Mammoth tusk as an environmental preen should be well documented as it perfectly encapsulates the version of ridiculous we were living out in the first half of the 21st century.
REALLY appreciate your videos, Martin . . . BTW your explanation at 8:55 of how the VR-55's woofers integrate so well with the mid and highs (using the high level speaker output of the amplifier) is EXACTLY the approach that REL uses in its T, S and Reference Series subwoofers which explains the reason for their wonderful sound and coherence :-) THANKS again Martin ! (P.S.although it may look like it, I don't work for REL, LOL But I do own an S/510 . . . quite stunning actually :-)
Have pair of Rel Carbon Specials Found High-Level gain aggressive Use a JLA cr-1 active crossover Shunyata Python xlr's 2.5m Use High-Level input fot HT
I gotta admit, I always get a laugh at these turntables that are made with enough material to build a compact car. And a cartridge made out of mammoth tusk? It's just a darn shame they can't get unicorn horn.
im super excited about the upgraded cronus dark. funny thing is that when a walked in rogue room I asked about upgrading cornus mag 3 and low and beheld the Cronus dark was there.
I never understood the Idea. of why speakers makers always drop speakers on the floor. Since my ears are not at floor level, how do they think that this is right?
I really wish reviewers would not attempt to explain amplifier technologies if they do not understand them. There is no need to mention it at all. Simply say that you enjoyed the sound, and why you enjoyed it. Half baked explanations of topologies you don't understand do nothing to help the viewer/reader, and in my opinion undermine the reviewer's credibility.
How did high end prices get so gross? Let 50k for this 150k for this one. My God should I buy a house or an Amp? How do these guys stay in business. Even with what must be a 60 or 70% profit margin can they really stay enough to stay in business. I'm thinking these must not be their primary business?
Yeah, I remember in my youth (around 1990), the very top of the line system at my dealer would be around US$ 50k (adjusted for inflation). And that included Audio Note Japan IO cartridge, all AN Japan silver tone arm cable, AN-S7 step up, AN Japan M7 preamp, Octave Research power amp and Snell A speakers. And all AN Japan silver signal and speaker cables (this was before power cables were a thing). That was the "If I win the lottery"-system. While the margins of at least some manufacturers must have gone up, I also do get why, say, some of the speakers shown in this video are more expensive than the Snell A's. Still think it's kinda perverse, though ...@@cudfoo1cudfoo247
I was so not at all impressed with this show . I listen to music in the hope of an experience ,as close as possible ,to being at a live event . My problem here is that almost no one was playing any material that ever existed in real life , but instead, most played either electronic music or recordings made and processed in studios with ultra close microphone technique and with added reverb and/or processing . Nothing I could find (hear ) could be considered sounding like live music . T here was room after room of eye candy and much of it could be great ,but how can you tell with the bizarre ( read strange ) material . Most rooms sounded boomy and without any impressive high frequencies or much sound stage . Harbeth was a notable exception but otherwise nothing much was impressive , at least based on sound . Do audiophiles really listen to this stuff ? I do not know but for me , I guess I spent $20 mostly to see the pretty wood and shiny electronics, but that is not why I came . Next year I'll bring some of my own demo material and in the mean time if I want eye candy I'll go to a jewelry store .
Couldn’t make it, live in Canada but that selection of so called music would drive me out of the room, well recorded acoustic music is certainly what I want to hear though a system. 😎
One recommendation we offer is that in rooms using digital, almost everyone had a streaming setup. This meant they could demo with almost any recording and we could ask for familiar and properly recorded material of the styles we (or you) prefer. Hope that helps.
This is an incredibly closed minded and narrow interpretation of both music and music reproduction. To only compare music reproduction to live events is equally misguided and dogmatic. Most live events are played through horrible low quality PA speakers and accompanied with high levels of noise from the environment. If you enjoy distortion and noise, you won't need hifi for that. Get yourself a Crown amp and some PA speakers. This is as silly as going to the movies and then complaining it's not the same as plays put on in a park.
