Phew! Made it at last... I think

Warning - New member first post (skip if easily bored)

Apologies All...   for gatecrashing your forum.  I've arrived here sort of by accident after a rather trying journey.  You know how it is....  You make up your mind to "do something" about the appalling state of the music going into your ears, you head for the Internet and read countless reviews about countless lumps of esoterica, knowing all the while that if the missus finds you researching "another obsession" there is going to be hell to pay.

I've been through all that and more.

So (cutting a long story short) a "Green Solo" it is then...  no worries; off to the GSP web site to place my order...  No...

Here begins the journey, not of enlightenment but of proving oneself worthy to place an order in the first place.  The labyrinthine complexity of tracking down a way of gaining the glittering green prize is worthy of the next cinema blockbuster...  “Lara Croft and the Emerald Torment” or some such.

I’ve followed every Google link, made sacrifices to Baal, lurked in the darkest recesses of the “other forum” and sent personal messages about “bargain buckets”.  I’ve worked under cover, tracked down the reports of previous seekers and emailed the friend (sorry John) of him who holds the keys of the pit wherein lies the order book.

And so now, by fate or fortune, through storm and lightning strike, here I am in the company of those who actually have that very prize in the own mits; plugged in, burning in and at peace with the World.

Permit me to introduce myself… I’m Paul and live in the UK.  I’m no technical guru but I do have an interest in quality sound and achieving it with moderate expenditure.  My last serious attempt at getting sorted was 25 years back before children, house and family stuff demanded my all.  Now, with the prospect of the above becoming self-financing (vane hope I know) I turn again to the sound thing.

Much as I enjoy listening to commercially produced music, I have another, more pressing need to hear exactly what I’ve got.  A couple of years back I met an old boy in a pub who was playing some tunes.  We got talking about music and, suffice it to say, I’ve visited him each week since then to record him playing.  At the age of 95 this kindly gentlemen is an inspiration to all.  The music won’t be most people’s cup of tea but there are plenty in my part of the UK who want a sound record to learn from so, that’s the task I’ve got: recording and editing the material together.  I want transparency and I want to be able to hear the wheeze of the melodeon bellows!

I’ve learnt much on my journey…  Not all amps are created equal…  Not all components with the same value perform in the same way…  Capacitors leave the factory only half made…  Audio design engineers are human and need sleep…  Making the most of limited resources takes effort and patience.

The journey of enlightenment is not without pain: wearing Grado headphones is proof of that!  But now that I’ve made it to the dragon’s lair, I wonder, have I satisfied the arbiters of the order book of my good faith?  Can I now place my order in the bucket or whatever?  Will I be able to obtain the prize?  Will some kind guardian point me in the right direction?  Shall I PM the master from here….

... Dear Graham, I would be mightily obliged…

Kind regards to all fellow travellers.

Wassail

Paul

Thanks for the clarification Graham; always best to get the info from the horse's mouth so to speak.  One further point: with the new "merged" design, will there be a sonic advantage of one PS over the other?

Paul