A sealed, unlabeled box sat undisturbed for decades on a shelf in the Grateful Dead’s San Rafael tape vault on Front Street, its contents an enduring mystery, even to those few with access to the vault. All David Lemieux knew about that box when he became the Dead’s archivist was that it contained tapes belonging to Bear—Owsley Stanley, the Dead’s first soundman and architect of the Wall of Sound. Even in the Dead Heads’ Holy of Holies, the taped-up box was tantalizing. But this was Bear’s personal property, and so he didn’t touch the box out of an abiding respect for the elder luminary of sound. Bear’s archive of Sonic Journal recordings had been kept safe for him for years within the Grateful Dead’s vault—over 1,300 reels of tape stored in heavy-duty cartons like old banana boxes. At any time, David could have popped the tops and explored them to his archivist heart's content. But they were off-limits without the nod from Bear. - Starfinder Stanley, Hawk, and Pete Bell, Owsley Stanley Foundation
With a wink and a nod from Bear, we've peeled back those banana boxes to find some of the oldest and rarest of all recordings of the Dead including the double dose of shows that make up DAVE’S PICKS VOLUME 43. The two virtually complete performances from San Francisco 11/2/69, Live At Family Dog At The Great Highway, and from Dallas 12/26/69, McFarlin Auditorium, are complementary in their clarity and consistency thanks to Bear himself, and in their ability to foreshadow where the Dead were headed in the years to come. If the two killer 20-minute+ "Dark Stars" don't get ya, how about the Pigpen-centric sets featuring "Midnight Hour," "Next Time You See Me," "Big Boss Man," "Good Lovin'," and the once-lost-now-found complete rendition of "Dancing In The Streets," or the first full acoustic set ever performed? And we're certain you'll be fascinated to uncover the "Mystery Of Bear's Banana Boxes" as told by Starfinder Stanley, Hawk, and Pete Bell in the liners.
Limited to 25,000 numbered copies, DAVE’S PICKS VOLUME 43 was recorded by Owlsey "Bear" Stanley and has been mastered to HDCD specs by Jeffrey Norman at Mockingbird Mastering. Grab a copy while you can.
*2 per order. Very limited quantity available.
Psychoacoustic enhancement/jerseys
AJS: hate is a strong word but yeah those jerseys weren’t my favorite. I think I was in the minority but I did really like the return to the classic colors but with the “slug” logo in the aughts I believe? Nothing beats the classic ones though.
COMPONENTS: are you happy with your sound? Unless your really unhappy with things, the urge to upgrade might just be upgradeitus. Though there have been technological advances, power Amps and speakers, if made well, do not necessarily have to be upgraded.
Physics is physics, but the current trends often try to employ reimagining the wheel which sometimes fosters noticeable improvement (but usually requires mucho denaros), but more often not.
A really well built set of speakers, still in good functional condition, especially if you like them, do not have to be upgraded, unless in the sense that you had say more budget consumer grade ones and could afford/wanted to get higher quality ones. I.e., those old cheap beat up entry level ones you got in collage but can now afford a new set of higher end ones. Even then, higher price is NOT a guarantee of higher quality/performance!
And always consider the laws of diminishing returns, although that can work both ways.
But as previously mentioned, maintain and keep an eye on speaker age issues (see back a few pages).
Same with a really well built amplifier.
Sources and pre amps and I’m guessing many of you use a multichannel “surround” set up for all your AV needs utilizing an AVR or Audio Video receiver, not so much.
If you can afford it, my opinion is you buy a really good separate Amp and speakers, but perhaps don’t go hog wild with the rest, unless you have the ways and means, but don’t feel obligated.
Why: physics and obsolescence. No matter how much folks today try to reinvent the wheel, physics is physics and the way most audio works is inherently related to it and thus changes little.
Sure they’ve made great improvements in class D amplification etc, but my experience is for a high end critical listening system Class D just doesn’t sound as euphonic as well built traditional amp formats (A or A/B).
Now these are generalizations, as of course there are exceptions in certain circumstances…
The situation is the boss! And your situation may vary.
