Passionate Purchases

I'm not really one that buys CD albums or books (I do like buying books since physically having one is really satisfying) but when it comes to music, I find that I can try out and listen for free, if the artist offers a donation then I may donate (general I don't) but a few weeks ago I found myself buying FunkyDL's Jazzstrumentals only to find that he tweeted @timbo400. This type of artist/consumer interaction makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside, kind of like a thanks, 'I guarantee that my album is good and I know you'll enjoy it' instead of the 'Sucker, you got my album that only has 1 or 2 good songs on it! Sucked in!' Obviously that's not the intent of any artists but sometimes I feel so cheated even after downloading an album only to find that it predominately sucks... you wasted my bandwidth! But this logic went down the drain when I was at JB-HiFi Hornsby on Saturday. I was inside the Hip-Hop/Urban section and trawled for a few albums that I really wanted... after sifting through several rows I found this by Guru and impulsed it. Jazzzmatazz double CD, I remember that MC Solaar was on it so I thought I'd give it a try. Driving home the first CD was trash and I was pretty much convinced I had thrown away $15 on the first disc (The double disc was 29.99) but that's when disc 2 came in and I was grooving all the way home. I'm really feeling Jazz at the moment and I'm finding myself vibing with it really well.



Another thing of the list of purchases is 'Growing Bonsai; A Practical Encyclopedia' After many untrained attempts of trying to grow shoots I decided to slowly learn how to grow a Bonsai and practice my patience. I'd like to say I can wait for my Bonsai to grow... but I'm not that patient!


I guess it's time to chill and read to some nice relaxing Jazz-Hop and read some books.

/timbo400

Obesely Full

Woke up and made this.

Demolished it.

Had a nap then made and ate this:

Cannot eat anymore *dies*

/timbo400

Free Gifts? Impossible!

Well, not all are gifts. They're from very generous people either way!

Thanks to Melvin for lending me his SB-900 and the old man on Adderton Rd for leaving his lamp outside his house (I didn't steal it! he was throwing it out!) I've always wanted an old library lamp like this and even considered purchasing one from a thrift store to get my fix but obviously it was an unnecessary want. Going to enjoy using this SB-900 while I have it in my hands!

PS. Tickets to Nosaj Thing and Tokimonsta are sold out! If you slept... you slept! and I feel bad for you.

/timbo400

Quick Reminder: Nosaj/TokiMonsta

Here's a quick reminder to everyone in Sydney who enjoys Hip-Hop beats, instrumentals or just good music in general. The famed Nosaj Thing and Tokimonsta will be playing in Sydney on the 22nd of July 2011! Which is just under a month away, I advise you to get tickets ASAP! I'll be ranting about it for the next few weeks until the days count down.

Tokimonsta is pretty sick live already! And with Nosaj that's like an L.A. Korean double damage!

Don't know Nosaj Thing or Tokimonsta?

And the famed KEXP live set by Nosaj Thing (Watch it in HD if you can!)

The intro samples OutKast's 'ATLiens' and creates this deep atmosphere... I'm pretty sure this would be one of the best sets to witness in my life.

Tickets: http://www.moshtix.com.au/event.aspx?id=48100
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=111543788935000

/timbo400

Charisoul

So I've been a little lazy over the last few weeks in terms of producing artworks. I'm thinking of a few new ideas but my physical state of being fat is making me somehow not feeling in the mood... but every so often someone pushes me to produce something..

Charis Lee, I was suppose to make her a 70s style cartoon version of her but after doing several sketches and playing around in Ai, I found out that I wasn't feeling the way her face was coming out using my technique. Since the geometrical shapes didn't get her lovely face-shape (Something that makes the image personal for the portrait) I decided to watercolor/gouache her up from a drawing I did of her when she was a wee young girl :)

When I think of Charis, I think of her and her sweet foods! So I decided to make her a Jelly bean (It's more of a capsule shape, but whateves!)

