Thiel Owners


Guys-

I just scored a sweet pair of CS 2.4SE loudspeakers. Anyone else currently or previously owned this model?
Owners of the CS 2.4 or CS 2.7 are free to chime in as well. Thiel are excellent w/ both tubed or solid-state gear!

Keep me posted & Happy Listening!
jafant
Hi @tomthiel,

The core of my system remain the Thiel CS 3.5's being fed by two Audio Research D240 MKII solid-state amps (in bridged-mono configuration), with Audio Research tube preamps (LS7 line-stage and PH3 phono).  The source I was streaming Tidal from is my Bluesound Vault 2, which has a MQA-capable DAC built-in...most of the files I've been listening to lately are MQA-encoded tracks.  As before, my listening area is on the smaller side, probably 14'x10', but thanks to your help, I think I finally was able to nail down my listening height issue...my ears are now about 30"-32" from the floor, depending on how far I lean my chair back.

I came to the feeling of satisfaction from two different vantage points...one practical, the other emotional.  On the practical side, I finally got the feeling that, if I could never try another/different/new component in my system, I would be okay with it.  That I finally had a system that satisfied me with not only how it sounds and how it performs, but also gave me great joy in owning it, great pride in the time and effort it took to acquire the right pieces and put it all together.

From an emotional standpoint, it was the realization that I was no longer listening to music...I was experiencing it.  When one listens to the greats...be it Miles Davis or Dexter Gordon, Van Cliburn or Horowitz, Clapton or Page, Pet Sounds or Sgt. Pepper's...you should feel wonder and amazement, of feelings that go beyond simply listening and to the emotions that these great artists, and others like them, have when they perform.  That's what I had...that's what I finally understood...that for me, Hi-Fi meant feeling the music on an emotional scale more than anything else.  And, the only way I got there, was because of this beautiful, seemingly perfect combination of metal, wood, wire and current that moved air in such a way that it stirred emotion.  I was satisfied, because I had come to understand what this wonderful hobby meant to me.

Could it be better?  Sure...I would never delude myself with thinking that it couldn't.  But, the more important question I asked myself was, "Did I need it to be better?"  And, without hesitation, I am happy with knowing that right now, no...I'm pretty happy with where I'm at!

So, Thank You Tom and everyone else for your help, guidance and  knowledge.  And I hope that this finds you and yours well and safe...

Arvin
Arvin, 
I think you've expressed the real joy of this hobby.  The personal satisfaction of a carefully crafted system, where the pieces have been assembled in a pains taking fashion over time, in many cases over many, many years.  The special bliss when the synergy is there to be had and the gear and the music all come together and magic happens.
uncle_monkey
Regarding your post and comment about the IsoAcoustics Gaias, I wanted to relay my experience.
Give social separating and all, I've been spending time redoing my whole system; I've torn it apart, remade all contacts, isolated components, redressed all wires, repositioned speakers--and finally (after many months of experimenting with speaker position) remounted my CS3.6s onto my Townshend Speaker Isolation Podiums.
Since I think they have the same function as the Gaias, I wanted to provide my experience with using the Podiums. Specifically-IMHO and in my room, they provide:
-- significantly improved width and depth imaging
-- significantly better "disappearing" of speaker positioning
-- better low-level detail retrieval
-- some lessening of an upper-mid peak present in the 3.6s
-- tighter and better defined low-mid-bass with better rhythm & timing (I'm a Naim guy)
Along with all those positives is a caveat. My dedicated listening room is on the second floor of my house-so on a suspended wooden floor. I bought the Townshend Platforms primarily in an effort to lessen transmission of low-end bass notes into the house structure (and quiet my wife complaining from downstairs of "the boom").
The isolation platforms significantly reduce this problem, so I can listen louder and later if I want without bothering the rest of the house.
Along with all those positives is the fact that the platform's taking away of the floor's significant contribution to the low-end also somewhat lessens the excitement and impressiveness of the bottom end. So while the bottom end is cleaner and faster, it's also a little less impressive since what you're left with is the sound of the speaker alone-devoid of the low-end enhancement and reinforcement from the floor.
For me-it's 95% positive using the isolation platforms, but some may find it more of a compromise. (These comments are based on my previously using the supplied spikes.) Since you're lucky enough to have a wood floor over concrete, you may not have the same experience as I did. Hope that helps!
I'm going to update my system pics on Audiogon's Virtual Systems Community section to reflect the addition of the podiums and "prettying up" my system, if anyone wants to see the 3.6s on the Podiums. 
Stay safe everyone!

 
Hey guys - I would like to share a link that my daughter Dawn sent me for these times of darkness. Music feeds the soul. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ph1GU1qQ1zQ&feature=youtu.be