RAM-OS First Impressions

[Scroobius]

Oh yes this sounds good - very very good, actually superb. Could this be the end game? I have said that before and been wrong so I will not say that this time but I would feel justified in saying it.

Most noticeable at first listening is just how much bad recordings are improved. Bad recordings with electronic "haze" suddenly sound very decent. Dance tracks sound clear with real human voices rather than electronic voices. A whole layer of hash removed. Hash that was not obviously there before.

And I have not mentioned the bass yet. I think I said in a post some time ago when I replaced the mobo master clock with a dexa that there was more bass. I was wrong then because I hear exactly the same improvement again. With the RAM OS it is more that bass is clearer and better delineated. That can lead to the wrong impression that there is more bass - there isn't it is just better bass.

I have recordings where the bass can be felt almost rather than obviously heard as I have said before very like the incredibly low rumbling of a passing lorry. That is even clearer now.

It would be interesting to go back now and put the cruddy old cheapo mobo master clock back in to see what happens. That is not going to happen as it is too much work but my gut feeling is that it is still important. The really interesting thing is that the changes the RAM-OS makes to the SQ are very similar to the changes the dexa made except that the RAM-OS is probably more profound.

Anyway that is all academic it seems that whatever music I put on whether the best jazz or classical or just cr*p dance music I just want to sit and listen to it. That is a GOOD thing.

Very pleased it is that I am.

Mani - you gotta get your visit here organised !!!!

Cheers

Paul

[Arjan]

We really like the SQ of RAM-OS. It is so more of everything.

But here (my wife included) we prefer (so far) attended above unattended. With attended the music seems more in balance. With unattended the extremes seems more accentuated. (is this the scary sound?)

What are others thoughts about this? 

regards, Arjan

[PeterSt]

Arjan, try this :

Start in Unattended. All cosy ?
Now bring up XXHighEnd and only that. So let music continue ...

?

Peter

[arvind]

Hi Guys,

The SQ is just fantastic. Low end is very clean with no overhang. Vocals sound warmer & the highs are scintillating.

Peter thank you starting 2016 with the best sound so far.

Best regards,

Arvind

[manisandher]

Ooooooohhhhhh...

The best SQ I've ever heard from any system anywhere (I haven't been over to Paul's place to take a listen to his yet).

Peter, it's just as well that there's the North Sea separating us, as else I'd jump in my car and drive over to give you a big kiss and hug. How is this level of SQ possible? And how lucky are all we 'Phasurites' to have a total nutcase who believes "nothing is impossible" at the helm?

Happy Days!

Mani.

[PeterSt]

I first like to thank Arvind for his very kind words as there's more between me and India, so the hugging is more problematic. But maybe one day ...

Then from a Phasurite to Mani :
I may wonder whether I would spend the effort when it would be for myself only. Sure, I do it for myself just the same, but if we think about this little project ... crazy.
Point is : this starts with the idea with no clue whatsoever what it will bring. Some know from behind the scenes that I already spent 6 months in a row back in I think 2012 on this. Then had to give up because it was just "too much". Let me say it again : it takes me now 11 hours (with by now a lot of experience and written guide) to set up one OS. These 11 hours are the "compression" of those 6 months back then and I recall 5 days last June or so. And apart from some general upgrading and Tidal stuff, it took till last week before it was really done and workable. And in fact all for something which is unknown for the result, but which theoretically should help a little bit again.

I don't hear it anymore because it gets used to. But I appreciate it every day. Like day before yesterday where I once again listened to Get Back from The Beatles. Some people know that I often use that in a "hey listen to this !" and then people are sure it is a makeover by some other group. But it really is not. But now I listened to it again and was seriously shocked myself. It is hard to count the cymbal length in that track because it is always interupted by a next hit. Anyway, that long (think 10 seconds or so when it would last long enough before a next hit).

But people, the Nothing Is Impossible story will continue. I already know ...

Thank you for your trust ! ... because without that nothing would have come from it.
Peter

[manisandher]

But people, the Nothing Is Impossible story will continue. I already know ...

Hey, take as long as you want - right now I'm missing absolutely nothing!

Mani.

[PeterSt]

Ok, I will put you at the bottom of that list ...

haha

[Scroobius]

Hi Peter

I was talking to Mani yesterday before he got his RAM-OS working and I was extoling the virtues of the sound quality. I am glad to see that Mani gets the same result I do.

