Ahoy!

It’s hard to believe that’s it’s coming up 4 years since I have had my M9 but time flies and now Leica have brought out the M9’s successor, the M or as most people are calling it, the M type 240 or even the M10. It’s all a bit confusing. Leica always go their own way and I’m glad they do or the M9 would never have been made! However I do feel like they have shot themselves in the foot by simply calling it the M. It’s never easy to understand the thinking behind these things but you can be sure of one thing, if Leica chose it there will be a good reason behind it.

The name thing could turn out to be a very clever move. Consider this: The M 240 is surely the last evolution of the M3 which first came out in the 1950s because there is no where else to go with it. The screen is as big as it can be. The viewfinder now has led frame lines. Any big changes they make will turn the M into something else. So with this in mind Leica can upgrade the M 240 without needing to introduce a new model in the future. The sensor could be upgraded and with firmware updates the M 240 can be kept fully modern. If this is the case, I like it. We live in such a disposable world these days that it is a nice thought that one could buy the M 240 and keep it for decades while never losing out on the latest technology.

When the M 240 was first mentioned I was excited. It sounded perfect. Like Leica had taken all the things that annoyed M9 owners and fixed the lot but I suspect I was just being swept along by the positive reviews and comments. Unlike many others I quite liked the idea of being able to do video and to use R lenses but now that the novelty has worn off I am not so sure.

To work out whether or not I was being objective I went back to the reason why I love my M9. I love it because it is full frame and compact. The M 240 is 10% bigger and 10% heavier. That might not sound a lot but I consider the M9 to be at the limit of what constitutes a light and compact camera so that extra 10% in size and weight will be noticed by me. It is a real shame that Leica have not tried to reduce the size of the M 240. Every evolution of the M seems to be bigger than the last. Just hold an M6 in your hands and then handle an M 240 and you will realise just how much bigger and heavier the Ms are getting.

My original idea was to buy an M 240 and put the 21mm 3.4 on it. That way I can use the extra ISO ability to compensate for the lenses lack of speed. I would keep the 50mm 1.4 lux for the M9. I wouldn’t have to change lenses and that would keep dust off the sensor. But the reality is that I would never use my M9 again as my most used lens is the 21mm. So if I wanted two lenses I’d have to carry two bodies. That’s just silly. For me, the whole point of an M camera is that it is compact enough to be carried on my person at all times. (here’s how I carry my M9) I have another small pouch that carries one lens and it goes on the same belt as the camera.

All this talk of high ISO seems to me to be rather pointless. How quickly we have all forgotten how we would be happy with a film of 100 ASA with no chance to change it yet now even the M9 can take perfectly good pictures at 1000 ISO, already three stops better than we were used to. But the bottom line is that photography is about light. If the light is so poor that you need 3200 ISO then chances of getting a good picture are slim anyway. Maybe many use the extra ISO to allow a faster shutter speed but that has rarely bothered me with an M camera as a steady hand can easily allow shots taken at 1/15”. What I am saying is that I think the extra ISO is overrated and not reason enough to buy the M 240.

The new M is weatherproof. Well, from what I have experienced and heard from others the M9 had no problem being outdoors in the wet (within reason obviously) and after all Leica have long said that their cameras will work in any conceivable situation that you find yourself in so a bit of dampness has never been a problem and it is rare that I find myself taking pictures in the rain so again, this is something that is nice to know but has yet to be a problem for me with the M9.

The video option is certainly intriguing but again reality steps in. For much much less than a M 240 and lenses there are a lot of purpose built cameras that can do much better than the Leica. Many of which have image stabilisation and other clever features like zooms. Of course one could use the R adapter and use it to make video but for that kind of money it would be possible to buy some really choice video equipment.

The R adapter is another feature that seems helpful but that would mean having the lenses in the first place or buying them if you don’t. More expense and for me, the simpler the camera and the fewer the lenses the better. Anything that stops you taking pictures should be avoided.

This brings me on to one of the main reasons why I won’t be buying an M 240. It takes almost two seconds to boot up. This is ridiculous. The M9 boots up in a flash and can take pics almost immediately. If you want to miss the moment get a camera that doesn’t boot up immediately. I know because the Digiliux 2 I had was the same and it was extremely annoying. For this kind of money this is very poor.

Then there’s the max shutter speed of just 60 seconds. This is useless. Even the M9 can manage 4 minutes and often that is not enough either but it’s a lot better than 60 seconds. I love taking long exposures at night so with the M 240 I won’t be able to. Like the time it takes to boot up, it’s another situation where the M 240 has gone backwards.

With a maximum 60 second exposure time, shots like this with lines made by the movement of the stars will no longer be possible.

Personally I care nothing for the bigger screen or live view. These are just toys which distract you from taking pictures. With decades of practice I can focus an M while another photographer is still deciding what kind of auto focus would be best for the situation. If Leica removed the screen and the menu I would be quite pleased especially if it meant they could reduce the size and weight back down to M6 levels. (here’s an article about a Leica M with simple features and if the comments are anything to go by, I’m certainly not alone in liking this idea.

