System edited: More power cords

cmo November 14, 2009 20:15

I have actually tried to contact Loricraft about their power supplies, but never got an answer - on repeated attempts. $4800 seems pretty steep..... what would the Loricraft do that a PS Audio Powerplant wouldn't?

Chris

I really think the next trip for the Garrard is going to be a Shindo platter/bearing.

cmo June 19, 2008 02:19

The Universe is definitely not up to speed yet. Probably around 50 hours playing time total. I'm teaking but should probably wait for it to settle a bit more...... It's hard to be patient sometimes.....;-0

Chris

cmo December 15, 2007 03:38

Well.... I had an accident and broke the cantilever off my Airy 3..... Oh my God. Pretty much the stuff of nightmares. I was going to replace it with the same thing since it was such a nice sounding cart..... In the end I became weak, overcome with Audio-neurvosa; sweating, shaking, my ears ringing.... And it was so easy..... Just a phone call to Mehran of Sorasound and bam..... I'm the proud owner of a new ZYX Universe!

It's still not broken in all the way, and I still have a little tweaking to do, but it does sound better. Huge amounts of better???............ Well no.... Just a sort of "much more magic" better..... I like it.

Chris

cmo December 12, 2007 03:09

Chad.... Wow...Thanks very much for your nice comments. Yes, I am a lucky guy and the "stereo" is only a very small part of it.....

Guido.... She's a doll huh? BTW, when are we geting together again?

cmo July 30, 2007 17:30

Kevin and HiFiblue..... Thanks for the nice comments.

Yes, I have a pretty large assortment of Realtraps (Mondo, Minitraps, etc.). They seem to be the best bang for the buck from the reading I was able to do. I needed something to even out the bottom end in my room without killing the higher frequencies and making the room sound dead...... These fit the bill and my room sounds much better with them installed. I use the ASC's primarily as diffusion (with reflective side out). They give me a bit of a "deeper" soundstage. The diffusion that you see on the side-wall, I built myself and are at my first reflection points...... overall, I think the room sounds real nice. I was able to build it with some nod towards my stereo and good acoustic principles.

I really love my Art Audio PX-25 and Joe Fratus has got to be one of the nicest guy's I have ever met..... He has gone WAY out of his way to help me out many times.

I have seen the Minus-K stuff and it looks pretty cool.

Overall I am really happy with my sound at this point and am glad I moved from the 'Stats to SET's and horns.

Chris

cmo July 25, 2007 17:25

Jason,

As a matter of fact, when I was looking for new speakers I was directly comparing the Duo's to WP-7's. They are both great sounding speakers IMHO, but sound (presentation wise) very different. Both have great tonal balance and are very extended at the frequency extreems.

Where I think the WP's excel: they have great sound staging (big deep and wide) and really disappear. They have incredible resolution and are very detailed.

The Duo's on the other hand excel at: they are absolutely supremely dynamic- they jump!.... a snare drum sounds like it's in the room with you. They have great tonality and are very natural sounding (I do not hear any "horn" coloration).....

In the end the Duo's sound more like live music to me than the WP's .The WP's are more high-fi (very pretty sounding Hi-Fi though). I think the WP's have more resolution and may have better high frequency extension, but I think the new Omega's might up the Duo's in this area. I really like the idea of using an SET amp too.... six watts rock!

The Garrard..... Well, I made the plinth myself. It is made from two, two inch thick peices of hard Maple (glued together) with the seperate arm pod made of Birch filled with lead shot and capped with Ebony. The sides are Zebra wood. It's sitting on BDR cones and pucks and another four inches of hard Maple.

I have never heard the Shindo, but find it interesting (however, 20k seems pretty excessive (the platter is 4k!!)). I think the 301/401 debate is somewhat moot; both are engineered slightly different but are basically the same machine. I think there is probably more difference in the way you treat it than the machine itself. The Garrard is the best turntable I have heard..... Well, maybe I should say it's my favorite. It's not absolutely quiet (I'm working on it though), and it doesn't have hyper resolution. What it does do is keep really good speed stability, explosive dynamics, killer bass, and great tonality..... It has DRIVE like no other TT I have ever heard.... Period.

If your ever in Austin, TX drop me a line.... You can hear a Garrard/AVG system and drink some good Anejo Tequila.

Chris

cmo April 23, 2007 04:19

Fernando,

I Listened to a lot of speaker cables in my old system (Martin Logan/ARC) and you can read my review/shootout that I posted here on 'Agon. I still use the Purist stuff and really like it.

I recently listened to a bunch of IC's (Audioquest Sky, Nordost Red Dawn, Cardas GR's, etc.) and greatly preferred the PAD Venustas to the others. The Venustas are very quiet, with a real nice tonal balance. Compared to the AQ Sky I initially thought the Venustas were a little less resolving. However, the more I listened the more I felt the Sky were spot lit on top and I was acually hearing more with the PAD's.

