Finding your groove: getting into vinyl with Audio-Technica
I’d like to think that I could’ve been friends with the late Hideo Matsushita, founder of Japanese Hi-Fi powerhouse Audio-Technica. If I could, I’d travel back in time to 1960’s Tokyo, where a young Matsushita curated “vinyl listening sessions” at the Bridgestone Museum of Arts, exposing visitors to the sounds and possibilities of high end audio and the warmth of vinyl records. I imagine sitting with him in a mod coffee shop, listening to the stories of what he witnessed in those sessions, the conversations he had with visitors, and what ultimately motivated him to head back to his small apartment above a ramen restaurant and start an audio company of his own.
In the histories I’ve read regarding AT’s humble beginnings, Matsushita’s motives seem clear. Produce high end audio at affordable prices, bringing audio excellence into spaces and to customers that simply didn’t have access to it before. His first two products, the AT-1 and AT-3 phono cartridges did exactly that, and...
Curious to know how you lug your mobile gear around.
These are the NANUK 904 & 908 protective cases. I was pleased with the 904, but purchased the 908 when I decided to include some of my IEM’s, a 2nd DAC/Amp and a 2nd DAP as well as a 9 in 1 multi-card reader to my assortment of portable gear. It’s a work in progress as I have just received the 908 and started to do a bit of customizing. At this point I have carved out a spot for the Fiio BTR17 DAC/Amp & Hiby Digital M300 DAP, as well as the 3 bright colored soft cases which contain a few 4.4mm balanced and 3.5mm single ended cables. I will be doing very minor work to this top level before moving on to the lower deck, where I am uncertain what to do next. Having space to work with wouldn’t be a bad thing. I have a Fiio BTR7 DAC/Amp and a Surfans F20 DAP inside the smaller 904, along with a couple of canisters with IEM’s. Currently the Hiby Digital M300 DAP has a 1.5 TB micro SD card while the Surfans F20 is only capable of using a 512 GB micro SD. I listen to music on mostly FLAC files though I do have a whole bunch of Hi-Res material as well.
Happy summer, all! I hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far, whether that be with friends and family or any other warm-weather activities.
Here on Drop we are fully Primed for Summer—and we'd like to help get you in the mood too! In a season of hot deals and hotter temperatures, sometimes it pays to stay inside. We have a lot planned for the next week or so, so read on for more info!
As is tradition at this point, the complete list of sales is too large to list here (check the promo landing page when it goes live for complete info). Listed below will be some particularly noteworthy deals as a sneak peak to what’s coming. :)
Primed for Summer short list:
▪️ Drop + Sennheiser HD 6XX $169 (MSRP $219) - July 8th only
▪️ Drop PC38X Headset $169 (MSRP $199) (MSRP updated due to tariffs)
▪️ Rainy75 Keyboard starting at $89
▪️ Select GMK Base Kits starting at $69
▪️ GMK Mecha-00 Base Kit $99
▪️ Select DCX Base Kits starting at $59
▪️ Select MT3 Base Kits starting at $49
▪️...
Ordered a pair of earphones on Saturday, and when I paid with ApplePay, it auto-filled an old address I used to live at. No biggie, I contacted support and provided the right address to fix this issue. What ended up happening was both Drop and UPS not doing anything at all and allowing the package to be delivered to said wrong address. I've spent the last 4 days contacting both Drop and UPS trying to get the package sent to the right address, and while Drop says they sent an update for the new address, UPS says otherwise. This is unacceptable service and Drop needs to do a better job at making sure these errors to go unfixed. I am a new customer and this was my first purchase. After all this headache with NOTHING RESOLVED (and 4th of July weekend being on the horizon), I'm not sure if I would want to do any sort of business with the company anymore.
Dear Drop Team and Community,
I’m writing to follow up on a post I made on June 26, 2025, regarding two unfulfilled orders for the VIVO V000LD Aluminum Laptop Riser and Docking Station.
I would like to sincerely apologize and formally retract my original complaint. Both items were delivered to my address just two days ago, and I now realize that the delays may have been beyond your immediate control.
