Cool :-)
Please Suggest Approaches to Perceived System Darkening
For the past couple months my system has begun to sound darker. I can't think of an auditory metaphor but in visual terms, it's as if what was once a clean window has accumulated a layer of grime. The highs seem more rolled off and overall, there's a lack of clarity that was not apparent before.
Integrated (Wells Magestic), DAC (Aqua La Voce S2) and digital cable (Audio Art Statement) are tipped to the warm side. The digital cable is the most recent addition, purchased in the spring of this year.
Up until now, I've been very sensitive to bright sounding systems and have done all I could to avoid this. Now I find myself wanting more clarity. I'm 65 so it could be hearing loss, I guess. I'd appreciate some suggestions re: how I might address this (besides getting my hearing checked).
EQ?
I had a Schiit Loki which I'd bought in an attempt to compensate for a somewhat unfocused of bottom end. However, acquiring Symposium shelves and rollerblocks rendered the Loki unneccessary, so I sold it.
It's unclear to me whether buying a Lokius and boosting highs would result in more clarity across all frequencies.
DIGITAL CABLE?
I could try a different digital cable. This is an area where I have done little experimentation so I have no idea of
how much of a difference this might make.
DAC?
I could move from La Voce S2 to S3. I'm a bit leery of doing this after reading a 6Moons review in which the reviwer characterized the S3 as an outlier in the Aqua range, being, in his words, "lean and brash". These are characteristics I've always rejected in audio gear. I can't afford to move up to La Scala at this time. I prefer to stay with R2R ladder design.
I could spend 3K for a used DAC.
An audiogon member suggested he could do a mod on the S2 to improve resolution but I'm reluctant to do this, not knowing how it might sound and being mindful of the fact that modded gear can be harder to sell.
Suggestions?
Integrated (Wells Magestic), DAC (Aqua La Voce S2) and digital cable (Audio Art Statement) are tipped to the warm side. The digital cable is the most recent addition, purchased in the spring of this year.
Up until now, I've been very sensitive to bright sounding systems and have done all I could to avoid this. Now I find myself wanting more clarity. I'm 65 so it could be hearing loss, I guess. I'd appreciate some suggestions re: how I might address this (besides getting my hearing checked).
EQ?
I had a Schiit Loki which I'd bought in an attempt to compensate for a somewhat unfocused of bottom end. However, acquiring Symposium shelves and rollerblocks rendered the Loki unneccessary, so I sold it.
It's unclear to me whether buying a Lokius and boosting highs would result in more clarity across all frequencies.
DIGITAL CABLE?
I could try a different digital cable. This is an area where I have done little experimentation so I have no idea of
how much of a difference this might make.
DAC?
I could move from La Voce S2 to S3. I'm a bit leery of doing this after reading a 6Moons review in which the reviwer characterized the S3 as an outlier in the Aqua range, being, in his words, "lean and brash". These are characteristics I've always rejected in audio gear. I can't afford to move up to La Scala at this time. I prefer to stay with R2R ladder design.
I could spend 3K for a used DAC.
An audiogon member suggested he could do a mod on the S2 to improve resolution but I'm reluctant to do this, not knowing how it might sound and being mindful of the fact that modded gear can be harder to sell.
Suggestions?
21 responses Add your response
@oldhvymec: Thanks for your suggestions. Drivers are fine. At any rate, I figured it out. . . A couple months back, I took an old Symposium shelf I wasn't using to a shop and had them saw it in half. I stuck the resulting slabs under my monitors (between bottom of monitor and top plate of speaker stand). Apparently I thought it was an improvement at the time but when I removed them, this afternoon, the dullness went away. I guess my hearing's not so bad, after all (despite electric guitar playing abuse). It's my declining cognitive function that's to blame in this case. I wonder if snorting a little NPS-1260 might help? ;o) |
Crap, I tried.. Do a driver inspection, visual, then listen one side at a time. Top to bottom, left to right, and the same with YOUR ears. Use one or the other, by cupping and covering, NO fingers in the ears, ok. Just cup and cover. If you cup the back of your ears can you get the tones you want? That is a good sign. I’m not kidding, does it change if you open your mouth. That does a few things. The pressure from the bass won’t influence the mids and highs so much, because the pressure equalizes faster. The throat ear cannel open to let that happen quicker. The pressure difference on either side of your ear drums can be because of inflammation in your throat, harsh smokes or extra dusty environments. DRY AC environments are real tough on me.. vs Water coolers. Water coolers cause corrosion.. Catch 22 No new glasses right. I got new glasses it took me a while to remember to take them off. I got mine with a wider view. It made a weird difference in my hearing. I take them off, I’m fine. LPads, fuses, and connections? If you have LPads on the speakers or fuses. Clean the fuse pockets, inspect and replace with new fuses. Turn the LPads back and forth a few dozen times listening for static. Un plug, inspect and clean your connections, like the other poster recommended. Last but not least, valves (tubes) are there any in your system? Going under water or going bad... Happy hunting.. Regards |
Did you blow a tweeter? I had the opposite issue, my system seemed to get a little shrill and the music seemed thinner. Turned out my wife had put a small rip in the speaker of my sub woofer with the vacuum cleaner and didn’t tell me…although it did allow me to buy a new, upgraded one, so it worked out well…. |
Did you change glasses? Wider? Are you wearing a hat? Your chair did you change your chair? Are you taking more anti-inflammatories? Was there a change in medications. Are you smoking? Are you being poisoned? Do you have tumor? Are you constipated? Is there to MUCH fiber in your diet? Are you watching to much PORN? Did someone turn down the treble? Did someone turn up the BASS. Do you think it might be an alien PROBE, in the wrong orifice? Did you remove the LAST pair of ear plugs? Have you forgotten several times in a row.. Several ear plugs? I got two more pages.. :-) Regards |
boxer127,154 posts09-18-2021 8:57pmMaybe a haircut is in order... :-) Ha! The only place it seems to grow is in my ears and nose! |
@erik_squires: "Another possibility is if your relationship to the tweeter axis has changed. Are you now sitting lower or higher than before? Did you toe your speakers in/out more?" As a matter of fact, yes-- I have been experimenting with adjustments in speaker positioning. I thought I'd repositioned them to where they'd been before I started experiencing diminished resolution but I could be mistaken. I could certainly play around with this, more. Thanks for the suggestion. To answer your other question, no-- I haven't done anything to the room. |
Always get your hearing check if in doubt. :) Wouldn’t be the first time a listener literally needed to have their ears cleaned out professionally. Consider your room acoustics. Did you start putting in a bunch of things to tame it? Maybe too much? Rugs, furniture, curtains? If so, add diffusors behind and to the sides of your speakers. Another possibility is if your relationship to the tweeter axis has changed. Are you now sitting lower or higher than before? Did you toe your speakers in/out more? |