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Audiolab 7000CDT CD Transport
Hi Ajay,

All the best for your move to Goa. Having lived in Panjim, Goa for a year (2007-2008), I can vouch for the good food, wine, and relaxed atmosphere in this place, not to mention the wonderful beaches.

And, if you start scratching beneath the surface, you will also find beautiful mangroves, bird sanctuarys (Salim Ali bird sanctuary), wildlife sanctuarys (Bondala), spice farms, temples, churches, art and theatre (Kala Academy - designed by Charles Correa) and many other interesting facts in this lovely little state.

Hi-Fi options are a little limited though.....but with the internet (to buy CD's), and Mumbai close enough (to audition hi-fi equipments), you should be fine.

Best,
APK
 
Could'nt understand a word here...can you explain again what is it you want to say?

srinisundar said:
Away from the topic why "Aashikeswarani : is once again( second time) banned here.. Nothing but commercial is the way going on with Lakozy.. He is one of the top suggesting guys here, why cant he be spared as individual member..

Back to topic... Good luck with swapping the system.
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I came across the term PRAT (PRaT) while reading about Naim amps a couple of years ago. PRAT is described as pace, rhythm and timing by some. And pace, rhythm, attack and timing by others. The term somehow struck on in my mind. Recently I tried to gather more info about it and discovered this interesting write up by Martin Colloms.

http://www.hificritic.com/downloads/Archive_A7.pdf

I have been 'technically challenged' since the time I was in school. Art makes sense to me. But my mind shuts down when it comes to science or math :sad: Therefore I have no understanding about the technicalities of sound engineering. But (like anybody who is passionate about music and hifi) I can form a subjective opinion about why a particular source, amp or speaker sounds exciting or dull to me.

A major chunk of my music sessions is taken up with listening to different versions of Mahler's symphonies. Every version is different. Every version is not only Mahler but also the sum total of Mahler + everyone (and everything) else involved in that recording. The conductor. The orchestra. The acoustics of the venue where the recording was made. The inclination and abilities of the sound engineers. The presence or absence of an audience. From all the versions of Mahler's symphonies which I have heard over the years I developed a clear preference for those which have been conducted by Pierre Boulez. I believe that Pierre Boulez and Wilhelm Furtwangler are the two conductors who can steer the ship of orchestral music better than any other conductor. Boulez excels with modern composers like Mahler, Bartok, Stravinsky, Debussy, Schoenberg and Webern. Furtwangler excels with classical and romantic composers like Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms and Tchaikovsky. Pace, rhythm, attack and timing. These terms help me to understand why I like Boulez and Furtwangler. These terms also help me to understand why I like a particular cdp, amp or speaker.
 
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Ajay: A most interesting choice of conductor....each on one end of the spectrum. I must say I am a Furtwangler fan as well. There is something very special about his Beethoven, but as you mention he has made "fascinating" recordings of Bruckner, Brahms and even Schumann! Please let me know if you are ever in Bangalore. We must have a good listening session. Besides, we have photography to talk about as well.
 
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Ajay, since you are interested in Accuphase, you may have the option of switching to a dedicated transport if you consider an Accuphase DAC which is a very economical plug-in. I had experimented with it in Dinyaar's place last year using his X-05 as a CD player compared to using it as a pure transport into the Accuphase DAC (I had plugged in my DAC into his pre-amp) and I daresay it sounded comparable to the X-05. The current DAC does not have a master clock input, but future versions may have. Also I have some free time in HK on Thursday and Friday, in case you want me to inspect any piece you are eyeing.
 
Giri

The dac+word sync option would also be possible with an Esoteric AI-10 amp. This is the only other amp I am considering apart from Accuphase E-350/250. Please look around and listen to both if you can :)
 
Ajay, I am shocked..have been travelling and am out of the country but this thread took me by surprise !!
Please speak to Dr Bass in Dynaudio and Naim he has very experienced with both. For your music preference not sure if Naim is the right system (I could be wrong)

I would encourage to Go Active if possible.. maybe the ATCs ?


BTW how is the power situation in Goa ? if there are lots of cuts you may want to think of low power amps which can be run longer with you regenerator with a larger battery bank.

All the very best with your search and looking forward rather eagerly to your decision tree on this.
 
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Ajay,

I knew you are considering to relocate but it would happen so fast, is a big news.

Is it not better to stay on rent for at least one or two years in a new city? It is only after such period of stay one should relocate if the need be.

For a listening room one does not require as large as 350 sq feet. It is any day better Ajay, that you make a music cum movie room with acoustics because this will be your golden chance to enjoy both the worlds in case of relocation.

V.


ajay124 said:
The biggest obstacle is that I have no idea what the size and acoustics of my new listening room are going to be like. We intend to shift to Panjim early next year. If we can manage to find a spacious bungalow in the Dona Paula, Campal or Altinho localities then I may have 250-350 sq feet room for music. But if we have to live in an apartment, then the listening space is going to be considerably smaller.
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Ajay, hence with either e-350 or AI-10, the swiss army knife nature of the SA-10 would be rendered superfluous. Does that not suggest a change of the source itself? Secondly, in Grattan's set-up, long back, I had heard the Bryston and the Thiels and e-350 and the Thiels, and the Bryston was better. I suppose you are contemplating a somewhat high sensitivity speaker to be paired with e-350. With the AI-10, though the rated power is similar to e-350, I would suspect the e-350 to have greater capacity for dynamics. Putting all this together, your current combination itself is formidable, and the alternatives you are considering need to be carefully heard.
 
