Introduce myself

[jdandy]

Gentlemen all.......My name is Dan and I am an Audioholic. I have been enjoying high-end audio since I purchased my first McIntosh gear in 1968. In some ways it seems like only yesterday and at the same time it feels like an eternity since I powered up those MC30 mono tube amps for the first time. As the years have past the audio merry-go-round has seen much gear come and go as I gradually zeroed in on the system(s) and sound I ultimately embraced as pleasing and satisfying. If I had all the gear back that I have owned through the years I could easily stock a small audio store from front to back. Presently I own more audio gear than one man can justify but I make no apologies for the collection (2 - Home Theater systems, 3 - Two channel systems, 1 - dedicated digital and analog recording studio). Yes, I have the bug.

 

In the past five years or so I have gradually involved myself in computer audio beginning with a McIntosh MS750 music server, then a laptop based JRiver Media Center server feeding a McIntosh MCD1100 DAC via USB, and then added a pair of Olive 04HD music servers, one in the living room system and one in my dedicated studio listening room, each one feeding its own Esoteric K-03 DAC via SPDIF coaxial connections. I still use the Sony Vaio laptop with JRiver Media Center 21 via USB to the K-03 in the studio system. I am interested in replacing one 04HD and moving up to an Aurender N10 music server for the studio system. That interest is what has guided me to the Computer Audiophile forum in hope of acquiring information and comments from other music server users, and particularly Aurender N10 owners.

 

I hope to contribute in a positive way to this forum. I am positive I have a lot to learn so I finely decide this evening to join the fun.

[ShawnC]

Welcome Dan, there are plenty of threads involving the Aurender N10. Take your time to weed through them and continue to ask questions and participate. Be aware at times, threads can get out of control or take a turn but the group here is extremely knowledgeable.

 

BTW Nice systems

[jdandy]

ShawnC.......Thank you for the welcome. Still learning my way around the forum but I did post a couple questions in The Official Aurender Discussion Thread last night about proprietary USB drivers working with the N10.

 

Here are a some photos of the two channel systems I listen to the most.

 

 

Studio System

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Living Room System

 

[Middy]

I believe it's fair comment to say I hate you for having such a beautiful system and home....[emoji2]

Some lovely knowledgeable and kind people here. I hope you find help here and have fun.

Good luck

 

Dave

 

Sent from my SM-G900F using Computer Audiophile mobile app

[jdandy]

Dave.......Thanks for the good chuckle.

[Nuz1]

Dan,

 

Welcome to CA! I always enjoy your comments and involvement on other message boards. I'll look forward to following along as you research the N10 as it's on my short list as well.

 

Bruce

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Computer Audiophile

[jdandy]

Bruce.......Thank you. I don't know why I waited so long to become a member of Computer Audio. I expect I will learn more here than I might be able to contribute. Even though I have been playing with computer audio for a few years I still consider myself green. It is not as easy to achieve premium level audio with computer based gear as it might initially appear. There is a lot to understand and be addressed to achieve top shelf performance and consistently reliable results.

 

As for the Aurender N10, the research I have done has only served to increase my interest in owning this music server. I would have placed an order already but for my procrastination and questions related to the N10. At its price point I don't want to write the check and then discover an aspect to the server I would be unhappy with. That is what stirred me to this excellent forum.

[ShawnC]

I love that Studio room. The colors, lighting, a guitar... what else do you need, maybe a cold or hot drink. There's something about McIntosh in photos, they pose so well.

[jdandy]

I love that Studio room. The colors, lighting, a guitar... what else do you need, maybe a cold or hot drink. There's something about McIntosh in photos, they pose so well.

Shawn.......Thank you for the kind words. The studio room actually has two completely separate systems installed. The left rack and the mono MC2301 tube amps, along with the Sonus faber Amati Anniversario speakers make up the two channel music system. The rack on the right holds the home theater system which includes the McIntosh MX120 processor and the MC452 power amplifier that powers the left and right front channel JBL LSR6332 speakers that are on the wall. The center channel speaker between the MC2301's, and the left rear and right rear speakers are JBL LSR6328P powered bi-amped speakers. The room's multipurpose also extends to being the live microphone side of my recording studio. The room is entirely wired for balanced microphones and stereo headphone on the two side walls and the wall behind the gear. These in-wall connectors allow me to plug in microphones and monitor headphones which go into the control room's patch bays and can be configured in several different ways. When the studio room is being used for recording I can route the JBL LSR6332 speakers on the wall via a Speakon patch bay in the control room to a Crown K2 power amplifier in one of the control room racks. This allows recordings from the control room gear to be played back in the studio. All of this makes for a lot of fun.

