@mikelavigne, the classic red and yellow 'Iron Man' look of the darTZeel 108 is surely a matter of taste. I think that the looks are impressive and must play some psychological role in the appreciation of it's sound.
Others may find it rather out of place gaudy and distracting for an amp which still fetches near $10k used.
@mijostyn, no but it would be interesting to see what would happen if a solid state was disguised as a tube and vice versa. Would the usual perceived differences still hold true? Would they?
Anyway I think it's fair to say that speed is critical when it comes to high level turntable playback. Just look at how many purely speed based revisions the Linn LP12 has had during its tenure since 1972. Each one from the Valhalla board to the Lingo to the Radikal promising a substantial sonic improvement. Each one constrained by the pliant rubber belt, each one still rather vague about numbers and specs to back up the promises.
The soft blurring introduced by borderline undetectable speed anomalies (by ear alone) doesn't bother me too much as it's appears to enhance the 'analogue' feel of the playback. Ultimately though it's always up to the listener to determine just how much accuracy they need.
Others may find it rather out of place gaudy and distracting for an amp which still fetches near $10k used.
@mijostyn, no but it would be interesting to see what would happen if a solid state was disguised as a tube and vice versa. Would the usual perceived differences still hold true? Would they?
Anyway I think it's fair to say that speed is critical when it comes to high level turntable playback. Just look at how many purely speed based revisions the Linn LP12 has had during its tenure since 1972. Each one from the Valhalla board to the Lingo to the Radikal promising a substantial sonic improvement. Each one constrained by the pliant rubber belt, each one still rather vague about numbers and specs to back up the promises.
The soft blurring introduced by borderline undetectable speed anomalies (by ear alone) doesn't bother me too much as it's appears to enhance the 'analogue' feel of the playback. Ultimately though it's always up to the listener to determine just how much accuracy they need.