Holographic imaging

Carlos269,

Very well said. Bravo!

Atmasphere, while I understand what you are saying, my concern is with the sound not the explanation. As I have said, I didn't buy the line stage until I heard it. I did buy the amp before hearing it and did wait a long time for it to satisfy Roger and have it shipped. I can assure you that whatever he is doing is greatly improving over time.

I have had at least 30 different line stages or preamps in my 45 years in audio. After a certain period where I experimented with solid state line stages and amps, I went fully tube and presently have about 2000 tubes. I think I had the ARC Reference and the Exemplar parafeed linestage at the time I got the H-Cat. There were many things that the H-Cat could not equal, especially in the Exemplar, but man could it image. And instruments and vocalists were actual size. I did not have vocalists with five feet wide mouths.

Gradually, a purity of sound emerged also, with it sounding neither like a tube or a SS product. The real shock for me came with the amp. Even straight out of the box and just turned on, it was different. The top end had such scene and extension but quite sweet. Roger was expecting me to rave immediately, but it was two weeks later when it just became impossibly good.

So you can see what guides me-sonic realism. This has to have some explanation, but I know from my experiences with science that many explanations are wrong. But Roger had something directing him. His amps of 25 years ago were quite good, but never like this one.

If so many had rushed to judgment that H-Cat was a fraud, I think you would find that Roger knows more about circuits than you think and has sought to measure what he is getting by leasing the best testing equipment despite his meager resources. As I said to Carlos, you need to realize that the H-Cat could probably be copied.

There in lies the rub:

Norm there are a number of ways to enhance the spatial image and its dimensionality. BUT according to Roger Paul he's not processing the signal in any way other than purely amplifying it. He claims no processing nor signal manipulation!.....So what does the H-CAT "WTC" controller actually do? That is the crux of the matter and so far Roger has not been able to address that with any type of factual response.

Spatial processing is an area of interest to me and I have well over 40 type of processors (both analog and digital) that are designed to enhance spatial cues; but they are and do not claim to be anything other than "audio processors". I'm actually able to manipulate the stereo image as I wish in either the digital or analog domain with these processors to obtain my desired effect.

Roger Paul claims to be able to correct "Velocity Errors" captured by his "Doppler Detectors" and claims to do all this in the classic straight-wire with gain approach; so we go back to the WTC...

Let me ask you a series of questions that will shed some insight into the H-CAT (at least for me):

1. Does it have great dynamic range or does the volume/spl of the presentation seem to stay on an average level?

2. When you play the "soundstage" track (track # 10) on the Stereophile Test CD#2 where the person is clapping from one side wall (one edge of the stage) to the other and then from the far wall all the way back up the stage (Piano), does the sound presentation follow the diagram and the description on the CD booklet of what took place? Or does most of the sound appear to originate from the middle?

Give me the answers to those two questions as they may shed some insight into what "non-process" he's using.

Others on this forum and on Audioasylum have claimed that adjusting the WTC controller has no effect so it makes me wonder if this is 100% a placebo effect.

Whatever is potted in those encapsulated components is either manipulating and enhancing the spatial image as you claim or is not doing anything as Roger Paul claims.

I'll await your responses.

Carlos269, when you are on the right spot, it does sound louder. It is not placebo. I have had six different people here who always got to the same value while I changed the WTC. What you hear is a place where the soundstage suddenly becomes vivid and real. The bass is tight and deep, the attack sharp, and the top end sharp and sweet.

I will have to see if I even have the Stereophile Test cd#2. Is that the one with the garage door? I just checked. I only have the Test cd, not #2.

I suspect that those not hearing it have units that are not broken in, but I cannot understand why some cannot hear polarity differences. I have had that happen even in my highly revealing system.

Man, I was just looking at your "system." Is that your listening room or a storage area? I cannot believe that much of this stuff is connected; is it?

Carlos, I know there have been many attempts to "enhance" imagining. IMHO all are disasters and there are none in my system.

Also while I find power cords to be quite important with some being outstanding, IMHO I cannot stand any ac isolation transformer, regenerator, balance power unit, or ac filter. I use only the Acoustic Revive RTP-6 plug in strip with an IsoClean wall outlet on one dedicated line.

I also have found the Halcyonics active isolation base to far exceed any other isolation component. The Acapella Silencio base is pretty good. Since I can only afford three Halcyonics, I have to use them under my digital and vinyl sources and the other under my amp. It may be that my ac purity and magic isolation allows me to hear benefits from the H-Cat that are denied others.