Some tables have soul and some not

Rok2id,
ha ha, I like your model of the world somehow because it is simple.... Of course the Americans always pay the most but they know how to get the most out of everything. So it is quite a good balance from my point of view. Religion is a matter for itself. You cannot convince an atheist to run on your "religion ticket" but are all Europeans atheists. Unfortunately not, ha ha... I hope you get my irony.

best and fun only

Dear Thuchan, As far as I know the American military and
foreign policy are based on American national interest.
Our military member want to convince us that this policy is
somhow of universal benefit. I hope he will keep his job
after Iraq and Afghanistan. BTW I don't believe that 'they know to get the most out of anything'. Any idea about the foreign and the national debt?

Regards,

Dear Nandric,
I just returned having spent 4 weeks in the US.
My impression is that people tend to become a bit more aggressive or let`s say less patient with the rest of the world and also with their own government. As you know military is one of my hobbies (now passive, on history and consulting only). I just learned that the US forces withdraw about 15000 people from Europe due to cost reasons most properly. And I think they are right. They need to reduce expenses as the European armies too. But you have seen what this means when the Russian forces went back to their barracks in Russia 1990. The Russian government had to create new jobs and opportunities for soldiers and military civil personal. This is quite a challenge doing so.
So maybe our friend has found a new job here :-) now kicking our ass...

best & fun only

I forgot Nandric,
foreign and national US debt is just a matter of perspective. When you ask US citizen they usually will tell you that they fear more the European debt...

best & fun only

Czapp, thanks for providing the details of the sound. I do not know what element of the sound is "captivating" to you. While the things you listed are important in sound quality and certainly can enhance listening experience but for me I have noticed harmonic richness and natural texture provides great sonic pleasure. If a turntable does not have the "bloom" and natural harmonic decay--as if a Monet painted by a cubist--I lose interest. The Garrard 301 you mentioned is a harmonically pleasing machine and not to mention its juicy tone so I don't blame you for liking it. It is this reason I part ways with certain popular and highly touted direct-drive turntable, even if their specs and speed accuracy are in top shape. When another direct-drive table is heard with no cogging or whatever soul sucking element is gone, the sound is much more relaxed and "captivating."

I like to listen to as much variety of music as possible, from Bach to Slayer, to determine if I like the sound of a turntable or not but I also developed a personal quickie test by playing music with double bass for checking "bloom" or harmonic decay and violin for texture, smoothness, and lack of cogging. After hearing the replay of those two instruments I already have a good idea if I like the table or not. Even better if there's piano in there...

There was a day one of my dd tables had speed issue and before I check it with the strobe light the sound I heard was just cold and uninvolving as if all the warmth has sucked out of the room and yet all the other sonic elements were still there and then I saw a tiny slight jitters visibly on the strobe. So after some tinkering, the table is back to running normal and the sound or "soul" is restored. It was this experience that I started to believe, at least in dd tables, the importance of eliminating cogging, however microscopic it may be, is a worth cause. Of course, I am sure there are other things that can affect the sound of tables of different genres. We just have to find out what they are so we can regain the soul.

Anyway, thanks for the reply.

______