updates for the destination reached

rhyno August 04, 2019 14:40

System edited: swapped boulder 1060 for ARC Ref 150. really just got tired of duration required to get Boulder hot (ie sounding good) whereas Ref 150 is up to its peak in ~ 30min. and its peak is very very good...

rhyno September 06, 2014 12:37

System edited: updated to reflect latest gear. a few things left i'd like to hear, but no hurry.

rhyno August 17, 2014 01:22

System edited: have just reconfigured my layout to position main equipment racks (which were 2 shelves tall, as seen in the 'before' pic) from between the speakers to stage left, and maybe another 18" recessed from where they were before relative to front baffle of speakers. in short, this was a dramatic change, and convinces me that the difference between a good system and a great one is a favorable room...folks, get the gear out from between the speakers to get the most out of your rig (with a small room like mine, its more dramatic than a component change).

rhyno August 25, 2013 14:57

System edited: have replaced mac 501s with boulder 1060 on my rockports. lower specified power than macs, but clearly specs matter not..boulder has total control and ease, with rockports quite beguiling. amp has tremendous clarity without character, just telling you what else upstream is doing. staging and detail retrieval are world class. an amazing amp.

rhyno May 25, 2012 20:56

resolution is almost a push, maybe the CDSA is slightly better. MW has better dynamics and bass. CDSA is far more plug & play, whereas MW requires more work to coax out good sound (tubes, power cords, isolation). very happy w/ change overall, and MW is a great player...i bought several spare laser assemblies to the 5400, if that tells you anything.

rhyno February 23, 2012 01:11

had pass XA.5 series in while i owned diff speakers, excellent amps, sweet up top and very natural tonally, but got the impression i'd have to go to 100.5s or higher to get enough current to control the sheritan, and i dont want 600W idle heat dissipation. and even then, the XA.5s are not what i'd consider a 'control your speakers' amp.

will have to look into gryphon & vitus. mahalo.

rhyno August 17, 2011 01:42

thx lloyd. and you're right, the Merak is the last model to use the monocoque chassis until the Altairs, @ $90k. while the driver materials are a bit dated, they still have awesome motor assemblies, world class x-overs, and a SOTA cabinet.

i find it a bit amusing that folks are creaming in their jeans over the new magico Q series, as valin was waxing on about their non-resonant cabinet---ideal combo of mass, stiffness & damping, or things which andy @ rockport has been doing for 15yrs+....funny that no one else has gotten the memo!

i've changed the jumpers that came w/ the M/S setup, and its gotten appreciably better, far and away best sound i've had in my room, and certainly livable forever. but i will be auditioning amps..i'd love a high powered stereo amp that throws off little heat and sounds like a SET...the 501s never fail to satisfy, but they're the weak link at this point. treble attenuation, minor loss of clarity, shortened stage depth and a rollicking bass won't drive you from the room, but with these speakers, i just have to do them (& the music) justice.

the herron preamp is a remarkable overachiever. in direct A/B w/ the passive ypsilon, it was cut from the same cloth in almost all ways, but maybe down 5% in absolute terms. if you kept my eyes closed and told me one unit was Rev 1 and the other Rev 2, i'd have believed it in a heartbeat. and so would my buddy who owns the yp.

rhyno August 16, 2011 03:05

thanks. most expensive thing i've ever bought that didn't have a roof or a gas tank, but strike me as a good exit point to speaker hunting.

there is no music the rockports are not capable of reproducing very very accurately. fidelity to the source, freedom from coloration & congestion at any volume, a cabinet that gives rise to unheard of levels of staging and detail retrieval for a monkey coffin, and overall ease of listening, rockports are simply amazing.

sins of omission (top end extension per older esotar tweeter) are my biggest gripe, and its not nearly as objectionable as sins of commission---the rockports have none.
(i also have some more work to do on leading edge attack, but thats also my amps---501s have lots of power, but not much drive, per the autoformers).

