Club Bop - The Sound System
Before I begin to describe my main sound system, let me
say that without Ebay, I would not have this system. So first, let me tell you
how to buy electronics on Ebay (for overall tips on Ebay see Ebay page). You
must know what you are buying. I read 2 magazines on a monthly basis -
Stereophile and Absolute Sound. When I find something on Ebay that intrigues me,
I will go to a couple of internet sites to garner information.
1.
Audio Reviews - this site has reviews of most
audio products by consumers. Most comprehensive of the sites of this nature.
Read carefully, sometimes reading between the lines.
2.
Audiogon -
on this site you can browse the classifieds and see what a particular piece of
equipment might be selling for off ebay. Also can go to blue book section, which
will give you list of equipment (type in manufacturer name in search) and year
it was produced. If I cannot find a listing of a particular model, I tend to
stay away from bidding on it at ebay. This is also a good site to purchase high
end used equipment - I have several pieces that were purchased on Audiogon.
3.
Audio Video Revolution - another site with reviews.
4. Ecoustics
- my favorite site with reviews from
magazines as well as the customer reviews from audio reviews.
Now the fun thing about building a system on Ebay is
that you can buy a piece of equipment - live with it for awhile and then trade
in for something better. I always have been able to sell equipment for what I
paid or more.
For me the ultimate listening experience is live
music in a small club. So I decided to
convert half of our unfinished basement into a listening room .
Laid down an oriental, put in furniture that we were not using. Took some
bookcases out of our old home office and created sort of a wall and a place to
put the equipment. I then realized that with concrete walls and floors - I
needed to do something to reduce the reflective surfaces. So I lined the walls
with empty cardboard boxes (left from the move) and hung (stapled is more like
it) black heavy cotton curtains over the boxes for aesthetics as well as more
damping. Coupled with the 18" floor joists and some other area rugs - I
converted a concrete area into "Club Bop". The sound is awesome - sounds as
good as a small club. And when I close my eyes, I think it is live. Anyone
who has had the honor, have raved about how great the sound is. So now, this old
music junkie has a great listening room. So let's talk about the system.
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Speakers:
B&W 705's - Left and Right
Mirage OM-C2 - Center Channel
Mirage Omni 50's - Surrounds
Morduant Short MS909W - Subwoofer
Even though, I loved my Vandersteen's, I decided to pare down the system. So I
reduced 7.1 to 5.1 and sold the Vandersteenn's. I used the NHT Classic 3's for
my mains, however not satisfied with the sound, so I picked up a pair of B&W
705's - very nice speakers. However they did not begin to really sing until I
paired them with the Bel Canto EVO amp. This combo may match the sound that I
had with the Vandersteen's. I use the Mirage Omni's for my surround channels. Whether multi-channel SACD or movies, the sound is very
live and good levels without any distortion. The 300W Morduant Short subwoofer
is a very musical sub as well as good for movies and adds the added punch to the
705's. This sub was my first great discovery (I had a Mirage sub which sounded boomy, I saw this one and took a chance -
love it).
The Front End
Krell Showcase Processor/Pre-amp
I moved from a Denon to an Outlaw Audio 950 then to the Krell. Each time I
gained an improvement in sound, however the Krell has exceeded all my
expectations in flexibility of setup and sound. The Krell is absolutely
transparent, does not add any coloration to the sound. An absolute
pleasure to listen to and to operate. Pure 5 star piece of equipment I picked up
the Krell processor on Audiogon, another good source of used
equipment.
The Power
Bel Canto EVO - 2 Channels at 120 watts per channel
Acurus A200x3 - 3 Channels at 200 watts per channel
When I sold the
Vandersteen's, I realized that I had just too much amplification. So I sold the
Citation and the Parasound. I first used a Classe 101 - then found a Bel Canto
EVO at a great price on Audiogon. After reading the reviews of the EVO, I
decided to take the plunge. Oh My! The EVO paired with the B&W 705's is
sonic bliss. The EVO is a digital amplifier and the sound is unbelievable. The
reviews talk about how fast the amp is, and after listening, I have to agree -
there is a sense of speed which makes the sound very live. This amp has now
replaced the Citation 7.1 as my favorite amp of all time. I use the Acurus
to power the center and surrounds, I decided that this combination gave me the
sound that I like.
Analog
Preeminence Reference Line One
Aragon 18K Preamp
I run my analog thru the Aragon preamp
and/or the Preemenince .The Preeminence was highly rated in this year's Absolute
Sound's recommended products (even though it is vintage). I already had the
Aragon, which I love, however I have never owned a passive preamp, so I decided
to go for the Preeminence (found it on Audiogon). What is the difference, the
Aragon does more signal boost and adds some warmth to the sound. The Preeminence
is pure grace and style - the sound is not colored one bit - absolutely amazing
piece of gear.
