£650K Audio Note all-analog hi-fi sound system @ Sonisphere.

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by motorcitydave, Jul 3, 2014.

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  1. motorcitydave

    motorcitydave Enlightened Rogue In Memoriam Thread Starter

    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    I disagree. A top notch system will sound good off axis. Besides, audio should not be a solitary experience all the time, imo! That is one reason why audio clubs and societies exist. In addition, if Audio Note thought this was a lousy idea, they wouldn't leave this expensive equipment in the hands of these people.
     
  2. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

    Location:
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    It can't. It's like watching a 3D movie without the 3D glasses. If you are not in the sweet spot that is the simple and unfortunate reality of stereo playback. Whether or not it "should be" a solitary experience it is a fairly solitary experience. Yeah there are some omni-directional speakers that have a wider sweet spot but it's still a sweet spot and in a room full of people most of those people are not going to get anywhere near good sound.
     
  3. motorcitydave

    motorcitydave Enlightened Rogue In Memoriam Thread Starter

    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    The sweet spot is the best place, but not the only place, imo. I like the sound from my system in the next room, off to the side, etc. It doesn't have to be strictly a solitary experience, and it's not to quite a few people, again the audio club thing or just a simple gathering. Anyway, who are you to say whether it does or doesn't?. Come on man, be a little open minded here.
     
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  4. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

    Location:
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    I know it's just a gathering. Check what I wrote. "It sounds like fun."


    My only point is that this would not be a good way to introduce someone to high end audio. If my first exposure to high end audio was a million dollar system and I listened to it out of the sweet spot and got none of the imaging that you get with high end audio from the sweet spot I would have walked away thinking high end audio was a complete waste of money and of no interest to me. You may very well like the sound of your system from the other room. But I feel confident in saying that the sound of any system from the other room will not sound like it's worth a million dollars. First impressions are lasting impressions.
     
  5. wgriel

    wgriel Forum Resident

    Location:
    bc, canada
    I dunno, I get what you're saying, but I'm kind of with motorcitydave on this one. Unless the room is really awful, I think the majority of people will have an amazing, even revelatory experience, especially if they've never heard anything approaching high end.

    I have a group of friends that regularly meets for the purpose of enjoying an audiophile listening experience, and of course only one of us can ever be in the sweet spot. But all of us are usually blown away regardless of where we are sitting in the room. Personally, I find listening so much more enjoyable when it's shared with others despite the compromises that entails.
     
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  6. raferx

    raferx Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vancouver, Canada
    The whole idea of Classic Album Sundays, or pretty much anything else involving Colleen and these gorgeous audiophile systems is to have a lively, informed discussion about an album or two – usually with journalists, musicians and sometimes the actual artist themselves – and then listen to said LPs on said killer set-up.
    It's not about introducing newbies to high-end audio. Period.
    The whole side discussion about noobs listening to these systems is moot.
    And FWIW, having listened to many very high-end systems, and not always in the sweet spot, a good system is good system no matter where in the room you're sitting.
    And anybody with anything other than a tin ear will recognize a killer system for what it is.
     
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  7. motorcitydave

    motorcitydave Enlightened Rogue In Memoriam Thread Starter

    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    Ok, sorry about that. :) Well, if the whole thing is and was a raging disaster, it would have been over a long time ago.
     
    Scott Wheeler likes this.
  8. motorcitydave

    motorcitydave Enlightened Rogue In Memoriam Thread Starter

    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    :edthumbs:
     
  9. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

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    :chill::chill::chill:
    You can't get anything close to decent imaging or the same spectral balance from just anywhere in the room with a properly set up two channel stereo system. If a collapse of the sound stage and loss of imaging along with a completely skewed frequency response sounds good to you you so be it. I'm certainly not going to argue with anyone about what they like. But That is not how stereo is designed to actually work and there is a very big difference between listening to stereo the way it was designed to be listened to and listening from any old spot in the room. Huge difference.
     
  10. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

    Location:
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    I'm sure they are a great time. I'd go.
     
  11. raferx

    raferx Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vancouver, Canada
    Dude... I'm all about the sweet spot. Just saying (again) these are get togethers to listen and enjoy the sound of some classic LPs on a £650,000 system.
    Not as a demo for potential buyers, or for a private session of critical listening. It is what it is, and as you said yourself: "I'd go."
    And for the record, I'm very chill.
     
