ghdprentice

Responses from ghdprentice

They know we will pay anything they can think of
@waytoomuchstuff   +1 Each component sale must pay for the below (just a quick list off the top of my head). Cost of Research and development Design (Includes hundreds of hours of listening and swapping out different parts and breaking them ... 
Balanced XLR vs RCA for phono stage
High end audio designers are aware of standards. They will follow them when it results in the best sound. Frequently standards have large compromises embedded in them and may not be worth following to achieve the best result. There are always trad... 
They know we will pay anything they can think of
OP, I am really sorry that my comments come as a surprise to you. It saddens me that folks growing up and educated in a country with unhampered privilege, know so little about the world. I have taken advantage of opportunities and have worked for... 
Intg Amps: Hegel 590 vs NAD M33 Masters vs Gryphon Diablo 120
Congratulations!      
Please Help Weed Them Out
Just a word of warning. Most preamps with headphone outputs have extremely inferior ones. I don’t know this for certain about the Benchmark, but it is very, very likely. It takes a lot of effort / cost to produce a good headphone amp (think buildi... 
They know we will pay anything they can think of
OP Sounds to me like your cynical / lazy side has overwhelmed your rational senses. I recommend doing some research into the founders and companies like Audio Research, Conrad Johnson, Pass, Wilson, Boulder, Magico… etc. leading high end compani... 
Amp recommendations for KEF R7 speakers
@soix  +1   There is a place to put photos of your system under Virtual systems. It would be really helpful so we can be helpful.  
Upgrading Speakers
Absolutely, I would do it. I moved from Cremona to Olympica iii… huge improvement in all aspects of sound. I think I had those for about seven years before upgrading again to Amati Traditional.   I am a huge Sonus Faber fan since I first purchas... 
I saw the back of an integrated and it depressed me.
Out with the old, in with the new.  
Aurender
OP,   You should try both USB and coax inputs. DACs vary highly in their abilities between the two. USB puts a lot more processing on the DAC. You have to try it, but I would think Coax would be a better bet. The Aurender is a very high quality ... 
Upgrade from Bluesound Node
@jl35 +1 I agree. You are feeding a very good integrated amp / speakers with very inferior signal. This is very much limiting the output you are hearing. You sound like you ran out of interest in the pursuit and feel somewhat let down. Am I re... 
Integrated Question
I am familiar with much of the equipment you are talking about. My first reaction is that most likely it is something other than the integrated. each piece of gear checks the box… that’s good. It would be helpful if you could post photos of your ... 
Help with Audio Jigsaw Puzzle Please
OP,   😊… yes, you create a virtual system. After you get in there, it is easy.  
Intg Amps: Hegel 590 vs NAD M33 Masters vs Gryphon Diablo 120
If you throw out the NAD, which really is not in the same category as the Hegel and Gryphon. Then you have to try to understand the seemingly contradictory comments between “they sound the same/similar” and “they are wildly different”. You are get... 
Help with Audio Jigsaw Puzzle Please
What is your main system? It would be really helpful to see where you are coming from. There is a place under your UserID to place photos and ID the components. What are your objectives? What is your personality like. Do you really appreciate out...