Audio-Ultra 'mini-Audio show' today near Seattle--Fremer is there--a fun time

M

Mike Lavigne

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east of Seattle
started around noon yesterday. today starts at 9am. our Shark member Ed DiVito (Ultrafast69) runs Audio-Ultra (he was also with Rex, Shark member Kingrex, doing the electrical help for Michael Fremer at his home......Stereophile write-up this month.....Rex is not part of Audio Ultra).

i got there about 4pm and stayed till around 6pm. the session i enjoyed was Michael Fremer playing some really fine pressings on a Kuzma tt and 4-point arm, Ortofon Winfield cartridge, Boulder phono, D'Agostino preamp, MSB 500 stereo amp, and Magico S5 speakers, and Magico Q-sub (Magico A5's are also in-room). it's a big room and they were getting really great sound, maybe the occasional bass overload, but only occasional and Fremer was cranking it. it was a fun session as it always is with Fremer DJ'ing. i'm planning on returning today when i can.

i've heard Magico's and MSB amps before, and these were more mid-line Magico's, but this sound was better than my memory of those more spendy M6 versions. maybe it was the Fremer pressings? don't know, did not hear the digital.

it's at a very nice up-scale hotel near SeaTac airport.

there are MSB Reference and Select dacs, and a Taiko Extreme music server too, so this is the real deal to hear what digital can do.....the same gear i have.

some of these pressings Michael played are unobtainium 'Fremer-only' stuff and i was impressed by what i heard. crazy how a great pressing simply lifts the sound of any system. a dominant aspect of our hobby. i was able to talk to Michael for 10+ minutes before the session, i'm still processing all the stuff he said. he is a treasure (and i appreciated him tolerating me).

bravo to Ed and his team for giving us an 'audio show' experience that we are so starved for, then pulling it off so splendidly his first go-around. i'm impressed.

The Listening Room | Current Events | Audio-Ultra
 
Would have loved to have been there. I’m sure it was fun!
 
Ultrafast69 (Ed) is a dealer? Why is this not disclosed in his signature? Why is this the first I’m hearing about it?

Come on guys….my patience is running out with this shit. The rules are simple. Follow them or I’ll ban all dealers/pretend dealers/faux dealers.


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Mike said:
Ultrafast69 (Ed) is a dealer? Why is this not disclosed in his signature? Why is this the first I’m hearing about it?

Come on guys….my patience is running out with this shit. The rules are simple. Follow them or I’ll ban all dealers/pretend dealers/faux dealers.


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he has not posted here since late 2020, and he's only been a dealer 6 months or so. this year sometime. i'm assuming there is no issue then? if he posts, then he needs to disclose? right?

did i mess up by referencing him as a member? or Kingrex? i just want to know the mine field i'm walking in here. i just thought members in the Seattle area would want to know about this.

tried to PM you, your PM box shows full.
 
Mike Lavigne said:
he has not posted here since late 2020, and he's only been a dealer 6 months or so. this year sometime. i'm assuming there is no issue then? if he posts, then he needs to disclose? right?

did i mess up by referencing him as a member? or Kingrex? i just want to know the mine field i'm walking in here. i just thought members in the Seattle area would want to know about this.

tried to PM you, your PM box shows full.
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No Mike, you did absolutely nothing wrong and I appreciate being advised that he’s a dealer. A dealer with some very familiar lines I might add.

I’m glad the show is a success, I’m happy for the folks of Seattle, but please understand things from my perspective. I spent time trying to pull teeth to dissect and understand Bob’s new V”venture and all I’m trying to avoid is situations where we have a dealer who’s not disclosing things and pumping up a brand or product or as we’ve just recently seen, a reviewer who didn’t disclose he was a dealer for the damn product he just reviewed!

It’s like a game of whack a mole.


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I've known Ed and Rex (two separate topics) quite well for a few years. Rex is a Master Electrician who shares his knowledge on a lot of forums as he's an audionut first and foremost
but does not forage for business there.

Ed has hasn't posted from what I can tell here or anywhere else, same as Mike/others have pointed out, for about 6 months. I'd also say he has no idea any of us have posted
about his event either. What he has done from what I know is gone out of pocket in a BIG way the last 6 months to fire up something he's been passionate about for a while. He's
got his own website, Facebook pages and Instagram feeds going; that much I know for sure. What he has NOT done is piggyback on anybody else's sites or forums.

Like the post here, I posted elsewhere about his event and seemed to stir up questions; that's not the intention. The intent like Mike L's was to say these kinds of events of any kind
are great for an industry that needs all the events it can get as there have been ZERO since 2019 until recently for the most part due to COVID-19 and an overabundance of caution.

This is not at all the murky 'other' situation that's popped up recently here. It is also not related to something else posted on a forum starting with a "W" where people are trying
to claim that while they've invested what must be huge amounts of money in listening rooms in multiple cities, high-cost spaces and even higher cost lines of gear and speakers
that they are somehow doing it for the good of audiophiles and it's "not to sell anything". Yeah sure, that's believable <LOL>

I think the overall topic on this thread is good for audio and not in conflict with anyone's business. No offense is meant by this post so please bear that in mind.
 
