this room and system is the result of 10 years in High End audio. my
system has been stable for a couple of years (except for transport and
amplifier upgrades within the same brand). the room has been in the
planning stage for about 18 months and i actually moved in a little over
a month ago.
my audio philosphy is to have the system get out
of the way of the event. i like as pure and simple a signal path as
possible and, at this point, prefer passive to active gain stages. i
love all the formats and enjoy having lot's of music.....vinyl is my
favorite but i listen to at least 60% digital. the new room really
reveals the benefits of SACD over redbook.
the system and room
truely allow the event to be recreated before me. i love the way the
speakers disappear and i am transported to another place/time.
i have choosen my cables, sources, amps, speakers to have as little of their own sound as possible.
recently, i upgraded my digtial transport from the modified Philips
SACD 1000 to the new emmlabs CDSD.....this was a significant step upward
in performance.
i have written an article in Positive Feedback regarding my room building experience.....here is a link;
new version of these cables, a big step over the amazing TRSC model i have used for 10 years. fantastic performance.
WADAX SA Reference DAC
Wadax Reference Dac----state of the art dac with 2 separate power supplies. the best dac i have heard by a good margin. below is a link to a thread about my Wadax experience.
Arya RevOpod isolation footer (32 used under the 5 Wadax Chassis).
height and tension adjustable. the Wadax dac, server, and server power supply chassis all use 8 footers, so it's critical to be able to adjust height and tension to have an even support for optimal performance. RevOpod's are unique in those attributes making them ideal for this use.
https://www.arya-audio.com/revopod
CS Port LFT1 turntable w/arm
air bearing platter and air bearing linear tracking arm; string drive with zero feedback dc motor, low pressure, low flow air system with zero noise air box.
world class musical flow, nuance and delicacy, combined with authority and ease. serves the music completely.
Esoteric T1 Turntable
magnetic drive/rim drive idler turntable with torque adjustment.
with the deletion of my NVS turntable, i was able to move the Taiko Tana active isolation shelf to under the Esoteric T1. this has upgraded the performance of the T1 significantly. objectively small changes, but musically quite profound up tics in realism and immersion. more nuance, greater music focus, better bass articulation.
https://www.esoteric.jp/en/product/t1/top
Esoteric G1X Master Clock
Master Clock Generator for speed improvement for the T1 turntable. significant improvement in music realism.
https://www.esoteric.jp/en/product/g1x/top
Durand --Tosca tonearm.
gimbal bearing design. Tosca is on the Esoteric T1 turntable
Primary Control 12" FCL tone arm
Field Coil Loaded uni-pivot tone arm. with power supply. mounted on the Esoteric T1 turntable. amazing natural and very high resolution tone arm. link below.
12 inch tonearm, stainless steel. used for the Sumile mono cartridge.
https://glanz.tech/e/collection/mh1200s1000s900s/
Experience Music/Intact Audio phono corrector + silver wound MC Trio SUT combo for three different tonearms.
bespoke tubed phono preamplifier. silver wound, with custom dual power supplies.
https://myemia.com/LR.html
LFD -3- Phono Cables DIN to RCA
3 sets of very high performance phono cables. amazing performance. built by Dr. Richard Bews in the UK.
one cable uses a DIN to RCA short Dongle + an RCA to RCA interconnect. the Dongle improves the performance of the DIN connection. details at the link below.
two Etsuro Golds, ---a pair of Reference MC Phono Cartridges.
duraluminim (A7075) body, 24 carat 'Kinpaku' Gold Leaf finish, diamond cantiliver. .3mv output, 4 ohms. these are both special versions of the Etsuro Gold.
one is mounted on the CS Port linear tracker.
one is mounted on the Primary Control FCL arm.
finest cartridge i have heard by a significant margin. WOW!
Audio Technica MC-2022 60th Anniversary cartridge
uses the unified stylus cantilever design. which results in extreme lack of distortion and linearity. remarkable neutrality and ability to dig out detail and keep it natural and musical.
https://www.audio-technica.com/en-us/at-mc2022
Murasakino Sumile Mono phono cartridge
MC cartridge for mono records, .04mv output. tracking force 3gms. finest monaural cartridge i have heard. competes on musical refinement with the top stereo cartridges.
Ampex twin ATR-102----one 1/4" and one 1/2" reel to reel master recorder
hot rodded by ATR Service Inc----Andrew Kosobutsky. significant upgrades over stock. each interfacing with hot rodded Ampex MR-70 preamps. the new tape deck performance standard in my opinion.
active isolation under 5 separate components: (1) the NVS turntable, (2) the MSB dac, (3) the darTZeel preamp, (4 + 5) both darTZeel mono block amplifiers. custom modifications by Taiko Audio add a linear power supply plus panzerholtz top layer + Daiza platform to provide full frequency resonance attenuation to each platform.
Taiko Audio Daiza isolation platform--22 used in the system
Panzerholtz Platform with spiral cutouts reducing mid and high frequency resonance while retaining life and energy and not changing tonality.
22 Daiza platforms in the system of various sizes under every piece of the signal path.
Evolution Acoustics 'system' power cables
a new version of the TRPC model i used on my darTZeel 468 mono blocks for the last 10 years. a big step up.
