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Examples of good usability in hi-fi equipment

mhardy6647

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I got to play with a WM-2 at a funky little hifi store in downtown Baltimore when they had just appeared in the US. It was, indeed, impressive -- and just as clearly groundbreaking.

Hey -- I've only got one MD gizmo! I had to show I was one of the cool kids, though! I really do wanna fit in! ;)
 

dlaloum

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Onkyo is/was a consistently under-rated brand. All Onkyo stuff I have has been very durable. My DX-1400 cd player purchased in 1987 when we moved into our first house is still going strong and has never required ANY maintenance. Impressive. 36+ years.
The bad patch is the 2007 to 2018 era... during those years they had a combination of issues which related to manufacturing problems (bad batch of caps, and a bad batch of DSP chips) which meant those components were sensitive to heat - and the AVR's involved ran seriously hot - failure rates were very high, they replaced a lot of gear under warranty and provided a replacement program for the bad boards well beyond warranty. - this was the period leading up to Onkyo getting into financial strife, I am sure this contributed to the problems.

The gear was excellent... but caps that should have been 100C rated but were 70C on a board that ran at around 70C! - The DSP was a manufacturing fault from TI... it would twist/warp when it got hot... disconecting the BGA solder points on its underside... and guess what - it ran hot.

Hence before purchasing a new Integra (Onkyo) AVR last year, one of my first checks was "how hot does it run"....

From experience, vintage (or new!) gear that runs cool, lasts decades.... gear that runs hot, has a lifetime measured in single digits before needing work.
 

MAB

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Apt Holman Preamplifier:
I have had three, one I gave to my brother. It has great features, functionality, and usability:
1679087424359.png

A nicely restored one was reviewed here at ASR.

Yamaha CA-2010:
It has beautiful VU meters:
1679083393479.png

The controls just feel right. It has so many well thought out features. Class A mode if you want more heat and less power. 125 Watts per channel into 8 Ohms otherwise.

Sonic Frontiers SFL-3 Preamp:
1679087629146.png

I sold mine but I regret I sold it before I joined ASR, or I would have seriously taken it to Amir for testing, then sold it! It was an SE, with fancy volume control, caps, etc. It's the best sounding tube product I ever owned (i.e. I thought it had no sound of it's own). It's a dream to operate. Has a wonderful remote. Is intelligently designed. Has a phalanx of tubes.:eek:
1679092444557.png

I am pretty sure it is the only audiophile statement product I will ever own. Still, I'm glad I sold it and hope someone enjoys it as much as I did.:D

Luxman PD-444
A turntable with two modular tonearm mounts.
index.php

It is remarkably sweet to operate with that huge uninterrupted plinth that you could land light aircraft on, sounds great, allows easy swapping of my pointlessly-large collection of tonearms and cartridges, and just looks great.

I've admired the A/D/S Atelier system:
ouxw0nxq2pyiuro71ddv.jpg
mipukb3sm1telfo1tjpc.jpg

I only owned the cassette deck. I would have loved the whole stack. Owning only one slice felt like just downloading one Pink Floyd song off of The Wall.

Marantz MA-500:
1679092898661.png

I bought a lifetime supply of these for dirt-cheap at an estate sale. I am still trying to figure out how to break one. Two can be bridged if you need large amounts of power, and I can't believe the current they can deliver. For reasons too embarrassing to mention, I ran pairs balanced at one point. They are dead quiet. 5 of them stuff a standard rack frame without overheating.

Hall of Shame:
Towering turntables
1679091940365.png

CAMAC connectors
Separate Left and Right volume controls
Beta video for consumers
VCR's in general
Inflexible cables
 
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MattHooper

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This was a digital preamp. It took the source digitally, could resample it to 20 bits, and used several types of dither, and a few other DSP goodies. Easy to view across the room, very attractive and had a remote. In the days before such was common I could feed various digital sources like CD transport of my analog source coming thru an ADC and control volume etc. like an analog preamp did. It was very simple to interact with and use. All that is available in a single box for $200 now. Though usually less pretty.
View attachment 272566

I had Meridian gear. Liked the sound/functionality. Never liked using those skinny buttons though.
 
