Cobblefest MKII - Countryfest!!!

[RFGumby]

Thanks to all (and especially Aaron) for a nice time. :thmbsp:

I'm glad I took the time to attend this one as I had fun last year as well. If only there had been a little more time to hang out and reacquaint myself with familiar members. I sure did feel welcome though, a fine bunch of folks to spend some quality audio time with. I believe everyone enjoyed themselves, the rain subsided early in the afternoon and the sun came out, which made it a bit surreal from the standpoint of changing weather.

On the good side, I did make it back to my place in time to both skirt the storm front and not have my wife be angry, so basically win-win. And I was able to haul my gear back in before it rained again (Gary).

Aaron's place may be a ways out of town, but it was a lovely location and we didn't annoy any neighbors. He is a complete gentleman and we were blessed with a very nice group of people again. Looking forward to next year already!

 

[ejfud]

On the good side, I did make it back to my place in time to both skirt the storm front and not have my wife be angry, so basically win-win. And I was able to haul my gear back in before it rained again (Gary).

I would have been more than happy to have carried your beautiful OTL system home with me! Scott your builds are amazing.

Good to see you again and let's not let a year lapse again.

 

[bustedguild]

Couldn't make it down yesterday, unfortunately. I got out of the field at about 7:30 in Ashland, WI, and would have had a 3 hour drive to make it down there. Combine that with a grand total of 5 hours of sleep from the night before and many (many) blackfly bites and potential ticks crawling around, and I don't think I would have enjoyed myself very much. If there is truth to the Fall Fest rumors, I'll try and get myself to that one!

 

[avionic]

Just got back from Aarons Cobble-country fest.It was a great time .:thmbsp::yes:

 

[westend]

Great time, and as said, Aaron was the consumate host and has a beaut of a property. Good to see all the local crowd again and a couple bites of that grilled salmon was worth the ride, alone. When I left, around Midnite, they were putting more meat on the grill. It might be a little wait for pictures.

 

[NumbDiver]

Thanks to Aaron for hosting. Multiple systems in different areas worked pretty well. We got by with more sun than rain, which was a surprise. Also, thankfully Aaron has some great equipment of his own, so when we wanted to listen to an amp or receiver, we just put things in line of Aaron's existing gear.

-I gotta say, I was impressed with the quality of what showed up. I met a few guys I didn't know. Chuck in particular from the Audio Society, impressed the hell out of me not only with his knowledge, but also the beautiful custom 845 push-pull monoblocks he had cobbled (when you see these, you'll see why the word 'cobble' is an insult). They were incredible. :drool: Like Jeff and I are already thinking if we can pull this build off (and afford it); kind of incredible. You'll see (sadly, you won't hear).

-OTL ALERT!!! The custom reworked Atma-shpere M60's of Scott's, were works of art, as was his custom pre. They sounded as good as they looked. When you see the pics, you'll understand how great they sounded. This guy is amazing with not only the electronic/guts parts, but the custom CNC mill aluminum chassis are killer!:tresbon:

-Ron's (Doucanoe) AfterBurners (my name, not his. You'll understand when you see pics) were great when I heard them early, and got better and better throughout the day, as they spent hours tweaking with white noise sweeps and calibrated freq response software and mics. Wowzers. WAF was maybe a 2 (being generous here folks), but musically a 10. The judicious use of medical tape to mount the tweeters (I'm guessing there may have been bailing wire somewhere as well) was pure Cobble!

-I got a chance to hear Nate's (Redboy) new super-duper tweeters. Well...in truth I didn't hear them, or couldn't. Nate's much younger than I am, and I have no doubts he can hear them (I'm still working on selling him some magic beans). What they don't bring to the table in audibility, they somehow manage to tweak the upper register harmonics of any given tweeter, and add some airiness.

-Lance's (westend) big-gun system in the garage, did not disappoint. Lots of amps, eqs, cables, 10 cubic foot bass bins, subs, more amps, more cables, horns, Heils, and more cables. I was wondering if we should cross the street and put ear protection on the cows. I think they'll be fine.

