Audio Cabling

Hi-Fi Audio Cables.  Garbage, right?  I mean, who on earth can believe that something as simple as the metal connecting between the two posts can make any serious difference?  I mean, sure, on a $100,000 system, where you can hear a flea sneeze, you might hear a slight improvement.  But copper is copper, gauge is gauge, and it's easy to get right.

I preach this 95% of the time.  I won't ever tell you that you should buy nice cable.  I even say this right now: If you have money to spend on speakers, amplifiers, CD players, record players, ANYTHING else in your system, DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH CABLE.  Don't even think about it.

Based on CNET's articles on cheap cables and the ubiquitous posts saying lamp cord is equal sound-wise to speaker cable, I logged onto Monoprice and bought myself a spool of speaker wire when I got a non-Nuforce-Icon amp.  (The Icon has proprietary cables).  It did the job.  I thought it was good enough.  I left it.
I'm the guy who's never satisfied, though.  I decided, after a stretch of months, that bare wire splayed out under my posts is too inconvenient, that at the very least I want something with bananas on the end.  I started investigating, and wound up with a set of Audioquest Type 4.

It came quicker than expected, and is a thick braided blue cable that reminded me of cables I'd handled in studios. It felt serious.  The silver terminations were NOT bananas, though.  They looked like weapons an orc might handle, or something from the middle eastern nations.  They fit, though.  Also, they came with a polishing cloth that tells you that these cables don't need polishing to keep working.  Great.
I was skeptical, but I went ahead and hooked it up quickly, leaving the old cable wired in for an A/B comparison.  I let half a CD play on the old cable, paused, plugged in the new cable and unhooked the old, and hit play.

WOW. My music came out with a little more impact, a little more focus.  It engaged me.  I couldn't believe it. I wasn't going to take those cables out.  I let them rest.
I later noted that the difference is not as drastic as my amp, or my CD player, or my DAC, or even between 16 and 24 bit.  It's minor.  But it's significant enough to make my jaw drop.

But that's not all.

A few days later, long before the Audioquest cable landed in my lap, I stumbled upon a review comparing it to Flexygy 6 from River Cable.  (I also stumbled upon numerous statements along the lines of "Audioquest type 4 costs" half the price I paid "which makes it a great budget cable" statements.  The review above even mentions that the cable is less expensive and thus inferior.  I didn't experience that.  The River Cable pair costs the same as my Audioquest pair.
Flexygy 6 also has a very tight 30 day return policy.  I think I have a showdown coming, folks.
So I flew in a pair with bananas. These were beautiful cables, but flat.  Flat?  I guess that's OK, but it goes against my sense for hi-def audio.  They feel nice, they come with "certificates" and arbitrary-looking printouts from a Tektronix Scope that both look about the same, but are actually a little different.  Not an obvious picture, nor is it obvious what they are measuring, but the website helps.
I wasted little time running the flat cable through my "custom" rig and weaving it down the same path as the Type 4.  I did the same thing: I ran three tracks through the Type 4, then switched cables and ran 3 tracks through the Flexygy 6.

...nope.  I thought I heard an improvement when I got to the Flexygy 6,  but it was just sharper than the other.  Harsher.  More digital.  The type of sound that, like Pepsi, seems great at the first taste but starts to hurt and make you smack as you finish.  I also thought I heard some noise that wasn't there before.  Yes, noise.  I thought maybe it was a drum nuance I'd missed.
I eventually got fed up after two back-and-forths and hooked both cables up, letting the amp's A/B switch do the work.  That confirmed it: it wasn't a drum nuance.  The drums were less focused.  The sound grew warmer, easier to listen to, clearer with the Type 4, just like it had when I put it in the first time.  The Flexygy 6 diffused my sound and make it a little too bright, considering the digital sources I use regularly.

Here's my bottom line on these: Don't buy new cables.  OK, if you're going to, please try it in your system before committing.  I think the AudioQuest Type 4 cable is worth the money, and I don't think I'm going to pull it out of my speakers anytime soon.  They knock imaging out of the park.  But, as evidenced by reviews of the Flexygy 6, this isn't always the case.

And here is my bottom line overall: SPEAKER CABLES MAKE A DIFFERENCE.  I don't care what the other blogs say.  I've heard it.  It's real.  Don't doubt.

Now, what about interconnects?  Hmmmm...

Sometimes, amps AREN'T perfect.

I am at my wits end with this amp.  It's like someone took a dump on the high end and left it there, so that the high end just...can't...reach...

We'll keep fighting with it.

Nuforce's Podio speaker!

The events are few and far between, but every now and then I want to break out a tiny little speaker to fill a small area with music.  This is good for offices, college study rooms, cars with no radio reception, etc.

