Having had, for decades, a dining room in which I never dined, I finally decided a while back to turn it into a dedicated 2-channel space. One of the great advantages of being a single person is not having to ask permission. I got a good price for the 1930's oak parquet dining table on Craigslist, and then had Sandtown Millworks in Baltimore build me a one-of-a-kind audio table. I had some nice mid-fi components before essentially losing my mind (and espousing the "we're all gonna be a long time dead" point of view) and deciding to dip my toes into the high end. Granted, it's just one of the bottom rungs of the high-end ladder, but it's as high as I need, or intend, to go. And I couldn't be more pleased with what I'm hearing.
The system is powered by a dedicated 20A circuit with 12 AWG Romex into a PS Audio Power Port Classic for the power conditioner and the amp.
I
recently upgraded my phono cartridge from the entirely competent, mid-range Audio-Technica 740 ML to the Hana ML. I was pretty sure
that Keith Herron's wonderful phono stage, which cost a pretty penny by my
standards, wasn't breaking a sweat running a 47 load MM, and I was eager to see
what it could do with a high quality LOMC (for which it comes with a selection of different RCA
loading plugs). Based of many reviews on A'Gon and elsewhere, I had strongly
considered getting the A-T ART9 cart, but decided against it because it's a
high-compliance cart. MoFi specifies that the Ultradeck, whose tonearm is a
relatively heavy effective mass of 25g, works best with low-compliance carts.
Hence, the Hana. This was reinforced by a conversation with a terrific sales
dude at Music Direct (parent company of MoFi), who recommended the Hana ML as
the proverbial match-made-in-heaven for the Ultradeck. Turned out to be true.
The cart is just fantastic, with dynamics through the roof and the ability to
retrieve a wealth of information I never knew was there. There is more "there" there in every way. While it is not, shall we
say, inexpensive, if you're in the market and it measures well for your
rig, I simply cannot recommend it highly enough. (And yes, I'm well-aware that compared cost-wise to the carts that some of you are running, the Hana is, relatively speaking, the price of a cup of java.)
Even though about 75% of my listening is to the analog side, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the Yamaha 2100 SACD/CDP has been a revelation. It replaced a very capable and admittedly, much less expensive, Marantz 6006, but the difference was immediate and stunning. The Yamaha is a beast at nearly 35 lbs., but a beautiful one, with silver fascia and piano black real wood side panels. It's got an excellent 32-bit ESS DAC and the sound is crisp, clear, bright (in the good way) and resolving from top to bottom with none of the shrillness or lack-of-presence often associated with the digital side of the house. If you're in the market for a spinner, audition this one with Bela Fleck's "Live Art" or Ronnie Earl's "Grateful Heart: Blues & Ballads." Or perhaps on SACD: Norah's "Come Away With Me" or The Floyd's "Dark Side..." or "Wish You Were Here."
Since I'm talking about music, I'll mention some LPs currently in heavy rotation:
- MoFi's insanely good 45 rpm remaster of Dire Straits "Brothers In Arms." As I said (smugly) to an audio buddy before I played it for him, "You think you've heard 'Brothers In Arms.' You have not. You think you know what Mark intended on the album. You do not." Yup; it's that good.
- QRP and The Mastering Lab's brilliant remix of Patricia Barber's "Café Blue." Never imagined I'd be blown away by a cover of "Ode To Billy Joe," but there you have it.
- QRP and Analog Production's "The Wonderful Sounds of Female Vocals." An honest-to-god "must-own."
- QRP and Analog Production's phenomenal remaster of The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds." I bought my first (crap) copy in 1967; 52 years later, I felt as though I finally understood what Brian was trying to say. Glorious.
- From the classical side of the house, the brilliant RCA Victor "Living Stereo" 2014 remix of the 1959 Camille Saint-Saéns "Symphony No. 3 in C Minor" by the Boston Symphony. If your listening chair has a seatbelt, buckle up halfway through Side Two when you learn why this piece is often called "the Organ Symphony."
There's seems to be a good synergy among my components, which we all know is crucial. The MoFi deck plays nice with the Herron phono stage, which introduces some tube-i-ness into the analog chain. The Herron, in turn, plays nice with the solid state (mostly Class A) Pass integrated amp, and they all play nice with the Cornwall IV speakers. There are now no weak links in the system, and while I'd never claim that it's a world-class rig, it is, if you will, all the class I need in my world. The proof being in the musical pudding.
As others have noted, the Cornwall IVs are hardly the last word in elegance or refinement (the wonderful Legacy Audio Signature SE towers which the Cornwalls supplanted have more of both). But the Cornwalls' palpable sense of presence, their uncanny ability to make you believe that the artists are performing 10 feet in front of you, are unmatched within my experience. Obviously, horn-loaded speakers are not everyone's cup of tea, but they definitely work for me.
And no need for me to waste your time raving about the Pass Labs integrated, except to say, it's just stupid good.
Enjoy the tunes.
