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As Advised, Starting With Speakers First.

After licking my wounds and on the mend financially, I’m getting poised to rebuild. My wife and I are going to be doing a little touring around WA & OR last week of December and wondered what any of you Pacific Northwester’s thoughts were (yes you too Chuck being a local, but not thinking Tektons just yet) are on some of the local dealers around the area? There’s Tune Hi Fi, Hawthorne Stereo, Definitive Audio, Kitsap Audio and Gig Harbor Audio that all offer some interesting products. Also Reference Media in Bellingham. Any others, pros & cons, general advice, are all welcomed!

These establishments will not even graze all the speaker options out there, so if you have any other speaker recommendations, please let ’em fly. I know, there’s are a ton of threads on speakers, and I am trying to go and hear what I can with my own ears, but I would like to hear of peoples experiences where they order factory direct, which is fairly common these days, sight unseen/unheard and if they are getting/hearing what they want when purchasing blind. Or are you all spending a lot on return shipping?

The listening room at the new digs (ya, even sold the house too) measures 24’ x 15’ with a slightly vaulted ceiling and an L shaped opening to a small kitchen about halfway down. The two end walls that are 15’ wide both have doorways in them so speakers would be in the way. Probably best to have them on one of the long walls. One wall is solid for the first 2 feet then widows 5’ up from there the total length of the wall. The other side is solid, but my back would be to the view whilst listening. All hard surfaces.

Listen to just about every genre of music except Country & opera. Floor standers would be nice bypassing subs, but I’m open (maybe not the wife though, it’s a small house!) Had Martin Logan Spires in the past. Fun to listen to in the sweet spot but got fatiguing during long listening sessions and very unforgiving to poorer recordings. You get what you play.

Budget, well, I sold my previous entire $20K system for about half that so maybe in around $10-12K to replace amp, Dac, source and speakers inclusive.

Thanks
high-amp

Showing 4 responses by millercarbon

millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
I have a whole box of OC703 sitting in my shop making it real easy to show just how effective and simple this stuff is to work with. I also have things like Synergistic Research HFT that are almost invisible yet incredibly effective. There’s a YouTube video you can watch where they treat an entire room that starts off all bare walls sounding terrible and the improvement from HFT is so great you can hear it on the video even from a laptop.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AX9W_vVAEo  

I’ve also now got several Schumann generators which is another one that’s very small yet makes a huge difference.

That’s just the room treatment type stuff. There’s another half a dozen or so things going on all of which add together. What they all have in common, not many have actual ears-on experience to appreciate just how good they are, just how much they can elevate a system. Every single one of them has an impact that is easy to hear and impressive. Otherwise I don’t bother. Take even just one of them out you will hear the sound collapse. Take them all away it will be just another blah stereo. Okay still better than most but no longer totally freaking amazing. Which it is. Come and listen. You will see.

I have that Christmas weekend off by the way, so good time to come.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
patrickdowns,

You owe it to yourself to take the ferry (or the drive around) to come and hear for yourself. Not only to hear how crazy good Moabs are, but to see and hear for yourself the many excellent tweaks. Including some I'm obliged to keep under wraps for the time being, but will be happy to demo.

The hangup with buying unheard, I get it, but check it out: Schumann generators, Townshend Pods, Nobsound springs, Moab, Synergistic CTS speaker cable, Atmosphere interconnect, Koetsu Black Goldline, Herron VTPH2A, Melody I880, Dayton amps, four subs, and probably a bunch more stuff I'm forgetting, was all bought unheard. Not one disappointment in the bunch! Not saying you can't go wrong. Saying DYODD and auditions go from essential to an accessory its nice to have if its not too inconvenient. 

You are welcome any time. If its not too inconvenient! In Redmond just 2 miles east of 405 off Kirkland-Redmond Exit 18.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Moabs most certainly are not ’more reserved, romantic’ but neither are they aggressive or analytical. Just crazy good.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Hawthorne has a nice selection of turntables. But you want a DAC. Oh well. Hawthorne is right across the street (Roosevelt) from Definitive. Ideally you would do Hawthorne, walk across the street to Definitive, listen to their million dollar (or whatever, might be 2m by now) statement system. Then drive across the lake to my place where you will see and hear just how good a reasonably affordable system can be. Seriously. You owe it to yourself.

Especially since it is the only way to hear just how good you can get with your budget. Because I don’t know about wire and tweaks, but for $10k you can get the same Tekton Moabs ($5k with upgrades) a Raven Blackhawk integrated ($3k) very similar to mine but actually a whole lot better, and still have $2-4k left over for whatever you can get for that with digital. My fingers almost cramped up typing the d-word but to each his own. ;)

Then having settled on your speaker and amp (seriously, once you hear Moabs you will know you are done looking), and smiling warmly as you realize just how doggone good those Moabs are gonna sound in your very own room you can head on over to check out the honest to God statement system of Mike Lavigne’s in North Bend. PM Mike to be sure and make arrangements but the guy is incredibly welcoming. Its a half hour or so from my place but just the drive up towards Snoqualmie Pass is worth it. Especially if you do like the Portland guys did and take the back roads past Snoqualmie Falls and through the little town of Snoqualmie (Twin Peaks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Eb5WeSuc5E ) and North Bend, a lot of which should be decorated for Christmas.

Plan on a couple hours at my place and you will be smart to take me up on my offer of ribs, as they are like my system TDF: to die for.
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