TT--Rega Planar 3 w/ Super Elys cart., then w/ Shure V15VxMR cart., then a Dvnavector 10x5 cart., which is now mounted on the Rega P25.
CDP--Cambridge Audio D300, then D500SE, then MSB Link Dac II w/ cheapo dvd player, then Philips 963 SA.
Phono Preamp--Built in phono stage in Cambridge Audio A3i integrated, then Monolithic ps-1, then added Monolithic power supply, now built in phono stage of Audible Illusions 2D
Amp/Rreamp--Cambridge Audio A3i integrated, then Conrad Johnson PV10AL w/ McCormack DNA .5 dlx, now Audible Illusions 2D w/ the McCormack.
Speakers--PSB Image 4t, now Vandersteen 2CE.
Strengths of Current System:
I like the big, open, natural, nearly full-range sound.
I like the flexibility of having many sources.
Weaknesses:
The room is really the limiting factor now. The AI 2D has limited inputs and no remote.
Future Plans (feel free to offer suggestions):
Long term plans include buying a larger house where I hope to have a dedicated a/v room. If that happens , I'd like to move up the chain a bit. Right now I'm thinking along these lines:
TT--Nottingham Interspace
CDP--a dedicated redbook player (though SACD, if it survives, would be nice to have too), or maybe just a sonically better dvd player like CAL, Muse, etc.
Pre--Something tubed--Sonic Frontier? VTL?
Phono pre (if needed)--ARC PH3? EAR?
Amps--perhaps tubes here as well--Quicksilver? VTL? ARC?
Speakers--Vandersteen 3A Sigs.
Definately some serious attention paid to room treatment.
Possibly some serious attention paid to cabling, which in my experience at my current price point, has just not been worth it.
They still sound good. However, because of placement issues, soundstage depth and focus have suffered a bit. Not much I can realistically do about this. It's really more a matter of RAF (room acceptance factor). Sure, I might be willing to place a sound diffusion panel in front of a window in order to improve image focus, but there's no way that's going to happen. We're remodeling the living room as I type, and if everything goes according to plans, I should be able to run all cables underneath the floor (and with a dvd, vcr, audio, and sat. tv all hooked up to the tv, there's _a lot_ of cable lying around. I'll post new pictures when the remodeling is complete.
System edited: My system has undergone some substantial changes over the last year and I wanted to updage my page with the hope that it will be useful for other relative newbies like myself who are persuing an analogue-centered and (relatively speaking) inexpensive route to fine sound. I hope you'll enjoy and please feel free to respond with any questions, comments, or suggestions.
System edited: I've done some rearranging with good results. The speakers are actually further out into the room than the new photo indicates. I'm also enjoying my new cart., which I feel is an overall improvement over my previous Shure V15VxMR.
Playtrim, I don't have any experience with highend tapedecks (nakamichi, etc.), but I have owned several consumer-grade decks over the years (NAD, Sony, Yamaha), and the Pioneer really kicks ass. Particularly nice, as far as older cassettes are concerned (and I've got a couple eighteen-year old examples), is its ability to digitally strip away most hiss without lopping off the high end and to bump up the high and low end with its built-in eq. Each of these features is defeatable, so you can start from a base of no interference and add features until you get the sound you like. As far as recording goes, the deck has a feature that optimizes the heads for the tape you're using. It records a test signal on the tape, plays it back, and automatically optimalizes head placement. Neat and effective. It does, however, seem to record at a slightly lower level than what I'm used to. When I play tapes at home, it's not a problem, but when I take them out to my crappy car deck, I have to turn up the volume just a bit more. All in all, it's a feature-packed deck that's easy to use, makes old tapes sound almost new, and makes great recordingss. I think I paid 125 for it on Ebay. It's the one component I've never considered upgrading.
Unsound, Your post prompted me to do some thing I've been meaning to do anyway--experiment with room treatment. I covered up the glass bricks with a heavy wool blanket. And I positioned some pillows at the reflection points. There's a large (6' x 4'), plate glass picture window about 4' behind my listening position. I covered that up with a thick blanket as well. Results: At low to moderate listening levels, I didn't notice much, though at moderate levels, it seemed as though I had turned down the volume a bit (though I hadn't). At moderately high and high levels, however, the improvements were significant. Improvement: Previously, at higher volumes, I had experienced a cringe-inducing high frequency distortion that I had always chalked up to weak source. The room treatment totally elimanted this weakness, leaving a smoth and listenable sound, even at very high levels. Also, the soundstage appeared fuller and more well-defined.
All in all, this was a very worthwhile experiment. The next step is to find, assemble, and install some inexpensive yet effective materials. When I'm finished, I'll post some pictures. Thanks again.
Unsound: I have been thinking about two room DIY treatments 1) the bass tube traps found on Jon Risch's site 2) some easy to set-up and remove panels at the reflection points. Any other ideas, especially DIY ones?
Csericks: I found the biggest difference to be had in replacing the stock cord on the Cambridge cdp, which has a really wimpy, ill-fitting cord. Replacing the cords on the amp and power supply for the phono preamp resulted in little or no impact.
