SBAF Brotherly Luv/member shout out thread

Discussion in 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' started by dumbo, Jun 1, 2018.

  1. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    I couldn't find an equivalent thread so I'm going to take the initiative on this one.

    There are people who have an influence (big or small) on your audio journey, people who illuminate new insight into areas you may have previously ignored or just weren't aware of. And it doesn't necessarily have to be audio. Could be anything. Why not have a place to shower shameless praise and kudos on these wonderful souls?

    I recently purchased the ZMF Auteur from @k4rstar. Who graciously accommodated all my pestering questions before I pulled the trigger. Fast shipping and pleasant interaction.

    The Auteur is a wonderful headphone made by @zach915m. I had previously been a die hard Sennheiser fanboy, having owned the HD558, HD600 (my first audiophile can), HD650 and HD800. I'm a pretty loyal guy (with gear and with people). Once I find a brand that ticks all my boxes, I tend to stick with them... and it is very hard to gain my trust, especially in this industry. Too much potential for wasted funds on mediocre gear. The safe bet is to stick with what proves itself consistently. And Sennheiser was that for me.

    I had briefly heard the Aeolus months ago, but it was meet conditions and I didn't get enough head time for them to leave any meaningful impression. And I was Sennheiser guy anyway.

    But @DEATHxMACHINE kindly reached out and loaned me his Convert2 DAC (amazing piece of gear) and Auteur. Once they arrived, I had a brief intial listen to the Auteur, but again, the ZMF didn't make much of an impression and the C2 got most of my attention. In reality I was too closed off to new headphones because, as I said before, I was such a die hard loyalist and not easily swayed. My HD600/Torpedo3 was too powerful a combination for the spell to be broken.

    After a while, and a bit bored, I strapped on the Auteur again, wanting to at least give them the respect of a longer listen since I had been gifted them in a loaner.

    And then it happened... I kept listening. And something just clicked. The great thing about the Auteur is that it sounds so bloody natural that it can easily be mistaken for boring, or maybe quaint is a better term. It doesn't have the forwardness or pizzazz of the Sennheisers. And that's where it's brilliance lies. It's more about the music and less about the technology. And it's easy to see that as being some kind of philosophy on Zach's part. If it is, he's achieved that with the Auteur in spades.

    So big shout-out to @k4rstar for being patient and expedient, @zach915m for creating a masterpiece, and last but not least @DEATHxMACHINE for being the door that opened me to a new and better listening experience. Cheers.
     
  2. Skyline

    Skyline Double-blindly done with this hobby

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    Great idea.

    Huge shout-out to @sheldaze who sent me his Fulla 2 free of charge. It's serving me wonderfully in my work setup alongside the HD58X.

    If I ever move on from it, I'll certainly extend the same generosity back to the SBAF family.

    Thanks again!
     
  3. E_Schaaf

    E_Schaaf MOT: E.T.A Headphones

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    IIRC there was a thread similar to this one but I can't find it. Thread title was something along the lines of "name the one person who was most influential to your audio journey". A lot of people mentioned Tyll - I think it was around the time he retired.

    Anyway, there should always be space for more wholesome content!

    Shout-out to @captkirk, @BillOhio, @Clemmaster, @Cspirou, @brencho, and @Ray (rest in peace) - I've had extended loaners from all of these guys, many of which involved products that were way out of my league price-wise, or involved DIY components that can't simply be easily found. Definitely helped me root my feet in finding my own aesthetic preferences when it comes to audio reproduction, and also balance where I feel comfortable in the price-performance spectrum.

    Also shoutout to LFF and @cskippy , whose work on HFM headphones definitely paved the way for much experimentation on my behalf.

    And @zach915m too, who clearly demonstrates to aspiring modders-turned-business-owners that there is a place for new ideas in the personal audio space, and that sometimes the KISS principle yields better products and designs than the self-absorbed, extremely-high-budget R&D operations by many much-larger manufacturers. Truly inspiring.

