Components Toggle details

    • Pass Labs INT 150 Integrated
    Solid state that sounds like tubes.
    • conrad - johnson PV10A, MV 75 A1 Preamp/Power amp
    Tubes. You hardly ever see the MV75A1 for sale, for good reason.
    • VPI HW19 Mk 4/Well Tempered Arm/Grado Sonata Turntable/Arm/Cartridge
    Old School, high value.
    • Marantz/Njoe Tjoeb CD Player
    Tube output, great sound. You rarely see these for sale, either.
    • Graham Audio LS5/8 BBC Spec Monitor
    The greatest speakers you never heard of. A modern take on the original BBC LS5/8 monitors, designed by Derek Hughes (Spendor). If Graham would get its marketing act together, people would be lining up to buy these (and the LS 5/9's). 1 of perhaps 10 pairs of LS 5/8's in the US.

    Stands custom made by a friend in exchange for a bottle of small batch Kentucky bourbon.
    • Nordost Norse Series and Synergistic Research Foundation cabling. Speaker/Interconnect cables
    Foundation cables may be the bargain of the year.
    • AcousTech Phono Stage
    Designed by Ron Sutherland (recently replaced Schiit Mani)
    • Pass Labs Mini Aleph Clone (Kit)
    The most musical sounding amp in the house - albeit the smallest. 12 WPC, single ended Class A

Comments 9

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Owner
Hello, Orfeo!

I'm assuming you're in Europe - Italy, perhaps?

Thanks for your interest in my system. The Monitor 30s I owned were the original 30's, and I loved them, for all the reasons you state. I'm curious as to where you heard the LS 5/8's - at a dealer? Perhaps the room acoustics were not ideal, but in my room, I feel that the midrange of the 5/8's is glorious! If they have any weakness at all, it's the fact that the big driver does cover a wide range of frequencies, and it will sometimes "harden" up in the region of 1800 to 2000 Hz or so. Overall, I find these speakers to have a bit more life and energy as compared to the Harbeths, and the low bass, when it is actually present in a recording, is astounding! They have been a game changer in my musical journey, and if you can afford them, I highly recommend them. Hopefully you might find a dealer who would allow you to audition them in your home for a week or so. I bought mine sight-unseen, sound unheard, but they have worked out perfectly in my home.

Best wishes in your musical pursuits!

el34

Owner
Hey, Guys!

I did not compare them directly to the 40's, but almost...they replaced a pair of Harbeth Monitor 30's. So same basic sound minus the bottom octave and the ambient sense of the recording venue. Like the Harbeth, the midrange is superb, beyond criticism. I would say that the Audax tweeter in the Graham has more life and energy than the Seas Excel in the Harbeth, but without being in any way bright. The other advantage the Graham has is its 89dB/watt sensitivity (vs. 86 dB for the 40's). I occasionally use a 12W/channel Pass clone amp (single ended Class A) with astonishing results. I loved my Harbeths, and I see another pair of 30's sometime down the road. I don't think they'll let me into a nursing home with the big-ass Grahams...

el34