Leonidas crossover. Cross-over cables have been upgraded to Verastarr Illusion Copper Foil and critical cross-over components have been upgraded to Path Audio resistors and Clarity Capacitor CSA caps.
Simon Audio CD5 CD Transport/Player
Using this as a transport only to a DAC. My one and oly input - Redbook CDs.
Mapletree Audio Line 2A SE/ PS 2 Linestage Preamp
NOS 12SN7 Tung-Sol grey T plates; separate power supply; NOS Raytheon JAN-CRP 6X5WGT rectifier; Black Gate filter capacitor. Gains: 10dB, 10dB, and 18dB. Two outputs.
Whammerdyne DGA-1
4.3 Watts stereo amp sporting a pair of NOS Sylvania 2A3 tubes.
Harmonic Technology Pro-9 Plus Speaker Cables
Copper wire, spades.
VH Audio Flavor 4 Power Cords
With Furutech FI-25 Gold connectors for amp and preamp
Brick Wall (Zero Surge) PW8R15AUD
AC Protection & Filter: 15 amp; 8 isolated by duplex receptacles (6 switched, 2 unswitched) for CDP and pre, and also non-system gear (DVD, TV, cable box). Brick Wall is a "private label" customer of Zero Surge.
Star Sound Technologies Audio Points
Points under everything. Had I the scratch I'd set each component on a Sistrum Platform, but for now the Audio Points will do.
GIK Room Treatments
(4) 244 Bass Traps on side walls at first and second reflection points; (2) pairs (double-stacked) Tri-Traps front corners; (2) 6A Alpha Pro Series Bass Trap Diffusor/Absorbers 2D(a) on front wall; (3) Evolution PolyFusors on rear wall.
Silnote Audio Morpheus Reference Classic II Series II S/PDIF Cable and Interconnects
S/PDIF cable for CD transport to DAC, and interconnects for all the rest.
Furutech FPX (Cu) AC Outlet
20 amps - one for amp and one for the Brick Wall/Zero Surge
Ugh. Regarding new ICs from Silnote when I previously stated they produced, "less grit and glasiness", I meant to say they removed grit and glasiness heard using previous ICs.
Shortly after swapping out my longtime CDP and replacing with new CDP (Simon Audio CD5, used strictly as a transport for Redbook CDs) and DAC (NewOntech DAC07) (thank you Mike Powell of 11stereo/Verastarr), I upgraded the S/PIDF cable to a Silnote Morpheus Reference Classic II Series II and surprisingly noticed an improvement in sound quality. How can that be? After all, it's only digital data being transmitted to the DAC. Whatever, however, I was so impressed I ended up swapping out all of my ICs for Silnote Morpheus Reference Classic II cables. And am very happy with the improved sound - less grit and glassiness, smoother, excellent natural tone and inner detail. I also upgraded the PC of the DAC from stock to a Nemesis, also from Mike Powell. And I built a nice little stand on which to place the DAC, utilizing some Audio Points I already had.
@lapierre.Yes I have changed out power tubes, somewhat prematurely (only 750 hrs on them) due to one tube slowly going bad (intermittent hissing, which grew progressively worse). Bought a pair of RCAs from Brent Jesse. Similar to originals I think, so no deviation from great sound. Amp easily drives the PAPs, and for my medium-sized room, distance to speakers (10'), and volume preference (75-85 dB) I am likely only pushing about 1 watt, maybe 2 at times (Led Zep).
I think SETs sound best when using only about 25% of their power, so no issue there for me. However, when I play classical music I don't push the volume to heart-stopping crashes that some people like. Otherwise, great for all genres of music.
Not familiar with non-horn models so I'm no help there, sorry. For mine, I do have to kick the volume up a bit to get satisfying sound. Not the greatest for low-level listening IMO, which is surprising to me. Maybe due to non-metallic driver in the horn? Not sure why. But again, not an issue for me as I listen in my dedicated room. Never background music. Always engaged. Good luck with your chosen path! Let me know how it works out for you.
Oh, one more thing ... I swapped out the original Mundorf caps (one per side) for Clarity CSA caps. For me, the Claritys present a more musically enjoyable experience. I thought the Mundorfs were a bit too revealing for more aggressive type music. Yet I don't feel cheated out of any detail. But again, I've got the horn model. I hope this helps.