i've known two folks who owned rockports. they died owning rockports. i suspect i will to...but at 38, i hope it will be a while...(and yes, i can easily envision owning these speakers for the rest of my life. they do not make errors which annoy).

rhyno July 24, 2011 14:36

System edited: added Rockport Merak / Sheritan v2. i have bought my last speakers.

rhyno July 23, 2011 20:14

i've always felt i'd rather have good gear in a great room than great gear in a bad room.

room treatments aren't sexy, but they collectively have done more for sonics than any electronics change.

anyone w/ a dedicated room without treatments is greatly missing out.

no one listens to a stereo; they listen to the interaction of their speakers with their room.

rhyno April 19, 2011 14:11

System edited: added Audioquest Redwood speaker cable, which bested my prior KS Emotion (which are great cables). similar in tonality to KS, but more extended top end and much more muscular and articulate on bottom, along w/ a much taller & focused soundstage. hate spending this kinda coin on cables, but haven't heard their equal either.

rhyno December 24, 2010 19:35

System edited: couple recent changes to further things along: 1) replaced a 2" bass panel on front wall w/ diffusors...greatly enhanced imaging and better tonality 2) replaced love seat w/ Zero Gravity chair. OMG. can sit right through a CD with zero interest in moving. and despite the high headrest, no obvious adverse impact in listening.

rhyno November 28, 2010 22:29

System edited: added a section for my AC tweaks; i suspect i've done more for AC purity & room treatment than most audiophiles have. I cannot stress their importance enough...before buying another piece, fix your room & your AC--might as well see what you have before you change!

rhyno September 19, 2010 19:19

15* 11 * 8

rhyno August 19, 2010 03:31

System edited: actually, a few updates: 1) replaced my Risch Q&D tube traps (which are VERY good for $15 ea + labor) w/ ASC 16" dia traps (which are much better). 2) Pass XA60.5s in. ---i will have thoughts on this as time passes (no pun intended).

rhyno May 30, 2010 15:02

System edited: changed preamp to Audio Horizons TP 2.1, will be adding ASC tube traps (which may be a big, or no, improvement vs my DIYs), and coming shortly are Pass XAs. big changes afoot!

rhyno April 03, 2010 01:40

System edited: have added an add'l 10 Owens Corning 703 panels in my room three traps of 6" thickness (using 9 panels) for bass trapping and another single panel for some rear wall mid-hi freq absorption. It is hard for me to overstate the improvments from what was a good sounding room into a great sounding room. The room treatments collectively cost me @ $350 (i DIY'd all of them), and its improvements were more pronounced than any electronics change. All rooms have acoustical problems, but particularly small rooms. Audiophiles would be well served to worry first and foremost about the way the speaker couples to the room.

rhyno August 24, 2009 00:45

System edited: playing w/ speaker cables and have the K-S Emotion in. Seem a bit more evenhanded throughout the bass than the isoclean, but so far only definitive confirmation is how much the isocleans are an unknown-reference caliber cable. not sure what i'll be keeping.

rhyno February 21, 2009 14:04

System edited: have made seemingly minor changes in room treatments that resulted in major sonic benefits. using the JRisch Tube Trap DIY Tweak, I added a 22" dia trap at the corners of the front wall, w/ 16" traps stacked above (2 of em). the biggest learning is that in small rooms, corners are your worse enemy (followed by points where two walls meet). find a way to trap them all and benefits galore in microdetail, staging, and bass articulation.

rhyno January 05, 2009 03:19

theres really no comparison b/w before & after. its like life before you heard quadrophenia, and life after. life after is better.

specifically, bass nodes (manifest as boominess which overwhelms the surrounding frequency range, and obscured microdetails in the midrange) are greatly ameliorated w/ the rolled up insulation in the front corners, and all slap echo problems (giving rise to brightness &/or poor imaging) are removed w/ sufficient application of the wall panels. in a small room, the more the merrier, and i've not reached a point where they cause harm--only where i dont have the room or inclination due to marginal benefits w/ increased application.