    And of course @Vansen and @ChaChaRealSmooth for making the loaner experience smooth for Friends - I'm sure a lot of work goes on behind the scenes to make the Loaner programs work as easily as they do.

    Moderators, SBAF staff, etc too for doing the necessary gatekeeping to make this place have the culture, content-quality, and reputation it does.

    edit - now that I think about it there are quite a few other members I'd give a shoutout to as well (if we've had a positive interaction, you know who you are), but I can't possibly tag everyone!
     
    Last edited: Aug 14, 2019
  4. tommytakis

    tommytakis MOT: E.T.A Headphones

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    ahhhhh this is so wholesome, I love it @ColtMrFire ! I always enjoy reading your impressions and I hope to be as great as you at writing impressions one day.

    @Zampotech for always being friendly and accommodating whether it's a friend or a rando. I was a rando when I first conversed with him asking about the ZDT Jr. mod and he was part of the many reasons why I decided to stop lurking and participate in SBAF. And let's not forget his new amp, Shortest Way, that a lot of us are excited to hear!

    @Gaspasser I purchased a KISS modded HD650 from him recently at a great price and made me realize (again) why HD650 is such a classic and can stand toe-to-toe with TOTL headphones out today at a bargain price.

    @zach915m and @Donald North for creating beautiful masterpieces for us enthusiasts to enjoy and with never-failing kindness to their customers

    @E_Schaaf you probably don't remember me, but I called Upscale Audio one day to ask about the Verite and then we talked for a bit after I got to audition. You told me to check out SBAF and wrote your username in a piece of paper (sorry I never messaged you!) I don't think I would have been here if you didn't tell me about it.

    Overall, I'm quite happy for being part of this community. I'm still quite new to this hobby, and I've learned quite a lot through reading the members' impressions and directly from members when asked for help. It's small, but close-knit group with a healthy-dose of spice and craziness
     
  5. shotgunshane

    shotgunshane Floridian Falcon

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    @james444 for being the best damn iem modder on the planet.
     
  6. Biodegraded

    Biodegraded Friend

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  7. gixxerwimp

    gixxerwimp Professional tricycle rider

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    @deafdoorknob for being my IEM and cable guru :bow:

    He's sent me stuff to try out and sold me several items at very reasonable prices. Also contributes a lot of useful info to the various IEM threads.

    Make this guy a friend already!
     
    Last edited: Aug 15, 2019
  8. Biodegraded

    Biodegraded Friend

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    More applause for @sheldaze for offering his personal Liquid Platinum for a loaner tour.
     
  9. GTABeancounter

    GTABeancounter Friend

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    I'd like to make a shout out to all the wives, husbands, partners, GF, BF, family members etc. who aren't enthusiasts but nevertheless have been supportive of (or at least have tolerated ;)) our respective journeys. :punk:
     
  10. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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    There's A LOT of people that are worth mentioning. So I'm just going to name one.

    The primary reason for me to join SBAF/Changstar was for the measurements. Which in this context I am very appreciative of @atomicbob and his output of high quality graphs.
     
    Last edited: Aug 15, 2019
  11. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    @famish99 has been pretty generous in loaning me stuff to try out or just welcoming me into his lovely home to listen to his Aficionado.

    And @Joshvar had a box of audio goodies he let me partake in.

    All around some good dudes in Austin.
     
  12. Jinxy245

    Jinxy245 Vegan Puss

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    I do like the concept of this, though it can seem a bit hollow or saccharine. Of course I may just be overly cynical.

    That being said there are so many that have had an influence it's hard to compile a list, at least for me.
    SBAF in and of itself has been integral to my development as a critical listener and music appreciator.

    I'd have to start by acknowledging @Pharmaboy since he is a neighbor & we've been able to swap gear liberally, which has been invaluable to me in my audio journey.

    Dealing with @zach915m from the very 1st time I met him at a Head-Fi meet was a revelation for me. That a MOT can be so approachable AND sincere just blew my mind.

