CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi amping

[trittya]

Greetings to all from Darjeeling
This happens to be my first thread.

At the outset I would like to put on record my profound thanks to forum member Canduu for hearing me out and offering to help.

He and I exchanged a few notes on craftel/ audiocraft.

I personally feel that if there were a "bang-for-the-buck" award in Indian hi fi it would easily be clinched by Mr Mark of this brand.

Having spoken to him a couple of times on tele, I wud also rate him as a top contender for the "most passionate budget hi fi designer/ manufacturer"
not to mention the
"most thorough hi fi gentleman" award.

DISCLAIMER - I hereby declare that i have no financial interests in starting this thread save getting max bang for my buck.

I dont know Mr Mark of craftel personally, have never bought anything from him ever and that the only piece of eqpt from his brand i have experienced is his sta-661/2 (? model No) in pune playing mp3 stuff.

I have nothing to gain from my efforts here (and my wishful thinking) except knowledge, goodwill (of forum members) and smug satisfaction, tho not repeat not necessarily in that order.

Gentlemen (and ladies, if any) members

I most earnestly request for your contributions here especially those of us who live in chennai and thereabouts and more especially those who believe in thee following maxims:-

BE INDIAN BUY INDIAN

"BETTER" ITSELF IS A SUBJECTIVELY RELATIVE TERM

BANG FOR THE BUCK

MAX NASA SCIENTISTS ARE INDIANS

A true audiophile revels in the SOUND OF MUSIC and does not get overly surgical about HOW THE MUSIC SOUNDS !!

EXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT DOES NOT GUARANTEE SATISFACTORY SOUND.

INEXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT DOES NOT ALWAYS MEAN LOW QUALITY.

HEARING IS BELIEVING.

IN THE WORLD OF AUDIO EQUIPMENT,
'HEAVY' USUALLY MEANS 'GOOD'

and last but not least

SIMPLICITY MOSTLY DENOTES TRUE SOPHISTICATION

looking forward eagerly to your comments, suggestions and advice

 

[rupy]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

I've read your first tread.Please let me know more about kraftel.
Thanks.
Rupy.

 

[murali]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Greetings to all from Darjeeling
This happens to be my first thread.

At the outset I would like to put on record my profound thanks to forum member Canduu for hearing me out and offering to help.

He and I exchanged a few notes on craftel/ audiocraft.

I personally feel that if there were a "bang-for-the-buck" award in Indian hi fi it would easily be clinched by Mr Mark of this brand.

Having spoken to him a couple of times on tele, I wud also rate him as a top contender for the "most passionate budget hi fi designer/ manufacturer"
not to mention the
"most thorough hi fi gentleman" award.

DISCLAIMER - I hereby declare that i have no financial interests in starting this thread save getting max bang for my buck.

I dont know Mr Mark of craftel personally, have never bought anything from him ever and that the only piece of eqpt from his brand i have experienced is his sta-661/2 (? model No) in pune playing mp3 stuff.

I have nothing to gain from my efforts here (and my wishful thinking) except knowledge, goodwill (of forum members) and smug satisfaction, tho not repeat not necessarily in that order.

Gentlemen (and ladies, if any) members

I most earnestly request for your contributions here especially those of us who live in chennai and thereabouts and more especially those who believe in thee following maxims:-

BE INDIAN BUY INDIAN

"BETTER" ITSELF IS A SUBJECTIVELY RELATIVE TERM

BANG FOR THE BUCK

MAX NASA SCIENTISTS ARE INDIANS

A true audiophile revels in the SOUND OF MUSIC and does not get overly surgical about HOW THE MUSIC SOUNDS !!

EXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT DOES NOT GUARANTEE SATISFACTORY SOUND.

INEXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT DOES NOT ALWAYS MEAN LOW QUALITY.

HEARING IS BELIEVING.

IN THE WORLD OF AUDIO EQUIPMENT,
'HEAVY' USUALLY MEANS 'GOOD'

and last but not least

SIMPLICITY MOSTLY DENOTES TRUE SOPHISTICATION

looking forward eagerly to your comments, suggestions and advice

I am responding only because you sent me a pm asking for it.
I have no first hand knowledge of the Craftel you are mentioning and hence cannot give any honest opinions about it. Unfortunately, I also don't qualify based on your criteria mentioned as I don't believe in 'Be Indian Buy Indian, price vs performance' etc. I also saw some previous posts on this particular make where people have been trying to differentiate equipment suitability for Indian music, English music etc etc (which also I disbelieve). I am an Indian but do not limit my dreams and views within boundaries, especially in this modern age.
Any good sounding equipment costs money. I completely agree that expensive equipment do not mean great performance and vice versa. At the same time, any decent sounding equipment needs certain minimum things inside which will cost money. My experience has always been to thrive to get something within your "affordability" (not by selling your houses and property) which is what you can spend from your disposable income to possess equipment that will satsify your musical tastes. No equipment is built to play back only one or two genres of music, for sure.
Unless we know some technical details of Craftel equipment, it is impossible and totally unfair to comment. You judge an equipment initially by technical information and not by where it is made, its low price or its maker's credentials and philosophy.

