Fidelity Research FR-64 vs. FR-54

While I have enjoyed a couple of solid state phono stages and tube linestages since then, I am open to considering all designs and never nod my head in agreement when you mention me as someone who "saw the light" regarding solid state superiority. I just sold my hybrid monoblocks and am replacing with a solid state power amp, but that doesn't mean I don't still appreciate virtues of all design types. I am a believer that there is "more than one way to skin a cat". Please don't use me as an example of the opposite.

Hi Spencer, thank you for your post regarding what happened in your room!

I agreed with your above statement wholeheartedly. There is no perfect component, and we shouldn't limit ourselves to one (any) design type!

Like you, I also have both tubes and SS components, and they do have different advantages.

The majority of the people with high audio ignorance levels always try to hit me and that’s the only reason they post in threads where I’m. Problem with them is that in reality can’t hit me becfause they do not know audio arguments that could does it.
Typical example of that is @thekong , this gentleman post after post is trying that and he did not achieved and his frustation levels goes higher and higher then come back " for more ". Be that way if he is happy with.

Dear Raul, I think you have misunderstood, I never tried to “hit” you!

The way I see it is that, in your “nearly crazy hatred of tubes”, as Lewm has rightly puts it, you lose sight on the bigger picture, can’t see the forest for the trees, so to speak.

You have paid much attention to the electronics (maybe that is the subject you are good at), but fail to see the much bigger distortion generator of your system, your room and the airborne feedback (in the case of the turntable system).

You have always boasted about the distortion figures of your phonolinepreamp, but you have avoided questions regarding the distortion level at your listening seat (i.e., measuring of audio signal at your listening seat, as compared to output of the phono / CD). Distortion level at the LISTENING SEAT, isn't that the whole point about a low distortion SYSTEM?

I think you would be quite surprised, even horrified, if you actual see the result of such measurement.

Distortion of the electronic is only a very small part of the total distortion of the system. While, in the name of high fidelity, we certainly want to minimize the distortion of the electronics, we also can't neglect the bigger issues out there.

Your denial on the obvious shortcomings of your room / system, and your confident (maybe over confident) of your ears being better trained than most of others, just prevent you from making further improvements!

I want to make it very clear here, I don't claim to have a superior knowledge / system / ears than you (or anyone else for that matter), but I tried to keep an open mind and not limit myself to only one design type. Maybe it is a surprise to you, but I actually owned SS electronics (Pass Xono, Vendetta etc.) and they are part of my system. So, I am not anti-SS by any means.

BTW, I don't get frustrated on what you do with your system, it is your system after all, and you are the one listening to it day-in, day-out. As long as you are happy with it, everything is fine with me.

Dear @lewm :  """ his nearly crazy hatred of tubes. """

No, I don't loose my time on something like " hatred " that in any circumstances ( in any subject or scenarion. ) affect my health. Human been nervous's system equilibrum is the name of a healthy life.

In the other side I already experienced the tube " massacre " to the MUSIC.

@lewm I know that tubes can makes " sond " but a simple piece of paper can do either and either my target and what I'm talking for years is not about " sound " but the rare experience of LIVE MUSIC through a home audio system.

That's the difference on what you and me are talking about. Certainly you need ( is a must to do it for any one. ) to experience it.

To that can/could happens is not a process of " one week to the next ". No, it's a long process because you have to learn step by step what to do and how arrive " there ". This demanding and learning ( with a lot of fun and frustations in between. ) beautiful process took me years not months where step by step I started to discovery the real and true NEW MUSIC/AUDIO WORLD that only whom are " there " can really understand.

thekong insist in that airborne high distortions in my system/room because he can't not onloy understand it but even imagine any system reproduction with out that ! ! !.  Is not his culprit, just can't understand it yet ? ? ? and if insist in that subject he will not ever.

@lewm , some of my friends here " refuse " to come to my place to listen  MUSIC ( in reality they come. ) because they told me that after they finished their last up-grade ( any kind. ) in their system and when they thougth that are " there " come and listen and they gone from my place with additional frustations that are their new challenge for the near future and I'm not talking of gentlemans that are audio rookies, some have tubes and other SS based systems.

@lewm life and everything in universe is changin every " second " and I think we have to change just for " fun ". Rewards are unimaginable and with NO-RETURN.

No one deserves to stay sticky where he is " now ". We have to move to enrich our day by day audio life.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC not DISTORTIONS,
R.

thekong insist in that airborne high distortions in my system/room because he can't not onloy understand it but even imagine any system reproduction with out that ! ! !. Is not his culprit, just can't understand it yet ? ? ? and if insist in that subject he will not ever.

Dear Raul, maybe I don't understand, but I am sure real expert like Mr J Carr must know. As I have quoted before, here is what he had to say on the subject (my emphasis by capitalization) :

BTW, I wouldn’t recommend combining the phono preamp together with the power amp. THE SOUND OF THE TURNTABLE IS TOO MUCH AFFECTED BY VIBRATIONS TRANSMITTED THROUGH THE AIR AND GROUND. FOR TOP PERFORMANCE THE TURNTABLE SHOULD BE IN A SEPARATE ROOM/CLOSET ISOLATED FROM THE VIBRATIONS AND AIR PRESSURE FROM THE LOUDSPEAKERS. If you were to go with a combination phono/preamp/power amp together with the turntable in an isolated room, the speaker cables would likely need to be v-e-r-y long.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/best-phono-preamps

On reply, you said the following:

Dear @thekong : Look, I never said that air borne does not produce vibrations/distortions. In the other side, I already did it that test.<

So, apparently you are claiming that while airborne vibration do affect others systems, your system is somehow immune to it! Problem is you can’t even come up with a theory on why that is so, let alone proving it!

Maybe, your room / system is so out of this world that physic works differently over there!

No one deserves to stay sticky where he is " now ". We have to move to enrich our day by day audio life.

So very true! Look at where you are, drilling on the same old things all these years!

You probably should stop living in a delusion!

Raul, Did you read my post from 3 PM today? In that post, I acknowledged that solid state devices can be put to good use in audio. Yes, the quote from the IEEE is an old one; I may even have posted it once before. When I come down adamantly on the other side, it is mainly because your attitudes are so infuriating, and I feel the need to be as dogmatic as you, only on the other side of the argument.  There may be people who read this crap and take it seriously, and I don't want anyone going off with a bad impression of tubes per se. Yes, for sure, I use a balanced differential hybrid cascode at the input to my phono stage, using the very same bipolar transistor that you use, or used to use, in your phonolinepreamp, as the bottom half of the cascode.  The MAT02.  It is very quiet indeed, but the main advantage is tremendous high gain. (The MAT02 has a transconductance of about 500 with only 10mA of current. No tube can do that.)  Because the gain is so high, I can anyway maximize signal to noise by keeping the volume control around 8 or 9 o'clock, where I even have enough gain for the Ortofon MC2000.  But keep in mind, the top half of the cascode, and every active device downstream, is tubes.

Like I also said above, if you want to lend me a phonolinepreamp, I would be pleased to audition it.  If you would just stop being a butthead about tubes, we could have other serious discussions.

By the way, please tell me about some of the revolutionary new transistors that are so radically different from what came before. FETs and MOSFETs are no longer brand new.