Everyone is going on about the new menu. Well I never had any problem with the old one. I mostly set the camera once and never touch it again. I used to use the profiles when I first got the M9 and was forever using the wrong profile. It’s just too easy to forget to return the settings after use so an improved menu is of no gain to me.

More battery capacity? This has never been an issue for me in the past and if I thought I might be taking hundreds of pictures I could just take along a spare battery. And that leads me on to yet another reason why I won’t be buying an M 240. Yet another set of batteries, cables and chargers!!! ( Here’s a suggestion for an emergency battery on the M9)

And lastly, I really don’t like the look of the M 240. I love the way the M9 is cut away at the outside by the viewfinder, although it doesn’t reduce the dimensions particularly it does make the camera look better balanced and smaller. The new M 240 is not as good looking as the M9 and the new bigger central red dot is just showing off.

Now I don’t know about you lot but I wouldn’t consider that I take a lot of pictures, maybe 4000 shots a year but even that makes for a hell of a lot of storage. To keep back ups and back ups of back ups means a lot of hard drives. Even bigger files means even more storage issues. I have managed to make amazing prints over a metre wide from the M9 so there is really no need for anything bigger. I tend not to crop so there’s little advantage for me with bigger files. 

Conclusion

Although the M 240 has bigger files and higher ISOs it is bigger and heavier, takes longer to boot up and can only manage a 60 second exposure. The screen is bigger and it costs more. The M9 was a fantastic camera when it was launched and it remains capable of taking amazing images. It is a classic. I’m not convinced that the M 240 offers big enough improvements over the M9 to justify buying one. Sorry Leica but here’s one Leica fan that won’t be buying your latest offering.

The Rheinstrom Y3. The lever makes pumping very easy and keeps the shaft straight minimising seal wear.

Normally I wouldn’t write about a boat toilet but when I tried to research this toilet I could find no reviews or any comments of any kind. This is very strange because Rheinstrom obviously make a very nice product and they have been doing so for over 50 years. No company that lasts that long can be selling rubbish. Then consider that Rheinstrom is a German company and it looks like being a quality bit of kit.

The toilet on Doolittle was a Grocco HF. It is certainly a better toilet than most of the offerings on the market today and a new one will set you back about 600€ and because it is made in America it’s not the easiest toilet to service and get bits for. It has a bronze base which is something but it is let down by the plastic pump assembly which either breaks or becomes unreliable and needs constant attention. To be fair it has done ok. It coped for eight years of two people living aboard.

I almost missed Rheinstrom during my research for a better toilet than I already had. At first glance these toilets don’t look pretty having a very functional and practical look. However in place it is a great improvement over the Grocco. There is something about solid trustworthy well considered engineering. That in itself is enough to make such a mundane object almost attractive.

There’s a lot to like about the Y3. The pump can be fitted on either side which could be helpful if you were left handed or short on space. The entire toilet (apart from the bowl) is made from metal. They do two versions of the same toilet, a bronze one and an aluminium one. The alloy version is half the weight of the bronze one at 8 kilos it’s surprisingly light.

It’s made from high quality aluminium and then deeply coated with an easy to clean protective hard white plastic finish. It’s been very well considered and is very nicely engineered. Unlike the Grocco which needs a whole host of screwdrivers and different sized spanners to dismantle, the Y3 uses the same size stainless Allen key for most of its fastenings.

Quality castings. I like way it is possible to remove the pump without disturbing the big outlet. Stainless Allen key heads for most of the fastenings keep things simple.

The pump action is very smooth. It has a relatively short stroke but a wide pump body. Even the main base piece has a large internal diameter making this a hard toilet to block. Not only that but it should not need such regular servicing as the Grocco did as it has been designed to minimise wear in all areas. The piston pump rod has a machined guide to keep the rod from wearing the top seal. To help this, the pump uses a lever rather than a handle connected directly to the rod as most toilets do.

Even the dry/flush lever on the side has been well thought out. It is made from a cast piece of stainless and is very elegant but the sealing system is very thorough and a vast improvement on the Grocco which often leaked at this spot. The required O ring is NOT supplied in the toilet rebuild kit which is ridiculous. I called Grocco and they told me to just go to the nearest hardware shop and buy one, they only cost pennies. Well, if they only cost pennies, WHY DON’T YOU SUPPLY ONE IN YOUR REBUILD KIT?

Despite the short stroke, the toilet requires less pumps than the Grocco. The Y3 requires 7 full pumps for every one metre of piping. The Y3 is available with two bowl sizes, small and large. I chose the small version which is about the same size as the Grocco one. One of the things that was good about the Grocco was its small size. The head in Doolittle is not massive and I didn’t want to fit a large toilet and the small Y3 is not much bigger than the Grocco so it fits in very nicely. I was even able to get it to sit a bit further back too so actually there is more space in the head than before.

The Y3 in place on ‘Doolittle’ Of course the mounting holes were different and the aft outboard coach screw needed cutting down a bit but otherwise it was a straightforward swap. None of the hoses needed moving or cutting.

