In need of advice. I have been into audio for about 10 yrs and I read all the audio mags(stereophile,audio,what hifi) I just can't make a dicission in reguards to anything. That is why I have such a low budget system plus I couldn't justify spending a lot of money on something I wasn't sure would please me. I , chose to go with Adcom because it's afordable and the audio stores always spoke highly of Adcom and the research I did on Adcom components made me feel confident about them. My complaints are that the music seems closed in ,too bright, and to harsh for my sensitive ears. Any advice on what I should upgrade next would be appreciated. I haven't been to this website in a while but i would like to add a couple of things. I had auditioned a Acurus RL11 pre-amp several years back. I didn't like it because i couldn't handl'e the forwardness it seems to produce.
After reading all the reviews at audio review i thought that it might be to truthful and that either my front end or amp(the piece of crap that it was)was the problem and that if i changed one of these i would be very happy with the Acurus. At that point i got very frustrated because I didn't have the money to buy a new amp or cd player. If anyone has any advice on what i should do next your feedback would be greatly appreciated.
I havent been to this part of audiogon in about 4-5yrs but I just purchased a Rotel Int. amp and I am displeased with the sound. I was reading reviews for it on audioreview and saw one review that said the sound seemed distorted at anything above a fourth of the way up on the volume. This is one thing I noticed too. It also seems to have a slighty to moderately forward presentation.Not as ear fatiguing as the acurus RL-11 but enough to notice.
Enough of me complaining, this is what I do want. I want good tight bass, mabye slighty sweet treble,a noticable midrange without being too noticable. It can't be lean or thin sounding and it can't do what the rotel does when I turn up the volume. Also I'd prefer not to get anything with tubes.
I listen to all sorts of music with rock being primary although I do like some classical.
My budget is $600 and $900. Ive been looking at the Sim i5080 for a few days now. Some people say the MFA3 or 3.2 is a good choice too. Also the Plinius(various different models) but I don't think those are in my budget. Anyways any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Hey Stilllooking, Nice rig you got there! ;)) You need to post more current pics for us to see. Maybe show us some photos and talk about the progress of your listening room, as well as, what you've learned about sound to date. Maybe tell us about past mistakes, current plans/ideas and possible future improvents. -B
Also, from what I've seen, you might read HiFi+ for reviews on non-British components & The Absolute Sound for reviews on non-American gear-one can't be too careful with "reviewer bias(es)." Also the British hi-fi market, f.w.i.s., is RUTHLESSLY JUDGMENTAL (like a certain Agoner you know ;) w/regard to expectations of inexpensive speakers (i.e. they expect the world from from a pair of sub-$400/pair speakers, just FYI. Additionally, read reviews from "Stereotimes.com" and, of course, testimonials from other Agoners -regarding any products you're currently intrigued with. Just generally try to be informed as humanly possible to avoid the dreaded "buyer's remorse," and be sure (armed w/everybody's opinions) to actually listen to the piece for yourself -whenever possible.
