2010 RMAF Analog Reports + Meet and Greet

One more bit of information:

Basis Audio will be showing the Inspiration turntable with Vector IV tonearm (which I believe is a first time appearance for Basis at the RMAF) along with VTL Electronics, and Wilson Maxx 3 speakers. Basis Audio was uncertain of the room number when we communicated.

Dre

Additional info…

Xact Audio will be showing the new “The Beat” turntable along with Reed tonearm, Allnic cartridge and electronics. According to RMAF info, the room number is 1126.

Dre

Mike, It was nice sitting with you and chatting during the meet and greet last year.

Jim, The handshake would then be a secret to all. Now that will be strange to watch a bunch of music lovers with different handshakes hoping the recipient knows why it’s different.

David, It was great to meet you and your wife last year at the meet and greet. You sat with my friend (Slowhand) and his wife during the meet and greet.

I should have official meet and greet information to post soon.

Dre

RMAF is three weeks away...

Three weeks from now, I'll be in Denver preparing for the Friday opening, visiting some friends, checking in on a few manufactures, and enjoying a day away from work.

If you’re on the fence about going, it is a worthwhile trip.

Dre

Hi Brad,

I'll send you the PDF of the info posted on this thread about the meet and greet this evening.

Dre

Choosing Music LPs? What are you bringing?

As the days get nearer to the RMAF, 3 days remaining, I’m looking through LPs to bring along. Like years past, I try to bring music that allows me to observe what’s going on with the system being listened to. At the same time, I want to make sure that the music is something that is enjoyable for others listening while I’m listening to my music. That is not always an easy task. This year I know a couple LPs I’m bringing are not going to be in that category but necessary nonetheless. I'm working through, Shelby Lynne, Anita Baker, Solomon Burke, Herbie Hancock, Kenny Burrel, Pete Townshend, Sara K., a dose of clasical and some others to get started.

With that said, what are you bringing along with you this year?

You are bringing LPs with you, right!?

Dre

My LP count was supposed to stay below 10 for this year's trip. I ended up bringing 18!

I've arrived safely a few moments ago. No issues with airport security. I guess my cleaning fluids are TSA approved.

Looking forward to relaxing and enjoying the event.

Dre

Here is the list of LPs I brought along with me:

Linda Ronstadt - What's New
Stevie Ray Vaughn - In Step
Sara K. - Water Falls
Charlie Byrd - The Guitar Artistry
Rossini - I'Italiana in Algeri, Sinfonia
Rickie Lee Jones - Girl at Her Volcano
Ry Cooder - Jazz
Anita Baker - Rapture
Paul Simon - Hearts and Bones
Kenny Burrell - Midnight Blue
Thorens - 125th Anniversary LP
Shelby Lynne - Just A Little Lovin'
Townshend, Lane - Rough Mix
Tyrone Brunson - Sticky Situation
Herbie Hancock - River: The Joni Letters
Sphere - Flight Path
Solomon Burke - A Change Is Gonna Come
Herbie Hancock - Future Shock

Dre

Tbg,

Understood. I just noticed the posts following yours tended to implicate otherwise. Knowing the reason for the arm not being utilized, I felt it best to at least share the information I had obtained.

Dre

Some of the things that interest me this year include:

High Water Sound: Jeff Catalono will be showing in a different room this year that is larger. The new room number is 589. I believe he will be showing the TW acoustic Black Knight and Raven One turntable along with the new TW 10.5 arm and Thales arm. Speakers will be Horning and Asparas driven by Tron and Thoress electronics. Stealth cables and SRA isolation will be employeed as well.

Galibier Design: Thom Mackris will be showing the Stelvio-II turntable with the Durand Talea tonearm using Atma-sphere electronics and green mountain speakers (the type is TBD) in room 1130. In the Daedalus room 1030 there will be a Stelvio-I with Talea using Atma-sphere driving the Daedalus Ulysses speakers and a new subwoofer driven by Modwright amps. The Gavia turntable with Tri-Planer arm will be shown in the Lowther America room 1007.

