Quieting Down a Noisy Vintage McIntosh MX110Z Volume Potentiometer
I have access to buying almost anything as an audio writer, and there's some really nice audio gear out there, but for a preamplifier I chose the vintage McIntosh MX110Z tuner-preamplifier, which was sold by McIntosh from 1962-1969 for the lofty price of $399. The reason is that the vintage McIntosh MX110Z tuner-preamplifier is an... Read More »
First Listen: Audio MusiKraft Denon DL-103 with DCA26GA Headshell Leads
I've been looking forward to giving the Audio MusiKraft hot-rodded and tunable Denon DL-103 a listen, and comparing it to my stock Denon DL-103, a trusted friend of many years. I think the idea of a tunable phono cartridge is brilliant, and I applaud Guy Pelletier, the owner / propriétaire of Audio MusiKraft, for bringing to... Read More »
Today's Fresh Catch: Audiosilente Cartridge Clips for Duelund DCA26GA Headshell Leads
I've been looking forward to the arrival of the Audiosilente cartridge clips so I can build a couple of sets of Duelund DCA26GA headshell leads with them. One I get the new headshell leads built - I'm hoping to find time over the weekend - then I'll be able to give the stock Denon DL-103... Read More »
Guitarists John LaChapelle, Larry Coryell, and Freddie Green
I've been thinking a lot about the guitar and guitarists lately, and after an almost four year hiatus of playing the guitar, I've picked back up my guitars, dusted off my mental cobwebs, and tried to make some progress in my playing again. The highlight of my week back before I laid down my guitars... Read More »
Jeff checking in ... Duelund DCA, FryBaby2, Sophia Electric, and more!
Using the Hagerman Audio Labs FryBaby2 in voltage-only mode has revealed itself to be a powerful voicing tool for the Duelund DCA line of tinned-copper cables. Every single time I've used the FryBaby2 on the Duelund cables it has been a smashing success. In its voltage-only conditioning mode the FB2 has worked wonders on my... Read More »
A Sunday afternoon Duelund DCA26GA interconnect adventure at Jeff's Place!
I have been looking forward to getting some Audiosilente cartridge clips I ordered, as I want to build two identical sets of DCA26GA headshell leads with them. That way I can use them in two identical headshells, one mounted with my stock Denon DL-103 phono cartridge (above), and the other with the exotic Audio Musikraft... Read More »
Sneak Preview of my upcoming article for Positive Feedback: An Adventure in the Art of Tone with the Duelund Coherent Audio DCA Series of Tinned-Copper Cables, Part 1 - Update - now live at PF!
I've been writing my bum off the last few weeks working on a survey article of the Duelund DCA line of tinned-copper cables for Positive Feedback. I'll be submitting the article to Positive Feedback Editors David and Dave for their consideration sometime today, so you should expect to see it published before too long. Until... Read More »
New Great Plains Audio and Gary Fischer Speakers websites!
I'm a huge fan of Altec loudspeakers, and I really love the new websites of Altec aficionados Great Plains Audio and Gary Fischer Speakers, who are now partnering to bring music lovers the best of vintage Altec and modern loudspeakers. As you know, Gary Fischer did the restoration of my Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre... Read More »
A little bit of voltage conditioning for my unshielded Duelund DCA20GA interconnects!
It sure is nice to get home from work on a Friday evening, fix a dirty martini with some Tito's handmade vodka, and put on some music and play some audio games. I just pulled my Duelund DCA20GA interconnects off the FryBaby2 after about 12 hours of voltage-only conditioning, and installed them in the system... Read More »
A little bit of voltage conditioning for my unshielded Duelund DCA16GA interconnects!
I thought I'd provide you another update on my voltage-only conditioning results with the Hagerman Audio Labs FryBaby2, this time with a pair of unshielded Duelund DCA16GA interconnects. I put my unshielded DCA16GA interconnects on the FryBaby2 for 24 hours of voltage-only conditioning, and tonight put them in the system for a little listen. I... Read More »
A little bit of voltage conditioning for my shielded Duelund DCA20GA interconnects!
I sure do appreciate everyone commenting on their experiences about their audio experiments and observations, it really helps us all learn and progress. Thank you! Take for example Bill's recent observations that voltage-only conditioning with his Hagerman cable conditioning device really complemented the Duelund DCA tinned-copper cables by making them warmer, richer, and brought out... Read More »
Today's Fresh Catch: Hagerman Audio Labs FryBaby2 Compact Burn-In Generator
I was particularly intrigued by Bill's comment on the post Jim Smith Checking In: “Unexpected results from the Duelund DCA20GA Interconnects”: Jeff, Not really sure where to post this. I think I discovered something with the Duelund Tin wire. If its running thin and sometimes cooking them can do this. But I noticed on two different... Read More »
Jeff checking in ...
