EARSPACE Oct 6, 2018 19:39:33 GMT 12
- Edited Apr 1, 2019 20:22:34 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Oct 6, 2018 19:39:33 GMT 12
Jana Dagdagan, electronic music producer, former Stereophile video producer, editor of Audiostream.... now has a new Youtube video channel called EARSPACE. A great concept...Jana intends to take a 'binaural head' (Alfredo) with binaural ear mics to sonically record the sound of audio systems, placing Alfredo in the listener's exact sitting head position & using the same (4) pieces of music & using the same recording equipment. Thus allowing the listener at home to 'hear' & compare audio systems, the nearest thing to actually be sitting in the listening seat on site. " Brilliant groundbreaking IDEA that, if you continue, you will change the course of audio journalism. Bravo!!!! " (Herb Reichert) Grab your headphones & take a listen to Jana's first EARSPACE video, recorded at John DeVore's Brooklyn NYC listening room, listening to the new DeVore Fidelity Orangutan Reference Four-Piece System:
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EARSPACE Oct 7, 2018 19:25:21 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 7, 2018 19:25:47 GMT 12 by Owen Y
belbo likes this
Post by Owen Y on Oct 7, 2018 19:25:21 GMT 12
A little bit of technical detail about the above DeVore Fidelity Orangutan Reference loudspeakers, in this Part-Time Audiophile report from RMAF 2018 this weekend. 
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Post by colinf on Oct 7, 2018 19:36:26 GMT 12
Good idea. I wonder if this is going to influence footfall at future audio shows? The only nice listening spot at the shows will have been taken by binaural heads instead of real heads!
AMR-iFi R&D
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Post by Owen Y on Oct 9, 2018 17:28:42 GMT 12
" I've been obsessed for a while now with trying to figure out how to communicate and tell the story of a system, its owner and the space that it occupies and the life that it lives... with someone who can't be there. How do you do that? " (Jana Dagdagan)
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EARSPACE Dec 6, 2018 14:26:06 GMT 12
- Edited Dec 6, 2018 14:29:20 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Dec 6, 2018 14:26:06 GMT 12
The latest EARSPACE report: Avantgarde Duo Primo horn speakers + Coincident Frankenstein M300B amps + OMA-Technics SP-10MKII TT + Schroder tonearm + Hana SL cartridge What do you think of the sound, compared with the John DeVore system above?
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Post by deano1974 on Dec 7, 2018 6:48:25 GMT 12
The latest EARSPACE report: Avantgarde Duo Primo horn speakers + Coincident Frankenstein M300B amps + OMA-Technics SP-10MKII TT + Schroder tonearm + Hana SL cartridge What do you think of the sound, compared with the John DeVore system above? From an A/B comparison the Avantgarde sound more transparent but the bass is definitely more dynamic (real) with the Devore's, just my thoughts
Manager & Product specialist at Rapallo AV & HI-FI
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Post by deano1974 on Dec 7, 2018 6:54:13 GMT 12
Just listened to this video and think the space and timbre the Harbeths create are pretty darn nice Also wanted to say Jana is doing an excellent job!
Manager & Product specialist at Rapallo AV & HI-FI
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EARSPACE Dec 9, 2018 16:30:50 GMT 12
- Edited Dec 10, 2018 10:53:40 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Dec 9, 2018 16:30:50 GMT 12
Hey deano1974 - yes (using an old set of Sony MDR-7505 cans), I hear some interesting things too. The Harbeths have nice tone, lots of mid-body, seemingly more HF incision & better leading edge than the DeVore system. However the DeVores (I suspect because of their minimal crossover & hi-sensitivity) sound more open & out-of-the-box to me - impressive for a 'box' loudspeaker. The Avant Gardes have that big, room-filling horn sound, combined with more distant listening seat perspective - but there's some underlying edginess to me & the active bass sounds so different to the DeVores. (Listen to the orchestral balance & clarity in the Maria Schneider piece & the guitar plucking/tone & background noises in the Jim Hall live club recording.) Jana's editing is always pretty good but her video technique, with additional gear, is getting rather pro. I like the way she examines & notates the gear, the details - eye candy 
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Post by deano1974 on Dec 9, 2018 16:34:13 GMT 12
Hey deano1974 - yes (using an old set of Sony MDR-7505 cans), I hear some interesting things too. The Harbeths have nice tone, lots of mid-body, seemingly more HF incision & better leading edge than the DeVore system. However the DeVores (I suspect because of their minimal crossover & hi-sensitivity) sound more open & out-of-the-box to me - impressive for a 'box' loudspeaker. The Avant Gardes have that big, room-filling horn sound, combined with more distant listening seat perspective - but there's some underlying edginess to me & the active bass sound so different to the DeVores. Jana's editing is always pretty good but her video technique, with additional gear, is getting rather pro. I like the way she examines & notates the gear, the details - eye candy Interesting! its also very hard to determine the sound unless your there physically, We know that being there we would hear totally different acoustics 😉
Manager & Product specialist at Rapallo AV & HI-FI
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EARSPACE Dec 9, 2018 18:19:39 GMT 12
- Edited Dec 10, 2018 8:03:12 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Dec 9, 2018 18:19:39 GMT 12
Oh in the last vid, some old school types may have spotted the Origami PU7 tonearm, a remake it seems, of the Syrinx PU3 which was held in legendary regard in some circles back in the mid 80s.
