What is your scariest moment in High End audio?


After upgrading my digital front end, with another glass of wine in hand, I thought perhaps the analog setup deserved an upgrade from the entry level Kpetsu.

I then discovered that Koetsu was over! A search found a source for a Rosewood Signature Platinum, which I duly purchased and installed, together with a 3 gm weight in the JMW Memorial arm. That went OK, and I set it up using the VPI Scoutmaster jig, set the tracking weight to 1.9 gms, aligned the azimuth and made sure that the Sutherland Duo was set to 100 ohms and 64dB gain.

I settled down to a glorious hour or two of listening.  Then I thought "Did I get the downforce right.  Checked it & spot on.

i put another record on, lowered the arm to the record.  SILENCE (I could actually here the stylus in the groove but that was it.)

OMG.  Yes the cables were in.  Yes the pre was set to input from the deck. Had I destroyed a $6,700 inadvertently?

After 5 minutes of panic I turned off everything and restarted. All OK.  Who knew that a pre-amp could need rebooting?

 

 

retiredaudioguy

bjesien posted;

"When she reached her hand down my front pocket and the receipt was in there."

yes

Wife, "I thought you said four or five hundred!!"

Biesien, "No, I said fourty five hundred..."

 

Sitting next to an old guy listening to a pair B&W Nautilus. He had the remote sandwiched between the tablet as he was searching for music, he was slowly and inadvertently turning the volume up as a song was ending! When the next song came on, I couldn’t move fast enough to keep it from starting at full volume!! The Amps were a quartet of Levinson’s so plenty of powa!! My heart jumped out of my chest!!! lol 

Had just setup my new Rotel CD player and was changing a disc.  I waited too long with the drawer open and the machine started to close the disc tray with the CD not fully in place.  I was able to open the drawer without the CD being damaged but thought for sure I’d be spending more of my money to hear Pink Floyd again.  

I turned my system on as usual and heard a deafening, window-rattling thump in the speakers, upon which both amps went into protection.

Turns out one channel had died in my pre's outboard power supply. Getting only half the normal differential voltage, the pre was dutifully sending some 10V DC offset into the amps.

Good thing they had protection and it worked fast... No apparent damage to the speakers.

@bjesien ....I wondered what spouse did with her other hand upon seeing the price.....

-Dope slap?

-Plunge into other pocket, fumble and squeeze Real Hard?

-Microwave meals and the couch for awhile?

...one knows (or ought to) 'going in' to the situation that she'll Never be enthused about how it 'sounds better'....

The only dodge that might SYA is the present something of equal or better that she'll appreciate....
Worse case would be some sonic thrills from her that won't be musical but have highs that will make your new object either jealous or frightened....