Since this first meeting is very informal and probably not worth people traveling 100-miles for without a list of things to discuss. Even then it might be better to share the results of the initial meetings in our respective cities. I just checked the Memorial Union Events Calendar (http://www.union.wisc.edu/events/) and nothing looks too big happening at the union to make it hard to get a parking place in the parking garage (2-hr metered parking) across the street from the Union for the early afternoon on Saturday Feb. 8. Yet I wonder if the thing to do is do a Zip code search for members with our local areas and send them an e-mail and set something up when we have a more viable and diverse audience (say at least 6 would be nice). With only 3 of us or so each in a different city it would seem a little disjoint to do with this without some planning. I, can do a search of zip codes, in my area in Audiogon. Of course, this will only find those members that are selling something but it is probably better than 3 people in State as large as Wisconsin. It might also be good to look at the threads they participated in and see if they are the "ones up-man-ship" or "I know best type" before sending them an invitation. Absent any threads, we could see what there Feedback is as an indication of their character. I opt to hold off for a few weeks till we can get the snowball at least rolling down the hill a bit.
Also, feel free to e-mail me. I am working on a list of things to think about for a "Mission Statement" for such a club. Your thoughts are appreciated.
I just got a great pair of updated, Talon Peregrine Xs with those massive claw stands in yesterday. Man, oh man, could I have used some help just moving them around and getting them setup. They are incredible speakers but have a finish that has a texture like a mirror (essentially no friction at all on the surface and big and heavy for a monitor). You can imagine how fun that was getting them out of their double boxes and carrying them across a ceramic floor.
Not many in the midwest have heard the Talons and this could be a place to showcase the lesser known pieces. I am really struck by their many incredible sonic virtues. I am running them in my 2-channel system with a ARC-LS22 with Infinicap upgrade and YBA 2-alpha HCDT. From what I have read it will take several hundred hours of break in time to do them justice but already I am impressed. |
There are plenty of hi-end shops in the Madison and Milwaukee area. Plus the extensive Jazz scene in Madison and the generally openness of Madison, WI helps to foster creativity on many fronts. So I suspect we can get this audio club going ! Another MAD-CITY Audiophile! |
Audiojerry and others,
I don't think this needs to be or probably should be all that formal. In fact, I think informality should be a desired trait. I got started in this hobby almost in the cradle (actually in grade school) in mid-1960's. My next door neighbor was a high school english teacher (female no less)that had an 20-ft tower above her house strickly dedicated to FM. She had all tube Marantz and Mac equipment, Thorens tables, SME etc. In the 1970s she bought a ReVox A700 (~$3k in 1975 dollars), ReVox B77 II, among other major outlays. She still has the A700 to this day. 3 doors down from her was a electrical engineer who built his son a radio station equiped with Logan Turntables with a variety of tone arms. The dad had all Mac tube gear. What I remember from those days was that all these people just enjoyed the music. No one knew what the heck they had but they sure did enjoy the music over wine, cheese and conversation.
It makes sick to see people think this hobby is about my views are more valid than your views. Music is a sensory connection to the soul. How that is defined is unique to every person. What elements of the musical presentation makes that happen is no less person specific than their individual tastes in what makes the right about of ground pepper on their salad. You would no more say "You are crazy if you like that salad. I say it does not taste good. There believe me because I said it forceably or repeated with others I intimidated into agreeing with me?".
There are plenty of minor hurdles in getting an audio club together including privacy concerns, dealing with egos, etc. So maybe we could start this as an embryo project. A few people meeting with each other over a beer or coffee in a convenient place nearby their homes. This way we can judge if we want the other person roaming around in our houses and if we have a person with an agenda.
This could be a very rewarding thing to get started in more ways than one. People that like music appreciate the creative side of the mind and likely have other diverse and interesting perspectives. This could build life long friendships as well as being able to hear a variety of components in a variety of contexts.