@mr.bigsquid8422 A show is the last place to make any purchasing decision. As Me Martin stated repeatedly hotel rooms are hardly ideal listening spaces. A show is about eye candy and wow factor and that's all it's about. Any decision to buy a particular component or system, especially at these prices, should be done at a dealer where there's a proper range of music on hand and the gear is properly setup..
What about your opinion on best of show? Same old blah blah blah! You modern day reviewers are such disappointments. Too politically correct, not wanting to step on any manufacturers toes. What ever happened of the good old fashioned "Shootout.!!!" You could have qualified your best of show decision by saying "based on room and show conditions, here's my best sound of the show."
Well, gee, sorry. I wrote this report before we had been to day 2 and day 3 for reasons I explained. I hope that logic was clear. However, I did note demos that I felt qualified as most natural sounding at that point in the show. In terms of the absolute sound, that means "best". Come back for Part 3, the CAF Special Technology Report to hear about my personal best of show (with caveats galore).
Buy a $23,000 record player to solve WOW flutter and rumble, or simply buy a the Digital file used for pressing the record. Vinyl is so BS, all vinyl is cut from digital files, yes, even vinyl cut in 1978
I don’t know who this guy is and more importantly why he’s the spokesperson for Absolutely Sound. His monotone deliver is as exciting as watching paint dry. Isn’t Fremer on staff? If not, hire a professional presenter who doesn’t appear to have never used a teleprompter and has an actual personality. Even if the material being delivered is of value, delivery is at least equally important and this guy failed 💯🤦♂️
The most liked comment in this comment section rn isn't an op, but the response to your op. I think you hit a nerve. Not that surprising considering this channel seems to focus on overpriced audio jewelry.
@@rtflone You must mean that ironically. It's highly unlikely that a single person who runs or watches this channel could pass a blind test (at a level of scientific rigor) between expensive gear and the systems I could piece together at a fraction of the price. I'm not talking about mid-fi, but at a total price of about $15 to $30k for everything, I could fool every single wannabe golden ear. The diminishing returns audiophiles like to talk about don't even exist past a certain price point. Scale is another matter, but everyone who spends far too much on audio equipment for a less than a very large space would be leaving that test with a different perspective and tighter wallet. There might be a couple of veterans who already realize the extra money is mostly wasted on brand names or aesthetics, but I doubt those people frequent this channel.
Thank you for your impressions👍Greetings from Germany
Tom - excellent, excellent coverage of day one at CAF. looking forward to the rest. More of this format in upcoming shows, please. Thanks!
Glad you liked this experiment.
Love the show reviews. Great footage and insight. My favorite coverage on YT.
Mammoth tusk as an environmental preen should be well documented as it perfectly encapsulates the version of ridiculous we were living out in the first half of the 21st century.
Best show report I’ve seen. Like a bunch of mini reviews . Keep up the great work
I will say the prices on Amps and Sound is ridiculous.
I saw report 2 first. Report 1 adds to it. Overall, a great presentation by TAS.
good report
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the video, always enjoy seeing the new gear. Have to comment ... mammoth tusks, give me a !@#$% break, honestly.
Very nice
Thanks for watching!
REALLY appreciate your videos, Martin . . . BTW your explanation at 8:55 of how the VR-55's woofers integrate so well with the mid and highs (using the high level speaker output of the amplifier) is EXACTLY the approach that REL uses in its T, S and Reference Series subwoofers which explains the reason for their wonderful sound and coherence :-) THANKS again Martin !
(P.S.although it may look like it, I don't work for REL, LOL But I do own an S/510 . . . quite stunning actually :-)
Have pair of Rel Carbon Specials
Found High-Level gain aggressive
Use a JLA cr-1 active crossover
Shunyata Python xlr's 2.5m
Use High-Level input fot HT
@@CarlVanDoren61 TWO Carbon S's must have set you back a tidy sum :-) Happy listening !
