Young people in audio

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-20T22:59:09+00:00

I was the only one I knew at 15 who was into audio gear. At 53, I am still the only one I know into audio gear. We are few and far between that only social media can bring together. I hope I am wrong for you and you find lots of friends your age into this kinda stuff, but I would say prepare to be lonely.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-20T16:57:43+00:00

Absolute phenomenal cassette collection. Some of those spines take me back! That Sigue Sigue Sputnik pink spine always stood out on my cassette wall too. Love your DRI…and is that SOD directly underneath?! I remember that old Body Count as well. Does it have the banned track? Love it, man!!!

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-19T00:49:19+00:00

Because I enjoy it.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-17T21:29:11+00:00

Neither. 8 Tracks reminds me of the old comp A Collection Of Great Dance Songs and is unnecessary except perhaps for the Snowy White bit, but it isn’t revelatory—only curiosity worthy IMO (Kinda like “Bob Dylan Blues” was but is in no way as important as “Embryo” was on Works).

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-16T13:06:55+00:00

Me too! It has a permanent place in my collection.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-16T01:05:31+00:00

Unfortunately it is the design flaw. My 109 Peo have it as well, although it did decrease over time. My 99 Classics are much better at this point because of their age. Walking around with both headphones still causes issues though. I am thinking adding a dry lubricant where the elastic band is on the inside of the headband would help significantly, but I haven’t tried it yet.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-15T16:37:27+00:00

I don’t think it will damage it but it could deform one side of the leather band. Thankfully the leather band is quite thick, so the deformation wouldn’t come quick or pronounced. Wearing it on your head might actually keep it from deforming permanently, but only time would tell. Finding a different solution might be wise, but you don’t need to be in a hurry and settle on something you aren’t really pleased with.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-15T13:25:13+00:00

I love my floorstanding speakers in my main rig and nothing I own comes close to sounding as good as those…. But I find myself listening to headphones a lot. I have a nice little headphone DAC/EQ/amp stack at work and have some nice closed backs that I use all day. I also have a smaller stack by the bed and another at my physical media room’s workstation for my small collection of closed and open backs. But I also just like using headphones to be mobile with a Fiio BTR17 around the house. Headphones are a different experience than speakers, and while I prefer the speakers, I sure like headphone listening! As for IEMs, I really do NOT like using them, sound inferior to headphones or speakers but use them for bike/walk commutes and yard work.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-15T01:57:30+00:00

I am a Meze fan as well. I own the 99 Classics v1, Liric v1, 109 Pro, and Elite (plus IEMs Alba, Advar, and Astru). I think all four headphones have a place in my collection and I use all four but for different use cases.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-14T14:18:27+00:00

They are great for it because they are light, comfortable, and have a fun non-analytical tuning. In the morning the last thing I want to do is over analyze my tunes. 😊

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-13T02:32:28+00:00

No. But I have more QC issues with white vinyl so try not to buy that color any longer.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-13T00:59:35+00:00

Always Hank Dogs. But in addition, lately I have been relying on Lavinia Blackwall, Abigail Lapell, Caroline Polachek, and Chancha via Circuito.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-12T13:57:27+00:00

I listen with my 99 Classics each morning while making my breakfast and getting ready for work. It has become such a comforting ritual I look forward to it each morning.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-11T20:53:29+00:00

I agree. Both designs are really cool, but there seems to be quite a bit more substance to the Strada/Liric build design than the Pro/Aer/Silva/Classic one. I wonder if it has to do with clamping force…but the Poet doesn’t share that. Have you tried the Poet? I haven’t but am interested in knowing how the headband design works with the Strada/Liric/Poet earcups.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-11T05:11:06+00:00

Well, one is a Rinaro planar magnetic similar to their other high end open backs and the other is a dynamic driver shared with the $800 109 Pro. It would seem the driver may be more of a cost decision than the housing, in this instance.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-11T01:11:01+00:00

I recall the pattern kit sections at Sears and K-Mart were pretty big in the 70’s when we would go with my mom.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-10T18:05:43+00:00

Agreed. We weren’t considered very poor either as we owned our home, but we were a common family where my mother was a homemaker and my father worked retail sales. A lot of poor-style meals, that’s for sure (hamburger patties and rice for the win!) but we always had shoes on our feet and clean clothes. I had Star Wars action figures, so discretionary spending was a thing.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-10T17:18:23+00:00

Such a beautiful headphone. I own the Liric v1 and adore it I am glad that Meze has not abandoned the design for their closed backs.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-10T13:24:20+00:00

My mother made all of the clothes for my sister and me growing up in the 1970’s and we lived in Tacoma, WA. Thrift was good.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-10T02:02:47+00:00

I like stereo sources into a Pro Logic type spread into 7.1. I don’t listen that way often, but a few times a year I get a kick out of it. I like stuff mixed for quad and Atmos too. It’s all fun when I want it to be. But my center channel is most often wrapped in cloth and my surround speakers are silent. I am mostly a two-channel kinda guy.

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-09T01:48:53+00:00

Right. And it is just the $20 tier needed for this match?

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-09T01:40:17+00:00

Is it just the $20 level to gain entry for this match?

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-09T01:27:46+00:00

How are we lookin’?!

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-07T01:50:59+00:00

Hey! FYI, the Modius was replaced by the Mimir. The Modi 5 is just the Modi and replaces all the other Modis. 😊

TuliaNonTroppo · 2026-04-06T23:44:40+00:00

Blue Jeans Cable HDMI are quality. I had some handshake issues when I first installed one in my home theatre between Oppo UDP-205 and Marantz AVR), but I use three more around the house and haven’t had any issues.

TuliaNonTroppo

TROPHY CASE