-Dave (avionic) brought his custom mosfet gear again, and we used that, and Mark's Audio Research preamp, to run through a few different setups in the garage.

-Toby (who I've never met) brought the T-Rex/King Kong/MOAR (mother-of-all-receivers). A Sansui G33000 (I think. Correct me if I'm wrong). I'm not a receiver guy. Well, I wasn't before I saw/heard this monster. I didn't know such a thing existed. It's like a caricature of a receiver. Think microwave-oven sized. I think it pushes about 80Gazillion watts per channel or something. It comes with its own 3-phase 480v transformer (or it should).

-Jack, Mark, Bob: You guys rock the grills! Thank you! I missed Bob's food this year. I had to leave around 6:30pm for a party at my house. I'm guessing the steak and burgers are already gone.

-I 'spose the guys that leave early aren't in the pool for the doorprizes. Bummer. The tube holders and speaker wire elevators that Mark made for the event were awesome craftsmanship and just freakin' cool. I guess I did get a door prize of my own though; I was able to have a pour (or two), of Mark's 18yr Laphroig. It's a big peaty Islay scotch and one of my favorites.

-It was great seeing everyone else, that I forgot to mention here too!

-One more thing:
Scott. You gotta start feeling better about your manhood. Those power cables of yours? Ummm...you don't need to compensate for anything. You're among friends here.

Yes, I know:worthless

 

[jaymanaa]

:worthless Positive reinforcement

 

[Redboy]

No kiddin' about the pictures thing...

Guys, I've started a PICTURES thread here so they don't get lost in this one. Now go post 'em!

 

[doucanoe]

Man o' man, I got home around noon or so today and was just about dead on my feet tired. Popped on for a moment but couldn't muster up much of a coherent thought so I hit the rack. I'm feeling much more human now that I've had some sleep.


Man, that was a blast! Aaron, your a great host and I just love your new place Perfect venue for one of these get-togethers :yes: Thanks so much for putting on what I'm sure will be a very memorable event for all attending. It was really great seeing everyone again.

The grill masters and prep guys Mark, Jack, Gary and Bob outdid themselves once again and put on quite a feast as usual. Thanks so much you guys! Also to everyone that brought food to share. I haven't eaten like that since,... the last time we did this

It's always the case, but we really had quite an array neat gear this time around. Thanks to everyone for bringing and sharing their gear for the day. Great stuff all!


Great get-together, Aaron. I'm ready for the next one already :thmbsp:


RC



Dang it I almost forgot! To Chuck and Ron E., I really appreciate you lending your time, knowledge and equipment for testing of my speaker cobble for this years event. It was very cool to see some real time results as changes are made. I actually think I learned something in the process. Thats not always an easy task gentlemen

 

[bobfalk]

just got home... dead on my feet pretty much covers it ron. had some running to do in the cities almost wound up in the tornados but made it back safety.

So ya great party, I think we actually had too much food this year... didn;t think that was possible but I went home with uncooked steak... In hindsight I should have busted them out earlier... sorry to the folks who had to leave before the steak made it out. I'll make up for it by posting the recipe as promised:

I use top sirloin (always top choice don't skimp) but ribeye or tbone would work too.

1/2 cup beef consumme (undiluted)
1/2 cup red wine
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp. seasoning salt
1/2 cup green onions (chopped)
1-2 cloves of garlic
3T lime juice
2T brown sugar
2T honey
1-2T worcestershire sauce

So keep in mind I don't measure all that much but that the recipe; just mix it up real good before you drop your steak in. It says 6-8 hours, but I usually go for 1-3 days--30ish hrs seems ideal. Hope you enjoy.

Had a great time, did my best at having too much fun, thanks for putting up with me everyone--especially Aaron. I think I'll go sleep this off. Hope to see you all at the next one.

--Bob

 

[DENNYDOG]

Thanks to Aaron for hosting this wonderful get together at his beautiful home. It was fun talking with the regulars and some of the new guys too.

