Thanks for the invitation, Kristof. Like theophile, I tend to be a sort of lone wolf on AK, and I waunder from forum to forum as my interests and projects change and morph. It's great to have a solid friend all the way around the other side of the world in Belgium.
AK is not the only forum I belong to — although it is the only one I pay a subscription for. I am strieb over at Audio Karma where I sometimes hang out on the Curio Audio sponsored forum, Dynaco Doctor. And I couldn't resist joining DIY Audio, but I don't contribute much there. I used to belong to the Tuner Information Center forum, and I am credited with supplying some info they requested about Japanese models. I unsubscribed 'cuz I just don't have the time really. In fact, I sometimes just get lost from AK. When my teaching gets exhausting and the semester is peaking, I just don't have the energy or time for audio. But at the moment we are on the semester break and I am at the bench and listening again.
Say, Kristof, one of my latest projects is a Sony ST-5150 tuner. I changed out all the electrolytic caps and many of the film types to. I reflowed some solder and cleaned it up nicely. It sure has a lovely sound, but I am considering getting it aligned because I sometimes archive selections from broadcasts on a good cassette recorder. FM here in Japan is sparse — only two or three licenses per area out in the provinces. Most of this limited FM band pumps out garbage, but when the NHK gets it right, the product can be excellent, and I can see the transmission tower from my house.
Which brings me to my next thing — why don't you, me and your other friends consider trading CD burns through the mails. I spend so much time, and what little cash I have on parts and supplies. Software never gets enough attention. Besides, I am in a place that is flooded with J-Pops, the most boring music genre ever conceived. Other stuff is around, but it is commercial and expensive.
I like many kinds of music: blues, Baroque, classical, ethnic, rock, folk, traditional blah blah ... but sorry ... not hip-hop and it's cousins. I love African music. In the heyday of vinyl, you could often rely on movie score recordings to be poor, dull recordings. But, these days are different and some great soundtrack music can be found in Redbook form.
I use vinyl, but my collection is not large and I've not added much to it recently. I'm still into Redbook and have not gone to the new formats — and I don't expect to soon. I'm using an old Yamaha CDX 1020 (a domestic version) whcih I sometimes pair up with a Monica II DAC. The Yammy is a marvelous player — despite its age. There is a big thread on the CDX models.
Well, nice to hear from you. Keep 'em spinning, and best regards — Lorne