Ever heard a system better than yours?

[L.J.]

No

[L.J.]

No

To elaborate on my previous answer. I have two friends with Walmart $199 systems. The systems sound awful, but I never say anything. Nothing like listening to a 8" passive sub huffin' and puffin' the entire time you try to watch a movie.

I sold my old system to my brother and he's happy with it, but it cannot stand up to mine.

I had a buddy with a mixture of Energy surrounds and fronts but a Sony center. Needless to say, it didn't sound right.

My father-in-law's system is what got me started on my quest for improved sound. His Pioneer Elite/Primus combo, ripped my cheap Panasonic HTIB into pieces. He has been to my house recently and admits that my current system sounds excellent.

I don't know anyone else who has taken HT as far as myself.

[emaidel]

I don't know anyone else who has taken HT as far as myself.

I do. My wife's CEO (a millionaire many, many times over) has a home theatre setup that probably cost well upwards of a quarter of a million dollars. All of the equipment is ultra high-end stuff, and the 15' screen, and super-expensive projector have the sharpest image I've ever seen anywhere. The sound too is flat out awesome, and the room itself is about the size of a local gym, with theatre style lighting, very comfortable, black leather seats (which all recline) and a suitably sloped floor.

I guess I've also kind of answered my initial question in my first posting on this thread: yes, this system does sound better than mine, and it's in someone's home, and not in a retailer's showroom, or part of a trade show exhibit.

[GMichael]

I do. My wife's CEO (a millionaire many, many times over) has a home theatre setup that probably cost well upwards of a quarter of a million dollars. All of the equipment is ultra high-end stuff, and the 15' screen, and super-expensive projector have the sharpest image I've ever seen anywhere. The sound too is flat out awesome, and the room itself is about the size of a local gym, with theatre style lighting, very comfortable, black leather seats (which all recline) and a suitably sloped floor.

I guess I've also kind of answered my initial question in my first posting on this thread: yes, this system does sound better than mine, and it's in someone's home, and not in a retailer's showroom, or part of a trade show exhibit.

The owner of our company has a similar set up. I have never seen him use it. He claims that he likes his bedroom system better. I haven't seen that one.

[PAT.P]

The owner of our company has a similar set up. I have never seen him use it. He claims that he likes his bedroom system better. I haven't seen that one.

If ever he brings you to his bedroom make sure it comes with a promotion

[GMichael]

If ever he brings you to his bedroom make sure it comes with a promotion

He claims that he likes to promote from within.

[PAT.P]

He claims that he likes to promote from within.

Dont get me going,I could just picture you and your Boss jumping on the bed and he calls the shots.

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

I have not heard a system around the cost of mine that sounds better, but I have installed systems that cost 5 times as much that certainly did sound better.

The problem with most of the systems I have heard that cost the same as mine, Wooch mentioned they were poorly setup and calibrated. I think when you pull together a system of decent quality, you should dedicate the space needed to get the optimum result of that investment. It seems that alot of folks like to talk about the price of the system, but do not enjoy setting it up properly.

[topspeed]

My friend, who is a consummate gear geek, is picking up some Legacy Whispers any day now (his third set of speakers in the last year or so). I'm sure he'll being calling me as soon as they are locked in. That should be a treat as I haven't heard Legacys before but have heard and read a lot about them. His previous speakers, Energy Audissey 5+2's & Wharfedale Opus', were very good but not mind blowing.

My Uncle's Klipschorn/Hafler/DenonTT is a terrific system that is, in a lot of respects, more "fun" than mine. I wouldn't say it's necessarily better, but it's a party waiting to happen.

There are two systems in my area that I want to hear when can find the time. One is a local doctor that is famous (infamous?) for his custom made rig. When I say custom, I mean custom, as in every transducer, wire, cap, etc. are manufactured to his specification. The rumor is he has about $500K into it. Naturally, I want to hear this thing .

The other is a guy Wooch is familiar with that has an Infinity IRS rig along with some new Genesis toys as well. That should be pretty cool.

