Quote:
For the record this thread isn't intended as a bragging thread or a how big is my d!CK vs. your d!ck battle. It's meant more as a background thread so that we all can understand better where each other is coming from when giving and getting advice.

Actually I'd be very happy to compare my d!ck with yours but you'd be facing some stiff competition ......... sorry ...... couldn't resist that one.
It's actually quite hard to list my audio gear as I'm still waiting for the builders to finish faffing around with my new listening room and from my perspective, that's the most important audio component of all. When finished it will have identical geometry to John Coulston's <http://aca.gr/pop_coulson.htm> scaled down by 1/5 in it's horizontal measurements with more absorption and diffusion treatment than John's used. The list below therefore includes all my main music room gear which is in storage awaiting the great day.

Main music only system. This system made making music in my last room like I've never enjoyed, outside of live concerts, so I doubt I'll be changing much in it. The new Meridian CD player was the final icing on the cake to my ears.
V.P.I Synchronous Drive System: V.P.I. HRX turntable: JMW 12.4 arms x 2 ( cartridges pre-mounted) resting on heavy slate on top of Soundesign damped steel rack standing on a stone floor: Garrot

Studio---Quad ESLs and B+W801s with Bryston 4B amplification.

Home
Sound Devices 722 Hard Disc Recorder, Genex 9000 DSD/PCM Recorder
FM--Magnum Dynalab FT-101 (upgraded to the "deluxe" edition)

CD/DVD Players-- RAM Modified OPPO DV-970, Marantz DV8300.

Analogue- Rega P2 w/groovetracer mods, Grado Gold Cartridge, awaiting delivery of my custom built Simon Shilton Phono Stage(dual mono PSU, 2 mains transformers, 2 valve rectifiers, two smoothing chokes, 2 filament supplies
The phono stage is being built dual mono, with an MM valve stage, and MC step up transformers built into the box..Holco and Mills resistors, Hovland caps, Solen power supply capacitors, regulated dc filament power supplies.
hand wired throughout using solid core pure silver cable, no PCBs, all components mounted on a PTFE board which is mounted to a copper sheet holding the valve bases. This sandwich sheet is to be vibration isolated from the main chassis, and the valves to have damper rings..The circuit design uses a 5842/417A valve for the input, 6H30PI middle stage, and 5687/E182CC/6900/7044 output stage..RIAA filter is achieved using resistors and capacitors, with 75uS corner between the first and middle stage, and 318uS and 3180 uS between the middle and output stage a LED in the cathode to bias input valve,a NiMH rechargeable battery in the cathode to bias the middle stage, and Lithium cell in the grid circuit to bias the output stage ,,cant wait to get it!!)

Amps--Mastersound Due Venti S.E. (amazing!), Factory Hot Rodded Jolida 102B

DACs==Modified Mytek Stereo 96, Early Meitner model(mk2!).

Speakers--Audio Kinesis Jazz Modules(amazing speakers built by one of the nicest guys ive ever met!)

Cables--Analysis Plus Oval 9, Magnan Type VI, Custom Made Vampire Wire RCA to XLR with Floating ground..

Power Conditioners---Richard Gray Power Centers(2 at home, 3 in studio)

Electric Company insulators(actually from the Power Company) used as cable elevators

Blinderman Acoustics Isolation Platforms

Vibrapods under all components

GIK Acoustic Panels(Diffusors, Bass Traps, Absorption)(highly reccomended)

MCI JH-16 2" 16 track

My system is pretty simple:

Analog Source:
Table: 1981 Rega Planar 3 with GrooveTracer Reference subplatter and Rega motor upgrade.

Arm: 1981 SME Series III

Cartridge: cryogenically treated Grado Reference Sonata tracking at 1.4g.

Cables: Zu Wylde

Phono stage: Pro-Ject Tube Box II with new issue Tung-sol 12AX7's, AudioQuest/Audio Advisor Black Mamba IIs IC's to integrated amp.

TT Platform: 3 home-made roller blocks consisting of plastic concave furniture cups and wooden balls (I keep meaning to order 3/4" stainless steel ball bearings) to provide horizontal and rotational seismic isolation. The roller blocks sit on a 1.5" Boos Bros. hard rock maple board which rests on squash balls sitting on 2" QuikCaps for vertical seismic isolation.

