Speakers are conventional cone fronts (w/ Be tweeter).
May look to upgrade speakers.
I have been de-tweaking. Gave up my DEQX equalizer. Took the sub off line. I think less has yielded more. I surmise that the sub may have been robbing my amp of wall current. All electronics probably on same circuit.
Top loading remote operated CD player and DAC; balanced and single ended outputs
VPI Industries Classic 2.7 (sic)
Upgraded tone arm base and arm to Classic 3. Also, picked up new VPI azimuth ring with larger "medium" sized counterweights. The larger counterweights had more stability to the tone arm. Upgraded to Classic 3 300 rpm motor.
Audio Research Ref Phono 3SE Stage
Ref Phono 3SE has balanced and SE outputs; low and high gain options and much more
Audio Research Ref-6SE
Just upgraded my Ref 6 to the Ref 6SE - awesome.
Audio Research Ref 150SE
150 wpc @ 8 Ohms; KT-150 power tubes; balanced and single ended inputs
Paradigm Signature 8 v3
Be tweeters; may be bi-wired and bi-amped
VPI Periphery Ring
Flattens records and reduces surface warp
Kimber Heros
Balanced I/Cs between CDP and Ref-5 line stage; and bewteen Ref-5 to VS-115 amp.
Custom Made SE I/C's custom made
Tom Tutay custom made I/Cs between ARC Ref Phono 3SE stage and my ARC Ref 6SE; awesome
Kimber 8TC -- bi-wired -
bi-wired braided cables from amp to speakers
VPI Stainless Steel Delrin Clamp
Screw down record clamp
Lyra Kleos Moving Coil Cartridge
Replaced my old Lyra Kleos with new Kleos under the Lyra exchange program. The dog ate the stylus of my old Kleos. The Kleos is a very nice sounding cartridge ,... very refined sound. The Kleos is my primary again. The Soundsmith Zephyr (first generation) goes back into the box.
That said, Soundsmith has improved the Zephyr. At some point, I may upgrade my Zephyr to the Zephyr MIMC Star under the Soundsmith trade in program. Unless I am surprised with the MIMC, the Kleos will remain my primary cartridge.
System edited: Just added a DEQX Premate to my system. The DEQX corrects for "normal" time incoherencies of my speakers caused by high order passive crossovers and misaligned voice coil placement because of flat front baffle. The DEQX also does room EQ corrections. There are a couple of threads running which speak to these issues.
Very nice system! I am sure it gives you a lot of satisfaction.
I want to second the recommendation of SoundSmith for retipping services. When the time comes for you to retip your MC, Peter does a really fine job. He retipped my Benz LP a year ago and it basically sounds the same as when new. I just hope Peter never retires, or at least trains some good people to continue his good work.
Yes ... I did. But make no mistake here -- the Zephyr is a GREAT cartridge at its price point. Btw, I understand that Peter Ledermann updated the Zephyr to a Mk II version. I think the Mk II has a boron cantilever, among other changes.
In fact ... I liked the Delos so much I swapped it out for the Kleos, the next model up the line. I sold the Delos, but kept the Zephyr as a backup.
One more thought I'll put out there. Based on conversations with Peter, I believe his Paua cartridge may be a heart-breaker that I gotta have.
The good news is that it might be terrific. In addition, Peter will retip it for a very reasonable price. The bad news is that the standard Paua has a spec'd output of .3 volts, which is too low for my phono pre. So .. instead of trying to pick up a preowned Paua, I'll have to buy a semi-custom "hot-rodded" higher output version new from Peter. That will cost about $3800.
Hi, I'm considering cartridge purchase. Did you prefer the Delos to the SoundSmith Zephyr? My table is a 1990 Merrill Heirloom, Moerch DP-6. Thank you and happy listening, Harvey
Hi Bifwynne - great system, congratulations. Well put together! Thanks for the call out on my virtual page, I had not updated in many months - you got me off my rear end!
System edited: Just upgraded my amp from the ARC VS-115 to the ARC Ref 150. Getting used to the changes. Couple of quick impressions. Noise floor of the Ref 150 is -114 db as compared to the VS 115 which is -104 db. It makes a noticeable difference with improved imaging and soundstage. Also, the Ref 150 has much more control and head room when playing dynamic passages. Having said that, I still think the VS-115 is a heck of an amp at its price point. I will come back with more comments in a week or two on a Ref 150 thread that is or was running on the Forum.
System edited: New VPI azimuth ring tweak with mid-sized counterweights for added tone arm stability. SS VPI Zephyr is back-up cartridge and Lyra Kleos is primary cartridge. Just bought an ARC Ref 150 amp to replace my ARC VS-115. The Ref 150 is on the way and I will report on performance when hooked up. Although I have been assured that I will experience a major improvement as compared to my VS-115, I find it hard to believe. I bought the Ref 150 as a result of acute "upgrade-itis."
I know what you mean about Redbook. However I agree on your point about well recorded ones. Heavenly! I actually like listening to SACDs a bit more. good luck with future purchases!
Thank you Barry. The Ref CD-8, in fact all of my ARC gear, does a dependably very good job. I'm not a big fan of redbook CD, for all the obvious reasons. But every once in a while, I load a really well recorded CD and I'm in heaven. I hope you answered my question re your system -- how much horsepower do your amps crank?? ;>')
System edited: A couple of tweaks. Upgraded my ARC Ref 5 to the SE version. Also upgraded my Classic 1 to a Classic 2.5 by exchanging out my Classic 1 tonae arm base for a Classic 3 base. It's a better match with my Classic 3 arm. Sounds awesome. Finally, just bought a Lyra Delos as my primary carty. The Zephyr is the backup carty for now.
System edited: Upgraded my fronts to the Paradigm Signature 8 v3's from the v2's. Not sure yet if I wasted a bunch of money falling into the hype trap. The v3's are starting to break-in, so I won't come back with reactions for a week or two. Just an initial observation: imaging and bass slam are better. Just how much better -- I'll let you know after break-in.
System edited: Just updated my system description for a couple of change-outs. Ignorance must be bliss, because to my untrained ears, my rig sounds great and I am grateful to "own" it. I put the word "own" in quotes because none of us "own" anything. All of us are just "renters" in the metaphysical sense. My system is set up in a finished and furnished basement. I have absolutely no clue whether the sound reaching my ears in my listening chair is "flat" but I don't care. It sounds good to me and my wife complains that the bass rattles the house and her wits. Although I have a couple of future mods in mind, my main focus is on buying good source material (vinyl and redbook CDs). As many have also said, this can be a challenge. It will be interesting to see if the music industry adopts a new audiophile quality standard format for music. Until something new comes out that I understand, I am standing pat.
Thanks Macdad... I first got hooked on ARC back in the 70s when I got started in audio. As a general matter I don't make equipment recommendations because it's a very subjective exercise. But I can say that the nice thing about ARC is that their gear is extremely synergistic. There's a couple of OPs running on the Forum right now asking for advice because the member mixed and matched equipment.
The Paradigm Sig. 8 v2 and v3 is the best kept secret in audio. The Be tweeter is fantastic! Build quality is top drawer. Marc Mickelson reviewed the S8 in May, 2010 and raved about it.
