Daddyjt

Welcome aboard. I am also in UT (Layton area), and happy to help by way I can…

In retrospect I fear that my critique of the Infinity sound may come across as a bit more derogatory than I intended. It was not my intent to disparage the brand or the sound. I can’t stress enough that it was MY TASTE that changed. The Kappa 9 served me well for a number of years, and I derived much pleasure from them. In fact, it caused me significant anguish to part-out my last pair. However, I did take comfort in knowing that the process likely revived/repaired several other pair, allowing them to soldier on. My bafflement at @Sk1Bum looking to move on from his NHTs is probably similar to other’s bafflement at my feelings towards Infinity - but then we all know Dick is a bit crazy, so that explains a lot;-)

There was a time not too long ago (10-12 years) that I was flat out in love with the “Infinity sound”. I had acquired two pair of Kappa 9, and I thought I was set for life. Then, gradually over time, I grew to detest the infinity sound. Both pair of Kappa 9, a pair of Kappa 8 and a pair of Kappa 6 (the 8&6 at friends homes) all sounded hash in the highs, chesty in the mids, and boomy in the bass. i know the speakers didn’t change, but rather my taste changed. I gave one pair of the Kappa 9 to a dear friend, and after several listings (going as low as $800) I parted out the remaining pair for about $1,800 total. at this moment I cannot imagine a better speaker than the 3.3 for 2ch music - it just does everything right…. For me, and for NOW. Will my taste change again? I doubt it, but who knows…

Yes, it is!

I’ve been in a bit of a nostalgia kick lately, mostly because Hollywood isn’t churning out much to be excited about lately. Anyway, I saw one of my childhood favorites as I was scrolling through Prime a couple weeks ago, then I saw a remastered box set in a really cool music/movie store in Portland called Music Millennium (I was in Albany working all week, and when I flew out of Portland Friday I stopped at the closest record store to the airport). When I saw the remastered box set of Capricorn One, I took at as a sign. The film came out in 1978, and stars James Brolin, a very young Hal Holbrook, Elliott Gould and OJ Simpson. The plot is a failed mission to Mars, where the astronauts are forced to fake the video and radio footage. It’s aged beautifully in today’s conspiracy theory world, and the stunts and effects have a wonderful non-CGI realism that I’m loving more and more the older I get. As a bonus, there are a few scenes with the gorgeous Karen Black that are witty and wonderfully playful, that I don’t think would ever be shot the same way today. Unfortunately the video presentation was the only thing remastered (up to 1080p), as the audio is 2ch mono. Honestly, 10 minutes into the film, I didn’t even notice the mono. It’s a 2 disc set, theatrical and extended cut, with some nice extras. This is a fantastic film that feels like it could have been shot 10 years ago, and highly worth your time if you like a good conspiracy thriller…

I get that, and my comment was in no way intended to imply that I believe the depiction to be 100% accurate or all-encompassing. Just like the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan is not 100% what it was like to land on the beach in WWII, Goodfellas is not 100% what it’s like to be in the mob, The Big Lebowski is not a 100% accurate depiction of stoner-life in LA… I do nevertheless enjoy the “peek” into these lives/events, and I think there is at least a kernel of truth to the depictions portrayed in Landman…

Just wrapped up season 2, and Landman is now officially the best TV show I’ve ever seen - better than The Sopranos, Lost, Game Of Thrones, Breaking Bad… All of them. Sheridan definitely has a gift for writing compelling characters and giving them intriguing arcs. I also enjoy the unfiltered look at the oil business. The only thing I hate about Landman is the fact that I have to wait 9 months for season 3:-(

It looks like Oppo’s replacement may finally be here - Marnetar. Everything I’ve read about them is positive. The 8000 uses Burr Brown DACs, and the 9000 uses ESS. Plays every disc format known to man, great build quality… https://magnetar-audio.com/elementor-4530/

We did our annual Die Hard watch last night - first time in 4k. What a great film! Never seems to get old, no matter how many times I watch it. thanks for the kind words @PhilDent - the four (4) subs really do add quite a bit to the experience. Not just big explosions, but punches and kicks and slamming car doors… Movie bass definately makes me smile:-)

Thanks for the kind words my friend. During Tim’s visit, we sat down in the theater room for a quick demo. I put in the 4k disc of the new Brad Pitt movie, F1. What was going to be a quick demo turned in to watching the entire movie…:-)

I was discussing my bass journey and current status of my HT on a popular home theater forum when something kinda weird happened. A guy named Scott Newbey chimed in. He’s a self-proclaimed “bass expert” with a cult following similar to Amir’s over on ASR. Anyway, this Scott guy commented on my system and said that I could get way more bass with just a dual 18” ported sub from GSG, pairs with a Crown amp, and that I was “wasting my time with sealed subs in a home theater”. i replied tactfully and directly that I wasn’t looking for “the most” bass, but rather “the best” bass. This didn’t sit well with the bass guru, and he marshaled his minions to his defense. I don’t really care, and I am a firm believer in the accuracy and speed of sealed subs. Sure, ported subs have prodigious output at the tuned frequency, but well designed sealed subs just make me smile at all low frequencies….

Welcome. We’re almost all old(ish) guys here, so you’ll fit right in!

Ah, Polk LS70s - my first “real” pair of speakers, bought new from Broadway Music in downtown SLC about 1995. They were in my first home theater (such as it was), and then when they were displaced by Klipsch RF7s, they served in my family room system until about 2018. I just recently sold them to a kid on the local classifieds for $100. They were a little rough cosmetically, but still sound great - he was thrilled, as he’s starting a family and tight on money. He’s actually texted me a few times, saying how much he loves them. welcome to the site!

I have worked on (and purchased) equipment that has been restored/refreshed by “other” techs, two pieces of which came with invoices. I will tell you flat out that not only were the prices WAY out of line, the actual work done did not align with the invoice. Greg at Nelion will do exactly what he claims, and at a fair price. Further, there is no tech currently that understands Bob’s designs better than Greg.

I have owned, upgraded and repaired a number of Carver M 500(t) amplifiers. It is, dollar for dollar the best value in Carver amplifiers, in my opinion. They sound wonderful, are quite reliable, easy to work on, and have a beautiful aesthetic. Perhaps their only (minor) Achilles Heel is low impedance loading. Even that though is very limited, as the only speaker I ever had thermal issues with while using a 500t were my Infinity Kappa 9 (notorious amp killers), and even then, the thermal protection did its job, and spared the amplifier any damage. i am currently running a pair of 500t MKII amplifiers in my home theater for L/R/C duty…