Erroneous

Nice! Sounds fun. Good friends!

Interested in seeing impressions on +/- vs. Walnut.

@Syzygy I'll ask those in attendance to put forth some general thoughts later.

Hope you’re doing ok. Please continue to share if it helps at all.

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's difficult to lose someone who means that much to you.

I truly sympathize, went through something similar with my maternal grandmother who lived with us. Music + booze tends to stoke my emotions with memories of her, as well as others who left too soon. My condolences to you, and easier to say it rather than to hear it but thankful she completed her life's journey in relative peace.

svp loan to me next with the appropriate shipping protections. :)

I get anxiety just hearing the word "portfolio." Goes back to grade school where I fell like I am already WAY behind.

Spending a ton of money to make some other money doesn't sound amazing. Personal investing beyond the normal 401k stuff is probably better. We are looking into franchises for sure, just trying to make sure we have an overall plan rather than a "big idea" type thing going on. Thankfully we have a few income streams at the moment, but we're both 40-ish and trying to push forward smartly.

(And hopefully continue to have multiple incomes, and more than we have now, in retirement if the world doesn't blow up before then.)

Hopefully you won't be driving 10-12 hrs/day to different parts of the city to do measurements, installs, and marketing. If you'll be doing the work, make sure it's work you won't mind doing. And if you'll be hiring employees to do it, there's a whole other can of worms.

I know that buying a franchise is buying a "proven system" (hopefully proven), but I wonder if you need a franchise at all for window treatments?

@Syzygy I think it's about hitting the ground running and having processes in place, ground already well worn, vendor relationships, training, complete platform for managing the business, basically taking the easy way out. I can sell anything (I think), and have a career based on sales and management.
I've started calling franchise owners and asking their opinions. We'll see what they say.

Find out if you're gonna have to scam people in order to make it work or to get what you want out of it. I'm not saying, "Don't be a crook." That's a given. I'm saying find out if there's some crooked aspect to it that's hard to avoid in order to make a decent living. It's not a fun question to look into, but you're *much* better off knowing.

No one has talked about this DAC in years but it already sounds good with a new Sparkos 2 channel opamp and a GE 5 star tube in it. Let's see what happens when I drop some crazy caps in it.

"Suspect? How can it not know what it is?"
https://darko.audio/2010/08/mhdt-paradisea-nos-tube-dac/

I certainly wasn't planning on listening to music during this time, so that's cool. Heck, I may as well spend 3-4 hours on it since I've tried all available resources.

And this is why I still have CDs and vinyl, against my wife's repeated wishes.

I woke up this morning and Roon magically fixed itself while I was sleeping. Woo!

Ahhhhh, that's a whole mood for sure. I've got a time during one day out of the week when the neighbors don't complain. I keep the bass lined-up...

Aphex Twin, T69 Collapse. Sounds Really good on PortaPro. I bet it will slam.

Immediately no: Jnog, Modius

Ok but not great: Enog 2 Pro

Pretty damn good: Gungnir Multibit A1 and A2 (both normal and bleached)
Audio Research DAC 1-20 MkIII,
Holo Spring 2 level 2, Bifrost 2,

Might be my new favorite: Walnut

Old DAC: Yggdrasil A2

Interesting.

Haven't thought Aeolus characterizes preference. But now starting to think that way as after months of effort I couldn't like it (not meaning it sounds terrible but overall underwhelming relative to what I easily love) with any pads available at the moment. Elimination was an easy decision and I don't miss it to date. Maybe I have to hear it again.

Out of curiosity which pads do you use?

Universe Suede.
Regarding Mg, I just find it kinda bland. I'm still going to listen to it each night I have it, because I want to believe that I just don't "get" it yet and I'm going to have a lightbulb moment.

I too fell for Utopia, many years ago. But I think the headphone is a little wonky - needs specific system configuration to sound best. Not indicative of a "bad" system.

It's hard not to fall for the Utopia, it's a headphone everyone should experience for a bit and a good candidate for long term use. I still maintain Stellaris + Utopia is the best one can get without going full bananas.

It’s a damn amazing headphone. I’d love to go back to it but I fear it’s for reclining couch listening or bed listening. That clamp force though..

I love it, cringe or not. I think this dude needs a hug tho.

What inspired this post?

@DigMe Listened to the album "Still" by NIN, was surprised by the production. Hadn't listened to them in years. Dude's whiny, sad, needs a hug (but I still like it) and you can hear things coming from all around you on the record. I don't go listen to their normal records when I revisit them, it seems. It's the remix records that suck me in.

I wish I thought DAC comparisons are fun ;) Beyond the outliers, they all sound so similiar.

I wouldn't pay more than $1200 for it. the yggdrasil is still better

I love my Theta.

I remember it sounded impressively thick and bold. From the memory, general tone largely resemble Bifrost 2. Maybe I'd describe it BF2 on a steroid. More organic, punchier, but tad less resolving (the unit heard could be a bad one).

Nonetheless, I had to laugh at the asking price.. 1750. lmafo. My maximum willingness to pay is around 800 if it's in a really great shape.