However, one aspect of my CAS setup has been quite annoying. I have been using foobar2000 as the music player and every time I want to change to a new album, I have to get up and bend down to find the album. While this is similar to getting up to change a CD when using a CD play, there is a subtle yet signficant difference – I cannot browse my music collections easily. The netbook sits between my speakers, so I have kneel between my speakers while picking the next album, which is very annoying. So at the end, I decided to get a tablet for remote control, and I picked the Samsung Galaxy S Wifi 5.0, which has an excellent 5 inch screen.

The Samsung Galaxy S, together with the Foobar2000 controller PRO application, has surprised me and performed very well:

1) The Galaxy S screen is very nice. The 5 inch screen is perfect for remote control application – big enough for touch control but not too big to carry around.

2) Foobar2000 controller app is stable and very easy to set up, and I find it better than a few other android remote apps on the market. One of the shortcoming is that you cannot play songs from the media library folders (actually, I cannot find any apps that allow you to do that). It is easy if you use playlists, but I do not use playlist and organise my music with a folder structure. Fortunately, the search engine works very well so I can find my album very easy – more about it in my next point.

3) The Galaxy S has a voice recognition software (I guess most android tablet would have it?), and it works very well. When I want to search for an album, I can simply speak it out instead of typing in the name of the album (or the artist etc). This makes my life so much easier. After discovering this feature, it really doesn’t matter whether I can browse and play from the media library. I just use the voice recognitioin to find my music. And it works with different languages (although only one language is active at a time and you have to manually select the language you want to use).

The tablet and the remote control application have been the missing link for my CAS setup. The voice recognition is a very useful feature and is a nice surprise for me. CAS now provides both excellent sound quality and convenience. I can finally use the netbook as my main playback source.

If you are buying your first Hi-End stereo system, I assume you are spending NZ$2000-$5000, so the following discussions will be based on this budget unless otherwise stated.

So how should you go about picking your audio system? Which component in the system is most important and where should you spend your money? This is probably one of the most common discussions on forums and there are many different opinions. Some people say the source is the most important (garbage in garbage out), and some people say it is the loudspeakers. Some say you should get pre-power amp combo for best sound and some say you should get an integrated. The debate never ends. Here is my opinion:
Loudspeakers are by far the most important component in the system. Pick the speakers that you like, get an amplifier that can drive it well (forget about pre-power combo for now, go with integrated), then pick your source component with your remaining budget.

Those who promote the idea that the source is at least as important as the rest of the system usually base their argument on the ‘Garbage In Garbage Out’ theory. It sounds very sensible but it is actually very misleading. Here are the reasons:

1) Regardless of what you put in, if any part of your system is crap, you get garbage out. It doesn’t really matter which part of your system is crap, it will pollute the audio signal. The real question that we are facing is ‘Which Part of the System is Most Likely to Create Garbage?’

2) If you really believe in GIGO, that’s OK. But keep in mind that the input to the system is NOT your source component. It is actually the recording medium, or the actual data on your CD or LP or your hard disk. Your source is just another component in the system.

3) The source, even the cheapest DVD player on the market is likely to produce a near perfect signal (compare to other components in the system), while your loudspeakers will produce a signal that is not even remotely close to the original signal. Listen to two different CD players at different price points, and you are unlikely to notice any difference. If you listen to two different pairs of loudspeakers, even if they are the same brand or at the same price, I can guarantee that you can hear a difference. When I mention this, those who believe that the source is more important always fight back in anger and say ‘difference does not always mean better’. Yes, but if you can’t hear any difference, then how can you decide which one is better?

The loudspeakers basically determines the sound signature of your system. You can put whatever components before it, the basic signature of your loudspeaker will not change. A horn speaker will sound like a horn speaker, an electrostatic speaker will still be an electrostatic speaker. You just cannot change that. So it is very important to choose the speakers that you like.

Furthermore, your speakers have to interact with the amplifier, and more importantly, with your room. These create a lot of uncertainty and it is very important to match your speakers to your room well.

So my advice is – pick the speakers first, then select the rest of your system to get the best out of your speakers.

I remember in the late 70s and early 80s, people were playing these hand held games everywhere – buses, ferries, canteens, classrooms (during a lesson!), bedrooms, etc. They could play it with both hands, single hand (when talking over a phone!), or playing two games (one for each hand) at the same time!!!