So what did she look like as a kid? A cute girl wandering through the fields 

(And not much has changed! :P)

/timbo400

Review: SoundMAGIC PL50

I'm not an audiophile but for some reason I keep fiending to get the best Hi-Fi equipment. So since I'm not really earning C.R.E.A.M., I went for a cheaper option for IEMs, making sure that quality (both durability and SQ) were the basis on my purchase and after researching for several months I decided to get the SoundMagic PL50s.

I've owned a few pair of canalphones in my time, my first pair back in highschool that was stock with a W800i, then moving onto the Sennheiser CX300-II before moving to AKG K321s. The problem with canalphones is finding the right tips, my ears are quite small and only ever had the CX300-II fit the best. The AKGs lasted me about 1 month since the jack cover is straight out and is not angled like most headphones, this was a major problem since the line would get damaged since my iPod/iPhone was in my pocket and the lead would get crushed. Also the banana shape of the earpiece made it difficult for the earphone to stay in my ear for longer than 10 minutes without fiddling with my ears pushing it in. Definitely a no-no. I'll stick to AKG's Hi-Fi range next time (Oh I do dream of owning a pair of K701/2s)



So why SoundMagic? The reviews said they were neutral, they're accurate and most of all cheap. So I thought why not? For $70AUD shipped in 10 days I thought why not. I'm more of a bass lover since I'm more rooted to Hip-Hop but I didn't mind that since I'm planning for a Fiio E7 for some EQ loving.

As soon as I got the box today, it wasn't really greatly presented, SoundMagic are known for quality earphones, not well-designed packaging. Inside were the IEMs, plenty of rubber tips and foam tips, a pleather bag, ear-clips and apparently a cord-clip... which was missing but I don't mind. So the first thing to do was to try it out and normally the stock-tip never fits me... but I was pleasantly surprised, the tip fit me perfectly. Snuggly fitting and it definitely lived up to it's claimed -20DB noise isolation, this is a must for when I'm travelling or commuting.



So I put them on into my iPhone + Fiio E1 and played my usual. Daft Punk's 'One More Time' and 'Aerodynamic' then Nosaj Thing's Drift album. The mids and highs are very crisp, bassline is so neutral it's kind of like distilled water, no more no less. I would like it a bit more bassy but then I'd be asking so much with short arms and deep pockets.

After this, I thought why not venture out and give them a slight drive-test. I put on the ear-clips (Something that needs to be tested by you to make sure the length of the cable fed into the ear-clips are correct so they clip on your ears well and also so slip out) and went for a run around the block for 30 minutes. I put the iPhone on shuffle and started running, not a single car was heard and only my panting was heard. The sound isolation is great and doesn't rape the ear canal like an Etym would (Those triple flanges look hella scary O_O)

I'm yet to really burn into these PL50s since I've only listened to them for about 3 hours, I don't have much to reference them to since I'm new to this whole thing, but these are definitely going to give my ears a good harmonic vacation after being deprived of sonic-gold for so long. Timbo recommends these if you're looking for a pair of Sub-$100 IEMs. 4/5

/timbo400

Only In Cabramatta..

Only in Cabramatta do you see old Asian men rocking Wu-Wear

Starter caps with spiked bats and hockey masks.

Cabramatta has changed so much within the last 10-15 years. I always tell people the stories of what I remembered when I was young, being a 8 or 10 years old, the fresh bullet holes in the police station's windows, the drug dealers that roamed freely and the delicious food that still gets served today. A lot has changed but the culture and traditions are still the same, it's a great place to eat and relax even though in some of the arcades there seems to be a riot of people just trying to get their fix of food, most Westerners would think of it as a day before the apocalypse yet it's the everyday 'hustle' for the locals; although it's very alike with Paddies market or Flemington, so those that have experienced that aren't in for much more. Whilst the people may be a spectacle, I'm only really interested in the food and drinks.