Anyway that is my 2 cents. |
I think the ego thing is the single biggest reason NOT to have a audio club. That said, as my thread above points out, it does not have to be. I think you can tell if a person is begging for approval if you have lived long enough. I think, at least, one way to get to this off on a good footing is to meet at a nuetral place. I am in Madison and those that live here know the large number of places we could meet over a beer or coffee. We could all meet and see if there is the right chemistry. I think the equipment should at first take on secondary value until we weed out the children (in mind).
Most of the people I have met on Audiogon are a great bunch of mature people with their feet on the ground and a strong love of music. I am sure this thing will work if we start as friends and not as competitors. Life is too short to deal with idiots or to miss out on hearing great music with fun people in a variety of contexts. I am as much interested in meeting interesting people with a diverse set of interests as I am in hearing interesting equipment. Anyone near Madison feel free to drop me an e-mail. I am usually busy as heck but can make some time for getting this experiment started! |
How does the Rathskeller on Lake Mendota sound to everyone with sweatshirts/T-shirts (weather dependent) and jeans (aka non-status, warm and fuzzy clothing) the attire for an informal meeting? |
LOL :) ! Honestly, this is just about setting a tone for the infomality and , hopefully, fun nature of an audio club. The Rathskeller because we won't be kicked out because we are not drinking enough or taking someones table and it is just a conducive atmosphere to letting your hair down. |
Everyone please drop me your e-mails and let me know where you are at (e.g., city) ( I can plot people's city on a jpeg map (I have a GIS practice) and send it out to members), and 2 or 3 saturdays (early afternoons for 1 - 2 hrs meeting) when you can come to Madison for an informal meeting during the months of March and April (this will give us more time to plan and for Winter to get over of this ice and snow thing). I can put together a summary memo and get it out to all. |
Here is another step.
Member Locations: I thought a web site would be easier for me to update and allow members to decide if they want to download or print images. When you get to the web site below click on "thumbnail" image to explode the image. Then select from various options in the dialog box to Print "photo" and to see it at various image sizes. Go to:
http://www.fototime.com/inv/5F60B09F3573615
I will try to some more on this later this week. I am thinking it would be better to get some of this ice off the roads before having our first meeting. Say late March or Early April? Others thoughts? |
Any others for tap beer? We need about 10 people wanting tap beer for the Rathskeller to open the bar early. Need to know by March 24 or I will assume we will go with bottled beer or non-alcoholic beverages available at the Rathskeller and Billards Room. |
Nrchy and others.
I have a national zip code GIS data layer. So we can add several other separate perspectives (places zip code located)to the Wisconsin map including favorite CD/LP/SACD/DVD stores, hi-end audio shops, repair centers, music venues etc. For hi-end audio stores we can create a data base with such things as top two preamp/amp, speaker, digital, and cable lines; phone number with address (for using in web based mapping sites).
I just need some time to put this together. Before I begin e-mail me your ideas regarding types of places you would like mapped. By the way, for those traveling some distance to visit a hi-end store, for example, it would be great to have some suggestions (identified by place name, zip code, address, phone number) near by for food and/or beverage. |
There was not a meeting last Saturday in Madison. I doubt other state's audio societies have generated the interconnected information. At least not in a mapped format. But to me it seems obvious how much stronger and coherent our proposed society will be if we make the mapped connections between the various parts of the electronically reproduced and live music.
