Does your system sound better than most demo's?


I just got back from a music show tonight and must say that even though I have heard some systems that sound way better than mine, mine sounds way better than many that I hear at shows or in show rooms, and it actually makes me pretty happy.

I heard a new wadia integrated unit (intuition) tonight that retails for somewhere around $8,000 for a class d amp, pre amp(?) and dac all jn one very sexy looking piece, playing through a pair of $20,000 sonus faber's and my system (8,000 total ?) absolutly sounds better. Makes me really appreciate my set up.

On the other hand, the sonus faber amanti's with $34,000 wotth of moon pre, amp, dac did sound fabulous and so did the b&w nautilus with all classe gear (4 of there new 250 watt class d amps), but still, I wonder, and believe that I, could compile a system that would crush either of those rigs had I a $50,000-$100,000 budget like what those cost.

I think part of the fun of this hobby is using knowledge to make up for your lack of funds. It's like showing up to the race track with a stripped out supercharged M3 and spanking all the rich guys in there Ferrari's and Lamborghinis.

I want to go to a show where they are focused solely on sound and not how pretty and shiny the gear is; sure I like it to look good, but more important is the way it sounds because when it comes down to it, when the fun begins, the lights are off and my eyes are closed.
b_limo

Showing 1 response by mezmo

Funny, had just that same conversation with a friend leaving the NYC audio show last weekend. We're both running relatively rarified – and very different – gear, but both adjourned to the bar thinking that there really wasn’t anything we’d heard that we would trade for what we had.

I have always found that surprising. I’ve been to three large shows in NYC, and have never really heard anything that blew me away, including any of the $1/2 million+ room-bruising monsters. Last weekend, thought there was really only one setup that came even close, and it was not the one I would have expected (although it did leave me with an abiding infatuation with Raidho speakers). Never did put my finger on why, but the why of it all has come to concern me a whole lot less. All in all – biased or no – just about the best reaction I could hope for. Hope it keeps up.