Hey Josh, So, what I'm planning to do is run some "calcs." (calculations) in order to find out what the "starting point" (for initial speaker placement) is in YOUR room. I'd like to do a "perspective rendering" (either in 1 or 2 point perspective- hand drawn, as I'm not good @ CAD) at some future point, for which I'll need some extra photos. Also, what I'll NEED (before the rending) is an accurately-measured "floorplan". The floorplan (-which if you aren't familiar- is design jargon for a 2-d "bird's eye view" of a space) will help both of us with the functional issues of "space planning" (more design jargon that simply describes how the space will be divided up - usually into zones.) To run the initial calcs. I'll just need the EXACT room dimensions. To get the exact dimensions (exact, meaning the measurement rounded down to the nearest 1/4 of an inch) - simply take your measuring tape and measure from the middle of the room (I say the "middle of the room" because this will give us a pretty accurate "overall averaged measurement" and because the chances of the room being perfectly plumb, level and square are pretty slim, even with commercially built "metal stud construction." The results you are going to get will include PRECISELY read: exactly where to initially place the speakers -based on your abilities to accurately measure. From here on out we'll be working ONLY with inches (not feet) because it's less confusing than having to convert to feet & inches (i.e. less margin for error on both our parts)...cool? I can't stress enough the importance of accurate measurements when dealing with the VAST complexities of acoustics--how does the old saying go: "measure twice, cut once?" Measure as many times as it takes + once, applies better here! I'll need (in inches and quarter inches) the Height x Width x Depth (again, measured from the middle of the room or wall) to feed into my calculator, happy measuring & take as much time as you need to get these 100% correct. My "audio mentor" Dan says: "set-up is 90% of the sound."-->You'll understand/believe this soon, bare with me! -Bruce Ps. Do your KEF's have carpet spikes? hopefully, yes-->they will help GREATLY with getting the speakers exactly into position and with "toe in/out" and with the final "time-aligning?" It might be QUITE difficult/frustrating without 'em. I DO realize, however, that you have wood floors -and you can -@ some future point- get some cone shaped isolators to decouple the KEF's from the room (as a "tweak")- my favorites are Nordost's "Pulsar Points", as they not only work REALLY WELL under electronics but can be bolted on to your speakers (in place of the carpet spikes!) In fact, not too long ago, I was "SUPER-SKEPTICAL" of isolators on the whole-until the difference was demonstrated to me, WOW, BIG/IMMEDIATE difference!...Needless to say, I don't consider 'em optional any longer. I'm aware that they aren't exactly "cheap" and I have several less expensive methods of controlling vibration that'll help!
Thanks for guiding me Bruce. I basically use this room for everything. bedroom, listening room, multimedia room, etc. The answer to your second question is yes. It sounds like a good idea to me too and it would be fun to rearrange my room. The ceiling in my room is 8' high but there is a slope that you can see in my pictures at the top of this page. I really appreciate your help.
Thanks for responding Josh - I DO tend to be a bit "overzealous" sometimes.
Okay...first, what is this space primarily used for (i.e. just a listening room, multi-media, bedroom, etc.) Obviously, if you're going to be constructing rockets -it'll have some bearing on how flexible you are with the system.
Second, is it possible to take another part of the room for the system (I'd like to see it move to the shorter wall-the wall that's 12' wide.)
Third, what is the height measurement?...the ceiling (if smaller than the other dimensions -it usually is) will dictate the distance(s) one can place the speakers from the front wall (i.e. the wall in front of you -as you face the speakers.) If the ceiling isn't flat-that can have a major bearing on the acoustics.
Last, before we can delve into more detail (like walking you through the whole -slightly painful- measurement process) it's neccessary to establish that it's okay to use the "most ideal" short wall placement -most speaker manufacturers, incidently, will recommend this set-up for the best balance of image, stage and bass to re-create a "stereo musical event/illusion."
Thank you for your consideration Bruce. If you(or anyone) could tell me exactly what kind of info ,or picture, you need with reguards to my listening room and which program I should use to draw it that would be helpful. I'm just not sure what to send you. Anyway, here are the demensions of my room: 12'x 18' plus a 4'x 7' area that is 2.25' from the left front corner when I am looking at the space where my system is at. It's like a long rectangle plus a smaller one adjacent to the large one. Thanks for your help and patience.
Okay Stilllooking, I re-read my 10/16/05 post and you're quite correct. My tone was a bit on the nasty side-I sincerely apologize if I offended you. That "approach" usually works well on me-but everybody's different. Sorry. I'm not a "mean person" either, no really - I'm just VERY sarcastic. That said- I'm writing to see if anybody has read this thread and attempted to "help you out" with speaker placement and just general set-up methodology? I wasn't exactly "born" with this knowledge and would greatly enjoy working with you (I won't be mean and impatient, I promise:) If you're wondering why I'm pursuing this with you it's because I (personally, anyway) would've enjoyed it greatly if someone had taken me "under wing" and showed me (much sooner than they finally did) and explained or brought me "up to speed" about how to listen-to/set-up my decent system(s) that I ended up selling - only to find out it really wasn't my stereo system AT ALL. I haven't been on A'gon in a while so I apologize for not responding sooner! Let me know, Best and Warmest Regards! -Bruce
As far as xlr cables, you would be hard pressed to find much better than high quality mic cables. They have a naturalness and detail that is incredable. They must transfer the sutlties of the voice with naturalness. I find they have excellent frequence extentions as well. I can't remember the brand (better than Canare), but they are grey and very thin. I had $950 interconnects that were no match for them. I got mine from a recording studio, so they may be able to know the brand. I'm sure the price can't be beat.