It has taken me many years to reach this point, always in pursuit of better and better (to my ears/brain/preferences) sound. I am completely satisfied with this kit. It is what I have been pursuing all these years, at incremental improvements along the way. I feel I've finally reached my end game system. And I am happy!
Swapped out my 45-Watt SET monoblocs for a 4.3 watt Whammerdyne DGA-1 Stereo SET Amp with NOS Sylvania 2A3 tubes, NOS 6DJ8 Amperex tube, and upgraded wider bandwidth transformers.
Swapping out my beloved Eggys and subs for the PAP Trio15 Horn1 was a scary risk as I was not sure they'd be able to top my Eggys, but they have. I must say, at this point I am done looking for any more gear. My system sounds superb: clean, clear, deep, pure, true-toned, balanced, sound staged, and dynamic. Vocals will melt your heart, yet lower freqs will dig deep and go visceral with grunt power when called for. I am SO HAPPY!
Thanks shadorne. (I just today noticed your post.) Fortunately, sold the house and farm, went through some really crappy experiences, but have ended up in a home with a basement which has a decent room for my setup. All is good again!
It has been three months now that my system has been boxed up and stored in a locker for "staging" purposes as we await the sale of our home. Man, am I ever JONESING for some Hi-Fi !! I can hardly stand it any longer !! Time to call the waaaaaaambulance up in here !! If you at all feel sorry for me, please, you can either: a) buy my home; or b) let me crash in your dedicated listening room. Anybody?
An entire year and no changes! Just been buying music like a crazy person. I like my system just as it stands. However, could it be better? Not sure. I might consider trying out a few different preamps to see if it makes any improvement. A few which interest me for various reasons at the moment: DeHavilland Ultraverve III; Melody Pure Black 101 (used); Music First Passive Magnetic.
System edited: Sistrum SP-101s added to mains. Better clarity. More relaxed presentation, as if the speaker has been set free. For me, they are the answer to my questions, "What do I put under my speakers? Do I spike? Do I isolate? Do I couple?" Terrific.
But the sound had a slight unnatural hollowness to it, enough to bother me.
Please IGNORE this comment! I am an IDIOT! Apparently hollowness (among other undesirable sonics) can be attributed to applying only 6 volts to 12 volt tubes!
While the amps were out for upgrades I was messing with my preamp connections and somehow, accidentally, flipped the 6SN7/12SN7 switch to 6SN7 setting, although 12SN7s were installed. After installing newly upgraded amps they were inadvertantly being driven by my 12SN7 tubed preamp with its voltage selection switched to 6SN7 setting! Well duh friggin' duh! No wonder I disliked the sonics of my newly upgraded amps. They sounded unacceptable because I AM AN IDIOT!
Reinstalled (previously preferred) 12SN7 tubes into preamp and verified 12SN7 switch setting. Now I can continue evaluating the amp upgrades properly.
Got the Audio Mirror 45 Watt SET monos upgraded: eliminated signal path capacitor; swapped in Dynamicaps for others; auto-bias; power tube protection circuit; high voltage cutoff switch, supplying only to filament to break in new power tubes when necessary.
Excellent functional upgrade. And sonically delivered quieter background, cleaner sound, more snap, and better defined bass. But the sound had a slight unnatural hollowness to it, enough to bother me. My pre had a pair of Tung-Sol 12SN7 grey T-plate tubes. I thought if I swapped those out for a more bolder sounding tube I could regain my preferred sound. Fortunately I had a spare pair of NOS Sylvania 6SN7GTAs to swap in. Voila! Not only restored the type of sound I preferred (big, bold, natural), but even better with the amp upgrades.
Hello Ray. Now that A'gon allows contacting members again (so they say, though I've not yet tried), just give me a shout. Advance notice always preferred since I am married with horses and my "mancave" is our living room (more accurately a womancave, like all other rooms in the house ;^)
Wow. One year later and I have not made any changes other than moving my speakers around just a bit. I guess proof that I am terrifically satisfied. If anyone is near the Atlanta area and wishes to hear a pair of Egglestons driven by a pair of powerful SETs, drop me line.