dollar for dollar, the best $ i spent in audio was on room treatments. for $300 and an afternoon, i turned a spare bedroom into a very competent dedicated listening room. perfect? heck no, but much better than larger untreated rooms will ever sound.

rhyno November 22, 2008 19:30

System edited: Added Isoclean speaker cables, DIY walker HDLs, tube traps / panels, and am very pleased with how far my rig has come. I've had more than one audiophile tell me they've never heard a wilson speaker sound better...proves that small rooms are just challenges to be overcome, and system matching is key. (EMM, Mc501 and Isoclean all serve to offset the weaknesses of the Wilsons in treble performance and crossover notch localization, and play off the Wilson strenghts of dynamics & impact)

rhyno February 24, 2008 16:20

review forthcoming on dagogo.com, but i can say that i sold my wadia 861se for the CDSA. ---it wasn't very close.

that said, i do miss the 861's tank-like build quality, which the CDSA isn't close to. i take serious issues w/ the CDSA here, but obviously not so much to preclude buying it.

rhyno September 24, 2007 11:58

System edited: recent additions include the EMM Labs CDSA cd player and the Prana Cosmos speaker cable (reviews pending on dagogo.com)

rhyno September 22, 2007 12:22

System edited: added some new Ultrasonic racks; 1 for line level gear, and 2 amp stands (each is maple shelves, stained black, with aluminum cones; the 4-tier rack has aluminum sides). stage got about 2 feet taller as a result. every time i address vibrations, the staging gets better...which is consistent with my experiences on speaker cabinets!

rhyno September 20, 2006 22:27

System edited: System Edit: added the Einstein "The Tube" preamp to the system, and have been awestruck at the change this unit has made to my system. It is the best piece of audio equipment I own, possibly the best preamp available. My thoughts largely mirror the thoughts of M. Mickelson in his spot-on review on soundstage.com.

rhyno July 08, 2006 22:15

System edited: i have just changed from a short wall (11') to a long wall (15') setup, which was a nice improvement. i have found that, with WPs, the WASP setup procedure was clearly preferable to those offered by audiophysics (great stage width, but lousy leading edge and a soundstage that localized w/ one center image and all else at the speakerbaffles). getting to the 1 * 1.1. / 1.25 ratio was critical to imaging. then, i got to trapping the room. addressing those typically-noted problem areas (corners, side walls). i encourage everyone with a dedicated room to get dedicated about it. the traps over all corners (703 corning rigid fiberglass with muslin copper to cover---figure $200 for $10 traps) and sidewall reflections have been akin to upgrading to a more expensive speaker. ---i kid you not. so, the only thing that changed w/ speaker positioning and getting dedicated about the room. in a nutshell, a larger improvement than i've ever heard from a cd player or a cable. rhyno

rhyno May 29, 2006 02:22

System edited: recently added a Silver Circle Audio 3.0 power conditioner (torroid based, w/ some passive conditioning inside as well) used for all line-level gear, and found the noise floor dropped quite substantially (even though i was using dedicated AC to each component). net result is darker blackgrounds, and i find myself turning the volume up louder as any high-frequency glare is just vanished. rc

rhyno March 26, 2006 00:28

System edited: recently have gone through an amp merry-go-round, but think the Mac 501s will take me off it for some time (my way of rewarding myself for surviving the company layoff notice). Mac's have exposed system weaknesses elsewhere (which is what good components do). combo of CDP & Audio Mirror is too tubey / soft, and they will be the next to go (the pre is to go first; that said, its still highly rec'd for the $$). Also, ditched the Transparent Ultra speaker cable for many reasons: Mac's don't like them (autoformers + network boxes is overkill), wanted to back $$ out of system, and oddly i found the Anti-Cables by P. Speltz to be better in my system; the Anti-cables are a great reference, and should be in every audiophile's toolbox for purposes of reference against higher $$ cable (i'm currently breaking in VH Audio CHeLA and will use one of the 2 long term). i consider the Macs + cable options to be a major upgrade from where i was months ago, but still haven't gotten back to that dripping sexilicious midrange of the Wavac i sold (then again, the Mac's have total composure, which the Wavacs didn't have with the wilsons when pushed).

