Pics of your Listening Space

[texlle]

You may be right. I listened to the old Contour 1.1's years ago. My audio memory is good but not 10 years good. They definitely threw a much larger overall image, and that's about all I remember. I do want to give the Excite x16's a go. At 87dB, they're slightly more sensitive, but as I said, I read about the excites not playing well with tubes, dynamically, as much as previous lines like the audience.

I believe i may try to pick up a pair of Totems and see what they do for me. Some rainmakers or dreamcatchers may suit my style well. We'll see, I'm still quite happy. And when I just plain want to rock out- I can just go to the living room. After all the first tube setup I ever heard, the same one that began my interest in tubes and dynaudio drivers was a JD-202 Jolida driving (very well, I might add), a pair of original Totem Model-1's, so perhaps a pair of totems or dyn excites may be a more cost effective way forward.

Thanks for the advice.

[Hyfi]

I just realized that my JM Labs are 92db. When I decide to go small wattage tube integrated, I already have a great sounding pair of speakers they can drive.

[frenchmon]

Well, I'm not saying the Rotel is edgy. In fact it's softer than most Japanese brands, but they are known for having a thin upper mid-lower treble range- a characteristic that is noticeable with my RSX-1055, but not terrible since the B&W's already have a bloomy midrange. Not to mention, they are just adequate at low level listening- which is a no-go for me.

lol! That may be the experience with your RSX-1055 AVR but I can assure you that's not the experience with either of my Rotel amps. If anything I can say negative is that after listening to some Mark Levinton amps, I was looking around for something with the brute force and controlled grip of that $7000 amp, and did some research on the Stratos amp which I believe would have better force and control . Listen, If the Rotel was as bad as you have read, and my experience with them was as you say, I would have dumped them long ago. I also have a Adcom amp that is a little more detailed than the Rotel, but both are very good at their respective price points. You really cant believe everything you hear or read about a product....one very good reason is that synergy is a very important part in audio. No one piece of gear is 100% perfect.

The Jolida makes fantastically musical background- say under 40dB. I'm just concerned as to how much the tube pre will compensate for the power amp's inherent drawbacks (recessed mids, low level detail/dynamics) if I were to go this route . I would be moving from a very sweet, balanced setup. Trading sweetness and presence for authoritative punch. After all, I still really like the Jolida, but want to find a good balance of authority and presence. And until I find the right combination of separates, I'll take a more polite, lifelike sound over a more exciting- yet withdrawn musicality.

There are plenty of amps and tubed preamps out there man! You have Cambridge as well in one of your systems...what don't you like about them? They have a very well respected powerful amp on the market... ever give that a consideration? If you have doubts about what Rotel or any other gear will do then kindly move on. There are certainly ways of bringing out the negatives in gear with system matching... audiophiles build great systems that way....dark nature amp, pair with a bright preamp and cabling. Speakers to bright, tone it down with darker sounding gear. It does work. There is only one way to find out how a piece of gear will work really. And that is to plug it into your system and test the synergy with your gear. You can get Rotel amps or whatever at used prices and if you don't find it to your liking sell on audiogon or some other outlet. You can also buy new...most audio stores have a return policy that must be followed like Audio Advisor, they allow you to return up to 30 days which is enough time to tell if it works in your system. But once again, your ears are the best way of seeing if something works or not despite what
others say. I trust others but it still comes down to my judgment.
I have not found what you say about your Rotel AVR to be true of Rotel amps.

The Audience line is one of the easier speakers to drive. Though the sentivities are relately the same across the dynaudio board (typically 85-87),

There are a few of the Dynaudio lines that move into the 89-92db range.

the 42's are a remarkably easier drive than say Contour 1.1's.

Really? why do you say that?

I read that, by virtue of whatever highly technical design feature that escapes my recollection, the Audiences are more compatible with tube amplifiers than their new Excite series. I must say, I'd really rather not go to another speaker. Unless I can find a speaker with similar neutral tonal balance and natural presentation, smooth detail, I'd rather not move to just any speaker with a higher sensitivity to avoid losing that sense of body and fullness that you get with less sensitive speakers.

I can certainly understand your passion for Dyns....just a suggestion that's all. Lots of wonderful speakers out there that will serve your purpose. But if you do decide to keep the Audience at 86db's you will need a powerful amp...lots of juice. Just a question...which did you have first, the Dyns or the Jolida and how did you come to settle on that combination?

use MIT Terminator 4 speaker cables in both systems, and a hodgepodge of interconnects. MIT AVT1s, Wireworld Oasis, Cardas Crosslink.

The 4's, I find, are very creamy in the mids, extremely detailed mids and highs, with some of the most expansive soundstaging I've heard for budget cables, great imaging. The bass tends toward fat, but is still well controlled and quick with the Dyns. Not displeasing though.

Cool

Question- anyone have any experience with Aragon amps? I keep finding 2004 and 4004 models for under $400 and $600 locally.