But, it is usually true that your system is only as good as the weakest li n k
Since sources: Blu-ray, DVD, CD players, streamers etc, and receivers that also switch/pass video, or basically most modern digital gear all become obsolete so fast nowadays, these you might not need/want to drop too much money on since you’ll need to upgrade it sooner than later.
A common trick I’ve used for my surround system is to either do your HDMI switching via the TV or a dedicated HDMI switcher, not an AVR. Why, if you have good speakers and multichannel separate power amp, you can still use your perhaps outdated, but top quality pre pro or preamp for the audio. How you ask? Most Blu-ray players have 2 HDMI outputs just for this reason: one for video, one for audio. Most Cable and Sat boxes only decode Dolby Digital so you can use the coax digital output to your legacy pre amp (as long as it at least has digital inputs) and get the same signal.
If your gear is even older, you can use the analog out, but the DAC sets in these boxes, (computers, and most inexpensive equipment) are very cheap and extremely low quality.
This way you only have to occasionally upgrade the HDMI switcher (or TV) at usually a much lower cost than replacing a whole AVR with its pre amp/processing section, it’s power amp section, and all the other often useless crap they put in them. Most receivers only pass thru the video signal anyway, so to pay to replace the rest just to get the most updated video switching is inefficient and often unnecessary.
So the idea is to not be stingy about your amp (s) and speakers (your back end) since a good set will usually always play well and sound good with most decent front ends, and will likely last much longer than lesser ones.
I have some old McIntosh stuff that still kicks ass after decades, and I could sell for more than I payed!
I almost suffered from upgradeitus recently.
Since I can get things often at cost, I was interested in upgrading my approximately 30 year old C 40 preamp for a new one. But my ole gear head buddy, electrical engineer, and all around partner in crime BITD BOO469 talked me off the ledge mostly by asking me why. We both ended up realizing that for my 2 channel system, since I already have an expensive separate DAC: why would I pay simply for digital inputs I don’t really need. Would the analog section alone of the new pre be better or worth the cashish, than my old, probably built better purely analog preamp…probably not.
Also, since my old pre is completely analog, I theoretically could be paying for digital circuitry etc at the expense of the analog circuitry.
Everything has a build budget so the more stuff they put in a unit, is that much less money left for other things in the unit.
That’s another reason to consider separates. Separates USUALLY (all gear is not equal!) have better quality components, specifically engineered for only one or few tasks, especially power supplies, which is one of the most important parts of ANY gear! So better quality parts, engineered to do one thing, (versus many things like in a modern AVR) with a beefy power supply, will usually provide better all around performance, enjoyment and longevity than normal consumer grade all in one components. With class D amps it’s all about the PS so shop carefully!
So no matter what your into, or throw at it, a system with a good back end, sufficient for your type of use/requirements, that you would like to have/enjoy for many years, can be a sound (pun intended) investment. Spending large sums of money on gear that is probably obsolete before you get it home, and has components you don’t need because of redundancy of separates, is not recommended unless you can afford it and are that into having the latest and greatest.
Pay up now for good back end and it will save you money in the long run. The other stuff is a necessary evil, but be wary of obsolescence! And you can upgrade if/when you need or can afford, and have more to spend if you have good back end that doesn’t need replacing!
Also, follow the simple free tips we offered back a month or so on here about proper system placement and set up. Often this will give you as much noticeable positive changes, or more, than electronic upgrades.
GARY: have you a/b tested the HDCD, is the improvement HDCD, or just the new player itself, curious?
And 80 hertz is a starting point. Play around with your cross over frequency and the slope or roll offs as your specific room will effect bass as much or more than components.