rhyno March 16, 2006 03:56

hi chris

well, lets get to brass tacks: nothing will match the mid's of the wavac. so syrupy, golden, liquid, sexy & intoxicating.

the belles 350 reference is a real over-achiever; i've got tremendous leading edge, transients, bass depth / impact (hard not to improve coming from a wavac, but i'm speaking of live music as a reference point), and surprisingly good tonal quality.

now i'm greedy; i want more power! more torque! more red meat! (again, i'm of the mind that, if the goal is to reproduce the recorded event in the home, and the typical limiting factor is dynamics / leading edge, that its a function of power delivery assuming the speakers are capable---and the wilsons are. so, more power it is...tonality is the easiest thing to correct, so that comes last).

will probably be demo'ing some new speaker cables for giggles, and am likely to move from the exemplar to the esoteric universal very soon. tubes are wonderfully musical, but they're not dynamic or extended enough...i see myself with a mostly / all solid state system very soon...given the progress SS amps have made in crossing the musical spectrum, i've no doubt SS can be made to sound as musical as tubes, but without the compromises / headaches.

rc

rhyno February 04, 2006 00:46

System edited: recently sold the wavac SET, bought the belles 350ref instead.

rhyno January 28, 2006 01:39

System edited: replaced the G&D preamp w/ an Audio Mirror PP1 (less phono), which is quite nice sounding stock, but I've improved it greatly by: 1) replace IEC w/ gold plated furutech 2) replace coupling caps w/ hovlands 3) replace output network resistors w/ roedersteins 4) add bybee & auricap to AC input the stock unit is quite liquid, but not linear enough as its upper mids are a bit tipped per the use of silver plated wire in the unit (at least, that's my diagnosis). the furutech IEC helped restore balance, and the hovlands helped open up the transparency quite a bit more. but really, i changed b/c i love having remote control volume & source!

rhyno December 18, 2005 16:07

actually, i did them all myself. i'm about to go back in & put bybees on the B+ of the 572s and on the DC going to the input stage. wish me luck, there's not much room in there....a lot of the wiring is held in place via push-clips (similar to automotive wiring harnesses), which is difficult at best to administer, and responsible for some forced repairs in other cases).

the unit's circuit is the bomb. no caps in the signal path...that's for any IITC circuit wavac amp.

rgds.

rhyno

rhyno November 12, 2005 00:17

System edited: Living example of what patience can buy for pennies on the $ in this hobby. Knowing how to solder and perform select mods has made a good system great---i cannot recommend this skill enough for those w/ aspirations > budget. The last tweak (dedicated AC into Isoclean outlets) has taken the system over the top where bass images and background noise is gone (helped no doubt by the fact that i turned all the romex wiring into twisted pair before installatio). I cannot imagine another system sounding at this price anywhere. rhyno

rhyno August 19, 2005 14:02

845 SET? i'm not too familiar w/ them. what's the specs? can it drive 4r loads?

i'll say this: the WP6s do sound far more musical than anyone gives them credit for w/ proper amplification. i wouldn't think of selling mine. or my wavac. WPs are definitely dynamic, and not polite --- moreso, they, like merlins, are a magnifying glass...if your upstream gear is bright (and most SS amps are), then the WPs magnify it...too bad they get all the blame, and so little credit on these boards.

not sure if it helps, but if nothing else, remember this: i cannot fathom going wrong w/ WP6s given your musical preferences. its just a matter of how long it takes you before you find synergy w/ them.

