Fortress of Solitude

by rdavwhitaker on Done For Now

Description

Heaven knows I'm no Superman, but like him, I often need to retreat from the world. This room is my own space in our home (my wife has her own "private space" as well - we've been happily married thirty years and I sometimes suspect that's one of the reasons), which means the infamous WAF doesn't apply to my stereo. The furniture started out being in two separate roooms, hence the current mismatched stain colors - I just couldn't see tossing any of it over aesthetic issues, when it does the job.

The well-worn blue easy chair was a gift from my wife 26 years ago -- it was a bargain-basement item she bought for me at Builder's Square (yes, the hardware store -- it was some sort of cheesy "impulse purchase" item they put on display) back when we couldn't afford anything else -- and I wouldn't trade it for all the tea in China. Unless and until it breaks or the fabric wears out, it will occupy the place of honor in my listening room.

I'm just starting to post the system - more components and pictures will be coming over the next couple weeks.
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Components Toggle details

    • Analog Engineering AE-2008
    This is my favorite turntable - a completely rehabilitated and updated Empire 208, with the plinth pre-cut for an SME-base tonearm. You can see the upgrade described at analog-engineering.net.
    • Grado The Statement
    This is the cartridge mounted on the AE-2008 aat the moment. It is one of about six cartridges I switch out from time to time, for chuckles. It is a little smoother than most, and works well with the arm and table.
    • Oracle Audio Technologies Oracle SME 345
    This is the arm mounted on the AE-2008. The Oracle SME 345 is essentially an SME 309 with SME Series 4 bearings and Series 5 wiring -- which means it retains the 309's removable headshell. I chose it over the SME Type 4 or 5 because of the detachable headshell (I'm a klutz), even though I know a tonearm purist would disapprove.
    • Parasound JC-3 Phono
    This is the much bally-hooed phono preamp from Parasound designed by John Curl. I think it is the most neutral piece of audio gear I've ever owned. It takes the signal from the cartridge, amplifies it, equalizes it, and then passes it on with absolutely zero loss of detail -- at least as near as I can tell. And it is particularly designed to work well with Grado low-output moving iron cartridges, like the one I currently have mounted.
    • Apple Mac Mini
    I use a Mac Mini as a music server, and feed it to the DAC through either a direct connection via USB or via the Logitech Squeezebox. I can control music selections over either an iPad or my iPhone.
    • Audio Research DAC-7
    What can I say? It's a DAC, it's from Audio Research, and it does the job, without any flash or fuss.
    • Logitech Squeezebox Touch
    i have this unit attached by both Ethernet and a TosLink cable to an Apple Airport Express, which in turn connects it to my wireless network and to my Mac Mini music server. I use the magnificent iPeng remote control app, via an iPad,to access my iTunes music library, my Rhapsody albums, Pandora, and FLAC files I have purchased from HDTracks. I have it connected to the DAC-7 by TosLink. I consider it one of the great bargains in Audio.
    • Marantz SA-15S2
    Frankly, I chose this player over others for two reasons - it reads SACDs, and it was a model carried by my local dealer. Even though the selection process wasn't terribly scientific, I have been well pleased. It is a very solid performer.
    • Sony TC--KA3ES
    As near as I can tell, this is the last, best audiophile deck Sony ever made. And I still play cassettes from time to time. I don't know what I'll do when it breaks -- I suspect it will be very hard to replace.
    • Cambridge Audio Azur 840e
    I have owned a LOT of preamps - this is my favorite, believe it or not, oh audiophile snobs. It sounds as good as any I have owned, and it is magnificently flexible and customizable. There are trade-offs, of course. It does not have the fabulous soundstage of an Audio Research Ref 3, for example, but the bass is better defined. As an all-around performer it is terrific. I just wish it wasn't made in China - sigh.
    • Audio Research VT-100 mkIII
    This is my favorite amplifier. 100 watts is plenty for my listening room, and the VT-100 smooths out any hard edges my solid-state preamp might otherwise present to the speakers. In fact, the two make an excellent combination, with the preamp providing good detail and bass definition, and the tube amp then adding that "tube magic" that is so hard to define.
    • Wilson Benesch Curve
    When I first got into audio, it was an article of faith that the loudspeaker had more impact on sound than any other component in the system. I continue to believe that is true -- these speakers are among the best I have ever heard for delivering balanced, detailed sound, no matter what the source material. I am extremely fond of them.
    • Velodyne DD-10 plus
    this is one of Velodyne's new units with auto-eq, which seems to work very well. All I know is that the deep bass sounds more solid, and realistic, than ever before in my system.

Comments 2

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Owner
Thanks. I also have Nak deck - an RX-303 with the auto reverse cassette turntable - which still works. I sometimes switch out the Sony and use the Nak instead, but I have a lot of tapes encoded with Dolby S, which the Nak doesn't have. But I agree that the Nak sounds better with a lot of tapes.

Happy listening.

rdavwhitaker

Absent makes the heart grow fonder. Hooray for having your own space. Funny about the chair.
I used to have a Sony deck like you have, it was a great deck, I was really disappointed when it broke, I lucked out and got one of the last Nak decks available at the time. It was better than the Sony, it even played back tapes made on other decks sound great. I too think the most important component is still the speakers. Followed by the source.
You assembled a nice system, happy listening.

glenfihi

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