Digital Sources:
CD: Sony Playstation 1 SPCH-1001
Cables: AudioQuest/Audio Advisor Black Mamba II IC's

Amplification:
Jolida JD801A integrated amp with Genelex Gold Lion reissue KT88's for the output stage; NOS mil-spec Tung-Sols 6SN7's mixed with a Chinese 12AX7 for definition for the input stage. All tubes cryogenically treated. Currently searching for a nice tube preamp so I can drive the Jolida as a power amp. I will probably end up with a Conrad-Johnson of some sort. The Jolida sits on a 12" bicycle inner tube inflated to about 12 psi.

Speakers: Dynaudio Audience 72

Alternate Digital Source: Airport Express with Monster Cable M1000 DFO optical S/PDIF to an Arcam AVR280 driving Era Design 4 minimonitors.

Speaker cables: Anti-Cables for both the Dynas and the Eras

Here's mine:

Digital: Rega planet 2000 CD player

Computer with M-Audio Fast Track Pro DAC

Preamp: Cary SLP-88

Amp: PS Audio 200c

Headphones: Sennheiser HD580 w/Equinox cable

I was going to get Legacy Whispers, but that's not going to be in cards any time soon.

I'm deciding whether to get rid of my preamp and CD player and get powered speakers. I'm mulling various options and researching the market.

I had avoided this thread because it seemed it would take alot of typing.

Instead:

Basement

Bedroom

Living room

Computer desk

Where I stay when I travel for work

We have a vacation place where I use a couple pairs of Advents stacked, with some vintage Yamaha electronics, but my picture server won't load, dammit!

My fairly modest system:

-Rega P2 w/Rega Exact 2 Cart, glass platter
-Bellari VP530 Phono Pre (Graham Slee Era Gold is in the mail, yay!)
-Woo Audio WA2 headphone amp and preamp
-Marantz PM7001 integrated (currently used as power amp only)
-ProAc Tablette 2000 bookshelf speakers (really like this)
-AKG K701 'phones
-80GB 5.5 Gen iPod, Sendstation adapter (for line out)
-Some random DVD player (I've played maybe 3 CDs in the past 6 months)
-Bluejeans ICs and cables

At the office I also have an older Headroom "The Little" headphone amp an Senn HD595s. Gets the job done.

OK, I'll play.

The Main Rig (Two-channnel/5.1 channel joined at the hip)---------------------

Speakers: Hales Transcendence 8 towers (front left/right), Hales Transcendence Center, Hales Revelation 1 monitors (surrounds)

Subwoofer: Velodyn DD12

CD/DVD Players: Musical Fidelity SACD, Denon DVD 2900 universal

Amps: Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista 300 integrated (for stereo playback) Proceed HPA 2 (drives center channel), Proceed Amp 2 (drives surrounds)

Prepro: Bryston SP 2

Power: Monster Cable AVS 2000 voltage reg., Monster Cable HTS 3600 MK 2 conditioner

TV: Samsung 650 series 58" plasma

Cables: Cobalt Cable and Better Cables

The components and TV sit on (or in) a Billy Bags rack

The room is treated with GIK Acoustics bass traps/absorption panels

The Bedroom System (soon to go into the computer room)---------------------

Speakers: Energy Ref. Con. 22 floor standers
Preamp: Proceed PAV
Amp: Acurus A250
Turntable: KAB-modified Technics SL 1200 MK2
Phono-pre: Cambridge Audio 640P
Headphone Amp: Creek OBH 11
Headphones: Sennheiser HD 650
Cables: Audioquest, Kimber and Cobalt Cables

My rigs are a mixture of vintage and newer equipment. I especially like vintage Infinity speakers (3 pairs and on the lookout for more) and electronics designed by Nelson Pass (4 amps and a pre-amp). I dabbled with home theater for a while, but when I purchased my big Infinity speakers last year, I decided to ditch HT altogether in favor of 2-channel stereo (besides, I needed the big space in the living room to set those behemoths up).

