Hello ACK,

I can give you a little bit of an insight into the analysis speakers. Although they share a similarity to apogee speakers they are not like those speakers. They have the speed, resolution, three-dimensionality, and imaging of a good panel speaker with a benign load. They are about a four ohm load depending on the model. I drive them to thunderous levels, much to my wife's chagrin, with my Nuforce amps. 180 watts into 8 and 325 into 4. The top end and midrange is everything I could ask for smooth and beautiful. The top end is shimmering and alive. The tonality is spot on. Chamber music and ancient music is intimate, the stuff goose bumps are made of. The speakers I have, the Epsilons are, undersized for the size room I have. The Epsilons are 52" tall and 24" wide and 3" deep. They throw a huge soundstage in a room big enough for them to do so. I looked at your room and your room appears to be large enough. They do like to get out in the room to be able to get the depth of field. Just as a side note, I noticed that you have Martin Logan speakers. I had Martin Logan Quests and Requests in the pasts. They were great speakers. I had trouble with the room I had at that time. I could never get the bass to integrate with the rest of the sound in that room. I eventually gave up. Back to the analysis. If bass is important to you, then the epsilons are probably not going to do it for you in a large room. I myself plan on getting a stereo pair of subwoofers for myself in the future. My room sucks up bass like a black hole no matter what speaker I have. I have thought about getting the Omega or the Amphytreon model but that takes a larger pocket book than I have at the moment so I will probably get the subwoofers instead. A good friend of mine that lives close by has the Omegas with the VTL MB-450's. That system has the most bass I have ever heard from a 2 channel system with out subwoofers. Real bass that punches you in the gut and you can feel the music !
inside. Every once in a while one pair will come up on audiogon for under 10 grand. I have seen demo pairs for around 12 grand. Don't get me wrong these speakers have great bass , even mine or the omicrons that are smaller than mine, but if you want the best bass these speakers have to offer, The omegas and the amphytreons are the A-ticket. There are a few great reviews online at enjoythemusic.com by reviewer Wayne Donnely and Dick Olsher at TAS has a pair of Omegas. There is a review on the 'Epsilons from a South African Magazine and Six Moons from Srajeen Ebean if you google the Analysis Epsilon speakers. Hope this helps.
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JSQ

jsquattrin March 03, 2010 17:20

I have taken interest in Analysis speakers lately. Can you please offer a detailed review, especially of the bass which is usually fake-sounding with big panel speakers, with no real oomph but plenty of actual low frequency 'sounds'?

ack February 24, 2010 18:30

I just wanted to make a quick mention to any of our community that have been looking for that last little bit of resolution from our systems without spending a bunch of money. I live in a normal house that came with the usual electrical system found in a semi-newer home. I have spent thousands improving the power from the wall outlet. I spent hours going through the romex ran through my walls soldering the crappy connections as they daisy chain from outlet to outlet. The improvement was not subtle, it was the kind of improvement that well financed listeners pay many thousands of dollars to get a fraction of this kind of improvement. Well, I was feeling pretty good about my work when it dawned on me that I could find still more by simply changing the circuit breaker to a higher quality one that is only capable of providing power to one circuit. Instead of being split into two circuits. I went down to my local Ace hardware and picked up a good square-D 20 amp circuit breaker for $3.99 knocked out a blank on my circuit breaker panel and installed the new breaker. I hooked up the wiring and put everything back together and flipped on the system. What I heard was another improvement in fidelity that further enlarged the size and scope of my sound stage and an increase in micro and macro dynamics. It deepened and smoothed the music and increased the feeling of being there and experiencing an event that took place 50 years ago. Of course, All of this could have have been taken care of, had I just put in a dedicated line to only my system. But in the real world, for real folks who don't entertain the hiring of electrical contractors and running new power systems, this gives us the ability to hear some of that sonic nirvana that few ever can.

jsquattrin February 24, 2010 18:15

Hey Jon, I am still using the A2 SE. In fact, a couple of my friends that have heard my system have also bought it. All of us have put much better tubes in after receiving it. I have the Bendix 6900 in for the 5687's and rca blackplates in for the 12at7's. For the money, it is a great deal. For a fully balanced linestage and the performance, it is a steal.

jsquattrin February 24, 2010 17:51

Are you still using the A2 SE?

I am hemming and hawing about changing the pan for my new DAC, to run direct to my amp, and getting a pre.

