DCC Archive Tell us about your audio system

I'm going to try and post a link to a photo of my '60 Telefunken Sonata that I spoke of earlier.
web page

 

Telefunken your posting works just fine.

 

Thanks. I have about 40 or so vintage radios and phonos and when I get them all in my ImageStation album I'll provide a link sometime in the near future.

 

Living room -

Table: Sota Saphire w/ acrylic mat, clamp, Simiko "The Arm" (damped headshell) and Micro Benz H2
CD: Linn Ikemi
PreAmp: Cary SLP90
Amp: VTL Stereo 75 with KT90s
Wire: Music Metre Silver
Speakers: ProAc Super Towers
Accessories: Isolation Pods and Magic Bricks
Power conditioner: Monster HTS2500

Office -

CD: Linn Genki
Integrated Amp: Creek 4140
Speakers: Rogers LS35A
Wire: Monster

 

CD: Marantz CD-67SE (used as transport)
MD: Sony MDS-JE500 (used as transport)
DAC: Musical Fidelity X-DAC
Pre-Amp: Rotel RC-972
Amp: Rotel RB-971 MkII
Speakers: B&W 602 S2's

Monster Cable Interlink DataLink CD->DAC
Van Den Hul The First DAC->Pre
Van Den Hul D-102 V Special Pre->Amp
Van Den Hul ? Amp->Speakers

 

Thanks!
Yeah, the Boston Acoustics were really main speakers, fairly heavy too, but small (4"drivers); for my folk's setup with a 80w/per Sony Reciever and a 8" woof. They barely have any space for huge whoopin'
speakers, so before Bose had the cubes, my dad wanted small and powerful. He paid "big bucks" for those speakers, over $200. Besides the fact that the outer gasket outside the driver cones were rotted and disentergrating, the cone was built like a cheap black paper cup with a poorly sealed magnet on the coil. Even a 12 year old could see that against it, the RS driver for $10 was better built. (Hey same goes for Bose, just like Pat said. I dare ya to take a good look at what $300 buys! It ain't even $50 of speaker!)

They must have been cranking James Taylor too loud; They gave them to me saying "the left side is honking like a goose". After a while, the left was indeed "honking" for me, but when I took them apart, even the driver not honking just totally shed the gasket over my hand as if it had moments before it blew through. This was like tar-coated foam, been known to rot out normally after 3-4 years.

I replaced them with $10 full range RS 4"ers and they really sound great and can take a beating. Now, there just back surrounds, but still nice.

People have listened to the RS speakers I've had in the basement and have been amazed to know they're rebuilt RS'ers.

Like I said, if you buy a pair of speakers at RS, listen to the stock drivers for 30 min and then throw them out. Once you replace them with the DIY boxed-drivers they sell over the counter, they'll suprise the bejessus out of you. The price makes dirt look more expensive. I'm always in for experiments, but a RS driver won't be killed easilly.

I also have a passive RS sub (no amp onboard) that whoops up a storm. Next time you wanna build speaks cheap, don't pass RS by. I'm tellin' ya....

 

Great stuff being posted but what caught my eye were some LS3/5A owners. I still have my pair I bought in 1979 for (I think) $450 which seemed like a lot for such a small speaker but the sonics sold me - best I had ever heard at that time. This past summer I replaced the B110 drivers and crossover with new production (within 1 db matched) from Stirling. Changed the internal wire to 6N silver and they continue to sound absolutely amazing and can plenty loud with a 10w 300B SET amplifier. Wes, you are gonna love your LS3/5A speaks - simply a classic. I see where Stirling is now offering thinner (9mm vs. 12mm) cabinets similar to the reference BBC # 001/002.

 

Here we go,


Antique Sound USA A-108 100W Monblocks (with Chinese 6550 firecrackers.)
Harmon Kardon Critera tube preamp
Paradigm Studio Reference 100's
Sony ES CD Player -XA 20ES
Straight Wire interconnects and speaker cable
El Cheapo Pioneer DVD playrer.

