Made a number of significant changes over the past year, notably the Ayre CD player, Mac C500 pre-amp, and the Audience power conditioner. I also upgraded to Tara Labs power cords with PAD speaker cables and interconnects. I am very pleased with the sound of my current system - very detailed and open yet musical and engaging. However, one can't help but to wonder how a more capable pair of speakers would sound in this room...
Thanks Fjn. The basement had not yet had a chance to dry when Toronto experienced 5 inches of rain in two hours. Another flood. Severe thunderstorms expected today. I have ordered a very sophisticated sump but it won't be installed for another week. All of my cables are removed. I am just hoping the water level won't get high enough to impact the speakers or amp. It hasn't yet.
Sorry to hear, too bad there isn't something to reduce the risk of this happening again. That's quite a few incidents. I would call Purist, to ask them about the cable situation. Then you would know where you stood with insurance. If something is ruined, and you have the coverage, it should be replaced. Of course the regular folk at the insurance company will chuckle. I just had a flood caused by power outage and Sump Pump not working. I had 10K coverage for Sump Pump related failure. My system is not in that basement fwiw. I made sure to get things properly dried out, and had a moisture reading taken. Of course insurance took care of the restoration Co for that.
Right now I'm thinking small. Probably the acoustic treatments described in my most recent post. I am also still using the stock Mac tubes in my pre (SIN!) and should look into rolling. As far as significant upgrades, upgrading to the Mc501 monos would be next on my list.
Thanks for your comments. You seem to have excellent knowledge with acoustic treatments and I appreciate your input. Treating my room resulted in the most profound sonic upgrade I have ever experienced, more so than any components. -I have looked into Vicoustic and RPG Syylines for the front wall. Definitely needs to be addressed. -I do have a GIK panels at the first reflection point of both speakers in an attempt to create an equal environment for both speakers -the wall behind the listening seat has two bass panels in addition to two corner traps.
There is still more tweaking to be done as I do have some fairly uncontrolled bass with some recordings.
Hi Adam, Nice looking gear! Glad to see the acoustical treatments so that you can truly hear what your gear is capable of . Some thoughts for the good and betterment of your room if you don't mind: * have you considered treating your front wall behind the speakers with either or both of diffusion and/or absorption? The reflections from the front wall are less beneficial and attenuation of them should help with image stability and specificity and soundstage too. * due to the open area off to the left side, have you considered a thick bass trap on the side wall adjacent to your right speaker? This will help mimic the fact that the left speaker doesn't have a boundary effect so neither should the right speaker. * I expect that the open room helps to minimize bass modal peaks but if not have you considered extending the bass traps in the back of the room up to the ceiling? Have you treated your back wall behind the listening position?
I hope you aren't touchy to these suggestions as I don't have your money for equipment but have made remarkable audible progress treating the room which in some small way may be akin to upgrading my equipment to the level that yours represents.
I hope so. From what I have been told it should be a nice upgrade for me. I think the TS version does raise the level a bit. At least that is what I have read in the reviews. Man those Nova's look fantastic. I am using the Grand Prix audio as my main rack and I do plan on getting some isolation feet(Wave Kinetic) of my BR player. Enjoy that system. I know I would.
Thanks for the kind comments Mikeduke. I am pleased with the sound of the R12 and it was certainly an upgrade over my previous Hydra 6. However, overall I have not noticed siginificant sonic benefits with passive line conditioners relative to other accessories (such as the isolation base under the Ayre). The sound certainly "tightened-up" in terms of increased focus and greater image separation. The 6TS with teflon capacitors might be a different beast entirely and should represent a major upgrade from your current Monster conditioner. Additionaly, the build quality of audience power conditioners far exceeds what is normally expected from these types of products.
Great looking system. I always like the Utopia Be's. I use 1027 be's in my room. I am sure that they sound great with those McIntosh amps. What do you think of the Audience. I am planning on getting the ar-6TS for my system. What sort of changes did you notice with it in the system. Again. Great system.
I recently decided to switch from the 4 ohm taps to the 8 ohm taps on the MC402. I was surprised I had never considered this previously. The dynaudios that preceded the utopia had a 4 ohm nomimal impedence. After reading the review of the Stella Utopias in this months TAS, I realized that utopias have an 8 ohm nominal impedence. The switch could not have been more disappointing. I was considering giving it one week but it could not be tolerated. Bloated bass and bright treble. After reading the measurements in stereophile, it makes sense as there are dips to 3 and 4.1 in the bass and midbass. I was really looking forward to a free sonic improvement :/
It has now been three months with the Nova Utopias. I continue to be amazed by the their detail retreival and realism with vocals. I'm next considering new tubes for the C500T or possibly a diffusion device for the rear wall. Minor changes only as my budget has not recovered and I have no desire to significantly alter the sound of this system. Yet...
Thanks. I tend to purchase about 6-8 CDs each month. My music tastes are varied and diverse but I listen to a lot of what would be called underground or indie rock. Accordingly, I prefer hi-fi equipment that is more forgiving than ruthlessly revealing. I also listen to soul, classical, rock, hip-hop, and alt-country. Its a shame how I'm currently required to travel to specialty music shops to purchase my listening material.
It is true that the potential of the system is not fully tapped in the current room especially in the bass since the room is not dedicated. Hence, your plan of sticking with the speakers(and system) is sensible. I reckon the system will take on a whole new level if properly set up in a dedicated room(with couple of Real Traps treatment on the walls). The Nova Utopia Be's do look fantastic, more like a piece of art. Fabulous speakers. Enjoy~
Ryder, I could never conceive of myself acquiring speakers such as the Nova's in such a short period of time. Its amazing how the used online market place allows for such occurrences.
Samhar, dusty - I was not prepared for the lush, gorgeous yet staggeringly detailed sound of the Nova's. I had read that some Audiogoners did not enjoy the sound of the Beryllium tweeter. This was a little concerning as I tend to stray from bright sounding components and I had grown accustomed to the Dynaudio Esotec tweets on my previous speakers. However, I can listen to the Be tweeter all day with the most challenging and poorly recorded material. The same can be said of the mid-range units.
I was particularly concerned about the bass given the size of my room. Unfortunately, there is some overhang and thickness to the lower frequencies. It is not to the point of distraction on most recordings and is certainly not obscuring the other frequencies. Often times I am surprised with all the additional low end information that was imperceptible with the Contours. However, ultimately the bass is not ideal for my room. Based on the other strengths and the cosmetics of these speakers, I will not be changing them until I move into a custom designed listening room with a pair of Rockport Arrakis talking to me from the front (planned for the summer of 2018)
Your system has certainly evolved. From the modest B&W 9NTs in 2007 to the Dynaudio S3.4s and now the classy French speakers. The Nova Utopia Be's are in a different league from the Contour series, hence I can understand why you are lost for words.