NOS is boss! I love the NOS Sylvania chromes in my amps, but for my pre I've settled on a pair of (very affordable) NOS 12SN7 Tung-Sol grey T plates. My system is now done (again, eh?). This time I'm serious. It is perfect for me. No more upgrades necessary.
Scott - are you referring to the ACI in-line filters? If so, I did try them, and liked them at first. But in the end preferred to not use them as the 45 Watt SET amps have enough juice to drive my mains without the filters.
Ry - I am sorry I do not know as my amp mfr suggests not using one so I've never tried my power amps other than straight into the wall. I don't have dedicated circuits yet, but plug them into circuits on which I keep other appliances off during listening. For surge protection I leave them unplugged until ready to use. And never use during a storm. Have had good luck with Brick Wall/Zero Surge on rest of components though. Sorry I could not have been more help. Would not hurt to try, just might not get current as quick/much as amp requires, but do not know for sure.
Replaced stock Russian input and driver tubes in my Audio Mirror 45 watt SET monos with Sylvania 6SL7GT/VT-229 blk base, blk plates, JAN military, early 50's (input); and Sylvania 6SN7GTA short glass, heavy top & side getter flashing, 40's era (driver). Holy crap! I thought my system sounded very good before, but now ... holy crap! Awesome clean, clear highs, wonderful meaty mids and lows, but not tubby or chesty at all - still SET magic, but now with balls. The sound just envelops me like never before. My system went from very good to astounding. Tremendous even. Ordered a matched pair of Sylvania "chrome domes" for my Mapletree pre. NOS is boss!
Replied to Richard via e-mail but also will respond here for others' benefit ... WyWires is fairly new full-function (phono, ICs, speaker, power) wire seller who designs and builds his own cables. At this time I believe he offers a 60-day no risk (except shipping cost of course) trial - plenty of time to properly evaluate. For prices you can reference the "What to Buy" link on his web site, then look towards bottom, embedded within text, for pricing sheet link to a pdf attachment. Alex prefers to speak with you because he has more than one flavor of IC, has different ICs depending on the application (source->pre vs. pre->power), and needs to know what gear you have and your listening preferences to help decide which flavor to use. NOT to hard-sell you. As for how they sound to me just bounce up to my 9-15-10 entry above and see. Allow me to add that they bettered (clarity, openness, full accurate tone without anomalies, as heard with ALL other cables I tried) Kimber 1011, Harmonic Technology MAGIC-Link II, Cardas Golden Cross, and a few other similarly priced ICs.
The Wywires ICs ended up being the final piece to my audio puzzle. I am seriously done changing gear/wires. My system, for me, has been perfected. It does everything extremely well but for two attributes not important to me: 1. superb sound at low volumes - my speakers' drivers usually seem to require some juice to excel, at least a couple of watts; and 2. large scale - cannot do rock concert volume levels or blow you out of your seat on the 1812 Overture. If I had to catagorize my system I might say it somewhat leans to the intimate side, but can still swing and rock. Three characteristics absolutely required: intimacy, swing, and rock.
I AM DONE! No more shopping, just listening. What a long, rewarding journey it has been for me.
Settled on ICs ... finally! What an expensive, frustrating journey, but well worth it in the end. (Swapping gear is fun for most, but not me. I know what I want to hear and have little patience to attain it.) I tried many different ICs at different price levels and tried to settle a few times but never was able to reach the level of openness I'd craved, until now. Wywires have done it for me. They ended up being the most extended, clear, natural, and open ICs in my system without glare, etch, steely, or forced sound. Because of their ability to allow the flow of music pass so naturally, they can switch from delicate sound to growling, or whatever the music is, in the blink of an eye. CDs which, with other clear sounding ICs I'd had, had too steely an edge to their sound at greater than low to medium volume (Rory Block, Mike Bloomfield, Eva Cassidy, Weather Report), now sound perfectly natural with the Wywires. Steely edge is gone without sacrificing clarity and openness. For example, on Weather Report's Black Market CD which has lots of different types of cymbals and gong, they are more easily individually identified as opposed to sounding like similar crashes. And Wayne Shorter's sax, though brilliantly clear in sound, is no longer so piercing. Well done! This is what I was after and Alex at Wywires has accomplished this (for me in my system). However, I did have to get the long pair (12 feet, from my pre to amps) cooked in order to sound best.
