The Satanic sound of the Decca is the only thing I miss from high end audio.
After I last moved house (almost 2 years now), all my beloved equipment remains in boxes (Immedia and Mico Seiki turntables, Triplanar/ Graham Phantom/ Ikeda and SME V arms, CEC TL-0 and Chord CD transports, Dartzeel amplifier, German Physiks HRS120, JBL Jubals)and I have been listening to a Bose Wave radio/CD. Like my car audio, I can live with this quite happily (just enjoy the music).
My first cart was a Garrot Decca on a Pink Triangle in the 80's and I loved that sound. When both broke, I missed the sound and always thought it was the Pink that was the main thing. In those days, uncolored turntables were rare so to some extent it was true. But nowadays turntables sound clean, and with a CD transport like my Chord or CEC there is no coloration, but something was missing. I thought I had just grown up, become less impressionable. Jaded.
Then I bought a Decca Maroon a couple of years ago on a whim. At first the sound was so bad I got a shock (was I listening to that!?) and I was even afraid the needle was damaging my records.
With a Decca if the VTA is wrong you can tell by the sound. VTA has to be set my sound, not sight. But when I got the VTA right it was like "this was the sound I was missing; it was the Decca, not the Pink". And I am dancing to music again.
I listen to classical and rock/pop. And with classical I am happy to listen with my CD players and MC carts like Ikeda, Ortofon SPU, ZYX and Koetsu. OK, with Glenn Gould playing Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto the Ikeda provided some of of my greatest hifi moments. But with Paul Simon or Led Zepplin, I gotta have my Decca.
There is no sound like a Decca set up right playing the human voice. And guitar. And synthesizers.
I want to get the Decca Reference. It is the only thing I desire from high end audio right now. Otherwise I can live with my car audio and Bose Wave.
After I last moved house (almost 2 years now), all my beloved equipment remains in boxes (Immedia and Mico Seiki turntables, Triplanar/ Graham Phantom/ Ikeda and SME V arms, CEC TL-0 and Chord CD transports, Dartzeel amplifier, German Physiks HRS120, JBL Jubals)and I have been listening to a Bose Wave radio/CD. Like my car audio, I can live with this quite happily (just enjoy the music).
My first cart was a Garrot Decca on a Pink Triangle in the 80's and I loved that sound. When both broke, I missed the sound and always thought it was the Pink that was the main thing. In those days, uncolored turntables were rare so to some extent it was true. But nowadays turntables sound clean, and with a CD transport like my Chord or CEC there is no coloration, but something was missing. I thought I had just grown up, become less impressionable. Jaded.
Then I bought a Decca Maroon a couple of years ago on a whim. At first the sound was so bad I got a shock (was I listening to that!?) and I was even afraid the needle was damaging my records.
With a Decca if the VTA is wrong you can tell by the sound. VTA has to be set my sound, not sight. But when I got the VTA right it was like "this was the sound I was missing; it was the Decca, not the Pink". And I am dancing to music again.
I listen to classical and rock/pop. And with classical I am happy to listen with my CD players and MC carts like Ikeda, Ortofon SPU, ZYX and Koetsu. OK, with Glenn Gould playing Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto the Ikeda provided some of of my greatest hifi moments. But with Paul Simon or Led Zepplin, I gotta have my Decca.
There is no sound like a Decca set up right playing the human voice. And guitar. And synthesizers.
I want to get the Decca Reference. It is the only thing I desire from high end audio right now. Otherwise I can live with my car audio and Bose Wave.