Got to Got to love Fremer! Any why not? I think it's great to celebrate different music types. If we were all the same, it would be boring. No-one's choice of test track is wrong, if that's what they listen to. Good to see a mixture of genres in reviews but also, we shouldn't condemn folk for their taste if it's not what we like. Life is too short.
I like Darko and I like Fremer too. They are both so different and emphasize different aspects and styles of audio playback. I just wish Fremer would notch up his video talent (or lack there of) and work on his apparent Go-Pro skills on his location shoots
Indeed. I'm sure my own go-to first test track would be sneered at by some, but since they're never going to be in my house, their opinion means nothing. Regardless, this will be the first track I hear when I install the brand new pair of KEF Q950s boxed up here in the living room tomorrow evening. (I'm not opening them yet because I'm still waiting on one of the grilles to arrive. I'm not having a naked speaker cone in a house with three cats.)
I've met a lot of reviewers at shows and the LAOCAS annual gala. I don't know many who have qualifications much less incredible backgrounds.
I find he is fairly good presenting audio products and informing the viewer about various features, and he likes expensive usb and power cables too. Darko himself said in one of his youtube videos that they should regarded as entertainment. Therefore, I am entertained and informed by mr Darko.
I kind of agree with Darko's subjectivity, if something sounds better to you then what more is there to say? Creating the setup that sounds the best for YOU and not just buying a product for the numbers and figures. Just my two cents.
Good look with the KEFs. I'm not sure I could keep them in their boxes but a good point about the grilles! I once stood next to someone who used three 'classic' ish film themes as his test tracks - Jurassic Park, the theme from the first new Star Trek film and I'm struggling now to remember the third one - maybe Star Wars, maybe not. Anyway, it worked for him. Funnily enough I always remember that he was testing out the Pro iDSD from the iFi audio stable at the time. He let me listen and yup, it sounded pretty awesome.
Thanks! The second grille arrived on time and I had both speakers unboxed and connected about 20 minutes after that! They sound exactly as I had hoped: flat and transparent, but delivering a big sound even at low volume.
Did anyone ever see Fremer's meltdown on the Darko website? Was quite comical to watch. Lost a huge amount of respect from Fremer after that and I used to really like him. He acted like a spoiled child having a tantrum because someone disagreed with him. Started swearing and abusing people and Darko had to lock the comments down. The inconvenient truth about vinyl | Darko.Audio As for Darko. Meh. I read some of his stuff but he's getting more and more 'Audiophile looney' the more he's reviewing. I won't go into specifics but I will say that I don't believe in USB cables, or weights on solid state equipment making a difference. We need a lot more objectivity in this hobby IMO.
When I'm drunk, I browse Discogs and spend too much money on records. He goes looking for fans of digital music so he can tell them about all the research (without sources) that proves they're terrible. Different strokes I suppose.
Whoa MF went off the rails. He came to Manila a couple of years ago for the annual local Hifi show and gave a talk on proper cartridge and TT setup. He came across as pleasant and congenial, maybe the Darko exchange was a case of passion bubbling over? In any case, I agree, he lost some respect points for dishing out insults unnecessarily. But maybe he cares more about evangelizing analog as the best format than being respected.
It's not the first or only time that MF turn on the AH effect. The clip where he describes his experience buying records from a stroke victim comes to mind.
I remember that clip, I do enjoy his factory tour videos although it would be better if he had better editing as sometimes it drags on too long.
MF has a rich history of being rude, crude and insulting when you dare not accept his opinion as gospel. He has flamed quite a few people (do some searches) who in no way flamed him first but simply had a different opinion. Also, anyone care to take a guess at the $$$ of the system he listed as using for his needle drop (taken from his post in the thread at Darkos): <Quote: Rips: used Lyra Atlas cartridge, Swedish Analog Technologies arm, Continuum Caliburn turntable on a Minus-K fitted Castellon stand, a Ypsilon MC-16L step up transformer into a Ypsilon VPS-100 phono preamplifier into a darTzeel NHB-18NS preamplifier into a Lynx HiLo A/D converter :ENDQUOTE>. I sure as hell hope that it sounds great but exactly how many people can afford a rig like that? How can the results be relevant to anyone who could never afford that? Not to mention that the rip is still digitized analog, which indicates that the better the source the better the result in digital too. I'm all digital for music for over 30 years but have no axe to grind as far as formats. The world is a better place when people can enjoy the music they love in the way that pleases them most. I spun records for close to 25 years before going digital. Had a huge collection of Japanese and European pressings at one time. Had a nice rig. It just changed for me, it's as simple as that. I have enjoyed Darko for many years and will continue to do so. I like that he uses a diverse set of music when reviewing gear. I am to the point that if a review mentions Patrica Barber or Diana Krall my eyes glaze over. I have no use for MF. That's just my opinion and nothing more.
??? I don't get that. Even as an engineer I'll agree we don't know everything about what makes great sound, since listening is actually a perceptual experience not rooted solely in physical reality. Do you mean measurements are subjective because there's not agreement over how meaningful some of them are? Like is 130 dB of channel separation audibly better than 90 dB better than 60 dB? To me, measurements separate the baloney from the steak so to speak. They can show devices that don't perform their basic function well, and expose liars (the 100W amp that clips at 65). And provide a way to try and improve sound, which is why I semi-worship Stereophile over the years for measuring and then trying to correlate to sound perception. Reviews with no useful measurements (looking at YOU oh ever-slipping Sound And Vision ) really aren't too useful to me, since everyone's hearing and room differs from mine. I need the reviews to show me something, like noise canceling headphone reviews where they record different ambient sounds with ANC on/off. Imperfect maybe but far better than NO data. Any resources with measurements, let me know, I'm all ears!
Two vinyl enthusiasts arguing about nothing. Everyone into decent vinyl playback knows cheap turntables with cheap cartridge are disappointing and vinyl isn't warm. Fremer hates digital with a passion. Darko is trying to get the best from all formats. Darko has a couple of very decent turntables (why he didn't keep the SL1200G I don't know). Fremer has a mega TT yet is defending crap turntables ?!! Fremer also has mega CD and digital playback so I doubt any of it really sucks. All very amusing .