the sound rose to new heights.
Not a centavo was spent, (but You might have earned the pricey ire of of the kitchen commander for the partly dismembered chopping board) and it's as if you just added a state of the art component or gear in the audio chain that otherwise would have cost you several thousands of pesos.
Simply ingenious.
A perfect instance of an Audiophile not having to spend a great deal of dough to transform his systems performance into a really
beguiling musical medium.
Spike? Chopping board?
Magaya Nga..
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Re: Audio Catalogs, Accessories & Memorabilia

Postby jadis » Fri Nov 04, 2011 5:18 pm

joejet wrote:Wow! A simple threaded spikes dormant for fourteen years screwed into a small cubed chunks of kitchen chopping board and played the role of a footer, then the sound rose to new heights.
Not a centavo was spent, (but You might have earned the pricey ire of of the kitchen commander for the partly dismembered chopping board) and it's as if you just added a state of the art component or gear in the audio chain that otherwise would have cost you several thousands of pesos.
Simply ingenious.
A perfect instance of an Audiophile not having to spend a great deal of dough to transform his systems performance into a really
beguiling musical medium.
Spike? Chopping board?
Magaya Nga..


Hi joejet,

Most speaker manufacturers provide these spikes, and they are well made and fit to screw in perfectly into threads beneath the speakers. Though I think bookshelf speakers mostly do not have them. I have used these provided spikes in the past with various speakers, and I now recall a few years ago, a friend bought a pair brand new floor standing speakers but did not install the spikes provided and he complained of tremendous bass boom from his speakers. I visited him and helped him install the spikes and miraculously, the boom disappeared and even improved his overall sound, for obvious reasons. In my case, my Magnepans do not have provisions of these spikes so I either have to fabricate some custom made tip toes outside or do what I just did. I'm not too worried about the 'mangled' chopping board, the kitchen chief like those 1/4" white plastic boards that are Made in China. :lol: Magaan daw. :D
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