Seeing and hearing Toby's G-33000 was amazing in the little corner room powering Aaron's big KEF's. It was an honor having my my PL-1800 as a source and I have to thank everyone for all the compliments I got.

Thanks goes to Gary for the PAX drivers he so graciously gave me. Somehow I found room in the car and got them home.

Thank you to Dave for pony expressing the Dynaco A-25's up from Iowa for me. I had Lance bring them down to his place and then stopped by on my way home and figured out that I could fit them in the car. It was a tight fit but I was able to fit them in the car too.

Thanks to Mark, Jack, Gary and Bob on all the food and grilling.

Compliments to both Lance and Ron for bringing their huge speaker systems for everyone to here.

And a final thanks to Mark for his beautiful cable lifts that I got for a door prize.

Denny

 

[RFGumby]

-One more thing:
Scott. You gotta start feeling better about your manhood. Those power cables of yours? Ummm...you don't need to compensate for anything. You're among friends here.

Hey !

My wife told me size mattered. Something about "the bigger the snake the better"... I thought she was talking about audio. :lmao:

 

[jackgustav]

Thanks So Much Aaron!

:tresbon:WHAT MORE NEED BE SAID!

Aaron, Thanks so much for hosting such a band of BOZOs.......:beer:

It was a joy to be a small part of the GRAND get together!

I wonder how the milk content might have been altered on the cows across the road by the DB level of DSOTM that rolled out of the garage doors?

Oh... that's right....the world was supposed to end right about that time anyway!:arrow:

 

[Inspiribomb]

I would have written something sooner, but I've been recovering and had a couple more friends over last night from out of town, so the cleaning process has been rather slow-going. In case anybody was wondering, I survived the weather on Sunday. My family called me on the phone and were concerned, apparently there was a tornado touchdown in Lindstrom, which I was totally clueless to.

Wow, what a great time. Good friends, good food, and good tunes. Even with the wet weather, I don't think anyone's spirits were dampened (pun unintended). Although I must say it was quite nice when the clouds opened up and we were graced with a few hours of sun and warmth (kind of surreal). I got to see a lot of neat gear that was new to me. I was kind of running around like a chicken with its head chopped off, so I apologize if I was blunt, brief, or short with anybody. I tried to make sure everybody had what they wanted/needed. I hope the pups didn't pester anybody too much. I tried to tire them out early in the day so that they'd be a bit more mellow once people arrived. Given some of the pictures in the photo thread, I think I succeeded

Mega kudos and thanks out to the chefs. Bob for the excellent stir fry on Friday night, as well as the kabobs and steaks. Mark for the egg rolls and grill-mastery (and the Scotch, mmmmm...) Jack, as always the salmon was mouthwatering and delicious.

Toby's big G-33000 was a sight and sound to behold. I never thought 100 watt peaks in my small office could sound that good!

I didn't get to spend much time listening to the Afterburners, but from what I heard they sounded very nice. Excellent cobble, Ron!

The custom tube amps were both beautifully crafted, and sounded terrific. They gave my Condor Acoustics a lush edge that I haven't heard from them before.

Nate, your turntable looked right at home on my end-table, almost like the thing was built just for it! It sounded terrific, and I was glad to see it make another appearance. A little birdie told me that the table almost snuck back home with you...

I was really impressed with Lance's Altec "cobble." They went loud and clear without sounding loud. Money for Nothing blasting out of the garage was awe-inspiring. Thank you for taking the time and effort to haul those big guys out here.

Mark, the door prizes that you crafted are both functional and beautiful, thank you for offering those to us. Now I just need to un-rats-nest my cables so that I can use the set of cable elevators that I won!

Dave, I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with you later in the evening. Thank you for the flag pin, I have it on my hat and will wear both with pride.