I've since ended up removing the 85Hz high-pass filters and now run the Fontaines full range (augmented with two subs) ... glorious. And the 45 Watt SET Audio Mirror amps have plenty of power for me at all times. I prefer this amp/speaker combo for voice and piano better than any other set up I've heard ... clarity of sound with purity of tone to die for. A great combination.
Going to try Audio Mirror 45 Watt SET monos (pair of 6C33C tubes per) - first tube power amps ever for me! Hopefully they will sound good (of course) and hopefully enough power. Vlad says they put out closer to 55 watts, with peaks to 90 watts. Have never seen measurments for my speakers, but SP has measured Andras, the Fontaines bigger brother.
In the SP Andra review JA states they are, "moderately sensitive", although they did run them with huge amps. However, my Fontaines don't have the 12" Ws the Andras have, only the same TMMs. Since the Fontaines' MMs are run full (not limited, direct to amp) as on the Andras, perhaps I can extract impedance and phase angle from the SP plots of the Andras?
Since I high-pass at 85Hz, I figure I can assume by the time the freq. gets down to 70Hz the load becomes insignificant. Viewing the plots down to 70Hz: min impedance drops to only 7 ohms; phase angle is greatest (+45 deg) at 80Hz, then smooth elongated sinewave, dropping at 4kHz to -25 deg.
Thus, I am hoping that it is acceptable for me to assume that: with one +45 deg phase angle on an overall smooth plot; and since I high-pass am avoiding the lowest impedances, seeing nothing below 7 ohms; that these SETs may likely be a good match.
One person says (paraphrasing) that my Fontaines are not a reactive load up to the tweeter crossover frequency, because they do not use any crossover for the bass/midrange drivers. The drivers are connected directly to the binding posts. With no midrange crossover, a direct connection to the amplifier allows for fast bass/midrange and should love SET amps.
I find this very encouraging and am excited to try my first tube power amp(s). Its hard to believe they'll be better than my current set up, but I don't know what I don't know so I must at least give them a try.
"Done" but not dead. Cash-strapped, mostly. Anyone in Atlantaland with a tube amp interested in lugging it over to my place to hear a pair of Egglestons and/or dual subs? I'll supply the beer (current stock includes: Stone Arrogant Bastard (you are what you eat?); Clipper City Heavy Seas Loose Cannon (Hop3 Ale); Dale's Pale Ale; and a 25 oz. bottle of St. Bernardus ABT 12 http://www.specialtybeer.com/beer,index,st._bernardus_abt_12.html).
And although I think my system is as good as it can get I am curious to hear it with an all tube amp. I've never heard it with an all tube amp and would love to. I'm thinking either Quicksilver, Rogue, or CJ. Perhaps some day ...
Shadorne - Thanks. John Martyn sounded spooky good last night - Solid Air and Bless the Weather. Good stuff. Have not spun Stones since I got it all dialed in to my liking. Thanks for the idea though! Think I'll start with "Now", and then "Exile". Followed by "Jamming with Edward" of course (bwah, hah, hah, hah ... I don't think Bob did that one, eh?). ;^}
Lapierre, thank you. One sub is placed right front, to the right of the right main, and the other is kitty-corner, diagonally across on left behind seating position. Both are set to equal volumes at listening position and equal cross-over, around 65Hz. For my system/room this proved best integration (flattest response) with 85Hz high-pass in-line passive filters on amp input lines. I had one sub at first, but it just did not seem to energize the room enough. By adding the second I was able to flatten a few peaks and nulls in response curve, and also properly energize the room when called upon. My goal for this system all along has been: musical, clear, extended on both ends, and non-fatiguing. I have finally achieved this objective with latest upgrade to tubes in my amp from JJs to Mullards. I am now completely satisfied and thrilled about my system. I am done shopping for gear and will now solely concentrate on pursuing more music.
Second sub now integrated into system. Ended up using the 85Hz filters on my mains and connecting the two subs as stereo. Subs' phases: locked in. Subs' volume levels: equal and locked in. Low-pass settings on the two subs set to approx. 70Hz. All I have left to do is tweak the low-pass settings on the subs for optimal integration. But already the addition of a second for stereo subs sounds fantastic. I may have finally reached my goal: Andras on the "cheap", albeit with dismembered subs and lower cross-over settings. But hey! Sounds good to me!