I would highly recommend that you call the Cable Co. and ask to borrow a few pairs from their lending library..... It's a great way to try a few things for an extended period in your own system.

Chris

cmo April 17, 2007 04:40

Added a second Argento Level 2 Mk. II PC. I don't know if I should be spreading the news on these cords or not.... I might drive the price up even further ;-) They are the real deal!

Chris

cmo March 28, 2007 04:10

Hi Ron,

Good to hear from you again. I snuck a peek at your system.... Wow, those Atma's look serious. I bet they sound serious too..... And I have to think your journey is bringing you large amounts of enjoyment.

I am really happy with the changes in direction I have taken too. The Avantgarde's and Art Audio amp is a great pairing. The addition of the Garrard 301 is pretty astounding too. My system has achieved a great sense of musical drive and explosiveness now..... From playing in bands and mixing live music for years I feel like I am getting closer to what that feels like, only in my litening room.... :-))

I am still searching for the last ounces of refinement at this point. I guess it's like thay say; it's that last 5% that's so hard to get.

Cheers,

Chris

cmo February 18, 2007 22:39

Chris,

The AVG's are a lot more lively than the Logans. They give me the feeling the music is more "in the room", if that makes any sense............ It's a discription I had heard before I owned the horns, but couldn't quite understand what people were talking about until I experienced it for myself. I think the major caveat I would give you is you really need to make sure the AVG's are set-up correctly..... They can sound pretty "wrong" if they are not dialed in right.

Mine do not have the Omega upgrade (I would really love to hear that version), but have other upgrades including Cardas internal/external wire, BDR cones, etc. I guess you can never tell when another sound might catch your ear, but at this point I can't see myself moving away from horns.

Chris

cmo October 28, 2006 03:53

System edited: Added some new pics. The Garrard/Triplanar combo in new and sounds incredible........... It was a lot of work but I'm really happy with the results. I feel it ourperforms my previous VPI Aries/JMW set-up.

cmo October 25, 2006 03:56

Rolloff,

Thanks for the compliments. The night light is vintage '50's bar decor and one of my favorite pieces. As for my system journey; I think I am on the right track at this point. I love the electrostat sound, but the low efficiency/need for lot's of power was getting to be a problem for me (read lot's of power tubes + Texas summers= pure hell). I think these speakers outperform the stats in most if not all areas too. I would still like to experiment a bit with other amps and maybe try the Omega upgrade someday too.

Jayctoy,

I wouldn't mind another (new) CD player problem is; I haven't been able to find one that betters the Theta for less than about 7K. I have listened to the ARC CD3II, New Cary, Linn Unidisk, Sony SCD1, etc. The only thing I found worth my while (and in my price range) was the new Ayre U2 player.......... It is the real deal. The Theta is underrated and IMHO a world beater. Thanks for the thoughts on the system.

Chris

cmo April 23, 2006 16:00

Scott,

Thanks for the compliments. You are exactly right. Although my 'stats were very revealing and I (still) think great speakers, I wasn't ready for the jump in resolution and sensitivity. I had just bought the Aesthetix Callisto before I decided to go for the Duo's and was afriad it would be noisy. Thank god it's totally quiet. Every little tweek has made some kind of difference..... From Valid Points to my home made lead boxes. I really love this Horn/SET thing. Even though there is no way I could afford it right now, I sure would love to hear a pair of the new Meta Duo's.

Onemug....... Yea, she really helps in dark room..... Kinda warm on a cold night too. Thanks for the compliments on the system too.

Chris

cmo March 25, 2006 02:45

Whart,

I bought my Avantgardes from my local dealer who was the AVG sales rep for the western USA....... They were his personal speakers and are pretty tricked out. The jumpers are Golden Ref......... although, I'm not sure what he used internally (he just said Cardas wire). He told me that he and Jim Smith experimented with a lot of different wire and this was what they thought sounded best. It was the basis for later Cardas wires being put into the equation. I have mine bi-wired directly to both the mid and tweeter. I took out one leg of the harness this way.

When I was auditioning the Duo's at home I tried a few different amps..... Nagra VPA, BAT, and Wytech Onyx. The best were the Nagra VPA's, but they were a bit noisy and had too much power really. I got a good deal on the Art Audio from Joe Fratus and did the deal sight (ears)unseen. It is by far the best amp out of the ones I have heard...... Having said that I would sure like to, at least, experiment with some other stuff.

I am a little puzzled by the kick drum thing with your sound. Not that mine "really" sound like one's in the room next to you, but it does a pretty good job.... I don't know how you have things crossed over, but try setting the sub at 140Hz and see if that tightens things up. I have my volume set at about 1-2 O'clock...... and you're right it totally kicks ass.

