Have two of these units. One for recording and the other is used for playback. The transport is modified so that the tape signal is taken directly from the playback head and connected directly to the balanced outputs bypassing the internal electronics. The outputs pass the signal to the tape head preamp inputs on the MP-3.
pARTicular Triangle
3 post suspension rack with acrylic shelves. In this configuration the suspension has been disabled to conserve space. The rack has also been shortened 2 feet. Additional shelving and isolation has been added as well.
Yo2up - I am using a combination of TelWire, Q, and Mogami interconnects. Note that I am a dealer for Q and TelWire.
Jea48 - The Music Note is directional due to the fact that I use the XLR out on my transport and the RCA input on my DAC. I wouldn't be able to connect the cable the other way around even if I wanted to.
A combination of a couple things. First, I prefer not to have the equipment between the speakers. In my previous condo I did short wall placement so I was able to conveniently have the rack along the side wall out of the way. In this condo I'm doing my preferred long wall placement and there is just not enough space along the side wall. Vibrations do factor into some of the decision as well. Especially for the analog rig.
I'm tinkering with the idea of going with shorter speaker cables and longer interconnects and moving the preamp into the room along the side wall. The amps would be placed between the speakers. I don't often need to get up and change the volume, but sometimes it is a bit inconvenient to have to get up and go into the other room to do that. I wouldn't call it a PITA though, at least not yet.
Things are much more open now. Imaging has improved noticeably. It took longer than I would have liked but I finally got speaker placement to the point where things are very well balanced. Overall even with room treatments it is a lively room which I like quite a bit.
System edited: Just moved in to a new condo with much more space. I uploaded new photos showing the set-up. The speakers and amps are in the main listening room. All other components are in an adjacent room. I drilled holes in the wall to run the interconnects from the preamp to amp.
Hi Anthony Any pics of the new room I've always been a fan of Duke's designs and almost springed for some Jazz Modules ended up going with some Granite Monitors RSAD Sason's instead
System edited: Added a few new pieces and am enjoying interchanging them. Finally completed my analog section by purchasing a Galibier Serac, Kenwood KT-8300 tuner, and Otari reel-to-reel deck. The Serac will have an SME Series III mounted on it with a B&O MMC-2 cartridge.
Glad to hear you're satisfied. I feel the same way about mine and Duke. If you are not using any of the internal port extensions you should be getting plenty of bass out of the speakers. I have one extension in place and unless I move the speakers further out from the back wall (not likely due to space) I will keep it that way.
thanks, Clio...definitely not having a "too much bass" problem...it is just right! I have the highest value resistor in place and have totally removed the port extensions...
The more I listen to my Jazz Modules, the more I love them. Phenomenal in every way. I am having a hard time describing the sound other than saying, to me...they sound like a really, really good Ribbon Microphone... liquid, velvet, euphonious, enormous soundstage, 3d...(the RCA 44 comes to mind!)
the only way I will EVER change to anything different is if I get enough money to buy the dream makers, or if Duke , downs the road designs something that is somehow more amazing! (don't see any areas that need improving personally!!)
Duke has a lifelong customer in me. I searched far and wide(25 plus speaker combinations for trial and or/ownership) before finding Nirvana with the Jazz Modules. I was thinking, YES!! someone finally got it right!!!
Closing the port has the effect of a sealed box that will reduce bass. Duke recommended closed cell foam for this. You can also narrow the port to gain a similar effect. What follows comes directly from Duke:
Increasing port length lowers the tuning frequency, and decreasing port length raises it. Now the actual effect on the bass is a bit more complicated. A longer port results in the bass starting to roll off higher up, but it rolls off more gently. A shorter port means more bass energy over most of the bass region, but a more rapid roll off once it starts rolling off.
Usually the answer for "not enough bass" is to shorten the port, which will increase the bass energy above 40 Hz. If the problem is "too much bass", then a longer port will usually help out. If you still have too much bass, remove the rectangular resistor cup on the back of the cabinet and shove a pound or two of loose Polyfill into the cabinet. As a last resort, shove a rolled-up chunk of closed-cell foam into the port and you have a sealed box.
Room Lenses were originally available through Argent, but they have long been out of production. I bought mine used here on Audiogon. They come up from time to time. If you're DIY inclined there are a couple of sites that offer instructions on how to build them.
Great system and setup. I'm looking forward to hearing Duke's speakers someday.
I'm interested in the Room Lenses if they can add liveliness to the room. I have six Real Traps which helped not only with tightening the bass but cleaned up the mids as well. But my room is quite dead so where are Room Lenses available from?
Yes, he just gave me instructions for doing that. Also, he recommended some rolled up closed cell foam to stuff the bass port creating a sealed box effect. That's what I like about these speakers, very flexible.
Duke also reccomends stuffing the ports with poly-fill from wal-mart if you want to tighten up the bass a bit(I love the bass, personally..and the speakers)
Pat, the Room Lenses are worth the scratch IMO. They did a nice job adding some liveliness to the room and bringing about some additional focus to the center image.
I need to play around a little more with the side lenses. David Aiken over on AA recommended I angle them to intercept the sound waves that would normally hit the side wall first reflection points.
System edited: I've come full circle and put the speakers back to where I originally had them to begin with. Used a modified version of the Sumiko Master Set to fine tune the placement. With a 25 foot run of Mogami Gold Neglex balanced cables from the preamp to amps I was able to move the rack out of the way to the left rear of the room. Added a trio of Argent room lenses to boot. Next step, new room, which means a move.
I have a ceiling fan in the middle of my ceiling so the RealTrap mini's have to be mounted less than four inches from the ceiling. I'll have to try to get the other ceiling trap mounted.
Due to the size of my room I started with the longest insert in the bass ports, yielding the lowest bass output. I then tried removing the middle insert for the intermediate setting and liked the bass impact better, but the room was getting overwhelmed at certain low frequencies. Duke sent me a port length about half the usual size and that is working well.
I'm really happy I ran across Duke and took a chance on his speakers. THey are a great buy and I feel no urge to upgrade.
If I had to do it all over again, the ceiling would be the first point I would treat. Especially, if you can mount the panel with 6" or away from the surface. With the way my ceiling is angled and its height, this helps quite a bit.
I wish I could do your set-up with the toe-in. Unfortunately an angled wall in my room gives me all sorts of fits. A 5' equilateral triangle is the best I could manage and at that distance the 45 degree toe-in is unnecessary. The sound is wonderful though. Very lively and the depth is very good.
How have you tuned the bass ports? I agree with the high end tuning, not much difference from one value to another.