Finally, a company has stepped up to produce one that doesn't sound like one transistor clapping!

Nuforce's Podio PS-106

It's tiny, it's rechargable, and it's from the same people who bring you audio equipment worth thousands!  There is little reason to doubt them.  This would cetainly blow my little $6 plastic drivers out of the water.

Heck, this is smaller than nearly every portable I've laid eyes on.  Look at this:

I would like to have one of these on me at all times, you know...just in case.

Dig it!

Music vs. Hi Fi. They never agree.

I have a lot of music.  I gained a lot of it in High School, when I worked in a radio station and was high enough on the totem pole to get first dibs at things.  I didn't get into hi-fi music until age 24.
I went back to listen to some of it on my speakers, and it made my ears hurt.  OK, these were free CDs, and some of them by low-budget artists.  I still expected better.  Can I only listen to music with a pedigree?

What introduced me to hi-fi was a recording of the Polyphonic Spree's "Light & Day (Orchestral Mix)"  I had just purchased a pair of Grado SR-60's, and that was the first song I found on my iPod.  The sound was so remarkably clear and moving that tears came to my eyes.  I knew my life would be different from that moment on.  I can also add that I still enjoy that track through my headphones.

Actually, I enjoy just about EVERYTHING through those headphones.  Everyone I know (except my stubborn wife) loves how these headphones sound.  Hi-fi lets me use my headphones and my iPod.  So what happened with my speakers?

It's strange, but not unexpected: the speakers reveal more detail, and sometimes that detail makes the music sound like it's in a tin can.  On the other hand, if I dig out something that has a groove, I can't help but move. I suddenly realized something important:
I don't really like a lot of those free CD's from high school.  Oops.
I also don't like everything everyone else tells me to like.  I don't care if everyone says Radiohead's "In Rainbows" is the best album ever.  It's not my thing.  I can't stand to listen for more than ten minutes.

No, the best thing for a hi-fi system, the records 2 die 4, are the listener's favorite records.  I can really sit and love every minute of Kraftwerk's "The Mix" and Rilo Kiley's "Under the Blacklight."  Listen to your choice albums on 1,000 systems.  Get a real feel for it.  If your hi-fi (or anyone's hi-fi) system is any good, the sound of your favorite albums will move you to tears.

I will talk another time about albums I use to test my system, but I have mentioned before that I turn on a recording of Disney's Main Street Electrical Parade every time I add a new component. It has no pedigree, and its recording is nothing special -- more or less roomless, barely uses stereo.
But when I hear that first note, I know whether things are right.  It's beautiful.  Even if it is only beautiful to me.

Have a seat...

There are precious few articles about listening chairs.  There is plenty of info on room treatment and speaker/chair placement but never on the seating itself.  I can't understand why; is it because the chair itself has less affect on sound than the room or the equipment?  Is it because chairs aren't designed for high fidelity audio, and since they are not reviewed in this sense, they are ignored?
I feel that the chairs are integral to the listening experience, and that people who are building listening rooms have to take their seating selection seriously.  One will spend at least forty five minutes without moving sitting in this chair, and perhaps longer, given a remote control system.  This is one room-aspect that can no longer be ignored.
Also worth noting: a La-Z-Boy or similar chair is such a bad idea for listening.  Lean back in it, and your ears will lose the openness of a quality listening experience.  Being surrounded by chair padding is not the same as listening in a "dead" room -- it's not even close.
If I'm in the market for a chair, what do I do?
Here are the basic rules from websites and books oriented towards beginning listeners:  Chair Back no higher than just below the ears.  That's it.  That's all they give you.  Do they want us to thrift-shop for our chairs?

Aspects of the Perfect Chair

I've always taken seating seriously, and most of my time selecting chairs has been for my computer desk.  This hasn't been a bad thing: when in college, I spent a lot of my life in the same chair.  I was glad I spent extra on it.
We can use those desk-chair concepts.  What is important for a task chair?  Ergonomics: sitting for long periods of time isn't bad for you.  Comfort: sitting for long periods of time doesn't hurt.  Mobility: you almost NEVER want a chair in the middle of the room ALL THE TIME, so the chair needs to be easy enough to move to and from your desk.  This is high fidelity audio, so price isn't a factor, of course.  :-)
We will add back height, since it is apparently such an issue in audio circles.  And yes, it matters.  Try sitting in a bowl chair and listening to some nice speakers.  Your music will be as cushioned and floppy as the chair.

What does everyone else talk about?

Some folks online mention Barco Loungers, which sound like the most luxurious and overdone idea.  Other folks recommend very large beanbags, and why not?  They'll keep you supported and well-cushioned and mold to your shape.  (Mobility is out of the picture, and size is an issue, too.)  Stressless chairs, Ekornes chairs, both popular because of the comfort.