rhyno

rhyno March 12, 2005 22:43

System edited: Recently sold the G&D Transport / Entec DAC and moved to an Exemplar 2900; biggest improvement was noted in getting everything onto one rack (i.e. no more gear on the floor). Also, the Wavac likes a high V out source, which the Entec (in all its purity, it didn't have an output stage) didn't have (@ 2v). So, lesson learned is that passive linestages (which the Wavac has, per my upgrading the existing $4 volume pots to TKD shunts) like high V sources. Otherwise, the Entec had better imaging / lower mids, but the Denon has better frequency extremes, drive & dynamics (again, a function of the higher V output). Also, all cabling is an ongoing quest. Time will tell who's left standing in the end.

rhyno January 30, 2005 21:47

System edited: the WAVAC, surprisingly, drives the WP6s very well. great bass articulation, wonderful stage, and the best presentation i've ever had (dynamics w/ sweetness). also, recent updates to the DAC have greatly improved resolution and taken an ever so slight edge off of it, to the point where i know through comparisons it holds up w/, and surpasses, some of the darlings of today---this DAC cannot be outclassed, only marginally improved on vs the industry today. i've been told that its the best sound i've ever had. i happily concur.

rhyno September 03, 2004 21:59

my guess is the BBQ and the JC1s would have no problem w/ MLs, as (going from memory) they have a benign impedance. i found that the BBQ did not like driving the SoundLabs (which are essentially a capacitor w/ the 1r load at the top).

i've heard the JC1s many times in a system that used to have a BBQ (rcrump's). the JC1s will likely sound a smidgen better...moreso w/ more demanding (i.e. difficult load) speakers. quieter background (per better S/N ratio) and a little better dimensionality. otherwise it should be pretty much a wash.

rhyno

rhyno November 13, 2003 14:55

System edited: pics added

rhyno March 16, 2003 20:27

i did all the work to the tuner, the ICs, and some very simple work to the dac myself. and i also made a few overachieving PCs as well, but they just don't stack up to the SLVRs by TG.

rhyno March 08, 2003 06:34

i've heard the G&D + entec dac in the same system as a lindy 680. the lindy is sweeter and arguably more musical (read: rolled off), but less accurate. differences are slight, as both are wonderful. myself, i'd have to live w/ both for a long time before deciding: off hand i think i'd take the lindy for the option of SACD, but i'd miss the accuracy of the G&D setup. and even then, i'm not sure the lindy is better.

but the G&D / Entec setup is @ 8yrs old, and i got it for 1/4 of the lindy $$. so much for advancing digital technology.

rhyno March 07, 2003 14:40

yeah, having rcrump around helps the sound a lot, but not the pocketbook :-)

i'm reluctant to add bybees to signal after multiple discussions w/ curl & crump on the matter. they've tried it and thought the benefits weren't worth the losses (not to mention the fact that the merlins come w/ some admirable zobel networks already). i don't trust many guys in audio, but i trust those guys (they know what they're doing). AC however is a no-brainer for the bybees----took only a few seconds for the paradigm shift to sink in.

the G&D & entec stuff, like the CTC & rockport gear, are for the ultra-hobbyists. not sold in stores kids, but really really incredible gear. G&D was covered in bound for sound some time back---marty raved on the transport as being the best ever. i'd agree. the entec dac has competition as its an older model and digital has a 2 yr half life or so, but this dac is lovingly executed...which few people do in audio. attention to detail matters when you're talking ultra high end, and i don't know lots of mfgs that go through the pains of love in their gear. the only companies i see execute "lovingly" on a regular basis are merlin, rockport, TG, entec...CAT & wilson comes to mind as well (yes wilson--like em or not, they're fanatical--that's what i'm talking about). lots of companies aren't so loving. but they're the names you know and the gear you see for sale on a regular basis. you don't see the gear i call 'loving' because people don't sell it, for a very for a reason...

vinyl is a non-option. haven't the room or the $$ for it (to do it right) and sold all my records long ago (my only audio regret).

listening? everything but country and rap....lots of R&R these days, along w/ jazz.

rhyno

rhyno March 07, 2003 02:47