With my Martini and Music, I'd like an Olive

[Occhidiangela]

I am finally getting serious in my long term goal of converting all of my old LP's (I have over 400) into a digital format. My old Yamaha (vintage 1986) CD player finally bit the dust. So, I did a little poking around and found The Olive Opus, Musica, and Symphony. The Opus is not out yet, won't ship until June, but the Musica and Symphony have been out for a while.

Do any of you old timers (persons with LP's) have an Olive? If so, how do you like it? My Hi Fi rack will be absent the CD player, and I intend to fill it with something more useful that just another CD player. (I have a Bose Wave Radio/CD player anyway if all I want to do is play a CD.)

Comments? The Symphony runs about 900 dollars. (I fits in the "luxury versus necessity" category, but I have a few bits saved up for "Dad's latest toy" thanks to having resolved my golf equipment needs via winnings from a number of tournament firsts and seconds last year, which credit at the pro shop allowed me to buy a new driver and a new putter.)

Olive: pro or con?

Occhi

[ShadowHM]

Before you embark on this mission, have you considered whether it is worth it?

We have a similar collection of LP's. :blush: We still have a turntable connected, so that we may hear them, should we choose. (Please do not ask how, or what manner of equipment supports this. It is not my toy. :rolleyes:)

Most of them are unworthy of copying. (Perhaps the ones collected towards the end may be. Quite a lot of them were played once on the turntable, to copy them to cassette tape, and then put aside.) But virtually all of the others have suffered some vicissitude or another.

I know it seems like a conspiracy to keep you purchasing your favourite music over and over again. But if you really do want to hear some of those older pieces in their full glory, it is worth just purchasing it.

There may well be some LP's in your collection that are yet unavailable in CD format. For that number, is this new machine worth the expenditure? Or is it part of the process for you, and hence worth it, no matter what? ;)

[Occhidiangela]

Before you embark on this mission, have you considered whether it is worth it?

We have a similar collection of LP's. :blush: We still have a turntable connected, so that we may hear them, should we choose. (Please do not ask how, or what manner of equipment supports this. It is not my toy. :rolleyes:)

Most of them are unworthy of copying. (Perhaps the ones collected towards the end may be. Quite a lot of them were played once on the turntable, to copy them to cassette tape, and then put aside.) But virtually all of the others have suffered some vicissitude or another.

I know it seems like a conspiracy to keep you purchasing your favourite music over and over again. But if you really do want to hear some of those older pieces in their full glory, it is worth just purchasing it.

There may well be some LP's in your collection that are yet unavailable in CD format. For that number, is this new machine worth the expenditure? Or is it part of the process for you, and hence worth it, no matter what? ;)

My old audiophile habits are rather hard to break. I'd rather have a piece of gear I get to play with than have to piecemeal my old records, and most importantly, to make my digital mix tapes/CD's to my liking, in other than MP3 format, which I find less than satisfactory on my Klipsch speakers.

The end game is all of the albums, and a bunch of stuff my dad has on LP, gets converted to CD format. I tend to use high end turntables (B & O, though I have an eye on a Denon now that the B & O is deemed unrepairable by the local electronics shop: no parts.) The artificially brightened mid range of most CD's is one of the downsides of CD era music.

So, some of this is a labor of love, and is well beyond a sterile "cost benefit" analysis. My Deutsche Gramaphone LP's are some of the better performances done of certian pieces, to include the Mozart Four Horn concertos, and I'd rather "roll my own" than spend a great deal more than $ 900 to replace my entire collection. I have replaced about 20% of my LPs with CD's in the Rock n Roll category, but there are lots of albums I have, Mott the Hoople and Guadacanal Diary "Walking in the Shadow of the BIg Man" that never made it to CD.

More than you wanted to know, but the old audiophile in me is not happy with some of the options. This appears to meet my needs. Stereophile gave the Symphony a solid review. All the Musica has is a bigger hard drive, and the Opus, at about $3000 is exactly what I want but well outside of the budget.

Occhi

[Nystul]

I haven't seen or heard one of these yet. I don't think it will do anything that your computer (depending on soundcard) can't do already, but it has the advantages of not being your computer, and the simplicity that comes with a more specialized tool. Overall, it looks very convenient.

