I always love driving up to Charlotte, and thankfully it was a particularly sunny day today too! With only a 3 hour commute I'm always able to just kinda of relax and enjoy the ride. An as much as I hate to say it, with all that gorgeous sunshine I feel the venue it self was almost just as remarkable as the gear I'd had a chance to hear!
An much like the historical venue the event was held at the members this year brought along some truly amazing vintage gear!
Two pieces in particular stuck out in my mind, the first was the AKG K1000. An while I've heard it a dozen or so times, it's unique presentation never grows old for me, as a vintage AKG fan I'm finding it harder to resist these days!
An for me the K1000s insanely realistic staging and natural but still punchy presentation make it easily one of my favorite listens!
Now this next piece is special and I won't even attempt to get into why, but it's an original Moth 2A3 Tube Amp and it's easily one the most resolving and yet tonally rich amplifiers I've had a chance to hear! I will admit I didn't even DARE listen to any music I was familiar with but even with the few Jazz Tracks I enjoyed it was obvious how well resolved this amp and the system behind it were!
So for those of your curious I highly recommend doing your own research on what makes this such a special amplifier. An again what stuck with me is just how real the music felt, there was a sense of tactility presented I'd not experienced before in any headphone system and it immediately struck me as simply real.
It wasn't aggressive, it wasn't over defined or emphasized it was just simply real especially so in the low frequencies. An this was all with only a ZMF Auteur!!Though as much as I enjoyed hearing it I don't hope to do so again. These units are quite impossible to attain these days. But to be able to bring a dynamic headphone to the same level of tonal resolve/tactility as something like an SR 009 is just amazing to me.
An thankfully these days the 009 isn't the only highly resolving Eletrostat the market, Justin of HeadAmp brought not one but two of his Blue Hawaii Electrostat amplifiers alongside a myriad of truly top of the line eStat Headphones!
Regrettably though with the immense interest in all of them I didn't quite get a chance to listen, still the 009 from Justin's Amp remains one of my favorites systems for that headphone!
Though the real gem of this meet was not only getting to listen to yet another DNA Tube Amp but rather learning that Donald himself is still servicing them... and quickly at that! These units are no longer in production but do pop up from time to time on second hand boards, and I'd always been hesitant about them given my own uncertainty about service! As even the amazing Moth 2A3 has a reputation of being quite difficult to get serviced, non the less the owner of this unit assured me of both Donald's quick response time and overall top notch customer service.
In terms of sound I've always found the DNA amps to have just the right mix of elements, just pleasurable to listen to. I don't often take detailed notes as I just find myself really getting pulled into the music and this time around I got to enjoy some Red Hot Chili Peppers in DSD! An I honestly can't think of any better way to end a meet than experincing some of my favorite songs on a truely high fidelity system for the first time!
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| Photo Taken By Afghan Vet |
Two pieces in particular stuck out in my mind, the first was the AKG K1000. An while I've heard it a dozen or so times, it's unique presentation never grows old for me, as a vintage AKG fan I'm finding it harder to resist these days!
An for me the K1000s insanely realistic staging and natural but still punchy presentation make it easily one of my favorite listens!
Now this next piece is special and I won't even attempt to get into why, but it's an original Moth 2A3 Tube Amp and it's easily one the most resolving and yet tonally rich amplifiers I've had a chance to hear! I will admit I didn't even DARE listen to any music I was familiar with but even with the few Jazz Tracks I enjoyed it was obvious how well resolved this amp and the system behind it were!
It wasn't aggressive, it wasn't over defined or emphasized it was just simply real especially so in the low frequencies. An this was all with only a ZMF Auteur!!Though as much as I enjoyed hearing it I don't hope to do so again. These units are quite impossible to attain these days. But to be able to bring a dynamic headphone to the same level of tonal resolve/tactility as something like an SR 009 is just amazing to me.
An thankfully these days the 009 isn't the only highly resolving Eletrostat the market, Justin of HeadAmp brought not one but two of his Blue Hawaii Electrostat amplifiers alongside a myriad of truly top of the line eStat Headphones!
Regrettably though with the immense interest in all of them I didn't quite get a chance to listen, still the 009 from Justin's Amp remains one of my favorites systems for that headphone!
Though the real gem of this meet was not only getting to listen to yet another DNA Tube Amp but rather learning that Donald himself is still servicing them... and quickly at that! These units are no longer in production but do pop up from time to time on second hand boards, and I'd always been hesitant about them given my own uncertainty about service! As even the amazing Moth 2A3 has a reputation of being quite difficult to get serviced, non the less the owner of this unit assured me of both Donald's quick response time and overall top notch customer service.
In terms of sound I've always found the DNA amps to have just the right mix of elements, just pleasurable to listen to. I don't often take detailed notes as I just find myself really getting pulled into the music and this time around I got to enjoy some Red Hot Chili Peppers in DSD! An I honestly can't think of any better way to end a meet than experincing some of my favorite songs on a truely high fidelity system for the first time!
