But tonight’s session, was epic. And I mean that literally.  

Karman,

I've told you a million times not to exaggerate!

I am now tracking down your reference to "a playlist by ABXAudiophiles ."  I am really pleased for how well the 300b is performing for you. Those emotions are what makes this pastime, so rewarding.


Tony

Lol Tony and Thx!

I tried to copy the Soundiiz link last night but it wasn’t working for some reason.  Here it is now:

https://sdz.sh/eBTib5?fbclid=IwAR2CzMwCZ29MtmgIx5aj8ABSWB4MkfTK7e00YQUByhqvZsbo4...
NPsXb6KrMo_aem_AccOLv2CZQHCIrVxOP2JImTeojvAaxLkcuN33e_Xz5TdCI89pbRNr_ORNkvTyMxXW
I4

Lol GroovySauce, that might be a good way to keep folks out and messing around!

That's a great shot! I struggle to get good photos of tubes or my system.

Your SEWE300B is beginning to be broken in! I listen to totally different music on mine and that probably yields a different overall sensation and experience--a good point that different genres have different fidelity expectations I think.

Anyway, prepare yourself: the amp gets better still. Mine I think is still getting a tiny bit better week by week. And I learn how to get better sound out of it as the weeks go by as well.

So today is my first month anniversary with Sarah. To mark this occasion, I rolled the driver pair 75C1s with a pair of Cryotone OC2s on a long term loan and I was almost immediately impressed with the increased density.

Here’s the kicker—I listened for about 8 hrs on basically one to two levels above mute as I was working. I did the same dance yesterday. Today, it sounded louder, had more body and slam at the same volume, on the same exact break-in playlist.  

Due to family commitments, I had to shut the rig early and only got a half hour to listen at my normal critical listening volume. That half hour seemed to confirm what I was hearing at low volumes throughout the day. This is exciting and a big win for the OC2s. I’m most definitely getting a third one for the input tube and intend to buy the driver and input tubes from Wathen as well.

Obviously, I have a picture to share. I’ve probably taken more pics of Sarah than of my own family in the past month (they are old news).

Yes, meant to say third one for the input tube (will modify post)

Kahuna Jack: No, net yet. Partly because it’s sounding good and I don’t want to mess around and partly because as the amp/tubes/sdfb break—in, I am keeping one other variable that could influence the sound, at bay.

Fun stories Kam... Having a beautifully evolving system and room, and the system in various states of perpetual burnin, I suspect your mind will be permanently altered whenever you stop, or should I say, slow shopping, and (most) all settles

If we don't hear from you for a while, I imagine we can just give you some time to come out of audio ecstasy enough that words and linear thought can resume in some portion of your consciousness! Looking forward to those stories!

Perpetual State of Break-In

Well, if you didn’t see this coming, you haven’t been paying attention.





lake smileys

Lusting after these pictures I believe Kamryn should be reported for posting Audio Porn……

Love the updates !

“Now We’re Cookin!”

No tube has any business sounding this good right out of the box.

I just can’t.

So I won’t.  

And yes, the irony isn’t lost on me—that of all people, I’m at a loss for words.

But what I can share is some more pics, even though they don’t do justice to the sheer majesty of their glow….








Curious, which one folks like best?

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I think you met your quota for the day!

Great shots!

Lon, Have you rolled many rectifiers? I'm really enjoying the SE Aqua 274b original version in the UFO25TH. It has a nice balance of space, density and clarity. I did put in a 1950s (I think) RCA 5u4g and have been enjoying that as of late.

I'm considering getting a pair of the Aqua 274b II for my Torii in the next few months.

The only down side to the Sarah I see is how spendy the 300b tubes are.

"The only down side to the Sarah I see is how spendy the 300b tubes are"

LOL yes buying the amplifier is the easiest part just like a automobile. Then comes the insurance, registration every year at the worst time(always) and the maintenance.

But if your middle name is 'Deep Pockets' I can see collecting 300b tubes a lot of fun.

When the time comes I'm 95% sure I'm going to go with the Aqua II. NOS tubes can be amazing however, It makes me uneasy that if one of them goes bad that's that and I need to find a new tube.

I do enjoy rolling tubes from time to time as I am curious. I stuck with the same tubes for well over a year, maybe two years without thinking about rolling them.

KJ, My audio habit has already snipped a hole in HCB (Hip Central Bank).

Kamran, That's a great story! lol.

