Millercarbon… I probably do not understand the complete synergy of your system. But I have been a fan of Townsend products for a LONG time. I still have and use a Townsend audio platform from the 90’s. Only trouble is right now I’m have difficulties locating the air pump.
cable savings is a big deal.
especially now that I’m retired.
You mean the complete synergy of my proposed $100k? Or my current system?
https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367 Nevermind, they are the same. At least in the sense they both reflect the way to audio nirvana is less to do with buying big name components and more with making the best use of funds apportioned across the full range of fundamental requirements.
The conventional way of looking at it is you need a source, amp, and speakers. This was popular and highly effective up until about 40 years ago, when we started getting better and better with wire, vibration control, and acoustics. Now those are all pretty much equally as important as the big box components people trapped in old school last millennium mindset still are fixed on.
The synergy comes in realizing, say you have $20k and want the best amp money can buy. The old school last millennium knee jerk reflex is to start blathering about which is the best $20k amp. The intelligent synergy approach is to understand a $12k Raven Reflection integrated amp with a Synergistic Orange Fuse and ECT and sitting on Townshend Pods with a M101 Nova power cord will absolutely walk all over anything those old behind the times people can ever come up with. Because they will blow their whole wad on the amp, leaving zip left over, so it is handicapped by having to run on its own factory feet, its own Buss fuse, and with the absolute crap black rubber power cord. To top it off most of them will say buy separates, in which case multiply the problems with even more boxes to power and connect.
So the synergy lies in thinking through all the different needs and finding the best way of doing them all with the least amount of money.
The system I would buy with $100k intended to last a lifetime uses a Soundsmith SG1 which is not only one of the finest cartridges money can buy, it is also one with user-replaceable stylus and includes its own phono stage, which considering the level this is at could run you $10k easy. Read the reviews. Also don’t forget that to get that performance the $10k phono stage will need an expensive power cord and Pods and Fuse, etc. Every additional component is not just an additional component, it is an additional thing that needs to be tweaked to extract the most performance possible. Otherwise you leave money on the table, so to speak.
Likewise the tone arm, Origin Live uses integral tone arm wire. This eliminates a big expense, since a phono lead at this level could easily add another $3k to $5k with little if anything to show for that extra expense.
On and on it goes like this. The DBA is a four sub system. Most guys would have blown their wad trying to get great bass from monster floor standers. The Moab is no slouch in this department but a $3k DBA delivers SOTA bass for relative peanuts.
Another big synergy is using high sensitivity speakers. This enables the 50wpc Ravens to be more than enough power. Anyone foolishly advising anything under 92dB has to then have hundreds of watts - 200 to be precise - to match the level of these 98dB speakers. Watts cost money and so there it goes, wasted simply because of a weak approach to system building.
Synergistic HFT are way more effective acoustic control than old school panels and tubes. They cost less, deliver more, and take up way less space.
It is just like that with everything I listed. This whole $100k system requires only 2 power cords! One interconnect, and one set of speaker cables. Money buys quality and the more wires the less money per wire. This maximizes your money, bigly.
What else? Oh yeah, the crossover. Something I proved by experience just recently. Moabs with greatly upgraded crossovers will walk all over much more expensive speakers. Ulfberht are better of course, but for what they cost you could buy Moab, upgrade them, and put them on Townshend Podiums, and have money left over. Put them up against each other, no contest. System synergy wins every time.
Where this comes in for you, once you get the hang of this approach you begin to find all kinds of areas that can be improved for very little money, and when you do buy something it will be a genuine improvement and not just another box.
Your old Seismic Sink btw, pretty sure it is a Presta valve, any bicycle pump with the Presta valve adaptor will work. Presta are the ones with a tiny little knurled knob you loosen to pump and then tighten back down. If not then check with John Hannant at Townshend Audio he would know for sure.
