dkuipers
Responses from dkuipers
| How to Move Heavy Audio Components I use an upright dolly and I've moved all kinds of extremely heavy gear with it. I'm not a big guy, but I managed to get my Kharma speakers (225 pounds per crate, each) from the garage into the living room and then unpacked w/o any problems. I eve... | |
| Cable Costs Relative to System I'm with cornfed; the whole wire and power cord thing is the most shameless ripoff in all of the High End. Yes, good wire makes an improvement, but not a huge one, and the cost structure is so obscene it makes me sick. If you knew the markup on mo... | |
| Any experience... Merlin+Wadia+Rowland tubegroover: mit cables are about the most colored cables in existence. ditto for HT truthlinks, the treble is waaaaayyy rolled off with those. the only people I've run across happy with the Merlins long term use amps like cj and EAR as two exampl... | |
| Rowland 8 Ti hc and Rowland 12 I'm with you cornfed, though my comparison was Model 2 to Model 10. The newer amps are still nice, and definitely more dynamic top-to-bottom and significantly better transparency. But, big but--the older amps are more liquid and pleasing, even if ... | |
| Any experience... Merlin+Wadia+Rowland PS--I tried various Cardas, JPS, Analysis Plus, Nordost, TG Audio, Tara Labs, and Transparent Audio cables with the Merlins. Nothing cured the "in-your-face" nature of the Merlins, though the Analysis Plus was (surprisingly to me) the least object... | |
| Any experience... Merlin+Wadia+Rowland I had the Rowland Model 10 driving the Merlin VSM-SEs at one point. I also used several other top amps on the Merlins, including BAT VK-60, Fi 300B SET, Atma-Sphere M60 MkII OTLs, and Levinson 334. None of them really worked, the Merlins are fatig... | |
| C/W music Audiogon members Hey, I live in West Texas, so I **LIVE** for c/w music! You know the old line--in Texas we have both kinds of music; country AND western :-) Besides the classic stuff, I do enjoy much of modern Nashville when it's well-recorded, even if it does bo... | |
| What are good jumpers for bi-wire spks? When I used to own the Merlin speakers, Bobby P. will make up a pair of Cardas jumpers for you, I think they're $45 or so. They're very nice, I used them to excellent effect with the Meadowlark speakers I later owned. I think Merlin will make up a... | |
| BMI Whale vs King Cobra V2, others? I know I'm compromising potential sales here folks, but my honest opinion is this--ditch all the aftermarket powercords--all of them, and plug stock cords into the Shunyata Hydra line conditioner. Simply amazing. I sell three different brands of a... | |
| Tired of My Thiel's!!! UPGRADE TIME??? Interesting comment sgmlaw--the ONLY time I've heard Thiels and liked them was indeed when driven by an all-VAC system, it was a very good match! I think perhaps the slight politeness of the Ren 70/70s were very synergistic with the slight bright/... | |
| Krell knocked off Jeff Rowland Sorry Avalon, keep dreaming--the retail price of the Concentra II is $6500US. I believe the previous Concentra was $5600US if memory serves me. | |
| Krell knocked off Jeff Rowland Axomoxa, your are referring to the older Concentra. The original poster is referring to the new Concentra II, it uses the same switch-mode power supply and has the same (heat sink-less) chassis design as the Model 10 and Model 12 power amps. Yes, ... | |
| Running bi-wire cables backwards OK? Yes, directionality for speaker cables is silly, but for interconnects there is an issue. It has nothing to do the wire, but it does matter wrt grounding issues. Most interconnects are grounded only at one end. Depending on the source and load com... | |
| BAT VK-30 or BAT VK-30se As a former owner of the VK-30, I recommend it over the 30SE, **if**, (an important if), you are committed to obtaining quality NOS 6922-family tubes for the VK-30. IMO, a VK-30 with NOS Siemens 7308s or Amperex white-label 6922s, sounds better th... | |
| Shunyata Hydra Info Available I think two Hydras in series would be overkill Sam. I sold a Hydra to a customer that was in the same dilemma as you, and his final solution was similar to what you mention--he got rid of the PS Audio PP600 he was using, sold some of his King Cobr... |