(Apologies to Panzer for plagiarizing his title) :-)

I am too busy with work this week and next to blog any thing substantial. So I just post a couple of 'teasers' here. :-)

ONE
I did not have good experience with spikes, either of metal or exotic wood, under my equipment (granted, those I tested were not the expensive types). But with my recent exposure to Finite Elemente's 'ceramic ball interface', I am a convert. Well, Finite Elemente's ceramic ball interfaces are not spikes as such, but more of equipment support footers actually.

They also produce Resonator - this one very much rooted in science and mathematics, go check out their approach on their website.

The picture below shows, from left, Resonator, Cerapuc (set of 4) and Ceraball (set of 3, dealer's demo set) that I am testing out now.


The Cerapucs are already mine (hehe). The local dealer, Audio Image, has run out of Ceraballs so I have to wait for the next shipment. As for the Resonator, I am still checking out its efficacy since I have it only for 2 days.

One of my new year's hifi resolutions is to do something about my system's racking. I splurged and ordered a Finite Elemente Pagode Signature rack (can't stretch to the extremely tempting Pagode Master Reference :-) ). It is also out of stock, sigh, I need to wait 2 months for it to come in.

TWO
You have seen the Meridian boxes that maggielurva posted. One of them belongs to me. :-)

Just post some pictures here in addition to maggielurva's. Mine is not yet out of its box. I don't want to change too many things in the system in one go, afraid I won't be able to isolate their effects. I will take it out just for a spin tonight to make sure everything is in order.

The sweet moment of unboxing

The very comprehensive accessories pack

Letting you in on a secret - while maggielurva sounded calm on his earlier blog entry, in private he is in rupture with the Meridian's sound. :-)

Sigh, it is only one week into January, and I have busted my hifi budget for the entire year. I really need to hold the brakes now.

I'll write more about my experience with these items end of next week when I'm freer. Till then.....


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i was never prompted to get a loaner preamp (pass labs x 2.5) until i got my meridian g08.2 last night. i know many of you speculated that it would be a 808.2 but i am not ready for that, financially and mentally.

from what i read , the biggest improvement in mkII is the new apodizing filter which removes cd distracting "edgy" quality so that cd can sound very much like the higher resolution digital formats. it can even correct pre-echo problems created by A-to-D converters during the original recording process. it is even suggested that cds played back via this filter can sound better than they did at the mastering stage in the studio. another major change is the slot drive, which uses an automative grade mechanism that is supposedly reliable, durable and good at vibration resistance.

looks wise, the new meridian is still smart and elegant; it is however, slimmer and lighter. the slot drive feels awkward at first but it feels robust and sturdy. i am sure this would be a contentious issue in many hifi forums but i am ok with this kind of mechanism.

right out of the box, the g08.2 impressed me immediately with its firm and authoritative bass. this is the most obvious improvement from mkI. of course, my system sounded rough and edgy after a month's rest but i am convinced by the g08.2's strong bass. mark my words, this aspect will be what most buyers say about the new meridian.

the month of december 2008 was the longest and darkest period in my hifi journey where i lived my life without my hifi. it feels so good to be back to the game again, eventho' my LS26 is not fully recovered yet.

p/s i will be selling my g08. interested buyers please email to lesloh@yahoo.com

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The FurutechFI-11 IEC plugs


I was reading http://www.oyaide.com/e_audio/support/support_index.htm regarding some fake Oyaide IEC plugs, which are China made and have the exact packaging description fitting with those that I am currently using! See picture of the fakes.

The Oyaide fakes.


Just got 2 pcs of the above tittled Furutech FI-11 IEC cable plugs to replace the fakes. Will intend to hook them up to my JPS In Wall power cord with X-2 cap installed, supplying power to my power amps.


Will be reporting on the sonic outcome shortly. Stay tuned.

Dealers:
Audio Matic (Eugene - 012-3222698)
Centre Circle (Nelson - 012-2876807)
Dong Fong (Ken Sin - 012-4678788)


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The front of the kable kooker, note output sockets on the left, input sockets on the right. Speaker cables should be connected from left to center left, center right to right to form an electrical loop.

Here it is! My DIY version of a kable kooker.

First a declaration before I proceed with this article. I have never seen the actual Audio Dharma Cable Cooker before embarking on this project. I have, however seen some pictures available here on this blog and else where on the www.

The rear panel with IEC and fuse holder.

I just made an educated guess that it will sort of work this way, and along the way have the guiding hand of a senior DIYer. From the photos and pictures I've seen, the commercially available cable cooker works by supplying 12V A/C to the cables and applying the appropriate resistance to each intended cable to simulate the necessary load, like 8.2 ohms @ 50W for speakers cables, 75 ohms @ 2W for RCA and 100 ohms @ 2W for XLR interconnects.

The transfomer, note ratings.