One alternative I have seen is the Squeezebox or Airport Express. Basically these are simple mechanisms to access music from your computer hard drive via wireless network or ethernet and play it to your stereo, amp, or whatever. So they are much cheaper, but not nearly capable of as many tricks. In this case, you would need a soundcard with good analog to digital conversion for your LPs (no matter what you will need a good turntable and phono stage, but I assume you have this covered already), and enough free hard drive space to store both your ripped CDs and converted LPs in ALAC or FLAC format.

Personally, my livingroom, bedroom, and computer room are all one room. So none of these devices are really worth anything for me until I move to some place with more quiet rooms. But even then, I'm afraid I would spend far more time in front of the computer and not much time listening to music in the livingroom.

As for the LPs, I own Born to Run, but only listen to the CD. That covers my vinyl collection.

[Bun-Bun]

At first blush, this seems like a really big, expensive iPod.:)

I'm not sure how it relates to your vinyl collection; you'll have to digitize your LP's whatever solution you go with.

Personally, I chose to go with an Airport Express solution. The downside is that the computer has to be on, but with me, that's not really an issue. I run WoW on one screen, iTunes/browser on the other.

The Olive stuff does have the advantage of independence from the computer; it's also got the disadvantage of having to be run through a teeny-weeny screen. For that kind of money, I'd be tempted to get a small form factor PC or Mac, slap a cheap flat screen on top and use iTunes to manage my music.

And I could also use it for D2 mules.:P

I'd say more, but I think Nystul covered it all.

[Occhidiangela]

Ibut it has the advantages of not being your computer, and the simplicity that comes with a more specialized tool.

Exactly. A better PC soundcard does nothing for my Klipsch La Scala spekers. As to a "non portable iPod" it has two USB ports that allow me to load whatever onto the iPod Nano my daughter has, or any future iPod dingus I may acquire. But that isn't what I want it for.

1. To integrate audiophile improvement into my rack of stereo gear. (Carver, and a Denon tape deck.)

2. To digitize me entire LP collection and some my Dad owns.

My PC can't do either of those.

Occhi

[Nystul]

1. To integrate audiophile improvement into my rack of stereo gear. (Carver, and a Denon tape deck.)

2. To digitize me entire LP collection and some my Dad owns.

My PC can't do either of those.

2. should be easily possible with any prosumer soundcard and a big hard drive. Whether it would be better or worse ADC quality than the Olive is hard to say. 1. is more debatable, but if the goal is to have your entire collection of digital music available to play out of your stereo system using some remote or interface without the computer being in the same room or physically attached then, it could do that with the previously mentioned devices.

[Bun-Bun]

Exactly. A better PC soundcard does nothing for my Klipsch La Scala spekers. As to a "non portable iPod" it has two USB ports that allow me to load whatever onto the iPod Nano my daughter has, or any future iPod dingus I may acquire. But that isn't what I want it for.

1. To integrate audiophile improvement into my rack of stereo gear. (Carver, and a Denon tape deck.)

2. To digitize me entire LP collection and some my Dad owns.

My PC can't do either of those.

Occhi

Looking at the data sheet, it's looking better than I had thought. It's definitely an option if you don't want to involve a computer in the process.

I do note that their playlist software only runs on Macs.:)

Also, like any hard-disk based thing, I'd be sure to back it up once you've got it all loaded.

[Occhidiangela]

Looking at the data sheet, it's looking better than I had thought. It's definitely an option if you don't want to involve a computer in the process.

I do note that their playlist software only runs on Macs.:)

Also, like any hard-disk based thing, I'd be sure to back it up once you've got it all loaded.

Good point, an external HD might be a good choice. I'll be burning the CD-R version of a lot of LP, for long term storage, and various mixes. Then, all the casette tapes go by by. :w00t:

Nystul, I wonder if you understand what an audiophile is, or was before digital came along and perverted sound reproduction. (Yes, fewer pops and hisses, BFD. Dolby, a decent cleaner, and a good cartridge, as well as a decent DD turntable, did similar good things for signal to noise ratios without cutting sound into slices. :angry: ) Life is analog. The Luddite has spoken. ;)

Since I am going to buy a replacement for my CD player in the rack anyway, I am positioned to also replace with this item the cassette player/recorder.