In addition, I would love to go to other parts of Wisconsin and enjoy that area's richness in other ways, beyond audio equipment, as well. For example, I came across a number of home spun books discussing Wisconsin's many local treasures (from various shows on Wisconsin Public Radio):
Wisconsin's Hometown Flavors at
http://www.trailsbooks.com/books/bookdes/WIhomeFlav.html
Classic Wisconsin Weekends at
http://www.trailsbooks.com/books/bookdes/ClasWI.html
Great Wisconsin Restaurants at
http://www.trailsbooks.com/books/bookdes/GWIRest.html
Great Wisconsin Taverns at
http://www.trailsbooks.com/books/bookdes/GWITAV.html
etc etc
I am convinced that we can make these meetings a really rich and rewarding introduction to people, places, and music in various areas across Wisconsin. If somebody up in Bayfield, for example, has Avantgard Trios and he is the only audiophile up there (which I truly doubt but for the sake of argument) I would make the trip to listen to the horns, take in Lake Superior and some local recommended attractions (parks, trails, restaurants, funky old world shops, taverns). On the shorter trips, like to Madison for example, a couple hours of listening to music interrupted briefly with testing the affects of swapping power cords or interconnects (just mentioned these components because we can easily bring these with us) on the music ebb and flow can be combined with beer on Lake Mendota (had to get this in). I think we all know how geeky we can become if all we do it stress out over affects of one tube over another and that is all the meeting is about. Music becomes richer as we do. The more diverse and fun/thoughtful our lifes' experiences the more there is of us to connect to our music. We may not be able to hear a 20 Khz tone at age 75 but we can see in our minds eye the setting of the sun on a Lake Michigan august afternoon as we listen to (you put in the musical artist(s))(the movie "The Big Chill" had a bit of this music/life connection, albeit a bit corny at times). In this way, our enjoyment of audio (aka reproduced music) and how it connects us will continue to grow and give much more to us than the cash (within financial reason of course) we invested in it. You know what I am talking about (I am sure)! |
Just to throw out a tentative date to meet. How does March 29th, Saturday at 1pm sound? We can work on exact meeting location. I can only meet every other weekend and having a meeting on April 12th might be difficult for those last minute tax preparers. So the next Saturday would be April 26th which should really bring the warmer weather with it. Which Saturday works best for the rest of you? |
Bi-weekly meetings? God no. At best I would think quarterly would be all I can do except for possibly meeting with another member for a beer and listen to some music on a more impromtu basis. For example, someone nearby might want to stop over to my place to watch Brett take the Pack to the Superbowl next year. After the game we could listen to some victory music or somber music whichever the case may be. If this ever stops being fun we should dissolve the society. |
March 29, 2003 at 1pm. University of Wisconsin - Memorial Union, The Rathskeller is the first tentative date for the first meeting of the Wisconsin Audio Society . More information to follow.
I also updated the map of members on the internet (our numbers are growing). I put a back drop of a gray scale digital elevation model (helps give the impression of relief) along with the usual county and open water reference points. Now new and improved with a scale bar ! :- /
As before: When you get to the web site below click on "thumbnail" image to explode the image. Then select from various options in the dialog box to Print "photo" and to see it at various image sizes. Go to:
http://www.fototime.com/inv/5F60B09F3573615 |
Wisconsin Audio Society Image Web Site Updated with more printer friendly map of members and the very beginnings of of a US Map of Audio Equipment Made in America.
As before: When you get to the web site below click on "thumbnail" image to explode the image. Then select from various options in the dialog box to Print "photo" and to see it at various image sizes. Go to:
http://www.fototime.com/inv/5F60B09F3573615 |
PS:
If you are planning to attend the first meeting please e-mail me your intentions. We certainly do not want to overrun the Rathskeller. I don't think it would be a problem if the weather happens to be warm enough to go outside. But this Wisconsin afterall. |
Please e-mail me directly rather than posting your intentions here. After I get a compilation in a 2-3 weeks I can post the results. So far it seems like about a half dozen people are planning on making it. |
Wisconsin Audio Society Image Web Site Updated with more companies added to the US Map of Audio Equipment Made in America. There are many to add for sure. Thought it might be interesting to color ramp the companies by date started, date under current ownership, and number of employees. But others surely can be added depending on how much time I have for this freebie and if I decide to continue on the project. Thoughts?
As before: When you get to the web site below click on "thumbnail" image to explode the image. Then select from various options in the dialog box to Print "photo" and to see it at various image sizes (hint: best viewed at the "original image size" option). Go to:
http://www.fototime.com/inv/5F60B09F3573615 |
For those not familar with the "famous" Rathskeller.
