How Long Did It Take You To Build Your Dream Setup?

As I'm blasting out Elvis Costello and the Attractions' brilliant Get Happy! CD there's a part of me thinking maybe the drum strikes just don't have enough impact and snap, maybe there should be a hint more clarity to the soundstage.

Love the bass though. 

After 35 years or so I'm nowhere near my dream system. If my system could somehow disappear and - (Wow, that harmonica on I Stand Accused sounded real!) - just leave Elvis and the band before me, I'll have arrived at my goal.

I'm close, but let's face it, it's not going to happen is it?

veerossi,

"Right on CD318! One of my favorite albums."

I’ve always loved Get Happy!!, right from the 20 track 1980 UK vinyl to my favourite CD copy on Demon records.

The rest of Costello’s catalogue is interesting but this is the one I’ll take with me when I next go and audition for a speaker upgrade.

You know, those ones which leave the music intact and do a disappearing act.*

Damn it, I think it’s going to take a lot of money. The pressure will be enormous. The research will take years.

And then in all the confusion and strees I’ll end up with the wrong ones!

The difficult life of an audiophile.


alfa100,

"my final frontier was coupling my speakers to the walls ... and then happiness. I’ve decided I’m done. The end. Now just enjoying the music for what it is."


Yes, this is something that could be tried more often. My previous Rega bookshelves were fixed to the wall via a special wall mount that Rega offered.

They sounded first rate for a pair of small speakers.

Anyway, well done and congrats!

We’re all trying to get to the same place.

* "The best loudspeakers for stereo sound reproduction are those that disappear chameleon-like from the listening room and simultaneously withdraw attention from the room. What remains is an acoustic scene of phantom sources and spaces in front of the listener; an illusion that the brain creates from the naturalness of the sonic cues imbedded in the recording, which the two loudspeakers reproduce. Output volume and dynamic range of the loudspeakers has to mimic the live event for the illusion to be believable.

Few loudspeakers are capable of this magician trick."

Siegfried Linkwitz

jomafa,

"It’s like the search of the Holy Grail....... never ends..!!"

Yes, it certainly feels like it.
It kind of gets in your blood and becomes an obsession. 

One day pleasure, the next day pain.
One day cosmic thrills, the next a slight disturbance in the force.


sgreg1,

"My main goal is to enjoy the music it take me away from the rest of the world and now it is needed more than ever."


I think I've always felt that way.
That quickly became my addiction, and I can't shake it. 

noromance,

"Save for longer and make substantial upgrades less frequently."


That's been my strategy too. Back in the day it was like start with a Dual turntable, then upgrade to a Rega 3, and finish with a Linn LP12. 

With amps, the NAD 3020 was the entry point, or sometimes the Nytech/ Arcam A60, and then it was suggested to move up to a Naim amp and climb that ladder.

Even back then the idea of a Naim active six pack seemed fairly ridiculous.

Six boxes just for amplification?

To make things worse a few reviewers suggested that simple integrated amps from the same manufacturer could give better, more coherent sound. Hence the popularity of the basic Naim 42/110.

The only relative ambiguity back then was regarding speakers. The suggested Linn ladder of the Kans, Saras and finally the Isobariks (active) had a few dissenting voices even back then.

There were alternates (Heybrooks, Celestions, Monitor Audio, Mordaunt Short, Naim SBL etc) but there was no obviously defined hierarchy. 

The sheer choice over loudspeakers has only increased with time. It must be quite bewildering for newcomers today faced with so many different designs.

I tried to stick to only substantial upgrades but inevitably there were still a few timewasting sideways steps. Maybe even a few backwards ones with various cartridges.

The system item that changed the most was easily the loudspeakers, with the pattern generally being an increase in size. I wish it weren't so, but in my experience bigger has been better.

One reason is the sheer sense of ease coming from the large drivers. It's not a huge difference, but it's there. This was the system change that made the biggest difference in sound - by far. No two speakers sounded the same.

In those pre internet days, I bought everything new. Although it's far easier to experiment with upgrades nowadays, I'd still suggest aiming only for substantial upgrades.

It could be likened to mountain climbing without the danger. Its difficult and expensive and mistakes can be costly. You will find not only many different routes to the summit, but also many different summits!