System edited: Added a second subwoofer! This one also an ACI Titan XL but newer model in Satin Black. (By the way, if anyone wishes to trade out their old style Titan XL in Rose Walnut for my new, fully warranted B-Stock Satin Black just let me know as wife prefers previous model.) Currently breaking in the new one alone. Next step will be to position and connect second sub to experiment and determine if subs will be either two summed (matched) signals to smooth out peaks/valleys in LF response curve, or stereo (Left channel to one and Right to the other). They will be positioned sort of randomly kitty-corner from one another, though not in the corners as I don't have any. Have two sets of ACI passive in-line filters with which to try on the mains as well: 65Hz and 85Hz. So several iterations are required to determine best results. Feel free to comment on which way you think I should go with two subs: summed or stereo, and which filters for which set-up.
System edited: Added pair of ACI 65Hz Passive High-Pass in-line (RCA) filters to relieve mains of some lowest freq. duty. By doing so also cleaned up sound, improved imaging, and widened sounstage. A great cheap tweak!
System edited: Finally addressing my room a bit. Added three GIK Acoustic 244 Panels to the wall behind my head to kill the bass null off the back wall and help with the boominess of sitting near (3') a boundary
For anyone else with the Fontaines and Titan combo, FWIW, I set the cross-over to the lowest possible setting. This gave me the best integration - i.e., you don't realize that there is a sub in the system. And for anyone fretting over getting a sub or not for fear of it messing up your current imaging and cleanliness of detail, fret no mo. It can be done, at least with an ACI sub. Measured (and corrected) response at my listening position for the lower region (without any additional room treatments): 20Hz -7.8dB 25Hz -5.6dB 31.5Hz +1.9dB 40Hz +2dB 50Hz -2.2dB 63Hz +.8dB 80Hz +1.5dB Between 63 and 80Hz the sub no longer has any effect on the response.
Thank you for the (as always) kind words. Every now and then I wake up in a cold sweat (ow! I feeeeel good, knew that I would now), worried that I need to replace my mains and sub for full-rangers. But then I just pop in Mark Murphy, Miles, or Roland Kirk, and I forget all about replacing gear. Ahhh ... the sweet sound of plastic drivers ... (tee-hee)
This system needs to be moved to "DONE FOR NOW", as I am completely satisfied with its sound. But I don't know how to easily move it, so I guess it will sit here.
System edited: The final two pieces are now in place: mod'ed player (Consonance Ref. 2.2, mod'ed by Stephen at Quest For Sound) and new preamp (Line 2A SE/ PS 2 by Dr. Llyod Peppard - Mapletree Audio). My system is immensely satisfying - highly musical and effortlessly enjoyable.
System edited: In my quest for more (grunt/snort) power to make my 87 dB Fontaines "sing", I've purchased a Van Alstine Fet Valve Ultra 550 - and sing they now do. I've relegated my a120 integrated to preamp only use. It is a shame to semi-retire the a120 into partial use so I plan on selling it and getting a dedicated preamp. I'm thinking along the lines of either a Van Alstine Transcendence T8 (all tube), Quicksilver Audio Linestage, or perhaps a Transcendent Sound Grounded Grid (self-tweaked).
Ray, Thanks. No spikes since it sits on a hardwood floor. Instead, I ordered two sets of "Happy & Unhappy" balls (1.5" diameter) from Edmund Scientific - www.scientificsonline.com - and sliced the two unhappy balls in half, one half for the bottom of each Titan leg. This is a tweak I picked up on Audio Asylum. The "Unhappy balls" (a.k.a. "sad balls") are made up of an extremely effective energy dissipating material (Norbornene). In effect, it decouples the speaker from the floor. It seems to work really well and is a cheap tweak, my favorite kind. I ordered a pair of Canare LV-77S subwoofer cabels from www.bluejeanscable.com. I tried integrating the sub with the included CD and an SPL meter, but eventually just did it by ear: After setting the phase I dialed the sub's volume and cross-overs to their lowest setting. I put on a bass-heavy CD and dialed up the sub's volume until I could hear it flesh out the bottom end of the music. I then dialed the sub's volume down a little. Then dialed the cross-overs up in frequency to fill in the "hole". I like it alot. The bass is full and so tuneful. It is the best sounding sub I've heard. I don't know if the sound changed much during break-in because I set it on a high cross-over level and let it play mostly while not at home. However, it never sounded bad even from the start. For me, I feel it turned my very good system into a great one. I could not be more pleased with the quality of the sub, and now my entire system.