My 2 channel has no subs as I don’t usually like subs with just stereo although with stand or smaller speakers they can be an improvement if used properly (whole nother long discussion there as most people do not). And my theatre speakers easily go down to at least 30hz (rated conservatively) and sound great in the room their in. So to use a sub normally, I’d have to roll them off a bit which I don’t like. So I only use my diy (old bass playing cab) of 2 15” JBL E140s, crossed over with a Furman crossover, powered by a dedicated Crest amp (approximately 800 watts) for LFE, or low frequency effects only. The JBLs don’t extend as low as I wish, but by adjusting the crossover manually while using I can dial in just the right amount depending on the mix etc. I usually xover around 30-40 hertz as I’m only trying to enhance the lows, not overpower, and my cab gets too midrange and/or overdriven if I run frequency too high. But I’m getting away from the main topic.
Same with those pile drivers. Your friend is right, different speakers may or may not affect the overall speaker impedance (their usually not exactly 4 or 8 ohms, and can actually vary with conditions), synergy, balance, timbre, and more. Trial and error is unfortunately usually the only way to find out!
Ok, hopefully I haven’t confused anyone or completely bored.
But obviously us geeks could go on all day lol.
Remember, if it’s worth playing, it’s worth playing loud, but loud must be clean to be enjoyed! ; )
EDIT: don’t skimp on conversion either!
Digital is not the problem conversion is! So consider a good separate DAC which should also not need to be upgraded so much, or, make sure you buy a pre amp or receiver with a good DAC set!
You can ridiculously upgrade the sound of your lap top for instance for like 50 bucks for a audio quest dragonfly usb DAC.
Terminology
Oro,
I use “hate” the same way I say, “I want to kill that guy” when someone cuts me off in traffic. No offense intended in either situation.
All good brother
Mike seems to think the Sabres have a good young team this year. Vegas disagrees. The odds makers give them the same chance as the Kraken to win the Stanley Cup. Not that I won’t watch, but I think I’m siding with Vegas on this one. Sorry Mike.
Colorado has a very strong chance of repeating. Since my Red Wings still suck, I’ll be backing Canadaland. Don’t let me down Mike. It’s been 30 years.
Releases I would like to see
I would like to see the whole Garcia 1987 Lunt- Fontanne Theatre run, acoustic and electric released in one box set.. The whole October 1974 Winterland run both audio and video released as a box set. Release the 1968 Grateful Dead tour of the Great Northwest, ( those tapes may be in Owsley's banana boxes). All the acoustic and e!ectric sets from the Fillmore West in 1970,( I'll bet those tapes are in the banana boxes). Single releases, 2/17/79 Oakland, 9/11/81. 7/13/84 Greek. , 10/9/82, 10/10/82, 4/27/85, 4/28/85 Frost. Just a short list, many more I'd like to see released
Magic Carpet Ride
Mr Ones - great band, Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets. I saw them just before covid, and was supposed to be going again in 2020-but... That dvd/blu ray disc of them live is worth getting, too.
Irrespective of the extent to which climate change is affecting the hurricanes in America, there can be little doubt that the countries who are suffering most are the poorest ones. And the ones who are contributing to it most are the richest.
AJS audio, 1968 NW, Doc11
Thanks Oro, a wealth of helpful information. AJS, there with you, floor standing wise, found a pair of 1986 Klipsch Cornwall IIs, 3 foot tall, 2 foot wide, 16" deep. Horn loaded tweeters and mid range, 15" woofers. They sound incredible for 35 year olds. Was driving them with an Onkyo receiver, one of the high end spec models for a long time and was happy. Eventually hooked up a power amp/pre amp combo and was surprised how much improvement... like Oro said. The power supply on the amp is huge, output rated at 150 watts per channel so a very efficient speaker like Klipsch has no stress, there is so much headroom. The damping factor as well important, a measure of how effectively (tightly) the amp controls bass response. When damping factor number is large, bass is well defined with detail and timbre, not boomy muddy. Whatever sub anyone might be using, not much useful response below 18-20Hz, as it's exponentially demanding to get lower, subsonic. The octobass and piano lowest notes are A0, about 27hz, Pipe organ low note is C0, 16 Hz. Except there's this thing called a rotary woofer that can go down to single Hz numbers at hideous expense, IMAX theater only? I would love to see and buy a 1968 NW tour box. Meanwhile, hoping Forensic Doc will let us know how it goes, we know he's in the Jacksonville area.
