Any Music Reference tube amp fans here? ......

joeinid

joeinid

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Thanks to another member (thanks Bruce !!!) I bought a Music Reference RM-200 tube amp. I had some initial hesitation with biasing (my fault) and with Bruce's help, swapped some tubes and biased the amp. I played it and liked it, but for some reason I never gave it the attention it deserves. Until a few days ago.

:exciting: I put it back in my system using the TADs, C2300 pre, and Lumin (my main source now). I am seriously blown away at how amazing this amp sounds. Full meaty tone with depth and separation. Bass in spades. The best of tube and solid state. It's like when I hooked up my CJ amps, I could not listen enough. I am getting the same feeling and hate to pull myself away from my music. This amp is stunning!
 
I think the fun of new tubes or solid state is you learn to hear the new nuances in pieces of music you have heard but now hear slightly differently and hopefully you learn to appreciate those new elements more or at least differently. I think it is an indirect way of "mixing" your own sound preferences in some ways. I have an old Cal Tjader recording and the 100th time I was alone with my new IC and preamp at the time & I suddenly heard very subtle background audible conversation of the sound engineers as this was a live recording. It was so cool that eguipment changes allowed me to go deeper so to speak into my music. I also love some new harmonics or more air or bass thump just by changing tubes or an amp. I think Joe and Mike really learn that multiple combinations don't yield just the perfect sound or wider soundstage but allow you to get a new sound or presentation that brings new life to recordings they have enjoyed but now has a new quality or flavor. This pursuit keeps our hobby fresh and always changing. I hope most enjoy the ride rather than get frustrated as an all in one perfect sound probably does not exist and often our ears eventually get somewhat bored by identical sounding listening sessions.

Nick
 
Nick,

Thank you so much for saying that. You've said it better than I ever could. That's exactly how I feel. There's no such thing as the perfect system or sound. Having different gear to mix and match makes me appreciate certain combinations of gear, discover and rediscover my music all over again. Thinking back to my most recent listening session, I smile and realize that what I want has been right here all along. The latest and greatest speaker or piece of gear is not always the most desirable in the long run. It's all good!
 
veindoc said:
I think the fun of new tubes or solid state is you learn to hear the new nuances in pieces of music you have heard but now hear slightly differently and hopefully you learn to appreciate those new elements more or at least differently. I think it is an indirect way of "mixing" your own sound preferences in some ways. I have an old Cal Tjader recording and the 100th time I was alone with my new IC and preamp at the time & I suddenly heard very subtle background audible conversation of the sound engineers as this was a live recording. It was so cool that eguipment changes allowed me to go deeper so to speak into my music. I also love some new harmonics or more air or bass thump just by changing tubes or an amp. I think Joe and Mike really learn that multiple combinations don't yield just the perfect sound or wider soundstage but allow you to get a new sound or presentation that brings new life to recordings they have enjoyed but now has a new quality or flavor. This pursuit keeps our hobby fresh and always changing. I hope most enjoy the ride rather than get frustrated as an all in one perfect sound probably does not exist and often our ears eventually get somewhat bored by identical sounding listening sessions.

Nick
Click to expand...

The post of the year.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
...often our ears eventually get somewhat bored by identical sounding listening sessions
Click to expand...

So many are continually changing their good equipment. A drug to combat perhaps is changing player software.


And the use of VST plugins to emulate the sound of the tubes when we are tired from a more neutral sound, I say.

-> https://www.google.com/search?q=tube+vst+plugin

Nauscopio Scipiorum foobar2000 + TAL-Tube (VST plugin): amplificación valvular simulada



After the addition of the Schaffner filters (RFI/EMI) and retouching bias, my current setup is very similar to this (and without EQ):



My other player:

Nauscopio Scipiorum 1by1 1.81 BASS “nauscopico”, the best sound (quality) player in windows, I think

Before, with more RFI/EMI and without reducing the bias of the amplifier.