I have lots of Tung Sol ribbed plates and plenty of 12AU7s. I would use single-ended mode and not balanced, but it seems like a well received piece of gear.

best
Jon

doctorcilantro February 22, 2010 14:50

System edited: I moved my Koetsu to the RS Labs A1 arm and it sounds wonderful. The only problem is that using the that arm is nerve racking due to the lack of a cueing function. Having to set a cartridge down manually that costs 6 grand is a scary prospect.

jsquattrin January 27, 2010 16:33

I bought a couple pair of rca to xlr adapters to allow me to input the phono stages to my preamp on the balanced inputs instead of the rca's. It was an instant increase in resolution and lowering of the noise floor. the adapters are still breaking in but they are getting better everyday.

jsquattrin December 25, 2009 19:13

Jeff Wells of Audible Arts in Campbell, Ca was kind enough to let me borrow his V3's to use while my V2's are being upgraded to V3 status(as well as breaking them in for me after). I have been listening to the V3's now for about a week and I am astonished at the change in resolution from the V2's. I thought the V2's were great and very highly resolving but they are shown to be rolled off in comparison to the V3's. The V3's are vastly superior from top to bottom. At $800.00 a pair for the upgrade from v2 se to v3 se this is one of the best deals I have found.

jsquattrin December 18, 2009 19:26

System edited: I sent my amps out for the V3 upgrade and I can't wait to get them back.

jsquattrin December 11, 2009 17:20

Just an update on the ringing of my VPI 12.6 arm. I found 2 loose set screws. one under side of the unipivot. This screw tightens down the arm to the unipvot assembly and under the cueing pad. This also holds down another section of the arm tube. I tightened these and the ringing went away. I removed the tape and put everything back to normal.

jsquattrin November 02, 2009 18:07

System edited: The picture of my amps with the new pon-tuns is listed under my equipment. You can get them from Arion Audio. These are the guys who distribute the Analysis speakers. These things had an instant effect putting them under my amps.

jsquattrin October 06, 2009 23:29

Thanks Jbcello, since you have the super platter, most of the tweeks I have described here would be rendered obsolete. the super platter is just so inert it probably would not make a difference. If you have the capability of headphones, I would listen carefully to the arm when it is put down on a record and between tracks. If your arm is ringing(like mine), that is when it is most audible. I used scotch super 33 black tape in bands on the arm to dampen the arm. Its pretty easy, especially if you have an accurate cartridge tracking force scale. just add tape until it stops ringing. When I listen now, my depth is deeper and the microdynamics and macrodynamics are increased. It is possible that your arm does not ring. I dont't really like stainless as an arm material, other manufacturers like origin live and graham have gone to carbon fiber or ceramic because it is a quieter material. the other most important thing is do not use the vpi jig to align the cartridge. I would use the feikert or the turntable basics or another one that is custom made for your table called the best tractor. It is cheaper than the feikert. The vpi jig is about an 1/16''off and that is huge when it comes to tracking a record. The first thing you notice when a cartridge is properly set up is a lack of groove noise when compared to a cartridge that is mistracking. clicks and pops are greatly reduced. Also, if the belts are really stretching upon startup of the platter, put a small amount of baby powder in a baggie and put the belts that drive the flywheel in and shake them up and then remove them from the baby powder and shake them off well to get any excess. Put the belts on and then recheck your platter speed and set to 33 1/3 again. the belts will no longer be overstretched at startup and they will last longer. It takes a little longer for the platter to get to speed. This is not my fix, btw, this is from vpi. I would forget about record mats with the superplatter. I hope this helps. Ciao!

jsquattrin October 05, 2009 22:41

Hello,
I have enjoyed reading about your Hi Fi system and really appreciate all the work you have put into tweeking your equipment. I have recently purchased a VPI Super Scoutmaster with the outer ring and rim drive. I would like to know all the tweeks you have performed on this table, including the dampening of the center weight, outer ring and tonearm. What materials did you use and where did you put them? I have the Super Platter and the thing is a static factory. Have you tried any platter mats that have improved the sound and reduced the static?
Thanks a bunch,

jbcello October 02, 2009 19:58

System edited: To any jmw 12.6 users out there that have had problems with their vpi arm, I have suffered from a lousy vpi alignment jig that is not a good line up of the arm. The turntable basics protractor is much better. And they are dirt cheap. I believe I paid $15.00 from turntablebasics.com You have to use something fine like 6 lb test fishing line. Tape the platter on opposite ends and this will immobilize the platter. Next put the protractor on the platter and make a small loop on one end of the fishing line. Lift up the arm and loop the line over the pivot. You can put the arm back down on top of the fishing line. line up the alignment mark on the protractor until the fishing line blocks out the line on the protractor completely and tape the protractor in place without it moving. You can now line up the cartridge with the outer grid first then, take the tape off of the protractor and move the protractor till the inner grid lines up with the stlus tip and cantilever. If everything lines up you did it correctly and its ready to go. I also found that my arm tends to ring. It is most noticeable with headphones. I used bands of black electrical tape on the arm to comepletely remove the ringing. I also had to add tape to equal the weight force on the vtf weight to balance the arm. You can see a picture on my system thread. This has slashed my noise floor while listening to my records and has greatly increased my low level resolution. cheers!

