What is your most beautiful component?


Sound qualities set aside... What is the most beautiful component in your system. If you can please provide links to a picture of it. For me it is my Basis 1400 turntable. This turntable is a piece of art. Unfortunately, I cannot find Basis' home page.
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I think the Sonus Faber Guarneri Homage speakers that i used to own were gorgeous. I like the look of the 47Labs gear and the FI gear I own now with the Avantgarde Uno's
I rearranged my stereo rack so that my new (to me) Nakamichi DR-3 was at eye level......
How my components look is not very important, because most are enclosed in a beautiful Custom Shoppe oak cabinet designed just for that purpose.

My ACI Titan II LE looks quite nice for a subwoofer and offers excellent performance sonicly and as an endtable.

I used to like the way my old Bang & Olufsen RX-2 turntable looked, and it sounded almost as good.
The Oracle MkV turntable. What a beautiful piece of industrial art it is. Plus it is really cool looking. The first question from a friend of mine, who is not into hi fi gear, was - does it hover? Sounds pretty darn good, too. Always nice when form and function meet.
Rearranged my stereo rack again: I put my Thorens turntable with the Grado cartridge at eye level..... moved the Nak to the top to give the cover enough room to open all the way to watch the platter go round and round.....
Have you seen Shanling CD player with matching amps in a dark room? It`s a magic.
My Atma-Sphere M-60 amps and 208 turntable are both very appealing to my sensibilities, visually and aurally.

I feel the same about my Atma-Sphere MP-1 preamp and Köchel K300 speakers. The MP-1 is probably about as plain looking as you can get, yet to my eyes perfect.
Hey Lake513, I've got that Avatar of yours now, don't know if I love the looks but I do love the sound!

Cheers,
Ladderlake of California

ps. What is your favorite Dead album?
Linn Sondek Cd12 lashed to the Rolland CoherenceII and the Gryphon Encore fed to a pair of Avalon Eidolon Diamonds-period. The only part I don't own are the Eidolon.
My marble 6.9 speaker very unique,and my soon to be
speaker arriving next week Diapason Adamantes
Any 47 Labs Shigaraki pieces. Some people call it strange, and others, me included, are all over its spotless stainless steel casework, with the perculiar shigaraki ceramic platform, that has not only the function of damping it, but makes it very stable. Check it out in the Sakura Systems website. No picture can really describe what some pieces look like until you see it with your own eyes. Great drive and fluidity to boot(especially the integrated.) Now, who can claim that for about $1700?
For no particular reason, my components range from truly hedious (S.A.P J2001 twin speakers) to merely bizzare (Levinson Ref. No. 32 preamp). I suppose the best looking componets are my Basis Debut V turntable and the Sony SCD-1 CD/SACD player.
Having never owned any tubes, I'll say my Krell DVD Standard is the most visually stunning piece of gear I have so far.
I have to say, besides the Teres TT, it is the "nothing" that I have -- the MU step up (by Bent Audio), MU means "nothing," two black cans with the Chinese word "nothingness" appears on each can.
While the word is the newer CAT JL-2 stereo amp is sonically superior (I've never heard it), the 200lb. ea JL-1's are a special sight....
My favorate and best sounding and cheepest is the pioneer
1020L 1/4 inch open reel tape deck. Add any open reel and play factory prerecorded music and you will agree!!!
A Pair of Maggie 3.6s in Dark cherry with black cloth. Imposing yet elegant. Georgious to look at and glorious to listen to.
Merlin VSM-MX's in high gloss Moss Green...They look great.
Cheers, Spencer
My lovingly, hand built by "Jean" Lenco TT. The sound? I have never heard a better TT period!
Toss up beween my JBL Metrogon refinished in dark red bombay magogany (sound great too) and my Manley Neo-Classic 250 amplifiers with the gold faceplates.
No contest again (see Twl further up): My Simon Yorke TT. All young ladies, wife not included cause used to it, fall for the contraption. Similary with young men -- that doesn't inspire me as much...
Just beautiful! Eidolon Diamonds in the Quilted-Birdseye-Maple finish.
Looks and "sound" to die for!!!
My Oracle CD2000 transport. A friend of mine sez it looks like a giant spider. It looks cool when you touch it and it moves in all three dimensions.
Counterpoint SA-11. Great solid build quality, blue lights, yellow, red... toggle switches, silver lighted knobs, 19 tubes glowing from within the steel black case... excuse me for a moment.
Kubla
That's a funny ending! I think if i get some MX's, they will 86 the Oracle as the "Top Looker".
My Krell MD-1 transport,even if it ever breaks down(God forbit) I will keep it as a work of art.Patrick from Krell agrees on that.Build like a brick and looks so cool.
I just love the look of Cary SLP-98 Preamp. Simple but elegant, not too fancy and not to dull. Small, light and beautiful and ofcourse not build like a tank (why need a tank pre-amp????) Well, I guess it's a tube thing, elegant and the sound is ofcouse Da Bomb!!!!
My VAC Renaissance MKII preamp.......though I can see why it "might" turn some people off.