Well I've seen over at Audioasylum that there is a company that takes in old ones and updates all the components inside them and resales them. Also just like all gear, some love them, others hate them....let your ears be your guide. Im sure if you went over to Audioasylum and asked about them, you would get about a dozen good responses.

[frenchmon]

You may be right. I listened to the old Contour 1.1's years ago. My audio memory is good but not 10 years good. They definitely threw a much larger overall image, and that's about all I remember. I do want to give the Excite x16's a go. At 87dB, they're slightly more sensitive, but as I said, I read about the excites not playing well with tubes, dynamically, as much as previous lines like the audience.

I believe i may try to pick up a pair of Totems and see what they do for me. Some rainmakers or dreamcatchers may suit my style well. We'll see, I'm still quite happy. And when I just plain want to rock out- I can just go to the living room. After all the first tube setup I ever heard, the same one that began my interest in tubes and dynaudio drivers was a JD-202 Jolida driving (very well, I might add), a pair of original Totem Model-1's, so perhaps a pair of totems or dyn excites may be a more cost effective way forward.

Thanks for the advice.

I've also listened to the Excite and Totem, I forget which Totem....the Excite was not bad, but the Totem was a great speaker....it was truly 3D in nature. Both share the deep bottom end with the Totem having a better, more in balanced mid range and upper frequencies.

[texlle]

You're absolutely right, frenchmon. I really just need to start trying a variety of amps and speakers to see what suits my style. I'm just very meticulous about my listening. Hell, I will spend a good portion of a weekend just listening to different albums to get a idea of what the stereo does well, and what could be improved upon. I'm very picky though, and finding the right combo seems like it could take some time. Since I work 40 hours + per week, my free time is a bit limited. I'm also trying to save up so I can move out of this rental and buy some property, so this hobby gets quite expensive and very time consuming. I do enjoy the search for the right sound by auditioning different components. As the idiom goes, getting there is half the fun. At the same time, I would just love to find the right gear and settle on something that I can be happy with so I can relax my analytical mind and just listen to music. lol

The cambridge is decent. It's the A500 model that I bought in 2001, so a couple years before their breakthrough Azur line which I hear is supposed to be a vast improvement over their old models. The A500 is very warm, bassy, but with adequate detail, yet the top end is bright on certain speakers- namely the B&W's. I hooked it up to the Dyns and, well, quite frankly, it just sounded like ass. The musical nature had been totally removed and I was not impressed.

I actually purchased the 202 before the Dyns. I had the amp hooked up to my B&W's which are 90dB sensitive and I honestly didn't think they sounded much more dynamic than the Dyn's. Likely because the B&Ws will swing as low as 4ohms despite being an 8 ohm speaker- not very stable. I just wanted a set of small speakers because I was moving into the dorm. I auditioned the Dyns on a 302B amp I believe and was pretty much sold. This was when I was 18, and hadn't quite grasped the concept of sensitivity. The Jolida and Dyns were also setup on top of my desk in my dorm, so the sound was a bit different than it is with everything setup properly now.

Which Dynaudio models have a higher sensitivity? I was under the impression that most of them are around 86dB.

[Hyfi]

Hey FA, when will we get to see where those Studios live?

[Styx]

I posted these before but since we now have a thread dedicated to listening spaces, I figured I'd post them again.

Main:
Speakers are rotated from time to time.





My audio posse!


Living room 2.2 system:




Favorite refreshment:

[Feanor]

All very delightful, Styx. Thanks for posting.

[Hyfi]

The gym which has a Hafler 945 Pre and 9180 Amp, with an old Denon DVD player and Polk Monitor 30 speakers.





The little Paradigm Cinema 70s are sold as of today and were replaced by a pair of B&W M1s I just picked up for $50 in the below 2.1 / 3.1 setup currently my old HK AVR635 and a Sony DVD player and Paradigm sub and Infinity Beta Center.

[Hyfi]

Love the elegant Polk room, Styx

[bobsticks]

Styx, definitely some serious recognition is deserved for the committment to hide wires...those are some seriously clean setups...

[Styx]

Thanks for the kind words guys. I do what I can to hide the wires. I feel it make the experience more enjoyable when the room is tidy and clean. I wish I felt that way about the rest of the house.

[ForeverAutumn]

Hey FA, when will we get to see where those Studios live?

LOL! Maybe I'll take some new pics this weekend and post them. But I posted when I bought the Studios and we haven't changed anything since. I was hoping to have a new receiver and an Oppo player by now, but other more urgent expenses keep popping up and delaying those purchases.

We're still running the Paradigm Studio 60s as fronts and a pair of StudioLab bookshelfs as rears with a Studiolab centre. The sub is an old JVC speaker that we got for next to nothing from Hubby's warehouse. It's a bit too boomy at high volumes, but not too bad if you keep it turned down low. The Studio 60s have enough sub in them to keep things balanced without turning the JVC sub up too high so it works for us for now. The sub is another replacement waiting to happen, but I mostly listen to the system as a two-channel system so it's not high on the list.