More to follow…

Dre

Getting back to the 2010 RMAF...

In the previous years, it has been suggested that we put our AudiogoN Monikers in the field below our names on the RMAF badges. I think this is a great idea to continue into this year.

I hear there will be a Walker turntable (or two) to listen to this year as well. One of the systems will feature Technical Brain electronics and TAD speakers. Having listened to this turntable on many occasions with multiple cartridges I know you will be in for a treat as long as everything else is firing on all cylinders.

I’m not sure what Artemis Labs has up their sleeves this year but each of the past few years has been impressive and enjoyable. It should be interesting to see what Schroder has cooked up.

I know there are more surprises to be shared. If I get the go ahead to share, I’ll defiantly post it here. If someone else has any analog related goodies that you know of for 2010 RMAF, please share.

Dre

Meet & Greet your friends from AudiogoN & Audio Asylum
All are welcome to join

2 for 1 Happy Hour

Where:
Garcia’s Mexican Restaurant
5050 South Syracuse
Denver, CO
Tel# 303-779-4177
Directly across the street from Marriott Tech Center

When:
Friday, October 15th, 2010

Time:
6:00pm - 8:00pm

You can receive a PDF version of the Meet & Greet from myself or AudiogoN member Cello. Just contact one of us by e-mail.

Looking forward to seeing you all there,
Dre

Lew,

They are still going strong on Sundays. All rooms and seminars are still going on.

Personally I use Sundays as the day of verification and getting back to rooms I passed up due to missing them completely, room full when I stopped by, or a recommendation from friends. Sundays are also good because most of the systems have started to settle down and slight adjustments may have been made over the past couple days. Additionally, the crowed will thin out a little which will allow you more time in the room of choice with your own software. You are bringing your own music right?

There was one year I left on Sunday to go home and I regretted it. I’ll never do that again. Even with three days, I don’t see how you could visit every room. I’m not saying that you would want too though. If you can do all three days, I think it’s worth it, especially given your additional interest in the frontend equipment.

Dre

The evening events and general info:

The Friday evening Meet & Greet: The Meet & Greet on Friday night was excellent. It was great to meet so many music listeners/audiophiles in one concentrated location. Putting faces and names to monikers was an enlightening event. The conversations were civil and engaging. It was especially great to get to know more new faces at this event. There is no doubt that the Meet & Greet has become one of the highlights of the show the past three years.

The Saturday evening tonearm listening session in the Galibier room: This event was another highlight of the evening for me. Again, the fun part was the interactions among the group in terms of conversation before, during, and after the listening session. I had already known about and lobbied for this to be a fun event and just a listening session. There was not supposed to be a serious tonearm comparison but merely a chance to listen to two very well designed tonearms on a newly designed turntable. The evening results could be summed up by me in the following way. Having dealt with both cartridges personally, I heard the resulting performance of the cartridges themselves. Both arms were able to display the general character of the cartridges very well. This, to me, gets down to one of the more important reasons of having a tonearm to begin with. I know this gives me a unique perspective having dealt with both cartridges personally but I feel it necessary to share this bit of insight. There were differences in presentation but again, I would attribute the differences to the cartridges being used. There were some noticeable setup preferences for both combinations which were also perceptible. Overall, I enjoyed the performance of both arms. Whether I preferred one setup vs. the other was for the most part dependent on the particular LP being played. Special Thanks to Thom Mackris for traditionally hosting an enjoyable evening listening session over the years.

Overall, I enjoyed both evening activities greatly due to the interaction with all of the individuals and personalities present. For that I thank all who could attend the events.

One more comment of note would be the Thales arm that Jeff Catalono brought along for the show. I think it should be known that during disassembly of the arm for transport, a piece was misplaced so the arm could not be assembled for RMAF. Obviously Jeff may have made an attempt to get the arm functional but later decided that with the misplaced part, it was not to be. The arm itself did not break. My understanding is that the arm merely missing a part that was required during reassembly.

Dre