A journey begins...

[malvai]

Where does one get to buy Chhanda Dhara LP's? That is one label that I find quite elusive.

 

[prem]

Hi Malvai


Chhanda Dhara vinlys keep coming for sale on ebay. I do not own any. However i have several Ravi Shankar vinyls on World Pacific and Angel labels. They are all pressed in the US. They sound good to my ears.

 

[malvai]

Kool! Will keep an eye out for these on fleabay!

 

[jls001]

Yeah, I also would love to have some ECM, Water Lily and Verve albums on vinyl.

 

[Dr.Bass]

Here is a long-overdue report and a few comments. I am sorry I could not write it earlier.

On my way back to India a month ago, I spent one full day at Singapore. It was only natural that I met up with Dr. Bass and checked out a few systems including his own.

I stayed at a hotel not too far from the Adelphi. The before-lunch session was spent there. We heard a few systems: A McIntosh pre-power with Focals, Kondo SET with huge horn-loaded AvantGardes, Naim Supernait with the Mini Maggies and a few PMCs fed by some German amps. I may discuss these auditions some time later (for the price, the mini maggies were great and very very musical). I also did a bit of shopping: a Zerodust stylus cleaner, a pack of Mobile Fidelity inner sleeves for LPs, a LP etc.

After a delicious lunch at Dr.Bass' place, meticulously prepared by his wife, I started listening to his own system. Unfortunately the Verdier was not available because the motor went for some upgrading, but the Naim CDP and the Technics 1200 TT were there.

We heard for about 2 hours a variety of music, mostly on CD, a few also on the TT. However, the majority of our choice was classical music, both Indian and Western.

The system is indeed a joy to listen to - my kind of system and very far from the audiophile systems I heard at the Adelphi Mall. I liked Dr. Bass' system more than some of the so-called accurate and refined systems at the Adelphi - a stupid statement to make? So be it, I think the Naim+Tannoy combo conveyed the music better.

The music was alive, it was near, and the supertwweters did their job. Anybody thinking of getting the Turnberrys should definitely get the supertweeters.

However, as Dr. Bass already mentioned, I also pointed out a few places in the music where I thought the amp was struggling to cope with the demand of the situation. But still, I would be able to live very very happily with the current system for my whole life.

A huge thanks to Dr.Bass and his wife. I came back to the Changi airport just in time to catch my flight, and even remembered to pick up a reasonable supply of dark chocolates from the duty free shop there.

Regards

Finally a post on an audio forum that my wife would enjoy more than me:lol:.
Thanks Asit, I have already conveyed your token of appreciation to my wife.
I am happy (and my wife is puzzled!) that even though I am away from India and living in this rather unknown country I still have similar number of audio friends visiting over. While listening to music can be done in isolation, pursuing this hobby needs friends around.

I know I disappointed you by not having the Verdier ready for playback. It was all a matter of timing, I had sent the motor for a small upgrade (battery powered) and it was suppose to come back before you are here, but it came back 3 days after your visit. I am sure we will meet again sometime. Anyway my TT setup is still half cooked and I am expecting at least another 3 months before I can settle things down on the TT front.

And the system, well, I agree that it is not "Adelphi" like. It is not exactly spectacular! Partly because it is not the Turnberry' character and secondly I am almost extracting every ounce from the Naim integrated, which is not a good thing to do and Tannoy is revealing enough to just about show the limits of the amp. If I was not on a "mission" to setup a high quality vinyl playback system the integrated would have gone long back. But as you saw it allows for an enjoyable listen despite all its limitations and that gives me bandwidth to stop worrying about amplification and focus on analog source. Moreover the Naim is revealing of even very minute differences like adding 0.5 grams of blutack to the tonearm body and such little things, so it just works.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Just a quick note (reached home only this evening) to add my name to the list of those who have enjoyed excellent music and conversation with Dr.Bass over in Singapore.

 

[jls001]

Just a quick note (reached home only this evening) to add my name to the list of those who have enjoyed excellent music and conversation with Dr.Bass over in Singapore.

Would love to hear a more detailed listening impression, Thad, whenever you have the time and the inclination.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Visit Report :licklips:

The pictures make Dr.Bass's place look much bigger than it is. He has put a lot into quite a small space. I think I'd be right in saying that these are big-room speakers? Even the cabinet size is substantial. Anyway, he loves those Tannoys so much that I wouldn't be surprised if they are travelling with him from house to house for quite a few years to come.

When I arrived, Dr.Bass was busy being a technician, refitting his tone arm. The tone arm wires are like spider silk, and the slightest slip meant getting the soldering iron out. That tone arm, as a piece of engineering, is just wonderful. I still can't conceive how it can work with the cartridge able to pivot on the arm!

Listening was shared with Arjun, and while the engineering was going on we played some fragments from some of the CDs that I had taken with me. Mahler's symphony No. 1 sounded very good indeed. A very transparent system. Speakers? What speakers?

