Allan Songer Posted May 22, 2006 Share Posted May 22, 2006 Bingo! Idler wheels rule . . . Only if you haven't heard high mass unsuspended Micro Seikis.... Alas I've only seen pictures and heard tell . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted May 23, 2006 Author Share Posted May 23, 2006 Allan, Parrot and Guy all in agreement!!!???? What a red letter day this is. And the real funny thing - you are all wrong![][][][] Honestly guys - I am sure these vintage tables are amazing for their money and comparable to modern tables in the $5,000 range - but there is no way on this earth they would compare to real high end tables - if those are setup correctly. There are fans of each and every marque out there - those that will swear by their tables, their setup and tweaks (just talk to any Linnie for example). The bottom line, however, is that the quality of components and the accuracy of manufacture coupled to the slow building of knowledge has taken the art of TT manufacture to levels beyond anything that was available 20 years or more ago. Vinyl may no longer be king of the hill in terms of the mass market - but there is so much development going on that is beggars the mind. Even accepting that little is new it is the refinement that continues unabatted. None of this is to say that these vintage tables can't play fantastically well - it is just that modern high end stuff truely is another sonic world. IMHO, YMMV and all that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaiser SET say Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 I'm with ya on this Max as I believe great strides have been made in analog playback even against the venerable Linn crowd[] There are at least 12 manufacturers putting out state of the art analog playback systems and all my current savings are going towards that final goal[] My big delimma is going to be who gets my buying dollar in the 5 to 7 grand range on a new analog rig when the time comes and I'm not even counting a cartridge in this mix yet[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Songer Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 Max-- The only only person who has chimed in that has actually heard the classic rim-drive EMT tables and the Walker is Guy Landau. So, his is the only informed opinion. The level of workmanship in the old EMTs is easily on the same level that you will find in any of the mega-buck tables available today. As far as sound? Who knows? I will probably never hear the Walker. I have heard the EMT 928 and it's the real deal . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artto Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 Talk about putting the cart before the horse!! I fail to see where this kind of component, and the required intensity of setup, can produce anything close to high fidelity under the conditions it has to operate. The room reminds me of those *%$#%@ hotel room setups at the Consumer Electronics Shows. Its a wonder they can discern anything from their efforts. For some people, audio is kind of like sex. IMO this is one of those the fantasy is better than reality moments. But hey, isnt that what most audiophiles like to do, pretend its real? Makes me wonder if these guys actually know what live music sounds like. I will argue that they dont, otherwise they would first be spending their money on something thats absolutely required for ultimate sound production or reproduction regardless of the components or recordings used, especially with a component as this, like a good room with superior acoustics. Note the suspended cables tacked to the walls. Theres so many things wrong and just plain goofy with this setup its pathetic. These guys are not tweaky as they put it. Theyre twits. VERY SCARY So to answer your question Max, "Is it the true state of the art? Wouldn't I like to find out through personal experience!!!!" I guarantee you (and them) that you'll never know under those kind of conditions. It is not possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted May 23, 2006 Author Share Posted May 23, 2006 Max-- The only only person who has chimed in that has actually heard the classic rim-drive EMT tables and the Walker is Guy Landau. So, his is the only informed opinion. The level of workmanship in the old EMTs is easily on the same level that you will find in any of the mega-buck tables available today. As far as sound? Who knows? I will probably never hear the Walker. I have heard the EMT 928 and it's the real deal . . . Allan, Whilst I fully sympathise with the logic there is something I think you are not taking into account. Let us, for the moment, ignore the advances in materials and tools that might be used to create a table today that were simply not available 20 years ago. Let us imagine instead that you are a high end manufacturer about to produce your statement product. Would you do this in isolation, without reference to what is, or has been, on the market? I think not. I would imagine that if you do into the design labs of any manufacturer today you will find multiple examples of what has gone before both from your own range and from your competitors. Included in that list would be design classics for sure. The EMT may have been a greater leap forward from what went before than any of today's designs. It may have been years ahead but today it is almost certainly in the labs that build the modern products as a measure of what has to be beaten. Now factor in the tools and the materials and I would be more than a little amazed to find these statement products can really be bettered by something that was really built for broadcasting all those years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Cain Posted May 23, 2006 Share Posted May 23, 2006 The room reminds me of those *%$#%@ hotel room setups at the Consumer Electronics Shows. <snip> For some people, audio is kind of like sex. <snip> Note the suspended cables tacked to the walls. Hotel rooms, hanging from the walls, sex.... ooooh..... [Y] I had to look at each pic and read the whole account.... I think Walker has a new marketing concept in the wings. I think Bettie Page would be perfect............ [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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