While my initial frustration was genuine, I now acknowledge that the situation has been resolved. The product is of excellent quality, and I appreciate the effort made to fulfill the orders.
Thank you again for delivering the items, and I offer my sincere apologies for any confusion or inconvenience caused by my previous message.
Warm regards,
Damir
Dear Dropbox Community,
A short while ago, I posted a message expressing my dissatisfaction regarding the non-receipt of two VIVO V000LD Aluminum Laptop Riser and Docking Stations that I had ordered on two separate occasions. At the time, I was understandably frustrated, as it appeared that neither order had been fulfilled.
However, I’m pleased to share that both items arrived on my doorstep just two days ago. I would like to sincerely apologize for my earlier post and respectfully retract my complaint.
Thank you for delivering a high-quality product. I deeply regret the confusion and any inconvenience my original message may have caused.
With sincere apologies and appreciation, regards Damir
Community Rules and Guidelines (updated September 2022)
Drop encourages community interaction and discussion between our members. In order to make the site an enjoyable place for all to spend their time and participate in the Community, we have a few rules and guidelines for members to adhere to. The primary takeaway is to be nice to others and don’t spam or shill products - simple enough, right?
Etiquette
Members are expected to treat each other with respect, and be courteous of each other’s opinions and advice, regardless of their relative experience. In particular, the moderation team will be responding to content which falls into the following categories.
Personal Attacks / Threats - It can be easy to forget, but everyone you interact with online is another human in front of a keyboard. And if they're not, then why bother engaging in the first place? Everyone deserves to be treated with respect, and personal attacks / threats will not be tolerated on the site. Repeatedly attacking other users will result in escalation...
What typing device would your favorite writer use?
Can be a completely made up or very real keyboard/typewriter. What can you imagine sitting on their desk as they write your favorite word things?
For example, Douglas Adams might have a salmon shaped Dinokidz inspired keyboard, with 42 keys, towel artisan keycap, and Topre switches for pleasing sound and feels.
Image credit @Evshrug
In my time browsing various headphone and audio forums, I’ve observed again and again a somewhat amusing contradiction. If you go to a sound science forum and ask “What is an audiophile,” they will tell you an audiophile makes purchases based on emotion and nostalgia, with little regard for research, price to performance, and specs which would allow a system to be EQ’d into any sound (including the “ideal” sound). Meanwhile, there’s an opposite camp that will happily buy anything just because it makes them feel good, because “that’s the point of music,” meanwhile they would define an “Audiophile” as someone who pays more attention to gear, specs, and listens to tone sweeps more than music. Conundrum! Paradox!
I’ll do you better: ‘WHY’ Audiophile?
The truth is the word “Audiophile” comes from two roots: Audio* is easy enough to understand, while -phile comes from the Greek root “philos,” which carries a meaning that doesn’t directly translate to...
The NEW $499. Audeze LCD-S20 Closed Back. It’s impressive. The build is legit, nothing cheap at all. It’s reflected in the 550 gram weight, which while on the heavy side doesn’t bother. It IS, however, a might clamp heavy and so it’s going to take a little time to get it to feel secure on the melon without making the head feel a bit pinched. I DO have a big head though.
The headphone uses the typical Audeze suspension strap, which I have not adjusted from the factory. Truth told I’m just getting my first initial listens. They arrived early last night but I had to deal with putting in an air conditioner and get the TV and internet back up and running after the damn landscapers hacked up the outdoor cable line with their weed whackers. Dolts would be an accurate assessment.
So what I’ve done is simply to give these a few gentle outward tugs in order to get these to loosen up on my head and I’m getting real close. Besides the suspension strap the under side...
Hi, this is CrazyDesigners, representing Dry Studio.
Why do we make the Battleye 74.5 RT
Over the past year, the magnetic (Hall Effect) keyboard market has exploded in popularity. Yet, while many brands chase extreme specs or budgets, we believe the most important trait of any keyboard is simple: it has to feel great to use.
Take Wooting, for example. Their keyboards support extensive customization, but their mount remains tray or gasket. Sometimes their keyboards are even housed in plastic, yet they still sell for premium prices. Or the ROG Azoth Extreme, which costs $600 USD.