 

I haven't finished the DIY speakers yet, but here's a sneak preview of 'em, post-veneer, but prefinish:



Here are the innards:



The kit is the IPL S3TLM.

I built the crossovers recently, but still need to paint the stands and grills, finish the cabinet, complete the wiring, and pop the drivers in, of course.

Any woodworkers on this group? I need some advice on finishing the cabinet. I'm leaning towards either Danish oil or just a clear finish like Deft. The veneer, btw, is walnut burl. The figure showed more clearly before it was sanded.

 

I listen to:

Thorens T 160 turntable
Sony dvd player with digital out to:
Audio by Van Alstine DAC
AVA Omega III Preamp (solid state) in a dynaco PAT 5 housing
AVA Mosfet (hybrid) Amp
B&W 580 series speakers

I also have a "Great American Sound Co" amp called "Son of Ampzilla" which actually sounds pretty darned good! I bought it used when my AVA amp had to be sent in for repairs... It is currently "resting" until being called back into duty!

I make my CDRs on a Phillips CD recorder...

I may not have the best system around, but I get lots of enjoyment from it!

Tony

 

My system:

Kenwood VR-4080 Receiver w/HDCD

cheap Sony 5-disc changer

Toshiba SD-3205 DVD 5-disc changer w/HDCD

Sony single cassette deck with Dolby S (haven't used that it about two years!)

Infinity SM-85 speakers

Pinnacle PN8+ speakers

Sony WM-40 subwoofer (still looking for the right center channel)

Sharp MD-R2 Minidisc deck

Sharp MD-722 Minidisc portable

Apple iPod MP3 player

(plus my old Sony stuff in the bedroom with a small pair of Wharfedales)

 

Hey Patrick,

If I get a Hot Wheels wireless racing car for Xmas, can you put those speakers flat on the ground so I can see if I can do those awesome turns with the foam still in?

Nice going Patrick. So, you like a light wood? I like mine cherry/dark. Thanks for the pics. See? Patrick is a fairly daring fellow.

Patrick, honestly, the best luck I've had with finishes have been the wipe-on kind in a can... I think the Cherry Walnut stuff I used was called Zifft or something... But the cool thing was, it goes on evenly with a old Tee shirt for all kinds of wood, and you can always polyurathane (or whatever) it later to give it a gloss.

That's what I did the Foreplay and my Record Racks with. Took minutes, effortless, dries like a champ in a couple o' hours, and the look was great (no Ramones "Now I'm Gonna Snif" headaches!). Gave a nice rich color. They have the same thing for maybe a light colored wood. No paint brush necessary. Gloves recommended! I'm still on one small can, and I even stained my living room table (was naked before)

I went nuts with this stuff. Great! I wish life was this easy. Here again is the kit and you can see the stain job. Brushing my teeth was harder.

[ December 24, 2001: Message edited by: Sckott ]

 

The walnut is dark...it may look a bit lighter in the pics because of sanding and flash. It's about the color of your average Hershey's bar. Here's the veneer, pre-application:



I'm actually concerned about getting the finish too dark, because I don't want to obscure the figure.

 

Patrick,

Go to your local version of a paint store and bring a 'handy' piece with you (If you have one). They can advise you on what matching stains to use.

 

Ok, here's my system:

Hales Revelation 3 Speakers
VPI Jr. turntable with upgraded MKIII platter.
Rega RB 300 arm with modified Heavyweight counterweight and Incognito wiring (what a difference!)
Grado Sonata (soon to upgrade to Master).
Audible Illusions M3 preamp
Krell KAV250a amp
NO DIGITAL!!!!!
Old Sony cassette deck (tc something)
RC audio speaker cables
Tara labs interconnects
Music Meter interconnects

 

Hello Telefunken,

That's my Sonata! Thanks for the picture!
Actually it's very close. Everything is the
same except the turntable. It appears that
your tonearm and upper album clamp is a dark
grey. Those items on mine are both a cream
color that match the rest of unit.

This model actually sounds pretty good
although in strict audiophile terms it
is a rather odd beast. The stereo channels
are not equal and it is designed to work
with a wide range "radiator" speaker.
Think of console unit as housing a
non-directional subwoofer and maybe it
won't seem so wierd.

