mooty

while too early for speculation but i see ur points. not that i like it, but am intrigued to see the new directio PAG takes and how 960 will become the race car of choice, or will it?

Bill_C4S

Course 10 at MIT

Avalon Indra's .....they work well with the Spectrals and dCS....imaging is a particular forte...on excellent recordings..think Keith Johnson's other distraction..Reference Recordings..and it is really very very easy to immerse and detach....decompress.

Don't see upgraditis being an issue for a while.....

Loved the ML2....heard it many a day through a friends Quad ESL63s....some of the old kit got it very very right.

Bill_C4S

Perspective on forums this side of the pond is 960 is shelved...

mooty

ah... chemE, you actually have a brain, unlike the rest of us in IV. we dream in color that's all.

you are cheating. anything from ref recoding is good, even on cheap boom boxes. but total volume produced by ref recording is too limiting. kids forced me to listen to swizzle, twizzle whatever taylor swift is called, aghast.....

they are best when it's cold and rainign outside. i ran two pairs through old Quads at MIT. heater oil i pay, electricity landlord paid. the 4 monoblocks were on 24/7. man i was warm in the cold summer. shirts and shorts that's it. cooked my noodles on ML2.

no.... i am eager to see something totally different but cheaper than 918, so i can include it in my color dreams.

GrantG

My guess it that it's only shelved until all the 918's (and subsequent models based on that platform) are sold, since the 960 is going to deliver nearly as much performance, probably a better driving experience, and cost 1/4 as much.

aussie jimmy

those old levinson amps still sound good to me.
we have the same taste; i love the coloured, soft, warm, dark caramel sound too.
my ears are too damaged for hi-res gear.
half my gear is 20 years old, especially dac and transport, digital sounded smoother then...

RS WILL NOT BE MANUAL.
we can all speculate though, and i pray that i'm wrong.

008

It would be nice if Porsche learned from the slow sales of the 918, people don't want overly complicated/expensive hybrids that can turn one great lap on the ring from them. A 918 with no electric motors selling for $500k would have been a huge hit for Porsche. On where the 960 fits in, it will be interesting (if they build it) to see where VAG positions it with respect to the Lambo Cabrera and the next gen R8 with whom it will share a platform. Below the 458 and the MP4 by a good margin they will sell a ton, on par or close, not so much, higher it will likely be a dissapointment like the 918 and CGT when it was new.

GTEE3

the Audiofile hobby can be a $$$$ addiction...just like Wine collecting. Hard to find collectable boutique wine for less than $3-400/btl., and the best is $7-900/btl.
RS most likely PDK-S

CAlexio

A few points:

This thread should be called the RS and audiophile thread.. Because of course those two subjects to together beautifully.

Also, I have no idea wtf you audiophiles are talking about, none at all.. And I'm glad BC I don't want to expose myself to this type of drug.. Anyone who starts describing the sound different from $120k speakers as "warm caramel".. as if the $5000 or $1000 ones sound like grating chalkboards.. Is smoking some seriously high level crack. I'm curious.. But scared to learn more.

Can we go back to talking ab econoboxes?

aussie jimmy

don't be scared, it's all beautiful when the love of music is the endgame.

price doesn't mean anything.
most important is system synergy where one has chosen components on the basis of how they are voiced by their respective designers. some gear is upfront, like row a (in your face) and others are laid-back (row s), some are in the middle. you choose accordingly to what you like. you mix n match to sit where you want.
some designers are engineers whose lab-grade gear impart a bit of a clinical, technical bent, much like the latest 991 gt3's where they are hugely competent and efficient, but lack feel that the enthusiast yearns for.
other designers are artisan music lovers, who don't care about being the most accurate, nor measure well, but their products offer musicality, feel, warmth, character...like an aged scotch, patek, or a 996gt3 or 993rs
you choose the path.

008

So what wines are you guys collecting? I've put away a few bottles but am mostly a CA drinker. Lately it's been Darioush, Roy, Jarvis, Tom Eddy, etc just can't seem to keep from drinking them!

GrantG

Any single-ended directly-heated triode guys here among the audiophiles? I used to design and build my own amps of this type from exotic pre-WWII German and British tubes (thought they sounded better than anything else at any price). Fun stuff, but gave it up to focus on running at the track (could only afford one money pit at a time).

mooty

good for you. it took a LONG time to shake this habit.

do NOT corrupt another young soul. you are already messed up. leave him alone

luckily i dont drink. that budget goes to 100 oct race fuel and michelin blues.

now here is a REAL nut case.
i had some 70's triode stuff. but in USA triode amp are hard to come by as you know. here they want 1000000 watt that triode cannot cope with. but if you get some nice NOS telefunken tubes and a nice triode monoblock linked to a good set of electrostatic...... some cuban cigar, macallan, dark room, the women that GT3DE posted on the aston martin pre-owned ad... damn, maybe i can just quit this RL time sucker.

while we are at it and so far off the topic now. anyone into road bikes and MTB's. now we can really suck up more dough. my old ksyrium died today on my C59. thinking of enve with king hub. or maybe hyperion???

while i await the answers, i need to goto my 5th job to support my crack habit.

BBMGT3

i coach a guy who just bought a 918

i told him he's a fool and I'd buy the car off him in 2 years for $180k

very good remark about a wild, light, non-hybrid supercar for $500k. I'd have gathered up the pennies

RS will be PDK. Stop dreaming guys.

Improvements will be minor. A la difference between 997.1 and 997.1 RS

Drifting

I also hope Porsche learns their lesson from 918 slow sales. They make great cars, but they don't have the brand of Ferrari. They are a different, and in most, (but not all) ways a company making better cars.

I think Porsche (and the ego of those in charge) will cause them to position the 960 as a direct competitor to the Ferrari 458 successor and the MP4. The price will be close to both those cars. $225,000 at least. Remember the 911 turbo S is going for $180,000 already.

It will be very interesting to see who wins that 3-way competition between mid-engined Porsche, Ferrari, and Lamborghini cars.
I don't think that VW is worried about the Porsche 960 taking away Lamborghini sales as the Lambo brand attracts a different buyer than most Ferrari and Mclaren owners. All these cars have power, but Ferrari and Mclaren attract true performance drivers and those attracted to the pedigree and passion of the cars.

Sorry, but your average Lamborghini drive is compensating for small personal equipment by buying a large, loud, "look at me" car.

Of course that description does apply to some Ferrari,Mclaren, Porsche owners, but not 90% of them as with Lamborghini owners.