About Lugnut -- Patrick Malone

"Forgive me for having an opinion here but I think Brahams would have better served the listener with a shorter composition. "

Pat,

Your opinion is my opinion!

Tchaikovsky once said of one of Brahm's works, "He spent an hour building the perfect pedestal. Too bad he forgot to put a statue on top." ;-)

Glad to hear you're feeling a bit better as RMAF approaches. I'm sorry we won't be coming out. It looks like lots of friends from this thread will be there.

Don't feel like you need to thank everyone. Staying with this thread and sharing your time so generously and honestly is all the thanks any of us could ask for.

Doug

Doug,

I hesitated to post my criticism of Brahm's since I know so very little about this genre. It's good to know that someone agrees with me.

Well all, RMAF was very enjoyable even though it was much more of a challenge to this diseased and chemically ravaged body than I expected. I returned home completely spend. Having Barb there with me, being in charge without appearing so, proved her value as my life partner. Honestly, without her I would have made a spectacle of myself somewhere. Several times I felt the world slipping away and would have dropped like a ton of bricks if not for her anticipating my need to sit down and rest. At times like that I didn't have enough presence of mind to find my own chair and am I ever glad she was there. My primary goal was to attend this event. My secondary goal of doing so without appearing compromised was pulled off to my satisfaction. At least I think I pulled that one off with her help.

About the only criticism I have of the whole event was the constant use of source material that attempted to showcase something that had little to do with music. There also seemed to be a fear of playing full range music. In fairness to the exhibitors though the majority of rooms must have been difficult to set up properly. Still, many rooms sounded very good indeed. Some of the larger rooms sounded about as good as I could imagine.

Two products that would fall in my price range stood head and shoulders above the rest. The Star Sound Caravelles and Audio Machina Ultimate Monitors were so very, very good. I never thought I would hear a monitor speaker that offered performance like this. It would be difficult to choose between these two if not for the superior appearance of the Caravelles. These speakers and their dedicated stands simply convey the no compromise philosophy of the company. I would have bought a pair on the spot if circumstances weren't what they are in the Lugnut household.

The Caravelles were showcased in two rooms. One of the rooms was very small and used the near field approach with the Star Sound amplifiers and a CDP hooked up direct. The other, larger room used Thor electronics with an analog source. Surprisingly I preferred the sound of the smaller room. Don't get me wrong. Some of my favorite rooms used Thor gear. This may speak volumes about the Star Sound amps though which I don't think are in production.

I saw most of the Audiogon folks I knew and enjoyed group dinners both Friday and Saturday night. One particular joy was finally getting to meet Tom Lyons (Twl) face to face after several years of having a great online friendship. He's absolutely brilliant and it's a shame he no longer participates in these forums. I was hoping to meet Cornfedboy. I was not farsighted enough to write and ask him how we should meet but hoped to find a message on our room phone. Sorry Kelly.

It was difficult saying goodbye to Cello, AlbertPorter, Berlin and Nrchy knowing that I most likely will not be seeing them face to face again in this life. I just can't convey the feelings I had in doing so. It hurts a lot realizing that this situation is bringing them pain and there is nothing I can do to stop it no matter how much I want to. I think I successfully fought back the tears but it was very hard to do.

I heartily recommend you guys plan to attend this event someday. I found all of the industry heavyweights to be very approachable and pleasant. Some of the more secretive things we wonder about in these threads were revealed through casual conversation. And once I was treated to unwarranted arrogance and bs that isn't seen in a product adverstisement. These gems alone were worth the price of admission.

The entire weekend was well planned by the event staff and the volunteers were most helpful. It may have been possible to attend all the interesting seminars, visit all the rooms, take in the live music and check out all the music for sale but I doubt it. The Marriott Tech Center is a great place to stay not to mention a great place to hold this event and fine dining for the duration of the visit was convenient.

I'll keep you guys posted on whatever happens with the doc this week. I expect just about anything to unfold. Speculation doesn't do much good so I'll just get the facts and serve them up later.

I'd like to thank my local friend Ron Ralls for going along with us and for my old time college buddy and music loving partner Jeff McCabe for coming out to see me. It might have been a taxing time on this weary body but worth every effort.

Pat

Tchaikovsky couldn't carry Brahms' jockstrap.

Pat, what a great weekend! It was a lot of fun to spend time with you again. I was concerned about you having too much pressure to keep people entertained and talking with all the people who wanted to meet you.

Rick from Virtual Dynamics mentioned that he was hoping to meet with you for a while, but I didn't run into him till after you left.

Pat, I have to say this publically. Your wife is a wonderful woman! It was a pleasure to meet her. I guess we both married above our pay grade. It must have been a lot of work for her to care for the needs of two people, but she always had a smile on her face.

I was impressed by the Caravelles at CES. It was interesting to hear them in two different rooms, with different gear. They did not disappoint on either occasion. Tom and I got to sit and listen for a while late Sunday afternoon.

Pat, I had tears in my eyes as I watched you and the gang drive away, as I had the same thought. I was choking back tears as I returned to my tour of some of the rooms that I missed. I will not forget the words you said as you got in the truck. FWIW I would gladly feel the sorrow because it reminds me of the joy of friendship.

Thanks for making yourself available to your friends. Both of the weekends I got to spend with you and a few other new friends will be cherished for the rest of my life. I loved being able to sit and talk with you at dinner. What a great group of people, on both occasions. Sorry for keeping you out so late on Friday.

Hey rnm4 - that's because he couldn't get it off of Brahm's head!

Patrick,

This feels a little awkward as I met you breafly at the RMAF. I wish you the best in this life.

Michael