Another great and fun visit with Dan the man...

[Vintage Pete]

It was time for a break from it all this week, and so, having taken this week off, I made the trek once again for a visit with my good friend Dan aka jdandy. Dan lives about 3-1/2 hours or so north of me here in Florida. As always, I had a great time visiting with Dan and Marlene, who are about the nicest couple anyone could hope to meet. I arrived around 2PM yesterday. Following a nice lunch and chatting a bit, Dan and I retired to his incredible studio for a few hours of tinkering with his many, and I do mean many, beautiful toys and systems. We spent some time first in his control room, getting a crash course of sorts on all the gadgets in there. It would take one quite a while to really learn the ins and outs of what he has going on in there. Following that we listened to his vintage system, with dan temporarily moving his JBL 4312A's out for a session. That was really fun...those JBL monitors really sound nice with the McIntosh MA230 behind them.

We then spent some time listening to that world-class McIntosh setup in the studio. I brought some vinyl along, as I've been on an analog-resurgence mission for a while now. Every time I visit, I'm envious of this incredible setup-which is really two setups in one room. One is a world-class two channel rig based on the statement McIntosh C1000 C/P Preamp, and the amazing MC2301 amplifiers and Sonus faber Anniversario speakers; while the other is a speactacular theater system with the MX120 processor and MC452 amplifier, with a full array of JBL powered speakers and McIntosh XLS112 subwoofers.

This room is amazing, intimate with its furnishing and lighting with quality oozing at every turn.

Following a few hours of tinkering, listening to vinyl and chatting endless audio, we went back upstairs while Dan and Marlene prepared a delicious dinner of barbequed wings, corn on the cob, and scalloped potatoes. Yum yum! I normally stop when I'm full, but man those wings were so good it was hard to stop. Corn on the cob is a rare treat for me, and I had a second helping of that too. What a meal! Dan and Marlene are wonderful hosts and wonderful company. Over dinner we discussed a variety of family related topics, and really had a nice time.

Then it was back downstairs for some more audio fun. I brought along my laptop as well, and we had a lot of fun with our hi-res collections. Great sound, and great fun.

Before I knew it, the clock was tipping 1AM, and time for some sleep. As he has done in the past, Dan put me up for the night in the studio, where I stretched out on the sofa and let the Sony Bravia, MX120/MC452 TV setup send me off to oblivion.


When morning broke, following some tasty coffee and breakfast snacks, Dan broke out his vinyl spin cleaning machine and we ran the LP's I brought through it. I was really impressed and will likely grab one of these gadgets. Some really pesky pops disappeared from my albums, one in particular that never thought I'd be rid of. Really cool.

Here's a few photos-not my best photographic effort, but not too horrible. As I get my phone pictures downloaded, I'll get some more photos up of the Control room and a few others....











And finally...."The Man"!!



It was really a great time, and it went by really fast. The setting at Dan and Marlene's is really relaxing. Lots of wilderness, great atmosphere and great friends.

Thanks so much for a great time Dan!!

[Golucid]

So wish I could have been there to just listen. Wow. Two masters of audio under one roof. That's a lot of brain power!

[Vintage Pete]

Originally Posted by Golucid

So wish I could have been there to just listen. Wow. To masters of audio under one roof. That's a lot of brain power!

David....thanks. We like to think our brains still work, even if our bodies are getting a bit long in the tooth!

[chessman]

Sounds like an awesome time!

[jdandy]

Pete.......The photos you took with your camera are much better than the ones from your phone. I wish I had used the camera to capture the photo of you in my thread. It's all good and the photo makes me smile but I wish it was clearer. It was a great visit that I thoroughly enjoyed. We'll do it again.

[Cohibaman]

Wow! Awesome time.

[Vintage Pete]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Pete.......The photos you took with your camera are much better than the ones from your phone. I wish I had used the camera to capture the photo of you in my thread. It's all good and the photo makes me smile but I wish it was clearer. It was a great visit that I thoroughly enjoyed. We'll do it again.

Dan....yeah, the phone pics are, well...phone pics. I thought I'd had you take one of me with my "real" camera, but I guess I didn't. Even so, it isn't all that bad....just a little grainy

[Ritmo]

Terrific! Sounds like a great time.

[Joe]

Excellent fun and review gentlemen!
Most impressive! Most impressive!

[eljr]

Nice recap of a great day. Beautiful pic's too!