System edited: Added some vintage KEF speakers and the latest Monarchy SM70 amp version before Monarchy is gone.

ssglx December 31, 2014 11:57

System edited: Just documenting several recent changes to the system. Sold my beloved Soliloquy 5.3i speakers to simplify. I miss them alot, but they went to a good home and will be enjoyed I think. Also upgraded to a MF V90 dac which I think is pretty fantastic.

ssglx December 25, 2014 14:40

Hi Devilboy. I have 2pair of the Golden Helix cables. Would love to try the Double. I love mine. I find them to be terrific. Most transparent cables I've tried without a doubt. They also excell at transient response and bass impact. Explosive but also delicate and natural sounding when paired with complementary cables and components. I never tire of them.
I will say that my Morrow SP2's have a bit more natural timber but at the expense of openess and impact. Both are fun

ssglx February 24, 2014 23:24

Hi,
I'm thinking about trying the Mapleshade Double Helix speaker cables. I guess you are still using them? May I ask what they replaced? I don't want cables that sound "hifi"ish. Cables that exaggerate highs and lows just to "wow" you in a ten minute demo. I like three dimensional, holographic soundstaging. Natural timbre and warmth are important. Thanks.

devilboy February 22, 2014 22:31

System edited: Updated system pictures.

ssglx February 15, 2014 00:36

Uhh...actually back up with two systems again. Grin...the exposure amp is pretty awesome. Amazing how much clean thrust i can get out of 5 1/4 inch woofers; and the speed beats the pee out of the floorstanders.

ssglx February 14, 2014 22:20

Ok, so it's definitely time for a new room pic. I'd like to see how it looks now that you've simplified things.

timrhu February 13, 2014 22:13

System edited: Added my new integrated amp (Exposure 2010-S2) and uploaded some pics for documentation. Loving the new amp. Very powerful sounding.

ssglx February 09, 2014 14:21

System edited: I'm down to one system temporarily. Sold the Audio Refinement amp and tuner. Might put the CD player up for sale too.

ssglx March 19, 2013 23:08

Nice system times two. When one has the room, two systems in the same space makes for a nice indulgence. Happy listening.

glenfihi March 02, 2013 02:08

YeeHaw! Just put in a new pair of Sophia Electric 6SN7 tubes. Ran a few hours with no signal to burn them in a bit. But right away nom they sound big bold and vivid. I though the Chinese tubes were ok for my use but I REALLY LIKE THESE.

ssglx December 06, 2012 03:48

About 3 weeks ago I replaced the V-dac's wall-wart power supply with a standalone model from Pyramid. It made a significant difference, mainly in bass drive and definition. well worth it.

ssglx December 04, 2011 20:21

Tim,

Thanks for your comparison of the Sat5 vs. 5.0. As I understand it they use the same drivers w/ the difference being x-over and cabinet design.

After Chris and your raves about the 5.0, I rewired the internals w/ Kimber Kable and re-dampened the inside w/ egg crate foam. The dampening opened the Sat5 up, removing the congestion and hollow sound. Replacing the existing rubber insulated heavy gauge wire with Kimber cabling added air, extension, clarity, & bass articulation. They are not the same speaker sonically. Next to redo x-over and build the larger ported cabinet. Thanks again for your comparisons.

mjcmt August 10, 2011 18:29

This thread prompted me to remove the Shearwater Hot Rods and pop the 5.0s back in my system. I can officially say these are my favorite speakers, and I have tried A LOT of speakers.
In fact I just sold a pair of Dynaudio Contour 1.3SEs. The Dynaudio speakers are an "audiophile" type speaker. They reveal everything in the recording. So why did I sell them? Because they reveal everything, but not in a good way. They were tiresome to listen to for more than an hour. The 5.0s I can listen to for hours, and I keep turning them up.

timrhu August 03, 2011 01:32

Thanks for stepping in Timrhu. I enjoy the dialog. Oddly enough, for some things they do the 5.0 may have been the best speaker in their line.
The 5.3 floorstanders have more midrange fullness and accuracy and go deeper in the bass, but they don't have the extreme quickness and bass timing and heft that the 5.0's do. The little monitors rock, while the 5.3's can't quite keep up.

ssglx August 02, 2011 10:16

Ssglx, hope you don't mind me stepping in on your system thread but I have also owned both the Sat5s as well as the 5.0s. I agree the Sat5s aren't in the same league as the 5.0s; not even close. What I notice with my 5.0s in the system is I keep turning the volume up as the night goes on. Not that they don't sound good at low volume, they do, it's just that they are so much fun to listen to and they never irritate my ears.