Digital
IMAC
Monarchy Audio DIP
Monarchy Audio 24/96 DIP
Monarch Audio Model 22 DAC
I use the IMAC as my music server, I moved all my digital music files to
this computer and with front row, the IMAC acts like an IPOD. You can browse
or search or just play music with the remote that came with the computer and
the software front row. I am outputting pure digital files via optical from
the IMAC into a Monarcy Audio DIP then into a Monarch Audio 24/96 DIP then
into a Monarchy Audio Model 22 DAC, then I input the analog signal into the
Aragon and direct into the Stello headphone amp. Unbelievable sound and extremely convenient. I wonder now why I need
all the CD's and the other equipment.
Sony NS999ES
When I was updating, I had a very nice but old Denon 1650 CD player. After much
reading, I decided to get SACD as everything I read said that the SACD added to
the sound of a normal "red book" CD. I got a Sony SACD carousel player that was
Stereophile recommended and was immediately pleased. When we moved, I put the
Sony in the family room and picked up a Sony NS999ES CD/SACD/DVD player. I recently decided to add a stand alone SACD I picked up the much heralded Sony XA9000CS SACD/CD
player which is even better on audio than the NS999 and the transport is very
heavy and can hold up to a lot of use.
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Tascam CD-RW 402
I have always hated recording CD's on a computer. You
cannot listen and edit while you record and the sound quality always seemed
lacking. So I went back to Ebay and found a very nice professional Tascam CD-RW
402 CD recorder. Now I can make CD's the way I used to make tapes (for the same
reason, compilation stuff to listen to in the car). Has dual decks for
duplicating from one to the other. I will make a compilation disk on the IMAC
from Itunes then duplicate on the Tascam for better sound. Or sometimes I will
go straight from the IMAC to the Tascam.
Video
I have a 50" Samsung 1080P Hi-Def rear
projection TV coupled with the Samsung BDP-1000 Blu- Ray player.
Apple TV
The Apple TV is a wonderful device, works along with Itunes wirelessly. I
can rent or purchase movies in high definition and I run the digital sound
straight from the Apple TV to the Krell for some fabulous sounds. Now the
fun begins, I downloaded the remote app for my IPhone, with this
application, I can play any music on my IMAC through the Apple TV - use this
upstairs while the IMac is downstairs.
Headphones
Sennheiser HD800 -
Headphones
Stello HP 100 Headphone Amp
When Sherri isn't home or is asleep up on the second
floor, I can listen to my music fairly loud. However, when she is awake, I
needed headphones. I have the highly recommended Sennheiser HD800 headphones.
I have to admit, these headphones are so great, that I do most of my
listening through them.
The Stello solid state headphone amp is a true
beauty, purchased this amp after a great review in Stereophile. One of these
days, when we move, I will probably get rid of the speakers and all the amps
and just listen to the HD800's.
Power
I run all my gear through a 2 Panamax's as well as an industrial line
conditioner.
And all those ugly orange cables you see in the pics (remember
this is my room, not a woman's family room) after a great article in
absolute sound magazine on a review of high end speaker cables - power
extension cable from home depot was highly rated. So I got some, added good
sets of banana clips to the ends and after breaking them in, they sound
wonderful. If you are in the neighborhood, drop in for a listen.
The Family Room
Apple TV
Cambridge Azur 540A integrated Amp
Bel Canto DAC - 1
Apple TV
Sony SCD-CE775
Mirage Omni 60's Speakers
Toshiba HDTV with built in VCR and DVD
Upstairs in the family room, I use the remote app on my IPhone to play music
from my IMAC (downstairs) - thru the Apple TV. I use the Bel Canto to convert the digital signal
from the Apple TV. I listen thru NHT Classic 3's driven by my Cambridge
Azur integrated - very nice 2 channel sound. I moved
the Sony SACD up from the basement and have always been very happy with the
sound of this player. I initially replaced a much pricier CD player with this
deck and it was much cheaper, however the SACD circuitry actually makes regular
CD's sound better.
The Library
IPod
Wadia ITransport
Benchmark DAC
Sennheiser HD650 Headphones
Wadia Itransport/Benchmark DAC
As the Ipod becomes more of a way to listen and buy music for me, I wanted
to find a way to listen in my home on good headphones. I recently replaced
the ILO home dock with the Wadia. The Wadia extracts the music from
the IPod in analog and in digital. But you need to be aware that the Wadia
is only a pass through - no DAC. So I hooked up the Wadia to a benchmark DAC.
The Benchmark also has a built in headphone amplifier. The Wadia definitely is a huge
improvement, the sound is so unbelievable - it is hard for me to
believe that the source is just an IPod.
Ray Samuels
Audio - The Hornet
This is a small amp for the IPod
that will power just about any headphone. This amp makes music on the IPod
sing. I can listen to my HD600's, the AKG's or the Bose 2"s. Does not
matter, great sound out of an amp that is about the size of a pack of cigs.
Rechargeable battery - only available direct from Ray Samuels Audio. If you
listen to the IPod, then do yourself a favor and upgrade to this little amp.
I use this amp when I travel.
etched plaques
employee of the month plaque |