Bang For The Buck
I went to separates during covid after doing some research and hearing from a collector of Heil Amt speakers that I wasn't hearing all my ESS Amt-4 floor standing speakers could do. Got an Adcom dual mono amp with 100W and 180 damping factor and was blown away like the Maxell guy. Got the other Adcom separates one at a time and noticed improvement each time. The pre-amp was better than using my old integrated amp as a pre and the digital tuner was way better than the old one. All are late 80s MOSFET stuff and fully restored they are still way cheaper than either vintage premier like Oro's McIntosh or 10x cheaper than modern audiophile. Just got to find a reliable restorer. They were the bargain audiophile brand BITD and made in USA. Very neutral coloring which some don't like but it's better to hear it exactly as it was made and play with the tone controls if you want different. Diminishing returns to go higher but I would have if the money was there. All in I spent maybe $700 and it sounds good to me. The bonus was I got a bedroom system from the old stuff, just have to add some speakers.
Ten days to get my 3 CD MSG from CA to CO doesn't sound very innovative. Mail Innovations, aka the Louis Dejoy enrichment scheme, adds almost 500 more miles to the route that would have gotten to me two to three days earlier had UPS shortcut Mail Innovations and delivered it straight from the handoff point only 60 miles away. Bad for the customer and bad for the planet. Should be here tomorrow. Oh well, as Neil says, "don't let it bring you down, it's only castles burning".
Cheers
Edit: I find it interesting that folks are going back to valves, or tubes, especially in the pre-amp. I was advised to go with a hybrid solid state/tube pre-amp but stick with a solid state amp to get the benefit of the "warm" tube sound without the big bucks of the tube amp. But the hybrids were beyond my budget even used/restored as they are a newer thing. Wish my family had kept my Dad's old home built Heathkit tube amp. Would love to have heard that again.
There and Back Again
For a few years, I was deeply into audio: or as deeply as my meager budget would allow, anyway. It started when I realized I needed a tube amplifier. This was because I realized that I would never in a million years use a transistor amp for my guitar, so why would I use one for my home listening?
But of course tube amps and preamps are pretty pricey, so I had to go the DIY route: I built a preamp from a kit (Bottlehead) and bought an old ST-70 power amp, and I spent a lot of time tweaking them with various upgrades. They sounded pretty good, eventually. And I needed some efficient speakers, so I paired them with some Klipsch Heresys that I got off craigslist (for $100!).
What happened next is so typical of me it's embarrassing: the ST-70 worked great for about 10 years and then just cut out one day. By this time, I had forgotten all the various rewirings and component upgrades etc I had done, and lost all my paperwork. So I had no idea how to troubleshoot it! Couldn't even find my volt meter! I decided to just sell the ST-70 for a couple hundred, get myself a used Sansui Au-417 (since they're reputed to have a tube-like sound, also a great phono stage), put all new caps in there, and call it day. So after all that I'm back to transistors. Sounds pretty good, though.
Somewhat bemused to read the travails of my fellow heads who ordered the MSG set via Rhino and are now working through the delays and shipping mishaps. I didn't get the box set (early '80s are just not my era) but I went for the 3 CD breakout. Ordered it from Bezos and received on the day it was released. What a concept! I'm glad to have it, it's a good performance, but disappointed in the mix. It's all Jerry and Brent, Bob's guitar is completely (and I mean completely) inaudible, Phil and the drummers much too low. But you can hear Jerry great, and it's a high energy show so probably most people will really dig it. Still, I hope the rest of the box is better, for everybody's sake.
Five for the universe:
John Coltrane: Coltrane
GOGD: Dick's Picks 36 (yow!!!)
Joe Henderson: Mode for Joe
Zappa: Hot Rats
Sturgill Simpson: Cuttin Grass
Well said 1stshow
Don’t think I’ve heard of the ESS Amt 4s, looked them up, interesting, do you use a sub with them?
And you refreshed my memory about adcom so I looked into that brand a little too.