OP
tomchris

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Audio Mastering, for Apple iPads:

am25_waveform_view_low-res.png




This is a favorite iPad app of mine. Unfortunately, It is no longer available/maintained.

I really like the interface and feature set. It has most of the things I want in a music player.
If someone knows of a similar application for iPad, Windows etc. please let me know:)
 

Keith_W

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I had a Sony MZ-N1 Minidisc player (Google pic below) and I have to disagree that it was "good usability". My main gripe with it was software. It was difficult to buy pre-recorded Minidiscs, so most of the time your only option was to rip the CD, encode it into ATRAC, then load the ATRAC file into the player. The problem was Sony's limit on how many times you could do this - a grand total of 3 write/deletes. And the fact that encoding ATRAC was S-L-O-W.

What was good about Minidisc was resistance to skipping. It would load some of the track into memory for decoding, and you could shake the thing for 10 seconds before the buffer ran out and it would skip. At the time, your only options for portable audio were CD Walkmans which were extremely prone to skipping, cassette Walkmans which were getting more rare and had inferior sound quality, or early MP3 players which were huge and offered limited capacity. So despite Sony's entirely self-inflicted limitations, it was a good solution for portable audio. It was completely pointless as a home audio device though, since CD's offered better convenience and sound quality. It was all over for them when MP3 players went down in size and went up in capacity.

b326eae1b95300e2ce6279b935b6fe76--th-anniversary-sony.jpg
 

thewas

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Back in the good old DIN car radio systems a Becker unit was the most intuitive to operate

1679097865776.png

while for example a comparable Japanese system while also very well engineered needed to study the manual to access all functions with their cryptic abbreviations and non-intuitive menus.

1679097848043.png
 

MattHooper

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They were well spaced and worked fine. Plus I mostly used the remote.

I mostly used the remote too. But I remember that I'd keep mistaking the larger divisions in between the skinny buttons for the buttons :)
 

Chrispy

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Here are a couple of examples of BAD (non hifi) design. Imagine if you were kidnapped by a really weird evil guy and he threatens to shoot you if you don't play a game. His game is: you have only one go at choosing the correct setting in a gadget of his choice. If you guess wrong, you will be shot. So let's play this game.

Exhibit A: Sony A7 Mk.III camera. Shutter speed, aperture, and ISO are the only 3 variables you need to control to achieve good exposure. Your challenge is to look at these two pictures and decide for yourself how you are going to change these variables before touching the camera:

Sony-Alpha-A7-iii-3.jpg

Sony-A7-III-Top.jpg



Exhibit B: Instant Pot electric pressure cooker. These gadgets are everywhere. With pressure cooking, there are only two variables that you need to consider: how much pressure, and how much time. Take a look at this control panel and ask yourself how you would set it to cook at full pressure for 1 hour, again without touching the gadget. Then ask yourself why they have those buttons for various things you might want to cook, but no button to set the time. Remember, you only have one go at this!

15-PSI-feature.jpg


Exhibit C: Sigma Bicycle Computer. Your challenge is to turn it off (note that all four of those buttons are unlabelled). Removing the battery at the back is considered cheating:

1297686675205-151yj52807fmg-e711ea3.jpg


Exhibit D: Tokyo Flash watches. Website here. Your challenge is to tell the time:

(In fairness to them, their intention was to deliberately design something that looks cool and isn't obvious how it functions. This is in contrast to all the other examples above where they are intended to be functional but unintentionally become non-functional due to bad design).
pimp-p2-lr-led-watch-tokyoflash-japan-black-case-black-leather-strap-blue-leds-02_2048x.jpg


There are even more examples of bad design that I haven't listed. Microwaves that can't microwave for 15 seconds. Music software that is supposed to find music for you but can't do that (like Roon). Any DAP that does not display the full track name. Any product that requires close inspection of the manual to figure out how to change a setting. All Casio watches. Japanese toilets and shower heads. Pasta brands that do not indicate a cooking time. And my pet peeve: proprietary anything (there, I made a blanket statement).
Fully agree on the Sigma bike computers. Mine frustrated me so much I just took it off.
 

