# Rocky Mountain Audio Fest 2015 Discussion Thread



## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

*Rocky Mountain Audio Fest 2015 Discussion Thread*

Dennis and Wayne are having a grand time in Denver. Wish Y'all were here!


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

Both Wayne and Dennis have covered a lot of ground at this famous show - and compiled a small mountain of written coverage with great pics. Impressive work; yet so much fun. What a hobby! What a life! 
I'm overwhelmed with the sheer number of mini-reviews and comments they posted, but am enjoying every minute of catching up. Thanks to you both for your impressive effort and accomplishment! :T


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

AudiocRaver said:


> OK, I have been waiting for years for a vinyl system to convince me that it is possible for vinyl to beat digital, or at least to feel that it _could be_ possible. I just heard it. .... It all comes to almost $100,000 without exotic cables, but why stop there? I have heard it, and I now believe it. Vinyl CAN rival digital. Simply Amazing. Clarity. Dynamics. Smoooooth response. Engaging. Amazing. You have never heard anything like it. Did I say Amazing? I might have, but I am going to say it again. AMAZING!


Everyone knows bits are for kids! I know: Boooooo! Sorry, couldn't resist. Everyone "knows" digital is better, right? Just look at the investment required for analog to catch up. The rest of us "know" that much cheaper turntables closely deliver the goods. Will double-blind ABX trials reveal a $99k difference? Who cares when you're having this much listening fun!



AudiocRaver said:


> If you are thinking about high-end vinyl, Dynamic Sounds Associates is the company to talk to. Want to save some serious cash doing it? Fagetaboutit, ain't gonna happen. Their man Dave Sckolnik is more an authority about vinyl and vinyl reproduction than any other 10 men alive, and is a lot of fun to talk to. If you live within 100 miles of Denver, COME HEAR THIS ROOM. It won't cure hair loss, but it might change your life. In fact, for that sound, take the hair loss. Easily worth it in trade! (It will still cost you the $100 grand, too, though.)


It's reassuring to hear there are others to carry the vinyl baton after the passing of legendary Doug Sax and Stan Ricker. Here's a quick (not so shiny & gleaming) peek behind the scenes at the other end of the vinyl reproduction chain:

*Unrestored American Record Presses Acquired by Acoustic Sounds for APO*


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

AudiocRaver said:


> I spent a very special, very private, almost _intimate_ hour with the Vapor Audio Perfect Storms last night after hours.
> .
> .
> .
> And that might be a good nick-name for the Vapor Audio Perfect Storm high-performance speakers, _Just For Fun._ They are fun and accurate and make everything seem easy. The best speakers make it seem like speaker design must be the easiest job on the planet. I kinda doubt it, even though the Perfect Storm seemed to insist that Ryan and Pete and team did very little. They have a life of their own, and I fell in love with them for the second time in a year. I have to stop listening to them, walking away gets harder every time.


Sit up and take notice when a speaker guru likes a design this much. Most of us may not be able to afford a pair of these puppies, but each of us owes themselves a listening session to hear and understand how far music can carry our emotions. Only then can we fairly judge lesser models - even if it does involve crying!


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## prerich (Mar 26, 2008)

Nice coverage AudioRaver!!!! :T


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

SO many rooms. SO much to see. SO many people to talk to.

It was three days of visceral overload and audio joy.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

Lumen said:


> Both Wayne and Dennis have covered a lot of ground at this famous show - and compiled a small mountain of written coverage with great pics. Impressive work; yet so much fun. What a hobby! What a life!
> I'm overwhelmed with the sheer number of mini-reviews and comments they posted, but am enjoying every minute of catching up. Thanks to you both for your impressive effort and accomplishment! :T


Thank you for your kind observation, Lou. I am worn out from all the running to and fro, but it sure is fun shedding light on new gear for our valued members.

I took some detailed pictures, but they got compressed badly. I'll be fixing that, and both Wayne and I have little more coverage to add. So, stay tuned!


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

As of this posting, the Reporting thread has 1375 reads. That is very rewarding.


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## Tonto (Jun 30, 2007)

How can we help but read your reviews, we truely are living vicariously through you guys!!! Thanks for the great reviews. 

And it's not so important that we all can't afford these types of systems. Just a few short years ago, very few of us could affort the systems we have now!!!


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

Tonto said:


> How can we help but read your reviews, we truely are living vicariously through you guys!!! Thanks for the great reviews.
> 
> And it's not so important that we all can't afford these types of systems. Just a few short years ago, very few of us could affort the systems we have now!!!


Thanks, Tonto!

Agreed, few of us can afford the ne plus ultra, but it does help to know what it sounds like.


