Test Equipment Anonymous

tggzzz wrote: ↑Tue Jun 11, 2024 9:46 pm We need an equivalent of mailinator for phone numbers.

bd139 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:51 am Well it appears not to ask again this morning which makes their security claims lies and their motivations obvious.

bd139 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 08, 2024 5:15 pm (SNIP)



Also in Kingston, a Printed Circuit Bear

bd139 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:51 amWell it appears not to ask again this morning which makes their security claims lies and their motivations obvious.

mnementh wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 4:32 pm

bd139 wrote: ↑Sat Jun 08, 2024 5:15 pm (SNIP)



Also in Kingston, a Printed Circuit Bear

Yeah, there's a similar "art incubator" project been going on worldwide for over 25 years now; CowParade. San Antonio and later Austin & Houston were host cities while I lived there, but they've been everywhere from Switzerland To Peru, from what I understand; the last one was in Boston. It is now a huge commercial thing, of course; it was a lot smaller and more about the art when they came to San Antonio & Austin.

TL:DR is life-size fiberglas cows and art supplies are provided to artisans and art incubators local to the host city, who then decorate them. There is evidently some oversight by local artist incubators to keep hate-speech, thuggery and vulgarity to a minimum; these cows are to be placed in public spaces for the duration of the parade, then most will be auctioned off to pay for the CowParade art incubation subsidy, but mostly to benefit the Jimmy Fund childhood cancer thing. Also sold off are miniature versions of those which win some awards.

Weird synchronicity for the tinkerdwagon too; they are based literally a few miles from where I live now.

mnem
moo...?

mnementh wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:35 pm Well, that's interesting, but it has absolutely zero in common with that installation aside from being cows.

The entire point of the CowParade cows is that they are a canvas for the artisan to work on and bring their message directly into the communities where their individual cow installation is placed. There are typically over 100 cows placed in a host city at the time of CowParade; the specific placement of a cow and the local culture its art represents, as well as being a part of the "herd" in a specific city and the ephemeral nature of the entire event, is what the "art" part of the whole thing is about.

mnem

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 8:35 pm

mnementh wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:35 pm Well, that's interesting, but it has absolutely zero in common with that installation aside from being cows.

The entire point of the CowParade cows is that they are a canvas for the artisan to work on and bring their message directly into the communities where their individual cow installation is placed. There are typically over 100 cows placed in a host city at the time of CowParade; the specific placement of a cow and the local culture its art represents, as well as being a part of the "herd" in a specific city and the ephemeral nature of the entire event, is what the "art" part of the whole thing is about.

mnem

Have a look at the link provided. You will see it isn't as clear cut as you think.

This place normally discusses "this test equipment is better than that test equipment". I'm loathe to extend that to "this art is better than that art". In general I'm not a fan of art critics

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 5:45 pm That's Johnny-come-lately fibreglass. Fibreglass is cheap and nasty temporary stuff - except when exquisitely shaped top ensure laminar flow, of course.

I'd vote for the seminal example from 1978: concrete cows.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concrete_Cows

mnementh wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:35 pm
The entire point of the CowParade cows is that they are a canvas for the artisan to work on and bring their message directly into the communities where their individual cow installation is placed. There are typically over 100 cows placed in a host city at the time of CowParade; the specific placement of a cow and the local culture its art represents, as well as being a part of the "herd" in a specific city and the ephemeral nature of the entire event, is what the "art" part of the whole thing is about.

Zenith wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 10:33 pm

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 5:45 pm That's Johnny-come-lately fibreglass. Fibreglass is cheap and nasty temporary stuff - except when exquisitely shaped top ensure laminar flow, of course.

I'd vote for the seminal example from 1978: concrete cows.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concrete_Cows

MK was a new town and those cows were generally considered to be hilariously naff and just what you'd expect from such a place. I've driven through MK several times, but never the same route twice as far as I recall. It's all straight roads connecting roundabouts. I did pass the concrete cows once.

Does anyone remember the jaunty TV ads in the early 80s talking about the delights of Milton Keynes? I always thought of it as nowhereville.

bd139 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 9:53 pm

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 8:35 pm

mnementh wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 6:35 pm Well, that's interesting, but it has absolutely zero in common with that installation aside from being cows.