The Rathskeller is in the UW-Madison, Memorial Union at 800 LANGDON ST, MADISON WI 53706. They serve beer to Memorial Union Members (we have some Wisconsin Audio Club/Society members that are members and get pitchers of beer) and burgers, salads etc. They also play host to a variety of bands during different times of the year. A long time hang out for students, profs, and just people who like to let their hair down and relax. It is in the north central part of the Memorial Union looking out to Lake Mendota and famous Memorial Union Terrace. Here is a map of the Memorial Union (you can zoom in, move in four compass directions and select other campus locations for points as reference as well):
http://www.fpm.wisc.edu/map/default.asp?CampusMapNumber=83
Picture of Memorial Union Building and information about the union.
http://www.fpm.wisc.edu/map/building.asp?building=0008&wing= |
Wisconsin Audio Society Image Web Site Updated with labeled air photo base map of the area around the Memorial Union on Lake Mendota in Madison, WI. The Rathskeller is in the north central portion of the Memorial Union. Shown on the map are options for parking near the Memorial Union.
As before: When you get to the web site below click on "thumbnail" image to explode the image. Then select from various options in the dialog box to Print "photo" and to see it at various image sizes (hint: best viewed at the "original image size" option). Go to:
http://www.fototime.com/inv/5F60B09F3573615 |
Those that are planning to attend and have not submitted their home zip code to me please e-mail directly so I can update the preliminary club map. Thanks! |
Rathskeller Update:
The Rathskeller does not serve tap beer till 3pm in March. But they will have bottled domestic beer at the Rathskeller and wider variety of imports in the games room (billards, etc) around the corner in the Memorial Union. However, for about 10 people attending, which we should clearly be at if everyone comes that say they will, we can have him open the tap beer section early. This all according to a conversation I had with the Rathskeller Assistant Manager today. Could everyone get back with me before mid-march and let me know what they prefer. They will certainly have some non-alcoholic drinks available as well.
I wanted to have the meeting by 1pm since that would give us enough time for a couple hour meeting or so and for most people to be back home by dusk or earlier (assuming we only meet for 2 hrs or less and this you never know) and also, hopefully, avoid the potential early morning fog and/or ice problem. The average daily air temperature high on March 29 in Madison should be in the high 30s to low 40s. So that should, hopefully, be warm enough to keep the ice down or off the roads during the afternoon but not the potential snow. However, if we have enough large SUV drivers come we might just be able to warm up the atmosphere enough that we can all go outside and enjoy the wonderful "green house" affect. :-) |
Invites:
Some of you have mentioned that you are having one or two people come along. I and all but one of the other members agree we should not be inviting factory representatives or their proxy: Audio Dealers, or at the very least, not have them attend our the first meeting or meetings when the rest of the group did not ask them to attend. I am sure it would be fine for them to know that there is a focused interest in 2-channel hi-end stereo in Wisconsin demonstrated, in part, by our interest in forming a club around that idea. Almost all of them seem like great people and fun to be around. But for now, lets keep the obvious vested interest groups out. In fact, another factory rep from Wisconsin said it would not be appropriate for him or any other rep or dealer attend unless explicitly invited to come present equipment or company viewpoints on technology etc at a meeting (which he for one would be glad to do). |
The US Audio Manufacturers Map has attracted considerable interest. This helps me to plug away on it from time to time. It is unforescene if the Map project will go very far but there seems to be an "under-current" of interest when I talk about it to non-audiophiles and audiophiles. With this in mind I have created some template language I am thinking about sending to manufacturers that may manufacture their products in the US. If you visit the map and see a manufacturer that simply has an administrative office in the US and has their equipment made outside of the US please let me know via direct e-mail rather than posting your comments here (more efficient that way).