Wondering if the Tidal Intra Integrated uses the Putsey’s Class D modules??? TIA!
No coverage for Fischer & Fischer, Playback Designs, Jeff Rowland?
The Vinnie Rossi preamp looks sweet, but a 300b tube being described as linear was a WTH moment lol
Their power amp looked gorgeous as well 👍
300B is a very linear tube.
*Didn't watch the video.
I gotta admit, I always get a laugh at these turntables that are made with enough material to build a compact car. And a cartridge made out of mammoth tusk? It's just a darn shame they can't get unicorn horn.
Over engineered comes to mind.
A good read.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overengineering#:~:text=Overengineering%20(or%20over%2Dengineering),that%20of%20the%20original%20design.
@@thegroove2000
Yes, that was a good read. Thank you.
im super excited about the upgraded cronus dark. funny thing is that when a walked in rogue room I asked about upgrading cornus mag 3 and low and beheld the Cronus dark was there.
I never understood the Idea. of why speakers makers always drop speakers on the floor. Since my ears are not at floor level, how do they think that this is right?
I really wish reviewers would not attempt to explain amplifier technologies if they do not understand them. There is no need to mention it at all. Simply say that you enjoyed the sound, and why you enjoyed it. Half baked explanations of topologies you don't understand do nothing to help the viewer/reader, and in my opinion undermine the reviewer's credibility.
In a show setting, we are mostly reporting what we’re told by the OEM. But if we got something wrong, let us know, please.
No mammoths were harmed in the making of this video.
The Gryphon amp makes me think of what if Nakamichi had made an amp.
synergistic snake
Mammoth tusk. Good grief. How did Tom Martin say that with a straight face?
is that stuff legal?
How did high end prices get so gross? Let 50k for this 150k for this one. My God should I buy a house or an Amp? How do these guys stay in business. Even with what must be a 60 or 70% profit margin can they really stay enough to stay in business. I'm thinking these must not be their primary business?
They only have to sell 3-4 per year to stay in business.
Insane
The result of not trickle down. Talking about wealth, not technology
High end, Audio is going to die off with all us old people. It will be well-deserved.
Yeah, I remember in my youth (around 1990), the very top of the line system at my dealer would be around US$ 50k (adjusted for inflation). And that included Audio Note Japan IO cartridge, all AN Japan silver tone arm cable, AN-S7 step up, AN Japan M7 preamp, Octave Research power amp and Snell A speakers. And all AN Japan silver signal and speaker cables (this was before power cables were a thing). That was the "If I win the lottery"-system. While the margins of at least some manufacturers must have gone up, I also do get why, say, some of the speakers shown in this video are more expensive than the Snell A's. Still think it's kinda perverse, though ...@@cudfoo1cudfoo247
Coming to CAF 2024?
@@1111spanky Yes indeed.
@@TheTASmagazine please drop me an email for all that require badges. Thanks.
Mammoth tusks??? You have got to be joking.
I was so not at all impressed with this show . I listen to music in the hope of an experience ,as close as possible ,to being at a live event . My problem here is that almost no one was playing any material that ever existed in real life , but instead, most played either electronic music or recordings made and processed in studios with ultra close microphone technique and with added reverb and/or processing . Nothing I could find (hear ) could be considered sounding like live music . T here was room after room of eye candy and much of it could be great ,but how can you tell with the bizarre ( read strange ) material . Most rooms sounded boomy and without any impressive high frequencies or much sound stage . Harbeth was a notable exception but otherwise nothing much was impressive , at least based on sound . Do audiophiles really listen to this stuff ? I do not know but for me , I guess I spent $20 mostly to see the pretty wood and shiny electronics, but that is not why I came . Next year I'll bring some of my own demo material and in the mean time if I want eye candy I'll go to a jewelry store .