JRS

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This was a digital preamp. It took the source digitally, could resample it to 20 bits, and used several types of dither, and a few other DSP goodies. Easy to view across the room, very attractive and had a remote. In the days before such was common I could feed various digital sources like CD transport of my analog source coming thru an ADC and control volume etc. like an analog preamp did. It was very simple to interact with and use. All that is available in a single box for $200 now. Though usually less pretty.
View attachment 272566
it was a trip to a stereo salon in Atlanta back in 1995 where I first saw and heard Meridian. When the sales person explained the concept behind their digital gear, a light flashed as I recalled how a Univ of Utah (an alum here) professor was able to restore Caruso recordings from an analysis of the overall transfer function they were able to determine from some antique recording equipment. Convolve with the inverse and voila! (Even took a graduate course in DSP from the man as it seemed so well...powerful).

There gear was priced way out of my league, but the hook was set, and when I read of DEQX years later, I was on ther website and had an order in for an open box processor within hours. It quite literally changed everything. Up until that time I was in the vicious cycle where I replaced expensive speakers every two or three years. Haven't bought commercial speakers since. In fact, I haven't bought anything audio since except speaker drivers. Odd that this just occurred to me I have gone two decades without a significant purchase.

So
 

JRS

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The tape decks of the "Silverface" era got a bit Rococo, though. ;) Not marantz-level Rococo, but still a bit too much of the more is more school of design, I'd say.
CT-F1000

The innards of a CT-F1000:
View attachment 272598
RT-909 (bottom right -- ca. 1979, with "Fluoroscan" meters ;) )
View attachment 272596.
Wow real rack mount gear, and not one but 2 R2R's! If that aint the real deal of a "hi fi nut" I'll be a son of a gun..
 

mhardy6647

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Wow real rack mount gear, and not one but 2 R2R's! If that aint the real deal of a "hi fi nut" I'll be a son of a gun..
there are several more here still -- no really nice ones, though. :facepalm:
The RT-909 is in need of rehab now - at the least, one of the tensioners needs to be cleaned/rebuilt.
The TASCAM 22-4 works very well, though.
 

dualazmak

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Really nice and enjoyable thread, thank you OP @tomchris!

Please let me share with you outline photos and diagrams of my present setup of multichannel multi-driver multi-amplifier stereo audio project including the DIY built 12-VU-Meter Array fully compatible with IEC 60268-17 VU meter specification/standard.
WS003747.JPG


WS00005179 (1).JPG


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You would please find details of my latest system setup here and here on my project thread.
You would also please find here (on my project thread) and here (remote thread) the Hyperlink Index for my project thread.
 
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dualazmak

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And,,, as shared here, I recently revived/integrated my LP player DENON DP-57L + DENON DL-301 MkII (MC cartridge) in my DSP multichannel multi-driver multi-amplifier fully active stereo system for real time on-the-fly vinyl LP listening (and digital recording, if needed);
WS00005133.JPG


WS00005144.JPG
 

DWPress

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This one might take some explaining. An MSB ADD-1. Before MSB made gear only for uber-rich. It was an ADC. 24 bit up to 96 khz. I had a very good DAC with a remote volume control, and I had decided to digitize all my analog sources. This unit had 9 line inputs and a phono input. It automatically switched to whichever inputs had a signal with a preference order ranked 1 thru 9. So with a few remote pieces and others not, I effectively could switch sources and run everything to the DAC conveniently. It was a joy to use in a way that maybe doesn't come across in my explanation. It also was an important device pulling back the curtain on some audiophile myths. I found digitizing sources and then running them thru a DAC to a preamp was indistinguishable from just running a wire from the source to preamp. So I ditched the preamp using this and the DAC instead. I paid $300 for it. Could not find a really good picture, but the various leds were visible across the room to know what was happening.

index.php

I've got one of these! Still use it but my only analog source any more these days is my turntable. I've always kinda wanted to send it to Amir to see how good it was for its day and compared to now.
MSB.jpg
 

Axo1989

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Looks like 70s-80s stuff with lots of knobs/buttons/switches are popular, probably an age cohort thing but I'm sure the liking is genuine. For production we need the full complement of tactile controls, but for reproduction I prefer to keep things clean. Nice Braun, QUAD, Nagra and Nakamichi stuff (among others) upthread.