The toilet lid is a standard plastic covered MDF affair with plastic hinges. It’s not beautiful but neither is it offensive. It is at least easy to clean. If the Y3 has one failing it’s that it’s not going to be the easiest toilet to clean with all those bits and pieces on it. I also question the wisdom of using Allen key heads because they can fill with liquid. Maybe it is possible to get plastic caps for them. But these are issues that might be applied to almost any toilet with a pump.

The Y3 has not been fitted for very long but it looks very hopeful indeed. You can see that it is a quality product made with excellent materials and it has been very well designed and thought about. It should last years. I bought a rebuild kit which cost about 80€ which is expensive but even the seals and O rings are of excellent quality. It’s not much more than most other kits from other toilet manufacturers. The toilet itself cost about 800€ which is a lot but it is a good product and if you want quality then you usually have to pay for it.

The new Leica M. For some reason Leica have dropped the number from the name so many people are calling it the M 240 which is the camera’s in house development name. The Germans rarely do things without good reason and Leica are no exception. They have always gone their own way and I for one am glad. The M is a fascinating evolution of an old concept and once mastered can be quicker to use than any other camera.

The latest M might be seen as the last of the line. After all, where can they go from here? The screen is as big as it can be. The rangefinder has been modernised using led lighting but fundamentally it remains as pure as the first M, the M3. It’s my guess that this will be the last M camera. In the future Leica will simply offer upgrades to it. It will be possible to replace sensors and take advantage of the latest technology without the need to buy a whole new camera.

The next new thing from Leica will no doubt be a smaller body that can use the M lenses but will still have a full frame sensor and all of the legendary image quality. The rangefinder will go in favour of a Live View screen or separate viewfinder. The M will remain on sale as long as there are photographers out there who love the rangefinder system of focusing.

Available from Redbubble

Clever stuff. Imitation teak. The colour and graining is convincing, only the regularity lets it down slightly.

Last year I was at Mets trade show for boats. It was an impressive set up with acres of stands covering all aspects of boating. Quite by chance I came across an Italian company selling wood veneers. I couldn’t resist a look. I was very impressed with their huge range of veneers all of the highest quality. What’s more the veneers were in large sheets displayed on hangers. I was surprised that such consistency could be had from wood.

Not sure what this one is supposed to be but it’s rather nice.

When I got home I did some reading and came to understand why the veneers were so large and so regular. The reason is because it’s not real wood. Well it is wood but it has been reconstituted. Let me explain.

Alpi wood starts life as a fast growing and sustainable wood like poplar. It is then turned in to large veneer sheets which are then dyed with eco friendly dyes. Then they are stacked together and glued to make one massive piece of plywood which is then cut to the final veneer. The colour of the dyes and the orientation of different coloured sheets can create a surprising number of convincing veneers. Even the colour of the glue can help to add to the effect. Where a wider grain is needed, the block of plywood is cut at a slight angle to create the effect. The idea is simply brilliant.

This must be mahogany. If you like that uninteresting regular grain pattern then why wouldn’t you use this instead of real wood.

What we have here is a sustainable solution for exotic wood species. This is a completely eco product. Further more it is more stable than genuine veneers and available in much bigger sheets. You can even design your own wood. The possibilities are endless. Alpi were kind enough to send me some samples which I shall test in due time. They are not designed for outdoor use but I reckon if they are coated in a good UV varnish I see no reason why it wouldn’t do very well outdoors.

The only real problem is that the wood can appear too perfect. It lacks the flaws that give wood its character. However in the right situation Alpi wood could be a very good solution. I look forward to playing with it.

In this close up you can clearly see the individual layers. By laying slightly different colours in varying order almost any wood grain effect can be achieved.

Close up of the teak version. There’s a lot going on in here. The layers are thicker so this must have been cut at a slight angle and not square like the sample above this one.

www.alpi.it

Tennage super thin veneer. Here is Walnut, Teak and Ebony.

Doing research for an upcoming project, I have been delving into the various wood technologies out there. What I am learning is that there are some truly amazing wood products out there and not only that, most are also eco friendly.

Since there are so many interesting new woods out there I will post about each separately. The first is a very thin veneer called Tennage. It is so thin that light can pass through it making it an interesting choice for lighting. It is just 0.2mm thick (or should I say thin?) and to keep it from splitting or breaking has a very flexible backing bonded to it.

This product’s green credentials come from the fact that it is produced from wood that would otherwise be considered waste. An astonishing 5000 square metres of sheet can be produced from just one cubic metre of waste wood! So although the wood itself may not sustainably managed it is still a step in the right direction. The backing is made from a natural resin so it can claim to be a non VOC wood veneer.

It can be bent around curves or even sharp corners. It can be pressed into a shape using a vacuum press. It can be laser cut and stretched out for a funky affect and it can even be sewn. It is more resistant to UV and humidity than normal thicker veneers. All in all this is a very exciting product with no end of possibilities for its use. 

Tennage is available in over 30 species of wood so should satisfy most peoples’ needs. It seems reasonably priced starting at about $150 a sheet rising to over $500. Sheet size is 900mm by 1800mm.

