February Newsletter CES – A special report by Norm Bowers The forecast called for temperatures in the upper 30’s with light rain mixed with snow. While this would be considered a fairly nice winter day for the Midwest it was not what we expected in Las Vegas. Undaunted by the weather (except for Jim who complained that he was freezing the whole time) this year’s troupe of audiophiles from the Listening Society still found a few things to warm their hearts. The Cary room was a highlight. Cary was demonstrating the 805 mono block amplifiers and Silver Oak speakers. I would have enjoyed the room even without the lobbying of Cary’s two newest owners. The group was particularly enamored with the Cabasse eyeball speakers**** and the Art mono blocks. Despite the feeling that the system was looking back at you, the sound was amazing, particularly the bass. One new comer to the show was a Nu-Force digital mono block amplifier. Our initial reaction was very positive. With a price of $750 apiece the unit seemed to be one of the best value of the show. As the sole Kansas City associate of the Tampa Bay Listening Society it was a pleasure to renew old friendships and begin new ones. Our annual pilgrimage to the CES is the only time I get to see many of you. Thank you for inviting me and I am already looking forward to next year. (Norm is the second from the left. Jim Maher is mysteriously missing as he is from most pictures. This year’s crew was, L to R, Tom Haleas, Norm Bowers, John Santamaria, Tom Burdell, and Harley Day. CES – An update by Jim Maher Another trip to CES where we get to play with all the new toys before everyone else. How could life get any better (well perhaps if we could afford to buy!!) The Cary room was, as usual, one of the best of the show with the mighty 211 amps driven by Cary’s wonderful new preamp the SLP-05 ($8,000). The new CD player may be something to think about with its ability to switch to a tube output stage from the remote control. This is the new 303/300 ($4,000) and I predict it will get rave reviews. My choice for best speaker is the one that looks like two giant eyeballs staring you down. This is the Cabasse Baltic II ($4659) along with the Saturne 55 subwoofer ($19,555) and yes you need to run a subwoofer with these speakers. Powered by a pair of 845 tubes I thought I was in a smoky café listening to a singer from the 50’s. Great sound but a little unnerving having the speakers look back at you. As always we went to most of the venues and looked at all the other toys. Minolta has a new digital SLR that has Anti-Shake technology built into the camera. Although other manufactures have built this technology into their premium lens Minolta‘s approach lets even a 20 year old lens work in low light situations never before possible. I highly suggest looking at this if you are in the market. As for cars - how about a new Ford GT. I would have been happy taking one of these back to Tampa with me. President's Corner We begin, as has become customary, with a big thanks to Russ and Judy Garvey, for hosting the January meeting. A splendid time was had by all. Nice job on the cabinets by Russ, both for the speakers, and for the kitchen (sorry, girls, he's married). Several of you attended C.E.S. recently, and there are several developments as a result. There appears to be a plethora of new equipment for us to hear, so don't miss any of the upcoming meetings. Mike Knapp in particular should have some exciting, new equipment for us to hear (and see) on Tuesday. Other people have new Cary Audio gear, and there are one or two new Pass amps out there, as well. Keep showing up for the meetings, so you don't miss out. Speaking of meetings, we have followed a familiar format that is now beginning its third year. This is either because (1) everyone really likes it; or (2) no one can be bothered to suggest an alternative. While it has been very interesting to meet at our homes, and actually hear the equipment, as opposed to just hearing about it, there has been a drop-off in attendance which ought to concern all of us. Please provide your suggestions for other meeting ideas, or events, or activities that you would like to see us put together. Those of you who are the most hands-on seem to have lost some of your enthusiasm for the club, and we want you back, participating like before. Let us know what is missing, or what we can add to make the meetings more interesting, as far as you're concerned. There are a few exciting events planned for the near future, including some in-house concerts. Also, we expect to have the opportunity to see a demonstration of the new Microsoft Media Center software. More on that as the information becomes available, but those of us who have heard about this would really like to see if it's as good as expected. Elsewhere in this newsletter, there should be first-hand reporting about CES, and Mike Knapp's review of his new equipment. I would like to see us addressing more technical subjects in the newsletter; Mike VansEvers used to write very thought-provoking commentaries in the past; I would enjoy reading more from Mike, and from anyone else who would like to contribute. Jim, Russ, Harley, Tom (both of you) and others all build and/or modify equipment on a regular basis. It would be interesting for the rest of us to hear about what you're doing (and why). Plans are in the works to have live music as a more consistent component of our meetings. If there is one thing that there is general agreement about, it is the appeal of live music, whether it's a short, solo concert, or even a demonstration of an instrument, and its capabilities. We hope to have statements out soon regarding dues, as soon as Michael makes a list, and checks it twice. In the meantime, feel free to give your payment to Michael whenever you're ready. Several attempts have been made for us to get logoed shirts. We now have a reasonable way to get them. If you are strongly interested in this, send me an email, and we'll pursue it. Part of the purpose of the President's Corner is to generate improvements in the way this works, but that won't happen, unless someone acts on any of the comments that have been expressed. Your participation is critical, if we are going to have the kind of club we would like to have. Most of what we do is the result of the efforts of a relatively small group of people within the club. Greater participation will help to keep everything fresh, and interesting. The purpose of the Executive Committee meetings (everyone is welcome to attend) is to plan our next meetings, so a little better turn-out there would be beneficial, also. The Tuesday meeting at Mike's should be very interesting. Don't miss it. See you there, Peter Fiskio phone 813-805-6514 email: pfiskio1@tampabay.rr.com