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Post by michaelw on Dec 9, 2018 19:47:57 GMT 12
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Post by Owen Y on Dec 10, 2018 8:12:11 GMT 12
The few times that I've had the opportunity to re-listen to classic 'legendary' tonearms, these older tonearms often sound surprisingly coloured in comparison to modern arms & expectations. (Not saying that this is the case with the Syrinx PU3 - which I have never played with.)
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Post by michaelw on Dec 10, 2018 9:39:51 GMT 12
back in my linn days i tried a few arms as a replacement for the venerable grace 707. among the helius aurum, grace 727, linn basik, ittok, was a syrinx pu3 a guy bought back from the uk. a real pain in the ass to set up, with backyard build quality, but it was fairly uncoloured sounding, if anything it veered towards the analytical. ended up with an ittok.
years later the same guy came back with an alphason.
by then the linn had gone.
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EARSPACE Dec 21, 2018 14:41:57 GMT 12
- Edited Dec 21, 2018 19:04:47 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Dec 21, 2018 14:41:57 GMT 12
In this latest video, Jana visits a small room system, featuring the active Kii Audio Three loudspeakers, fed from an (NZ-designed) Antipodes DS network player. It's noticeable how much more 'present' & articulate the bass is (compared with the previous loudspeaker systems recorded above), with these spkrs in this room, in close proximity to front & (listening position) to rear walls. Especially impressive were Red Mitchell's upright bass & the Viola da Gamba baroque piece. (We are not told what were the owner's on-speaker LF Boundary-Control & Contour settings for this session. Also the room is much smaller than in earlier systems EARSPACE-recorded.) These speakers, with 6 actively-driven drivers each, feature DSP-controlled side & rear output, are supposedly minimising the effect of room side/rear wall interactions & you are hearing mostly direct sound with less room contribution.. The Kii Audio Threes were chosen as DARKO Audio's Product of the Year.
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Post by colinf on Dec 21, 2018 20:47:05 GMT 12
In the Audio Research / Wilson Audio room at the HFN&RR show. 
AMR-iFi R&D
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Pundit
Post by belbo on Apr 1, 2019 23:36:22 GMT 12
Really brilliant idea I agree, I also like the consistency: I've been doing the same thing I have a CD with some of my favourite pieces and I've been playing this CD in every system I come across, so you can very easily understand the differences. I'm intrigued by the Orangutans who have made my short list (alas can't spent that much on speakers though...).
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EARSPACE May 29, 2019 9:42:50 GMT 12
- Edited May 29, 2019 14:25:43 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on May 29, 2019 9:42:50 GMT 12
EARSPACE's short 4 minute video, a distilled, serene, slightly surreal, visual & aural 'mood' essay on Munich High End 2019. A 'outsider's' eye possibly, a far cry from the crazy cacophony of what a show like Munich High End is really like.
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Post by michaelw on May 29, 2019 13:58:06 GMT 12
wow, first earspace vid in months and it's a great one.
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EARSPACE Nov 1, 2019 9:54:36 GMT 12
- Edited Nov 1, 2019 13:29:39 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Nov 1, 2019 9:54:36 GMT 12
" A One Million Dollar hi-fi system from Aries Cerat " EARSPACE (Jana Dagdagan), now working as a freelance videographer, was commissioned to video this impressive system in Austin, Texas: Courtesy og Jana's binaural microphone setup, you can arguably get as close as actually being there. And, because Jana has chosen to 'standardise' a few recordings for her sessions, you can compare the sound to other systems previously recorded elsewhere by EARSPACE. Initially, I thought the system soft, indistinct & lacking in trteble, but especially after hearing the Maria Schneider big band piece, my impression is that overall presentation is tonally sweet & 'mellow', not a bad thing & the 'ease', uniformity & large 'scale' of the sound differs considerably from say EARSPACE's earlier sessions with (much more modestly priced) DeVore Fidelity or the Harbeth-Vinnie Rossi system. I was surprised at the loudspeakers, to see a relatively humble US$250 Fostex 8" driver in the bass horn cabinet & the small size of the front-facing hornmouth - possibly EQ'd (?). However, the resultant sound does not seem overly/typically 'hi-fi' - definitely not a bad thing in my book.
