Jsquattrin, thanks for the kind words...i just watch alot of HGTV. i think the secret is to buy dramatic pieces...orginal art work will make any space look great.
Lenny, great to hear from you. I have added Shunyata Hydra 2/Copperhead AC cable...little cost for huge improvement. Also replaced interconnect to Nordost Blue Heaven. I understand now why Nordost has such a big following.
Gammajo, the back of the speakers are currently 3 feet from the front wall (most audio magazines use the listening position as a starting point to identify walls...thus the wall facing the listener is the front wall and wall to the back of the listener is the rear wall). it took my dealer and i 8 hrs to find the optimal position, which wilson calls area of neutrality...but to be candid, i have been pushing the placement further from the front wall then the original position. you can see the progression from the 1st picture to the picture labeled "Redrum" by comparing the Sophia's location to the urn.
Chris, thanks for the post...red does stir the emotions, just like a good listening session. The artist is Ray Donley. (http://www.raydonley-online.com/main.html) He also stirs something pretty dark though. After owning the piece for sometime, I actually havent determined if the image is female or male.
Paul, I am at peace with the DNA 2 DLX. It is neutral with a good sense of authority. I have owned good tube gears in the past (Quick Silver) and the DNAs comes close without the high maintenance issue. Even though I am an audiophile, I hate messing with tubes and phono cartridge/tone arms. I guess thats why I have never gotten into LPs. Dont get me wrong, I enjoy listening to a good Phono setup as much as the next guy, but I just dont enjoy all the fuss (I have a cousin who owns a good phono setup Project turntable/JM Lab BE speakers run by a Sim Amp). Its funny, as I have gotten more years on me; I shed the gears I perceived is needed. Ones perception is ones reality
Anyway, I think you are headed in the right direction with your full-range driver. Now thats simplicity taken to an art form. Just think about it you have all this gear, but the final link to your ear is one speaker while I have minimal gears but need 3 drivers to achieve what you have. Talk about different road taken to the same destination
Paul, Wadia direct is very precise. Words I would use to describe the sound are detailed with an extremely focused image. Direct mode is all I know, since I have never used a pre-amp between the Wadia and McCormack. The only issue I have is playing the Wadia at low volume. At low volume, the Wadia looses some of its dynamics still very neutral but you do have compromises due to the digital volume.
Having owned Quick Silver equipment including pre-amp in my prior system, I would do without the pre-amp any day. I guess it really comes down to the match of other components in the whole system and the type of music one listens to.
Paul, The bronze urns (they are a pair) are actualy from the Qing dynasty (18th century), Senyang, Liaoning Province. Not as acient as Zhou, which would have been 700-250 B.C. Sometimes I wonder where its has been and whom were its previous owners. Now, they enjoy jam sessions with Tracy Chapman and Stevie Ray Vaugh. Santana joins us as well, along with Coldplay. Thank you for the kind words... Best, mt