The only downside is that there is a minimum order of ten sheets which is over 15 square metres which is a lot if you only want to make a few lampshades!

As if the Tennage itself wasn’t amazing enough there is a product made from it which is totally extraordinary. Called Ki-Ori Tennage it is a woven wood fabric based on a traditional method invented by the Japanese over 1200 years ago called Kyoto-Nishijin-Ori .

The Ki-Ori Tennage wood fabric. Quite extraordinary.

One might think that a woven wood would be rather stiff but in fact it is surprisingly supple and nice to the touch. It feels like a fabric but is made of 2mm strips of Tennage wood veneer. It is not strips of wood woven together but rather parallel strips held closely in place by thread. To all intents and purposes it appears as if the strips are woven together.

There is even a clearly visible grain pattern in the fabric. The look of the fabric can be changed by using any number of different materials for the thread. Cost is about $300 a square metre so it’s certainly not cheap but it can do stuff that no other woods can. Thanks to its weave, it can be formed over compound curves which makes it very versatile. It comes in one metre wide sheets 1800mm long but comes on a roll and can be made any length you like.

All this was too irresistible for me so I bought a sample pack. I am impressed with the quality and the concept. It amazes me that anyone can even produce a 0.2mm veneer in the first place. I have seen varnish thicker than that! It remains to be seen how the woven wood will look when it has been shaped and varnished but I’ll update this post with pics as soon as I get around to it.

Again, the only real downside is there is a minimum order of ten sheets which would add up to over $5000 plus import duty and shipping. I’m guessing that would equate to about 6000€. Ouch.

Here’s their website: www.onlyone-pro.com.

She might only be 28 feet long but ‘Waif’ is massive below and open right from the stem to the cockpit. Her decks are epoxy sheathed so she’s dry and the wood burning stove makes Waif’s interior a very cosy place to be.

Waif is over 80 years old but structurally is in as new condition. Her shipwright owner has improved her for the last 18 years with no intention of ever selling her. Now his family are getting bigger and sadly he needs a bigger boat so Waif is for sale.

One lucky person will get a real bargain. Every frame and floor is new and the boat has been entirely refastened with copper and bronze. Her amazing pitch pine planks are all one piece and 99% of her planking is original. Original too are the deck beams, deck and coach house. Her interior is of course not original but it has been built using as much of the original wood as possible.

There is much that makes Waif special, from her massive interior to her classic Edwardian looks but for me it’s the quality of the woods used in her interior. Take the chart table for example. Made of one very wide piece of real mahogany trimmed with teak. You don’t see wood like that these days.

Waif is full of beautiful details but she’s also a very functional yacht which is ready to go sailing or act as a live aboard. Waif has been through the French canals a few times and is no stranger to the Western Med. With her long waterline she sails surprisingly swiftly and has a comfy motion. If there’s no wind the trusty BMC 40 hp diesel will get you to your destination.

She’s not perfect but all a new owner need do is steadily improve her details because they won’t need to worry about the structure! It is very rare when one has the chance to acquire a boat of this vintage that is structurally so sound and so wonderful, spacious and bright below decks.

Here are a few photos but more info is available on her website here These pics were taken using only natural light which demonstrates just how well lit Waif is.

The sailing world has many extraordinary characters in it’s long history. It’s my experience that the world of sailing is responsible for more ‘interesting characters’ than any other and Bill King was an excellent example. He passed away recently at the age of 102. It seems amazing that he lived so long when one considers how tough parts of his life were. He was a submarine captain throughout the entire duration of WWII. One can only imagine the constant stress and harsh living conditions.

When he retired from the military he decided to sail around the world alone to, as he put it, ‘pull myself together mentally’. At the time Bill was thinking about the trip the Sunday Times Newspaper announced a round the world solo yacht race so Bill became one of the entrants. He didn’t make it around the world that time, being dismasted in rough seas of the south of Africa but he did eventually.

This video is from the film Deep Water which is actually about Donald Crowhurst one of the other entrants in the ‘Golden Globe’ yacht race and if you have not seen it I would highly recommend it, not just for the story of Crowhurst but for the many extra clips and interviews that come with it from the likes of Robin Knox Johnston and Bernard Moitessier. I will say no more just let you see for yourselves. This interview with Bill King was made when he was 96. What a fabulous character, and funny too. Enjoy.

Click here to view the Bill King Interview 2006

And here is a great article from the Scotsman

‘Remember, if anything goes wrong in your life, it’s probably your own fault’

R.I.P Bill

This is all you need for a great sounding hifi. A mains supply to plug the speakers into an an Ipod. Job done! (for the review of the 5040 Sub, please see the update below)

The first time I discovered Genelec speakers was when I was rummaging in a locker in the owner’s cabin of a Swan 65 yacht. The boat was owned by Richard Wright from Pink Floyd. I picked them up. They were quite small but very heavy. If they were owned by a musician of Richard’s calibre they ought to be pretty good. Richard used them with a keyboard so he could play his music on the boat.