Interesting video comparing Adcom and NAD to contemporary Schiit audio.
Almost bought a Schiit Yggdrasil DAC before I got my Meitner. For like 22-23 hundred bucks they sound as good as many DACs costing many thousands more! Schiit makes simple but value friendly great sounding products, or at least the ones I’ve heard.
But yeah, NAD and Adcom, same idea, BITD budget friendly but great sounding gear. Sounds like a sweet little system!
Hybrid stuff. I’ve heard some sweet sounding hybrid stuff at audio shows.
Of course Jer Bear had a hybrid system utilizing a Fender Twin Tube amp for his pre and a SS MC2300 power amp and we all know how great that sounded and perhaps why he never changed his backend!
I would say if your going to try hybrid go tube pre and SS power…
My best recollection was with my buddy who started YFS and built my custom Ref 3 server: had an amazing sounding system one year at RMAF using YFS server, Meitner DAC, Custom made fully analog pre (tube?) biamped with one of the best sounding MC 275 tube amps on the highs, and a 200 per McIntosh solid state amp on the lows (don’t recall the model), powering some Von Schweikert audio stand speakers. I thought the sound and imaging of this system, even in the shitty little hotel room sounded as good or better than much bigger and expensive systems there that year.
Just can’t describe what a big clean sound this relatively small system produced! Of course for the price of the system it should! Lol.
I think it’s like everything else: trial and error and if it’s done right it can be a plus!
I’ve never had tube stereo gear, but I’ve heard some great stuff, but that particular MC 275 that my buddies dad (some kind of engineer/scientist) restored and modified, is perhaps the best tube amp I’ve ever had the pleasure to hear. His dad is the one who built the custom line stage too. Ya know, let’s design and build a one of a kind killer audiophile unit just for something to do lol. They build their own bike frames too!
So to me it’s like all this stuff, tube versus SS, analog versus digital etc, there’s not just one thing that’s best or better, if it’s done right, and you get the right synergy for your room etc, I’ve heard systems of all kinds that were amazing!
Just a thought, yeah tube amps can be great for instruments for musical creation when you want that slightly overdriven sound (think Dead 72 before using Mac amps on the instruments), but for sound reproduction they can get tubby or muddy with perhaps too much distortion. Some people like that as it can give a richer, or warmer sound, I’m with you 1stshow, I prefer a more neutral sound, though some think that’s too dry etc?
In the end, it just comes down to what’s best for you!
Most anyplace one lives is essentially dangerous......
For all those who asked, or were concerned...............
The Gillespie household is doing fine. So far, we've only lost power for about 45 minutes, but it's back on now. We've only caught the "tropical storm" part of Ian, but I have heard that potentially, this may be the deadliest hurricane to ever hit Florida. We now live in Green Cove Springs, about 30 miles southeast of Jax, safely away from the beach, the St John's River, and Black Creek. We're in a newish house, on high ground, have lots of food and water, and have an excellent generator. The St Augustine area is getting badly flooded........
The strongest hurricane to ever hit Florida was the Labor Day hurricane of 1935, sustained winds of 180+ mph when it hit. There is a lovely--and moving----monument in the Keys to the hundreds who lost their lives in that storm. I've visited that site many many times while I lived down there. The deadliest? Probably the same hurricane, the exact toll is unknown, but probably in the hundreds.......
For Matthew, we evacuated. For Irma, we hunkered down and rode out the storm. For a hurricane, either get out early, or be prepared to ride it out. I reassured my wife, "No matter what comes, we'll ride it out together".
Out of an abundance of caution, my office is closed today and tomorrow, and I don't work this weekend. A "mini-vacation" of sorts. Now that the power is back, I'm actually busy spreading 1972 Lyceum shows around. Some things never change, hurricane be damned!!
Here we dodged a bullet, yet I pray for those in harm's way on the Gulf coast...............
Stay safe, and rock on,
Doc
What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal......