 

Below are photos of the control room side of the studio.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[r_w]

Dan,

 

 

I would remove the guitar and any other instrument/object (when listening) that will resonate in your critical listening room.

 

It's nice to have instruments but they can only be detrimental once they start vibrating.

 

Also I would put a very thick and comfy throw/blanket over your leather sofa... it will absorb quite a bit of HF energy and be nicer to sit on for long periods.

 

;-)

[YashN]

I would remove the guitar and any other instrument/object (when listening) that will resonate in your critical listening room.

It's nice to have instruments but they can only be detrimental once they start vibrating.

 

Yes, that is a must. No use doing all this room treatment if you're going to leave an acoustic guitar in the room.

 

On WBF, everyone was amazed by a room, but there was a piano in it. Can't do that and expect to hear your gear properly either.

 

Welcome. Good to see other people into recording and producing.

 

I have an inkling you like McIntosh...

[semente]

That coffee table is also detrimental to sound quality and the sofa should be placed 1/3 or 1/5 into the room.

 

I almost bought those nice LS6332s instead of my current speakers.

 

R

[ShawnC]

I agree that, yes you can remove the guitar for absolute critical listening. But maybe, the reality is that less then 5% of your time is dedicated to this experience (I'm just guessing). I too keep an acoustic and 3 electric guitars (all tuned different) in my listening space.

 

My listening room as with others has to be a multi-functional room. I'll do what I can within my finacial needs to improve the sound (room treatments, room correction) but at some point you have to say that's enough lets enjoy what we have.

 

I hope not to make this an argumentative discussion on what's right or wrong with Dan's or anyone else's listening space. I'vs always enjoyed reading what both YashN and r_w have to say.

[ShawnC]

Not to detract from this thread but it would be interesting to know how many people here spend time critically listening to there music. Along that same line would be, is your room (system) set up currently for absolute critical listening.

 

I'm not good with starting threads (I did the Bob Dylan Noble prize miss title) but if someone did this it would be interesting. I personally don't do that much critical listening. Only when I listen to a new album. I'd say less then 5% of my time a month is this, maybe less. Then it's casual listening and pure enjoyment. My room is also full of flaws but it's the only space available in the home:)

[wwaldmanfan]

:>0

Welcome to the forum, Dan. You've just given 90% of the members here an inferiority complex.

[jdandy]

I appreciate the various suggestions offered. I'll try to reference each one.

 

The Taylor 814ce guitar and a Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster that hangs on a column on the other side of the room both have string dampers installed when not in use. If you look close at the Taylor acoustic guitar, just above the sound hole you can see what appears to be a white spot at the top of the neck. That is the string damper that silences all six strings vibrations. The Fender Stratocaster is damped in the same way.

 

The photo of the couch doesn't reflect it well but there is a foot and a half between the back of the couch frame and the wall. When seated on the thick cushions my head is three feet from the wall behind me. The room is 14.5 feet deep so my seating position is approximately 20% into the room and away from the rear wall.

 

Yes, I know the small table in front of the couch can impact the sound, and in fact when I am in the mood to be ultra critical I move the table into the control room. There is a second shelf under the top of the table where I keep a thick blanket folded. Sometimes I will place the folded blanket on top of the table if the I'm in the mood to use it. More often than not though, the table's benefits to me outweigh any perceived sonic degradation with its presence. It's useful to place my laptop computer, iPad, and remotes on, plus it becomes a foot rest from time to time, kind of like the photo below.

 

 

 

 

The blanket over the couch might be worth a try for additional comfort but that overstuffed leather couch is quite comfy just the way it is. I don't need any additional high frequency absorption in this room. Prior to the installation of the Vicoustic Wavewood panels behind the couch there were absorption panels on that wall. It made the room too dead. Originally when I constructed the studio and control rooms I treaded them acoustically to be dead to reduce slap echo to a minimum. Originally the studio was built for live recording with no home audio or home theater gear in it, just guitars, amplifiers, and microphones on stands around the room. As the years passed the room gradually morphed into a two channel dedicated audio room and home theater combination. Once that became a reality the over damping became an issue. When I replaced some absorption panels with the Vicoustic Wavewood panels the room gained a fresh sense of life and energy without any unwanted acoustic anomalies.