No time was wasted plugging them in and seeing how they sounded. To say I was amazed by the clarity and quality of sound would be an understatement. I had never heard anything quite like them. Considering their size these speakers could pack a punch. I was highly amused by the health warning on the back of the cabinets warning that these speakers could seriously damage your hearing and could reach up to 106db!!! That is ridiculously loud and very ‘rock and roll’. I simply had to have some for my boat!

On researching Genelec some time later, I learned that they no longer made the exact model of speaker that Richard had and they had been replaced by the 8020 model which was smaller and rounder in shape and are made of die cast aluminium.

They are really designed to be part of a surround sound system and as such can be daisy chained together so you can have as many as you like. There is a matching 16” Woofer that goes with them for the full system and really big sound. They use the professional standard XLR ‘lock in’ connectors.

Quality, cast alloy cases, professional XLR connections and clever rubber feet. Made in Finland by Genelec who have been around for over 30 years.

What makes these speakers different is the fact that they are active. What that means is that they have an amplifier built in. In fact, they have two in each speaker. This does mean that you need a mains supply to make them work but the great advantage is that the amp is perfectly suited to the speakers. One amp runs the woofer and the other amp the tweeter. It also means is that there is no crossover needed and so the sound is pure with all the components perfectly matched. It’s a very sensible and intelligent way to go about things.

When I bought mine about three years ago, they cost about £200 each, now they are about £300 each which is a lot of money for a small speaker. But they are quality and they sound fantastic and are worth every penny. When ever I turn them up, visitors are always amazed for two reasons, one, because they sound so ‘BIG’ and two, because they can’t work out where the sound is coming from. That is because they are so small that they are practically invisible, one on each side of the boat on a shelf above the forward bunk.

They are perfect for a small space and they really fill the boat with sound. If I had a criticism it is that they demand to be heard. Even at low volumes they want you to listen to them. They are not the ideal speakers if you want something to play background music with. But if you love music and like to LISTEN to it, then definitely consider a pair of these.

I do not have the matching woofer on the boat because there is simply no need. On paper, the frequency response for these speakers is nothing to write home about with the bottom end a piddly 66 hz but for their size they produce PLENTY of bass. They have a switch at the back so if you use them with the woofer you can reduce the bass still further and have just the mid and top end.

Whether I listen to them from the laptop or from an MP3 player, the sound is fabulous. Ever since I can remember I have been surrounded by quality hifi equipment. I well remember my dad’s leak speakers and very expensive Stax electrostatic headphones. I always had mates who were well into their hifi so I know what a good sound is.

I will try and describe the sound for you. The bottom end is tight and warm and really very good for such small speakers. After all the woofer is only 4” in diameter which is tiny. The bass sound is increased by the special shape of the cases which is round so that the sound gets focused as it works it’s way out of the speaker through a port at the back. The midrange is uncluttered, clear and punchy. The top end is sharp and clean, detailed and very realistic.

They sound best when playing quality recordings. They can be a bit critical as they reproduce sound so well that you really do hear everything. If there are faults in the recording, you will hear them.

The Genelec 8020B active speakers. They can be adjusted for tilt a little on their rubber feet. On/off volume control and a green LED at the front, all other adjustments at the back. Heavy little speakers at nearly 4 kilos each.

When you place them about 2 metres apart and place yourself centrally about a metre and a half away, they have a very special quality indeed. Close your eyes and you can hear so much more. They really come alive when well placed with superb stereo separation. Voices and acoustic guitars sound so natural it’s amazing.

There are always certain tracks that I use as a reference. Tunes that are either beautifully played or sung and well produced, preferably all three. For guitar I like to listen to Steven Still’s Tree top flyer. Not only is it a great tune but it’s a beautiful recording (not the youtube version though I’m afraid!). John Martyn is always great to listen to. Here he shows his mastery of the echoplex. I love the bass on The Chain. And the Police are always worth listening to.  They seem to cope well with all genres of music old and modern, slow and fast, from easy listening to Motorhead.

But perhaps the best test for any stereo set up is this fabulous track (happiness is easy) from Talk Talk’s superb album ‘The colour of Spring’. If you don’t know Talk Talk, do yourself a favour and give them a go. You may not like them at first but persevere as I did. You will not regret it.

I had a problem with one of the speakers after about a year. It just stopped working. The problem was traced to a faulty transformer. It cost a very reasonable £20 to replace and was quickly dealt with by the UK company that deals with Genelec. Since then the speakers have performed flawlessly. They are left on for as much as 8 hours every day.

They do not pick up any sounds of interference such as alternator noise or mobile phones. This is a quality product. They are supplied with a special rubber stand/feet and a power cable but you’ll need to supply your own XLR cables to connect them to the source of your choice.

Depending on the power output of the source, they can be very very loud, with my Creative MP3 at full volume they are pretty loud but can be much louder with the laptop. They are certainly loud enough to thoroughly annoy the neighbours if necessary!