Our secondary system is in our den and is made up of JVC wooden cone speakers. A bit of a novelty speaker and way over-priced when they came out, which is why they are no longer available in Canada. But I like the sound, they are a very warm sounding speaker, but these definately need a good sub to accompany them if you wanted them for home theatre use. Wood Cone Speakers. We have the floor-standing model and the sub. No rears in that room as it's mostly used for music.

[Hyfi]

LOL! Maybe I'll take some new pics this weekend and post them. But I posted when I bought the Studios and we haven't changed anything since. I was hoping to have a new receiver and an Oppo player by now, but other more urgent expenses keep popping up and delaying those purchases.

Yeah, but this is now the Official Thread and you should repost here and then again as you update. I have a blast going through that 700 page post at AK.

[thekid]

Nice rooms everyone!
If I could post pics I would but then again as often as I move stuff it is probably pointless....
Of course since getting the VR-2's which weigh a 100lbs a piece at least one system is going to remain in place for quite some time...

[Hyfi]

Nice rooms everyone!
If I could post pics I would but then again as often as I move stuff it is probably pointless....
Of course since getting the VR-2's which weigh a 100lbs a piece at least one system is going to remain in place for quite some time...

Show it. I want to see those VRs in place!

I use a Hand Truck to move mine around.

[thekid]

Show it. I want to see those VRs in place!

I use a Hand Truck to move mine around.

Sorry HyFi I have not been able to post pics on AR for about a year.
If you want to see the VR-2's you will need to go here and look for the posting by Wolverine.

Pics of your listening space - Page 6 - AudioKarma.org Home Audio Stereo Discussion Forums

Everything there is basically the same as you see in those pics except I now have my Celestion SL6si's hooked up along with a pair of Optimus Pro-LX-5's. The Pioneer SX-850 has been replaced by a Kenwood KR-7400.

[thekid]

I created an album here on AR see if this works for some of you....

http://forums.audioreview.com/album....=93&pictureids[]=49&pictureids[]=50

[Hyfi]

I created an album here on AR see if this works for some of you....

http://forums.audioreview.com/album....=93&pictureids[]=49&pictureids[]=50

Thanks for trying but I get a message that says I am not allowed to view it, similar to when the Mods and Admins post Sticky's

Hyfi, you do not have permission to access this page. This could be due to one of several reasons:

Your user account may not have sufficient privileges to access this page. Are you trying to edit someone else's post, access administrative features or some other privileged system?
If you are trying to post, the administrator may have disabled your account, or it may be awaiting activation.

[thekid]

Thanks for trying but I get a message that says I am not allowed to view it, similar to when the Mods and Admins post Sticky's

Hyfi, you do not have permission to access this page. This could be due to one of several reasons:

Your user account may not have sufficient privileges to access this page. Are you trying to edit someone else's post, access administrative features or some other privileged system?
If you are trying to post, the administrator may have disabled your account, or it may be awaiting activation.

Hyfi

Let's try this yet again.....
I figured out how to post photos in the gallery section.
Hopefully you can access that and see everything and then some

AudioREVIEW.com Photo Gallery

[Hyfi]

Looks like you don't have the room but those VRs will be even better out and away from the walls.

Thanks for the pics. From your Gallery, open a pic full size and Rt Click choose Save Link Location, then past that in the Insert Image selection.

[thekid]

Trying to see if I may have found a way to post pics again.
This is what I am listening to now.

[thekid]

Looks like you don't have the room but those VRs will be even better out and away from the walls.

Thanks for the pics. From your Gallery, open a pic full size and Rt Click choose Save Link Location, then past that in the Insert Image selection.

Hyfi

Thanks for the info.
It looks like you have shown me a way to post pics again so I will add a few here on this thread

The VR's are actually further away from the wall than it looks in the photo.
When I play them I slide them forward a few inches to get then the recommended 2 feet from the back wall.
Ideally I would actually like to get them further apart but that is where the room limits me.

[Hyfi]

Cool Beans Kid.

I see you are running a diagonal setup also. Any drawbacks?

[thekid]

Cool Beans Kid.

I see you are running a diagonal setup also. Any drawbacks?

Not really.

It actually works well with the Time Windows because of their driver configuration.
The Maggies slide forward easily and when I am listening to them they are out in the room away from all the walls as they need to be.

There are only two issues.

Behind the cabinet is a Velodyne subwoofer which gets used with the TW's and occasionally the Maggies. The corner location can make it a little boomy on some recordings so I have to adjust the settings which can be a bit of a pain given its location.

The other issue is that my favorite chair is a little off to the side of the rig so not the most optimum listening position.

However there is a chair in the opposite corner directly across from the speakers when I want to do some serious listening. Anyone who has ever sat there when that system is playing is just amazed.