kthomas

Responses from kthomas

High End is Dead?
@michaelgreenaudio @fleschler Really nice posts!  I really enjoyed all of them.My view of the state of any of this is just through personal experience.  I live in the midwest, so I don't know how that colors my perception.  It certainly limits ... 
High End is Dead?
I don't know how I'd measure the health of HEA.  The number of dealers with real shops is way down in my experience.  The used market it much less vibrant than it used to be based on my awareness of sites that sell used HEA gear.  The number of pe... 
High End is Dead?
I don't know about HEA, but the effectiveness and utility of this site as a way to buy and sell used gear has greatly diminished in recent years.  The number of daily ads is way down, and if it wasn't for all the repeat dealer ads, it would be a t... 
From high end digital to beginners analog?
Given how individual everyone's experiences are, the only way to find out is to give it a try.I have a music server with several thousand CDs on it, and it was my main listening source for years. You can't beat it for flexibility and fun, IMO, and... 
need some help with J River and a new pc
I'm not sure what you mean by "import the library" - if you mean scan the drive and find music files, I don't think it will pick up the WAV files as they have no tag info. If your directory structure on the new PC w/ external drive is identical to... 
Preamp w/ Phono and Headphone
Thanks for all the good feedback. As for price range, it's variable - my biggest concern right now is that I am now living right on the ocean, and everybody here tells me that everything rusts. I had a nice Ayre K-1x preamp with phono, but didn't ... 
Dynaudio C-4 or Revel Salon 2
I can't compare them, but I'm an avid Dynaudio fan, and had the C4's for a while and absolutely loved them. I had them in a 20x40 "room" that opened into the rest of a very contemporary house, so they had plenty of room to breathe.They absolutely ... 
Wayman Tisdale RIP
Very sad indeed - by all accounts, full of life and a really wonderful person. 
Why is J River better than iTunes on PC?
I use JR and have for years. For me, it comes down to user-interface and scale - JR has a really flexible, intuitive interface that allows me to easily navigate in any way I find convenient. It also handles 70K songs, which I found really strangle... 
Some irrefutable truths about rock and roll
Love the list - especially the point about too loud / old. I already imagine a day when I'm decapacitated in most ways, but can still hit the volume button on the remote and want to crank up the Joe Satriani of 2049 when I'm in my 80's and annoy t... 
Bass: Dynaudio Confidence C2 vs Contour S5.4
I think it's somewhat dependent on room size. If your room is big enough, do as Pdreher suggests and save a bit longer and get a pair of C4's and you'll never look back. I had the C2's in a medium-sized room (14x18x8) and was satisfied with them a... 
Cool-running tube amps: Berning ZH270...others?
I chose a Simaudio pair of monoblocks based on their sound and their cool-running temp. Mine were the W-10's - they had 750W/ch into 8 ohms, 1400 into 4. If you really cranked up the music, they would start generating some heat, but compared to a ... 
And the "Best" Dynaudio monitor is...?
I love the C3's if you can find a pair. If you are willing to buy used and can find a pair of C3's for a grand less than the C1's, I think that's what I would do (assuming money matters). The C1's are fantastic, and if money doesn't matter so much... 
A/B Vinyl/Digital
The comparison I keep waiting for somebody to make is the Analogue Productions Fantasy or Blue Note 45rpm releases to the companion SACD releases. I would think that would be as close to apples-to-apples, both medium produced in exquisite fashion ... 
The Economy.. will hi end audio mfgs lower prices?
I'm not sure you need to be a trained economist to look around and see many examples of 1) people who used to be able to afford $10K pre-amps who no longer can, and 2) people who still could afford $10K pre-amps, but are choosing not to do so. If ...