I barely have enough time to enjoy my own system so listening to other gear is twice as challenging. That said, I'm not naive enough to think that I have a world conquering rig. To be honest, I could care less one way or another. As long as it keeps my toes tapping and takes me away from the real world, even if but for a brief moment, it's all I need.

[RGA]

My friend, who is a consummate gear geek, is picking up some Legacy Whispers any day now (his third set of speakers in the last year or so). I'm sure he'll being calling me as soon as they are locked in. That should be a treat as I haven't heard Legacys before but have heard and read a lot about them. His previous speakers, Energy Audissey 5+2's & Wharfedale Opus', were very good but not mind blowing.

My Uncle's Klipschorn/Hafler/DenonTT is a terrific system that is, in a lot of respects, more "fun" than mine. I wouldn't say it's necessarily better, but it's a party waiting to happen.

There are two systems in my area that I want to hear when can find the time. One is a local doctor that is famous (infamous?) for his custom made rig. When I say custom, I mean custom, as in every transducer, wire, cap, etc. are manufactured to his specification. The rumor is he has about $500K into it. Naturally, I wan't to hear this thing .

The other is a guy Wooch is familiar with that has an Infinity IRS rig along with some new Genesis toys as well. That should be pretty cool.

I barely have enough time to enjoy my own system so listening to other gear is twice as challenging. That said, I'm not naive enough to think that I have a world conquering rig. To be honest, I could care less one way or another. As long as it keeps my toes tapping and takes me away from the real world, even if but for a brief moment, it's all I need.

I think the big mistake in this hobby is always linking more money with better sound. Very often more money provides worse sound. I have heard the Legacy Whisper and I don't think it's a lot different that your assessment of the others "good but not mind blowing." It seems to me that you are happier since you have not gone through three speakers in one year. And that is more telling than just the bucks being spent.

I would also suggest that with the K-Horn set-up that your uncle get rid of the Denon and the Hafler for an upgraded tube amp and a better turntable rig. The k-horn can be coloured and shouty as horns often are but sometimes they are telling you more about the front end and recording too and the prrof would be in the pudding of trying some other gear. Horns typically like tubes. Interestingly with the ruthlessness of horns it is interesting that the supposed (but untrue) tube shortcomings should be more on display with horns than most when in fact it is usually SS that takes the beating but the horn is blamed instead.

[JohnMichael]

I had a neighbor who had a system with Snell Type A speakers and a Linn Sondek turntable. I do not remember the amps or preamp but I loved listening to his system. One day I went next door to his home to find the Snells were gone and Carver Amazing speakers in their place. The Carvers never worked in that room and the magic was gone. He sold the house and moved for a better room.

I have not heard a better system than my own at the same price level. I worked a while to find the best position for the speakers. I tweaked the speakers with felt for diffraction control. My turntable has been modded and a lot of time has been spent in cable selection. I have friends who enjoy listening to my stereo more than they do their own.

[topspeed]

I think the big mistake in this hobby is always linking more money with better sound. Very often more money provides worse sound. I have heard the Legacy Whisper and I don't think it's a lot different that your assessment of the others "good but not mind blowing." It seems to me that you are happier since you have not gone through three speakers in one year. And that is more telling than just the bucks being spent.

While I tend to agree with you, it's the guy's hobby and for him, switching gear in and out is part of the fun. Like I said, he's a gear geek and lives on audiogon. Who am I to tell him how to derive enjoyment? If this is what he wants to do with his disposable income, so be it. A lot of people would probably stone me if they knew how much I spend on cars and related doo-dads .

I would also suggest that with the K-Horn set-up that your uncle get rid of the Denon and the Hafler for an upgraded tube amp and a better turntable rig.

It's been years since I've heard that rig and for all I know, he has switched out his amp for tubes. To be fair, he's mod'd the hell out of that Hafler, but I understand your argument. Don't discount that Denon TT, either. Back in the day, Denon made a pretty serious direct drive TT that looked like a spaceship sitting on a wood plinth. I have no idea what kind of tone arm or cartridge he was using, but I can say that the Sheffield Labs LP's he put on sounded terrific.

[nightflier]

I have not heard a system around the cost of mine that sounds better, but I have installed systems that cost 5 times as much that certainly did sound better.