Here for your comments till March 15, 2003 (just decided to have some sort of deadline) is the template e-mail memo I plan on sending to manufacturers:
"I am producing a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) map identifying companies in the US that may or may not be owned by US Entities but none-the-less have their manufacturing facilities in the US and employ US Citizens. At this point this is just a freebie (free in the sense that I am not being paid to work on it) product as part of the about to be formed "Wisconsin Audio Society" (it is a high end audio enthusiast group, we may change our name after our first meeting on March 29, 2003). Since GIS enables data base queries to produce different mapped and quickly intellectually assimilated (because the information is graphic) perspectives about records (in this case the US Audio Companies) I can develop information of almost infinite variety about these companies. These perspectives include starting date of manufacture and of current ownership, number of US citizens employed, and export market countries etc. At this point I am just looking for the most basic of information. Could you tell me where your products are manufactured and where the majority of parts are manufactured? The map at this point uses a US Zip Code database to identify locations. So any information should include full addresses with zip code.
I hope that at some point with more information collected about the related companies I , probably in conjunction with a journalist, can produce very positive article(s) that point to the success of these little known, to the masses, US companies. US Companies that not only compete with the foreign mass market competition but is imported into those counties in Asia, for example, where much of the mass market electronics are made under less rigorously regulated conditions and less than optimum labor conditions. Of course, since this is a freebie on my part I am not sure when this project will be or if it will be "completed" but already there seems to be quite a bit of interest in the concept of celebrating the US companies that compete on world stage while still employing people under favorable working conditions and with respect to the environment. Any thoughts on types of information you think should be included in this project would be greatly appreciated.
Here are some early maps related to the Society: http://www.fototime.com/inv/5F60B09F3573615
Here is the thread that got this thing started and to get updates:
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?lclub&995054231&openusid&zzA71spud&4&5#A71spud ".
Lets see what we can do to help spread the word about these US companies that, among other things, have incredible support services (we all have our own near "kindred spirit" level of attention stories these company's support teams have provided us over the years and the reverse sort of "support" from less "interested" companies) and are facing incredibly stiff competition on many fronts. It was once said "Rising waters lift all ships" but the reverse is just as true "Lowering waters lowers all ships". Maybe a few, some, or most of these companies are dead horses coming out of the starting gate of this century but some positive exposure never hurts. But maybe you disagree. So let me know. It is a free country......well mostly anyway. |
Updates: Check back here.
I will try to collect e-mail addresses of those that have e-mailed me and let others know of significant updates. But coming back to this post is probably best. Also, since this thread is getting so long it might be an advantage at some point to start another thread. But for now, just pop back here. |
The first meeting of the Wisconsin Audiophile Society, thought an Audio Society might mean Eye, Ear, Nose, and Throat Doctor Society to some :-), is just around the corner: March 29th at 1pm Rathskeller in the Memorial Union on Lake Mendota UW-Madison). As such, I would like a read on the number of people who would be fine with bottled beer and those that want tap beer (we have to let them know in advance to get the bar guy to come in earlier than his/her normal 3pm start). If I do not hear back I assume people are not interested in beer or bottled beer will be fine. Thanks! |
Updates:
1.) I contacted the Rathskeller. The assistant I talked to said they will have someone there by 1pm for our meeting to open up the tap beer bar.
2.) If the UW-Madison, Mens basketball team can manage to knock off #1 Kentucky today (thursday, 3/27) there might be ton of people crowding into the Rathskeller about 3:00p (according the semi-final schedule of 3:30p CST tipoff I saw on www.cnn.com) to watch the game on the big screen TVs. If that happens we'll play it by ear but presumably our meeting will be done by then and some of us can just watch the game.
3.) Weather for Saturday, so far, looks like cloudy with high of 38 low of 17. But there looks like snow and/or rain on Friday. So please plan accordingly.
4.) Come to the meeting having given thought to a Mission Statement of the Audiophile Society. Among things I would like to see are some measures, over time, to get the word out to our younger people about the joys of music heard through hi-end audio. I hope our hobby and dedicated manufacturers of hi-end equipment do not die when we do. Other things to consider is the role of manufacturers and dealers in our society, the nature and protocol for home visits to hear music through our equipment etc.
