New earbuds from Cardas Audio

Here are some nice photographs of the upcoming earbuds from Cardas Audio. I've been able to audition very late prototypes twice already; the last time was at CES where George Cardas himself demonstrated them against a very nice headphone rig consisting of a high quality DAC and a pair of Sennheiser HD800s. These earbuds have been a personal project of George's for quite some time, and I agree that these are something quite special.

I've experienced state-of-the-art headphone reproduction in the past; up until a few months ago I owned a pair of Grado GS1000s and AKG 701s modded with Stefan Arts Equinox cabling and a Woo Audio tubed headphone amp. In addition, I wrote the Headphone Planet column for TONEAudio for several issues in 2007-2009. So I like to think I know what a good pair of cans can achieve.

In addition, I haven't head a pair of earbuds that I truly liked. I'm fairly claustrophobic, and inserting devices into my ear canals has always felt intrusive, uncomfortable and aggressive. The Cardas earbuds were the first in-the-ear devices that felt comfortable and unobtrusive. I tried two sizes of these as well, and I actually preferred the slightly larger version. These buds felt like they had been custom-made for my ear canals and after listening for quite some time I felt little or no listener fatigue.

Okay, they're comfortable. But how did they sound? Well, the Grado GS1000s have always been my personal reference because they sound warm, open and expansive with full, realistic bass response. The Cardas earbuds easily matched and even surpassed the sound quality of the Grados, expanding on all of their strengths. These are the first earbuds that made me say, "I need these."

I talked to a couple of people in the Cardas camp about the projected price and date of arrival. Right now there isn't a set price, but I heard some ballpark figures that were much lower than I expected. I've seen and heard some of those earbuds that require a custom fitting for the ear molds, and the price tags of those products are fairly hefty. If the Cardas earbuds come anywhere near the projected and approximate prices, they will be a huge hit. Best of all, they're obviously wired with Cardas cabling.

I'm trying to get a little more information about the technology behind the Cardas earbuds, and I'll update shortly. But for now enjoy the pics of these precious little jewels and be prepared to audition a pair when they arrive. I'm putting my name on the list!

A Technics SL1200 that may actually sound great!

In the interest of fairness, I would like to show you some Technics SL1200 mods that may actually make it sound pretty wonderful. Sound Hi-Fi is a dealer in the UK that offers a variety of mods for the SL1200 that revolve mostly around an external power supply and a precision machine arm board that can accommodate tonarms from the likes of SME, Dynavector, Rega and an affordable line from Jelco.

I haven't heard these myself, but people whose ears I trust say the Sound Hi-fi mods are nothing short of spectacular, and will help skeptics like me appreciate the engineering behind the 1200. Their products include armplates, mats, isolation feet, external power supplies, record weights, strobe disable switches, platters, bearing mods and motor dynamics mods. Sound Hi-Fi also provides a wide selection of arms and cartridges. You can even buy a complete state-of-the-art TT, including a brand new SL-1200, called the Timestep EVO. It costs a somewhat daunting 3695 pounds.

If you order a la carte, the cost isn't quite as shocking. In fact, the guy behind the mods, Dave Cawley, is quite honest and upfront about the Technics; he says that these mods won't make the 1200 the best turntable in the world, but the final product offers a very intriguing choice at every price point. This seems to be echoed in a review Sound Hi-Fi received from TONEAudio, where Jeff Dorgay called his modded SL1200 (which was the one I used for two years) his new reference at the $2000 level. That's fairly surprising, since Jeff was no more in love with the 1200 than I was.

So the Sound Hi-Fi mods seem to be the one 1200 mod that makes sense. I'll reserve my final opinions until I actually hear one. I heard a fully-modded 1200 from KAB USA that tipped the scales at nearly $2000, and I'd still rather own a Rega P3-24.

And just to mess with Dan Muzquiz's head, here's an SL1200 with the new Funk Firm FXRII arm! I better he's never seen that before! For more information on the Sound Hi-Fi mods for the Technics SL1200, check out http://www.soundhifi.com/sl1200/index.htm.

The Dreaded Return of the Technics SL-1200

If you've read my columns in Perfect Sound Forever, AudioENZ and TONEAudio over the years, you probably know that I'm not a big fan of the Technics SL1200 turntable. But the flood gates really opened when I wrote a 2006 article for PSF that picked apart the best-selling turntable of all time and criticized direct-drive TTs in general. (You can read the original article at http://www.furious.com/perfect/vinyl53.html.)