Good luck and regards.
murali

 

[thatguy]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

MAX NASA SCIENTISTS ARE INDIANS

Citation please. Where do people get this kind of data?

Please do not use CAPS. Its annoying.

Unless we know some technical details of Craftel equipment, it is impossible and totally unfair to comment.

You Sir, are my hero. I wish Indian manufacturers learned this and put their equipment through some independent testing and characterization.

 

[CANDUU]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Craftel makes vfm products no doubt in it,venkat sir also wrote a excellent review of mark's speakers and amp.
.this clearly states that Opinion differ from one person to another ....what will a novice like me do with technical specifications ,i trust my ears,not that 10 lakh speaker will be the best, i know what my ear likes but I cant be sure abt others ears .if there is a indian product made in chennai and which got impact till northern end of india means we should welcome it or keep quite rather than........

 

[captrajesh]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Congratulations on starting your first thread and thank you for your PM inviting me to participate in it.

IMHO, audiophilia is a acquired taste; starts with an interest in sound and one's desire in improving its quality to suit one's taste and one's obsession and means to achieve it. The more the obsession, the more the drive; the more the drive, the more the expenditure. As a previous poster rightly said, good sound usually costs money, no two ways about it.

I've not heard Craftel equipment but from what I heard, may be a good place to begin the journey. I started mine with an Akai Boom box then a Sanyo car stereo cassette player driving two 6.5 full rangers placed on earthen pots. Graduated to Aiwa and then a Denon Integrated driving old Kenwood speakers.

Presently hung up on Marantz 6003 sourcing a vintage Luxman driving AP bookshelves after briefly flirting with a class D kit amp, a DIY kit amp and an old Technics Amp. Though all these amps are in the same league AFA SQ is concerned, I liked the Luxman flavor and hence hung up on it.

Waiting for the upgraditis bug to bite me.

 

[madbullram]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

trittya: Whats the point of your thread? If its to promote craftel, then I think we have enough threads. If the point is about a product, I don't see any review of any product rather it seems like a ranting.

Having known Mark personally, we all interact and pass feedback directly. read the rules and stop using all caps and suggest starting meaningful threads. Stop spamming others inbox. If they like your thread they will participate.

 

[venkatcr]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

as for Indian manufacturers i would definitely vote for guys like TORVIN, NORGE, SONODYNE.

Torvin? Really? Come on MusicMaya.

Cheers

 

[venkatcr]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Mark was mentioning that he is designing a pre and power amp combination. I doubt that he would look at making mono blocks. That will push his pricing far beyond what he is looking for in terms of his market.

Cheers

 

[trittya]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Gentlemen,
Thanks for your invaluable comments suggestions and advice.
Mr madbullram, the idea was to generate a discussion, reach a conclusion and then maybe request Mr Mark for a custom-made design which would catch on and be an entry level option for forum members, sorry i did not elucidate that.

In fact, when I spoke to him, he told me that he puts a sticker with the customer's name on an empty chassis/cabinet and then builds it up from scratch as per the customers desire. By no means am i suggesting that we go in for any of his product off the shelf. I also agree that Norge and sonodyne are very good but neither Mr Bajaj nor Sonodyne are interested in making custom-made products. That was the genesis of this particular thought process.

As regards the spamming bit, well i sent messages to some people who i thought speak a lot of sense here including two moderators. If I were spamming, I would obviously not do it with a moderator. Nonetheless, I stand corrected and will henceforth comply accordingly. Thanks for guiding, correcting and bearing with me. I really appreciate it.

 

[captrajesh]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

the idea was to generate a discussion, reach a conclusion and then maybe request Mr Mark for a custom-made design which would catch on and be an entry level option for forum members

With due regards to Mark and his knowledge, Craftel AFA my knowledge goes, is a budget gear maker. That is the segment he would be comfortable in operating I guess. Designing gear is a tricky business and involves a lot of cost optimisation and the maker's design philosophy would be based a lot on that. Expecting him to design stuff at a higher end may not yield the desired results; that is what is OP is hoping to do I guess. It would be like asking Hyundai to make a Ferrari equivalent.

There are several Indian players who are into the mid and high end stuff. Immediate ones that comes to my mind in the order of North to South are: -

Lyrita Audio, New Delhi

Cadence, Pune

Accoustic Portrait, Bangalore

Audire, Coimbatore

Rethm, Cochin.