I don't know about you but I am inlove with chicken feet and pork belly. The restaurant that I eat the salad at is Bao something 8 or something. Anyway that's so vague but I think anyone that visits Cabramatta cannot eat and NOT get a drink of some sort. My personal favourite is Jack Fruit Sinh-to (Which is a Vietnamese smoothie) this shit is the bomb and if you're not going to get your Sugar Cane Drank (Nouc Mia) either than I suggest Avocado Sinh-to or the drinks you can choose 3-5 toppings. They're the gangster ones!

I'm not hella Viet, but I know enough to enjoy my roots and to curse a little or talk behind someone's back to another Vietnamese friend. After watch 'Go Back To Wear You Came From' on SBS, it reminds me of the struggles my Mum went through and how good it is that I still have some tradition in me.

Glad that I'm Vietnamese and proud. Co-incidentally while I was typing this up my friend Cynthia posted this on her twitter:

It's so 'groovy' and rocking! Ha!

Next few posts will be me reviewing a few movies and new headphones.

/timbo400

Size Kind of Matters...

If you're looking at the photo, you're probably noticing a few funny things, massive stitching, massive laces and what not, it could be a shoe for a little kid but really, this is the dopest Sneaker keychain fob OUT. I mean it's so butter, such build quality, shit if I was a doll I'd fucking wear it myself...

To all the Keychain Sneaker factory owners/producers.. this is how it should be done.



NB, always dropping quality shit. This is a random post I know, just wanted to tell everyone how crazy this thing is!

/timbo400

Snap Snap Pop Pop!

Waited at home all day for these babies :)

Audio Technica ATH-AD700, they're so comfortable and the soundstage, highs and mids are completely amazing. Cannot wait for a Fiio E7 to power these babies a little more :)
Nosaj Thing, Debussy, GZA and a few other picks have made my ears melt on this cold winter's day. Burning these in will be one of the best things ever!



The weekend was pretty fun, I finally met my other Mother Diane and I spent the evening at Sneakerology enjoying Katalyst on the decks and omnomnoming on mini burgers. Met some old faces and saw some new, also talked to a girl from 'That Store' for a job opportunity in the city (Something I have needed in so long)

Got really drunk and passed out at the Gaelic. Thanks to Claudia for letting me lean on her :P

Fresh New Talent - Nagakin

/timbo400

A little More... Life Like?

So a few of you might be wondering what the photos from the N8000 look like... well after developing them on Tuesday and then scanning them on Wednesday I've finally edited them for online usage. Editing the raw scans at home I just cut out the outer images from each 4-frame photo to create a stereoscopic image to be viewed using cross-eyed technique. (They are best viewed in fullscreen)

I also created a couple of animated 3D images which are pretty cool too :)

And then if anyone's wondering my personal side? It's been great, yesterday I found out I got market research next week eating chocolate at Parramatta and getting paid, then also bought some monitors and IEM and a Fiio E1. I really cannot wait to try all of them out, as many friends have noticed, I really like buying headphones. This year alone I have bought 5 pairs and last year, 3.

Bought? Audio Technica ATH-AD700, Soundmagic PL50
To Buy? Fiio E7+E9 and AiAiAi TMA-1s and Alessandro MS-1s

/timbo400

Cultured & Cured

Bear sculpture by Will Coles, photo by Timothy Duong via Instagram

Go my visit to Waterloo done, processed photos, had lunch with Grace and also visited the galleries.

The French House is so damn good! Love the music, the atmosphere (I'm listening to Atmosphere atm, but that's just off topic now) and the food. The coffee wasn't great but the pastries were delicious. Second visit and definitely not the last.

I was also mind blown by a few works:

Kylie Stillman's 'Vessel' (Utopia Gallery)

Catherine Nelson's 'Future Memories' (Dominik Mersch Gallery)

And of course the best achievements for me was that I finally printed some rolls from my Nishika N8000. Now all I have to do is scan the trannies. Arg, the pain :(

/timbo400

OFWGKTA - VIVID Live

Tyler and the boys put on a good show, would've been crazy if Earl was there but whatever. Good ole antics by Tyler (He farted in the microphone!) and Grace touched him! Wish I bum rushed the stage, lighting was cool too. Would do again.

Tyler getting rescued from the dive.

/timbo400