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Post by cartridgeguyonline on Nov 1, 2019 17:46:31 GMT 12
" I've been obsessed for a while now with trying to figure out how to communicate and tell the story of a system, its owner and the space that it occupies and the life that it lives... with someone who can't be there. How do you do that? "
(Jana Dagdagan)
The answer to that is called journalism. Professional writers have been doing it for decades.
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Post by colinf on Nov 1, 2019 19:30:06 GMT 12
Sure, but now that the internet can bring you the sound of a system with journalism like Jana’s, you have an opportunity to make your own decision about the sound in a way that wasn’t previously possible.
AMR-iFi R&D
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Post by cartridgeguyonline on Nov 1, 2019 20:07:59 GMT 12
I never had a problem with that reading the writing of some of the better writers in the profession. In particular I used to enjoy the technical writing of Martin Colloms which gave you an appreciation of the technical aspects of the equipment as well. True that most of it went over my head but still doesnt lessen my enjoyment of reading about it. I certainly wouldnt countenance the purchase of an item of equipment based on a headphone listen through a computer souncard, whereas I would have no such problem based on a well written review by a reviewer I knew and trusted. Ive even been known to buy items unheard and un reviewed based on the opinions and reputation of the builder...
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Post by Owen Y on Nov 1, 2019 20:26:39 GMT 12
Video is the way of the future. It's an useful tool, at least, that has potential to improve significantly methinks.
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Post by colinf on Nov 1, 2019 22:20:10 GMT 12
Yes you have a point, cartridgeguyonline. A good review is fun to read and you get to know the reviewer over time, and get to know their preferences. Just like Saint Saëns, journalists and builders produce their specialties as an apple tree produces apples. Jana’s recordings seem to be a nice development to the audio reviewing scene.
AMR-iFi R&D
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Post by Owen Y on Nov 2, 2019 10:06:48 GMT 12
" Jana's story, the long and winding road to a career in the audio biz "
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Post by Citroen on Nov 2, 2019 16:20:12 GMT 12
" A One Million Dollar hi-fi system from Aries Cerat " EARSPACE (Jana Dagdagan), now working as a freelance videographer, was commissioned to video this impressive system in Austin, Texas: Courtesy og Jana's binaural microphone setup, you can arguably get as close as actually being there. And, because Jana has chosen to 'standardise' a few recordings for her sessions, you can compare the sound to other systems previously recorded elsewhere by EARSPACE. Initially, I thought the system soft, indistinct & lacking in trteble, but especially after hearing the Maria Schneider big band piece, my impression is that overall presentation is tonally sweet & 'mellow', not a bad thing & the 'ease', uniformity & large 'scale' of the sound differs considerably from say EARSPACE's earlier sessions with (much more modestly priced) DeVore Fidelity or the Harbeth-Vinnie Rossi system. I was surprised at the loudspeakers, to see a relatively humble US$250 Fostex 8" driver in the bass horn cabinet & the small size of the front-facing hornmouth - possibly EQ'd (?). However, the resultant sound does not seem overly/typically 'hi-fi' - definitely not a bad thing in my book. That sounds terrible to me. Diffuse and dull, almost like it had a blanket over the mic. The Afrika track fared better and I could almost enjoy it. Just tried the Avantgarde Duo Primo, Devore Orangutan and Harbeth 40 tracks and much much prefer these, esp the Harbeths. Now that's a sound I could easily live with!
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Post by Owen Y on Nov 2, 2019 16:31:39 GMT 12
That was my first impression too, as said. Did you use headphones? And preferably bypass the sound card to a h/ph amp?
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Post by Citroen on Nov 2, 2019 16:41:45 GMT 12
I tried AKG 701 via Dragonfly Red, and then inbuilt McIntosh DAC to Auralic HP amp to Audeze LCD3's.
I've just sent the signal to my speakers and pretty much the same conclusion, although a very different sound, the Orangutans now sound the best.
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Post by Citroen on Nov 2, 2019 17:05:56 GMT 12
I can't believe that that system would sound like it does over the computer.
Would die to hear it in real life, in situ, and with real human ears.
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EARSPACE Nov 2, 2019 17:24:32 GMT 12
- Edited Nov 2, 2019 17:25:36 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Nov 2, 2019 17:24:32 GMT 12
Previously, the DeVore video was my fav sound. But this latest - I like the tonal evenness, the scale & treble sweetness (although a little low in level (the big couch in front?), which I think accounts somewhat for a perceived leading edges softness). However I should revisit. The track that I find useful is the Maria Schneider jazz band piece, as (i) I have one of her albums, (ii) it has a broad range of instruments & plenty variation in tempo, dynamics.
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