If I am forgetting anyone, I sincerely apologize. My brain is fried through and through, despite my best efforts I am having trouble thinking of much more. I think I gained a few pounds, lost several thousand brain cells, but I made some new friends and good memories. Thanks again to all who came out and made this the wonderful event that it was. It wouldn't be what it was without you. For those who could not make it, you were missed, and we all hope you can make it to the next one. Stay tuned, I have it on good faith that there will be a fall version of Cobblefest in the Country

 

[Inspiribomb]

After all the rain we had over the weekend, I went downstairs to find a full sump-basket, and pooling water all around my foundation. I made a trip to Home Depot today and installed a Ridgid sump pump, the thing ran for 15 minutes straight (at 5000 gallons/hour). Its been running off and on for the last couple hours as I've been mowing the grass that exploded over the weekend. Mowing in bare feet in the sunshine with an ice cold drink is surprisingly enjoyable.

 

[westend]

Aaron, we've got to get you on a tractor (it's a lot more comfortable with a drink You'll still get your work out, changing implements.

Thanks for the great time! I didn't mind hauling the stuff, just look what a usual "cobblefest" is for me on a Monday, lol:

Unpictured, are the ten brick columns and stone work that are now lying down after a hard weekend.

 

[NumbDiver]

Aaron, we've got to get you on a tractor (it's a lot more comfortable with a drink You'll still get your work out, changing implements.

Thanks for the great time! I didn't mind hauling the stuff, just look what a usual "cobblefest" is for me on a Monday, lol:

Unpictured, are the ten brick columns and stone work that are now lying down after a hard weekend.

Damn Lance,
Those look like hand-hewn cobble stones. The real deal. Very cool. Did you remove them yourself from a street in Mpls when they re-paved? In my buddy's neighborhood, they offered them up to the neighbors (pull them yourself). He has a stacked pile about 6' high and maybe 12'x20'. He's going to do his drive with them.

I do know they are damn heavy and you've got a project ahead of you.

 

[tobyj17]

I'd attend a fall cobblefest in a heartbeat! I met some really great people, ate some great food.. that salmon was the best.

Those Kef speakers (sans one driver) and that super shiny black pioneer TT were an amazing combination with the beast. All were very great pieces. I'm really terrible with names, so i'm not sure who had the TT, but thanks for bringing it!

Kinda funny, I fell asleep for a few mins on the way home, and I woke up to find Jaylene adjusting the tone controls on her radio. When I asked her what she was doing...she said it "sounds like crap and I can't get it to sound good". I thought it was pretty hilarious because she's never cared before...

Thanks again for all that brought and prepared food, and especially to Aaron for hosting the party. Wish I could have stayed longer, I'll prepare better next time.

 

[MAXZ28]

Those Kef speakers (sans one driver) and that super shiny black pioneer TT were an amazing combination with the beast. All were very great pieces. I'm really terrible with names, so i'm not sure who had the TT, but thanks for bringing it!

That would be the one, the only, Dennydog :yes:

Damn, Toby - I regret not making it just to have a looksie at your Big G. Maybe when I'm in your neck of the woods visiting the inlaws I'll have to swing on through for a Sansui peek.

 

[westend]

Damn Lance,
Those look like hand-hewn cobble stones. The real deal. Very cool. Did you remove them yourself from a street in Mpls when they re-paved? In my buddy's neighborhood, they offered them up to the neighbors (pull them yourself). He has a stacked pile about 6' high and maybe 12'x20'. He's going to do his drive with them.

I do know they are damn heavy and you've got a project ahead of you.

Right you are on most of that, Rick, but the cobble stones are not mine. The pictures show part of the driveway of one of my customers. He said they came from Mpls. and St. Paul, they are granite and he has 140,000 of them placed on the property.
Your buddy has a gold mine in that stack, reports are that these go for $4+, if you have to buy them. They make an excellent driveway. My customer's problem was due to inadequate drainage in that area. With the unusual rains of last weekend, the hydraulic pressure of the soil underneath caused the adjacent retaining wall to give away and undermine the drive.
Last year, we tuckpointed that wall so it was nearly "guilt by association". Similar to Jason getting blamed for a loose connection in my speakers because he touched it (sorry, Jason, if you're reading this, I give out a lot of BS on occasion ).