Inna,
The rest of my system
Pre -ARC Ref 6
Power -ARC Ref 75
Speakers - Von Schweikert VR 44 Active
Phonostage - Simaudio 610 lp
CD/SACD/DAC - Esoteric k07
Streaming - Macbook Air with Audioquest Diamond USB
Speaker cable - MIT Matrix 28
IC's - MIT Oracle 3.1 ( front end )
Tonearm Cable - Synergistic Tricon
IC to power - Masterbuilt Performance ( 6m)
PC's - Shunyata Alpha Series ( various models )
Power Condtioner - Audioquest Niagara 1000 ( front end ), Shunyata PS 8 ( power amp, active woofers )
Furutech Gxtd- R wall receptacles
TAOC racks
Aside from no turntable for a long time ( hopefully versus forever ), no other upgrades for a while since I will be a poor man after this ( if I go the AF 3 route ).
folkfreak,
My initial budget is closer to 15k, 11k for the table and 4k for tonearm ( 9" Kuzma is around that pricepoint, IIRC ). So going from that amount to 32K is a very big price increase.
Lostbears,
I agree it is very difficult to demo tables and yes the the Ref 3 phono has 2 inputs. In fact, my ARC dealer has been bugging me to upgrade to it for a good price. But I feel the upgrade is useless unless/until I upgrade my TT 1st.
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inna,
my wife may not object to a phono stage or a cartridge upgrade ( though definitely not this year) but after this my bank account will be the one objecting.
downunder,
i can barely afford the kuzma that's why I am going for the 9"tonearm only, cheaper but good enough. a good tracker with a captive cable and rca junction box to boot. This saves me easily a grand on a din tonearm cable if i go for a different tonearm manufacturer. i doubt i cant stretch my budget to accommodate a Thales arm. I maxed out as it is.
analogluvr,
I do agree that the Benz is a bit fat but it's a very musical cart. It doesn't standout on any genre but can play them all decently. Also, my phonostage is a Simaudio Moon 610lp and not the ARC Reference 3. I am thinking of upgrading to that for better synergy since my pre-power are both ARC and it has 2 inputs.
nkonor,
i wish i had your patience, to plan 1 year + for your endgame TT is beyond my powers of self control. I got to get moving on something soon. I can barely sleep at night thinking about it. i used to be a cd guy, I have over 2000 of those but have been listening to about a handful for the last 3 years since I got into vinyl which surprised me as I now have about a couple of hundred LP's already as well. An ultrasonic cleaner is also on my list but way down the batting order, I can live with my VPI HW 16.5 in the meantime.
lostbears,
if i go the af3 route I wont have any money left for a phonostage, nor a cartridge. That is the sad fact. But the possibility of owning one of these exotic but highly technical,very musical turntables is terribly exciting. It's the cost that's giving me nightmares and cold feet.
joey54,
my network of dealers doesn't carry AMG.
Actually, a Kronos Sparta was part originally part of the equation with a Helena arm. The cost of which is almost similar to the Af3 but I didn't get the feeling that it would be a last TT for life kind of thing for me ( unless it's the pro which I could never afford) . So, I decided on a lesser priced but very good table( Innovation) but with wiggle room for some possible other upgrades.
I should be able to get the hear the Af3 sometime this week. |
nkonor,
I get what you guys are saying. I am postponing the af 3 audition to think this thing through. "Earth is calling you" is a not so subtle suggestion for a wake up call. I guess I was too eager for change/something new and exciting. To pass the time, I will home demo the ARC Ref Phono 3 and then remap my plan of attack to attain this seemingly unattainable state of sonic bliss in this crazy hobby of ours.
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lostbears,
Yup, will update on the demo of the Ref Phono 3. I'll take a more strategic approach to this upgrade as you guys have suggested. I even got a schedule for another demo this time for a Kronos Sparta. Though I previously scratched this off my list, I'm willing to give it a good listen for whatever is worth.
inna,
Come to think of it , you may be right about the my friends Techdas Af1. I will also never be able to afford it. My system sounds good but not great or at least something is amiss in my opinion. At the time I heard the AF1 we had the same speakers but totally different front end. His system totally blew me away and he kept telling me before I bought mine that this is the potential of your speakers and I guess it's still in the back of my mind.