Well, that prompted a legion of Technics owners and fans (which I later called the 1200 Army) to grab their pitchforks and take to the streets in protest. It seems like I spent the next three or four years defending myself before I realized that for every 1200 owner I offended, there were three or four engineers and honest-to-goodness audio industry guys telling me that I was right on the mark. So I stuck to my guns.

In fact, I did better than that. I bought a Technics SL1200 and spent the next two years trying every tweak offered by the 1200 Army. If they said the 1200 really shined with a certain cartridge, I tried that cartridge. I put everything from a $59 Shure to a $2500 Koetsu on the 1200. I heard a variety of tweaked 1200s from the likes of KAB USA and others. Someone told me that the arm of the 1200 was the weakest link, so I heard 1200s with tonearms from Rega and even SME. I heard that 1200s sounded their best with an outboard power supply, so I tried one of those. I tried damping troughs and rubber feet. I tried it all.

I reported my findings over the course of two years in all three of the aforementioned publications as well as audio discussion forums such as the Steve Hoffman Forum. My conclusions on the 1200 are as follows:

1. Replace the arm, armboard and power supply and the 1200 sounds decent. Not great, but decent.
2. A high-quality cartridges does wonders. I heard a Technics SL-1210 with a $1200 Ortofon cartridge at audio reviewer Danny Kaey's house, and it was at least as good as my old Rega P3 with Exact cartridge...at twice the price. I also found that the $199 Ortofon 2M Blue did a pretty good job of erasing some of the inherent darkness of the 1200 sound.
3. Throw a lot of money at a 1200, and you'll still hear a reduction in soundstage size and, specifically, soundstage depth. And it will always sound dark.
4. On the good side, the low bass quality is outstanding, as is pitch stability.
5. It's built like a tank and will last forever.

After I sold the 1200, I was done talking about it. I never wanted to talk about it again. But you know the Internet.

Just a couple of days ago, I received an invitation to check out an audio discussion forum in England where my original 2006 article was once again being dismembered by "engineering" types who attempted to impugn everything from my technical knowledge to my cocksmanship (apologies to Bill Holden in Network). Well, those of you who know me well also know that I don't shrink from a flame war, and I immediately started digging trenches.

But after going back and forth with the site administrator (a guy named Marco who was all sweet in our email exchanges yet insulting on the forum), I decided not to fall into that trap again. The responses to my emails (which Marco posted on the forum without permission) were filled with so much false bravado, misinformation and downright poor reading comprehension skills that I realized I don't have enough time in the day to deal with it all. So I declined Marco's invitation to join his forum and hash it out with the regulars.

For the record, if you have a 1200 then enjoy it. I will continue to believe that a good belt-drive design will always sound less dark and dull than the Technics. But who am I to say what accurate sound is? I love the lush, romantic and somewhat colored sound of both Koetsu cartridges and single-ended triode amps.

So the next time someone wants to discuss the 1200 with me, I will politely decline. I will suggest that you do your homework and read ALL of the articles I wrote about my journey with the 1200 and NOT just judge me from that five-year old article. (By the way, I still stand behind every word.)

Just listen to LPs in the 21st century, and you'll be aces with me.

Koetsu and Scott finds at Echo Audio in Portland

I have to admit this one hurts a little because I'm not in the market, but Kurt Doslu at Echo Hi-fi on Portland is currently selling this Koetsu Urushi Vermillion for just $1975. (It retails for $4200.) I sold my own Koetsu Rosewood Standard to Kurt a couple of years ago, and it sold quickly.

The Urushi was always the cartridge I intended to upgrade to when I owned the Rosewood. I was a sucker for the Sky Blue Urushi, which was the rare Koetsu that was wired with pure oxygen-free silver for a more extended high end...but I would have happily taken the Vermillion you see here. There's something about Koetsu cartridges that are quite special (and unequalled). Will I ever own another? I hope so. I've owned three in the past (a Black and two Rosewood Standards), and nothing I reviewed over the years surpassed their ability to capture a lush, romantic yet incredibly detailed sound.

Kurt also has this nicely restored H.H. Scott LK-72 integrated amplifier from the '60s for just $375. I owned the similar Scott 299B amplifier a few years ago (like the LK-72, it also uses 7591 output tubes), and although my ultimate conclusion was that it was a bit unstable during operation, it still offered a sound quality that was unmatched by most SS gear under $1000.

Again, if you're interested, check out echohifi.com for more information.

