May 17, 2011

  • Synergistic Research Tesla T1, Part 4

    25 years ago, in the spring of 1986, I heard Icehouse's "No Promises" just a few times on modern rock radio.  It sounded like David Bowie's "This Is Not America," which is a good thing.  Since I enjoyed "No Promises" so much, I set out to find it at San Francisco's record stores.  No luck.  I found neither the single nor the album, Measure For Measure.  And since the summer of 1986, I have not heard "No Promises" on the radio.  Have you?

    For years, I simply could not find Measure For Measure at any of the San Francisco record stores.  Eventually, I found it at the Ala Moana Tower Records.  Located just a few blocks from where the photo above was taken, the old Tower Records is now a Walgreen's.

    Well, I now have Measure For Measure on the remastered CD.

    The Synergistic Research Tesla T1 is intended for use on video monitors.  But remember, I had used it on audio components, where it sounded enthusiastic and alive.  So now that it has been Cooked, how does it perform on audio components?

    Well, if its use on the Headamp GS-1 is any indication, awesome!  All of a sudden, the GS-1 has get-up-and-go, without grain or hash.  The music moves with both purpose and liquidity.  Images become more firmly planted.  And, when so recorded, images at the extreme left and extreme right remain further separated.  In many ways, it's like a remastered CD done right.  I wonder what promise the Cooked T1 holds for video monitors...