Tweaks

Don't do like I did and try to cut corners by using astro turf, it sounds completely hard and artificial. Might bleach it to see if it will sound less colored. Thanks for the tip about the flamingos, they brought out alot of subtle nuances in my system.

Sean, you are absolutely right on target. We hear differences and we don't know to what they should be attributed but we are confident that they exist. I think that's a given for most of us. It is where we go from there that makes the difference in our long-range understanding of good sound.

In the short run, these matters are easy: Try it. Like it? Got the cash? Do it.

In the long run, we need to continue to explore and measure and poke and prod and make careful comparisons. We need to be unafraid to put our subjective comparisons to the test, knowing that testing methods are imperfect but likewise not without value. We need to candidly acknowledge that:

(1) Some clearly discernible differences in sound exist that cannot be measured or quantified...at least not yet, possibly never.

(2) Some perceived differences probably arise from a whole lot of extraneous factors such as how much we paid for our gear or how many hours we spent tweaking it.

Exploring these possibilities ought not be so intimidating to either EEs or GEs that they go into conniption fits of character assassination every time they come face to face.

Augustine said it: Love God and do as you will.

Kelly, if maintaining the health of your grass is of paramount concern, look no further than the 'Gon as there is no shortage of BS being bandied about here. Unfortuantely, Pbb, the same will be of little use in maintaining your reasoned and healthy sense of skepticisim about this hobby.

PBB ought to try Kelly’s set up but with some more robust varieties of sod... er, grass.

Northern Lights, Early Girl, or OS 1 exhibit excellent absorption and diffusion characteristics.

Only problems I've found are the extreme temperature in my listening room - (amps keep shutting down). I've learned to live with the noise of the ozone generator and the constant buzz of the grow lamps. …But these DAMN welders goggles I wear (to reduce glare) are hurting my face and breaking up the sonic images.

Aside from that it’s the best tweak ever.

Seriously, guys, tweaks are alot different from modifications, and it is worth speculating on their differences. One can easily see how the tweak enables many audiophiles to obey the Law of their Warranty (not to tamper with their component) while following their desire to somehow change the performance of their system in a sometimes obsessive way. From this perspective, the tweaker's literal obedience to the Law cannot but appear as the ultimate opportunistic manipulation, and even as a false relation to the intents of the designer of a component since a tweak implies a totally external relationship towards the component as a set of variables to be, well, tweaked, so that one can achieve one's own true aim, not the designer's. What bothers many DIYers and technicians who actually "modify" or "alter" their components about tweakers is probably the fact that the tweakers do not see the cheap trickery of their procedure, so that when they succeed in having their cake and eating it, in realizing their goal without disobeying the letter of their Warranty, they do not feel the need to go further and get their hands dirty by getting more serious.