This is my music system which has been evolving for over 35 years.
Have had many different components of many styles. Have learned that synergy is everything and you have to trust your ears.
Also I've had had these systems in over a dozen listening rooms. I've spent many hours working on room treatments and setup and believe the room/speaker interaction is the most important aspect of great sound that many hobbyists fail to optimize.
Vinyl is spinning about 80% of the time (Used to be 90% vinyl, but digital changes both sonically and user experience w/Roon & Qobuz have been a big improvement). After relocating to Austin, TX and getting the room optimized, I changed the analog side of the system, having sold tt, arm, carts & phono stage prior to the move.
Most recent project has been upgrading from Ayre QB-9 DSD Twenty to Bricasti M3h DAC.
Previous pieces & systems included:
Soundlab A3 electrostatics & Krell FBP-300 amp, Nola Viper Reference III (with Lamm & BAT monoblocks), BAT VK150SEs & Silverline LaFolias, Acarian Alon V mkiii , Merlin VSM-MX, Atma-Sphere MA1mkII.2, Atma-Sphere MP3, Herron VTSP1a-166
5-driver, 4-
way, time- and phase-accurate
speaker system that incorporates a unique aperiodic, push-pull,
powered sub-bass system, a battery-biased passive high-pass filter and an 11-band
equalizer—in a “boxless” minimum-baffle, non-resonant enclosure system.
Quicksilver V4 Monoblocks
Tube monoblock Amps currently with KT-88 output tubes
VAC Renaissance Mark V Preamp with Phono
balanced dual mono linestage and phono stage with external power supply. Running Amperex orange globes on the linestage side and a pair of Amperex NOS 60s medical grade Bugle Boys and one stock Mullard reproduction on the phono side. Planning on experimenting with NOS Mullard, Amperex and perhaps Telefunken for the single tube on the phono side.
Sota Nova Vacuum Series VI with Eclipse(Phoenix Engr. designed) Motor Controller
Awaiting delivery of the new Series VI Nova table spring suspension turntable with vacuum hold down system, mag lev platter/bearing, Eclipse motor controller(designed by Phoenix Engineering) and Reflex clamp!
Auidiomods Series VI Tonearm with micrometer and silver wiring
Audiomods Series VI with optional silver tip-to-tip wiring and micrometer.
Maple amp stands with Eden Sound brass Bear Paw radiused footers
DIY Slipknot1 & Sbank Maple Madness Rack
PerfectPlank Maple 1 7/8, McMaster-Carr Brass hardware, Star Sound Audiopoints footers
Custom Room Treatments
Designed and framed by Sensible Sound Solutions. Assembled and upholstered by me using Guilford of Maine acoustical cloth.
SpinPlanet Custom Wood Diffusors
BBC "Skyline" style QRD diffusors handmade of solid pine on 24" birch plywood base. Hand made in Delaware, USA.
ATS Acoustics QRD 7 Well Quadratic Diffuser
AudioQuest Oak Bi-wire Speaker Cables
SOLID PERFECT-SURFACE COPPER+ (PSC+) CONDUCTORS
MULTI-LAYER CARBON-BASED NOISE- AND CROSSTALK-DISSIPATION SYSTEM:
DOUBLE COUNTER-SPIRAL GEOMETRY
FOAMED-POLYETHYLENE INSULATION (FOR ALL POSITIVE CONDUCTORS)
DIELECTRIC-BIAS SYSTEM WITH RADIO FREQUENCY TRAP
AudioQuest Water XLR
6.5M balanced interconnects pair used between preamp and power amp
Tel Wire Power Cables HC Cord & Cord
HC Cord - large 9 gauge OCC single crystal, ultra pure copper. Terminated with genuine Oyaide 004 series with Beryllium copper bases and platinum & palladium plating. HC with 20amp connector on Krell amp connected to 20amp dedicated circuit
Cord - OCC single crystal, ultra pure copper. Terminated with genuine Oyaide 004 series with Beryllium copper bases and platinum & palladium plating
Tel Wire Connect XLR
OCC (Ohno Continuous Cast) single crystal copper of the highest purity available. Terminations are Xhadow Silver RCA’s that are hand-picked by Chris Kline, Jacketed cotton
(DAC to preamp)
Inakustic Reference USB Cable
German USB cable used between opticalRendu and Denafrips Pontus II DAC
Audioquest Niagara 1200 & NRG-Z3 PCs
Power conditioner & cable for front end of the system. PCs for the mono block amps.
Vinyl Stack Ultrasonic Record Cleaner
Paired with a 10L 40hz Ultrasonic tank and following the formulas and process suggested in @rushton's thread and www.positive-feedback.com article.
Eden Sound Terrastone Footers
Terrastone Bearing Isolation Footers under preamp and DAC.
Furman Power Station-8
Power strip on steroids. Using with Vandersteen subwoofers built-in to the 5As.