At present, without Enhancer and Equalizer!!! :P
 
veindoc said:
I think the fun of new tubes or solid state is you learn to hear the new nuances in pieces of music you have heard but now hear slightly differently and hopefully you learn to appreciate those new elements more or at least differently. I think it is an indirect way of "mixing" your own sound preferences in some ways. I have an old Cal Tjader recording and the 100th time I was alone with my new IC and preamp at the time & I suddenly heard very subtle background audible conversation of the sound engineers as this was a live recording. It was so cool that eguipment changes allowed me to go deeper so to speak into my music. I also love some new harmonics or more air or bass thump just by changing tubes or an amp. I think Joe and Mike really learn that multiple combinations don't yield just the perfect sound or wider soundstage but allow you to get a new sound or presentation that brings new life to recordings they have enjoyed but now has a new quality or flavor. This pursuit keeps our hobby fresh and always changing. I hope most enjoy the ride rather than get frustrated as an all in one perfect sound probably does not exist and often our ears eventually get somewhat bored by identical sounding listening sessions.

Nick
Click to expand...

Really great post Nick.
 
Nick...agree as the rest have said. Different flavors for different moods. I personally think in some ways this phenomenon is really psychologically driven in the sense that once one acclimates to the sound of a particular system, the lack of hearing new aspects begins to satiate less and less and to drive the search for something new and different more and more (in many ways, it's like a drug addiction or pick your poison but as the effects of the stimulant wear off, then the need for something else kicks in). I believe audiophilia addiction really manifests itself in a very similar way. Once you acclimatize you search for a sonic aspect that is different and new (sometimes taking a step forward in sonic terms in terms of resolution, staging, neutrality, naturalness, realness, whatever your thing(s) may be, and sometimes not).

So the journey for many is really that continuous chase of the new thrill, the new experience, that sonic signature which is different from what we have become used to with our current systems. It is interesting if as Mike, Joe and many other members have done, if you have multiple systems or gear of different designs/topologies/et...that have different sonic signatures, if one continues to mix and match throughout a period of time, if that keeps things fresh and keeps the search for the new at bay, or if after a while, one gets used to what one has says no matter what and the search for the new kicks in?
 
cmalak said:
Nick...agree as the rest have said. Different flavors for different moods. I personally think in some ways this phenomenon is really psychologically driven in the sense that once one acclimates to the sound of a particular system, the lack of hearing new aspects begins to satiate less and less and to drive the search for something new and different more and more (in many ways, it's like a drug addiction or pick your poison but as the effects of the stimulant wear off, then the need for something else kicks in). I believe audiophilia addiction really manifests itself in a very similar way. Once you acclimatize you search for a sonic aspect that is different and new (sometimes taking a step forward in sonic terms in terms of resolution, staging, neutrality, naturalness, realness, whatever your thing(s) may be, and sometimes not).

So the journey for many is really that continuous chase of the new thrill, the new experience, that sonic signature which is different from what we have become used to with our current systems. It is interesting if as Mike, Joe and many other members have done, if you have multiple systems or gear of different designs/topologies/et...that have different sonic signatures, if one continues to mix and match throughout a period of time, if that keeps things fresh and keeps the search for the new at bay, or if after a while, one gets used to what one has says no matter what and the search for the new kicks in?
Click to expand...

Any more of these insightful well articulated posts and we're going to need to sticky this thread! :eyebrow:

Nice post Cyril.
 
Agree with Cyril's eloquent words. I wish this epiphany was available to me in my earlier audiophile life. Like many things(except Lima beans) in life, time has helped me appreciate things that I initially thought were flawed or imperfect. I hated the first time i heard Neil Young & Dylans voice. It took years and life experiences to appreciate the heartache, passion and sadness their voices were able to convey. My audiophile journey and musical tastes get richer and more enjoyable with the passage of time.
Nick
 
I am ready to buy this amp to mix up with my Job 225 amp. It is hard to find on the used market so time will tell how soon I get to buy one.
 
2glory said:
I am ready to buy this amp to mix up with my Job 225 amp. It is hard to find on the used market so time will tell how soon I get to buy one.
Click to expand...

They show up on Audiogon with some regularity. Not Metamucil regular mind you.
 
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