Oro Approved
Love it! The Ess Amt-4 is a two-way with the slightly smaller Heil Air Motion Transformer and a 10" woofer rated 20W to 250W. They are 4 ohm, 45hz-24Khz, with the x-over at 1000hz, and called the sleeper in their killer line up from BITD. The best thing they have going is that Amt which delivers clear beautiful highs and solid mids in all directions from an open top design. Easy placement that way too. Look up their big boys, ESS Amt-1s and their Towers (I forget the number), well respected and still fetch four figure prices as parts units which tells you a lot. The Amt itself is indestructible and lifetime warranted. Mine had a solid pure pulp cone on that 10" which I have had to replace with a set of Misco, made in Minneapolis, Oaktron 10" from their Heritage line made to replace the similar stuff in all the brands from BITD. Same pure pulp cone and big voice coils and magnets but in a stamped steel frame just like the originals. Spec at 16-4000hz and 92 db efficiency.
Got the ESSs cheap when almost new in 1977 from a college roomy who couldn't manage to get them back home to Cincy without a car. But then when the cat put a hole in one of the woofers in the 90s I replaced the originals with what I thought would be an upgrade but I screwed up. Bought subs that were 8-ohms by Pyramid, Super Pro Super Blue, made by Eminence in US ( Kentucky?) famous for their instrument speakers for bass and guitar. Great deal from a car audio shop going out of business and they took my torn ones in trade as well. As you know, that 8-ohm mistake changed the x-over to 2000hz and I traded off some midrange for killer, punchy bottom end which I thought at the time was good. Found out about five years ago that I screwed up and got the Miscos for about what I sold the now valuable subs for. Fit like a glove which no one who tried that swap with the only available 10" direct from ESS could do as all they sold was the big boy 10" from other higher models with a cast aluminum frame that required sawing into your cabinets just to make it fit. Found that out on Audio Karma luckily from others trying to do the same replacement on their various ESS. A couple of those guys used Dayton woofers to good effect but I went with Misco as their specs were a perfect match to original, hence original sound. Was not going to try to mess with upgrading as I might have had to upgrade the x-over too and taking a saw to the cabinets was out of the question. SO, long story longer, I got my midrange back and Phil bombs sound better than ever! Not bad for a novice hack job since I have zero skills with electricity or carpentry. Not even interested in a sub really. Pretty small living room and I want to keep peace in the neighborhood. Anytime you upgrade there is a leap of faith that the money you're spending will get the result you're after so I got lucky in all this I'd say. Some with a little more dinero are switching stuff all the time but you don't know unless you go. I certainly was OK with all my 70s stuff but you get used to your sound and don't realize how much better it can be until you go there. Thanks Oro.
Cheers
thanks, Doc
Good to hear you and yours safe and sound. Thoughts go out to FL friends (so far, all good) and all who were so near the path. Almost at 1972 here, streaming the early December 1971 run at mini-MSG Felt Forum. A gloriously bright sunny Vermont day, fall foliage coming on, first frost tonight. Will pull the last peppers, tomatoes and basil out now.
and again-
Doc - good to read you are safe, too, of course. And here's hoping all others under threat are too.
Storms and speakers
It sounds like many so far are ok?
Good to hear from Doc, wonder about ole Uncle Sammy?
I have a bunch of relatives down there, some in Bradenton, one in Miami and the rest around Naples.
So far, all reports are good.
2’ of rain, that’s like 20’ of snow! Crazy stuff, be well/safe all.
Ha, 1stshow, I think I saw a post by you on some sight about the miscos vs the piles and the xover change due to different impedance etc basically just what you posted here. So either crazy coincidence or small world lol.
Yep, tha'd be me
That's also where I got the good advice from a fellow poster.
Either there or HiFiEngine.
Also got excellent advice from the guy who restored my Adcom.
You guys are all wizards and alchemists!
My Dad was an electrical engineer,
I got none of that brainpower from him.
But we're all good at something.
Cheers
Ha, no wizard here lol
I’m just good at hooking shit up and making a racket, of various kinds ; )
Much of what I know came via the GOGD, and a fair bit of reading.
Doc quote....
"What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal......"
This is true.