What else could I use?

Using our task-chair metric above, we could use an Aeron chair.  (If you ever sit in an Aeron chair for more than a few minutes, you'll forget you're sitting.  THIS is what a listening room needs!)  Any nice executive task chairs with backs that support up to your shoulders are a good idea; for a long time, I had a $300 chair at Staples picked out as my dream chair.  Anything like this can work, and since they almost all have wheels, mobility is a big plus.  My office chair (in which I sometimes spend 3-4 hours at a time) is ideal.
Alas!  The most disappointing thing is the price of a truly perfect chair.  My best task chairs have cost me over $100, and I would consider those marginal listening-chair choices.  If you think that's a lot, don't bother looking up an Aeron, Barco Lounger, or even any of those big fancy beanbags.
Work on finding an office chair or something designed for lounging within your budget.  If you can, go to the store to test it out.  Sit there for twenty or thirty minutes -- I'm not kidding.  Don't get up unless the associate asks you to move.  You need to test long-term butt strain, and thirty seconds won't do anything.  (By the way, I've sat in Staples, Ikea, CompUSA, and other stores for thirty to forty-five minutes at a time.  No one has ever asked me to leave.)

What did the AUTHOR do?

I think I've settled on a less-than-perfect option: the Ikea Poang chair.  They are infinitely comfortable: I absolutely love these chairs.  They are featherweights, so they're easy to push aside.  Yes, the back is a little high.  Yes, the chair sits a little low.  The price is perfect, however, for what I'm looking for.  I pride myself on my hi-fi audio system being a "budget luxury;" this chair embodies that concept.  The padding isn't overthick, so it shouldn't kill my listening environment.  Everyone should go to their nearest Ikea and sit in one of these.  Try it.  You'll like it.
(Edit: apparently, these are popular for listening rooms in dealer showrooms, probably for the mobility and comfort thing.)

As for the ultimate decision, find something especially comfortable, ergonomic, without a headrest.  You'll be on the right track.  Then let me know what you have.  We could start a movement:
CARE ABOUT YOUR CHAIR!

The Icon grows up!

OK, so I'm going to divulge some secrets about my sound system:

When I got started, I didn't know what the hell I was doing.
You'll be able to tell if I showed you my amp and my speakers.  I have a pair of great big beautiful floorstanding Wharfedale Diamond 9.6's in a room that is so small, I have to sit three feet from the speakers to get an ideal sound.  Powering both of those is an amplifier that weighs about as much as a paperback book: the Nuforce Icon.  I saw two things I absolutely loved, and I said  "I MUST HAVE THESE."
Surprisingly, it worked.  There's a neat little story about comparing my pitiful little Icon to a few other amplifiers. The Icon was always the clear winner, even if it sometimes struggled to keep up with my towering Wharfedales.

Let's talk about the Nuforce Icon:
--15wpc amplifier, which is enough for a little system like one would have in my tiny little office.
--USB D/A converter, so that one can pipe in 44.1/16bit digital audio straight from your PC.
--Three ports on back: headphone-jack (aka iPod), RCA, and USB.
--A handy-little headphone port on the front for what I think Nuforce does best: HEADPHONE AMPS!

It's simple, it's pretty, it's modern, and it was a perfect all-in-one package for me for $249.  Plus, it was red.  It's amazing how my opinion of audio gear goes up once it is available in colors.
I was a fool, though, for next buying gigantic-ass speakers to sit with it, even IF they were 91dB sensitivity.

Quite a few months ago (not quite a year), I received an e-mail from Nuforce.  They had developed a new Icon: the Icon-2, and for the low price of almost-the-amount-I-paid-for-the-first-one, I could upgrade.  It had a 24-bit 96khz USB D/A converter and an additional 9 wpc.  Who was I to argue?  I got an Icon-2 upgrade for Christmas.

This was not an easy task, upgrading my Icon.  All you get is a circuitboard.  It is then up to you to unscrew the twelve screws of TWO DIFFERENT HEADS (plus the knob-nut, which is a different head still), use more force than you think you should to slide the Icon out of its case, and attach your old front and case to the new board.  I was worried I destroyed something.  I was also thankful they gave me additional screws in the package.
First impressions: the power supply was more power-hungry than the upgraded one I purchased.  This is good; the Icon two has a little more juice.  The board was black, too, and just prettier looking.  I wanted this in my office. NOW.

Hooking it up, I doubted there'd be much difference.  I knew my speakers needed more juice sometimes, but  come on, is it really worth the upgrade?  I guess, at least, I got a new D/A Converter out of it.  I put in the Main Street Electrical Parade CD, since it was already out, and hit play.