You are also correct that the wife wants to protect me from myself and the family finances as well. My wife knows me too well. She hates the fact of consistent outlay of money. Buying and then selling at a loss to upgrade, this drives her crazy. It truly is wasted $$$. She'd rather that I go totally all in and be done with it. Her famous saying is "buy cheap, buy twice" for which I believe there is some truth to.
lewm,
you are correct, I do have my wife's blessing, and yes I'm struggling to decide between those 2 very and very expensive tables.
Probably more from a moral rather than financial standpoint. The financial aspect only affects my ability to upgrade other stuff which is sadly the fun part of this hobby. I think the others are more concerned at the approach I'm taking into spending this amount of money when it may not be necessary or appropriated in the correct manner.
you feel that my af3 kuzma/graham will will exceed the capabilities of my downstream components. Which downstream component/s were you referring to? Cartridge included I presume? I'm not upgrading to an AF1, or Graham Phantom Elite. Is the AF3 that big an upgrade?
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nkonor,
Just read the review. I need to win the lottery as well to afford that combo, though it makes me want to go straight to my Techdas dealer. But, I will stick to the plan.
update: my ARC dealer was hospitalized for a week so there's a delay in the home demo of the Ref Phono 3. Should be with me though by the end of the week. |
I haven't revisited this thread in a while. As an update, i did purchase the AF3. Thanx for the all the replies and suggestions. |
nkonor,
Thank you for the congratulations. I have actually updated some stuff since I initially posted this thread. My complete system can be viewed at the virtual systems ( Sorry, don't know how to link it and I have to update the pics as well.
To answer your questions: I'm using a Graham Phantom 1 tonearm, my old but still reliable Benz Lps and a ARC Reference Phono 3. I have a 2nd Graham Phantom 2 tonearm still waiting for the extra arm board I already ordered. My other cartridge, the MSL Ultra Eminent Bc is at Soundsmith as I accidentally bent the canitilever and the Transfiguration Proteus I recently purchased is back at the dealer's pending replacement due to a factory defect. In the meantime, I have a Koetsu Blue Lace and MSL Signature Gold on home demo.
Can't you do a combo of the Af3 and Triplanar instead? A combination of your option 1 and option 2. The SAT arm though really good is quite costly. Just a suggestion. |
Nkonor,
I'm sorry to hear about your health issues. I'm glad that your on your way to recovery. Health is truly wealth and even winning the lottery isn't worth more than that ( though it can buy quite a number of gears though, hahaha). Take your time. Your health is more important and all this audio stuff will still be there when your healthy and ready.
I'll take more pics one of these days. As to the room treatments you mentioned, I never took pics but I have them all over the room( mixture of absorbers and diffusers). I actually had to dial it down ( removed a lot of absorbers, the entire front wall except the last panel to the corners) to get more bass which I finally have but still have somewhat of slightly-rolled off highs. The cartridge demoes confirmed this as I have heard these cartridges before in friends systems.
Chip
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bobheinatz and nkonor,
As an update, my MSL Ultra Eminent Bc should be on it's way back from Soundsmith. Hopefully, my aural memory can discern the similarities/differences between the Eminent vs. the Gold ( though I'm really eyeing the Platinum).
My uncle and I did an A/B between the MSL Gold and the Koetsu Blue Lace. Both sounded really good. I wish I could afford both as they bring different things to the table( literally). My uncle liked the Koetsu/Graham combo so much that he purchased a Phantom 3 for his Innovation TT as he was not happy with the Clearaudio Universal Tonearm and Koetsu Tiger Eye combo that he had.
In the meantime, I heard the new Top Wing Red Sparrow at the my dealer's ( personal unit ) and it sounded like it would fall between the Koetsu and MSL though I can't be sure without hearing it in my system. Hopefully, he'll have a demo unit soon but he claims they're hard to come by and he is in fact on a waiting list for his customers orders. Next on the agenda to is to hear an AirTight Opus 1 and Lyra Etna SL.
My 2nd armboard hasn't arrived so there's time to do the rounds.
Norbert,
You finally got the Technics SL 1200G with the Triplanar, Congratulations. How is does it sound with the Kleos? I have actually never heard of any Lyra cartridges. I was about to pull the trigger on an Etna Sl and then got cold feet and got a Proteus instead. |
Norbert,
My bad but exciting times up ahead for you. The Etna is indeed highly regarded the problem is I've never heard one. I'm sure it's a great sounding cart whether it will be my type of sound is the question. Hoping to hear an Etna soon.
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