Those are great pics Kamran. FWIW my experience is just having the tubes powered up, no music will get them broken in most of the way. When I got my Takatsukis I let them cook overnight for about 10 days, plus normal listening during the day.

Also curious how you're feeling about getting the cryo treatment now? For me, I was seriously considering it while I was waiting for my UFO25s, but now that I have them I'm not nearly as keen on spending the money, living without them or changing the sound that I'm really REALLY happy with at this point.

Ever since the WE, I have been at a loss for words.  Adding another SDFB to my Holo DAC only compounded the problem, leaving me a tad frustrated.

It took the arrival of my son (who just got home on winter break) to say something, so friggin obvious that I had a massive face palm moment.  He was excited to see the WEs and the new SDFB. I played a couple of instrumental tracks for him and then asked for his thoughts and opinions.

He had two comments:

1) He’s totally distracted by the beautiful glow…it looks ‘mad trippy’
2) On the sound, he said:

“It sounds like you’re there live, but better”.

Now why the hell couldn’t I think of that?  It is so beautifully simplistic, accurate, and cuts straight to the heart of the matter. Why waste time?

I guess the Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree…

Goodnight and God Bless.

The Kindness of Strangers

We are 520 hrs.

A couple of days ago, I probably had the best listening session ever since I got Sarah a month and half ago.  I think my face is still melted.  That session also gave me an idea to start a playlist called ‘Immersion’.  My plan was to slowly add songs that were very holographic.  

I didn’t expect to be adding track after track, which suddenly became a chore.  This is Sarah’s way of saying that I have to up my standards to gauge not only if a particular track is holographic, but also how well it is executed.

I guess that’s a good problem to have.

Anyways, bottom line is that the combined prowess of two SDFB’s in the rig and the Western Electrics has taken the rig to new levels. It’s gory damn unbelievable.

Which takes us to today.  Well, let me share a picture first to set the stage.



upload image

Yeah…the Aqua is out.  

This is a story worth sharing.  If you recall, a couple of weeks ago, I had bought a used Cryotone 5AR4 from a member and it arced immedietly after I tuned on the amp, and that was that.  Well, unbeknownst to me, the member/seller felt so bad about this outcome, that he bought another rectifier from Wathen and sent it to me as a surprise Christmas gift.  He was under no obligation to do so.  I was really taken aback and of course really appreciate his kind gesture—I also didn’t waste anytime in giving the 5AR4 a second shot the very day I got it.  Luckily, it took this time!  

I just concluded the initial break-in of 12 hours.  I’m big on first impressions and I liked what I heard. Let’s just say that the Aqua II (while still my rectifier of choice) has a worthy competitor that needs to be given time.  Hell, I need time to really understand the differences between the two. So now, with the slightly chatty 5U4, I now have 3 rectifiers to roll.

For the past couple of days, I’ve also rolled the RCA Cleartop 12AU7A, which does have a good rep, but one thing I have noticed is that it’s predecessor, the IEC Mullard did a better job of taming the high frequencies.  The RCA seems a tad hotter in comparison.  Case in point, one of things that impressed me about the Western Electrics was how it tamed sibilance.  I wasn’t expecting that.  The Mullard was already in the system when I rolled in the WE’s and the decrease in sibilance was noticeable.  With the RCA, it seemed to dip back yesterday but I plan to give it a little more time to see if it sticks.  I plan to roll my first German input tube, the Siemens 12AU7 (or equivalent European term) next week.

Today I was hearing more details (this new detail discovery never ceases to amaze me) on familiar tracks and at first I thought, how the heck is the 5AR4 doing this, but on further reflection, I don’t think it’s the rectifier but the SDFB in the DAC and the Western Electrics maturing.  Or maybe it’s just Sarah settling in with over 500 hrs.  The ambiguity of the source doesn’t bother me because the result is so delightful.

Finally, I’d also like to take this opportunity to wish anyone who is celebrating, a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!  I have some family in town so my listening sessions might be a bit choppy over the next week.

Kamran,  Your story about the the seller of the 5AR4 tube surprising you with a replacement after the first one failed was a good one.  What a stand up guy. Yet, I wasn't surprised, as I think your guy could be any one of number of folks within the community. Still, a class act.

On a different topic, I am trying to figure out where you placed the second SDFB. I take it you found it beneficial, or is one sufficient?