Giri,

I know that moving from a BP6+4B SST to an Accuphase E-350/Esoteric SA-10 may be considered a bit of a downgrade. My plan is to put together a smaller, simpler and more intimate set up. I am reasonably confident that 150WPC/4 ohms of clean amplification would be enough to drive a Contour S 1.4 in a medium sized room. But Dyn's are considered to be power guzzlers. Perhaps the 4B SST would be a better match for them.
 
apk said:
Hi Ajay,

All the best for your move to Goa. Having lived in Panjim, Goa for a year (2007-2008), I can vouch for the good food, wine, and relaxed atmosphere in this place, not to mention the wonderful beaches.

And, if you start scratching beneath the surface, you will also find beautiful mangroves, bird sanctuarys (Salim Ali bird sanctuary), wildlife sanctuarys (Bondala), spice farms, temples, churches, art and theatre (Kala Academy - designed by Charles Correa) and many other interesting facts in this lovely little state.

Hi-Fi options are a little limited though.....but with the internet (to buy CD's), and Mumbai close enough (to audition hi-fi equipments), you should be fine.

Best,
APK
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apk

You are absolutely on the ball about Goa. Nature, culture, food, wine and sossegado. It's all there. More than anything else I am looking forward to photographing Goa. As there are far more tourists in Goa than in Chandigarh people are far more used to cameras. In Chandigarh most folks have a bewildered look in their eyes when they see me moving around with a monopod and 80-200 2.8D lens with hood attached to my D700. Their look says it all. I am either a newspaper man, a television man, a foreigner or a mad man. Personally out of all these choices I would prefer to be considered a mad man :)
 
ajay124 said:
Personally out of all these choices I would prefer to be considered a mad man :)
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1) Grow a nice goatie
2) Grow a pigtail too
3) invest in a photographer's multi-pocketed jacket (in khaki) and wear it real grimy

People will suddenly become more receptive:lol:
 
...and I will let you in to a secret. Absolutely the best baker I know lives and delivers in Dona Paula. He is known as the German baker.....wonderful cakes and bakes....better than I can get anywhere in Bangalore !!!
 
ajay124 said:
Giri,

I know that moving from a BP6+4B SST to an Accuphase E-350/Esoteric SA-10 may be considered a bit of a downgrade. My plan is to put together a smaller, simpler and more intimate set up. I am reasonably confident that 150WPC/4 ohms of clean amplification would be enough to drive a Contour S 1.4 in a medium sized room. But Dyn's are considered to be power guzzlers. Perhaps the 4B SST would be a better match for them.
Click to expand...

dude, i moved form a totl JRDG Coherence 2 Preamp + Krell FPB 200 (then Bryston 4bsst2) to a Accuphase E-460... and believe me, it is an upgrade... unless you hear an Accuphase, you really do not know what you are talking about!

The 460 has a superb pre-amp section and an outstanding power section. to do better i'd have to spend a big big packet of money and even then, it would amount to a debatable 5% betterment.

But, yeah, how to I explain it unless you hear it yourself??? Many FM's have come, heard and understood what i am writing about!

But believe me, just because you are moving away from a pre/power set up to an integrated, does not mean that you are downgrading....

it like saying that you are moving from a big Honda Accord to a (small) MINI Cooper, hence you are downgrading! LOL!
 
Staxxx said:
...and I will let you in to a secret. Absolutely the best baker I know lives and delivers in Dona Paula. He is known as the German baker.....wonderful cakes and bakes....better than I can get anywhere in Bangalore !!!
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Staxx you are a devil! I absolutely love the breakfast at the said baker! and darn, i feel like pre-poning my yearly december visit to GOA!
 
Staxx

Absolutely the best baker I know lives and delivers in Dona Paula. He is known as the German baker

I have been a foodie (and grossly overweight) for a major part of my life. But now I prefer losing weight to indulging in gastronomic orgies. Restaurant and bakery stuff has become a rare phenomenon. I don't even miss it any more. No refined flour, refined oil, butter or sugar. Plenty of fruits and vegetables. Grilled chicken and fish. Only 120 ml of single malt per week. Walking and bicycling. Home food all the way. All this may sound like a diet but it isn't! That's the way I like it :)
 
ajay124 said:
Staxx

Absolutely the best baker I know lives and delivers in Dona Paula. He is known as the German baker

I have been a foodie (and grossly overweight) for a major part of my life. But now I prefer losing weight to indulging in gastronomic orgies. Restaurant and bakery stuff has become a rare phenomenon. I don't even miss it any more. No refined flour, refined oil, butter or sugar. Plenty of fruits and vegetables. Grilled chicken and fish. Only 120 ml of single malt per week. Walking and bicycling. Home food all the way. All this may sound like a diet but it isn't! That's the way I like it :)
Click to expand...

I hear you and commend your strength of character to stick with it. I have all the good intentions but will probably start when it is far too late. You will enjoy being healthy in Goa too...lots of lovely fish and seafood to grill !
 
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