jsquattrin September 28, 2009 00:56

I had a problem with my HRX. The main bearing went. Don't ask me how, but I e-mailed VPI and was answered back by Mike. He told me how to pack the platter and the spindle. It was a neve-racking experience taking the turntable apart. I packed the platter and spindle and shipped it back to VPI. The bearing and spindle surface that supports the platter was replaced. When I got it back, I immediately, re-assembled the table. The table is a different animal now. I don't know how long it was bad, but It never sounded like this before. I am very happy with VPI. They fixed the table, no questions asked and even paid for the return postage 5 years after I purchased the table. The table is an amazing sublime recreator of the musical event that now just keeps getting better. I will be a customer of VPI products in the future. Thanks Mike.

jsquattrin July 26, 2009 17:03

Has anyone heard of the peter green anthology. I just picked it up. It is an amazing recording. The music is great and the remastering is first rate. I would be hard pressed to find a new recording that good. If someone has had a different experience let me know.

jsquattrin June 19, 2009 23:12

HEY Ken
you're welcome. Good luck with you're turntable. Hope to hear from you again soon. Let me know which table you picked up.

Jeff

jsquattrin June 15, 2009 22:30

Thanks a million for all of your wonderful advise, Sir. You're a true assest to the hobby/passion. I'll be in touch.
Ken

kkennymacc June 14, 2009 05:11

I heard about that as well and did not believe it at first until a Christmas tree placed in the problematic corner of a room about 2 years ago actually made a huge difference in sound...

zephyr24069 June 12, 2009 12:42

Thanks for the tree pointer. I heard about it but never thought to try it. Very smart move.

dgad June 11, 2009 23:50

I put a couple of trees behind the speakers and you wouldn't believe how it helped the sound stage and increased the bass and smoothed out everything else. Not bad for under a $100.00 .

jsquattrin June 10, 2009 15:20

hey Ken,
It was nice to finally meet you at Jeff's store the other day. I think you went the right way with your move. The omega's are the best combination for the room you have. They are also capable of filling a large room and even compatible wth a smaller room. I have another friend that has the omegas in a room no larger that 11 x 13 to amazing effect. Those speakers rock. The Spectron's are the best amp I have heard and will never run out of power. The wall outlet is the only limiting factor. I will send you an e-mail directly sometime. Cheers!

jsquattrin June 09, 2009 04:30

Hello Sir,
I always enjoy viewing your system and reading your comments about your system.

Since last we spoke, I've made some important changes in my system, as well. First of all, I downsized my speakers from the Amphitryons to the Omegas. Although I beleive that the Amphitryons are the best speakers in the "whole wide world," ultimately, these speakers need a room large enough to allow them to breath. My room just isn't large enough so, I went with the Omegas.

Secondly, I just sold my old tubed monoblocks (Manley Labs Neo Classic 500's) and replacing them with the a pair of Spectron Musician III MK2 monoblocks. Heard them at Jeff's place and, that was it. I "NEVER" heard amps like these in all my 30 years in this wonderful hobby.

My next move will be, because I'd like to go all balanced as well, to replace my wonderful ASL flora preamp with the Audio Experience A2 SE.

All of these changes are currently in progress. I believe that this will be my ultimate system that will launch me into retirement in 4 1/2 years, and beyond.

Where can the upgraded tubes you mentioned for the Audio Experience preamp be found at a reasonable price?

You take care,

Ken

kkennymacc March 24, 2009 17:43

Pretty system, well done.

glenfihi March 04, 2009 14:47

I think there is alot of anxiety thinking that a resonably priced preamp from a little known manufacturer could produce a product this good. It is usually thought that a well reviewed and well advertised component is a safer bet. But to those that are turned off by the low price, you can figure a factor of 5 getting a preamp of this quality in the US, europe, or Japan. Labor is just that much cheaper. I have a friend that travels the world frequently and he has heard my system and he has spent tens of thousands on his system as well. He now is entertaining the thought of picking up one of these.

jsquattrin November 27, 2008 22:07