To start with a 6V 0 6V @ 3 amps rated transformer is used to step down from our 240V wall supply via an IEC socket and ON/OFF switch with indicator, fused with 0.5 amp 30mm fuse, for safety purposes. From the step down voltage of 6V 0 6V, power is parallel supplied to the out put speaker connectors, RCA and XLR connectors. On the receiving end of connectors, are resistors attached, to simulate load on the cables when connected to form an electrical loop. See connection picture for a better idea.

The internals, note the load resistors on the right side.

Like the commercially available unit in use, the DIY kable kooker will need some adaptors to work. It will need a female - female RCA connector to cook a pair of RCA simultaneously. It will also need a speaker(spade/banana) connector - wall plug converter and an IEC - speaker(spade/banana) connector for cooking power cords, which I have yet to build, but can easily do so should the need arises.

Another look at the connections, from the back. Note that everything is reversed!

For XLR interconnect cooking, just connect the pair of XLR's output to input before routing them back to the kable kooker to form an electrical loop.

Kable Kooker in action, top is back panel, bottom is front panel. Abbey Road speaker cables and AQ Sky XLR cooked in pairs simultaneously.

It was a fun and easy project for me as it took about 2 hours to finalise component list, circuit and layout. Half a day at Jalan Pasar(Kuala Lumpur's electronics supply area) to pick up the parts and another one day to drill the necessary holes, fit all the plugs, sockets and connectors plus finally, wiring it all up.

Another cooking view from front panel.

The kable kooker project was born out of the necessity to cook the Abbey Road speaker cables reviewed earlier. Whilst at it, I also took the opportunity to cook my AQ Sky XLR pair of interconnect. I can in fact use the kable kooker to cook all 3 types of cables in pairs at one go! that's how versatile it is. Like the Audio Dharma unit, the DIY kable kooker runs rather warm when doing it's job. The RCA and XLR sockets should also run a little warm when cables are inserted for cooking.

I do not have the chance to A/B it's effectiveness against the "Real McCoy" but my own subjective post cooked cable experiences echoes those of the Audio Dharma users reported here earlier.

The usual DIY caveat applies should you decide to build one for yourself. I cannot be held responsible for any loss, damage equipment, shock hazard, injuries or death as a result of negligence from following my posting here. Please DIY at your own risk.

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chinese pop music undisputed indie queen - cheer chen qi zhen - is back after a lapse of 3 years.

cheer's last album, a glamorous adventure, gets my vote as the best chinese album of the decade, in terms of music and lyrics, performance, originality and recording. (note: cheer uses bernie grundman as the mastering engineer)

we expect another explosion of creativity and out-of-this-world musical experience.

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proclaimed jonanthan valin of tas: It doesn't sound darkish and liquid like an MBL or a LAMM amp and it doesn't sound whitish and brightish like a Spectral or a Boulder. It just doesn't sound. I've never heard a solid-state amp like it, and I've heard a few. In fact, I've never heard an amp like it. It is so delicately detailed that it can rightly be compared with the very best tubes, and yet it has no tube colorations. It is so fast and clear and unlimited in extension that it can rightly be compared with the very best solid-state, and yet it has not a trace of astingency or grain or bottom-heaviness or top-tippiness. It is the first solid-state amp I've ever heard that has made me rethink my bias toward glass audio. It's so damn realistic (provided, of course, that the recording is realistic)

swiss-made soulution 710 won many awards in europe and japan and the biggest accolade is "best amp ever".

i hope some dealers are reading this. it is CES time, it is also the product planning and acquisition time for the year!

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it is a sad day for friends and loved ones of john lee, my ex-partner of music matters, the first online hifi trading portal in malaysia.

suferring from major depression and compounded by financial and family problems, john took his life on the eve of the new year. john was supposed to get married in march 2009.

the news came to me this morning and i couldn't recover from sadness ever since.

i recruited john to be my partner when i started music matters in late 2004. at that time, i wanted to make music matters not only a hifi trading portal but also a total hifi website offering reviews and write-ups. we started very well and john was enjoying his life as a 2nd hand hifi dealer, operating his business out of a house in kepong.

soon we parted and he took over music matters from me. the business began to dwindle and he soon branched out to trade motorbikes, one of his passions in life.

john was a very humble and nice chap. he always wore a big smile on his face. he also addressed all his friends and customers with the best possible manner and courtesy. his passions in life were hifi, music, motorbikes and dogs. he is an avid animal lover. john was also a very filial son, always mentioning his mum and his dad to his friends.

john had major depression problems in 2007 and all his close hifi friends, me included, were trying very hard to help him. he shunned himself from the world, preferring to live life as a recluse. he lost weights and looked pale the last time we met up for tea and that was more than 1 year ago.

the last time i spoke to john was 3 months ago when i discovered that music matters website had since been closed. he told me that he has since moved his trading to mudah.com. he also told me that life was tough but he was happy that he has got a girlfriend to share life with with.

i couldn't describe the extent of my pain of losing such a nice friend. i couldn't write any longer than this.

john, may you rest in peace.