It sure was nice getting together with Andy, Pete, and Ron, last weekend to listen to music, talk about hifi, and just have a fun ol' time! I could use a little more musical & audio fellowship in my life! Alas, it's been particularly busy of late, both on the day job, and in my... Read More »
Andy visit's Jeff's Place!
It sure was nice to have Andy Moore stop in for a visit while he was in the US! We had a lot of fun listening to music, laughing, talking, and just engaging in audio merriment! Andy brought a St. Henri Shiraz all the way from Australia for us to try, and it was superb! Thanks,... Read More »
A Thorens TD124 Project for 2017! Update.
If you saw my post on June 11, 2017, you know I'm really excited about a very special Thorens TD124 restoration and 'hot-rod' project I commissioned with Christopher Thornton of Artisan Fidelity. We're doing a "long-base" version of Christopher's Thorens TD124 Statement turntable, which means that the plinth is about 3-inches wider so I can... Read More »
In Pursuit of the Art of Tone! Part 3.
Today's essay on the Art of Tone is intended to be both a practical and a thought adventure about what it means to optimize musicality in a high-fidelity music system, as opposed to the usual audiophile emphasis of optimizing the non-musical artifacts of the recording process, like imaging and sound-staging information, for example. I've realized I made... Read More »
A Guest Article from Mr. Shirokazu Yazaki: “My Adventure With My Old Marantz Model 7” Part 6!
It is always a pleasure to bring you posts from Yazaki-san for his article “My Adventure With My Old Marantz Model 7”. Thank you, Yazaki-san, for taking time to write this article and share your substantial audio wisdom with us, it is very much appreciated by me, as well as all of us here at Jeff’s... Read More »
The Positive Feedback Review of the Murasakino Musique Analogue ‘Sumile’ MC phonograph cartridge just went live!
My article about the Murasakino Musique Analogue ‘Sumile’ MC phonograph cartridge just went live at Positive Feedback here. I hope you enjoy it! As always, thanks for stopping by, and may the tone be with you!
The Positive Feedback Review of the Murasakino Musique Analogue ‘Sumile’ MC Phonograph Cartridge is Coming Soon!
This weekend I've been hard at work on the Positive Feedback article about the impressive Murasakino Musique Analogue ‘Sumile’ MC phonograph cartridge. Over the last few weeks I've got a lot of the writing done for the article, and I'm hoping to wrap it up today, but if not, in the next few days, if... Read More »
In Pursuit of the Art of Tone! Part 2.
In Pursuit of the Art of Tone, Part 1, I discussed learning how to pursue a style of musicality for your hifi that lights up your heart & mind to transport you into a state of musical bliss during listening. I mentioned that I believe that there is no absolute sound that is best for every... Read More »
In Pursuit of the Art of Tone! Part 1.
This post is not about the vintage-style 22-gauge Gavitt tinned-copper pushback wire from The Art of Tone electric guitar store that I used to build some very musical sounding headshell leads and a USB interconnect from. Rather, it is about the pursuit of a style of musicality for your hifi that lights up your heart & mind... Read More »
First Listen to the New Duelund DCA26GA Tinned-Copper Solid-Core Headshell Leads!
As most of you know who have been reading this blog for a while, quite a lot of the most admired vintage audio gear (like my vintage McIntosh), and desired vintage electric guitars & their amps, used tinned-copper internal wiring, and it was at least partly responsible for that desirable 'vintage tone' that so many... Read More »
Today's Fresh Catch: Duelund DCA26GA Solid-Core Tinned-Copper Tone Wire!
Frederik has just released the new Duelund DCA26GA solid-core tinned-copper cable, that utilizes the same oil-soaked & baked cotton style of dielectric as the DCA12GA, DCA16GA, and DCA20GA, and it is my understanding that it should be available from hificollective within a few days. Update: In stock now here. The Duelund DCA26GA just arrived here... Read More »
A Guest Article from Mr. Shirokazu Yazaki: “My Adventure With My Old Marantz Model 7” Part 5!
It has been my great pleasure to bring you posts from Yazaki-san for his article “My Adventure With My Old Marantz Model 7”. Thank you, Yazaki-san, for taking time to write this article and share your substantial audio wisdom with us, it is very much appreciated by me, as well as all of us here at... Read More »
An Adventure With DIY High-Performance Phono Cartridge Headshell Leads!