A PC soundcard is not going to do what I want this to do. I seriously doubt a PC can do what I want, without spending similar extra money here and there on more esoteric stuff, with my LP collection. <== that is a driving concern.

The "have lots of music on a HD" is nearly irrelevant, though it is a convenience.

Occhi

[Nystul]

Nystul, I wonder if you understand what an audiophile is, or was before digital came along and perverted sound reproduction. (Yes, fewer pops and hisses, BFD. Dolby, a decent cleaner, and a good cartridge, as well as a decent DD turntable, did similar good things for signal to noise ratios without cutting sound into slices. :angry: ) Life is analog. The Luddite has spoken. ;)

You talk the talk, but if you were really a vinyl enthusiast you would be saving all your money to buy some new cartridge or rare LPs instead of spending it on a machine that will strip your collection of it's analoggy goodness! You do realize you will now have the worst of both worlds, right? The flawed sounds of analog transferred to the lifeless realm of digital? :ph34r:

Truth be told, I've never heard an audiophile grade turntable setup. Most of my memories of vinyl involve running acrossed the room to lift the needle before it gets to the end of the album and starts scratching. I have had the opportunity to listen to $1200 headphones, $2000 tube-rolled headphone amplifiers, $200 headphone cables, etc., so I have a bit of an idea of the extremes people will go to get the right sound. The one thing thing I've learned from those experiences is that the whole thing can be a complete crapshoot, as each thing has to go with the next thing correctly or you've wasted your money. The other thing I've learned is that, while I'm both a musician and a music lover, I don't have that hunger to get perfect reproduction that some people do.

So the only real advice I can give with regards to high end audio is, figure out what will match your needs, and listen before you buy if at all possible! It seems you've already decided this is the perfect match for your needs, so hopefully it also fits the bill sound-wise.

[Bam-Bam]

Occhi,

A place to look for other audio gear to suit your taste is Mapleshade Records. The outfit was started by former Defense Reformer Pierre Sprey (one of Col. John Boyd's crew), and his attention to detail borders on the loony.

I have picked up a few of his CDs, and the quality of sound he manages to put on CD exceeds anything I have heard otherwise. I have yet to pick up any of his gear, but if it matches the quality of recording I've heard, then it's probably right up your alley.

It's pricey, no doubt. Definately on my list of things to do when I recreate the Hi-Fi, though when that is up in the air.

--Bam

[Taem]

I am finally getting serious in my long term goal of converting all of my old LP's (I have over 400) into a digital format. My old Yamaha (vintage 1986) CD player finally bit the dust. So, I did a little poking around and found The Olive Opus, Musica, and Symphony. The Opus is not out yet, won't ship until June, but the Musica and Symphony have been out for a while.

Do any of you old timers (persons with LP's) have an Olive? If so, how do you like it? My Hi Fi rack will be absent the CD player, and I intend to fill it with something more useful that just another CD player. (I have a Bose Wave Radio/CD player anyway if all I want to do is play a CD.)

Comments? The Symphony runs about 900 dollars. (I fits in the "luxury versus necessity" category, but I have a few bits saved up for "Dad's latest toy" thanks to having resolved my golf equipment needs via winnings from a number of tournament firsts and seconds last year, which credit at the pro shop allowed me to buy a new driver and a new putter.)

Olive: pro or con?

Occhi

My children had a plethura of VHS movies (mostly Disney) that I wanted to transfer all to DVD. I bought a piece of hardware called Sparkle (or something very similar) which took my RCA and video or s-video input into my computer and turned it into a digital copy. The VHS movie turned digital very well, but was an extreemly large file and the main problem is the only program I had to rip my new DVD's with was Nero at the time. It took 2-3 DVD's just to fit one stinking movie! If I knew about DVD shrink at the time, things would have been different no doubt. To make a long story short, I ended up selling all my VHS tapes on eBay and just gave up on converting my VHS movies to DVD's.

If I had a bunch of great music on LP's, I might try to convert them to digital mp4's regardless of whatever else I bought. Just a thought.

[Occhidiangela]

You talk the talk, but if you were really a vinyl enthusiast you would be saving all your money to buy some new cartridge or rare LPs instead of spending it on a machine that will strip your collection of it's analoggy goodness! You do realize you will now have the worst of both worlds, right? The flawed sounds of analog transferred to the lifeless realm of digital? :ph34r:

Truth be told, I've never heard an audiophile grade turntable setup.