SCAudiophile said:
I've known Ed and Rex (two separate topics) quite well for a few years. Rex is a Master Electrician who shares his knowledge on a lot of forums as he's an audionut first and foremost
but does not forage for business there.

Ed has hasn't posted from what I can tell here or anywhere else, same as Mike/others have pointed out, for about 6 months. I'd also say he has no idea any of us have posted
about his event either. What he has done from what I know is gone out of pocket in a BIG way the last 6 months to fire up something he's been passionate about for a while. He's
got his own website, Facebook pages and Instagram feeds going; that much I know for sure. What he has NOT done is piggyback on anybody else's sites or forums.

Like the post here, I posted elsewhere about his event and seemed to stir up questions; that's not the intention. The intent like Mike L's was to say these kinds of events of any kind
are great for an industry that needs all the events it can get as there have been ZERO since 2019 until recently for the most part due to COVID-19 and an overabundance of caution.

This is not at all the murky 'other' situation that's popped up recently here. It is also not related to something else posted on a forum starting with a "W" where people are trying
to claim that while they've invested what must be huge amounts of money in listening rooms in multiple cities, high-cost spaces and even higher cost lines of gear and speakers
that they are somehow doing it for the good of audiophiles and it's "not to sell anything". Yeah sure, that's believable

I think the overall topic on this thread is good for audio and not in conflict with anyone's business. No offense is meant by this post so please bear that in mind.
Click to expand...

That’s very well said, but given the murky situation and several others that have arisen like reading 9000 complaints about a certain political shit disturber who’s no longer here, I’m a little touchy about things and need to ensure the rules are followed. No matter how good the intentions are, they have to be followed so someone isn’t thinking “oh look, Ed is a seafood distributor and raving about a product I might be interested in. That’s unbiased.” Not all the while knowing he’s a dealer.

And for the record, my sources tell me he’s been at this for nearly 2 years….not 6 months. Date of incorporation is June 2020. Just saying….

Wish him all the best.


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Mike said:
That’s very well said, but given the murky situation and several others that have arisen like reading 9000 complaints about a certain political shit disturber who’s no longer here, I’m a little touchy about things and need to ensure the rules are followed. No matter how good the intentions are, they have to be followed so someone isn’t thinking “oh look, Ed is a seafood distributor and raving about a product I might be interested in. That’s unbiased.” Not all the while knowing he’s a dealer.

And for the record, my sources tell me he’s been at this for nearly 2 years….not 6 months. Date of incorporation is June 2020. Just saying….

Wish him all the best.


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Noted and completely understandable!

As to your sources and as far as date of incorporation I know nothing about that. I gave the six month number as that is when I have 100% direct
and personal knowledge and photos of gear, Instagram traffic, etc...coming in and taking shape.

There's nothing murky about my word as that is bond and it's all I really have in life.
 
Mike said:
And for the record, my sources tell me he’s been at this for nearly 2 years….not 6 months. Date of incorporation is June 2020. Just saying….

Wish him all the best.


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Click to expand...

note that it was me who said.....

he's only been a dealer 6 months or so. this year sometime.
Click to expand...

......which was based on when it hit my radar. Ed himself has not said anything anywhere, that i've seen, about how long he has been doing this. he is not hiding anything.

oh and btw, almost forgot......oh yeah! MUSIC!!!! today at the mini-show it was fun. and i have to say that i listened to Magico's (S5 MK2) today for 4 hours, and at no time was i aware of any sort of fatigue, tipped up FR, or sense of non-musicality. the Q-Sub 15 did a nice job of providing a bit of extra weight and completeness to the picture. it was over-ripe from time to time, but considering show conditions and only minimal set-up time, i was impressed.

i have a new found level of admiration for Magico, at least with the Q Sub 15. Peter did a great job of selling the tech features of the Magico line up. classy guy.

previously i had always commented relative to Magico, that i had never 'loved them' and that i had never heard them in a mature system where they were really fine tuned. no longer will i need to go there. i guess who cares? well, i do. nice to know they could be options for me. you never know.
 
As I’ve gotten to know him, he’s really a seafood distributor, and that’s his main business. And he’s first and foremost an audionut, who’s been tinkering with his private system for way longer than two years. Our paths crossed when he bought the same DAC for his system I’m still using in mine (and a brand he’s not representing).

Probably over time he’s thought why not try developing a hobby into business. I remember a certain person from Florida doing exactly the same a couple years back. What I don’t know, is whether it’s still a trial or if it’s an actual business.

Agreed, once flogging audio goods also plain hobbyists like myself appreciate openness. But I’ve not seen anywhere an attempt on Ed’s side trying to be cavalier about it. All in all, I also think a small scale special interest event in Washington State with Mikey that Mike L is sharing, probably done as a thank you for fixing his electricity, might more benefit the audiophile community than it harms anyone else. But that’s just me.


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