First round of measurments with SPL meter to dial in the sub last night. I used 80db as my reference, playing warble tones from 200 - 20Hz and successfully drove the dog out of the house and the cat to her furthest, darkest, hiding spot. My wife was not home at the time so I'm not sure what her reaction would have been. (Actually, I know precisely what it would have been which is why I waited until she was gone.) Man, does my room suck. From 200 Hz down I got me a giant roller-coaster response curve. One surprise that surfaced was that I have thus far ended up setting the cross-over very low, to 35Hz. My mains are rated -3db at 55Hz so I expected to cross at around 45Hz. It looks like I have a few more rounds of dialing before I'm happy. But my room is so bad I'll have to treat it and then do more testing.
Hookup: The sub normally comes with speaker-level converters (amp speaker outs wired to converters to connect to the line-level inputs on sub) but were missing from my order so I had no choice but to hook up via pre-outs from my amp (even though it is integrated with no power-ins, it has two sets of pre-outs). In anticipation of the sub's arrival I ordered a pair of cables from blujeanscable.com: Canare LV-77S (well shielded; cheaper than cables offered from ACI). Crossover: I keep messing with it between 65 and 45 Hz. I will soon do some SPL measurements of my mains and the sub to determine the best setting. Then I'll fuss with it until it sounds optimal. I agree with Mdhoover - I will not stuff the ports on my mains. I tried it. It does not make sense to alter my mains which are excellent. The Titan is adjustable enough to not have to do this. What I really need is a sub-adjuster-slave so I can bark out different settings while I sit listening in my listening spot (frothy, cold, firm-headed mug o' liquid hops in one hand; remote in the other). For a moment I considered asking my wife, but then I came to my senses. The dog just stared at me when I asked her. And the cat ... of course I'd not ask her ... I'm not an idiot. I think results from the SPL measurements will speed up the process enough that it won't be too long before I'm satisfied with the settings. The sub comes with a setup cd (sine-waves and warble tones) and you can download an MS Excel spread sheet from the ACI web site. It already has the Rat Shack analog SPL meter fudge factors baked into it for easy plotting.
My beautiful ACI Titan arrived yesterday. I barely set it up - did not take any SPL readings yet - just dialed in the phase and volume, and guessed at the cross-over. I played some of my bass-heavy CDs: Pharoah Sanders - Message From Home Angelique Kidjo - Logozo Material Bahia Black - Ritual Beating System Weather Report - Black Market So far I have three words which describe what I experienced: dubya oh dubya! It kind of reminded me of when I first got a microwave oven. I remember thinking, "how did I ever get along before without one of these?" Awesome fill-in and I haven't even purchased my diamond encrusted, platinum gold, cryptonite radiated, moon dust sprinkled, $8000/ft. power cord yet. ;^}
Firecracker_77, Black Italian granite is on the outside only: the two sides. The picture at www.egglestonworks.com shows the Fontaines on top of their custom box stands, which are integral to the Fontaines. But since they are stands, they do not have the granite, but black piano finish Lexicon. The baffle and top of the Fontaines are also Lexicon. IMO they are pieces of art as well as terrific sounding speakers. Thanks.
Bill, If I set the crossover low, would I still want to stuff the two rear ports in each speaker? It is not that I did not like the sound of the Rel. I thought it sounded OK. It just stuck out like a sore thumb. Apparently, if the sub (any brand) is not well integrated, it really mucks up the system. At least IMO. Thanks for the input.
I'll try the cd first. ACI's been doing this successfully for so long I'll put my trust in them. But if results are not satisfactory, I'll start searching the web. Not sure which method would be better. But I think the sub comes with speaker line adaptors (or cheap to order: speaker out -> adaptor -> RCA cable to sub) I will try both to see if there is a difference. Since this is my first sub I have no favored method as of yet.