Carnatic-vocal/Hindustani-flute jugalbandi, with M Balamuralikrishna and Hari Prasad Chaurasia, really brought out the best in the system, and the system brought out the best in the music. This is probably the rave high-point of the listening for me --- because I have heard this recording many, many times (one of my wife's favourites) and yet it was still a Wow. The presence in the male vocal was just amazing, and the guy in the audience with a cough never sounded so real! It is a wonderful hifi experinece to hear a familiar recording like one never heard it before.

We had more male-vocal-wow with some Dhrupad. In fact, wow is just far too small a word for it.

Moving on later to some female carnatic vocal (Amrutha Venkatesh: a young woman whose training, unusually for carnatic, also includes western technique and voice projection) was full of richness and warmth --- but a little lacking in treble. It turned out that the super-tweeters were not active, but after they were switched back in, we did not return to that CD. Only because I have heard this lady's live concerts on several occasions was I able to be aware that something was not quite right in the playback.

All the vinyl-based music that we listened to was either recordings that are new to me (even though some of them were from long ago) or that I have not heard for a long time, so I can't make any specific critical assessment except to say that it was a wonderful, musical experience.

About the TT and the Naim amp, what can I say? Well, very little, because it is all new stuff to me. It all looks amazing, and the turntable is very much on the sensible side of TT design, completely lacking in outlandish features! The tone arm, of course, is almost minimalist. Yes, I loved that tone arm! I'm off to surf and browse about it now hyeah:

Late in the day, I started to move around the room, listening to the sound from different positions. There is hifi 'rule' about having the tweeter at ear hight, but I've found it can work better for me if it is slightly above my ear hight: When I sat on the floor I discovered a new delight in the speakers, with everything good being just a bit more good. Enhanced clarity and depth. My theory... partly this is my ear-canal hight thing, maybe specific to me, but also, now having the sofa behind me meant that I was getting less reflected sound from the rear wall. I don't know anything about room conditioning but I suspect that this might be a way for Dr.Bass to squeeze more ounces out of his weighty system.

Only when talking to him in person could I understand that Dr.Bass is not really serious about kit: he is really serious about music. Music, not as a background to life, but as something to be given proper attention. He is not much interested in car or portable audio because he would rather spend a smaller amount of time each day listening to superb music than waste his music appetite on the mediocre. Makes sense to me.

.

 

[2chFreak]

There is hifi 'rule' about having the tweeter at ear hight, but I've found it can work better for me if it is slightly above my ear hight: When I sat on the floor I discovered a new delight in the speakers, with everything good being just a bit more good. Enhanced clarity and depth. My theory... partly this is my ear-canal hight thing, maybe specific to me, but also, now having the sofa behind me meant that I was getting less reflected sound from the rear wall. I don't know anything about room conditioning but I suspect that this might be a way for Dr.Bass to squeeze more ounces out of his weighty system.

Sir
I have to agree completely with you on this. I too have found "Tweeter placed above the ear or slightly tilted so that its above the ear" enhances the airiness better that inturn helps to give a taller & deeper sense of the extreme treble along with the bass.

 

[arj]

I agree with Thad e Ginathoms observations above. having followed abhis system right from the days he had a NAD+Dynaudio, this is one system which gets the music right with the magic you expect from a Hifi

I believe the turnberry ranks easily amongst the best speakers i have heard. it is not really an audiophile speaker ie does not throw a huge soundstage. but it gets spooky when you listen to vocals. we played a cd by Dr Balamurlikrishna with Pdt chaurasia. the voice was so real that it literally spooked me a couple of times !
while the full bass potential was not able to come out in the room (as abhi pointed out when you go near the speaker you can feel the potential) but honestly when the music plays you just want to sit down and listen..it is not the system which holds you by the ear to make you listen to music nuance by nuance and nor can you keep the music in the background passively. it just keeps you happy and mesmerized

the TT is a different matter altogether..we heard it with the SME and the 47 Labs..i think the SME just needs to be sold the 47 labs has a organic feel and musical reality to it ..and that verdier is a masterpiece of a TT. the immediacy of music in a unipivot was apparent..the SME just sounded like it smoothened the music. with hindi LPS there is a distortion in the 47Labs compared to the SME..but the ability to communicate music was uncanny.

the naim system does have a magic. the amp and cdp are from their entry level and their ability to communicate music was nothing short of remarkable..i can only wonder what a better amp can do to this magic

Nick, it was great to meet you..it is obvious that you have a great ear for music which means you are able to get to the essence of the Hifi pretty fast ..as you proved.. will need your help on that ALbum you played..i really need it

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Carnatic-vocal/Hindustani-flute jugalbandi, with M Balamuralikrishna and N Ramani,

we played a cd by Dr Balamurlikrishna with Pdt chaurasia.