Well, it made quite a difference. I used to use test records to fine tune the tracking to a gnat's arse about once a month. (LP life extended and taping improved.) My Technics DD had a top end Shure cartridge that cost almost as much as the turntable, before they both got destroyed in a move. That led to a linear tracking B & O that had no problems with scratch or flutter. The frequency response of a good cartridge is key, as you noted. That is a separate issue with my turntable set up, not the recording set up. Having grown up with LP, I don't lose sleep over a few pops and whazzits, as I am very familiar with the records I have anyway. I admit that I stopped using a graphic equalizer some years ago. It didn't improve the listening experience all that much.

Wasting money on LP's at this point merely feeds someone's eBay selling habit.

The Klipsch are a very brutal speaker: any flaws in reproduction you hear. I am down with that.

I made tape mixes for years, on cassette tapes, and on reel to reel (Revox) with a variety of hiss and pop supression.

I had hoped someone else had experienced the Olive, but perhaps the market is very "niche" for such a gadget. Audiophiles are notorious for liking gadgets. My dad went through four amplifies in a five year period before he settled on Macintosh. (Not the PC, the Hi Fi.)

I don't know what "a vinyl enthusiast is" but I know how much I like the LP's I own. Having already pared away some forgettable junk (the Psychedelic Furs, meh!) some years ago, I am down to bare essentials.

I have a few LP's that are E Bayable, but I ain't selling until Mick Jagger dies on one of them. And really, who wants a copy of the White Album, Beatles, made of White Vinyl?

Occhi

[Occhidiangela]

Occhi,

A place to look for other audio gear to suit your taste is Mapleshade Records. The outfit was started by former Defense Reformer Pierre Sprey (one of Col. John Boyd's crew), and his attention to detail borders on the loony.

I have picked up a few of his CDs, and the quality of sound he manages to put on CD exceeds anything I have heard otherwise. I have yet to pick up any of his gear, but if it matches the quality of recording I've heard, then it's probably right up your alley.

It's pricey, no doubt. Definately on my list of things to do when I recreate the Hi-Fi, though when that is up in the air.

--Bam

Great Link, I think my Dad has been to that place. It's within a few hours of his house. I'll ask him.

Occhi

[LochnarITB]

Curse you Occhi!:angry:

My Deutsche Gramaphone LP's

A couple nights ago, there was some audiophile talk in WoW chat. I was trying to remember that name and the harder I tried the more elusive it became. Of course, I flipped over to Google and did some searching and reminiscing. I was able to pull myself back to this thread and then you mentioned

Carver

Back to Google I went to refresh my memory of how Carver and Hafler related to each other and the Dynaco equipment I own, including the Stereo 410 kit I built and then had modified by Van Alstine. I found all kinds of stuff and branched off to info about Polk, the speakers I own. Two hours after starting to read this thread, I finally pushed myself to click all the tabs closed to try to get something else done.

And now, thinking about all this, I'm sad. All my gear and albums (only 250+?) are in storage and I have no idea if or when I will have space to set it up where I can listen to it.:(

[edit]

Having grown up with LP, I don't lose sleep over a few pops and whazzits, as I am very familiar with the records I have anyway.

I always found the pops became part of my own personal listening experience. Hearing the same piece from a different source, there was something "wrong" when the expected pop wasn't there.:rolleyes:

[--Pete]

Hi,

I am finally getting serious in my long term goal of converting all of my old LP's (I have over 400) into a digital format.

Why convert to digital when you can get that vinyl goodness forever? Just pick up one of these little laser turntables. Or pick up a set, so you can play LPs, 45s and 78s. At $15K each, they're a steal (but who's doing the stealing?).

:)

--Pete

[Occhidiangela]

Hi,
Why convert to digital when you can get that vinyl goodness forever? Just pick up one of these little laser turntables. Or pick up a set, so you can play LPs, 45s and 78s. At $15K each, they're a steal (but who's doing the stealing?).

:)

--Pete

While tempting, not in the budget . . . unless I pick the right six numbers. In that case, why not? :lol:

Occhi