Chizzap30: I am not sure if the Sonus faber Cremona Floorstanders were "M" or not. They are Cremona's though. We listened to a variety of music on them and they sounded very good on the modern recordings - but not so good on early Horowitz recordings. Bear in mind that they were demoed using a cheap DVD player as a source because the store is going out of business. The high end had a little bit too much sizzle but I blame the sourcce material - DVD player. The store manager is holding them for me until Thursday noon to decide if I want them at $5880 for the pair. Even if they are not the "M" modified version that is still a great deal - right?????

The McIntosh SACD/CD player is the MCD201 model and the McIntosh Integrated Amp is the MA6500 model. MCD201 is $1980 and MA6500 is $2400. The McIntosh units were not hooked up to anything and were in opened boxes with all remotes, Manuals, and cabling. They threw in a Monster Power UPS for free that is normally $300 or so.

One of the speakers has a scuff mark on its inner side that is about the size of a Kennedy Half Dollar coin. No big deal. My concern is that all sales are final - no returns - because the store ceases to exist on Friday evening. All the qualified and professionally trained salespeople jumped ship months ago and I am dealing with a skeleton crew that knows very little about "Sumiko Set Up" - I'm on my own if I make the purchase. There will be no sales support to fall back on. That is why the discount is so good. Also, I,m hoping that the annoying high end anomaly I heard on some songs was not inherent in the speaker - blown tweeter - but rather just the sub-par DVD player they hooked up for demo purposes.

I'm clueless as to the quality of the McIntosh pieces as I did not get to audition them. A few customers that were in the store purchasing video gear said the McIntosh products were really very good. One guy owned the SACD player and loves it.

Should I pass, purchase speakers, or go for the whole deal?

Regards,

Eddie

Chizzap30:

After a good night of sleep we decided to PASS on the deal. The speakers were obviously not properly taken care of and I NEED to know that the dealer will still be around after I make a purchase. I have 3 big superstores for HI FI to visit within the next 2 weeks and hopefully I will luck out with another CREMONA to audition.

Thanks,

Eddie

I had to put a halt to auditioning because first one son got sick, now the second son is also down for the count and finally I feel ill too. They have fevers and sore throats. I only have a creeping malaise and sore throat.

I have an entry level question for all. How important is the room in shaping the sound? The reason i ask is that I only have the rear wall that is whole @ 14' wide. The two lengths are are 20' wide. One of them has a 9 foot archway that begins 32" off of the rear wall. The other wall has 2 windows on it. The entryway to the room has a 6' archway opening into the room. So, the room like myself, is somewhat skewed from normal.

Another thing, how important is room treatments? You know - bass traps, diffusers, and other acoustical room treatments. Do people really need them or are they just marketing hype? I'm asking from a point of a neophyte and mean no disrespect. I would just like to know the truth.

I am fortunate that I have had a few "volunteers" ante up and decide to help me by accompanying me to a few different audio stores and I am truly grateful. My Birthday is coming up and it is my hope and desire that I should have a system in my home by then.

I have had many excellent recommendations for loudspeakers and Integrated Amps. Would you please recommend some cd/sacd players?

One last thing - cables. I have read on other forums where cable manufacturers are snake oil salesmen and have been advised to save my money for components instead and purchase cables from BluJeanCables. Is speaker cable hype also? Again, my apologies to those who own high end cables - I would just like clarification and am not being confrontational.

Thank You,

Eddie

One last item - I am trying to learn and really men no disrespect by my direct questioning approach to room treatments and cables. Sorry if I came off as being crass.

I listened to a REGA 3 TT and liked it. Forgot to mention that. They also had a REGA 5 - but I did not listen to it because store was closing for the night.

Eddie

AlexO,

Thanks for helping me to understand. You definitely helped!

Lyric in White Plains likes NORDOST and suggested i purchase those for any new starter system. They are considerably costlier than the BlueJeanCables. That was why I started wondering if I should splurge or be more conservative on the cable and interconnect purchases.

Thanks - and I'll talk to you soon,

Eddie

P.S. Today I have a fever of 101 degrees. That's the one thing about having school age kids. They get sick and then I get sick. Happens every time.

Further, Thank You to the Forum Moderator - Stephen - who I badgered the other day via email. A very big heartfelt thank you for answering my questions and pointing out the obvious. Impulse purchases are not the best idea no matter how good the deal looks. That is why I am overjoyed that I will have other forum members accompanying me when I start to assemble system in early May. Experience counts and there is wisdom in the council of many.

Eddie