As regards the spamming bit, well i sent messages to some people who i thought speak a lot of sense here including two moderators. If I were spamming, I would obviously not do it with a moderator. Nonetheless, I stand corrected and will henceforth comply accordingly. Thanks for guiding, correcting and bearing with me. I really appreciate it.

Cheer up buddy, being new to the forum, you may not be aware of the rules and forum etiquette; we all keep learning at various stages of life.

Cheers


Rajesh

 

[trittya]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Thanks for the post,Sir.
Great knowing you. I do agree that craftel is entry level but the others you mentioned are either not interested in anything other than what they make or if they are, it wont be cost effective. My take is that just by separating all components and bi amping them to two prs of drivers in an open bafffle w/o a crossover is likely to yield good results. Also Mr Mark did evince interest in creating an avr 5.1 with 6 monos in a single chassis. Will speak to him one of these nights. If it doesnt work out, will seek advice from arjen helder or forum member kanwar. Actually I m being offered a set of pulz 250 dual monos with pre-amp(incl phono sge) all three separates for 16k but i cant audition it so i let it rest. As such, not many talk about pulz here, so I was apprehensive and refrained.Wish i could've auditioned it though.

 

[captrajesh]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Thanks for the post,Sir.
Great knowing you.

I'm happy to welcome one more man from the forces (still in Uniform):clapping:

My take is that just by separating all components and bi amping them to two prs of drivers in an open bafffle w/o a crossover is likely to yield good results.

The theory for good sound may not be that simpleAFAIK. BTW, forum members Jaudere, (Hope the spelling is right) Anilva and Shershah have dabbled in OB speaker making. Interacting with them would probably give you some deeper insight. Tanthony, Goldyrathore, Anilkumar and former member Suri have some good knowledge in DIY speaker building.

will seek advice from arjen helder or forum member kanwar.

Kanwar is the guy who is designing Class D Amplifier I guess. Who is Arjen Helder? Is is Arj?

Actually I m being offered a set of pulz 250 dual monos with pre-amp(incl phono sge) all three separates for 16k but i cant audition it so i let it rest. As such, not many talk about pulz here, so I was apprehensive and refrained.Wish i could've auditioned it though.

From what I heard, Pulz makes some really powerful gear. Don't know about the SQ though but as per my calculated guess, in all probability would be better than Craftel. In any case, if you do not like the SQ, you may use it as a substitute for AVR for HT duties (where SQ is not such a critical issue) and go in search of a stereo setup of your choice. A humble suggestion.

 

[venkatcr]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

BTW: why are you so obsessed with MR.Mark? just because you reviewed his product !!!

Where have you seen any obsession on my part? I just review a product and write what I feel about it.

Cheers

 

[trittya]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Musicmaya, whats wrong in being obsessed with Mr Mark or Mark Twain or even Huckleberry Finn, for that matter? We all have a right to speak our minds but let us refrain from doing so at others' expense. Nothing to get personal about. Now say if venkatcr had been obsessed, which I m sure he is not, whats the big deal? Would that have made anyone a lesser or greater person? I most certainly believe not. Why do you make it sound so demeaningly snooty and accusatory? Come on, music maya, have a heart and contribute and if you cannot or do not want to, just shift to a more appropriate thread from your point of view. To each, his own. We are here to share and gain from discussions, not to prove ourselves right and the next man wrong. No one ever gained anything from showing the next man in poor light. After all, life in itself is all about relativity and perception. Looking forward to your meaningful contribution. Regards and hope you have a great weekend.

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi

Captrajesh, Sir
Thanks for my "dining-in" speech.
Have responded through pm.

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

 

[captrajesh]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi amp

Another thing I forgot to add. It is a fallacy to assume that Integrated is bettered by Pre-Power combo which is further bettered by a pre and two mono block combo. It all depends on how well it's designed, how good the components are and how well they gel together.

 

[trittya]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Capt Rajesh Sir,
I tend to agree with you but then the idea was to reach a technical consensus (as regards most of the components) and then convince Mark to undertake a project with our desired parameters, if feasible. Another candidate is Mr Nakra of ENBEE in NOIDA. Will visit him on my next trip to Delhi.
Regards

 

[captrajesh]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

All the best to you in your endeavour.

 

[trittya]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Thanks very much Sir
BTW, got in touch with the man that this thread is all about, Mr Mark of Audiocraft aka Craftel, Chennai.
For all those non-believers, the news is that we are going ahead with the "dual monoblocs and preamp for bi amping". Mark actually complimented me by saying that I seemed to possess ESP as he has been collecting, collating and finalising details for this very project.
So there. Will keep you posted. Lets keep this thread and this dream alive, shall we, guys?

 

[denom]

Re: CRAFTEL AUDIOCRAFT CHENNAI :Will Mr Mark make dual monoblocs and preamp for bi am

Hi Trittya,

Glad for you! Did you get any more details from Mark? When will he start?