After about 6 weeks of burn-in the JC 1's are simply stunning and my system seems has never sounded better, not even close IMO.
The 326/JC 1 combo is fantastic to my ears. Together they make my 10T's sound like completely different animals. Switching the JC 1's to Hi-bias mode makes it even better.
Great rig......see you soon. And yes Nuforce and tube pre is the way to go. It comes down things a bit and adds character. Absolutly agree with your statement.
I could listen to the 336 all day without fatigue, but to my ears the Nuforce were more open and faster than the 336. I still listen all day without fatigue so in my book that is a win-win.
Audiofilo:
I have tried a Cary SLP-98L with the Nuforce amps and it was also excellent. More of a tube sound than the ARC but still very good. I also tried a Pass X1 which was also good but I truly think that a tubed pre is the way to go with these amps.
Efner:
Thanks for the compliments. I'm a big fan of Manley and would love to try those amps in my system too!
May I ask you something. You've replaced the well-respect Mark Levinson 336 with the Class D Nuforce Ref.9 amp. How is the Nuforce compared to the 336? If you don't mind ,I remember reading a Levinson-amps thread and you were saying that you could listen to the Levinson all day because you work at home.
apart from the Audio Research did you have tried other pre-amps with the Nuforce monos? I hear that they're excellent with tube pre-amps...but I still have the modest Nuforce's P8 with my Ref9
Thanks for info. There is a seller within driving distance with a pair of 10Ts at a very reasonable price. Unfortunately, my listening room is too small for them. Enjoy.
The room is approx 15' W x 23' L. I have the 10T's pulled back from the rear wall about 4 feet. I experimented and found that any closer to the rear wall hurt the performance.
Yes I did have to lug them up stairs. They are heavy!!
I honestly don't know what the minimum room dimension is - but I do think that the more space you can give them the better they will sound. I would call Aerial and ask them their thoughts - they are always very helpful when I call.
With all that said - I can't recommend the 10T's highly enough. They are simply great speakers and an absolute steal on the used market.
The system looks fantastic. I've been looking closely at the 10Ts. Can I ask the room dimensions and did you need to lug them up/down stairs to get them in the room? What do you feel is the minimum room size for them? Thanks.
Henry - I use the ARC's processor pass-through when I am using the Meridian for multi-channel. When I am listening to just 2-channel however the Meridian is not used. I feed the 1.1 analog outputs directly to the ARC.
Mitch - I'm really not sure how the sloped ceiling is effecting the sound. I didn't have much choice because that was the only configuration that works with the room. The rest of the house is off limits to audio gear (except for a wave radio). :)
I would think that it may reinforce low frequencies - but I'm not sure. I did use the Velodyne SMS-1 to flatten the bass response as much as possible.
I'd like a room with more width as I'm sure the reflections off the side walls aren't helping sound quality. With that said however - I am very happy with my system at the moment.
Jim...wicked looking system - i love your ls26, but, perhaps I hold a personal bias! I very much appreciated your response to my discussion regarding SE and Balanced ICs between the preamp and my moon supernova. I took your advice and used a low gain setting for balanced and a medium gain for SE - there's really not that much of a diffence - it's wider, more dimensional....but, at what added cost. Again, thanks for your input....cheers.
Recent updates include the HPA3 for center/surrounds which does a nice job matching up to my 336.
I also put some Audio Magic Sorcerer 4D's (XLR) between my Unidisk and my LS-26. The break-in was tough - but I am through the harshness and am very very happy with the sound now.
FINALLY added some dedicated AC power and still can't believe I waited this long to do it... if you haven't done so I highly recommend so.
