This is a system I've been building on a modest budget for many years. I've kept it in my bedroom for myself until recently. Four good, student friends and I have leased a nice, big house for a couple years while we finish up at school. We have a dining area right in the middle of all of the shared living space downstairs that wasn't getting any use, so we decided to make it a sort of sitting/reading/talking/relaxing area with a couch, rocking chair, coffee table, etc. I finally figured that it was time to quit being stingy, and to let my system be enjoyed by the rest of the house. After all, we are all music lovers. I put it all in the new sitting room, and the space was an instant hit. Now, when we're all home in the evening enjoying a good beer and getting caught up, we're gathered around great music, not the TV. For our generation, having grown up glued to a television screen, our new listening space is like a glimpse back to a slightly simpler time, and we all love it.
CD/SACD player with full DSD SACD playback. Also has built in USB connection for an iPod. Though we rarely use this feature, the sound quality is great when playing quality files because they are processed by the DAC onboard the Marantz.
Denon PMA-2000IVR
Dual-mono, integrated stereo amp and pre-amp. 53 pounds of beefy components, in a very solid chassis. Denon did it right with this one.
Sonus Faber Concertino Home
Two-way monitor with front-firing port. Center portion wrapped in black leather, sides capped with solid walnut. Silk-dome tweeters (my personal favorite).
Morrow Audio MA3
Solid conductor interconnects hand made by Mike Morrow.
Audioquest Type 4
Solid conductors, pre-terminated, banana to banana. 10 foot pair.
Audimute Sonipad
Vibration dampening pads. Bought two 1'x1' pads and cut them to size for my speakers. They reduced vibration on my components and between speakers considerably.
Thanks for your reply A_miner. I am looking to simplify my hodgepodge system and yours looks like an elegant solution. Looking forward to your upgrades.
@Mjcmt, Sorry so late to respond. Been away from the goN for too long. As far as solid-state integrateds under the $1500ish price point, I still firmly believe the PMA-2000IVR is one of the best out there. It's very solidly built, very musical, and is surprisingly dynamic for the price ($1200 new, retail price). My ONLY complaint is that some of the connections on the rear panel are a little too close together, particularly the analog inputs. The PMA is no longer in production, but if you can find a used one in good shape, I'd recommend you try it out. I bought mine used from an AudiogoN member in 2009 for about $850, and haven't regretted it.
I'm in the process of making some changes/upgrades to the system, and will be posting them sometime in the next couple months when completed.
Nice photos of your nice big house that I would be proud to live in. Nicely furnished and looks so relaxing. Got to love your beer bottle collection too.
As far as audio system, seems like you have made some prudent choices, with the 'best bang for the buck' as they say. I've been following that Denon integrated amp for a year as an upgrade from my Yamaha AVR, but I'm wondering if it will satisfy my listening pleasure. It has now been a year since you posted your system, so is the Denon still fulfilling your musical reproduction aspirations? Can you please comment with an update?
@Highend64, I'd rather have them on the Sonus stands, but a dresser does for now. Actually, the speakers are next on the list to be upgraded (some day, happy for now). I'd love to have a more full-range pair like the grand pianos.
@Cymbop, Thanks so much. What a compliment. Couldn't agree more. I wish we all spent a little less time in front of the tv, and a little more time engaged in meaningful conversation (in the company of good music, of course).