Sablon Audio King power cord
used on the Wadax Reference Server power supply.
https://www.sablonaudio.com/power
Absolute Fidelity power interfaces
power cords specifically designed for either motors (tt and tape decks), amplifiers, and components. 11 in the system.
Tripoint Audio Troy Signature
Grounding box for chassis grounding the darTZeel 458 mono block amplifiers + grounding the passive main towers of the Evolution Acoustics MM7 speaker system.
Tripoint Audio Elite
Tripoint Elite grounding box. this does chassis grounding for my sources. it uses a a pair of Tripoint Thor SE Master Reference ground cables for my dart preamp and the MSB Select II dac. there are also 4 Signature Silver ground cables to the two arm boards of the NVS tt, the power supply of the NVS tt, and the SGM server.
Equi=tech 10WQ
10kva balanced Isoltion transformer and distribution panel.
Furutech GTX-D NCF Rhodium duplex outlets
10 in the system. used with 10 Furutech covers and frames. uses NCF (nano crystal formula) material to reduce noise by emitting negative ions.
Wave Kinetics A10 U8 decoupling footers
8 sets-of-4 in the system for individual tuning of each piece of gear.
Auralex T-Fusor diffusers
i use 20 of these. 6 each on the front side walls, and 4 each front ceiling and rear ceiling.
Klaudio Record Cleaning System
automatic record cleaner
Acoustic Revive RL-30 mKIII CD-LP demagnatizer
for demaging any disc.
Furutech DF-2 LP disc flattner
will remove warps from Lps
Audiodharma Cable Cooker, Anniversary Ed.
will cook any cables
Winds ALM-01 Stylus Force Gauge
easy accurate, repeatable, measurments.
i-Tower by Koncept LED floor lamp
(3) are used. best audio light ever. 2 'warm', 1 'cool'.
Quietrock THX 545 drywall
specialized drywall with a 1/4" metal layer. used in my front sidewalls to establish proper room boundaries.
okay, 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch, that's what i thought....! and the two boxes are outboard analog circuits bypassing the studer preamps...? exactly what are they all about? or is that "proprietary intel...?
HI Mike, what are those two boxes with round discs in 4 corners to the left of the studer r to r's? one is above the other on an audio rack system. i don't see them in your list of gear/tweaks. why do you have TWO studer a-820's? two different tape widths or ?? thanks, David. P.S. - your "barn" doesn't look much like a 21st century audio haven from the outside- nice disguise me thinks...
i am honored that you have been a member of Audiogon since 2002, yet this is your first post and it's saying such nice things about my system. i really appreciate the comments.
and i could not agree with you more that is a great deal of work and energy to put together a serious system.
I liked the sound of the iPhone ringing in the video ;-)
that was my wife calling. :)
when i showed her the video i apologized to her for not answering. she was understanding. i always tell her it's her system too. she just rolls here eyes and shakes her head. :)
and if you want the music, here you go . that's the Late Beethoven Quartets.
i would likely recommend this one more , since it's the complete set and not just the late ones. i have both the complete set and a separate box of the early and late too. and a couple of single pressings.
you cannot go wrong with Quartetto Italiano. i also have their complete Mozart box set.
try to get the Dutch pressings, the Italian pressings are to be avoided i'm told.
glad you enjoyed the music. i love String Quartets and play them often. my system makes them sound real. so much nuance and tone, and it touches something in my soul, and makes me happy and contented.
and like you, i know nothing about classical music other than what sounds good.
thanks for the kind comments. i'm considering getting a faster focusing 'prime' lens for my D600 for the video that is also lighter than my Nikon 24-70 f2.8 so i can keep it steadier too.
btw; i noticed you also like the Audio Magic fuses. a question; the one's i'm using are the 'Super' which retail for $100; were the one's you spoke of on that thread the 'Premium' or the 'Super'?
it was great connecting with you this weekend and it's great to have you and your wonderful system and energy back active in the hobby. i look forward to you getting things reposted.
Your System is Simply SPECTACULAR !!!! I'm Very Happy For U !! My system cost nothing like this, but I know it's Amazing!!! It takes A TON of VERY HARD WORK, and Patience!!! Thank U 4 sharing!! :o)
Fantastic video Mike. I am not even a classical guy but even I have to say that sounded out of this world. And that's through my little dell computer speakers :).
Auto focus is a bit slow but nice video overall. You are the #1 most dedicated Audiophile on Agon. They should create a "All out Assault+" just for you.
Mike, I have been absent from audio for mor ethan a year now and hardly peeked here. But when you think of systems here, I think of your system first. You are a dedicated man who has contributed to this hobby in an untiring manner. And now that I am looking at what improvements you made, I am like "wow" :)
Keep it up, pal.
By the way I am soon going to post my system here again.
Nice video! Incredible room, system, music collection...and reflective of your total and utter dedication! I also spied the Macallan 12-yr too...nice touch! A toast to great audio!
Thanks Mike. No matter what, I do find it interesting that the smaller, less powerful amp became warmer. The XV-1s would be way way way down the line. After my media server I am going to get the Wave Kinetic speaker feet and the DPS(dedicated power supply) for my Amadeus. It is supposed to give you even more of what the Amadeus already does and at its price point, I see no reason not to get it. You views on the fuses are interesting. Pretty neat that something you really don't think about can make a big difference like that.