Main System
Speakers: Infinity RS-IIb's
Amps: 2x Forte Model 3's in a horizontal bi-amp configuration
Pre-amp: Forte Model 2
Digital: Music Hall Maverick SACD/CD player feeding a Musical Fidelity X-10v3 tube buffer
Analog: VPI HW-19 Mk IV+/Audioquest PT-6 arm/Dynavector Karat 17D3 moving coil cartridge/VPI SDS speed controller
Phono Pre-amp: Musical Fidelity X-LPSv3 w/ X-PSUv3 power supply
Tuner: Kenwood KT-990D
Power Conditioner: Chang Lightspeed HTS-1000
ICs: Audioquest Coral & Diamondback, Nordost Blue Heaven
Speaker Cables: Nordost Blue Heaven (treble), Audioquest Rockefeller (bass)

Bedroom System
Speakers: Infinity RS-IIIb's
Amp: Forte Model 6
Pre-amp: Adcom GFP-565
Digital: California Audio Labs Delta CD transport/CAL Sigma II tube DAC
Analog: Kenwood KD-500/Infinity Black Widow arm/Clearaudio Arum Beta Mk II cartridge/Herbie's Way Excellent II mat
Phono Pre-amp: Aragon 47K
Tuner: Adcom GFT-555 Mk II
Power Conditioner: Chang Lightspeed CLS-9600
ICs: Audioquest Diamondback & Copperhead, White Zombie Chupacabra, AQ Hawk Eye digital coax
Speaker Cables: Audioquest Bedrock

Office System
Speakers: KEF Reference 102's w/KUBE 102
Integrated Amp: Pioneer SA-500
Digital: Luxman DZ-111 cdp
Tuner: Adcom GFT-555
ICs: Monster Interlink
Speaker Cables: DH Labs ST-100 Silver Hybrid

I also have systems in the garage and my 10 yo son's bedroom. Yes, I admit, I have a problem , but it's a really GOOD problem .

Mr. Lowry;

It looks like you have some very fine equipment there; I have had a Theta Pro Basic 3 D/A converter (fully balanced version)for many years, and it is excellent, but the only thing I currently use it with is a Yamaha 5-disc player that my wife likes to use sometimes for "muzak" when she is puttering around the house.

But, seriously; I would advise you to dump the Adcom preamp and get a better one; I think it is a very weak link in a potentially fine-sounding system.

A $3000 investment in an Audio Research LS-17 or a BAT VK-31X would without question take your system to a whole new level of sonic accuracy. I had that ADCOM preamp years ago, and going from it to the Audio Research LS-2B was a major step up, and then the Audio Research Ls-16 was better still, and the AR Ls-26 is waywayway better than any of them (but it is $6K...).

But dump it; the rest of your system deserves better.

Oh; see below for the rest of my system.

I'll bite. Bought my first piece of gear in 1967. Never looked back

Here's a list.
ARC SP9 MKIII preamp
VPI HW19jr
Rega RB300
Marcof PPA1 head amp
Shure, Sumiko, Ortofon cartridges
Marantz CD63SE CD
MSB DtoA
Sony DVP-NS500V
Accuphase T101 tuner
Nakamichi LX-3, ZX-7 Cassette
Lexicon MC8 surround processor
2 modified Hafler DH200
2 radically modified Dynaco MK3's (Only original transformers)
1 Adcom GFA545
2 Paradigm X-30 Xovers
2 12" Transmission Line Subs (PASS DIY El-Pipe-O)
1pr Acoustat Spectra 22 ESL's (fronts)
1pr Acoustat Model 1 ESL's/SPW-1 Woofer (rears)

I only have one system. It's used for HT and music. For music only the front speakers are used.

why arent more participating? I dont agree with most of what Lowry posts, but this is a good one. Man up!

Yikes, forgot to add my AKG 701s and STAX cans...

Oh, by the way; I want to put in some comments on amplifiers here, for the good of the discussion, lol.

After using my Audire Forte 120/240W power amp for over 20 years (with several input cap upgrades and tweaks), I just got done trying several amplifiers in my system to see if I could upgrade without breaking the bank. The Audire has many good features (completely dual-mono; 96,000 uF power supply;
all-discrete), but you have to figure that something has improved after 25 years...lol.

Anyway, after trying 3 different amplifiers that have had good reviews, in the $3000-$7000 range and the same general power range, I was beginning to think that I was not going to be able to improve on the old warhorse.

