This is my main system, which is constantly evolvig. I tend to swap in or out a component every couple of months or so. Latest change on the horizon will be speakers as I'm evolving to more of a home theatre capable system.
Your rig makes me drool. One of my favs on Audiogon. You seem to have chosen all the stuff that has been on my wishlist over time. Well done! Cheers, Spencer
Hi Samhar, Yes, the Joule 160s are running perfectly again. I got 16 new power tubes and everything is so stable now. I can't imagine using other amps. If you are about to get your amps serviced, I recommend contacting Rich Brkich at Signature Sound in upstate New York; he is an expert, a pleasure to deal with and is very familiar with the Joule amps. He uses a pair of 100's as his personal pair.
Hello Outlier I was wondering if you still used your 160's, today I j noticed your 4/16 post saying you are!!!! They are special amps and well worth the hassles. I need to take mine in for service and get them going again!
Enjoy the journey! Let us know how the new stands work out.....I experimented a long time ago with things like Black Diamond Racing Super Jumbo Pucks,etc...under my speakers at the time with very good results but have since moved away from them as the platforms and feet, etc...for the 2 most recent speakers I've had were much improved. I find the combination of Composite Platforms and Adona racks and platforms to be a good one for me....
Hi Zephyr, thanks for the kind words. I should update my photos as I'm in an apartment now and the listening area is not quite as pretty as the old house I was sharing. I now use a HRS platform under my turntable, which is probably my primary component of concern in terms of isolation. I'm also experimenting with using sistrum stands under some other components. I find them to be hugely effective under my speakers but the jury is still out on other components.
I just got my variac (that I use with my Joule amps) repaired and a fresh set of 16 power tubes and all sounds glorious on Tidal now. Am spinning some discs too to enjoy the Thor phono stage which was also a lovely addition. I think I'll look at cable upgrades and maybe a new DAC in the future.
Beautiful system in so many ways; also very glad to see another Adona AV45 rack user...I've had mine for years and have several more levels in the attic after selling off my HT gear a few years ago. Have you ever experimented with Composite Audio CF2010 platforms together with the Adona? I love what the Adona gives in terms of full frequency isolation and structural stability; I was able to eek another (very small but audible) improvement when I doubled up on the CF2010 used on top of the Adona granite shelves. Made a nice diff!
Added a Doshi linestage. I haven't done any careful a/b comparison against the Syrah, but overall am quite happy with the Doshi - if I had to pinpoint the differences, it would be slightly lower noise floor and more weight and depth to the soundstage, but the Syrah may be more airy and rich. Not sure. It might be six of one and half a dozen of the other. I do miss having the remote control that the Syrah has ;-)
Hi Lapierre, my listening room is quite big - about 900 square with almost 11 foot ceilings, so I felt the need to get the larger sub. Also, I got a great price on it - it's in perfect condition and ended up being cheaper than a used JL Audio F-113 ;-) I'm renting though, so if/when I move, I may need to sell it. So far so good though, it really is filling in the bottom end nicely and disappears. The remote control and microphone setup really allows the sub to be dialed in so well. I'll post pictures soon, when I get the room tidy.
Thanks Samhar, I am loving the new upgrades. I'm still experimenting with speaker placement. So far the Avantis are not disappearing to the degree my Virgo IIs once did, but I think they are just more fully with regard to placement.
Your in for a lot of great sound with the 160's they are fantastic amps and paired with the Avanti's, the inner detail, imaging, speed and timbre must be impressive!!!! Congratulations!!!!
System edited: I recently purchased a pair of Joule Electra VZN 160 OTL amps and a pair of Audio Physic Avanti III speakers. I now have two pairs of speakers (I still have my MBL 121 monitors), so I need to sell one pair - both pairs of speakers are very different, with strengths and weaknesses, so am pretty indifferent to sell either pair. I'm enjoying the system updates and new room. I don't think I can go back to solid state or class D :-)
System updated: Just added Shakti Halographs (nice - they really work) and also ordered a pair of Joule Electra Grand Marquis VZN-160 amps - can't wait to get them :-)
Hi Lohanimal: I really haven't compared this MG-1 tonearm to any other arm apart from the Origin Live Silver which I once had, and this air-bearing arm is much better in every way. The materials used in this arm are mostly plastic (the headshell, arm, and the tube on which the arm slides). The housing at the side which connects to the air tube is metal and is qhite heavy. Overall, I think it's essentially a copy of the Air Tangent arm, but with more cost-effective materials.
I haven't found any noticeable difference between the standard arm or the more expensive one. I think the designers feels that the lighter the arm the better, but perhaps that's just a philosophy on which one may hold a different opinion.
I tried using the damping trough, but it did not fit well (didn't align perfectly), so I couldn't get it working to try it. I guess I could somehow construct my own - might try that as a project some time.
Overall though, the arm seems to be a bargain. I wouldn't be surprised if the performance of this arm matched that of far more expensive air bearing arms, yet this thing costs a small fraction. One other air-bearing arm you might consider is the "Conductor" which seems to be well thought-out and better materials, but again - it's at least twice the price.
Anyways, best of luck - I'd be very surprised if you can find a tonearm at close to the performance of this one for anywhere near the price. If you do let me know. Happy listening!
Your tonearm has kinda caught my eye, and i read one of your posts on it.
have you carried out the updates on it or not that have recently come out, and also the damping trough - indeed - what is the effect of these on the arms performance.
also what is the arm wand made of? likewise what is the tube on which the wand slides made of?
has the more expensive wand made a large difference to the arms performance.
which arm would you put it on a par with.
I am so curious, becasue i use an amazon model one turntable which is similar in many ways to your teres deck.
Hi Jswarncke: I went directly from the Spectron Musician III to the SE mkii with Bybee filters. So, it's hard to judge the impact of the Bybees in isolation. Overall though, even though the amp is not broken in yet, and supposedly needs a long break in period, I find the sound much better in every respect. Two key points I could make are as follows: 1) I feel the amp sounds different from any other amp I've heard, and in a good way. There is an effortless, open, natural presentation to the music. I'm getting goosebumps on certain passages where I was not getting them before.
2) There is virtually no distortion at high volumes - I end up playing music louder because it sounds better loud, where previously I'd have to keep the volume at a reasonable level to avoid some distortion. In particular, there are one or two female vocal tracks I have where the vocal is so high pitched and loud that it sounds like it's coming from within my head, not from outside. It's almost eerie, again in a good way. Previously, I'm sure such volume on similar passages would cause me to cringe. Instead, now I have goosebumps. I'm very happy with the amp.
Very nice system. So the Bybee's get a "wow"? Care to elaborate? Subtle change or profound? I am deeply enjoying my Musician II, but have yet to hear Spectron's latest, much less with Bybees.
Hi Milpai: Thanks for the suggestion - I must try the blanket suggestion.
Yes, the RedWine 30.2 didn't work for me although I tried it with two other more efficient speakers too and it didn't float my boat. I'lll be getting a Spectron Musician III in the next couple of weeks, so that should do the trick nicely. I'll probably later upgrade it to the SE Mk ii version, but it should satisfy my needs for a few months till the upgrade bug hits again.
