where is the mojo?

[fazer]

The class a has merit.  I remember going into an antique store during the xmas season and hearing this beautiful sound from a 1950,s console radio.  Such a liquid like sound.  It had a single 45 for the output tube and god knows how old the electo magnet speaker was but sounded great.  I'm sure the bandwidth was limited but full and balanced sounding.  I have wanted some single ended amps for my altec 604's to see if I would listen to music more but never parted with the money.  I keep buying plug ins.  What a waste that's become.  Those that can do -  those that can't go shopping.

 

[emrr]

Single ended 45 tube may be the very definition of Mojo.  I'm hard pressed to think of something that exceeds it. 

 

[ombudsman]

speaking of that era, I've heard some medium sized field coil speakers in amps that used older tube types which had stunning midrange and harmonics.

It's scary to think of relying on paper that old for your sound, but some of them really have something special.

 

[benb]

The whole argument for snake oil power cords is specious (questionable).

You're being too generous! There's no question as far as I'm concerned that it's BS.

A cord  (or the product design) would have to be really really bad to affect the product's audio path.

perhaps your 2dBu (SPL?)  measurement was questionable too.

With a "modern" high-feedback (solid state) amp, a "faulty" high-resistance power cord wouldn't even lower the signal level, it would only lower the peak power available. You wouldn't notice a difference unless it started clipping.

With a tube amp you might notice (if you bothered to look carefully) a change in heater brightness, but I don't even believe it was in any way a fair or real test. I smell shenanigans, like a 2dB pad that gets switched by plugging in the power cord.

There definitely is "mojo" in audio, but there's also a lot of charlatans.

 

[benb]

I'd define mojo as desirable  non linear behavior.

This is succinct and accurate, but somehow it feels too technical...

 

[emrr]

2dB is a momentary flicker on an SPL meter; we don't have any descriptive of how it was being used or what was being measured. 

 

[Gold]

This is succinct and accurate, but somehow it feels too technical...

There is so much purple prose floating around concerning gear I consider it a valuable service to be too technical. Maybe not for this crowd but I think it helps your average knob twiddler. Music performance can be magical, gear much less so. When I like something, or don't like something I want to know why. Mojo seems like a stupid cop out for a student of the craft.

 

[emrr]

There is so much purple prose floating around concerning gear I consider it a valuable service to be too technical. Maybe not for this crowd but I think it helps your average knob twiddler. Music performance can be magical, gear much less so. When I like something, or don't like something I want to know why. Mojo seems like a stupid cop out for a student of the craft.

Amen brother.

I have been through many iterations of mindset around this.  When it gets combined with restoring or build gear for other people, I feel you have to avoid any of the mojo language, because your version isn't someone else's, and mine has morphed over time, both the words I might use and the value I may or may not place on the observed aspects, now versus a previous time.    The depth of the persons experience along the color scale of audio equipment will dictate wildly different interpretations. 

Honestly, it's like owning a Model T in many cases, no one doing that is buying into any ideas of the thing being better or more magical.  Dey just like da thing dey like. 

 

[Gold]

Good mojo is very expensive. Desirable nonlinear behavior is much less expensive.

 

[ombudsman]

Music performance can be magical, gear much less so. When I like something, or don't like something I want to know why. Mojo seems like a stupid cop out for a student of the craft.

Well put.

I don't mind a certain amount of unknown when it comes to things like selecting individual tubes or mics, or other things that have a known ability to affect EQ or envelope and can't be perfectly consistent. Other than that, I'm on board with wanting to know the reasons.

And if you're trying to get grade A results for grade C expense, it's a must.

 

[iampoor1]

Good mojo is very expensive. Desirable nonlinear behavior is much less expensive.

And the words to accurately describe that behavior: Priceless.  ;D

 

[Gold]

I don't mind a certain amount of unknown when it comes to things like selecting individual tubes or mics, or other things that have a known ability to affect EQ or envelope and can't be perfectly consistent. Other than that, I'm on board with wanting to know the reasons.

I don't mean to say there isn't any mystery or - yikes-mojo in gear or audio. I deal with vinyl and there is definitely mystery and mojo. There are many moving parts with vinyl that contribute to the overall presentation. The math to define "desirable non linear behavior" is  too complex  with vinyl to understand well.

When you get right down to it in a cosmic sense it's all mysterious. I think that should be a call to arms for understanding what's going on.  Throwing up your hands and  being satisfied with calling it mojo is my complaint.

 

[okgb]

Advertising creates mojo , some words create More, mojo
Capital letters can Modify Mojo

Mojo can be harmless IF ,  not charged for it and it doesn't get in the way preventing other good work from being done.

Considering mojo, can be a good reality check

Fairly often I do shoot outs and am " relatively " good at identifying  devices with some cheap or negative quality
If the observation of quality difference is slight, I suspend judgement and put it to the side , maybe some info comes along later to
deny or confirm my  " feelings " about said device ,  most would agree it's better to get on with the actual job at hand.

Some things Do sound better than others, though the average quality of gear these days is good enough that it's not usually the
weak link before the performance or composition.

Mojo is from within ? and is free for all to enjoy ?  highly dependant on ones financial & physical health !