Audio equipment
So I had a chance to play Go to Nassau and the Fillmore West recordings tonight at high volume. Both sounded pretty good to me. Based on the comments here I’m not sure that I need to spend any more money upgrading my equipment. Certainly not the speakers. Thank you all for your input.
I hope you listened to my “expert” advice a few months back and didn’t buy any bitcoin.
Expert advice
Don’t take any wooden nickels!
OR!
“Getting drunk then getting stoned is like pissing in the wind”
Expert advice....
....eating shrooms then smoking weed is a waste of weed.
A few rules of my own
My apologies to those they offend.
I will never:
Own a dog with the word “doodle” in the breed name.
Put any food in my mouth with the word “whiz” in its name.
Bear Whizz Beer...it's in…
Bear Whizz Beer...it's in the water...that's why it's yellow...
Expert advice dos
Eating mushrooms and drinking cognac is da bomb...
That seals it....
....I will name my next dog Doodlewhiz.
Or Whizdoodle.
Never tried shrooms and cognac.
The more youuuuu know. 🌈
meet up at the movies
the 1st is sold out where I am, but the 5th is still available. Would have been great if they had included a dvd of this movie in with the E72 box, I would have taken that over all the other swag they put in that collection.
Drinking while doing shrooms is da bomb as Nappy so eloquently put it. The hard stuff sometimes is a bit much but have drunk my share of wine and cognac with different forms of psychedelics and have always had a great time.
Weeble's wobble but they don't fall down.
As far as smoking weed on top of shrooms, try it again, and use good weed, the effects that I experienced seemed to enhance the trip, make the colors brighter or add a different buzz to the situation.
Back in the day we used to do all sorts of drugs on top of acid or shrooms, just trying to find the right combination for that new and different buzz. We would try valium, that was always fun, the best was ludes, that was a total blast, tripping while doing 714's, now that was a real trip, staggering around laughing your arse off and basically being the life of any party that you happen to be, or anywhere really, just a real good time.
Remember that song from long ago brought to you by the makers of Hamms beer, "From the Land of Sky-Blue Waters, Hamm's, it's in the water. Yes, it was actually called "BearWizz Bear" back in the day, a long time ago.
My mom had a cocker doodle, it was a great dog. She called it Wizard. Oh, and don't take any wooden bitcoins.
Cover (My Ears) Band
At the dentist for an early appointment today, I’m laying down in the dental rack/chair, watching the TV affixed to the ceiling (and praying it wasn’t my bro-in-law that installed it, or death by TV is how I’ll go), which they have tuned to the local 24 hour news and event station. I get a kick out of “At the Clubs”, and some of the cover bands playing the B-circuit clubs and bars. The usual Rush & Zep bands, the AC-DC (always with a variation of Hell or Bell in the name), the Sabbath, Eagles, on and on. But the one that caught my eye today was - wait for it - Motorheadache. Motorheadache.
Try and get a table near the front for these guys. It will be one of those shows where you’ll step out of the place after, and think you are on a spacewalk, because everything is so quiet. Even your friend talking to you is so quiet…
Motorheadache
lol
I listen to MH at tolerable volumes
I have a Lemmy coffee mug which I drink milk out of frequently. I love the irony.
Getting properly medicated
We spent years of research trying to find just the right blend of certain things in the pursuit of what we called “getting properly medicated”
A long time favorite was Weed, tobacco, beer, coffee and sipping a little B&B.
One I don’t recommend: acid and speed, or was it shrooms and speed, hmmmm? Been a long time.
Problem with drinking on psychedelics is you don’t feel it so can drink a insane amount. Problem is when the dose wears off your a fucking mess! Did a whole bottle of Tangueray one very long night on acid, big fun till the cid wore off lol.
MIKE: too funny. I still have nightmares about hanging one of those heavy Sonys from like 12-15 years ago, the ones with the thick glass bezel around the perimeter. Things weighed a ton. So we had to hang a big 65” like 8’ up to the bottom at a health club in the dance room, where dozens of people would be bouncing around etc.
