I have been in this hobby over 30 years and in that time have had the pleasure and good fortune to own many many high end components and gear. My goal in the past 6 years was to progress to a smaller footprint than my big Genesis speakers with Vitus monos, and still have great sound. I just didn't have the room in my new home for the big system AND all the boxes and crates! LOL.
I tried a number of fantastic products over those 6 years......Manley, Zanden, the amazing D'Agostino, Coincident, Backert Labs, Vitus, APL, Jeff Rowland, Emm Labs. I'm finally settled on my MSB/ EMM DV2 combo, with Absolare Stereo amp and Tannoy Speakers.........bit of a mix for cables, with Echole Omnia, TEO, Stage III Gorgon and Musica Bella Kuala2 power cables. Pics to come.
Final setup: EMM Labs MTRS Amp with all Hemingway Sigma cable. I feel the system is done.
The newest and greatest from Tannoy, the Gold Reference series. Still breaking in the system but loving it!
Six years later, very very happy with these speakers. They gave me exactly what I was looking for stepping down from my 4 tower Genesis speakers. Still wanted great sound, emotion and soul and a much smaller footprint. On top of that they can pound out some unbelievable bass, and drums, when I kick things up. I've tried many different amps with these speakers, to get what I feel is right. I finally feel like I've hit a home run with the EMM Labs MTRS and Tannoy combo....just unbelievable. Had some issues with Absolare and the Distributor which ended up being a blessing, because the MTRS is next level, without doubt.
MSB UMT Plus
Plays and Spins everything digital, including 3D BluRay. Awesome.
MSB Technology Dual Signature Power Base
I was using a desktop power supply for my MSB UMT Plus. Switched to a new Dual signature power base from MSB. Love the improved performance.
EMM Labs DV2i
Latest and greatest from EMM. Without a doubt my last DAC. Very surprised EMM Labs was able to get this much “upgrade” on the DV2. To me this was a 2 generation jump in performance. Love that the streamer is built-in. I was able to free up shelf space and sell a high end power cable, that was used to run my streamer.
EMM Labs MTRS Amplifier
Latest and greatest from EMM Labs. My last Amplifier.
Tripoint Troy Signature NG
This is the third Troy I’ve owned, amazing gear.
PS Audio P15
Added the PS Audio P15 power regenerator. Upgrade from the P12. Very very happy with the performance of PS Audio Regenerators. I have everything plugged into it.
Hemingway Z-core Sigma Speaker Cable
One of the best speaker cables in the world.
Hemingway Z-core Sigma Power Cable
Spectacular cable. This one convinced me to go full loom Sigma.
Hemingway Z-core Sigma Interconnect
Best ic I’ve owned or heard.
Hemingway Audio zcore jumpers.
Stand: Home made
I made my stand using a double layer of Maple, so it's 3.5" thick on the shelves. Weight is easily 300lbs. This made a serious improvement in the sound. Really seemed to literally anchor the music in place. Was a lot of work and it's not perfect by any means, but I'm very very happy with the results.
Revised: built a new smaller stand. Love the size and accessibility.
IsoAcoustics GAIA
Put these footers on my Tannoy and the results are fabulous. The speakers now sound like they weight 1000lbs.
Walker Valid points
These were laying around doing nothing so put them under the digital gear. Not sure if they made much difference as I've had lots going on in the system lately, but I do love the look and extra height they give the gear for airflow.
QSA Black/Red Receptacle
Wow, love these! Thought I would try the Red Receptacle first, loved it so much I immediately upgraded to the black/red!!
Shane,...your systems, as they always have, look fantastic and feature a long list of great gear, cables and speakers. That current line-up must sound fantastic! Congratulations!!!
Good Morning,...thanks for your in-mail message; it's great to hear from you. It looks like you've made major changes across your entire system. Great gear and speakers,...must all sound amazing!
Hope life, work and audio are all treating you well!
Hello Shane! Hope you are well and enjoying all your latest upgrades! You definitely have made some radical changes in 2015; let us/me know what you've been up to and how life and audio are in the Canadian North!
Wow Shane....major changes all around that show together very well! This is a radical sound profile/type change as well,...very happy for you! The system must sound great!
How do you like the Manley monoblocks? I've been looking at them and others and may still try tubes as an alternate config; had a great set of discussions with E. Manley as well as the folks at Ayon, VAC, etc....the tube bug may still be present despite one key distributor for 2 major lines and the designer of my speakers telling me high-end solid state is the right choice for the combination of drivers, what I listen to etc...in my speakers.
Wow Shane...you've been busy! Hope all is well; send some more details and post new pics, particularly for speakers, amp and pre-amp. You lovin' tubes????
You've been through a major system change...hope you are enjoying it even more than previous revs! When will you be posting new pics! We'd love to see what the system is all about now!
Thanks for updating the pics...wow(!) you had a major change in your room. It looks great,...how does the system sound? MERRY CHRISTMAS to you....happy listening and have a great day!!!
Shane...also glad to hear that the Statement Gold PCs are making your amps happy! They do amazing things for a system and based upon what I've heard reveal all that a given component is capable of producing. Very happy with the results in my system as well!
Thanks for the info on returning to the Hifi gold fuses and the maestro outlets...I can relate on reaching a plateau that you are very happy with and essentially deciding to relax and just enjoy the system. I think there is a point of diminishing returns where that extra 0.1% (exaggerating...) improvement is just not worth what it takes to get there :-)!
Hey there! How are the new amps, pcs, etc...treating you? Have you had much time to listen as of late given work and life demands? I've finally got some time I reclaim from work in the days ahead and I think I'll be giving the fuses you recommended a while back a try. It should be a very interesting and revealing test. Have you stuck with those fuses or have you found additional ones that you'd recommend?
It's definitely worth the time to talk to your dealer and get an audition set of the speaker cables arranged! I would truly be surprised if you didn't wind up raving about them with your speakers given what I know about them.
When you are exploring your curiousity for the Opus, you may want to include the Elrod Sig Gold speaker cable; after years of hearing many different speaker cables from different sonic philosophies, the Elrod really opened my eyes and ears as to what was possible. Merry Christmas!
It's great to hear about and see the further changes in your system! I can relate to getting angry on the cable roller coaster with the related escalating costs. I am presently using VH Audio Symmetry Copper interconnects with amazing results. I cannot believe I spent much more over the years with various manufacturers though I cannot claim to have ever spent THAT high as on the Sakras :-) I take it from what you write that you are enjoying the system just as much (if not more) and have additional money back in your pocket to boot?!? Enjoy the music!
Bullot (Shane): It's great to hear from you on your latest and greatest experiments and upgrades! Hope all is well...I'll give those fuses a try as well since that is one area where I've never given much thought our time. My big Edge NL 12.1 should clearly benefit from such a swap as might my pre-amp power supply.
Shane: Thanks for posting your system, it looks great and the room is beautiful! What surrounds are you using? Do you have them in the back of the room as well? This system must sound great as configured! Happy listening and Happy New Year!