I really liked my old baby Krell: clean row of controls (marred only by not combining the on/standby indicators), nice semi-retro volume display, pleasing but not excessive heft, no sharp edges, warm comfy top surface.

IMG_0028.jpeg


Clean and well-organised on the back also. I really liked the volume buttons but the replacement model had a rotary knob that most would prefer.
 
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MattHooper

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Joining the party..

I'm really picky about haptics, aesthetics and ergonomics (and usefulness) in audio equipment. So most don't pass muster for me. But a few jump out:

JL Audio CR-1 Crossover.

These people know subwoofers and sought to make blending a sub with the mains as simple and intuitive as possible, and boy did they succeed! I'm not in to all the room measurement/digital crossover stuff so this was ideal for me. It made blending the sub so easy and intuitive. The sub/sat balance knob was also a genius way of easily altering the balance once things were getting dialed in:


CR-1-FLT-EARS.jpg


JE AUDIO HP10 - PHONO STAGE

It was daunting enough getting in to turntables, cartridges 'n all that stuff again. Reading about how bloody awkward many phono stages were in regard to switching things like impedance settings was very off-putting. Many even had to be opened up to switch settings internally. And even when settings were accessible on the outside of the units, often they were teeny little switches on the rear - hardest to reach, hardest to see on an equipment rack.

HP Audio put all the relevant settings right up front, adjustable, accessible. Makes a joy to use. In fact the impedance settings are so easy to access I enjoy switching to different settings just for a change of presentation.



  • 1470208946Front.jpg

Transrotor Konstant FMD Power Supply - motor/speed controller for my Transrotor Fat Bob S turntable.

I lucked in to this virtually-never-on-the-used-market unit when I spotted someone selling it for a great price. It's their top of the line controller. I'm putting this in here because it's a simple one-job device, does it perfectly and it's a joy to operate because it is so beautifully built - German Engineering and all that. It's got a nice big knob for changing speeds that feels great and has a confidence-inspiring mild "clunk" as it clicks in to place. In fact, a silly detail, but I HATE...HATE the heat sinks on solid state amps. Every time I've ever had to hold or shift one around, those bloody ugly fins feel awful and threatening to slit open my fingers. But the heat sink fins on this are polished with a fine powder coat (or something) and even the heat fins feel fantastic in the hand, like silky smooth!





TRANSROTOR CONTROLLER IN HAND copy.jpg


TRANSROTOR CONTROLLER IN RACK.jpg


RTI Universal Remote

I have to give a shout-out in terms of usability to my RTI remotes that I use for my home theater system. They are a bear to program, but that is done by an AV installer. But they are so customizable I got precisely what I wanted in terms of some very complex programming put in to macros. For instance I use a projection based system with automated 4 way masking that can change the size and aspect ratio of the screen as required. I put together a vertical masking system (it's own motor) with a horizontal masking system (velvet panels on an automated curtain track). I have about 20 different available touch screen buttons set up for different aspect ratios and screen sizes. So at the touch of one button, the projector zooms the image to a pre-set size on the screen, the horizontal masking system is sent to a set point, then jogs itself more finely to the right position, the side curtain system goes to a set point and then has further commands to jog to an intermediate position. So within about 7 to 10 seconds, one button press and the whole image and screen "change magically" to a new shape and size. And it's worked for years and years.
https://www.rticontrol.com/pub/media/catalog/product/cache/6d47e1a4b985c7aa97985946db8622c8/t/2/t2c_controller_face_300_trans.jpg



Custom Volume Remote

Lastly, this doesn't even quite exist...yet.

I really don't like remotes in general. Few feel nice in the hand or nice to use. Especially for my 2 channel system I have always wanted to use a remote controlled volume knob from the comfort of my sofa. Except one that could learn and operate the IR commands for my two pre-amps weren't available (pretty much all remote volume knobs these days are for operating computer sound). So I'm having one built by a polish custom audio company. It's a metal knob on a wood body. The knob will of course operate volume, but it will also send other basic commands - e.g. mute, change inputs, FF/RR etc - via tapping or turning the knob. I can also use the knob to select which device commands it will send, so I can use it with my CJ preamp, Benchmark preamp, AVR, Apple TV etc. I'll know how this works soon, but it should be just what I was seeking. Here's an example photo (not the wood finish I chose though):


OmniRemote_Zebrano_Oiled.jpg
 

Axo1989

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Joining the party..

