Marvel

I don't know. My wife didn't mind using the tube equipment in the house when it was either use it or not listen to music. All I had to do was show her the sequence to use so something wouldn't blow up. Did have a babysitter set an lp on top of the Dynaco one night. I used to keep the cage on it while the children were real small. I can't even remember what lp it was now, since it was over 20 years ago. Then again, the house was often full of recording gear, microphones, amps, etc., as friends musician friends were always over at the house.

I also don't want to gloss over their problems. We have it way better here, in most ways. You tend to overlook some of it because it is exotic and different. Most folks here just don't get it. We tend to take it all for granted.

I agree. This was the first time I had been in an airplane in 17 years and my first trip outside the U.S. I guess I was prepared in some ways, as I work with a man whose wife is from the Phil. Some things are very, very modern. The malls in Manila go on and on, and match anything we have here. My gf's parents live on the island of Palawan, and don't have power all day, only certain hours. But Palawan is turning into a tourist area, so it will get the pluses that will bring (and the negatives). Palawan is home to one of the largest leprosy hospitals/sanitarium. A disease that is totally treatable, but devastating if left unchecked.

I don't believe that dog meat is used much at all there. Lots of pork, of course, beef, chicken. Beef intestine (I didn't care for it much), cooked in a soup, looked like a giant hollow sponge. I'll ask her about the dog meat. The compensation is... still pretty low. I'm not sure what the American teachers get there. I have a buddy from high school who works about 150 miles from where my gf works. I'll ask him to give me an idea (he is a retired U.S. Marine air traffic controller and doesn't need the money fro teaching). My gf gets about $700 a month, which is more than she would get paid back home, and more than what the Chinese teachers get. One of her sisters is a pharmacist at a hospital in Manila, and her husband is a mechanical engineer who helps build submersible oil rigs (currently working in Malaysia, although he was home when I was there). They still have a very modest home, although they do have their own car. One sister works as a nurse in Ireland and another in Iceland. People are one of the country's largest exports. To put some of it into perspective though, the light rail system in Manila only costs about $.25 to ride. The jeepneys are about $ .14. Not sure about the tricycles (motorcycles with a side car). Cabs cost more, but a lot of the people walk. Seemed to all eat a lot healthier diet. There was plenty of food, but you didn't see nearly as much obesity as you do here. Our health care system here will end up taking a beating here for our lifestyle. All that being said, it was a fun place to visit, but I would certainly much rather live here. There is an expat place in Laguna, south of Manila. Nice bungalows selling for around $40k US. If you had a good retirement income, you could live quite well over there. Met a guy on the way over, while going through customs, who is married to a Filipina. He was going over to meet with an architect to finalize the plans for their house. They own about 500 hectares (approx. 1,200 acres) of land north of Bagio, toward where all of the rice terraces are. They both work in the States at the moment, but will move there soon. On the plane I sat next to a surgeon from Pittsburgh (he and wife are both from Philippines), who was going for two weeks to do surgeries for free. Dawn to dusk, with about fifty other members of a medical team, to help those who can't afford to have anything done. A land of contrasts for sure. But then, I've seen some of that in our own cities here at home. I didn't find much of it to be as much of a shock as they expected I would. They are still people who want the best for their kids, some work hard and some don''t. If you are courteous to them, they are courteous to you. The sex industry is big in some parts of the country, because the women can make more money that way. Homosexuality is pretty open.

I've got to think about that one Jim. The Philippines, and Manila in particular is interesting. Metro Manila is over 10 million people. You have extreme poverty right next to extreme wealth. Some of the shopping malls are very fancy, and Filipinos are spending money like crazy. Yet their economy is absolutely awful. Makes you wonder. My girlfriend and I spent the first sat. there with one of her sisters and brother in law. We drove around the harbor in Manila. There were tractor trailer rigs hauling materials with 3 and 4 year olds walking half naked in the streets.The air quality was awful as well. Saw a woman urinating on the sidewalk about a block from the U.S. embassy. Yet most were modest and dressed extremely well. I had a great time with my gf while there. Met some of her family. A couple of her sisters work overseas, one in Ireland and one in Iceland. She works in China, as an English teacher at a university there. The food was great, and I didn't get sick, even after eating from the street vendors. I won't begin to tell you what I had to eat while there. I made a point of visiting a bunch of the local churches, and even found one only a five minute walk from my hotel. It was built in 1620, the same time period as Jamestown was being founded. Yeah, a great time. I also got to experience the bureaucracy in full bloom. We went together while she got her passport renewed. The first part wasn't so bad, but it was a three hour wait in line just to pick up the new one. In any case, it is time once again to go to sleep and rest up for tommorow Bruce

The trip went great. In some ways even better than I expected. I'm working on getting some pics ready to have printed out later today. After almost 20 hours in the air yesterday, I'm also beat. Since it was in the 70s and 80s there the whole time, I'm not quite ready for the temps here at home. I've been in short sleeves for two weeks, so getting back to layers and a coat is going to be a bit hard.