Back when Yazaki-san sent me a set of headshell leads made of vintage Western Electric WE24GA wire to try, it came as a bit of a surprise to me that headshell leads made such a substantial contribution to overall musical & sonic performance. The difference in sound & musicality between the stock & WE24GA headshell... Read More »
The Audio MusiKraft ‘Tunable’ Denon DL-103 Phono Cartridge!
While it'll be a while before I get a full formal review written for Positive Feedback about the Audio MusiKraft ‘Tunable’ Denon DL-103 phono cartridge I received from Guy Pelletier (it's a ways down the review queue), I want to keep you appraised of developments along the way about this interesting phono cartridge here at Jeff's... Read More »
DIY Art Of Tone Tinned-Copper Headshell Leads! Update!
After the disappointing experience with the Oyaide silver & silk headshell leads, and inspired by the massive musicality of the Western Electric WE24GA headshell leads Yazaki-san sent me, I decided I wanted to give a DIY set of tinned-copper headshell leads a try. First I contacted Chris at Parts Connexion, and asked Chris for a... Read More »
A Guest Article from Mr. Shirokazu Yazaki: “My Adventure With My Old Marantz Model 7” Part 4!
It has been a great pleasure to bring you posts from Yazaki-san for his article “My Adventure With My Old Marantz Model 7”. Many thanks to Yazaki-san for taking time to write this article and share his substantial audio wisdom with us, it is very much appreciated by me, as well as all of us here... Read More »
Today's Fresh Catch: The Audio MusiKraft 'Tunable' Denon DL-103 Phono Cartridge!
The Denon DL-103 moving coil (MC) phonograph cartridge was designed way back in 1962, as a collaboration between Denon and the Japan Broadcasting Corporation, as a high performance cartridge for professional broadcast use, and it has been in continuous production since then. Back in those days there were a lot of Garrard 301 transcription turntables... Read More »
I Just Did Robbie's Leben CS-600 Lid Mod!
I reported originally on Robbie's Leben CS-600 lid mod a few weeks back, here. I immediately ordered the “120Pcs M3 Male Female Hex Brass Spacer Standoffs PCB Board Screws Nut Assortment” from eBay seller huanshop2015 ($4.99 USD), and it arrived today, so I thought I'd give Robbie's Leben lid mod a try. The stock Leben lid... Read More »
A Thorens TD124 Project for 2017!
I've long admired the Thorens TD124 turntables my pals Leo, Pete, and Ron, have in their turntable stables, and I thought it was about time to join in the fun. So, for 2017, I commissioned vintage turntable expert Chris Thornton at Artisan Fidelity to restore and build up a Thorens TD124 turntable for me. I... Read More »
The Acoustic Revive Chronicles, Chapter 13, is now Live at Positive Feedback!
After a marathon writing session, The Acoustic Revive Chronicles, Chapter 13, is now live at Positive Feedback! Woo hoo! In this article I discussed the RPT-6 Absolute NCF Power Distributor, the Power Reference TripleC NCF AC Power Cord, and the RAS-14-TripleC NCF Power Stabilizer that arrived for review, and they are new products that are intended... Read More »
Jeff checking in ... important update!
My morning started off with a bang today when I got a couple of text messages from my buddy Dave about a yard sale and an estate sale with some pristine records in it - thanks, Dave! I jumped in my Leaf and headed out to check the sales out, and I made quite a... Read More »
In remembrance of Don Garber, an American Audio Master, 1935-2017. Godspeed!
As I reported in my earlier post, it is with great sadness that I tell you that Don Garber passed away unexpectedly at his home in Brooklyn on Sunday. The world will be a less beautiful place without Don Garber in it, and I would like to offer my sincerest condolences to Don's daughter, Nara... Read More »
Don Garber, an American Master, 1935-2017.
I have some sad news to report. Nara, Don Garber's daughter, contacted me yesterday to tell me that her father passed away unexpectedly at his home in Brooklyn on Sunday. Many of you know Don through his many contributions to the North American hi-fi culture, and for his hand crafted Fi audio electronics. The world... Read More »
Today's Fresh Catch: The Arai Lab MT-1 Step-Up Transformer!
I got a nice surprise delivered to my doorstep, the Arai Lab MT-1 step-up transformer (SUT), courtesy of Mr. Yoshi Hontani of the Muson Project in Osaka, Japan. Yoshi-san exports hi-fi exotica from Japan like that from the Leben Hi-Fi Stereo Company, the Spec Corporation, fo. Q, Audio Replas, KRYNA, SFORZAT, Murasakino Ltd, Acoustic Revive, and now... Read More »