If you come across a pair of 5.0's at a good price, you should snap them up, if nothing else you will then have spare drivers for both.

The 5.0s are a ridiculous bargain at the used price now. If you find a pair in good sonic condition, buy them.

timrhu August 02, 2011 01:43

Thanks. After listening now the Sat5s sound a bit hollow, thin, and bright, though airy, so I will keep them for rears (if I build up a HT system) or save for the extra drivers since they were their own design. I will keep an eye out for the 5.0s.

mjcmt August 01, 2011 19:25

Mjcmt,

Yes I am a large fan of Soliloquy speakers. I only heard the Sat5's once. They sounded pretty good, but somewhat congested when compared to the 5.0's when placed well out in a room.
If you come across a pair of 5.0's at a good price, you should snap them up, if nothing else you will then have spare drivers for both.
The 5.0's are an incredibly lively speaker if you give them room to breath and don't fall into to the heavy damping/high mass trap.

ssglx August 01, 2011 10:03

I see your a big Soliloquy fan. Can you comment on Soliloquy speakers?

I just traded some Mission monitors for the smallest Soliloquy Sat5 speakers. I hope I did good. As I understand it the Sat5s have the same drivers as your 5.0s, but in a smaller sealed non-ported box - clean tight bass to 60hz as I've read. I listen to Jazz mostly so it should be ok. I'm going to try it w/ my AE Super Amp MkII tubed power amp with a direct feed from the variable output of a vintage Yamaha CDP.

mjcmt July 30, 2011 14:09

Thanks for the proper term Mjcmt. Its sometimes difficult to describe to others the configuration. It definitely sounds good.
I'm now just waiting for the wife and kids to be gone for a period when I can really crank it to find the upper limit.

ssglx July 08, 2011 09:57

How you have them configured is referred to as vertical bi-amping (one amp per speaker). There is a reason it sounds better than horizontal bi-amping (one amp for lows and one amp for highs).

In all but a true dual mono amps, the single power supply of a stereo amp only has to drive one current hungry bass driver and one easy to drive tweeter. You will experience a greater ease of music flow with less chance of clipping at higher volumes.

mjcmt July 06, 2011 11:35

System edited: Very pleased with the latest reconfiguration to my Monarchy amps. I had been running just a single amp in stereo mode because I didn't like the sound of the amps in bridged configuration at higher volumes. In stereo mode that amp seems to retain its sweetness up to its maximum for some reason. Yesterday I switched to both amps in stereo mode, biamping the floorstanding Soliloquys. With one amp running the tweeter terminals and one running low end I got a hum or oscilation. On the suggestion of an amp building friend I re-configured to one amp per speaker, but in stereo mode bi-amping the speaker. Well it sounds wonderful. All the high purity sound, but now more powerful. Very pleased with the change.

ssglx July 06, 2011 11:06

Thanks, that is some good information.
That is what I liked about the Benchmark DAC. It sounded natural yet you could here deep into the recesses of a recording. A few have felt it thin in some systems. It never did for me, but I was using the AES Superamp II tube amp w/ the Benchmark DAC variable output.

mjcmt December 21, 2010 00:15

I felt like the Dac Magic probably had more information present. On some program material it sounded pretty fantastic, but often-times the next cut on shuffle play would sound oddly electronic, like extra processing or something. Couldn't live with it.

ssglx December 20, 2010 17:28

That is very useful info. I'm thinking of the Apple TV for music and movies.

Thanks for sharing the benefit from an external DAC w/ the A-TV. You say the vDAC is smoother than the CA DAC. Is everything else equal like detail, macro and micro dynamics, distortion, soundstage, etc.? I'm looking for a budget DAC, after having the Benchmark DAC a year ago I have seen the benefits of a good DAC.

mjcmt December 20, 2010 13:14