Wow! I just returned from a two week trip to Manila, Philippines, visiting my girlfriend. Spend a lot of time traveling around the city (10 million + for metro Manila), and found these striking observations: There are very rich and very poor there, corruption is everywhere. Many, if not most, work extremely hard to make ends meet. I saw incredible wealth, and incredible poverty. Half naked kids walking along side streets with tractor trailers moving goods. A woman crouching, urinating on the side of the road, within a block of the U.S. embassy ( a pretty uptown area). Folks were courteous as can be, and dressed extremely nice. And talking with them, you find they are not really any different than we are. They want to help their kids have a good life, to live in safety, to be respected for who they are. The biggest export from the Philippines is people, because they can't make any money there. My girlfriend works in China, teaching at a university there, because she can make more there than at home. She still only makes about $700 a month. Admittedly, that $700 buys more there than it does here, but she has a Masters degress too. It is very easy for us to paint with a broad brush. Yet I also see bad manners, improper use of the English language and a great lack of social skills as a very real problem here in the U.S. Not to mention the general lack of knowledge in the general education our kids are supposed to get in school. But the majority of them are smart...very smart. I think it is a problem each generation has faced... how to keep them engaged. Bruce

Mike, The Tube Store has them for $90 for a pair. I haven't looked around much to check other places, as I've gotten side tracked on a bunch of other things. Bruce

When I picked up the Moondogs, there was a set of the EH 2A3 gold grids included. I am extremely happy with them. They sound simply wonderful with my LaScalas. I can even hear bass coming out of them. They also fit my budget. [] Bruce

It is also because of the particulate emissions of some stoves. Most stoves don't burn the wood in a clean manner. The safety has only been a part of it.

I haven't had my wood stove going for two years. It just hasn't been cold enough long enough to warrant it. I would want to be there the whole time anyway. If I had a long stretch off, I would have it going. Like, right now would be great, as it is only 8 or 9 degrees outside. I have a gas fireplace that I normally use to keep the electric heat pump from running all night when it gets cold. But is is shut of until I get the th replaced. ermocouple

Gotcha beat - I'm all SET to go to the Philippines this Wednesday, the 31st. [H]

Had a rare treat last night. A concert in a very small venue, of a group named Three Ring Circus. It consists of Rob Ickes on dobro, Andy Leftwich on mandoli and fiddle, and Dave Pomeroy on bass. One of the hottest shows I have heard in a long time. Stunning performance, that was about two and a half hours of great music. It was funny watching musicians in the audience moving their hands while their favorite performer played. Really nice guys and a fun time. One of the best things is that it was only $10. Ickes has played in the group Blue Highway for some time, Andy Leftwich normally plays with Ricky Skaggs, while Dave Pomeroy is an awesome studio player who has also toured with numerous country artists. You can hear some song samples at: http://www.threeringcircle.com/index.php?p=Music

It was 20 here this morning in North Georgia, but up around 50 or higher in the afternoon. Nice outside in the sun. On Wednesday I will be leaving for the Philippines for two weeks. Right now it is between 75 and 85 there. White sand beaches, palm trees.... I'll have plenty of pics to share on my return.

John, I believe Greyfriar's downtown often has some Kenya AA. A lot of Ian's coffee is very good, he does a good job roasting. Definitely need to use water without the chlorine in it. For making coffee or tea. You will not need nearly as much coffee or tea that way, and the flavor will be way better.

They do have A&W up North. About the only kind I had growing up. The Sunset Wheat is one of my favorite Leinenkugel brews. The coriander makes a nice touch. Eldon, A local restaurant here served Abita Springs beers on tap. Used to walk over after work and have one with some buddies before heading home. I liked the Turbo Dog the best, but sometimes the dog would bite. Bruce

I looked and played a few of the newer Ibanez guitars after my son bought a new model, an RGA121 if I remember correctly. Mahogany body with a thick maple cap. Understated looks with great tone. He has swapped the pickup out, which did make a great improvement . I looked at the Artcore series, and they were some really great guitars for the money. Being an acoustic player, the hollowbodies were the ones I was looking at. Very, very nice for the money. I did have a Burny, LP copy, in the late '70s, which are highly sought after. A friend of mine got his in Japan while in the Air Force. I paid him $100 for it, and it was equal to or better than many genuine LPs. Wish I still had it. Bruce

Ah... there's a lot of different roots out there though. I like the darks, but they are very filling. Spaten Optimator Theakston Old Peculier Leinenkugel - almost any of their brews. I think there are too many to count that are good. Blue Moon, too. Bruce

Really we are mostly a bunch of wackos pretending to know a lot about audio. [8-)] Bruce

So these go in a different direction than the djk mods? You have made a larger cabinet volume and tuned them differently. They owould only have to be about ten inches high to do Dennis' mod, even if you used a slot port of some kind. The basic concept is the same. Bruce

Welcome to the forum. There are lots of great reports of people using Crown amps with Klipsch Heritage gear. How are you sealing the area around the K-55 on the back panel? Is there another smaller panel that covers the hole? There are some who have felt that a 7 inch port length works better, returning the snappiness to the bass but getting more low end than stock. Can you change the ports to try or is everything pretty well locked in? Very nice job, btw. They look really good. My LS will be headed for the bass mod one of these days. Something you may want to consider, is the tweeter replacement from Bob Crites. They are a drop in replacement, and took me all of ten or fifteen minutes to do on my pair. The improvement was rather dramatic to my ears. A lot smoother high end, and higher power handling. I built my own crossovers, still first order, as I normally listen at lower volumes and use some 2A3 amps. Long term, if you play at higher SPLs, you may want to go with an extreme slope design. Bruce

I'm wanting to get to know her parents, after all the stuff Josh told about the Montreal trip. Yup, pretty danged happy about it. Bruce

I knew something was up when he started wearing ankle weights to keep from floating up to the ceiling. The deer in headlights look... Let's see... he plays bass and acoustic/electric guitar while she plays violin and fiddle (just noting the two different styles of playing). The both like bluegrass and celtic music. Do they look a bit Irish or what? Bruce

Can't answer that question. What freq. was the crossover to the tweeter on the Westlake monitors? I think they didn't have vanes in them. Don't know if they crossed higher than the 1200Hz of this on or not.

This might help a bit with ideas.