Latest offering from Vinyl Nirvana...this AR/Moth beauty!

The latest gorgeously restored turntable from Vinyl Nirvana is this amazing AR EB-101 with a Moth RB-301 tonearm. The plinth is oiled walnut, and it has several mods from Merrill including a very cool platter. Here's the blurb from Tom at VN:

"The AR EB-101 is one of those tables that makes my heart beat faster. It has looks that demand attention.

On to the turntable…cosmetically, this table is an 8.0 on a scale of 1-10. (I’m a hard rater.) The oiled walnut veneer is in very good shape, with one area of wear on the left front top edge (see pic) and one area of wear near the right front side edge (see pic). The metal portion of the plinth is in very good shape with some very light scuffing not visible with the platters in place. There are also two scuffs on the power switch. There is a dustcover in very good condition, however, it will not sit in place with the record weight in place.

The table has been highly modified with the CURRENT incarnation of the Merrill-Scillia/Vinyl Nirvana mods. The drive platter has the upgraded bearing, and the outer platter is brand new acrylic. The mat is the Merrill-Scillia lead mat. To complete this ultra-mod, I installed the outer periphery record clamp.

The springs, grommets and studs have all been replaced/upgraded, and I have installed a new co-polymer pulley and new co-polymer armboard. Note the Bren1 solid aluminum record weight. In short, I have not offered a table this “loaded” for a while."

The price for this TT is a very reasonable $1795. As Tom states, the arm and armboard are a $475 value alone. Knowing Tom's meticulous restoration skills, this has to be one vintage analog rig that will make some audiophile a very happy camper.

If you're interested, check it out at vinylnirvana.com.

Snow day in Texas!

When I moved to the Austin area in September 2009, I was told that it snows here about once every four years. Well, today is that day!

It's only a couple of inches, but it's also very icy, which of course means that everything is shut down today. I just heard on the radio that this was the first snow day for Austin area schools since 2004. I drove out to see the Cookie Lady at All Mom's Cookies (I have all-wheel drive) and she was closed. Arggh.

It's been pretty cold as well. When I woke up yesterday morning, it was 21 degrees with a wind chill of 7. All you people in the rest of the country are probably rolling your eyes and thinking "That's downright balmy!" But in Texas, it's friggin' cold, period.

Everybody stay warm! I know this is a mofo of a winter. Just stay inside and spin some records.

Checking in with Dr. Cameron

I've just received an email form my old and dear friend, Dr. Cameron. For those of you who have read my Perfect Sound Forever articles from the beginning, you'll know that Doc is the retired allergist who bought an amazing audio spread after his wife died back in 1998. She was an accomplished pianist, and she used to play for him every day. When she was still alive, they had a rather modest hi-fi system but a large LP collection. When Mrs. Cameron died, he need a system that could come close to the illusion of live music that she provided.

So he bought an amazing system that consisted of a Wilson Benesch Act ONE turntable (with matching WB arm and cartridge), Avantgarde Trio Speakers and an Audio Note Ongaku integrated amplifier. I've heard this system a total of three times since 1998, and it remains one of the greatest systems I've ever heard.

So here is Doc's email (edited a bit for brevity):

"Dear Marc,

I hope you are doing well and still enjoying records like I am. It's hard to believe but I just celebrated my eightieth birthday. My, how time flies when you are surrounded by music. I still have the same system that you wrote about several years ago, but I have replaced the cartridge with a Koetsu based on your recommendation. It's the Rosewood Signature Platinum and it sounds perfect. Thank you again for steering me toward Koetsu!

At eighty I'm not sure how my hearing is holding up, but everything still sounds fabulous to me. I haven't had one thing go wrong with my system since I purchased it other than having to replace the cartridge when the stylus became worn. God willing I will be able to listen to music like this for the rest of my life. It does more than help me to pass the time, it makes life worthwhile.

I hope you are doing well there in Texas, and if you ever get back to Pasadena I hope you will stop by with some records and we'll have another beer together.

Be well,
Dr. Cameron"

I have to admit that I've been thinking about Dr. Cameron over the last couple of years, and I was reminded of him when I went to CES last month and listened to both the Ongaku (albeit in a newer version) and the Avantgarde Trios.

If you'd like to go back and read my original two articles about Dr. Cameron from the Perfect Sound Forever archives, here they are:

http://www.furious.com/perfect/vinyl6.html
http://www.furious.com/perfect/vinyl15.html