Would I recommend them? Oh yes. For their size they are fantastic and very portable. All you need is a power supply and you can have real quality sound wherever you are. Perfect for a small space like a boat although it is a bit of a shame that they are not 12V. It’s no real problem though as even the smallest inverter will power them as they only take 20 Watts each and that is at full volume. In practice they take much less than that. It’s almost perpetual motion as much more seems to come out than goes in! They sound much louder than 20 watts to me!

If you would like to know more about them, check out the Genelec site.

Update December 2012

The Genelec 5040 subwoofer and remote volume control. Cast alloy and top quality. The sound that comes out is amazing.

Genelec recently launched an even smaller speaker than the 8020 featured above. They are the 6010s. It has a tiny 3” woofer but even though they are tiny they have been getting good reviews. To go with these little speakers, Genelec have produced a small sub woofer called the 5040. It has a 6.5”  speaker and a 40 watt amp built in. It can produce a very respectable 96 db and has a frequency response that goes down to 35 hz which is pretty low.

Like all Genelec products it’s beautifully made and thought out. Although it is really designed for the 6010s Genelec say it can be used with the 8020s too. It was too much for me to resist so I decided to get one. It lives under the bed in a locker which I rarely visit. A nice touch with the 5040 is that it has a separate volume control which simply plugs in to the 5040 with a standard 3.5mm stereo jack. This control lowers the volume of the sub and the speakers which are connected to it.

If you visit the Genelec site you will find all sorts of info about using a frequency generator to properly set up your sub and loads of advice about speaker position. However much of their advice is academic to me as I have no choice but to put the speakers where they will fit, not where they are best situated. There are a few adjustments you can make to the speakers and the sub to get the sound just right but Genelec suggest trying the standard settings first.

Let me tell you that right out of the box this sub is unbelievable. I don’t know what other word to use. I have never heard anything like it. Now that the 8020s have their bass turned off and the sub is handling that end they are even louder as the little woofer doesn’t have to even try and handle the bottom end. The noise that comes out of these speakers is astonishing.

A friend said that now I will have trouble with things vibrating in the boat but it has not been the case. The bass is so well reproduced and clean that nothing has been set vibrating yet which is astonishing considering the power of the bass now. You can feel it through the entire floor in the boat. It is incredible just how loud you can turn the music up with no distortion at all. It all remains very clear and sharp.

The underside showing all the controls. This is a serious bit of kit. Designed for the 6010 system but also works perfectly with the 8020s. I see no reason why it wouldn’t work with any active speakers.

There are some tracks that are just extraordinary and have me laughing at the outrageousness of it all. Eric Truffaz’s song Siegfried and Less from his album Bending New Corners will amaze you with their clarity and fatness (for want of a better word!). This combination of 8020s and the 5040 is fantastic on my boat. I don’t know how it would fare in a bigger space but for my needs they are more than enough and loud enough for anyone’s ears.

The sub can be adjusted for volume so you match it to your other speakers and it has various inputs and outputs for many more options that I will ever need. The volume control is pure class. It is extremely weighty so that it doesn’t move when operated. It is just a rotating knob which lowers the system volume. This is a much better system for the boat because I no longer has to press the function and F keys to lower the volume on the computer which was a real pain.

What’s interesting is that the system now seems easier to listen to. The sub is not intrusive, merely doing what it should be doing. The overall sound is great, very addictive, warm, compelling and complete.

Genelec’s may be pricy but it’s a classic case of getting what you pay for. Active speakers may not be ideal for everyone but they make a lot of sense in many ways. We have an inverter on board that we use to run mains powered items including the speakers. At normal listening volume the speaker system takes about 2.5 amp/hr which isn’t too bad and compares to a typical car stereo unit. However when the volume is cranked up you can use three times that amount!

Conclusion:

If the 8020s were good on their own, they are incredible with the 5040 sub woofer. Genelec recommend a far bigger one for the 8020s normally but as far as I am concerned the 8020s go beautifully with the smaller 5040 sub.

The sound is (pick your own superlative) and the quality indisputable. The 8020s have been on board for a few years now and are used for hours every day. They are sometimes used off the boat too thanks to their portability. They get a lot of use and apart from the one small problem which was quickly sorted they have been flawless.

The volume control is a nice touch and makes the speakers very easy to use. They have plenty of adjustment but straight out of the box the system sounds perfect to me. Hard to imagine that I might get it sounding even better. If the sub needs ‘running in’ like most speakers then I can only imagine it getting better and better in time.

Bloody brilliant. Worth every penny. Very happy.

Hard to see the scale of the sander in this picture. See the next pic below to see how small it really is.

It’s often crossed my mind that many power tools are just too big for my needs. Boat building is a unique trade and often tools that are fine for construction tasks on a building site are either not up the task or are too bulky or heavy to be practical.

Many years ago I had a small Bosch belt sander that was excellent. It was powerful yet small and light, both useful traits when holding a power tool above your head in the small and awkward places often found on boats. When it expired I felt its loss keenly. I bought a bigger Bosch belt sander and although it is an excellent tool and is still going strong I do miss that little tool. Bosch stopped making it and I have not been able to find another since.