Whoops... I must connect brain cells before typing!No idea how Carnatic flautist Ramini popped out of my finger tips there: will edit original post

Good to meet you too. There may have been great kit to ogle, but it was a music lovers meet up

 

[Asit]

Thad and Arj,

Thanks to both of you for the excellently written reports on your audition at Dr. Bass'. Although the Verdier was not available for playing during my visit, I agree totally with everything you guys have written. I only wish I could be as articulate as you two in describing the sound. Some of your writings have been as fluid as a piece of poetry - and it has its power in conveying the message much better than hard prose.

The speakers especially and the Naim+Tannoy combo make a system that is full of music, and you forget about anything else. This is specially true for Indian classical music which is contemplative by nature and the goal is to create an atmosphere which the performer and the listener submit themselves to.

I have already recommended these speakers to a few people nearby so that I can listen to them more often .

I have no idea how a Thad becomes a Nick.

Regards.

 

[santhosh]

Thanks for the nice writeup Thad & Arj. Having heard Abhi's system, I can totally relate to what you are saying....only I can't articulate as well as you guys and Asit previously had.

I have no idea how a Thad becomes a Nick.

The hint is somewhere on this thread. Analyse Nick's handle and you'll crack it

 

[Asit]

Thanks Santosh for the link. How bad! I did not have a chance to wish him at all for the 60th birthday. I know I miss a lot of threads, at times I do not log in for months, and when I do, even then I usually can look at and read only a few threads (more or less randomly chosen, however, with a bias to 2 channel music).

Regards.

 

[arj]

I have no idea how a Thad becomes a Nick.

Regards.

Thad is actually a nick..ie Nick's nick in this forum is thad

 

[Asit]

Thad is actually a nick..ie Nick's nick in this forum is thad

Yes, that is Mr. Tha Dhi Ghi Na Thom.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

It's actually seven beats ... Tha , Dhi , Ghi Na Thom

 

[Dr.Bass]

Generally, when ones system is appreciated it is normal to feel elated and also a sense of pride is hard to control. After all one goes around painfully auditioning and choosing the components, taking the gamble of matching them, painfully setting them up to get the best sonics, tweaking around (cables, room acoustics, isolation, power conditioning, voodoo etc) for the last mile of magic...and of course when finally his efforts reap such sweet fruits it is natural for him to take pride in it.

I felt that way when I had the ATC, Symphonic line, Reimyo and TEAC combination. All products from different countries with different philosophies of hifi, matched to make a nice sounding system. A very difficult combination to come across. But I dont feel so with my current system. When people out here are so generously showering phrases of praise, I dont feel any sense of elation or pride but rather a sense of being fortunate. Fortunate for being at the right place to be able to audition these products. That is all that is required to give these products their due importance. I dont think these products need any audio/hifi maturity to be recognized. I have come to believe, these are strokes of genius. No amount of R&D can produce products like these, it takes someone who is "gifted" to make a product like these. Who am I to take any sort of credit in this whole game ? I am only happy that I didnt lose too many years chasing around other brands. I know there might be products out there which are equal or better than these but I dont feel the urge to explore. I still would love to listen to an active ATC SCM100 but I dont bother to save for it any more. If it happens, great, else no problem. The same is true for the Naim, though I have an urge to get into tubes some day. I will not write about the Verdier now because I am still setting it up. Unfortunately there are no Verdier dealers in Singapore so I am on my own for just about everything and I am an absolute analog newbie, this is not easy to circumvent.

I dont know why these products (especially Tannoy) are not as popular as some of the other hifi brands like B&W, Dynaudio, Harbeth, nor do they have great many reviews on the internet.

 

[Dr.Bass]

Thad, as you pointed out about a slight lack of treble, yes the supetweeter was not connected but more importantly with these speakers if one is not listening on axis with its main tweeter and not right at the tweeter height there is a significant drop in the way treble is presented. Again it does not hamper general listening, no matter where you sit in the room or even in the next room but what happens when one sits direct on the tweeter radar is stunning. It approaches near live presence and vividness (without a supertweeter). But I dont have a chair that low so the option is to raise the speakers by 4-5 inches, I am looking out for a suitable material to place under the speaker for the height raise.

 

[Dr.Bass]

Visit Report
The pictures make Dr.Bass's place look much bigger than it is. He has put a lot into quite a small space. I think I'd be right in saying that these are big-room speakers? Even the cabinet size is substantial.
.

Regarding the size of the room required for this speaker. While it is right that it might sound best in a certain room dimension, but I did not find it as a "requirement" with this speaker. Strange actually! My previous room in Singapore was about half the size as the current room. The speakers were placed about 4.5 ft apart and I was listening from about a distance of 5 ft and it was absolutely fine, of course the soundstage was small in every direction but thats about it. It somehow doesnt sound imposing irrespective of the room size. Just an observation.