The turntable is neat: 16,33,45,78 RPM.
The 45-spindle is real heavy-duty. The
cartridge is ceramaic -- a Sonotone 8TS,
I think. It uses an idler wheel drive.
Fully automatic.

The AM section sounds really good -- better
than most people would think AM would sound.
The Shortwave is quite sensitive and
selective. The bandspread helps out a lot.
The FM tuner (monophonic) sounds good as
well and is surprisingly sensitive.

One day I'll get the matching Telefunken
stereo Magnetophone (model 77, I think).

The wood work as is found in many European
sets is impeccable: beautiful two-tone wood.
However, the veneer is thin so care must be
taken.

I've had this unit for twenty-five years
and is my first stereo and shortwave
radio. Started off with tubes. Not
too bad, huh?

Thank you again for the picture Telefunken!

 

I've not posted here for so long i forgot my login details and had to re-register, anyway here is my system.
LP12with cirkus/Ittok LVII arm/Valhalla power supply/Dynavector 17d2 MKII Cartridge.
Naim Nac 72 pre amp
Naim Nap 180 power amp
Technics RX-B501 Tape Deck
Heybrook HB3 MKII speakers

Andy.
Merry Xmas to you all.

[ December 24, 2001: Message edited by: Andy uk ]

 

You're welcome Paul. Glad to see another Tele owner out there. According to the owners manual there was an optional Allvox Radiator RS1(speaker housing) that could be used to get a wider stereo field. These things are more like a jukebox though. I'm not familiar with the Magnetophone model. Thanks for the reply.

 

The basement, Denon 5800 receiver Rega Planar 3 turntable Denon DRW-585 tapedeck Sony SCD-777ES SACD (pick of the litter) Sony DVP700P DVD player Def Tech BP2002TL L/R speakers Def Tech CLR2002 Center Def Tech BP2X surrounds Thanks for all the good tips , Happy Holidays.

 

NAD 7240PE Stereo Receiver
Denon DRM-710 Cassette Deck
Technics SLPD5 5 changer CD Player
Klipsch KG 3.2 speakers
Sennheiser HD 495 Headphones
(Would love a headphone amp)

Old Technics turntable that I get out once I put the cats away to transfer things to cassette or CD or DAT when I borrow my brother's SONY DAT deck.

[ December 24, 2001: Message edited by: Dough ]

 

Think about it. Not everyone has a reference tube set like Steve so he wants to know what he is mastering to. No point making a CD sound great only in his own living room-- this is super research to see how varied the stuff is we listen on. Then when someone with a $20,000 system and someone with a $500 system both say, "Hey, that CD of the Eagles sounds super" that shows just how good Steve's work is!! And why maybe a CD doesn't sound so good on a particular system since certain combinations may add up to a particular mastering not sounding good because of the coloration of the sound by the speakers, amp, etc. At least that's what I think he is doing. PLUS, I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the lists too, so maybe he is just curious.

 

Merry (almost) Xmas!!! I think Steve just loves equipment and likes to know what we monkey with (or else he's casing some joints)... My rig contains the following: Adcom GFP-555 preamp (dead phono section with loadsa hum, see my "help, cheap tube phono section needed" posting elsewhere), Dynaco ST-150 amp (better caps added in the audio circuit and heavier internal wiring added), Denon DP10-F turntable with Grado XF-1 cartridge, Marantz CD67SE digital drink coaster player with Musical Fidelity X10-D tube buffer stage (at least I gots a little tube magic to put some sparkle into the system - great improvement for under $200), TEAC V-570 cassette deck, Madisound Speaker Components Dynaudio MDY-4 speakers (kit built, preassembled cabinets, 2 way time aligned monitors with Dynaudio 6 1/2" bass/mid and 1" dome tweet) - great midrange and surprisingly low bass for such a small box but they need a ton of power to come alive. If you wanna futz around with speakers and get good advice the Madisound folks are very helpful; visit www.madisound.com I'm constantly looking for ways to upgrade, but I like what I have...