Enter Proxxon, a German company who have been making miniature tools for 30 years. In their catalogue of amusing tools I found a small belt sander. It is hard to see how small it is from the pictures on their website but you can get an idea from the belt size and contact area. It uses belts 40 x 265 mm in size and they are available in grits from 80 to 240. The contact area is a tiny 40 x 60mm.

Tiny little machine. Belt cover off for inspection.

The motor is 150 Watts which isn’t much but then it’s not bad either for so small a power tool. At 175 mm long and just 700 grams it fits perfectly in one hand. There is a rocker switch on the top/back of the tool. The rollers are alloy and seem high quality. The belt is held in by spring pressure alone and is easy to change. The backing plate is made from some kind of hard plastic. There is an adjuster on one side that adjusts the belt’s position.

It comes in a plastic carry case which even has holes for a padlock which makes me laugh. It can be mounted upside down on a bench and comes with the necessary clamp. It also has a dust extraction pipe and adapter. It is delivered with a selection of belts. The power cable is not very long but I forgive that in a small tool.

It’s quiet and does not seem to spin that fast. Proxxon claim 160 metres a minute. That’s about half the speed of a full sized model, despite this, it is surprisingly effective at removing material with the 80 grit belts on it. It seems to be made from nice quality parts and it feels like a serious machine despite its toy-like look. It costs about £130.

The reality though is that I broke it after just a few minutes work! The belt lost a tooth and that was that. I did not use excessive pressure on the tool yet it stripped a belt. On inspection it seems that there is not enough tension on the belt and of course there is no way to adjust it. I could be wrong, it could be that I have just been unlucky to get a machine with a defective belt. However the motor’s cog is made of plastic and the teeth do not seem to grip the belt very well.

Despite hardly any use at all the belt has already lost a tooth rendering the tool unusable.

Before it broke I was already disappointed with the machine. I looks great and is very quiet but I can’t really say anything else positive about it. It has a host of issues that were apparent right out of the box. The first thing is the on/off switch. It should be housed at the front of the machine where a finger can operate it. It has very little resistance and can switch on very easily, a potential hazard.

The plastic moulded base plate is far from flat. This is very poor especially for a miniature tool which will do a lot of delicate work.

The backing plate was nowhere near flat. I had to do that with a block and some sandpaper!

The belt adjuster screw is far too sensitive and it is hard to get the belt to run centrally without it wandering off. The tiniest touch of the screw will move the belt which is really annoying. The screw is also a very loose fit and it has the habit of undoing itself. This is not so easy to rectify.

Conclusion:

A really disappointing experience. A very poor tool let down by a over sensitive belt adjuster which comes undone, a poorly moulded base plate and a switch which does not naturally fall to hand.

The belt lost a tooth after a few minutes of gentle use. It is possible that I was sold a duff machine with a weak belt but even still, there is far too much that is wrong with this machine.

A real shame as there is a place for a decent quality mini belt sander in my tool kit but  it’s not this one!

Update 30/12/12

It’s been two months and I still do not have a working machine. Proxxon have been as useful as a chocolate fireguard and love to tell me how they have not had any reports of problems with belts on the machine. Axminster power tools in the UK (where I bought the machine) have been no better. They sent me a replacement belt which had teeth missing!!! This may go some way to explain the problem with mine. It’s likely that there are a few dodgy belts out there although Proxxon say they have checked all theirs and they are fine.

So the sander will go back and I will never buy another Proxxon tool again. That’s twice I have tried buying Proxxon tools and twice I have been disappointed. They look like such clever little tools but in reality they are a complete joke. Proxxon do not seem very interested in proving that I am wrong but keep blathering on about how many units they have sold with no problems. Why do companies do this? Do they not realise that I couldn’t give a toss about other customer’s machines. I have spent good money for a quality tool that turns out to not be quality at all ( for many reasons) and doesn’t even work at all. Months have passed and it still isn’t working. Pathetic.

The Prebit R1-1 NV Golden Gloss, Glass Brown, Dimmable, Warm white led lamp

After nearly 8 years Doolittle’s original Cantalupi bunk lights were looking a bit worse for wear. The lacquer that protected the brass finish had come off in patches and where the brass was exposed to the air the colour had changed from gold to silver. These lights were not even real brass, they just had a thin coating of something. They looked OK when they were new but now they just looked really scruffy. And since they were not even brass they couldn’t even be polished. All I could do was paint them but that was not a very pleasant option.

It was time to replace the lights. Because we live on the boat it’s nice to have good lighting so I decided I wanted to try and buy something of real quality that would hopefully last a bit longer than 8 years or could at least be polished when it looked tired. The search was long. There is a staggering array of choice for bunk lights. There are also many companies who make lights but nothing I could find looked any better than the old ones.

Then I came across a German company called Prebit who make a range of high quality lamps with Led bulbs. I chose their R1 design as it is the closest to the size of lamp I had before although I decided to go with their glass shade option which illuminates when the lamp is on. One of the problems with the lamps I had before was that they were very directional with their metal shades and I wanted something that would spread light around the boat a bit more evenly.