  12. motorcitydave

    motorcitydave Enlightened Rogue In Memoriam Thread Starter

    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    Yeah, same here. :cool: :cheers:
     
  13. finn

    finn Forum Resident

    Regarding the need for sweet spot listening, the good thing about this system is that you really don't need to sit centre to enjoy it as it is much more about energising the room and the tonal reproduction of the media. I know this as I have virtually the same system except for the power amps and a lesser pre but all the same other components and having had it set up for the local audio group in a largish hall, I know what it can do and aside from very high spl levels, then everyone enjoyed themselves.
    Incidently, the chapel at the house of st barnabas is not that large and the acoustic's are quite good so the levels required to fill the space would be more than covered by the Gakuon's.
     
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  14. Scott Wheeler

    Scott Wheeler Forum Resident

    Location:
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    Dude! I'm with ya. Other people were talking about this as a good intro to high end audio to potential audiophiles. I was saying I don't think this would be the proper event for that. We agree. and heck yeah, I'd go! :cheers:
     
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  15. David Cope

    David Cope Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gales Ferry, CT
    This a really odd thread. The event under discussion is not a hifi show, nor is it a local club meet nor an event at a hifi dealer.

    It's a bunch of music lovers getting together to listen to whole albums with an in depth discussion of those albums. Imaging, sound staging, attracting noobs, sweet spot, etc . . . are all wholly irrelevant. This is that rare as hen's teeth instance where it actually IS about the music. As a lovely side effect, a donation gets made to a worthy charity.
     
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  16. David Cope

    David Cope Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gales Ferry, CT
    What Peter are you referring to, Steve? Can't possibly be Peter Qvortrup.
     
  17. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    Just going by outdated info, sorry, ignore..
     
  18. David Cope

    David Cope Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gales Ferry, CT
    AFAIK, all of us AN-ers prefer the IOs and as high an AN-S (4, 8, 9) step-up as we can manage, but the budget gets thrown under the bus in a hurry.

    Using a TT Two Deluxe (internal PS), Arm Three and IQ3 is $6K and change. Adding the external PS, changing to an IOI and S4 with an appropriate IC takes thin North of $20k in a hurry. Of course, it's nice to know you can start in the former place and wend your way to the latter without changing out the table or arm.
     
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  19. Brother_Rael

    Brother_Rael Senior Member

    How's that AN TT2 going there Steve? Still spinning it or plugged something else in?
     
  20. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    Playing it right now, yes.

    Great table.
     
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  21. thommo

    thommo Senior Member

    Location:
    London, England
    ^This.

    I've been to one of these events (a smaller, pub sized one about a year/18 months ago), and the gear (while it's really good) is incidental compared to the music and the act of shared listening.
     
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  22. Larry I

    Larry I Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington, D.C.
    A local Washington DC area deal has a TT3. It is quite an nice sounding table. Records played on that table come to life and sound very dynamic and engaging. It is somewhat similar in sound to certain idler drive tables, just a lot better. While the table itself is relatively compact, the three power supplies for the motor and the separate motor control box take up a ridiculous amount of room.

    I have heard the other components of that system, though not all together in one system. One of the better systems I heard was triamped, with two pairs of Gaku-Ons for the midrange and treble. When the owner found out that the system sounded just as good, if not better, with the tweeter driven by a Kageki, he bought a Kageki and relegated one of the pairs of Gaku-On to the status of a "backup" amp. Must be nice. . . .
     
  23. David Cope

    David Cope Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gales Ferry, CT
    There is a TT3 Half Reference which has less insanely powerful motors and just one (large) power supply box.
     
  24. motorcitydave

    motorcitydave Enlightened Rogue In Memoriam Thread Starter

    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV, USA
    :edthumbs:
     
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  25. Warren Jarrett

    Warren Jarrett Audio Note (UK) dealer in SoCal/LA-OC In Memoriam

    Location:
    Fullerton, CA
    I have attended one of these CAS shows, with Colleen, which was presented in Las Vegas during the last CES. The fun part was definitely her enthusiasm and showmanship. As a guest, she had the producer of the album, to discuss the recording session.

    It was located in a John Varatis clothing store, rearranged to allow more standing in the center of the room (between the speakers), with clothing racks around the perifery. The sound was not like a home audio system, particularly lacking in image specificity, and not possessing the ultimate in high frequency transparency. But these really didn't matter because there were other sonic qualities that were simply phenominal.

    It was a VERY impressive presentation of dynamics, liveliness, and energy. This made for an extremely live sound. So, in effect, the typical audiophile qualities were merely unimportant. What we had was closer to a LIVE event (sonically), even MORE impressive than audiophile... and in that way extremely audiophile.
     
    Last edited: Aug 31, 2015
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