erik_squires
Responses from erik_squires
| Fiber Optic Cable @traubr - Thanks for the feedback. It's also nice to know how my advice works for others. I tried AppleTV before. An actress I followed on Twtitter recommended a Shakespearean adaptation with Denzel Washington I found less than compelling. Any... | |
| Fiber Optic Cable Curious to know what your speeds were before and after. I don’t think it’s the fiber so much as the speed and upstream network, but glad you are happy! Fiber is inherently immune to lightning and power issues. If your inside modem takes fiber y... | |
| Inputs shorted in 'standby'? Consider putting a 47kOhm resistor in series. You will need to raise the volume on the NAD but it should keep the impedance high enough at all times. | |
| USB DAC cable over 15ft - Solutions? Keep it simple. Get an active USB. 3.0 cable and USB 3.0 isolator. The isolator is optional, but depends on whether the DAC is already isolated. Some are, some are not. The reason you might need it is the source and distance can cause ana... | |
| Bi-amping vs Passive Setup That's not exactly how it works. It's not resistors that provide the filtering but capacitors and inductors (with help from resistors). The impedance goes to infinity in the "unwanted" frequencies, and the current drops to near zero. When you b... | |
| Im going to regret my cable question My view is that cables matter a little more than the network math would lead us to believe. I also believe cables are far more expensive than they are worth. For this reason, having tried cables which DO change the sound and imaging I've pretty ... | |
| Stereophile reviews the active Grimm LS1C but in a no more than a moderately sized listening room the Grimm’s are a treat Based on the driver sizes, this makes sense. It’s great they can bring the bass down to below 20 Hz but physics are unforgiving. They can’t possibly get to 20Hz w... | |
| Flex minidsp Dirac Live I think you have to use your ears to judge the validity of the results and experiment with the different curves. Absolutely. Honestly, you shouldn’t be asking us if it sounds better or not. You should be telling us if it is. :) Of course p... | |
| Who has gone fully active? What speakers and preamp did you end up with? @erik_squires You need at least a 10-1 ratio between the amp and preamp in normal situations @willywonka - I am familiar with the rule of thumb. I just don’t know how many preamps have an output impedance higher than 1k Ohm. And it is actual... | |
| Using non-terminated speaker wire? I don't know if Rhodium delaminates easily but it's a bad choice for low conductivity and hardness. The low conductivity is self-explanatory. The hardness means it's harder to grip. Softer metals deform under pressure and provide better contact. | |
| Did I just cook my preamp? This conversation is going a little nuts. Testing with multiple devices for this is nonsense, except maybe as a learning exercise for new techs. You should let a tech do all of this instead but if you must, wear insulated shoes and avoid any othe... | |
| Who has gone fully active? What speakers and preamp did you end up with? @daniel25 - Interesting that ATC lists the input impedance at > 10kOhms. That does seem relatively low. I'm used to seeing 25k or higher but hopefully it doesn't affect too many tube pres. | |
| Using non-terminated speaker wire? I take it the heat gun (I have one) is for finishing the job with heat-shrink? Yes. There's a lot of left outside the part that is inserted so good to have it well insulated. Plus it looks nice. :) Is this going to present any particular ch... | |
| Standmount speaker suggestion My universal recommendation for excellent stand mounts is Fritz. Bargain prices and just really musical and natural. | |
| Anyone wear gloves to handle vacuum tubes? Not always, but was careful to clean them with alcohol wipes before turning them on |