Eeeeeking that last 5%

[treitz3]

What have you done?

More bass.
More articulate bass.
Loss of the unwanted artifacts as the volume goes up.
Better sound stage.
The sense of "being there".
More air.
Better depth.
Less depth.
Perfect reproduction of instruments.
Less bloom.
More bloom.
Heavy hitting frequencies.
Less of certain frequencies.
More linearity.
Better vocals.
Impact.
Overall enjoyment of your rig.

What say you?

Tom

 

[Steve Williams]

Overall enjoyment of your rig

That says it all for me Tom. I've done far more listening for enjoyment rather than listening for all of the things you have listed above.

 

[PeterA]

That says it all for me Tom. I've done far more listening for enjoyment rather than listening for all of the things you have listed above.

I agree with Steve. "Overall enjoyment of the rig." It is no longer about particular system attributes, but the overall pleasure of listing to music. In is about retrieving more of what is on the recording and having an overall more natural and convincing listening experience. This is the result of the return of a rebuilt cartridge and continuous efforts to adjust and fine tune what I already have. "That last 5%" is from adjustments rather than from buying new and better stuff.

 

[jfrech]

I'm with Steve and Peter. And even though I've bought a few things lately, my decisions are based on enjoyment factor ...

 

[treitz3]

My apologies gentlemen. What I meant to ask what what have you done to specifically achieve the betterment of the things listed.

Tom

 

[jfrech]

My apologies gentlemen. What I meant to ask what what have you done to specifically achieve the betterment of the things listed.

Tom

For me careful room treatments and placement ditto on speaker placement (down to 1/8 inch side to side and front to back on speaker positioning) #1 here in my book. Careful choices on power cabling and vibration control next...

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

Nothing specifically really, but let me answer by taking you in a different direction that let's me have the 5% on many occasions. I look and buy better pressings. When listening, the combination of my gear and those better pressings ups my level of enjoyment immeasurably. It also tells me by default that my system is capable of more, and that (for me) is a welcoming thought.

I wouldn't know how to tackle each or some of the examples you gave, but I would say that lowering the noise floor in my system could get me a couple of percentage points.

 

[tedtag]

I have to say that speaker/room interactions are at the very top of my list. If that's not done right the true potential of the gear or just about any other effort to improve the system will be compromised. And I'm also a firm believer that getting the speaker/room interactions right is really a matter of art as well as science, and includes the "tortured artist" syndrome while digging into that often frustrating process!

 

[audioguy]

Since I agree that the most important item in getting the most of my system is the room/speaker interaction, modifying/adjusting Dirac target curves and the PEQ's I can use in addition has done the most to improve my system. Short of replacing the speakers, every other change or tweak pales in comparison --- and the only thing this cost is my time (and the odd looks/comments I get from my wife!). And indirectly related, getting the LFE/Mains interface dialed in (adjusting crossover types/slope/frequency and HP/LP filters.

I somewhat envy those who can just "enjoy" their system. I have a bit of the disease that Marty suffers from (or at least use to) and that is constant "diddling". I have yet to hear any system (mine or any other) that can't use a bit of help - and Dirac has been just the ticket for me (and the balm that addresses my OCDness!!)

 

[NorthStar]

Fine tuning (balancing) the bass from my two subwoofers with the mains and the room's acoustics. ...Fifty percent plus major sound improvement difference.
Nothing else compares.

 

[mauidan]

I installed these:

 

[treitz3]

What is that Dan?

Tom

 

[mauidan]

What is that Dan?

Tom

SPEC RSP-901EX "Real-Sound Processor"

 

[treitz3]

That's interesting Dan, I haven't ever heard about this unit before.

 

[witchdoctor]

What have you done?

More bass.
More articulate bass.
Loss of the unwanted artifacts as the volume goes up.
Better sound stage.
The sense of "being there".
More air.
Better depth.
Less depth.
Perfect reproduction of instruments.
Less bloom.
More bloom.
Heavy hitting frequencies.
Less of certain frequencies.
More linearity.
Better vocals.
Impact.
Overall enjoyment of your rig.

What say you?

Tom

subscribed to qello.com and concertvault.com

 

[NorthStar]

SPEC RSP-901EX "Real-Sound Processor"

• http://www.spec-corp.co.jp/e/audio/RSP-901EX/
• http://positive-feedback.com/high-fidelity/spec-real-sound-processor-rsp-901ex-loudspeaker-filter-2/

subscribed to qello.com and concertvault.com

Qello I like. Mike (Blizzard) first introduced me to it.
• https://qello.com/myq

 

[witchdoctor]

• http://www.spec-corp.co.jp/e/audio/RSP-901EX/
• http://positive-feedback.com/high-fidelity/spec-real-sound-processor-rsp-901ex-loudspeaker-filter-2/

Qello I like. Mike (Blizzard) first introduced me to it.
• https://qello.com/myq

Have you checked out clapton and winwood at MSG? Some good Yes concerts too. Any favorite performances I should check out?

 

[NorthStar]

Have you checked out clapton and winwood at MSG? Some good Yes concerts too. Any favorite performances I should check out?

I didn't check that one.

I liked Santana: https://qello.com/concert/Greatest-Hits-Live-at-Montreux-2011-4247
I liked Lucinda Williams: https://qello.com/concert/Live-at-Soundstage-5980

 

[mauidan]

• http://www.spec-corp.co.jp/e/audio/RSP-901EX/
• http://positive-feedback.com/high-fidelity/spec-real-sound-processor-rsp-901ex-loudspeaker-filter-2q

Wow, you know how to use Google....

 

[NorthStar]

And I will turn five-years old next month.