PS Audio Juice Bar
6 outlet power strip for networking accessories
Walker Audio Valid Points
resonance control devices
ERS Paper RFI/EMI Control
ERS paper to fight airborne RFI/EMI
Hart Big Willy MK3 Record Cleaning Brush
Described in detail in M.Fremer's Analog Planet Shootout video and review video. It's a brush that cleans dust off records. Way more effective than the Acoustech grounded large brush that it replaced
System edited: Just made a major change to my system. Sold the Berning amp, Joule pre and Cardas Golden interconnects. Will be moving to Atma-Sphere MA1 monoblocks and MP3 preamp/phono. Will run everything in balanced mode. I've always loved the sound of OTL amps, find them to be a great match with the Merlins, and finally have the room to consider some large monos. Hopefully, the balanced cabling will help with my considerable RFI troubles and allow me to use the internal phono stage. Since moving to this room(which faces a radio tower ~1000ft away), the K&K is the only tube phono stage I've found that can beat the RF.
Thanks, Ozzy. Your numerous posts on the K&K definitely helped me as I searched for a tube phono stage that would overcome the radio tower 1000ft. from my listening room. Cheers, Spencer
System edited: Trying a K&K phono stage to attempt to conquer amazing RFI problem that has vexed me for months. Only limited listening thus far, but knock-on-wood, this could be the ticket! Cheers, Spencer
Ray & Aronsss, Thanks. The Red Wine dac is a pretty interesting piece. I've not spent that much time w/it yet, but my initial impression is that it is very quiet, with a relaxed character. Perhaps not quite as resolving as my Metronome was, but it sounds allows my mind to focus on the song vs the gear. It reminds me of the feeling I sometimes get listening to a car radio on a warm sunny day. I know it isn't the highest fidelity, but I can't help but enjoying myself. Of course, the resolution is better than a typical car stereo, but that's the type of emotional reaction I get from listening to it. LP is still my primary focus. I've been dealing with a bear of an RFI problem that has troubled me for months. Close to having conquered it with a new phono stage. More on that later...Cheers, Spencer
Hello Spencer,Very nice system,i was also wondering how your dig. setup is working out,the RedWine dac sounds very interesting.LPs must sound very good!Ray
System edited: Bought a Pioneer Elite DV45a universal player to use as a transport, and just settled on trying out the Red Wine Audio Monica 2 dac. The combination of battery power and non-O/S have intrigued me. Been checking out this type of design for a while, and figure it's worth a spin. Will report back later.
System edited: Just sold my Metronome CD2V Signature. I'll be buying an inexpensive non-oversampling DAC and a DVD transport. Motivation is desire to help me finance an amp purchase of Joule Electra amps. So little of my listening time is spent on digital, that it seemed piggish to have so much invested in my cdp. Considering Ack, Scott Nixon, Audio Mirror dacs. Suggestions welcomed! Cheers, Spencer
David, Whichever one best meets at the crossroads of "I Dream of" Ave. and "I can barely afford it" St. My eyes are open and fingers crossed...Cheers, Spencer
System edited: Sold the CAT preamp. Next move will likely be to sell my CD player to help finance an amp upgrade to the nice, but more expensive Joule Electra amps.
System edited: System edited: Just added a Joule Electra LA100mkIII line stage and OPS1mkV phono stage. Hoping to eventually add Joule Electra monoblock amps, and I've always thought the Joule amps sound best mated w/Joule preamps. This change will also allow me to free up some cash towards the amps. Still working out some setup bugs w/grounding and RFI, so no real listening impressions yet vs. the CAT preamp in this system. My prior experience with the LA150 taught me that their are minor tradeoffs with these pieces, but they both offer exceptional performance in their price class, and are synergistic w/the Merlins and Berning amp. Cheers, Spencer
David, I agree that room treatments can make a huge improvement. I first tried some Roomtunes products, but they did little in this room. Chances are that I didn't have enough coverage of surface area for them to be effective. Sensible Sound Solutions gave me a perfect balance between providing acoustical/technical expertise, and allowing me to save on the investment by doing some of the assembly of the treatments(e.g. stapling fabric on panels, etc). The rear wall still has no treatments, and I'm considering adding some diffusors behind the seating on the back wall, but would like to move slowly to make sure I get a good handle on the impact of it. Take care, Spencer
As I have found in my basement listening room, the acoustical treatment of the room (i.e. first reflection points, bass traps in the corners, etc) are by far the most inexpensive way to improve the musical experience. Granted, it is not as fun as shopping for a new amplifier or CDP, but something that cannot be overlooked. Fantastic looking room and well thought out treatment!
Mark, Thanks. I like you system a lot, too. I had Quad 63s prior to getting my Merlins. In fact, the midrange of the Quads were Bobby's starting point when he designed the Merlins. The Supratek & Atmas are also favorite components of mine that I listen to regularly at friends' homes. The Scoutmaster is a best value in audio to my ears. The rack is 48"w x 36"h. Top shelf is 23"d, others are 19" deep. Yes, I do check the level occasionally, but between a whole house humidifier keeping humidity fairly stable, and the brass nuts/washers above & below each shelf, it hasn't been a problem yet. Take care, Spencer