The opening "BOW" nearly knocked me back.  This thing had more kick!

It sounded cleaner, deeper, quieter in the background.  And this is with an all-synth recording without much stereo play.  I couldn't bear to turn this CD off; it was too amazing to stop.
Once everything finished, I noticed something was missing.  See, the Icon had a nasty hiss in my speakers, something Nuforce warns you about if your speakers are more sensitive than 92dB.  Mine aren't.  I still had a hiss.  I dealt with it, because I was cheap.
The Icon2 LOST THAT HISS.  It is dead quiet in my office now, while I type this, with the Icon2 on.

Trying out the 24bit/96kHz tracks HDTracks.com gives out for free, I was blown away again.  Deep, sensitive, quiet in the background, rich, full, and balanced.  My old Icon had trouble controlling the big woofers of the Wharfedales.  The new Icon2 didn't ever strain or struggle.  My Wharfedales had met their match.
This continued.  Even mono recordings sounded earthy and strong.  This amp isn't as sweet as it is deep, and paired with my amp, I get some rump-shaking in my office.  I like that.  Even so, this is much cleaner and happier than anything else I've heard.

If you need a quick, cheap, all-in-one solution to get into Hifi audio, buy a Nuforce Icon.  Even if you just hook it up to your powered speakers on your desktop with the line-out, you'll hear a difference.  Buy a cheap pair of Grado SR60i's to sweeten the experience.
If you want to throw in a few more bucks, the Nuforce Icon2 is worth every penny.  The ability to hear the extra 8 bits of audio, the added power (if you want to hook it up to some REAL speakers), the cleaned-up sound...it's my new dream come true.

I'm not kidding.  I actually go out of my way to listen to it.  I'm like a little kid again, sneaking away to listen to a song real quick before I go back to whatever I was doing.

Hifi audio is not a joke, and your best way to find out is an Icon.

Apple people, REJOICE!

People who know me well know I HAXXED my iPod because the shuffle function was crap (and because I had so many FLAC files.)  Once I did that, my iPod became a radio for me.  I also use it for analog testing.  My main complaint has always been that I'm letting that little tiny device, and it's little tiny amp, take control of the quality of my audio files.

HRT has been a favorite of mine for quite a while thanks to their release of their Music Streamer II affordable set of USB DACs, officially welcoming anybody with a soundysystem and a few extra bucks to pipe some SERIOUS SOUNDING TUNES from their PCs.

They didn't stop there.

Now my iPod's little pitiful amp can take a break and let the HRT iStreamer take over.  If this little bitty device has the cleanliness and power of even the lowest of the Music Streamers, the iPod has been validated.  Mommy, I don't think I need CDs anymore...

Your House could be an iPod

Why do you like your iPod?  (or iPhone Music Player)

Capacity?  Someplace to put all your music and have it in one place?
Convenience?  It's easy to look up and play whatever your heart desires, or shuffle everything together, or only Christmas songs, etc.?
Simplicity?  I mean, all you have to do is hit "shuffle songs" and music comes out.

I want to tell you about my new most-wanted item.  Why?  It is an improvement over my haXXed iPod.



The Logitech Squeezebox Touch

It's an iPod for your HOUSE.

I have way more music than I could ever store on one iPod.  (Not to mention, I store it losslessly.)  I actually bought a 1TB drive for just that reason: I wanted to put all my music in one place.  The sad part?  It's not all hands-on anymore.  I listen to CDs often, but some of my albums, I don't have on CD.  I have to either
-Deal with the hum of my PC and run a cable to my USB DAC, or
-Plug my iPod into my stereo system, as long as my iPod has the album on it, and deal with a lower quality.
(Don't even get me started on my iPod's battery life.)

I also like last.fm and internet radio.  It's fair to say I am sick of regular radio at this point, and those two are my escape.  The ONLY way to access those is by turning on the PC and leaving it on while I listen.  Likewise, I only get last.fm downstairs on my stereo system, through my Xbox.

Think about the cool factor of a touchscreen attached to your entertainment center that controls all of your music.

The Squeezebox will either have my 1TB hard drive plugged into it, or I will hang my 1TB drive on the network and never look at it again.  It has a REMOTE CONTROL, so I never have to touch it when I want to skip a song (despite the name).  It will have access to ALL of my music, all of the time.  Convenient.  All for cheaper than a 64Gb iPod Touch.
(A bonus: it can play FLAC files, even 24/96k files, without the HAX I needed for my iPod.)
(An additional bonus: It CAN be modified for control by an iPod/iPad.  If that's your thing.)

Screw a new computer.  This is a music interface that gets me off my little PC and LISTENING.  Hell yes.

Hey, Santa.  Got one of these in your bag for me?