The entire point of the CowParade cows is that they are a canvas for the artisan to work on and bring their message directly into the communities where their individual cow installation is placed. There are typically over 100 cows placed in a host city at the time of CowParade; the specific placement of a cow and the local culture its art represents, as well as being a part of the "herd" in a specific city and the ephemeral nature of the entire event, is what the "art" part of the whole thing is about.

mnem

Have a look at the link provided. You will see it isn't as clear cut as you think.

This place normally discusses "this test equipment is better than that test equipment". I'm loathe to extend that to "this art is better than that art". In general I'm not a fan of art critics

I am a an art critic critic and I agree

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 5:45 pm
That's Johnny-come-lately fibreglass. Fibreglass is cheap and nasty temporary stuff - except when exquisitely shaped top ensure laminar flow, of course.

I'd vote for the seminal example from 1978: concrete cows.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concrete_Cows

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm
My conclusion: the homebrew controller in the £1000 player was marginal. The early tracks are where the disk is rotating fastest, so the disc wobble is fastest and the laser focussing has to be fastest. Anybody want to have a play with it?

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm Anyway, so effin what? Made me realise there is a lot in common between audiophools, art critics, and wine critics

Zenith wrote: ↑Thu Jun 13, 2024 9:52 am

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm
My conclusion: the homebrew controller in the £1000 player was marginal. The early tracks are where the disk is rotating fastest, so the disc wobble is fastest and the laser focussing has to be fastest. Anybody want to have a play with it?

I'm slightly tempted to have a play with it, but on reflection - no thanks. It seems like a flawed design and I've got the impression that CD mechanisms are a world of their own, which I don't wish to enter, and I have things on the to do list, which would quite possibly prove more fruitful.

Getting a few quid for it "Parts Only" on fleabay seems the most practical option.

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 5:45 pm
That's Johnny-come-lately fibreglass. Fibreglass is cheap and nasty temporary stuff - except when exquisitely shaped top ensure laminar flow, of course.

I'd vote for the seminal example from 1978: concrete cows.



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concrete_Cows

Monro's brief was to make something "city orientated" and he says that he "immediately thought of King Kong".

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm I've just been trying and failing to resurrect a Rega Apollo CD player. It was skipping on early tracks, but not on late ones.

I was willing to punt for a £10 replacement mechanism, but before it arrived I found some audiofool stuff indicating it was a common fault. Some of them had convinced themselves that their mains power was the cause of their problem, others found reflowing the controller solved the problem! Then I found a receipt indicating a service engineer technician had already reflowed it (allegedly).

My conclusion: the homebrew controller in the £1000 player was marginal. The early tracks are where the disk is rotating fastest, so the disc wobble is fastest and the laser focussing has to be fastest.

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm Anybody want to have a play with it?

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm Anyway, so effin what? Made me realise there is a lot in common between audiophools, art critics, and wine critics

bd139 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 14, 2024 10:41 am

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm I've just been trying and failing to resurrect a Rega Apollo CD player. It was skipping on early tracks, but not on late ones.

I was willing to punt for a £10 replacement mechanism, but before it arrived I found some audiofool stuff indicating it was a common fault. Some of them had convinced themselves that their mains power was the cause of their problem, others found reflowing the controller solved the problem! Then I found a receipt indicating a service engineer technician had already reflowed it (allegedly).

My conclusion: the homebrew controller in the £1000 player was marginal. The early tracks are where the disk is rotating fastest, so the disc wobble is fastest and the laser focussing has to be fastest.

In these scenarios I tend to use the highly technical assessment that "the transport is fucked" and then evaluate if the transport or the entire unit is cheaper to replace. That trick only works if you start far left on the problem domain which is "buy something cheap to start with".

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm Anybody want to have a play with it?

No

tggzzz wrote: ↑Wed Jun 12, 2024 11:24 pm Anyway, so effin what? Made me realise there is a lot in common between audiophools, art critics, and wine critics

Confusing subjectivity for objectivity mostly.

My personal philosophy applies to all three things:

wine -> all wine tastes the same after the first half a bottle

audio -> all sound systems sound the same after you've spent a certain amount of cash

art -> all looks the same until you look at the artist's name.

bd139 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 14, 2024 10:41 am
In these scenarios I tend to use the highly technical assessment that "the transport is fucked" and then evaluate if the transport or the entire unit is cheaper to replace. That trick only works if you start far left on the problem domain which is "buy something cheap to start with". Historically NAD and Technics CD players which were ubiquitous, cheap and used a cheap transport. Anything pretending to be more is misery.