It gets better though every time I listen. Each time I hear something new it takes time to appreciate really how good this is. And I was saying to Mani it is clear just how much effort you have put in to build the RAM-OS system.

As both Mani and I were saying yesterday we really do appreciate the effort you put in Peter.

Oh yes and put me on the list for a kiss and a hug (ha ha) but I think I have said that before when I first got the NOS1.

I listened to much music yesterday mostly chamber music and the sound really has detached from the speakers. Small groups of players are actually sitting in my conservatory behind the speakers.

Cheers and Huge Gratitude

Paul

[boleary]

The sound has certainly become stunning. Peter it is unimaginable that you would do so much and charge so little $! Thank you.

Brian

[fmanheck]

OK OK I have already missed most of the day's work and I have to go now. 

But the sound is just incredible. I can't tell what I mike more. The lifelike base articulation, the lifelike vocal presence or the uncannily real total presentation.

Peter, you are a genius. please accept this in place of that hug.

[Robert]

Well the sound is quite removed from what I had and its taken me two weeks to investigate and tweek settings with Easter inbetween.

The sound is everything that is reported and more. Much more of every aspect of sound one would expect to hear.

Its much easier to hear differences between XXhighend settings and recordings.

To this end I have realised passing digital audio files through Saracon is a massive mistake. It does impose a change to music that is not better than the original flac or Wave file. Worse is, this is used in Pro audio to tweek recordings. Mark Waldrep has been on about the state of so called Master tapes and how there are very few that he would call great.

Saracon was recommended by the reviewer of Benchmark DAC2's sometime back when they were newly available. Mind you at the time of my system it did appear to improve things. Isn't it interesting how things can change and some things are discarded in audio.

Anyway great thanks to Peter for his hard work and efforts to create Ram OS, your knowledge of software is amazing.

It works perfectly everytime but I still have issues with some albums not playing all the tracks. I'm shifting house to another City and will have time to investigate this one closely. One thing I want to do is re rip some of my CD's and see if that helps. My early rips may be not correct.

Robert

[Arjan]

Hi Robert,

I had to lower my Q1 from 14 to 4 to get flawless playback for all albums. Maybe something to try. See my profile.

regards, Arjan

[christoffe]

Hi,

implemented the Phasure XXHighEnd PC & the RAM OS in my system now and after testing different settings (most of them from Peters signature), such as 16xAP/8xAP with the Custom filter samples and Q1 between 6 and 14.

My listening preferences are timbre and ambience, and so I stranded at the same settings (see my signature) as before with the previous unit.  Brian, 8xAP is still my choice.

The SQ with the RAM OS “climbed up the ladder” some significant steps. Good job Peter.

Joachim

P.S. The PC needs some “burning in” time, I believe.

A good test record for timbre is a CD from Canadian Brass: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0013AYSXG?ie=UTF8&keywords=canadian%20brass%20beatles&qid=1461339370&ref_=sr_1_2&s=music&sr=1-2

[manisandher]

I first tried to load RAM-OS on my office audio PC well over 2 months ago, but I ran into a problem with what I thought was a RAM memory issue. So I've been using the RAM-OS disk, but with the Win10 running from the HDD for over 2 months. Yesterday, I managed to get the OS loaded into RAM for the first time (and remove HDD) and the sound changed so dramatically, I thought I'd share.

I've currently got a pair of old speakers in here (Impulse H2) that can sound overly bright, sharp and generally too forward (in the mid-range especially). But I quite like their tone - it's really nice. With the OS running from HDD, the sound was actually very good, but a bit fatiguing after a while. And I longed for more bass*. But with the RAM-OS, this has totally changed. Everything that was grating about the sound has gone. What's left is just a beautifully smooth, and yet massively detailed, sound. There is no hint of 'digital' anywhere. And the balance is just about right now.

I really am shocked at the improvement the RAM-OS disk has brought in this system. Until now, I have never sat and really listened to my office system - it's purely for background music as I work. But yesterday evening I listened in here for hours.

Anyone who uses XX but has not taken the plunge with the RAM-OS disk should really reconsider - you simply have no idea how good your system really is!

Mani.

*After Prince's death, I watched his CNN interview from 1999 and I totally loved one thing he said. Larry King asked him how important the bass is to the music. Prince's reply? "It's B.A.S.E. and not B.A.S.S. - that's a fish." Classic.