Kam,

Have you ever listened to the sequel? I prefer the performances on this one than on the original, and it's the same recording venue. The guests really make solid contributions.

Yeah, the original is cool. I'm far more into the "Revisited" though. Cowboy Junkies is one of the few rock bands I still listen to, though I prefer their work this century to be honest (probably not a popular opinion).

A Starry Night

Hmm, where to begin.  Today, I remembered something that I ought to have shared in the last post? Or was there a couple of things? God, I’m losing my mind, so here goes before I forget (again).

Sara Bareilles’ live album is one of my favorites and I have listened to it countless times.  One of things I really appreciate about the recording is her interaction with the audience.  I always feel like I’m there, laughing with the crowd or at them (when she teases them for being out of sync), and their applause always feels real. I can’t get enough of it.

Well, couple of nights ago, that recording seemed more real and I could swear I heard some voices from the crowd jump out at me and I was like, WTF just happened?? That Jane Doe was never there before!  And not only that-the applause itself was more immersive, happening not in a 2D plane, but 3D.  It was an amazing experience being in the center of it all.

Now, I’m hating myself for not remembering who the female vocalist was (I want to say Jacintha, but don’t hold me to it), but the interesting thing about listening to whatever track I was listening to was that I could (for the first time), hear her breath work.  It was amazing to hear the vocalist  pause and taking in a breath before resuming.  Probably a one second pause, but time seemed to slow down during that intake, making the presentation 100 times more intimate.  That level of detail and clarity on the vocals is what I’ve always strived to achieve and Sarah is giving it to me in spades.  

Ok, those are the items, I had forgotten to share earlier.

Now some stuff from last night.  I was noticing the drifting of the soundstage and vocals to the right side for a while, and initially thought it was the room.  I corrected it by channel balancing, but something still seemed off. So I spent close to 2 hrs fussing around with speaker placement (those of you who were waiting for this—-yay, I did it finally lol).  Anyways, I put on Jennifer Warne’s ‘Ballad of a Runaway Horse’ like 10 thousand times. She is supposed to be dead center and she clearly wasn’t (maybe I’m too picky, but whatever), so I started to move the right speaker a fraction of an inch back and listened each time.  I want to say it took maybe 3 inches and change to lock Jennifer in.  And then I noticed the toe-in was now off between the two speakers, so I adjusted the left speaker just a tad and then made a slight adjustment to my chair.  And then I took measurements from my laser pointer and was shocked to see that they were almost the same distance from the listening position. And here I thought I was moving the right speaker much further back compared to the left.  Either the painters tape drifted over time or my wife played a trick on me to take stock of my critical listening skills—I think either way, I passed.

Just goes to show you, our ears are incredible things.  

On to today—-there was another request regarding the notch filter for the Fast-15. So I finally inserted it this morning.  It was dreadfully easy, but to be honest, the jury is still out whether it’s making a profound difference in the rig.  It’s not harming-that’s for sure.



Ok—last update—I promise.  I got this Spacebuddy stars and nebula robot projector as an impulse purchase to add to the rig vibe during my listening sessions.  While waiting for it arrive, I had buyers remorse, thinking it would be gimmicky and that I would take offense to any light during my blackout sessions.  However, I didn’t mind it and was able to still close my eyes without a sensation of light in the room. It’s hard to describe.  Alternatively, I could just open my eyes and be mesmerized by the nebula and stars.  



Ok I lied—this is the last update. ‘Raglan Road Live’ by Loreena McKennitt—-this was the last track I heard tonight and her vocals were coming from above and behind my head like the voice of God vs. just being dead center.  This is immersion on steroids—what a way to end the night!

Ok, here are two more pics of the amp—the first one, under the light of the projector and one from either yesterday or day before focusing on the WE.

Love the photos!

It's bizarre how things get moved and changed in our systems with out use knowing about it. When it does happen its a WTF! moment.

I recently cleaned up the cable routing in my system and was gobsmacked how much of a difference it made.

I love DCD! I generally don't listen loud at all. The song Rakim is another story it's one that never seems to be loud enough. Unfortunately it's a poor quality recording, maybe that's why?

How close to an equilateral triangle are you?

I'm so torn. Get the SE Aqua II or SE 5u4g?

Lon, Do you know why they preferred the Aqua II?

If my new DAC—Lampizator TRP, ships with the Aqua II that will make things easy for me. I've already ordered an EML 274b Mesh for it.