They are beautifully made in solid brass and then gold plated. Gold might seem a bit extravagant but it is very resistant to the marine environment. They certainly have a lovely finish and a very high gloss. The hand painted (every one is slightly different) glass shade is white on the inside and brown on the outside. During the day the shades appear a uniform brown but when the lamp is on it glows with a pleasant colour and the striped pattern becomes visible.

Fitting the lamps was straightforward. The bases are a bit narrower than the old ones so there is a slight ring of darker coloured teak showing now but it will fade soon enough and in a couple of months will hardly notice. I was fortunate that I was able to use the same mounting holes as the old lamps. The new lamp has a metal mounting bracket, not a plastic one as with the old lights. This gives a much more solid base. The lamp body is held to this bracket by a couple of countersunk screws which pull the lamp body tight to the surface effectively locking the lamp to the wall. The tiny Allen key screws were fiddly to fit as the body needs to be touching the wall before you can get the screw to thread but once tight are almost invisible. The lamp is held very well and there is no play at all. This is a vast improvement over the old ones which always wobbled. Each lamp comes with its own Allen key. Even wiring the lamps was easy as there is a fitted block clearly marked + and – all you need is a small screwdriver.

Visible here is the push button that switches on and dims the lamp. The software was designed by Prebit. Almost invisible is the small countersunk Allen screw in the side that holds the lamp to the surface. Very tidy. Note also how snug the lamp base fits to the surface. The mounted lamp is very solid and has no play.

The lamps articulate and can be rotated to almost 180 degrees and pulled out to 90 degrees. What this means is that the lamps can be pointed in almost any desired direction. Because they are so solidly mounted they turn easily and the action is smooth and quiet. The old lamps used to squeak when being turned.

Press the button on the front and the lamps illuminate with a soft start. This is a nice touch. Naturally when you turn them off they simply fade down to nothing. If you want to dim the lamp simply hold the button down. When you release your finger the lamp stops dimming. The lamp always turns on using the previous dimmed setting. What is interesting is that the supply can be cut and the lamps will still remember what level they were at before.

The colour of the light is very warm, partly due to the led itself and partly due to the warmth of the light shade. The effect on the boat is quite something. The ambiance has changed and the boat feels warmer and more relaxing. The lamps give off plenty of light. When they are pointed at the ceiling, they reflect the light and the boat can be well illuminated without having any light in your eyes. This is important. With the old lamps I was constantly having to move them so that they did not shine in my eyes. Because the bulbs are deep within the new ones they do not suffer the same issue.

This shows the lamp’s glass shade illuminated. The lamp is dimmed.

Used as reading lamps they have a fairly narrow beam but the light is intense and very effective. Quite literally head and shoulders above the old lamps with the added advantage of being able to dim them to suit. The dimmer allows the light to be reduced by 90% which is excellent for night sailing. It means that the on watch crew can come below and switch on a lamp without disturbing the off watch crew or ruining their night vision.

One surprising thing is that the bulbs cannot be changed! They are made by Phillips for Prebit and are very small and flat. They are quite unlike the bulbs I have been using. Slightly concerned, I contacted the company I bought the lamps from asking about this. The reply I got said that they have been using these bulbs since 2009 and have not had any failures. I asked about the intensity of the light fading as I have seen this with leds too. I was told that the bulbs will not fade and they will last 50,000 hours. That’s confidence for you! Only time will tell if this is true.

The non replaceable bulb. This shot was taken with the lamp dimmed down to 10%. Although the bulbs are supplied by Phillips they have Prebit printed on the PCB. Just three tiny bulbs yet they give off a surprising amount of light

Considering how bright they are they take very little power. With all 4 on at full power they consume 1.4 amp/hrs which is more than the old lamps but then they are much brighter and in any case this is not a lot of power for such a lot of light. If I wish to reduce power consumption, all I have to do is dim the lights. The power used goes down proportionally as the lights dim. The head of the lamps gets quite warm when the lamps are set on max brightness but the bulbs themselves and the glass shade remain cool.

Apart from the bulb the entire lamp is made by Prebit. They even designed the software that controls the lamp. There is no flickering when the lamps are dimmed, even when reduced right down but they do make a very slight buzzing sound. The noise is audible but whether this will be annoying on very quiet nights remains to be seen.

A lovely warm glow from the hand painted glass shades

Conclusion

This is a beautiful product. It is made in Germany. The finish is superb. The action of the moving parts is quiet and smooth. The articulation is very good. The lamps mount very solidly to the surface. They are easy to connect. They look really nice during the day and especially at night.

The light is warm and bright and the hand painted shades give off a friendly glow. The push button operation is simple and effective and easy to use. The lamps always remember the last setting they were on.

Of course these lights are not cheap but I do think they represent good value. Because they are made of solid brass if they ever start to look a bit rough, at least they can be polished so in theory at least they should last much longer than the cheap ones I had before.

What Prebit have done is to take the humble reading lamp and completely redesign it using the best technologies available to create a truly fabulous lamp. Lighting has come on in the last few years thanks to led bulbs. We’ve come a mighty long way from the caveman’s fire to touch button led lighting!