 

I have been involved with helping assemble quite a few audio rooms through the years. I have been inside and listened to many excellent sound rooms, professional recording studios, and performing arts centers. I don't consider myself a professional acoustician by any stretch of the imagination but I have these references and experience to draw upon. All in all I consider the sound of my studio room and the sound system(s) to be very good. Many visitors have been astonished to listen to their favorite music on this system. Is my room perfect? No. Quite frankly I have never been in a perfect room. There are always compromises to one degree or another. For me, the idea has always been to work on the big issues first, then tailor the remaining aspects as best as possible. Perfection is a great goal to strive for but it is rarely ever achieved. Holding the compromises to a minimum is a worthy target.

[jdandy]

:>0

Welcome to the forum, Dan. You've just given 90% of the members here an inferiority complex.

 

wwaldmanfan.......Thank you for the welcome. I find myself envious of many other audio enthusiasts, too. The rabbit hole is DEEP.

[ShawnC]

That should be the new photo position for all audiophile systems. Just legs stretched out and a picture of your system. Now if that ain't relaxing I don't know what is.

 

Thanks for being so gracious and informative abaout your system. I agree with wwaldmanfan comments

[Sam Lord]

Dan, what do you record? Just yourself, friends...? And what recording gear, generally? Have lots of mics? Ever use Samplitude/Sequoia? I ask because people with great systems who play and record music at leisure are pretty rare; I'm always curious about their path.

 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Computer Audiophile mobile app

[jdandy]

Dan, what do you record? Just yourself, friends...? And what recording gear, generally? Have lots of mics? Ever use Samplitude/Sequoia? I ask because people with great systems who play and record music at leisure are pretty rare; I'm always curious about their path.

 

Sam Lord.......In the past I used the recording studio to record myself (guitar, electric bass, and keyboards) and several friends. I originally built the two room recording studio in 2005 before I retired in 2007. I knew I would need something to keep me occupied once I retired and the studio has provided me with lots of entertainment and fun over the years.

 

The recording equipment is both digital and analog. I can record digitally with the 24 track Roland VS2400 workstation, as well as with software base recording (Apple Logic Pro, Reason 3.0, Sonar 6, Cubase SX3, Tracktion) via analog to digital microphone preamps (Mackie, Presonus, Lexicon) with both PC i5 and PowerMac G5 computers. I use the Mackie Control Universal Pro for physical control of software running on the PowerMac. I have a fair selection of microphones that include Shure KSM27's and KSM37's, SM57's and SM58's, Shure Beta 87A's, and a SM7B. For analog recording I use a Mackie Onyx 1640 mixer to a Revox B77 Mk2 half track reel to reel recorder. The Mackie Onyx 1640 mixer is equipped with a Firewire card so I can use the board for digital recording as well. There is a lot of other gear used for recording (compressor, noise gate, vocal processor and harmonizer, digital EQ, AutoTune) depending on what I am trying to do.

 

I used the studio a lot between 2007 and 2011, then gradually slowed down to a point where I might get together with a few other musicians maybe three or four times a year. That's when I began to gradually turn the studio side into a two channel audio room and home theater. In the past two years I haven't done any recording with the exception of a 12 song CD I recorded with Matt Lucas, an old rock-a-billy soul musician from the 50's who wanted to record a jazz standards album. He has the original master and has produced some copies for radio stations in Europe and Canada where Matt still gets air-play. Beyond that, the studio has been relatively dormant. Even though I don't use it much lately, I like having the rooms and equipment available. One never knows when inspiration and/or opportunity may arrive.

[Nikhil]

Welcome to Computer Audiophile Dan! Good to see a shark on here.

 

That is an amazing listening space you have there - and great gear!

Have enjoyed your posts on other forums and look forward to see your contributions on here.

 

Regards.

[jdandy]

Nikhil.......Thank you for the welcome. When it comes to growing my understanding of computer based audio this forum is a wealth of knowledge. Good to see you here as well.

[scirica]

Hey Dan! Nice to see you out and about. I love reading the suggestions (well-meaning) of how to improve your studio. For those of us that know you, it's kind of cute. [emoji41]

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Computer Audiophile

[jdandy]

Steve.......Looks like you get around, too. I have been a lurker here for some time. Finally decided to join the fun. When you have as many questions as I do about computer audio you have to go where the brains hang out.

[Sam Lord]

@jdandy,

 

Thank you Dan for such a thorough reply! That's a very cool way to roll: mixing recording and recreational playback is a priceless experience.