Bristol Show - Saturday meet up with Titian

So now after the trip back home and one working day, I've got a little time to write my impressions about this weekend.

After the pleasent flight to London and a fantastic chineese dinner with Lee and Joe, we installed the Klyne and listened to music at Lee's wonderful place.
On Saturday as you all know we went to the show. Lots of you are wondering why at all I went there.
Well first of all I wanted to meet the people who write in Zerogain. I believe contact with people is more important than any gear.
Then it was a good occasion to hear and see personally the stuff you all write about.

I liked the show very much because I saw a lot of members. I hardly remember all those names though I find it was a pity I couldn't talk more to each of the guys over there. I will certainly have time in the future to do that since this wasn't the last time I came to meet you.
Of course listening to the gear took most of the time. With my bodyguards (Ian, Lee and Robbo) we went through the several floors / rooms.

The quality level was not what I am used to (to say the truth) but it seems that also several of you didn't find the level so high.
I would like to mention though some points which we should keep in consideration:
- the exhibitors have very little time to set up their components and therefore there is no time for tuning, adapting the system to the room and so on.
- the exhibitors are also under lot of stress so even if they had time to tune their systems, the results wouldn't be the same as a stress-free situation.
- some units resp. loudspeakers were a few days old so they never had time to break in.
- all components had to be turned off at night time (isn't it Tone! ). This doesn't also help very much for high quality.

Instead of other people, I don't believe that the small rooms or the 'bad' acoustic is the problem of the low musical quality shown. I believe that very high quality stuff would sound nice in any room.

When I was hearing the music they played on many systems I said to myself: 'not bad at all'. But as soon as I tried to purify the system with the Hallelujah from Händel's Messiah, I had to change 'slightly' my mind. It must have been a question of religion.

But anyway there were lots of people happy with what they heard and that's what counts at the end .

The ZG meeting in the 7V/Omiga room after hours was great fun too. Many thanks to Tone and Steve for the kind invitation. Maybe after the long day, with all those other systems blowing away my ears, I wasn't fresh enough to make a definitive opinion about the 7V speakers. I had the impression they could be clearer but that I said for all the speakers in the hotel. Maybe that's a sign that after the operation, the week before, my ears haven't yet recovered (I had problems of pressure with the left ear, maybe because of the anastetics or maybe just a cold?).

Many thanks go to Lee for the excellent hospitality and his great patience to have a guy like me around for a few days and also to Ian who actually was the first person who was brave enough to come to visit me for the first time.

I hope I will get to know more and more ZG members in the future.

And as you know you are all kindly invited at my place.

regards

titian

PS: One of the few gear that I liked was the Cabasse Baltic II with the Thor Artis subwoofer.

 

Seventh Veil's 1st Annual Pipe & Slippers Award.

Many thanks everyone who came and listened at our room this year and thanks for your comments. I enjoyed the show tremendously and it was a great learning experience.

A special thank you also to Wayne and Woody from Voodoo for the tremendous support they gave us (and for the tremendous support they gave us).

By Sunday we'd sussed that you can't please everyone and that we should play to our strengths. The funniest moment for me came when the room was quiet for a few minutes and Tone said: "For God's sake put 'Plink in the Pawn Shop' on". The pained expression on his face when I did will be with me for a long time. It was almost worth the room price for that alone.

Therefore, Seventh Veil's 1st Annual Pipe & Slippers Award goes to Tone (W-M). Many thanks for your help mate. You're a hero.

 

Well what can I say I humbly accept the award on behalf of all culturely challenged users of music reproduction equipment every where :cry: :cry: Although sanity was restored today, Big 'W' we released from the constraints of the weekend & is now back to 'Full Power Captain', but just one last thanks to ALL those who came along CHEERS Wm

 

I couldn't make it down to work, but would have liked to.

Glad you all enjoyed yourself, and hopefully i'll drag MOself along to a future one. I've not been to a show for yeeeeeears!

 

Well I think that we may go for two rooms at Heathrow in September - 'Plink' and 'Non-Plink'.

 

Damn - gutted I missed everyone - Heathrow anyone??

I would have been curious to see the new Rega decks and hear a CD5i that DIDN'T make me want to :cry: :chunder: - I can only assume the one Hifi Choice reviewed had been burnt in at 300 degrees C, 'cos I'd not pay £82.50 for the one I heard - let alone £825! Hearing Allaes sing must have been a rare event, Henry I wander though how the Arrivas (if they don't turn up late, rip you off on the bus fare and then don't stop when you ask!! - though of course, if they have lumpy timing, thuddy bass and "Reference" range pricetags they'll do all three at once!) stack up - they're similar looking to my Elas, but might well have more bass. The quality of the bass is the thing that worries me.

Most importantly, was it all Snorah* and plinque, or was there real music for a change? *I don't mind Norah J, but it gets boring quick if you hear it more than a couple of times at a show

Oh - even more importantly - how was the beer!? I guess >£3 a pint though

 

Dom

beer was crap, no Guinness
and plastic cups

but, first time i went to the bar the barmaid shoved £6.80 in my hand before taking my order

 

Enjoyed the show myself! I have to say I agree Technobear, the most outstanding things for me would have been the Audiovector room! These guys knew their stuff and the speaker really blew me away. Very tempted by the £1600 floorstander which can be upgraded...fantastic! Would be quite an upgrade from my 42's with the Cyrus electronics I feel...

Also loved the Audience 52SE's...great punch and detail...much more value for money than the Contour s1.4s.

The only other thing that took me was the little missions.. quite a speaker and in yer face sound but looked great too.

Anyone else heard those Audiovectors?

Cheers..

Iain