Classic game concepts are pretty simple but additive. And sometime simple is beauty. I guess a lot of people still like to play those games but unable to find it.

Few years ago I had a chance to develop some games with my friend. And I am going to update and publish these games one by one. Just hope that can bring some good old memories to us.

The first one that I would like to share is a game simulator of the 1981 Casio MG-880. We called it PC-880. It’s a invader game using digits. Pretty clever design by Casio. We only need two buttons to play – one for advance the aiming digit (comma key, or left mouse button) and the other is fire (fullstop key or right mouse button). To kill invaders, simply increase the aiming digit on the right hand side. When the aim match any of the digits on the left hand side, push fire button will eliminate it. There is a bonus UFO flagship when sum of digits is a multiple of 10.

Download links (latest version 1.1):
Standalone version
Installer version (if you are not sure, download the installer version)

Remark:
When we developed the game, we did not have the calculator in hand. So the scoring may not be the same as original. Please feel free to place comments and we will try our best to improve it.

We have tested it on Win2K, Win XP and Win7 (32 bit). Please let us know if there is any problems running it. Also let us know if you can run it on other platforms like Win7 (64 bit).

Getting new gear is always exciting. Usually, when I got a new piece of gear, I would get excited for 6 months. If it was exceptionally, I would love it for another 6 months, and then it would be just like any other piece of audio equipment on my rack. The upgrade bug would start to bite. But the Harbeth is a bit different. I have owned it for almost 2 years now but I still haven’t got tired of it. I have no real desire to upgrade my system, except maybe a pair of new speaker stands (wooden stands). I have thought about a new amp too, but I really couldn’t justify it, as I was and still am satisfied with the current system.

The Harbeths are outstanding in many ways. Here are some of the Harbeths’ strengths that are particularly important to me:

1) The Harbeths have a midrange to die for – It is open, sweet and warm. Listening to high quality vocal recordings, such as Rosa Passos/Ron Carter – Entre Amigos (Hi-Res version downloaded from HD-track) and violin recordings is a treat. It is simply addictive.

2) Great and full sounding bass, blending very well with the midrange. I need to clarify this point a little bit. The Harbeth C7 does NOT have the best bass in the price range. The mid-bass is not explosive, it does not go super deep, and is not as punchy as some speakers such as the Audio Physics Virgo. From memory, the Virgos played drums better, it felt like the real thing in the room. However, the Harbeths provide a very nice fundation for the rest of the music. It is full and tuneful and more musical than the Virgo. The Harbeths never sound thin or lean.

3) Easy to drive. The Harbeths have an easy load and do not require a lot of power. Not only that, it can be driven pretty well with ‘budget’amps, such as my Rega Brio 3. Some speakers are easy to drive, such as many horn and single driver speakers, but they still require expensive SET, class A amps to sound great. The Harbeth C7 is one of the very few speakers that can be driven by low cost low power amps. Of course, you still need a good quality amp. At the end of the day, they are a pair of hi-end, transparent loudspeakers.

4) Easy to the ears. I know many reviewers (such as Sam Tellig of Stereophile) has mentioned this, and this is very true. I can listen to all sort of music, including some low quality pop recording, without feeling fatigue. Of course, you can tell the recording is of low quality – the Harbeth is transparent, but it just won’t hurt your ear like some overly analytic hi-end speakers. This is very important to me, as it means that I can enjoy a wider selection of music, not just audiophile recordings.

Of course, nothing is perfect, and I would like to point out a few imperfections of the Harbeths:

1) Comparing to the Merlin TSM-MM which I previously own, it does not sound as spacious and very slightly lack soundstage depth. This was obvious when I listened to FIM SACD 049 – Hush! The angles are singing. The Merlins were just exceptional in presenting the ‘hall sound’ of the church. The sound was so pure and had such great clarity that you can hear every single detail in the recording. Don’t get me wrong, the Harbeths are still great, but just do not have the ‘wow’ factor when playing this recording. Saying that, the Merlins were driven by a different amp – the Quicksilver Mini-Mites, and I know that the Rega sounds less spacious and airy in comparison. So it could very well be the signiture of the amplifier.

2) It is not the best speaker for rock. The Virgo, which has a more punchy and explosive mid-bass played rock better, and I am sure many other speakers such as ATC and JBL play rock better. But the Harbeth is not bad at all, and if you are not a hardcore rock fans, then it should be able to satisfy you.

