Designed this 38" by 22" room myself for music appreciation and family enjoyment. soft pecky cyress walls, maple floors, 10ft peak ceiling. Room overlooks the Smoky Mountains. Doors to the room are exterior and the wall adjoining house is brick, so I can listen at night and not disturb the family. Cabinetry holds CD collection.
I have simplified to the Vinni Rossi L2i-SE Integrated which has a great DAC module. The Rossi is American made and has a 10 year warrentee. I use a separate belt-driven transport because that is where most mechanical problems may arise. The Rossi contains a class A 300B pre-amp and I upgraded to Takatusuki 300B tubes. The Rossi is bi-wired with Master Built Ultra cables to the Von Schweikert VR55 Aktives.Thats it. This saves many power cords and uses no interconnects compared to past separates.
While my old system sounded very good, the sound of this new system configuration is more natural, cleaner, a touch warmer, very dynamic and satisfying. All etch and harshness in highs is gone. I think this is mostly from the simpler signal path and the tubes. WSF is way up with only one remote and push and play design. The reduced visual clutter is relaxing. I would appreciate any comments.
21HZ to 40Khz +-2db, less than 0.5% distortion. Powered and adjustable bass.
Master Built Ultra Speaker Cable
Biwire Rare Earth noise reduction coating
Mad Scientist Power Cords
Excellent Power Cords for the buck, with detail, dynamics and a touch of warmth
CEC Corp. TL3N Transport
Belt Drive CD Transport. Modded inside with 14 lbs lead weight, special fuse. Using two Caprice Audio Mosaic Stabilizers on top.
Inakustik AC-3500P
Line Conditioner with central parallel filter and star grounding
Vinnie Rossi L2i-SE
300BTubed Pre-amp Integrated with DAC module. Class A, ultra wide bandwidth Directly heated Triode (DHT) , dual mono with Belleson super regulators. 100Watt RMS into 8 and 180W into 4.
Adona Eris 1C Cherry Amp Stand
Specialized layer of granite, then other materials to dampen, works well under the Rossi
Congrats to the OP and to French Fries...you both sound like you've got some great upgrades to enjoy! Look forwrd to reading more about VS speakers as i have never heard them myself before but read great, great things about them...
I am also a big fan of Von Schweikert Speakers after owning a pair of Eggleston Andra-2's (which had crossovers designed by Albert). i ended up buying a pair of VR-9SE's which, although they are a bit much for my 14 x 20 room, can easily be "dialed in" to sound the way you like. i am now in the process of UPGRADING them to MARK-2 status, which involves stiffening the cabinet, upgrading the wire, modifying the crossover, and installing new midrange drivers. the S&H is killing me (!) but the upgrade is remarkably affordable. VSA doesn't make the most cosmetically-striking product in the industry, but they sound remarkably authentic and natural. AS for your listening space, i am a big fan of a relaxing environment with an audio system that complements rather than battles with your couch or your coffee table. once some time ago i did have the awful experience of auditioning a system in a tiny bedroom with mirrors everywhere, and this was NOT a good thing. but your room looks comfortable and inviting to me. i don't think it's an accident that your speakers sound really good. Imagine all of the dissatisfied people that are moving things around inch by inch to get things to sound okay, or changing their wires, their power cables, their rack system, etc....
System edited: Just received my New Von Schweikert VR5 anniversary Mk2 speakers - I am delighted with their performance. Will post a review if A'gon permits
Tony Sorry taking long time to respond. Not been on A'gon much lately due to work projects. You would be welcome to come down and listen. May be upgrading the Von Schweikert VR5 Anniversary Mark II's soon.
Gammajo, I just up the road a bit in Greeneville, TN maybe just under 1.5 hours away. I'd love to hear your system sometime, but I do not want to be so forward as to invite myself over. I want to invite you to come have a listen here sometime. Perhaps if the NC club could ever get off the ground we would have a chance to hear some various set ups.
Thank you for the complement. Right now the trees are flowering outside the window and the far mountains are greening. It really does add to the enjoyment of the music. I have tried covering the windows with thick blankets and do not get much difference. When I had a TV between the speakers it did make a difference in image solidity and glare to cover that with blankets.
Man what a beautiful view from your sweet spot! Very nice looking setup and beautiful home. Just wondering if you have tried covering the windows when listening(though that would ruin that excellent view!) and if so was there an improvement?
Metralla Thank you the kind comments. Yes, it seems that Ayon is really impressing at the shows and they have been a wonderful company to deal with. Looks like you have assembled a sweet system yourself.
System edited: I have recently simplified to the Ayon CD5s which includes its own transport, DAC and Preamp in one unit. This now goes via Audio Horizons New Dawn Balanced ICs to my Nuforce Reference 3 SEs. They are bi-wired with Guerilla Audio cables (silver on woofers, copper on mid/tweets) to the Von Schweikert VR4 SRs .Thats it. This saves two power cords and two sets of ICs over my past separate North Star transport, DAC and Audio Horizons Preamp. I used the money from sales of these connectors to upgrade my remaining pair of ICs. The Nuforce amps need vibration control and mass loading to be their best. While my old system sounded very good, the sound of this new system configuration is more natural, cleaner, very dynamic and satisfying. I think this is mostly from the simpler signal path. WSF is way up with only one remote and push and play design. The reduced visual clutter is relaxing. I absolutely love the Ayon with NOS tubes. To me it handily beat my home audition of the 20K Meridian 808.3. The Ayon is fully computer ready but frankly I am so enjoying the delight of my current analogue-like Red Book sound, that I will probably wait a few years to let computer audio mature. I would appreciate any comments.
I've heard nothing but good about Ayon gear (wish I could afford it), and CD5s is well-reviewed on it's own. I'll wager you will wind up keeping it. I have an old Denon 5 disc carousel player that has a variable output, and when I plugged it into my amp, I was surprised at the sound quality, it was considerably better than through a preamp. That's what got me thinking that a passive line stage might be beneficial, and I've found the Sonic Euphoria works very well for me. I know you're having fun, getting to audition new gear is always a good time.
Thanks Dan Just going through a major revision - even simpler with the New Ayon CD5s (which has transport, DAC and Pre in one unit) feeding direct to amps. Still auditioning, will comment soon.
I must admit, this is the first time I have looked at your system and room. Both are magnificent. The set up is so clean and inviting. I'd love to hear your system, but I'm on the left coast, and don't get out much anyway.
To be able to relax, and be so involved in your enjoyment of music, is a joy, and I am glad for you that you have achieved just that.
The cabinets are called the Cube. They hold hundreds of CD's in drawers and are strong enough oak to stand on. You can get custom width which I did to hold 20" wide equipment. The view does add to enjoyment considerably can see mountains for 50 miles. I am happy that the glass has not been bad in terms of sound reflections (still get a good sounds stage depth) with the front ported Von Schwiekerts
The view outside your windows is absolutely beautiful. Man, I would love to have a yard with that many trees. I would not be willing to give that up unless the prospective home provides a similar setting...dedicated room or not!