We’ll long story short there wasn’t proper structure for such a beast but somehow we MacGyvered it up there. And not only that. It stuck out aways from the wall so the instructor could sometimes be right underneath it!
Very sketchy but PM signed off etc. But still, many nights of worry. Upshot is it’s been over ten years so far and 🤞
Oro - Because you are MacOro…
Oro - Because you are MacOro, I trust that gym TV you put up would be “Built to Last”!
Reminds me of the stories with the Wall of Sound, and I recall Billy K stating he was never too comfortable under that one giant rack of speakers. I mean, as you’re tripping away with the guys on a Dark Star>Other One through the WoS, it’s only natural you are going to peek up once or twice to ensure Ramrod and Parish and crew got everything screwed down just right, as Phil is dropping these stunning bombs on that Alembic bass of his, with a sound from Middle Earth…
Re: Properly Medicaided (sp)
Drinking and psychedelics, agree on all counts although in my aged state.. sometimes a beer or two at the very end can cut the 'my nerves are shot and I can't take it anymore' edge off things. At the very end.
As you were.
Total annihilation
Drinking on top of any downer - be it benzos, opiates, barbs - or whatever new concoction is out there, can be pretty devastating. Life threatening, in fact. Everybody likes a good time, but you are probably better off staying away from alcohol. Especially with the prospect of prescriptions on the horizon.
Old Folks Boogie
With their wheel chairs locked arm in arm, as Little Feat says. My idea of a geriatric buzz is a beer and a multivitamin. But I'd better do the vitamin at lunch or the B-complex might keep me up at night LOL.
Never did Rorers (ludes). Watched the Swamp Man doing them at too many parties and did not want to look like that. And when he combined that with nitrous, look out. He was always falling down and especially when slurring that New Orleans accent I couldn't understand a word he said. But we always got him home OK. Come to think of it I don't think I ever did an opiate pill that wasn't prescribed post ski accidents or surgeries. Smoked some opiated hash at around 17 at a party and whoa, wild dreams! No speed either except some pink hearts once to cram for a final and they didn't work. Fell asleep by midnight and had to wake up early to finish studying. And I should skip the coke confessions.
Cheers and let's be careful out there.
Old Folks Boogie
Yeah, nowadays more like a multivitamin, a glass of emergency, a 24 oz ice coffee and an advil. Getting to where I’m starting to have a little advil problem!
Problem being I can’t work/move without one lol
Oro
Try Aleve, naproxim something.
One pill, 12 hours, works fast like 20 min.
Cheers
Edit: Come to think of it I have to switch between the two if I do one of them more than a couple of days as I seem to get a tolerance quickly with diminishing results. Bad knees and this year a shoulder too. Oy!
Riddle me this, hockey people
Team mascots
The Kraken unveiled their mascot, Buoy.
People online at Seattle Times are attacking Buoy like pirhanas on a bloody pig.
Anyone care to comment on team mascots, love, hate, or "meh"?
Pigpen's Cousin?
An unofficial fan type "mascot" at Bronco games for 30 years was "Barrel Man", Tim McKernan. In every kind of Denver weather he was there in his barrel. He went with a tan shorty wetsuit bottom when it got cold but usually bare-chested. He would wear gloves and of course his Bronco c-boy hat but appeared to be naked in that barrel. Sold him Bronco colored Ropers that looked like tennys meet c-boy boots when I met him in his later years at a store here in Montrose, CO. Very happy kind of guy.
Cheers
Edit: looked him up (dude has a Wiki page!) and darned if he didn't look like what a 60 y.o. Pig might have looked like.
PF - I saw something about…
PF - I saw something about this Kraken mascot in the news today, said it is a takeoff of something called the Fremont Troll, which I’m not familiar with. I think it has a real Count Chocula in a track suit vibe to it, and kids seem to enjoy them at games. I know the one in Philly - Gritty - seemed to be a hit, but I don’t even know what the Toronto one is (a polar bear, maybe??). If it keeps the little kids happy, while Dad & Mom enjoy the game, no harm.