5.) If you want to make a listing of your equipment or the key components and bring that with you I can compile the information and e-mail it back to the rest of the group. This can serve many purposes including opening dialog among members about their equipment synergy, maybe a power cord or interconnect (for example) could be brought along for insertion in another person's system during a listening session, etc.
6.) Bring your relaxed attitudes and lets have fun with this ! Bring some quarters (think it takes quarters) for the Juke Box. I will be wearing a red T-shirt or red sweatshirt. I am avg ht/weight on the firmer side of average :-), brown hair/blue eyes. Maybe others can wear red if they have it. Assuming others wear red you can look for a much of older guys (like me)and some younger wearing red. I will try to pick up some name tags as well. So look for: name tags, red tops, and faces on the Autumn side of graduate school.
See you at the Rathskeller at 1pm Saturday March 29th !!! |
I will try get some minutes up on Sunday about last Saturday's meeting. It was a fun time and I would have got some notes up earlier except I got the flu bug the next day and was wiped out till mid-week. |
Successful Launch:
The first ever Wisconsin Audiophile Society (Society) met at the Rathskeller in the Memorial Union,. UW - Madison on Saturday, March 29, 2003. The first meeting lasted about two hours and brought together 8 participants with all but one (Green Bay) coming from Dane County. The group first shared their interests outside of audio equipment to help introduce each other at a personal level. People shared their wide ranging interests that included volunteer community work, dogs, family, and 60s and 70s cars.
Several expressed a desire to get to know the equipment that each had so that feelings about equipment synergy could be discussed at future meetings. Included in this discussion were thoughts about effective tweaks including tuning Dots, vibration dampening devices, sources of tubes, tube rolling experiences, power conditioning, dedicated power lines, and power cords. Many of my earlier thoughts, expressed in the Audiogon Wisconsin Club Thread, on the construction of the society around the idea of friendship, community support of local dealers and repair personal, and sharing of audio perspectives came out. Also the desire of catering to local restaurants/bars, farmers markets, local music scenes, and other local attractions during our meetings in other parts of Wisconsin seemed to ring true for all members. This later point came from the desire not only to help out our fellow Wisconsinites but also to explore the Audiophile lifestyle or for us to learn what exactly that means in its many colors. Whatever that means I am sure it has something to do with connection with the soul.
The Society members spent a good deal of time swapping stories in how all they came to this point in their audiophile lives. Names from the seventies like Dynaco, McIntosh, Advent appeared more than once in members stories of their early years. Of course, I had to break the mold in waxing about my early years in the mid-1960s with thoughts on old Marantx and Mac tube gear driving AR and KLH speakers.
Future Plens: We are tentatively planning on meeting every 2 months and seeing how that works out with everyones schedule. Maybe less often during the winter months when we might spend more time visiting local members homes for local listening sessions. Among the other plans is to have company representatives put on their dog and pony shows for others and us at local dealers. Probably the most ambitious of all the general goals of the society is to spread the word about hi-end audio to our younger people.
Does anyone want to host the next meeting which will occur near the end of May or beginning of June 2003? If so, pass on your thoughts to me and I will get them out to others.
In the meantime, members please continue to send me your current equipment make up, Audiogon Ids, and other thoughts for improving the society. Send to my direct e-mail and not through the Audiogon.com post (here).
Cheers! |
Sorry about dropping the ball on this one some months ago but my attention was redirected to community organizing and foster dogs that were to be put to sleep and now are happy to have loving moms and dads. I will try to get back to this in a few weeks after things settle down. Otherwise if someone can help please email directly.
In the meantime, if you want a smile on your face and you have a hi-speed connection I made a slide video with music (Beatles, Two of Us) dedicated to my fosters I still have and those that found new loving homes ( go to the link below and double click on the thumbnail, turn up your speakers (all the software you need on your computer is a recent copy of the MS Windows Media Player and a recent or most recent MS Internet Explorer) :
http://www.fototime.com/inv/7868B0982A4DC80
Cheers !
And keep your heart open to fosters. They never forget! |