Couldn’t make it, live in Canada but that selection of so called music would drive me out of the room, well recorded acoustic music is certainly what I want to hear though a system. 😎
One recommendation we offer is that in rooms using digital, almost everyone had a streaming setup. This meant they could demo with almost any recording and we could ask for familiar and properly recorded material of the styles we (or you) prefer. Hope that helps.
I thought the venue and room acoustics were equally awful sadly.
This is an incredibly closed minded and narrow interpretation of both music and music reproduction. To only compare music reproduction to live events is equally misguided and dogmatic. Most live events are played through horrible low quality PA speakers and accompanied with high levels of noise from the environment. If you enjoy distortion and noise, you won't need hifi for that. Get yourself a Crown amp and some PA speakers. This is as silly as going to the movies and then complaining it's not the same as plays put on in a park.
@mr.bigsquid8422 A show is the last place to make any purchasing decision. As Me Martin stated repeatedly hotel rooms are hardly ideal listening spaces. A show is about eye candy and wow factor and that's all it's about. Any decision to buy a particular component or system, especially at these prices, should be done at a dealer where there's a proper range of music on hand and the gear is properly setup..
WAY too much $$$$$$ for me.
@peterrichard3706 Too much money for anyone save a billionaire hedge fund mgr or an oil sheik
Yep, just to play music😂. If you want your music to sound real, learn an instrument it will be cheaper
28 minutes of mastodon excrement!
What about your opinion on best of show? Same old blah blah blah! You modern day reviewers are such disappointments. Too politically correct, not wanting to step on any manufacturers toes. What ever happened of the good old fashioned "Shootout.!!!" You could have qualified your best of show decision by saying "based on room and show conditions, here's my best sound of the show."
Well, gee, sorry. I wrote this report before we had been to day 2 and day 3 for reasons I explained. I hope that logic was clear. However, I did note demos that I felt qualified as most natural sounding at that point in the show. In terms of the absolute sound, that means "best". Come back for Part 3, the CAF Special Technology Report to hear about my personal best of show (with caveats galore).
Buy a $23,000 record player to solve WOW flutter and rumble, or simply buy a the Digital file used for pressing the record.
Vinyl is so BS, all vinyl is cut from digital files, yes, even vinyl cut in 1978
Clueless
@@jm_1214 Clueless in technology and physics, how it really works, yet gullible & worships made up stories by the audiophoolery religion.
WOW JUST DUMB😂
I don’t know who this guy is and more importantly why he’s the spokesperson for Absolutely Sound. His monotone deliver is as exciting as watching paint dry. Isn’t Fremer on staff? If not, hire a professional presenter who doesn’t appear to have never used a teleprompter and has an actual personality. Even if the material being delivered is of value, delivery is at least equally important and this guy failed 💯🤦♂️
I think Tom does a great job.
Tom does a great job. He’s also one of the most successful men in the United States of America.
hi fi and old men ..geting sooooo old...
Do you know what is super easy in life? To NOT click on a video! It's even easier than clicking on it! 😂
The most liked comment in this comment section rn isn't an op, but the response to your op. I think you hit a nerve. Not that surprising considering this channel seems to focus on overpriced audio jewelry.
@@kenhiett5266 Hence the name Absolute Sound
@@rtflone You must mean that ironically. It's highly unlikely that a single person who runs or watches this channel could pass a blind test (at a level of scientific rigor) between expensive gear and the systems I could piece together at a fraction of the price. I'm not talking about mid-fi, but at a total price of about $15 to $30k for everything, I could fool every single wannabe golden ear. The diminishing returns audiophiles like to talk about don't even exist past a certain price point. Scale is another matter, but everyone who spends far too much on audio equipment for a less than a very large space would be leaving that test with a different perspective and tighter wallet. There might be a couple of veterans who already realize the extra money is mostly wasted on brand names or aesthetics, but I doubt those people frequent this channel.
@@kenhiett5266 Cool story bro 😂