Ray, no longer 7-8 weeks. Apparently ACI has been waiting for a shipment of drivers, which are expected next week. So all of a sudden I've been told mine should be built next week. Excellent surprise! My integrated amp has an extra set of pre-outs which I'll use to connect to the Titan. But my amp does not have inputs to connect from the Titan so my main speakers will be running full range. I've read that stuffing the ports on the mains may be required. I'll try both ways. Even though my Fontaines are rated to only 55Hz +-3db, the two 6" drivers are ported such that they produce excellent quality, tight, tunefull bass far below 55Hz. I have done alot of research and auditions. To tell you the truth, I've yet to hear any subwoofer I've liked (Rel, Martin Logan, B&W, etc.) They've all sounded like they mess up the sound to me. I can only suspect that they've not been properly integrated. You get a 30 day trial with the Titan and a setup cd. So if it turns out bad for me, I'll just ship it back. Then I'll have to figure out an alternative. However, I suspect it will be good, as I hardly ever see any used for sale.
Just ordered a Titan yesterday. They are 7-8 weeks behind ... Boo-freakin'-hoo! What's a bassless audio schlep to do? I will report once it gets built, arrives, set up, broken in ... Sheesh! Next post in May!?
Side note: I like this system so much I hate to listen to CDs anymore at work on headphones (admittedly, cheap player and cans) or driving in my truck. Damn these Fontaines!
Doh! I almost sold my Fontaines!? ... After scraping up some dough (soon to arrive) I finally decided I would purchase a new ACI Titan subwoofer to complete my first high-end audio system. My wife was less than thrilled. Even though she agreed that the Titan was beautiful, she still did not want it in our living room. I began thinking of compromises and realized that if I took the money earmarked for the Titan and parts, sold my Fontaines, and kicked in a few hundred more dollars, I could order a pair of Salk Veracity HT3s which do not require a sub. Not a bad compromise, eh? But after conteplating on this for a couple of weeks, all while listening to my current system of course, I've realized that I do not want to give up my Fontaines. They are just too amazing ... and my wife agrees. So as soon as that check gets here I'm ordering a new Titan. Yee-haa!
Advice for the worry wart please. I sometimes wonder if my amp is too puny - I do not want to wreck my speaker drivers. Reviews of the amp state things like "sizeable toroidal transformer" and "bags of headroom". The terms "sizeable" and "bags" are relative to the reviewer and his scope of comparisons. And I can't get any more info on the amp other than it is 90 wpc at 8 ohms, and damping factor > 500. No other data on its power. The speaker manufacturer states efficieny of 87 dB and nominal impedance 8 ohms, quite stable, but can drop to as low as 5.6 ohms. Also recommends the amp be a minimum of 80 watts, but depends on the "quality of current" generated. I like my amp, but I wish it had a clipping indicator since I don't know the "quality" of its current. It is not an issue when I play Nina Simone or Rory Block, but might be when I put on Motorhead. When I play loud I doubt it is at concert level (which is usually too loud for me and annoying), but I might be near that (since it appears to be too loud and annoying to the cat). Perhaps I've read too many consumer reviews which state that their 250 wpc amp clips on their speakers so they want to upgrade to more power. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Yeah, I really lucked out. I already decided to buy a different pair of "full-range" speakers when I happened upon these while browsing A'gon. Even though they were out of my price range I thought I'd give them a listen. They blew me away. They were awesome. The most musical speakers I'd ever heard (though I'm new to this level of audio). I gushed with enthusiasm - not a good buyer's tactic when bargaining. But the salesman (store owner) was cool. He explained that he was breaking ties with Eggleston and would give me a good deal, as these had been his store demos that nearly no one ever auditioned. I got these (world class?) speakers for about the same price I would have paid for the ones I was intending on buying (good, but not on the same level as the Eggys). I truley am blessed to have these. I cannot stop listening to them. They've turned me into a hi-fi junkie.
No need to worry Arkprof. I meant even without the final piece yet - subwoofer - I love it. And enjoy it I do. I used to love to travel. Now it makes me sad to part from my system for more than one day. As a matter of fact, why am I sitting here writing a response without a CD playing? You sure are correct about differnet qualitiy of CD recordings. I have found myself enjoying music I wouldn't otherwise listen to, just because it is so well recorded. Thanks for the encouragement!
