DCHFG February 2019 Meeting
DCHFG Member Paul Elliott provides the text and photos for this month’s meeting.
Audiophilism [sic] (not a real word but it should be) is a lonely hobby. Think about it. One spends hours working on their kit, trying out a new this or that. Maybe you received a new LP or digital download, marveling about the bass or the glorious highs or the blooming midrange. But there you are in a room full of boxes with knobs and wires – alone. At some point, you want to share or show off this stuff. This is where the Audio Club comes in. A place to discuss what is new or important to you or your system. A place to meet others in the same boat that you are in. Floating along in a sea of bits and bytes, distortions and resonances, tubes and cartridges. Now you can find many others with the same doubts and concerns that you have whether to spend money on a widget or not that will take your system to the stratosphere and beyond.
This is the great thing about Audio Clubs. They bring like minded people out of their dedicated sound rooms and into a room full of life.
It is always a great pleasure meeting at Dave’s house, a lovely place in a beautiful setting. We had quite a crowd on a rainy Saturday, maybe forty members all looking forward to an afternoon of comradeship, good food and drink, and listening to the new Bryston B135 V3 Integrated Amp/DAC.
So, here we are in Dave’s beautiful home listening to the B135 V3 with a pair of NHT Classic 4. The Byrston certainly had a lot of punch, speed and a high end that is (for me) the Bryston house sound, which is not my cup of single malt.
Dave’s journey is an interesting one. He at one point joined the DIY club and started a thread about what he was building and saying with confidence that he felt he was going in the right direction. Dave invited the DIYer’s over for a listen and to put it mildly our comments were not very subtle with what we heard. Every time I have heard Dave’s system in subsequent visits, I kept hearing vast improvements. Each time I said to myself, it cannot get better but it does. I feel his main system, in the basement, is one of the best I have heard – anywhere. Drop the scotch.
So, I hope all our members of the DC Hi-Fi Group are taking advantage of the combined knowledge available. As they move along their journey to optimizing their system, they can then sit back and enjoy the music.
Thrax/Dr. Vinyl open house February 16th and 17th, 2019
DCHFG member Paul Elliott filed this recent report.
The DC Hi-Fi Group took advantage of Dr. Vinyl’s hospitality and gathered at his new demo rooms to hear some very special gear.
The Thrax kit was held together with the superb David cables from EnKlien. The music signal was presented at a level I have never heard before. Manufacturers often explain that they design and build their equipment to “do no harm” and to “simply get out of the way of the music”. I finally have heard this in listening to this system. Having never heard so far into the music, I was sucked into the performance.
The front end was provided by a Pear Audio turntable with Cornet ll arm supporting a Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue Moving Coil Phono Cartridge. It made for a warm laid back very musical analog sound. A Wolf Audio Systems Alpha 2 music server turned bits and bytes into sweet tunes.
The Thrax part of the equation started with the Orpheus Phono Preamplifier. This was connected to the Ares Modular System which contains in a single chassis two mono amps with independent power supplies, a line stage, a phono preamp, and a DAC. Music reached our ears by way of Lyra 2 stand mounted speakers. Using a compression ratio ring diaphragm driver loaded with a proprietary waveguide, allows the Lyra 2 tweeter to reach down to less than 1500 Hz. Uncommonly high sensitivity of 90db, makes it usable with lower power amplifiers.
All these parts were connected with EnKlein David level interconnects, speaker cables, and power cords.
Yes, this is a high dollar system at over $200k by my calculation. I think it is important to experience such systems to understand what is possible. There was truly something special going on here.
Tom Kleinbeck of EnKlein cables and a Thrax representative were on hand to provide some answers on what was heard.
I feel all enjoyed this experience of an intimate exposure to this system.
How Good is your Hearing?
I was watching one of my favorite Youtube channels about music production (Rick Beato) and he showed how his music intern who was trained at Berklee, has perfect pitch, and can hear a 18k sine wave did when she took an audio test at NPR.
So, take the audio test at NPR and watch the Rick Beato video and report back on the DCHFG forum how you did. Good luck!
DCHFG Holiday Party 2018
Boy does time fly by when you are having fun!
DCHFG celebrated its third holiday party on December 8th where members gathered, along with significant others, to enjoy a festive meal and reminisce about the significant Hi-Fi events of 2018.
DCHFG President, John Gatski, invited CEO Dave Kelley of the newly revived KLH Speakers to demonstrate the very reasonably priced ($1299) KLH Kendall floor standing speakers. Dave Kelley previously worked for Klipsch Speakers for many years. It would seem transducers are his passion.
- KLH Kendall powered by Pass Labs Integrated Amp
Considering the sound quality and fit and finish, many people would price these speakers in the multi-thousands of dollars. In fact, the price has been further reduced for the holidays to $974 making them an incredible bargain!
- DCHFG President John Gatski seems pleased by the sound of the KLH Kendall Speakers
- DCHFG Members listen intently to the KLH Kendall Speakers
With 2018 rapidly winding down we have 2019 and all the exciting future products to look forward to.
I would personally like to thank John Gatski for all his hard work shepherding DCHFG to the 150 plus members we have today and a big thank you to all the DCHFG members for their support and camaraderie.
Happy New Year!
DCHFG Rummage Sale Success!
The long delayed chill of Fall arrived on the morning of the first annual DCHFG Rummage sale. DCHFG members and select outside vendors dug deep into their basements and closets to bring forth wondrous Hi-Fi gems from the past. Every category of audio playback gear was represented. Stylish Bang & Olufsen BEOVOX S 75 SPEAKERS were on display recalling a time when B&O was the arbiter of design before the modern reign of Jony Ive and Apple Computer.
Vinyl sales from several vendors were brisk. Other shoppers focused on vintage tube gear. Many speakers were on sale ranging in price from $15 dollars a pair to Martin Logan Electrostatic models.
Some young Hi-Fi enthusiasts were spotted carefully surveying the best bargains and choosing their first Hi-Fi rig from all the goodies on display.
From the attendance and positive comments it would appear the DCHFG Rummage may become an annual event?
For now, all eyes are focused on the DC Hi-Fi event of the year taking place November 2-4, 2018 at the Rockville Hilton. See you there!
