Sunday, February 5, 2012

Disaster!

Disaster! A power cut, which lasted most of the day, tripped my amp, which will have to be returned to the factory to be re-set. The problem is the Rega pre-amp which despite supposedly being compatible with the Cyrus amplifier, nevertheless occasionally trips it if switched on whilst the amp is on. I assume it causes a power surge which the highly sensitive safety mechanism of the amp reacts to by shutting down. It is therefore necessary to switch the two units on in the correct order: pre-amp then amp; or, as I usually do, leave the pre-amp on at all times. When the power was switched back on the pre-amp beat the amp to it! You'd think there'd be a reset button, but no, the careful folk at Cyrus don't trust owners to manage such complex electronics. The result, unfortunately, will be a hefty bill and a couple or more weeks without a CD player.

In the meantime, I will manage (perfectly well) with the Bose CD/radio and must make my next choice. I'll try some chamber music this time and Schubert's Death and the Maiden. Written in 1824 as the composer struggled with tertiary syphilis, this D minor string quartet, with death as its theme seems very appropriate! A live recording by the Alban Berg quartet looks like the one to go for, but not so easy to find - ended up buying from one of Amazon's suppliers rather than direct at £12.99 plus £1.26 p&p with a vague promise of delivery between 9 and 21 Feb - fingers crossed.

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