After all the work today, I decided I needed a break. Maybe a reward. So after washing all the dirt and bugs off (weed whacking the jungle is messy), I made my way down to the neighborhood winery – Monserratt. It was nice, but it’s not a place to go solo. I hoped they would have some live music outside, but…no. So I had just one glass of their fine Montepulciano and an order of their best-in-Socal truffle fries, then bugged out. From our comfortable deck looking over the same vineyards, I can still have their wine AND listen to my Spatial M3s, speakers I haven’t fired up in a while. Plus I can watch the hawks and ravens fly and fight, a treat with or without music.

It was fun, but not as much as I hoped. The Spatials, driven by a Marantz 5009 receiver, don’t have the same richness of sound as my MBN speakers in KY (they’re custom; they don’t have a brand, so I’m just using my brother’s initials as their brand name). They’ll play louder (and my neighbors can attest to that), but they’re kind of sterile compared to the MBNs. Rush sounds like shit on the Spatials, and the MBNs provide enough warmth to make the same recording more enjoyable.

Tame Impala, a much more recent and higher fidelity recording, sounds quite a bit better on the Spatials. I think the open baffle Spatials are just *very* accurate. Bad recording, bad replay. So why does the KY system sound better with a lackluster 1980s recording? Something about the combo of the Yamaha amp and the MBN speakers just makes everything sound smoother. Warmer. Maybe it’s just my ancient ears, trained in that same era, recognize something in that sound produced by a 1980s amp and a box speaker, something familiar and comforting. Human hearing is very, very subjective – the processing of sound waves from ear to nerves to brain is still a bit of a mystery.

Bottom line, I find myself falling a bit out of love with the Spatials. It might be time to try a vintage system here in CA. Maybe a big vintage Pioneer or Marantz integrated amp and a pair of Klipsh Heresy IVs or La Scalas. Unless my brother wants to make another pair of custom speakers.

It’s a day for chores. First a trip to hardware stores to get supplies. Then weed whacking as much as I can stand – the new electric whacker has about a 45 minute limit, so I use that to time my breaks. Next, experimenting with cleaners, acid, and scrubbers to try and get the mineral deposits off the pool tile. I’d love it if acid took the scum off, but…so far it hasn’t. I have a feeling it will come down to muscle and pumice stones, unfortunately.

It’s a beautiful day and I’d rather be playing golf, but…duty calls. Happy Friday.