The Harbeth Compact 7ES3, unlike the Audio Physics Virgo and some other Hi-End speakers, did not give me a lot of excitement at the start. But its musicality have won my love, have given me more musical satisfaction than any of the other speakers that I have own. I wish to write more about how the Harbeth compare with other speakers that I have own in the near future.

So I started to ‘re-design’ my system. For reasons other than the sound, the first component to go is my beloved Merlin TSM-MM speakers. Yes, I still like it very much, so does my wife. We both agree that we will get the VSM floorstander in the future if we can afford to (well, probably only in my dream). However, there are a couple of things that the Merlins really bugs me. One of them is it likes tubes more than solid state. Yes, it can still sounds great with solid state, but the choice is limited. Most budge integrated amps are out of question. I have heard that the Jeff Rowland, Plinius and Sim audio are great match to the Merlin, but they are way too expensive for me at the moment. So I figure I will let it go for now, use my Pi for the time being while searching for a new amp.

I put my focus on UK made integrated amps for several reasons. First of all, there are many good quality UK integrated amps at around the 1-2K dollars mark. Yes, they are usually lower power, but 30W is probably all I need. Secondly, they are usually easier to the ears. Thirdly, they are usually compact, no fuss designs.

I have considered several brands – Cambridge Audio, Rega, Audiolab, Naim etc. The Cambridge audio is too complicated for me, lots for features, LCD display etc. The Naim is a bit too expensive, and the speaker binding post really restrict what speaker cable you can use and is a hassle. The Rega is great value, simple design and very smooth sounding, so I settled with the Rega Brio.

I have read some comments on the internet that the Brio is not a good match with horns speakers, which concerned me a bit. But to my surprise, it actually sounds really nice with my Pi. Very smooth mid and tops. I used to complain about the highs a bit edgy and I couldn’t listen to the speakers for long. But the Brio actually smooth it out a bit, even more than my Quicksilver mini mono tube amps. The midrange is slightly softer and recess compare to the mini mono, but again very smooth. I listened to the Brio with some Spendors speakers and thought that the smoothness was from the speakers only, but now I believe it comes from both the amp and the speakers.

Bass is OK. To honest, I am never fussy about bass. As long it is the right quantity and not too slow, I am happy. I still believe a system that has a great midrange is 80% there. For the Brio, bass is average, it is not extremely powerful or extended, but as good as you would expect from a NZ$1K amp.

In terms of the build quality and the look, I quite like the styling. The plastic knobs looks a bit cheap, but Ok from a distance. I think the black Brio looks way better than the silver one. Binding posts and RCA input jacks are reasonable quality, not exotic but works well.

In conclusion, I am pretty happy with the amp. It serves music very well and just do the job. If you want an amp that impresses your friends or really grab your attention, then looks elsewhere. It is NOT an exciting amp. But if you want an that just play music, that the Brio is a good choice. And this is just want I need at this stage.

Recently, I bought a cheap class T amp kit Amp6 from 41Hz.com (under $100). Class T or digital amps never interested me in the past. But for less than $100? I reckon it would be a fun little project and a good back up amp when my valves fail (as it has happened recently). It took me about two evening to build it and install it. I will talk about this amp later, but what happened was the Pi sounded even worse with this amp (as expected thinner midrange and less bass). I got a bit frustrated so just pushed the speakers all the way into the corners. Then I remember the recommended speaker placement from Wayne (the designer) and I thought, why now give it a go? So I toe them in at 45degree and move couch a few feet forward. Now the sound is much much fuller and has more weight, no more thin midrange and the highs are way less edgy and shouty. The tonal balance is more natural and the sound has more ‘body’. The soundstage depth is not great though, so I move the Pi slightly out of the corners (about 1 feet fromt the backwall, but still very close to the side walls) and get a little bit more depth (still not the best but acceptable).

With this placement, the tweeter horns no longer points to the listening position. Instead, the axis-crossing point is 2-3 feet in front of the listener. This is a lot of toe-in, way more than anything that I have tried or seen in the past. This placement method is actually recommended by Wayne Parham (the designer) and have been discussed alot in his forum, but for some reasons, I never really tried it in the past. The large toe-in minimizes early side wall reflections and allows a much wider ‘sweet spot’. At the same time it reduces the high frequency energy and make the highs less in your face. The corner placement also helps increasing bass weight.

