@Mjcmt: The tt is sitting on a piece of 3/4 inch maple plywood, which in turn sits in the sand. The biggest difference I noticed with it is that sound seems to be coming from a blacker more silent background. The soundstage also seems a bit more 3-d. I also think your idea about the black stain sounds pretty cool and I may even give it a shot when time permits.

@Jaxwired: Yeah, I really enjoy these speakers. Excellent clarity without sounding "clinical". As for upgrading, I plan on keeping the speakers for quite a while and getting everything up to par with them.

dconnelly February 15, 2010 06:42

Hey, nice setup! I use to have those same RS6s. I've never heard a speaker in that price range that could even come close to touching the fantastic sound they produce. When you are in a position to upgrade, I bet you have a touch time upgrading the speakers. I'd focus on those last as you will have to spend quite a bit to better them.

jaxwired February 08, 2010 01:46

Nice system on a beer budget.
Is your turntable feet sitting directly on the sand or a board ( slightly smaller than the box) that is then stilling on the sand? What benefits did you notice by adding it?
Your sand box and equipment rack would look cool if stained w/ black stain, so all the grain would show and it would still be black.

mjcmt February 07, 2010 00:07

System edited: system update: just added a pro-ject speed box II that i got for christmas

dconnelly January 25, 2010 05:29

hi how do you like your monitor audio rs 6.i had a set of silver 5 i.sold them but really hated to see them go.tip,, the monitors really shine with added power.i was feeding mine with about 350 watts a channel cheap tip, if you are still using the brass jumpers that came with the speakers , get some better jumpers.you will be amazed what a difference this will make.

energizer November 24, 2009 22:11

I'm in the same boat as you, college living quarters and budget. I'm running a pioneer HT receiver which suffers from symptoms described above with its "cool" nature. You are at least a step ahead of me by using separates which give you more customization in tailoring the sound. I am looking into the possibility of wall treatments to help with my limited ability in speaker placement, try to curb the affects of close quarters and (in my case) concrete walls.

Tubes would definitely be cool, I know I want some. Check out my system if you want to see another example of a college set up.

diver_downtown October 11, 2009 06:45

Milpai,

Thanks for the advice. Maybe I'll look into a tube amp or a tube/solid state hybrid when i can afford it to give the system a touch of warmth.

dconnelly September 29, 2009 17:42

David,
You have setup a decent system. The Marantz needs to be updated soon. Choose a neutral to warm amp for the Monitor audio. A coo, amp will make the speakers sound too forward for your near field listening.
Enjoy your music and don't let the "small apartment" rob your music thrill.

milpai September 29, 2009 14:34