It was premature of me to say Audio refinement sucks I'm sorry. However I don't appreciate your tone at all. I'm a nice person and I'm just trying to do my best with my system and I value other agoner's advice. Please be respectful to me.
Would it be possible for Hornblower and myself to get a measured diagram and some photos of the other elevations in your room so that I or we could advise you more accurately about how to set-up your very nice system in order to maximize the sound you already possess (read a LOT cheaper than buying new equipment)? You don't need to post it on Agon (I don't personally feel too comfortable posting pics of my private spaces for the world to see) just e-mail directly to us. Also, I feel I should say publicly that I don't actually disagree with Hornblower's advice on speaker placement-just as it pertains to you and your particular situation. We are all here to help and be helped. Best Regards, Bruce
How could one possibly judge IMHO the merits/drawbacks of any equipment (much less a decent amplifier) with an utter lack of correct system set-up. I suspect that your inferior set-up skills are directly responsible for the lack of decision making abilties. Have you studied the plethora of available photos accessible in the many hi-fi sites (including this one) on the internet? If so, you may/may not have noticed (maybe check out the Rocky Mountain Audio Festival's site) a HUGE discrepancy between the over all appearance of most others' and yours. If my tone sounds negative it's only because I care about music and it's playback. Also, (in general) symmetry IS good-I suggest you disregard "hornblower's" advice and find a member's system that you don't think "sucks" and ask them (nicely) to explain it to you. Anybody with lots of set-up skill will tell you that 50+% of the sound of a hi-fi stereo rig is due to it's room integration and room acoustics. I sincerely hope you take my advice as I know you'd be SHOCKED at what a difference proper set-up makes.
System edited: I just sold the acurus pre so I could get the matching pre for my nad s200 amp . Any suggestions on a XLR cable to go between the two would be great and also plan to get a better cd player to replace the adcom changer.
Most modern direct radiator speakers prefer to be farther from reflective surfaces. Harshness is often related to early reflections from walls or furniture. Chose a listening position, usually symetrical with respect to the speakers, about 2/3 or 4/5 of the room dimension back. Work with one speaker at a time, place it about 1 foot from the wall behind, and slowly (1" or less) move it foward (towards you) 'till the midrange opens up, and the bass balance seems best. Then advance the other speaker 'till the image is centered. Next, move the speakers apart slowly 'till the center image breaks down, then bring them back 'till the image is restored. Note, the speakers should be roughly symetrically arrayed with respect to the listening position when you are done, but it is good not to be perfectly symatrical in relation to the room boundries. Toe in is annother variable, but try the above procedure and that should be a good starting point. I could give more advice if I knew more about the room. Hope this gets you started in the right direction. David
It's funny that you described what you want is a tube amp. and then said you don't want a tube amp.lol! Get hold of a dealer that carries Audio Refinement gear-it's tube like-without the tubes. Also, your speaker placement blows (as per the photos.)
It seems like your cd source is your current weak link. Adcom can be a bit bright. You have a good amp and preamp, so once you get your source sorted out then you pick speakers to match. The newer CDP's have great dac sections.
I currently am using a Cary CD-308 cdp. It has excellent soundstage, dynamics, and resolution. It costs $1500 new, but can be bought used for under $900. It gives you a lot of the Cary 306 or 303 sound at a fraction of the cost. There is a lot of info on the various threads and consumer reviews.
I had tried a fully broken-in Jolida JD-100 with tubes ($900 new). It was nice but lacked resolution, but had big bass and smooth sound. Lot of folks are modifying them but then at the price there are better options.
After your front end is done look for good speakers.
I went through the tweaking thing and just got my system out of whack, so I stepped back and picked good equipment, with decent cabling and I couldn't be happier.
