A workaround has been implemented for an old problem on the amazing Voyager 1 spacecraft. Would AI have had the insight this engineer did?
… one of our engineers had this insight that maybe there was this other possible cause and it was fixable.
Category: Tech
The Netfix Was In
Continuing to dig through piles of stuff in my office, I came across the booklet for my now useless first generation Roku player, from 2008.
Look at all those connections! The original name for the product was, “The Netflix Player by Roku.”
Prattman Cave
I’m on a tear, reorganizing my office and the space that I suppose should be called the media room. Going through many long-buried things, I was reminded that I used to make DVDs.
Remember when the music and movie industries were so concerned about recordable media? They were convinced that people burning their own CDs and DVDs would destroy their businesses forever. Now, they couldn’t care less about physical media.
What’s the Platter, Charlie Brown?
It’s here! Something you never expected to see, but is interesting to know about. The Peanuts limited edition, 75th anniversary turntable with Ortofon cartridge, built-in phono pre-amp and Bluetooth support.
The Highs and Lows of Hi-Fi
“Audiophiles don’t use their equipment to listen to music. Audiophiles use music to listen to their equipment.” — attributed to Alan Parsons
That video contains a reminder of how ubiquitous cigarettes used to be. Cigarettes are the worst socially acceptable mass consumable ever devised, and I despise them.
Revolutionary Tests
I have read many varying opinions of original Thorens turntable belts vs. Thakker belts. Using an RPM phone app, I made my own comparison.
The Thorens belt in my TD-166 MKII has been installed for about six months. It spins 0.49% fast above 33.33 rpm.
The new Thakker runs 0.73% slow, while the graph appears to show less flutter than the Thorens belt. Running slightly fast is generally considered to be preferable to slow on a belt drive turntable. The reason why would take too long to explain.
My direct drive Technics table doesn’t have a quartz-locked motor to guarantee speed accuracy. It spins just a tiny bit slow, with noticeably less flutter than either of the belt measurements.
Turntable belts always stretch with use. I’ll leave the Thakker installed in the Thorens table and check the speed periodically.
Those graphs are reminding me to make one of my occasional Kardia heart checks. No flutter here!
