Best sound I've heard - period! Don't understand why people bother buying new stuff, the best audio gear has already been built :)
No, I'm not an old man with a lot of money remembering the good old days. It's actually the other way around. I'm a (perhaps crazy?) 24 year young man who has been working at a warehouse to finance his hobby. Although now I've just started studying to become a psychologist.
I've always thought you could get more if you buy used gear, and even more than that if you wait for the right deals. I've spent about $20k on this system I think, I wonder how that would have sounded if I had only bought new gear. I also like the 80s gear, they're more of a handcraft - less of a designed massproduced product - or something like that.
The sound? Truly realistic, I would say. If you close your eyes you could swear the artist(s) are standing there right in front of you. Don't know what the fuzz about not being able to play loud was all about, it certainly fills my needs. Same with the SW's. Don't know if it was the filters that made people complain about them or if it's the C-Audio and ARC gear that are keeping it toghether so well. The planars and SWs really play beautifully together. And that's with a cheap Nakamichi filter. Haven't bought a mic for the BSS Varicurve yet, but will get one in the near future. Don't know how much of a difference it'll make though, as I said it sounds beautiful already.
I listen to a variety of music, but to sum it up: mostly Jazz, Classiscal, Singer/songwriter and soft popmusic.
Future thoughts:
I've been thinking about buying a tuner or perhaps build a HTPC (I have a projector which I'm using for home-theater). But since I'm now studying, those plans will probably be put on ice for a while.
The VdH outperformed the ZYX sonically, but is not a very good tracker. Not sure what to do with this fact. I still have the ZYX so perhaps I'll find a new turntable and tonearm to use with the records the VdH doesn't like. Or perhaps find another cartridge? Only future can tell I guess...
Was thinking of finding a new CD-player, but I have to face the fact that I won't find a CD-player with a sound of the Sonic Frontiers combo at the price of the SF combo. I must stress that you haven't actually heard the SF P3 without CCa tubes and the IS2e connection, it plays with the very best! I had a shoot-out with a Reymio CDP-777 (on Silverline Grand La Folia spkrs/McIntosh preamp/Burmester amp) and me and my friend had a hard time telling them apart. Only on certain Audiophile recordings we could hear a small advantage to the Reymio. Although both inferior to the turntable system. Anyway, a new CD-player isn't on my priority list.
The Goldmund and Airtangent are not going anywhere :) Same goes for the ARC, Beveridge and C-Audio.
I will try to add some pictures in the near future...
So what do you think, not bad for a 24 year old student, eh?
Erik, the Beveridge and the SP 11 were a match made in heaven as my ears recall and as I remember, the Goldmund Studio clobbered the Lynn if set up well. Congratulations Erik, you've got excellent gear which matches very well. Have you tried to put a tad more weight on the vdH? It might improve tracking. What a good start you have made into this fascinating hobby of ours, I would say you can safely trust your ears. You seem know what sounds good and to my mind, you have chosen excellently well. Best wishes from an old man with 50 odd years more on his back than you have now.(: Cheers, Detlof (an old Swedish name, by the way)
