Just as i was going to suggest the spendor 3.5's you go get a speaker! I'm not familiar with the speaker you got, but the triangles are tizzy. Hopefully you'll have a warmer sound now to go with the nice tubes. I do think you should slap on some ez-tack or use cones or vibrapods to couple or decouple your speakers from the bookshelves. I just got married and moved into an apt. and my 200 wpc amp just was not cutting it! Can you believe what is driving my B&W matrix 804 speakers now? Two 8 wpc (!!!!) Audio Note monoblocks. It sounds great!!! I'm looking to upgrade my ten year old cal audio icon mkii cdp...any suggestions? How's the jolida? I've heard their integrateds and they are great for the money.

jack46527 March 18, 2004 17:07

I have purchased a pair of lightly used (broken in ) green Mountain Europas and am delighted. Thanks to all who commented. Particularly to Ewha for the europa suggestion, and Gunbei for seconding the opinion regardibg my speakers. The enjoyment factor of the Titus is was real but I had no idea how mch more substantial a bookshelf speaker could be. My wife has yet to come around to liking the esthetic (its like I drove home a saab and she's been driving Volvos her whole life) but their sound leaves nothing to complain about.

freakystyley March 17, 2004 02:50

Looks like a very nice system to me. For fun, if you are inclined, you might want to play around a little with coupling/de-coupling the speakers from your cabinet. Cones is one direction, another one (cheap) would be Vibrapods. I'm sure both ot these will make some difference, but whether or not it will be an improvement for you is impossible to say.

Dan

drubin February 05, 2004 19:00

thanks for the pics! that's a nice looking system you have.

you're right, the titus's do a lot of things very well, and i'm glad to hear you are getting so much enjoyment out of them. i think you said it best: "I would say that I am enjoying the system so much that I am hard pressed to consider changes." if that's the case, congratulations! enjoy listening to your healthy collection of music. i'm sort of at the same point myself. i just settled on some cables that i am really happy with, and i don't think anything else will be changing anytime soon. happy listening!

-eric

ewha February 05, 2004 14:58

In response to Gunbei and ewha (both very insightful!!) I think I would describe my system as detailed yet not bright or fatiguing. Perhaps "lean" is not a bad way to criticize the sound (here goes the upgrade bug) which I think you guys are rightly attributing to the speakers. However I would say that I am enjoying the system so much that I am hard pressed to consider changes. The titus, despite their faults. are an incredibly detailed speaker, with terrific imaging and overall decent performance given the spot I've placed them in--the only spot available to me. six months ago the amp was an ATI and the powercods were all stock, as were the tubes in the CDP, and the speakers were NHT. I've made incremental improvements and each step has been gratifying. You're probably right that the speakers are next to go but I dont know what will fit the bill.

freakystyley February 05, 2004 05:55

Nice pictures and cool rack! I'm in the process of assembling one myself in my LA apartment.

I'm also a big ProAc fan. I've owned Response 1SCs and Tablette 50 Signatures for a couple years and love their sweet midrange, big soundstage. I'm not sure if they will be your cup of tea, but they might be worth a look.

gunbei February 05, 2004 03:28

Thanks for the advice guys. I agree about the occasional "tizz" from the Titus on some tracks. I am limited in my selection by the placement of the speakers. i actually purchased a pair of soliloquy 5.0's and ended up reselling them because the space (11" shelf against wall) was not conducive to the slightly larger enclosure of the 5.0 and the rear port. The NHT SB3's did not compare in depth of detail but really nice bass. I considered Harbeth and Gallos. In the past I have owned PSB stratus (forward firing) but too large, Mordaunt short MS20i Pearl (I LOVED THese speakers matched to NAD gear but not as defined as Titus and rear firing, but very sweet sound). I think Gallo may be my next try, or a Proac studio 100.
Thanks again

freakystyley February 05, 2004 03:03

System edited: the projector enclosure that you see was a simple design improvised and pre-cut in the lumber store and assembled in an evening in my NYC apt. There is nothing like it that I have found for sale. I am interested in anybody else's design. Cheers

freakystyley February 05, 2004 02:55

This is a really sweet system!

Well thought out choices that should bring you a lot of musical enjoyment for a relatively low price.

I'm a big fan of the Aleph 3 and Audience cables. And even though I've never owned or heard Jolida gear, I'm a closet fan.

What is the tonal balance and sound characteristics? I too share the same apprehensions regarding the Titus monitors. My guess is they're a little on the lean or light side? But if you've achieved a balance you're happy with just ignore me, heheh.

Nice job! I can't wait for the pics.

gunbei February 03, 2004 23:54

nice system. however, given the quality of all your electronic components and cabling, i think your speakers are probably the weakest link. the titus speakers are great for the price, but they are limited in their frequency range, and (in my experience) the tweeter tends to be a bit "tizzy." i would recommend looking at soliloquy 5.0's, green mountain europa's, or some of the other reasonable priced monitors out there. granted, they will cost more than the titus's, but i think a speaker upgrade will really allow you to hear how good the components you have put together can sound. just my two cents. happy listening!

ewha February 03, 2004 23:31