Now, I can listen to the Pi for a longer time without fatigue, and it is still a pretty ‘exciting’ speaker to listen to. I am really amazed with how good it sounds with a $100 12W class T amp. I really look forward to drive the Pi with the quicksilver valve amp again (I am waiting for some new tubes as the old ones have failed. BTW, although the JJ KT77 sounds great, they are NOT reliable, do a search on www.audioasylum.com).

Next time I will talk more about Amp6 kit.

This is a water fountain at my friend’s place. There is no post processing except cropping and resizing.

Here are the settings:

- Camera: Canon A720IS
- Shutter: 4 seconds (to get more light in)
- Aperture: f/2.8 (not a good choice but need to reduce shake)
- ISO: 100 (no noise)
- White balance: Aquarium (to give it a warmer colour)
- Time of day: twilight, around 21:00 in summer (good time for night shots)

Notes:
The actual environment was a lot dimmer. So I put the camera on a tripod and used longer exposure for increasing colour brightness. I also used a torch to “paint” the bricks as there was not enough light on them.

I took 4 to 5 photos but most of them are blurred. At the end I found out that I forgot to turn off image stabilization!!!

Although P&S cameras are not as flexible as dSLRs, we still can get a lot from it. Hopefully I can do more exercises with my P&S and share.

Although there are less exhibitors this year, there are quite a few interesting stuff on the show.

Goon Nappies – A very good brand from Japan was on the show this year. We tried the samples on our 9 months daughter and it is much better than the bigger popular brands that you get in supermarket. It is soft, no leak and no nasty ‘gel’. Slightly more expensive, but worth it, especially if you are using a cloth nappies most of the time and only use disposables when go out

PlasmaCar- This really is an innovative toy, and we couldn’t resist buying one. It looks like a toy for a 3 year old, but it is actually for anyone from 3 to 103 years old (as it says on the advertisement!) It is a small car but it can handle 100kg max. No batteries, no gear, and no pedal. You simply turn the steering wheel to move forward. And it can even go backward, you just flip the steering wheel 180 degree. The only catch is you need a flat surface – so no carpet or grass. Concrete floor e.g. in the Garage would be perfect. How does it work? Have a look at this page – The Physics of Plasma Car.

There are plenty of cloth nappies products on the show (I think the market is sort of saturated by now?), but surprisingly few breast feeding tops companies (unlike a couple years ago). Only one or two good designs such as the Mummy matters still on the show.

Anyway, I still think the Parent and Child show is one of the best exhibitions in Auckland. Lots of music, dance shows, toys to play with and face painting for the kids. It really is a great show for both parent and child.

After living with the Merlin TSM-MM for 3 years, and with the Harbeth LS3/5a for a couple of years before that, I am really glad to have a pair of floorstanders in my listening room again. While the Merlins have exceptional good bass for its size and have a very balanced sound (unlike the LS3/5a, which is bass-shy), a standmount is still a standmount. It cannot produce enough air movement with its 6 inch bass drive, thus the lowest frequencies are missing. On the other hand, the Pi 3, with its 12inch drivers, can go quite deep. Both the quality and quantity of bass are very good, and some music that sound a bit thin with the TSM is now more balance and enjoyable. Listening to the first track ‘Prologue’ on The Book of Screts by Loreena Mckennitt, the bass is deep and very powerful, which is lacking with the TSM.

Another desirable quality of the 3 pi is that it is not fuzz about positioning (both the speakers and the listener). You don’t have to lock yourself on the sweet spot to get a good soundstage and focus. I have a 3 seater couch in my listening room and I can sit at any position and still get very good sound/soundstage from the 3 pi. This probably has to do with the horn loaded tweeter/midrange, and maybe a wide cabinet design?

While the Pi is not harsh sounding at all, it is not as smooth as the Merlin TSM. I can listen to the TSM for a very long time without feeling any fatigue. I can hear a bit of midrange grain on the Pi, which could make it sound a bit ‘rough’ on some music. I may try to swap in better caps in the crossover to see if this can be improved.

In conclusion, while the TSM and the Pi are completely different speakers, I can live with either the Merlin TSM or the Pi for a long time. They are both very musical. The Merlin TSM sounds smoother and more transparent. It images very well (focus very well). On the other hand, the Pi, being a full range speaker, is a bit more fun and can play just about any kind of music without strain. It has a sense of ‘ease’ and produce life size images/soundstage. And it is very efficient (98dB sensitivity) so you can drive it with just about anything.

Finally, here are a few construction pics.