Speaking of Alex, is he generally pretty responsive? I've written him twice over the past week, and have not heard back. I wanted to pass by his shop on Thursday for an audition of a modded unit, but it looks like that may not happen now.
This is a great thread, by the way. Very informative. |
Alex,
What can I say? I'm pretty busy as well. The next time you want to save face, however, you could just respond directly to my e-mails, which you still have not done.
I know, everyone does business in his/her own way. I'm just a stickler when it comes to customer service. Everyone is exceptionally good at selling it, and very few actually deliver. Thank you, but I won't be by on Thursday.
Best of luck, truly. It's refreshing to see so many people excited about your product.
Howard |
Excuse me for sullying the tone of this excellent thread. I'm signing off, and speaking directly with Alex via
e-mail. He's just written me. |
Thanks Guidocorona,
I look forward to hearing the APL player as well, despite the fact that my wallet has grown hands and is strangling me for even thinking about it!
All the best,
Howard |
Alex,
What happened to your web site? I was going to e-mail you about setting up another time to come audition the player, but www.aplhifi.com brings up a site for web designers. You might want to check it out.
Thanks,
Howard |
Avguru,
Would you mind posting when your next shoot out is, what's up for audition, and what you've discovered thus far? Also, it would be helpful for the others who were present to post their impressions as well. I thought I saw one such summary early on in the thread. Perhaps another one now would get the momentum of this conversation moving again in its intended direction.
Enjoy the listening!
Howard |
This is the longest 7th inning stretch ever. Let's get back to the game? Avguru, what's next? |
Wish I could be there.
My request is that before you render your individual and/or consensus evaluation, would each of you please answer the following questions:
1) What kind of music do you predominantly listen to?
2) What do you listen for while evaluating a component? In other words, are you listening primarily with an ear for critical analysis? Is the best player the one that is the most accurate? Or do you listen perhaps for an overall immersion into the music? I find this is key in knowing what sonic pyramid that person is climbing.
3) How long have you been into high end audio?
4) How long do you expect to have your next player before scouting for another?
Thanks for considering these (and other) pieces of background information, all which is helpful in knowing more about the person who is evaluating the product.
Have fun listening, guys! |
Alex was in the ER last week with a kidney stone, which apparently measured 5mm. He wrote me the next morning. Honestly, I don't know how he did that! |
My wife and I had the opportunity to listen to the APL Denon 3910 today, hosted generously by Alex at his home. We listened to a variety of music for about 45 minutes, and what we both noticed was that the music sounded like playback in a recording studio. That is, the component exaggerated nothing, and forced nothing. It was odd, in fact, because neither of us had ever heard a player that seemed to cover so much ground, and with such a relaxed confidence. The player did not do one thing exceptionally well. It simply did EVERYTHING well.
I don't have a lot of experience with the modded players, so this is no attempt at comparison with them. We have, however, either owned or heard at length quite a few other players/DAC's, including the top 'o the line models from Audio Aero, Audio Note, Naim, Sony, Wadia, Sim Audio, and more. The APL 3910 is definitely the most natural and balanced player that either of us has heard. Now we just have to decide whether we will buck up and have one here at home.
Thank you all for the lively thread.
Howard |
Luke,
Will you explain what you just wrote? |
Come to think of it, I did not touch the steering wheel once during the two hour drive to Alex's home. When we arrived, I again thought it odd that he was sneaking us through a side door into a room that looked suspiciously like an audiophile safehouse. By the time he was cunningly inserting CD's of our choosing while we were not paying attention to his trickery, it must have been too late. He had to be routing the 3910 through a Linn Unidisc 1.1 in the other room without our even noticing. How could we have let down our guard? We must have left our ears at home, along with our well-seasoned defense mechanism. I cannot believe it. Dear god, ANGRY AUDIO GIRL, we've been had!!! Just what the hell kind of gas do you think is in that 6H3 tube he uses??? I will never let that happen again! |
Sorry, I didn't realize that my wife (Evita) had signed in on this computer. That's me (boa2) responding above.
Whoops! |
Tgun5,
Where do I get one? And can you keep the modded machine under $3K? Because that's the limit on my 40th birthday present.
Ehfm,
I should have mentioned before that it was specifically the associated gear that had me question whether or not we might end up buying an APL 3910. Between Alex's amp and the Dynaudio speakers, I found utter perfection in the reproduction, but not an emotional connection with the music. I like to get chills down my spine when bathed by the music, and in this case I did not. However, the player--which was only about 5 hours old, by the way--did absolutely everything I would want from a source. I'm just not entirely sure that I would find such an intimacy with the music if it became the centerpiece of our system. I'm pretty convinced that I would, but I might just have to listen once more.
Hope that helps to further the details. |
Luke,
Thanks for the comments. Yeah, it certainly could have been the silver wire, though my system has the same and I find it highly engaging. It hits me on an emotional level, for sure. But you never know, because I've heard systems sound completely different with a simple cable change.
Still, I suspect that it had more to do with the speakers, which as I said they reproduce sound perfectly, but with a definition that I find a bit off-putting. As well, the player was brand new, and if anything I find that as components break in, they either warm up to me, or I to them.
Tgun5,
I'm really excited about your modded player. This will allow me to save oodles of money for other components. In fact, after scouring the threads, I believe that I have found so many 'giant killers' that I should be able to piece together an A+ system for under $700. And your modded unit will be right at the hub of it all! |
Luke,
If you feel that you have to put up with your patients, maybe you need a vacation, my man. Or perhaps a different occupation altogether. Did someone force you into that career choice? Or coerce you into reading our "schoolboy nonsense," as you referred to it? Change the channel, or learn how to laugh, buddy. Life's too short for such tunnel vision arrogance.
Have you ever considered that your attitude might actually exacerbate the depressive state of your patients? Because you've certainly brought that tone to this thread by crushing every person's attempt to spread a little humour.
I'm ordering my anchovy oil today, headmaster. Bow out if you prefer... |
Many people come to these threads with a firm agenda. They mandate what they will/won't tolerate, and often disappear shortly thereafter when they can't seem to quash the prevailing playfulness of these threads. Luke, you obviously have a lot of passion and enthusiasm for this hobby. I only hope that you allow others to express theirs as well. Stick around, and laugh a little, huh? |
Luke,
Thanks for the post. I think that several times during this thread it went far off course, perhaps because the stated intention of finding that 'perfect' player was never fulfilled. In fact, there were weeks at a time where no progress whatsoever was made in that regard. And then most of the main players abandoned the quest midstream, leaving the rest of us wondering what the heck they concluded about the various players.
So no offense meant. I think we were simply attempting to combat the boredom and/or disappointment with the thread with a bit of humor. That is, until one of the original group might happen along and resume the focus of the thread. Unfortunately, that wish never materialized.
All the best,
Howard |