And then I tried the Bryston 3B-SST2. WOW!!!! WOW!!!

The sonic purity, from the highs to the incredible bass realism, just blew me away.

At $3500, it was the lowest-priced amp I tried in my system, and the rest were not even remotely in its class; this one is really special!

Okay, to what I listed in a previous post, I just added a really nice Conrad-Johnson PV12 preamp to my system. Now using the unreviewable Jolida JD801A integrated as a power amp driven by the C-J. The C-J came with three sets of tubes, so I can tailor the sound as I like, warmer and lusher, or cooler and more detailed. Either way, this budget combo ($2350 for both) sounds sweet yet detailed, easy to listen to, and very, very musical. Meshes beautifully with a Grado Reference Sonata playing early issue Blue Note Jazz LP's.

Quote:

For the record this thread isn't intended as a bragging thread or a how big is my d!CK vs. your d!ck battle. It's meant more as a background thread so that we all can understand better where each other is coming from when giving and getting advice.

Actually I'd be very happy to compare my d!ck with yours but you'd be facing some stiff competition ......... sorry ...... couldn't resist that one.
It's actually quite hard to list my audio gear as I'm still waiting for the builders to finish faffing around with my new listening room and from my perspective, that's the most important audio component of all. When finished it will have identical geometry to John Coulston's <http://aca.gr/pop_coulson.htm> scaled down by 1/5 in it's horizontal measurements with more absorption and diffusion treatment than John's used. The list below therefore includes all my main music room gear which is in storage awaiting the great day.

Main music only system. This system made making music in my last room like I've never enjoyed, outside of live concerts, so I doubt I'll be changing much in it. The new Meridian CD player was the final icing on the cake to my ears.
V.P.I Synchronous Drive System: V.P.I. HRX turntable: JMW 12.4 arms x 2 ( cartridges pre-mounted) resting on heavy slate on top of Soundesign damped steel rack standing on a stone floor: Garrot

Quote:
I'd like to see a big section in the user profiles for system information, similar to the audio asylum section that Buddha linked to. For a place dedicated to discussing audio equipment people seem really reluctant to discuss the specifics, or even the generalities of their systems. While that's their right, it's disappointing none the less.

A sincere thank you to those who have chosen to participate thus far. Hopefully things will pick up steam.

As ol' Oscar Wilde said, some fear that "to be intelligible is to be found out."

I looked at replying to the thread as an act of mustering the oopmph to try to list stuff. Then, the lazy solution struck me!

PS. A thread such is this, over time, becomes completely unmanageable and very difficult if each listing isn't able to be permanently open to editing. Otherwise we're all going to end up reading additions and deletions to additions in endless chains of confusing audiophool up and downgrading.

Well said. That is why I deleted all my pictures in Galleries before I could not change anything. More: a thread starter should be able to delete his thread if he is not happy with the posts of a ding dong like DUP or the moderation for that matter. You just walk out and delete your posts and your thread.

We have one thing in common: we both have CLSs although mine are mounted on Sound Anchor stands. That is all I will say. Other speakers, audio equipment is top secret.

Video system
JVC RS20
Meridian 568
Aragon X5
DaLite Cinemavision 1.3 110/
Toshiba HD-XA2
Samsung BDP-1200
Sony HDD500 hdtv tuner/recorder
5xNHT 3.3s

Here is my system:

CD/DVD/MP3 Player: NAD T515.
Turntable: Rega P3-24 table, RB301 arm with Elys cartridge.
Phono Stage: Audio Research PH3.
Integrated Amp : NAD C352
Speakers: Monitor Audio Silver RS6.
Cables: Audioquest

-Pradeep

hi all,

new to this message board.

vpi scout w/ sumiko blue point no. 2
rotel 955 cd player
sherwood s3000iii tuner
ps audio trio c100
ps audio gcph phon preamp
dynaudio focus 140
ipod

mor audioquest interconnects and kimber speaker cables.

i'm very happy with this system.

edit: the last system i bought, while george hw bush was president, consisted of:

pro-ject 1 w/ grado silver
rotel 955 cd
rotel 30 watt integrated
paradigm mini mk ii.

the difference is astounding. i'm hearing things on cds that i hadn't heard before.