It has now been almost a year and I have had some time to spend getting things dialed in. Over the last year I have changed much of my equipment and have gotten a new room so there is a lot of variable to sort out, but with a lot of work (fun) so far I have got the system sounding very good. I still cannot get over how different this room is than my previous room of around 10'X 11'. It is 25' X 30' with vaulted ceilings and a stairwell behind a short wall along the back of the room. This room is on the third floor of my house and all the walls are exterior 2X6 insulated construction. I had 3 dedicated 20 amp 10 awg homerun lines put in when the house was wired along with some heavy carpet pad and carpet.
Every equipment change I have made has been a significant upgrade and really moves this room towards its potential. The more I listen to the Vandersteen 3A Signatures the more I love them. The treble is just so true to sound and the bass continues to elate me as that was the area I had concerns about before purchasing the speakers.
A lot of good things has been said about this player and and I agree.
Parasound Halo P3
This is a great entry-level pre. It matches extremely well with the A23 as would be expected. P.S. Using the XLR connections made a significant difference between the preamp and amp to the sound stage and bass control.
Parasound A 21
250 watts per channel This amp is a large improvement over my previous A23.
Vandersteen 3a Sig
A nice large speaker for a large room.
Anti-Cable Interconnect
Replaced Audioquest Cheetah.
Audioquest Jaguar
Great mid priced cables with DBS. I have continued to enjoy these cables over the last couple of months. They are very clean and detailed and allow for an amazing sound stage. The one area that I am not thrilled is they could be more transparent. This became very clear when I tried the Cheetahs, but at the cost difference I will stay where I am until I make other upgrades.
Anti-cable Speaker cables
They are wonderful.
Black Diamond Racing Cones MKIII
Six vibration dampening/coupling cones. There really is a difference between the different # cones. A tweak that really works wonders in my room. Surprisingly I much prefer the Apollo on its factory feet, not the BDR cones.
GIK Acoustic Panels
Seven 2'X4' acoustic panels. Three used as bass traps, two more at the first reflection point and two more behind the speakers. Best upgrade for the money invested.
Nice setup. I've got the same Parasound combo and it is unbeatable for the money. No other amp has more current for less money, besides sounding so darn good as well. It will drive the lower Ohm speakers very nicely. I would suggest either Bi-amping with another A23, or if you really want to improve it, the A21. The A21 has more Class A power and is a bit smoother. I have many chances to listen to it with many different speakers and it really makes just about any speaker sound great. Good luck!
