Well - the Virginia trip grew some legs. Beyond my niece's wedding and the Bill Thalmann / Music Technology visit, we added two pairs of vintage Thiel speakers to our stable from Long Island. Oblgny's 2.4s augment a pair borrowed from audiojan to allow mix and match upgrade comparisons. Oblgny's complaint about the 2.4s revolves around the power (listening volume) required for them to come to life. My only observation is that the listening space is essentially a whole house due to large openings at the listening room side and rear, plus an open stairway to the second floor. The design brief for the model 2 is geared toward smaller, more intimate spaces. One of these years, I see oblgny being happy with Renaissance CS3.5s, which assume a larger listening volume.
A couple of towns down the road, I picked up the 7.2s from a retiring and downsizing electrical engineer. His substantial system was already dismantled, but looked to have been quite upscale. We called his pair CS7.1s, as they were upgraded CS7s, retaining their concrete baffles and steel grille frames. These baffles are not cracked, as many have become from shrinkage. The drivers are all fully Thiel, made in-house. I look forward to documenting them and eventually coaxing them into even higher performance.
A late exit (4:30) from Locust Valley turned into 3.5 hours to circumnavigate 45 miles around NYC and arrive Berryville, Virginia around 1:AM. No problems.
My trip to Bill Thalmann's Music Technology in Springfield (south DC) resulted in 3 productive hours comparing listening notes and agreeing on a strategy for the EQ. To allow for a larger power transformer and generous circuit layout, we are moving the powersupply to its own chassis, with enough power for two EQs in case of fully balanced configuration. Jim Williams' upgrade is already a substantial improvement over Jim Thiel''s original design due to quieter transistors and regulating the power supply. Bill T. and Jim W both judged Jim T's design as 'elegant' with plenty of room for improvement. I'm excited. Within a week or two, I'll be ordering caps and resistors for Bill's new treatment. For the record, we're seeking a top-drawer PC board designer for this project.
We listened through Bill's upgrade of my original Classé DR6 which is now absolutely glorious. The DR9s have been reworked but still await new parts.
I also left my second Adcom GFA555 for Bill's full treatment. I'm also seeking to buy an OPPO 105 (not necessarily D) player for Bill's full-fledged upgrade. He completely replaces the analog audio section making the 'D' treatment redundant. Please feel free to guide me to a low-hours player for me to send to Bill.
I also report an opportunity for the right person. Bill seeks an apprentice to learn his considerable craft. Any leads can be sent to me for further briefing. There is more work than his shop can handle, and it's not easy to find the right candidate for an additional Music Technologist.
Monday evening's drive landed me home in New Hampshire around 2:AM