    Every loaner has been an eye opener in many ways, so thanks go to every member who has been generous enough to take the risk of casting out their precious gear the the fates & homes of a bunch of people that they've (mostly) never met. Too many to mention and every one is appreciated, even if I personally haven't taken advantage myself.

    I also feel it's interesting that even the slightest nod or interaction in the beginning can mean a lot to someone. Tyll was of course instrumental with the creation of InnerFidelity an all he gave, but @ultrabike was quite active there as well, and often gave very helpful & kind advice to those noobs that were looking...I was one (veggieboy2001 at the time).

    Now that I've succeeded in fulfilling my own criticism, I guess I'll go ahead and shut up....
     
  13. ColtMrFire

    ColtMrFire Writes better fan fics than you

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    Forgot to mention @MisterRogers and his lovely gesture in loaning me his awesome DSHA 3F. A special amp anyone would be lucky to own.
     
  14. Pharmaboy

    Pharmaboy Friend

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    What a great idea for a thread!!

    I've been involved in audio (big 2-channel stuff) for decades. Got heavily into desktop audio 10-12 yrs ago, then headphones ~4 yrs ago. It quickly became an exercise in old-dog-learns-new-tricks.

    I had a LOT of help from @Jinxy245...opportunities to swap gear & learn from each other are priceless.

    A big shout-out to @zach915m: not only have his headphones been the core of my headphone journey (the ZMF "house sound" really is "the music in my head"), but meeting Zach & Bevin at shows has been great. Never encountered friendlier, more helpful/customer-oriented people before.

    And a shout-out to @ext1, with whom I had fascinating conversations about the HD650 & his wizard-level mods of it. It's due to him that I finally heard (& loved) a stock HD650 & his JAR650 mod. The JAR650 is a headphone I'll always keep nearby.

    The recurring theme in my time on SABF is how much we all seem to love music. Kudos to everyone on the "What are you listening to now," "Cover Songs," "jazz nuts," "Female vocals that shine," &"Classical Snobs" threads. I've encountered so much new music there.
     
  15. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    This one is really important because:
    stop looking at tube amps.jpg
    appreciation noted. Will try to tear myself away from RL work and selfish indulgence in Matrix XSP, ECP Audio T4, HD800J-mod listening and post some new measurements, especially the T4, a wonderful match to my personal preferences when equipped with Mullard CV4024.
     
  16. ChaChaRealSmooth

    ChaChaRealSmooth SBAF's Mr. Bean

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    Honestly @atomicbob, I'd much rather you enjoy yourself thoroughly and provide your measurements when you can. You deserve to enjoy this hobby as much as we do (or deserve more, perhaps).

    To be on topic, I'd really like to take a second to appreciate the staff here in two things: the work all of you put in to your respective roles (whether at the forefront or in the background), and for trusting me enough to allow me to join your ranks. This wasn't what I thought would happen joining this community, but it's been a pleasure and I hope for many more good times to come.
     
  17. Jerry

    Jerry Friend

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    Guys,

    I wanna say thanks to:
    1. @bengo for sending me a free dynamat a long time ago. I managed to mod my 650 and 6XX because of you, mate.

    2. @Ice-man for selling me his Forza cable and sent it all the way here. You're such an easy guy to deal with.

    3. @atomicbob for helping me measure my modi multibit. That took quite a bit of back and forth. Very patient friend indeed.
     
    Last edited: Aug 19, 2019
  18. bengo

    bengo Friend

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    You won't believe how far those teensy bits of left-over Dynamat travelled ... :D I should try to make a map.
     
  19. Jerry

    Jerry Friend

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    I can inagine haha. Arrived in tip top shape though :headbang:
     
  20. Lyander

    Lyander Official SBAF Equitable Empathizer

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    The original owner of the HD650s before didn't let me mod them so pending acquisition (which'll take a while...) I still have most of the sheets you sent over!

    Only got held up in post by maybe 2-3 months, which is nice.
     

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