Music Room *It's fully soundproofed*

[Jeremy]

They come in more than one colour?

Why didn't you tell me four years ago?

This changes everything.

[*Bob*]

It's all about the colours, Jeremy. I have two colours but decided not to be weird and 'collect the set'.

[maxxi]

Jeremiah Clarke's "Trumpet Voluntary"...C1700.

I'll get my baton...

[StraferJack]

interesting blog from a producer about vinyl here:

https://gist.githubusercontent.com/marcedwards/10618828/raw/484701b224880fad0763f6f9ece0f913b8826c94/Vinyl+vs+CD+vs+digital+audio

tl;dr vinyl ain't all that

[Jeremy]

I've always thought that objectively, in terms of a technically faithful reproduction, vinyl is far worse than CD. But as this guy says, some people like vinyl specifically because they are fond of the flaws. And that's fine, doesn't mean it's wrong. Kind of a similar argument with Steve Albini's fetish for analogue tape..

[El Pibe]

I'm pretty sure though that most champions of vinyl (at least that I know) don't claim it's a better sound, they just claim it feels better. It's warmer, fuzzier, somehow more natural *because* of it's imperfections, perfect reproduction often sounds sterile. Think studio versus live I guess.

Maybe its a generational thing, us older bods who grew up with vinyl are obviously harking back to bygone days and associations and we know it.

Yes early DAC was pretty terrible, but now I have a fairly budget one running off my PC and a nice set of headphones and the sound quality quite clearly blows my turntable out the water, but I still prefer sitting in the hifi room, the process of vinyl, the warmth of the sound.

Maybe (the potential straw man in his argument) some people claim it's objectively better quality, I don't know them personally, but they're probably the overzealous converts (hipsters?) who have 'discovered' vinyl.

I'm alos reminded of the idiots who swear by 'burn in' as if a DAC is going to preform better because it's had some current running through it for 300 hours. Obviously they're just getting used to a different sound and adjusting their brains to original expectations, but I blather...

[El Pibe]

yeah....what jeremy said in 1000 more words eh!

[StraferJack]

Huh ? interesting

I always understood the ?vinyl feels better? argument from a subjective point, but for most of the time I always felt like I was being told, objectively, that vinyl was the best and that digital was bobbins

As I?ve recently moved (for the 12th time?) my crates of vinyl to a new address, I have come to accept I will never ever ever play any of them again ? time to ditch them I think

[Jeremy]

Don't get me started on expensive racks and cables...

[Jeremy]

StraferJack Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> As I?ve recently moved (for the 12th time?) my

> crates of vinyl to a new address, I have come to

> accept I will never ever ever play any of them again

That's strange... I'm in the exact opposite position. Only have a small amount of vinyl left (maybe 25 albums and 15 singles), but when I recently moved, I installed a nice sturdy shelf in the office specifically so I could set up the turntable once again. I think I've only used it twice since... but nevertheless it's pretty cool to hear the needle thud down onto the record, followed by the crackles and pops which give way to the opening bars of a classic album.

[david_carnell]

Jeremy Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Don't get me started on expensive racks and

> cables...

SeanMcG pointed me towards this. Hilarious stuff.

http://wathifi.tumblr.com/

A shelf!!

[El Pibe]

same here jeremy. When I went to my mum's to reclaim my old vinyl collection after too many years living in places that couldn't accomodate a turntable, leave alone records, I discovred she'd sold them all off to a local record store.

Plus all my dancve music that I lent my mate ended up in new zealand when he emigrated.

So only the small portion of 20 or so that was at my brothers survived. I don't even know how I'm going to find stuff in this corner of ireland.

[El Pibe]

Brilliant.

In fairness (really) cheap cables can murder a system, but you don't have to spend much.

When the sky engineer set up our system the other day he used a battered comes-with-your-telly HDMI and it was bascially snow and he looked aghast, so I quickly poassed him a normal one and the picture was suddenly clear. So it can't *all* be placebo effect.

[Jeremy]

To be honest anyone who is daft enough to spend hundreds of quid on a shelf or USB cables deserves to be parted from their cash.

Of course using really cheap/thin cables is a bad idea when you've spent a few hundred on a decent amp/speakers. Reasonable speaker stands are also important (nothing fancy, just something solid with the speakers sitting on spikes). But that's about it.

Digital cables should all behave identically, unless they're broken!

I'm sure *bob* could add something appropriately sarcasitc.

[Jeremy]

I was about to jokingly suggest going into business with audiophile SATA cables... you know, to improve the sonic qualities of the connection between the hard disk and the motherboard.

But of course, someone got there first:

http://www.hifidelit.com/products/ppa-red-sata-cable

[El Pibe]

searching for ludicrous accessories I found this lovely spoof site. I love the poor english in the adverts contrasting the overblown testimonials

http://www.machinadynamica.com/

the frog bowls and water andf the blue meanies are the best

[El Pibe]

although in fairness I think it might be more of a satire on pseudo scientific naturo/homeopathy sites than audiophiles.

[nashoi]

Jeremy Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> To be honest anyone who is daft enough to spend

> hundreds of quid on a shelf or USB cables deserves

> to be parted from their cash.

>

> Of course using really cheap/thin cables is a bad

> idea when you've spent a few hundred on a decent

> amp/speakers. Reasonable speaker stands are also

> important (nothing fancy, just something solid

> with the speakers sitting on spikes). But that's

> about it.

>

> Digital cables should all behave identically,

> unless they're broken!

>

> I'm sure *bob* could add something appropriately

> sarcasitc.

Hundreds? You philistine Jeremy it's thousands you need to be spending

http://www.analogueseduction.net/audioquest-hdmi-cables/AQD12.html?gclid=CPaj1tDQ4r0CFbLMtAodW2kAeg

[El Pibe]

what the hell, why not just hire the band/orchestra if you have that much cash??!??!?

[El Pibe]

Nice thing about working from home is you can turn muisc up REALLY loud!!!!!

 

[El Pibe]

I've a soft spot for this lot

 

[El Pibe]

Should I prepare myself to forgive bono?

I've ripped all my CDs and have snaffled up my wife's U2 along with it.

Having turned my back on everything that pompous arse touches since (the admittedly excellent) Achtung Baby, a process kicked off with the cringeworthy awfulness of Rattle & Hum, my mouse finger is occassionally teetering over their latest stuff.

So, should I or shouldn't I. Can I look past the man to the music, and would it be worth it at all?

I'm really only asking this because it's a slow lounge week, and bi-folding doors and bogey aren't cutting it for me....

[steveo]

It's a brave man who will admit to listening to Bono these days. I admire your pluck

However I once had a memorable afternoon in a Bristol boozer dancing around the pool table with some crusties and a load of cider listening to the Joshua Tree flat out.

I'll forgive U2 a lot for that alone

[StraferJack]

I still like plenty of Zooropa, and some of All That You Can't Leave Behind

POP is widely derided (not least by the band) but again, I can listen to plenty of it

And teh Passengers album is nicely out there

But before Achtung Baby, and after ATYCLB I can't listen to anything

[Otta]

I have thought about this with Coldplay, I basically dislike them and their music because I dislike Chris Martin. Which is silly and irrational, but you know, he annoys me.

But if I was from mars and knew nothing of this man and just heard the music would I find myself hating it? Probably not, even if it didn't exactly blow me away.