Starting to come together

by aroc on Ever Evolving

Description

Updated vinyl front end.

My wife and I moved into our new home back in July 2004. The basement area is L-shaped. About 21x28x7'. As a house warming gift to myself we picked up some MG-2.5/Rs from a semi-local AudiogoNer. As of February 2007 I've updated my vinyl front end to include Michell/Dynavector/Rega. Also using the 20A dedicated line from the laundry room.

I listen to Classical (Romaticism, 20th Cent, Modern) and

Heavy Metal (Death, Black, Grindcore, and Hardcore genres).

Thanks for reading!

Aaron
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Components Toggle details

    • Michell Engineering Gyro SE
    2006 model suspended turntable with spider plinth. Includes latest DC motor and power supply.
    • Michell Engineering Orbe Clamp and threaded spindle
    Threaded spindle and Delrin clamp from Michell Orbe SE.
    • Dynavector 20XH
    High Output MC cart. 2.5mv.
    • Rega RB-250
    Stock, pending upgrades
    • Hagerman Bugle
    Hagerman Bugle RIAA with 15V PSU. Kit.
    • Dayton Audio Black Chrome Cone turntable footer
    Using three of the Dayton black chrone cones as footers underneath the turntable. This effectively defeats the suspension of the MMF-2.1 turntable. Biggest gains are widening and deeping of the soundstage and better imaging forcus. Not quite as good as the Mapleshade heavyfoot brass cones, but this cost $20 instead of $60 and I had them lying around anyway. Better than nothing.
    • N E W P-3
    Mullard ECC82 (12AU7), Brimar 12BH7 valves. This is too tubey o lush or something. I'll be looking for something more neutral after we're situated in the new house at the end of the year.
    • Quicksilver Silver Mono 90
    Valve compliment: Ei KT90 type-iii x 2 GE 5AR4 x 1 Ei 12BH7 x 1 RCA 12AX7 x 1 Not sure what the retail was. Price is what I paid used. I like these little amps quite a bit. With the KT90s, it doesn't give up much detail and resolution to the Krell KAV-300i we used to have. Would like to drag these down to the dealer and see how they drive Magnepan MG-3.6/Rs. I know they'll push the 1.6s just fine for me.
    • Magnepan MG-2.5r
    Two-way ribbon/planarmagetic loudspeaker. Has a 5dB in room dip at 1KHz. But I plan to tear into the passive XO or go active XO with a phase-aligned XO ala the 1.6 or 3.6. I figure with the XO, upgraded parts, and some aftermarket stands this ought to make a "poor-man's 20.1/R." We'll see. This replaced the MG-0.5/QR, which replaced the Acoustat Model 3. (I still get emails of people telling me it was an extreme mistake to sell the Acoustats. In some ways I think they were right.) Paid $600/local pickup for the 2.5/Rs. Not bad. :-)
    • Magnepan MG-0.5qr
    Grandfather of the MG-12/QR, as I understand it. It should be more rigid than the MMG I thinking, so I should take the SPLs should I decide to "rock out." Bought these for $400 on audiogon to replace the MG-1.6/QRs the roommate took when he moved out. I miss the 1.6s, but these work OK until I can find something that I want. Were rebuilt in March 2004 by the seller.
    • Electronic Visionary Systems (EVS) Millennium DAC 1
    This is the original DAC 1 from Ric Shultz of EVS fame (www.tweakaudio.com). Hardwired for a single coaxial S/PDIF input. Mine has 3.5 volt output.

    Keep thinking about replacing it, but I can't fine anything suitable just yet.

    • Marantz CC-47
    5 disc carousel used as a transport. I like the fast response time from the user interface. I paid $50 for this. I keep trying to replace it with a DVD transport of some kind, but I'm always disappointed either by the user interface, ergonomics, feel, sonics, or price tag. Don't get me wrong, I would replace it if I could. :-/
    • Sansui TU-717
    For pulling in college radio stations. WRUW, WJCU, and WCSB. Paid $7 on eBay.
    • Nakamichi MR-2
    Pro deck with rackmount ears and handles. Used for playback of my ameteur performances from high school and college. $100 from Audiogon.
    • Sony SCD-XE670
    Single disc version of SCD-CD775 SACD/CD changer. Was a Canadian model. Used for SACDs.
    • Dayton 12 inch Titanic, mk ii
    12 inch driver in a sealed box. Box is either 1.5inch thick or 2.25 inch thick. I forget which. Face is 3 inch thick. Four Dayton Audio balck chrome footers, spiked directly to the basement concrete slab. Plate amp is constructed i a false back, of course. Flat to lower that 20Hz in room (lowest that I can measure). I thought I would need two, but one seems to even be overkill for me.
    • Hypex HS-200 subwoofer plate amp
    Plate amp for the subwoofer. 400W RMS. Also has high-pass for main speakers. I'm not using the high-pass though. I run my mains full range. This amp was worth the money.
    • Optoma H30 DLP front projector
    front projector. Seems like a waste to have a nice rig like this and not be able to watch a movie or two. Much better than a plain 'ole teevee.
    • VansEvers Clean Line 85
    Digital and Analog mains filtering. $425 on audiogon.
    • Straightwire Encore II (1m)
    Used on everything except the subwoofer.
    • Straightwire Musicable IC (6m)
    6m interconnect for subwoofer
    • Straightwire Megalink digital IC (1m)
    digital cable to DAC
    • Straightwire Ghostbuster component video IC (6m)
    6m component video cable from the DVD player to the projector.
    • Tara Labs Space and Time
    Shotgun speaker cables. One run for positive one for negative. Got this with my second system (first real system) in 2001. I will probably find something better later. But for now, you can't beat free.
    • DIY Power Cable
    bulk cable (not sure) with wattagate IEC and hubble plugs.
    • Art Dudley Art's Black beauty
    Note this is a joke. It's just a humorous name for the courtesy power cable that comes with many gear, including personal computers. Using this with the subwoofer plate amp and tube preamp.
    • VansEvers Stock
    Stock VansEvers power cord for VansEvers PLC.
    • Hagerman Bugle 15V Power Supply
    15V PSU for bugle,half kit.
    • DIY MDF equipment rack with spikes.
    DIY rack from 0.75inch MDF, glued together with biscuits. Using Dayton Audio black chrome footers to spike the rack directly to the concrete slab.
    • 20A dedicated line from the clothes dryer
    Since my room doesn't have grounded outlets, I'm borrowing the 20A dedicated line. Based on the way my basement is arranged the line's sugested use is for the clothes dryer. But priorities have to come first!