The problem with most of the systems I have heard that cost the same as mine, Wooch mentioned they were poorly setup and calibrated. I think when you pull together a system of decent quality, you should dedicate the space needed to get the optimum result of that investment. It seems that alot of folks like to talk about the price of the system, but do not enjoy setting it up properly.

I hate to sound trite, but IMHO, it has a lot more to do with how much people have to spend on their gear. Here in SoCal, there is lots of money to go around and that pretty much sets the bar. And while setting up the gear correctly is important, most people here have a professional do this for them, which is also a money factor.

My friends are all much richer than I am, so yes, their systems sound better than mine. I have had a few successes (like the PS Audio monoblocks I just acquired), but it is always predicated on what I can find second-hand or, more often, on tweaks and work-arounds. For example, my Cat-5 based speaker cables are still some of the best anyone has heard and we still use them as the basis for testing other cables.

And contrary to what this may sound like, I'm not bitter about it, since I really enjoy trying to out-do the big brands with less expensive solutions. As everyone probably knows from my other posts, I try to do everything as cheaply as possible, not just because I don't have a lot of money to spend, but also because I want to live by those principles and teach my children the same. Another helpful factor is that my friends and I spread out the costs by swapping stuff out with each other's systems. This helps us all figure out what sounds best in our systems. When it's a better fit in someone else's, we work out a trade or a fair price. Over the years, I have acquired some very nice components this way.

But to all those who say they have never heard anything better than their systems, they are forgetting what got them into the hobby. At one time their systems must have been awful too. I for one, got into this hobby after years of using a Blaupunkt car stereo and speakers as my main system with loose wires running everywhere. I also made a ton of expensive mistakes in the past (Bose Wave Radio, Yamaha speakers, Sony receivers) and it was by hearing how bad my own gear was in comparison to others that I learned what good gear should sound like.

Another point that everyone is breezing over is that more and more "expensive" setups are becoming cluttered with gadgets and marginal capabilities than about the quality of the sound. This is of course because HT is so prevalent. All my friends are constanty showing off their Pronto remotes, multiple sound modes on their "9.1" surround systems, and the loading mechanism on outrageously priced CD players. Last year, everybody was trying to out-do each other with the size of their Plasma TV's.

This is why I am trying to bring things back to 2-channel with the group. Most of my friends are on board, but it is a cultural shift that will take some time to sink in, because they are still trying to better their neighbors and co-workers who only care about HT. Most of us now have two setups, one for HT and the other for 2-channel, and we are focussing our efforts on the latter.

Anyhow, it is my honest opinion that setting up a high-quality HT system is too complicated and expensive for regular folks. I can spend that energy better on my 2-channel system and allow my family to enjoy their movies in "acceptable" surround sound, rather than tweaking that setup ad-infinitum. As a case-in-point, I am also working on a high-quality SACD 5.1 setup, but that is a lot harder and expensive than I had originally expected.

[hermanv]

Mine upgrades constantly, I'm not rich but I keep slowly adding better pieces, I do this because I hear better stuff from time to time at shows, dealers or friends houses.

I don't know any audiophiles that are "Done". If most of you are like me you must be prompted to upgrade for some reason. Its not that I have this need to get rid of all that excess money that's just lying about the place.

Based on the lively trading on the internet many audiophiles must be like me, so most must believe a better system can be had. One problem I have is that as my system improves, my ears get more discriminatory and what was pretty good 2 years ago just doesn't make the grade today.

My stuff's not bad, all name brand (except a home brew passive pre, but even that has Shallco switches. Vishay resistors with Cardas silver wire and connectors - name brand I think). Still I dream of the money to buy exotic mono blocks and pre-amps that cost the price of a cheap new car.

In the long run, I guess I average an upgrade of some part of the system once a year (I'm counting cables, power conditioning, special feet as well as the main pieces.)

[PAT.P]

No

I say the same as you .Most of our friends are not into the wall to wall surround like me.They have larger TV but their speakers give me a bad headache after the night is over.We have lots of Patio Hops together and they look foward when its the time for our place or is it the booze