As a team with roots in custom mechanical keyboards, we wanted to do things differently. After the Ice Ring 63 RT, we’re proud to present our new Dry Studio flagship: the Battleye 74.5 RT, Dry Studio's first fully custom high-end magnetic switch keyboard.
With our small team of 7 people, we spend a total of 103 late nights to make this reality.
Inspired by Death Stranding: What is Battleye? ...
My last 8 monthly discounts have been the minimum $30. Anyone else want to weigh in with similar experience?
My membership is up this month, contemplating if im going to bother renewing.
This supplier sucks when you have to return something that you decided that you do not like. I have bought Thinksound ov202w Wireless Over-Ear Headphones and after listening to them after about 5 songs that I did not like the sound quality. It was mainly lack of bass. this is there return policy on there own site.
Drop Studio Returns and Exchanges
We stand by our products. However if you are not satisfied with your Drop Studio product, Drop is accepting standard returns and exchanges for both US and International customers on most Drop Studio items in like new condition within 30 days of delivery.
This the response that I was sent for my return.
Maryann H. (Drop)
Jun 7, 2025, 07:10 PDT
Hi ,
Thank you for reaching out to Drop Community Support about your return request.
After reviewing your order, we are unable to facilitate a return for the Thinksound ov202w Wireless Over-Ear Headphones as we only offer returns for items that arrive damaged, defective, not-as-advertised, or...
Hey everyone!
There’s a lot going on in the Drop Keyboard Club that you might not be aware of if you’re not a member. I’d like to share some of the latest happenings here to give everyone an idea of what all is included in the membership, in addition to the items explicitly laid out on the Keyboard Club info page.
Also, regardless of your membership status, if you have any ideas for additional ways that we can bring value to the membership, please share those here! The club is by no means in a finalized state - we are always looking for ways to improve.
Forever
Monthly Coupon Lottery - Every month, DKC members roll a new monthly coupon valued between $20 and $100, which can be redeemed for a discount toward any keyboard-related product. This coupon discounts its full value when used on an order totaling $100 or more, or is scaled as a percentage discount on smaller orders ($20 coupon becomes 20% off an order below $100). Also do note that this discount is activated as a coupon...
Hey everyone! Starting my collection of keyboards has been a blast! It’s got me thinking about the many possibilities of runs for indie games. So many character, symbols and options could be right at our fingertips with smaller developers.
I would love to see a collab with Daniel Mullins Games for Inscription! So many possibilities with characters, cards and of course sigils! https://inscryption.fandom.com/wiki/Sigils
My son and I have drawn the cards just for fun, imagine having them at our fingertips and Leshies crazy eyes staring us down from the frame :) Just a suggestion into the Keycap ether! Have a great week everyone!!
So, who remembers this?
When it was delayed, they told us there were some errors in the printing. Then they cancelled it saying that there was not enough orders to fill the minimum order quantity. Now there are 1300 people that have requested this set. Just how many orders do you need to make the MOQ? Like so many people who have commented on this item, I think this is the best MT3 set we have ever been offered. I know that the colour choices were a little controversial but I for one love it. So, what does it take to get this back on the roadmap?
Here's hoping.
so ive tried to order a few iems and heaphones and other stuff and i notice i cant order im from israel
i used to order some time ago and i had not problem if any one got an idea to what happen i would appreciate it
Do products in the same order ship together if they have different shipping estimates?
I bought an order that consisted of products that were ready to ship on Feb 13 and March 29. Will they ship all together on March 29 or will they be split and the orders that are ready to ship earlier ship on Feb 13?
The balrog spacebar is amazing, I love it. The only problem: It doesn't work at all. Two major issues.
It's heavy. Makes sense, it's all resin. It would be nice if there was a suggested purchase or some kind of notification that "Hey, you're spending $90 on a key but you're going to need to upgrade your springs as well
A design flaw: the feet of the key are too shallow for the connections - What this leads to is you are only able to press the very center of the spacebar to actuate it. If you press slightly too far left or right, it falls over to either side because the connections aren't deep enough to properly stabalize it.
To me this is completely ridiculous for a $90 keycap and completely unacceptable.
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