I do miss the Logans for certain things.... They were a bit sweeter on some things and put up a HUGE soundstage. Overall they are still really good speakers IMO. The heat of 20+ tubes in the power amp just got to be too much for a Texas summer though.

My room is really nice, but sometimes I do wish it were bigger (never happy right). I am about 10 feet from my speakers and would love to be able to make it 15 of so.

Chris

cmo March 17, 2006 21:06

Whart,

That's crazy......... I am starting to think we are the same person and don't know it. The Realtraps made a huge difference in my room too (and I didn't really have too big of a problem to begin with). Like you say; more articulate bass, bigger deeper soundstage, etc.

I can't say what difference the Cardas jumpers have made for me as my speakers came with them. Although, I was able to totally remove one of them and wire directly the mid and tweeter with my Venustas. I really like the sounds I am getting these days. The room is not nearly as hot either.

How do you like you Audiopax? I wanted them but the price was a little too steep.

Chris

cmo March 17, 2006 03:46

System edited: WOW..... A lot of changes since my last update. What a journey; from a high power tub amp with 16 6550's and 200 wpc to an SET with 6 wpc. I replaced Martin Logan Prodigy's with Avantgarde Duo's. I am liking it a lot. Chris

cmo March 16, 2006 21:15

Matteus,

I think you are confused. I Use the Hovland from my TT to the phono pre and Venustas from phono pre to preamp. I am very happy with both.

Chadnliz,

I love what tubes do for my system and can't imagine not having them somewhere in the signal chain. To my ears they add a certain organic quality that is not present with SS. People will say that organic quality is distortion.......... whatever, it's what I like. It may go back to the fact that I am a professional musician and would rather eat nails than play my guitar through a SS amp (although comparing the two is kinda apples and oranges). Anyway, borrow a good tube pre and see what you think............ you may never go back.

Chris

cmo August 20, 2005 16:16

My "night light(s)" is a wonderful thing. Funny how she is always smiling too............. The ZYX replaced a Grado Reference Statement. The .5mv model. I really liked the Grado but the ZYX pretty much kills it.

Chris

cmo June 17, 2005 04:41

System edited: Added a new ZYX cart and Hovland MG II phono cables about six months ago. A major leap forward in analog. I added some new pics too. Chris

cmo June 03, 2005 19:58

Thesaint

I wouldn't say I didn't like the MIT's. They sounded pretty good in fact. I thought the PADS were a step up though....... quieter, better tonality top to bottom.. just better in MY system.

I didn't notice your post until now, but if you haven't bought anything yet I would reccomend the Cable Co. You can borrow a few cables try them in your system and see what works best for you.

cmo February 14, 2005 05:23

I have never tried to biamp the system, but would still like to try it out. Unfortunately it would cost a ton of money and i don't think I could find an air conditioner big enough.

cmo March 13, 2004 18:41

System edited: I just completed a "cable shootout" between Nordost SPM, MIT Magnum 2's, Synergistic Resolution X2, and like the Purist the best. For the money they sound like winners to me.

cmo February 23, 2004 05:42

System edited: New pics added......... New camera for Christmas (still trying to figure it out). Sorry for the earlier post; Pics didn't work.

cmo January 04, 2004 21:47

System edited: I finally got a digital camera.......... A Christmas present. Not the greatest pics, but you should get the idea. Photos are of my system in my new dedicated listening room. Any thoughts welcome. If anyone out there lives in Austin, TX area would love to hook up.

cmo January 04, 2004 20:56

I Finally moved into my new listening room and the differences are huge. I don't know if it is becouse of better room accoustics or having four dedicated outlets for the power/pre/and digital electronics......... probably a combination of both.

Any additional comments from fellow Agoner's would be great........... Where to go from here? etc.

I will be posting pic's soon.

Chris

cmo October 12, 2003 17:46

System edited: I updated my system a few months ago with the PAD cables. They replaced Nordost Red Dawn's. THe differences, while not huge, were noticable and positive. The music has more texture and weight or more color if you will. I don't think I lost any speed with these cables. I have heard that some people feel PAD cables can be a little slow, and the Nordost is a very fast cable. All in all the PADS sound fuller accross the audio band in every way, but at the same time they are not highlighting any frequencies that I can hear.

cmo September 13, 2003 16:41

Onhwy61,
I am very interested in the possibility of passively bi-amping my system. How does the sound compare with the system just running one amp? By the way I noticed you have a PS 600; do you like it?
cmo

cmo November 14, 2002 01:14

I would love to passively bi-amp the system. Have you ever tried this on a hybrid such as the Martin Logans? Does anyone have any cable advice, especially phono interconnects. I have heard the Hovlands are good, but am wondering about Nordost SPM's.

cmo November 13, 2002 00:31