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

Hey, 1909 reads so far for the Show Report thread, one-third of them (as I remember it) during the show! Zowie! Live reporting might just be the way to go!

An In Summary post has been added. The Table Of Contents has been updated. All posts are in. We are essentially done. There might be a few little tweaks, a picture added here or there, but that is about it.

We had loads of fun!

See you again soon!


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

tesseract said:


> Thanks, Tonto!
> Agreed, few of us can afford the ne plus ultra, but it does help to know what it sounds like.





AudiocRaver said:


> ... somehow we managed to ... do our best at picking the must-experience rooms and catching the ones that matter most.


Absolutely! Evaluating cutting edge or cost-no-object designs can be educational and enlightening. That can be said of many "unobtanium" designs. You have to weed out the wanna-be's, though, because overinflated prices create perceived value. But please understand I am not inferring the models skipped are inferior to those reviewed.

How does an unobtanium, exceptional design help John Doe on Main Street pick a real-world one with high bang-for-the-buck? Well for one, it will probably play sounds you've never heard from your favorite music before. (that's what I hear most often). Not that you'll like every new sound you hear. Some detail may be annoying to your ears. And what you consider annoying may be the cat's meow to someone else. In any case, these hide-n-seek sounds now become tools to use when comparing, shopping, or adjusting. 

Which brings us to the second benefit of expensive, exceptional products. Motivation. Not motivation to go out and spend more of your hard-earned dollars by competing in, say, the DAC of the Month Club. But motivation to wring more performance out of the equipment you have. Improvements may come in the form of power conditioning, speaker placement, vibration isolation, or lighting. They take many forms, crossing from the practical to the tweako-cultist; but actually improve the presentation instead of just changing it. 

Another benefit (I wanted to say "last" but others may have more to say) is education. Once your listening experience with a cutting-edge product shows you what's possible, you become a better listener as well as a better teacher. You are better-armed to deal with pushy or uninformed (not to be confused with uniformed, haha) sales people. And you can also help others with their decisions even while at the same time ignoring that listening is a highly subjective experience. 
lddude:


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## bkeeler10 (Mar 26, 2008)

Just got through reading your report, gentlemen. Thanks for doing an awesome write-up. It seems I skim through reports of the mainstream audio media, but I enjoyed thoroughly reading nearly every post of yours.

Wayne, I noticed that you mentioned The Wailin' Jennys a couple of times. I love those ladies and their sound, particularly their gorgeous, precise and intricate vocal harmonies. I'm curious what tracks you are enjoying, if you don't mind sharing.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Ditto, that. When I read your reviews I can't stop. I usually get very bored with most.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

I have resized some of the photos as large as the forum will allow, much improvement.


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

bkeeler10 said:


> Just got through reading your report, gentlemen. Thanks for doing an awesome write-up. It seems I skim through reports of the mainstream audio media, but I enjoyed thoroughly reading nearly every post of yours.
> 
> Wayne, I noticed that you mentioned The Wailin' Jennys a couple of times. I love those ladies and their sound, particularly their gorgeous, precise and intricate vocal harmonies. I'm curious what tracks you are enjoying, if you don't mind sharing.


I love their music, even saw them live in a small, intimate setting a number of years back. The track I included on my RMAF mix CD was One Voice, with an earlier combination of 4 voices. I also regularly run Glory Bound, and somewhere got a live version (Prairie Home Companion) of Callin' All Angels.


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## bkeeler10 (Mar 26, 2008)

AudiocRaver said:


> I love their music, even saw them live in a small, intimate setting a number of years back. The track I included on my RMAF mix CD was One Voice, with an earlier combination of 4 voices. I also regularly run Glory Bound, and somewhere got a live version (Prairie Home Companion) of Callin' All Angels.


What, four voices? I thought I knew their history, but didn't know there were ever more that three vocalists at a time. One Voice is iconic IMO. Calling All Angels is on their live CD (Mauch Chunk); didn't know of any other recording. Anyway, veering off-topic a bit, but you, sir, have fine taste I say


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

bkeeler10 said:


> What, four voices? I thought I knew their history, but didn't know there were ever more that three vocalists at a time. One Voice is iconic IMO. Calling All Angels is on their live CD (Mauch Chunk); didn't know of any other recording. Anyway, veering off-topic a bit, but you, sir, have fine taste I say


Beg pardon, you are correct. The album credits show only three vocalists. At 1:55 in that song, the fourth verse begins with a different harmonization than the previous one, and I thought I remembered a fourth vocalist on that album, and my brain seems to have filled in the fourth part. Upon closer inspection and listening, it was all one of those psycho-acoustical illusions they talk about, we might dub it "fourth harmony bias."

_Calling All Angels,_ I believe I borrowed from an online archive of that Prairie Home Companion performance.


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