Comments 10

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Owner
System edited: Updated vinyl front end, Michell/Dynavector/Rega.

aroc

Owner
I now have a two-seat La-Z-Boy reclining couch. The nice thing about it is the ear position doesn't change hardly at all when I put my feet up. The wife really likes it.

aroc

Owner
I with most people to have an amp that they like, I'll probably plan to get another pair of quicksilver silver 90s and biamp with a custom DIY active line-level XO, bypassing the passive XO in the 2.5/Rs. Don't worry. That's far down the road. I really should get that chair first! ;)

Aaron

aroc

Owner
Nope. I'm still using one of the chairs from the dining room. Interesting you sound note the Quicksilver 90. That's the one piece of gear that consistently gets praise from everyone who stops by for a listen, even non-audiophiles. Thanks for the kind words.

I have about half of the money for a Teres 160 turntable, which I'm thinking of getting. Either that or something else in that price range. I already have a Rega RB250 stocked away.

My latest change was to defeat the suspension on my Music Hall turntable use three black chrome footers from Dayton Audio. That had the effect of widening and deepening of the sound stage. Someday I'll pony up for the Mapleshade brass heavyfoots though.

Thanks for the kind words and take care!

Aaron

aroc

Owner
System edited: Added some pieces that were missing. Next pieces to get are some shelving for the LPs, LDs, CDs, tapes, DVDs, box sets, and picture discs. Also need to get a "real chair" or sofa. I'm still borrowing one of the dining room chairs, LOL.

aroc

Owner
System edited: Major revision. Gyro SE and 1.6s are gone. Sold my TV to buy the 0.5s. Bought a MMF2.1 so I could still spin my vinyl. Also bought a Record Doctor II record cleaning machine from Audio Advisor. I edited most of the above desciptions. My roommate moved out and took his gear with him. My girlfriend and I will be moving into a new house soon, which will give me a dedicated listening room. I can then concentrate on what direction I'd like to take my stereo again! Would like to attend one of the shows to hear some demos and get some ideas. Anyone in the Cleveland, OH area have a system they would let me hear? I'm especially interested in high efficiency and planar setups. Know Kevin had some Acoustat Model 8s with the direct drive servo amps he wanted me to hear. Thanks in advance. Aaron

aroc

Owner
System edited: renamed system

aroc

Owner
System edited: Added Michell Gyrodec SE with DC motor, incognito modded RB250 and dynavector 20X-H cart. Also get the 15V power supply for the Bugle phono stage. Adding the table was like a revelation from God. It was just that religious. We initially picked up the table with a RB300 and used our previous Grado gold cartridge. No bad. Wide soundstage with just the table. Blacker background and more dynamic. You would think also the table has to do is what, spin the record? But apparently the table comes before the catridge in the chain. This was with the Grado Gold cart, RB300 arm (unmodded), and the Hagerman Bugle RIAA battery powered. Next we got the incognito modded RB250 arm. I can't say I recall much of a difference (it was a couple weeks ago). we've since added the Michell counterweight for kicks. Added dynavector 20X-H high output MC cart about 10 days ago. It's breaking in nicely. It's a bit more balanced than the Grado which I never cared that much for. The 20X is no detail retrival monster (a la Benz Glider) but plenty good enough. Bought on the recommentation of Art Dudley's stereophile review of the 10X5, and the strong recommendations of dynavectors in general from internet forums. Overall we're pleased with this setup so far. It's great to finally get the analog front end up to the standard of the rest of our system. This replaces the Thorens, Graham, and Grado Gold we had before. Next I imagine we'll either get another phonostage or mod the Bugle for 50dB of gain (it's at 40dB at the moment). We could really use some more gain. I'd like to let the system break in before swapping out the phonostage.

aroc

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