I'm really picky about haptics, aesthetics and ergonomics (and usefulness) in audio equipment. So most don't pass muster for me. But a few jump out:

JL Audio CR-1 Crossover.

These people know subwoofers and sought to make blending a sub with the mains as simple and intuitive as possible, and boy did they succeed! I'm not in to all the room measurement/digital crossover stuff so this was ideal for me. It made blending the sub so easy and intuitive. The sub/sat balance knob was also a genius way of easily altering the balance once things were getting dialed in:


CR-1-FLT-EARS.jpg


JE AUDIO HP10 - PHONO STAGE

It was daunting enough getting in to turntables, cartridges 'n all that stuff again. Reading about how bloody awkward many phono stages were in regard to switching things like impedance settings was very off-putting. Many even had to be opened up to switch settings internally. And even when settings were accessible on the outside of the units, often they were teeny little switches on the rear - hardest to reach, hardest to see on an equipment rack.

HP Audio put all the relevant settings right up front, adjustable, accessible. Makes a joy to use. In fact the impedance settings are so easy to access I enjoy switching to different settings just for a change of presentation.



  • 1470208946Front.jpg

Transrotor Konstant FMD Power Supply - motor/speed controller for my Transrotor Fat Bob S turntable.

I lucked in to this virtually-never-on-the-used-market unit when I spotted someone selling it for a great price. It's their top of the line controller. I'm putting this in here because it's a simple one-job device, does it perfectly and it's a joy to operate because it is so beautifully built - German Engineering and all that. It's got a nice big knob for changing speeds that feels great and has a confidence-inspiring mild "clunk" as it clicks in to place. In fact, a silly detail, but I HATE...HATE the heat sinks on solid state amps. Every time I've ever had to hold or shift one around, those bloody ugly fins feel awful and threatening to slit open my fingers. But the heat sink fins on this are polished with a fine powder coat (or something) and even the heat fins feel fantastic in the hand, like silky smooth!





TRANSROTOR CONTROLLER IN HAND copy.jpg


TRANSROTOR CONTROLLER IN RACK.jpg


RTI Universal Remote

I have to give a shout-out in terms of usability to my RTI remotes that I use for my home theater system. They are a bear to program, but that is done by an AV installer. But they are so customizable I got precisely what I wanted in terms of some very complex programming put in to macros. For instance I use a projection based system with automated 4 way masking that can change the size and aspect ratio of the screen as required. I put together a vertical masking system (it's own motor) with a horizontal masking system (velvet panels on an automated curtain track). I have about 20 different available touch screen buttons set up for different aspect ratios and screen sizes. So at the touch of one button, the projector zooms the image to a pre-set size on the screen, the horizontal masking system is sent to a set point, then jogs itself more finely to the right position, the side curtain system goes to a set point and then has further commands to jog to an intermediate position. So within about 7 to 10 seconds, one button press and the whole image and screen "change magically" to a new shape and size. And it's worked for years and years.
https://www.rticontrol.com/pub/media/catalog/product/cache/6d47e1a4b985c7aa97985946db8622c8/t/2/t2c_controller_face_300_trans.jpg



Custom Volume Remote

Lastly, this doesn't even quite exist...yet.

I really don't like remotes in general. Few feel nice in the hand or nice to use. Especially for my 2 channel system I have always wanted to use a remote controlled volume knob from the comfort of my sofa. Except one that could learn and operate the IR commands for my two pre-amps weren't available (pretty much all remote volume knobs these days are for operating computer sound). So I'm having one built by a polish custom audio company. It's a metal knob on a wood body. The knob will of course operate volume, but it will also send other basic commands - e.g. mute, change inputs, FF/RR etc - via tapping or turning the knob. I can also use the knob to select which device commands it will send, so I can use it with my CJ preamp, Benchmark preamp, AVR, Apple TV etc. I'll know how this works soon, but it should be just what I was seeking. Here's an example photo (not the wood finish I chose though):


View attachment 272652

That crossover is nice. I'm a sucker for a single row of controls. Also, the shiny thing with the large rotary knob does it for me. I'm not hard to please.
 
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