ghdprentice

Responses from ghdprentice

One of the great things about Vinyl
Thank you @ddrave44   From some much earlier questions.   My digital and analog ends sound the same… 99+%. I have all Audio Research Reference… and of particular importance the Phono stage and DAC. My turntable cartridge is a Koetsu Rosewood s... 
Long interconnect or speaker cable
The rule of thumb is to break between the preamp and amp, so long interconnects and very short speaker cables. It is ideal to put mono blocks next to the speaker they power. You get a big performance gain with 1 - 2’ high quality speak cables. The... 
The best speaker cables you’ve had
Best owned: Transparent Ultra Gen 6.  Best heard: Nordost Odin 2  
Was I Expecting Too Much
No, you were not expecting too much. You should expect to be taken seriously and with respect. It is a real shame that some dealers are like this. But some are. Good dealers realize that todays demos produce sales down the road. Sometimes years in... 
What to try?
If you want to try a very musical, seductive, yet detailed system… listen to an Audio Research I-50. Really an amazing bargain entrance into the high end. I think es-ecially in a small room it will really work well.  
I found audio nirvana....
Glad you found audio nirvana. Clearly your interests lay in another direction than well reproduced music. That is why those of us that love high quality sound, for the majority of people, it just doesn’t. I knew a guy that collected and loved his... 
AES/EBU cable shootout
OP,   Thank you very much for your observations on these cables. I really appreciate your comments.   I was fortunate enough to spend a couple weeks with a set of Nordost Odin 2 interconnects. I observed the same things that you did. But after... 
Feel like I'm outta my mind....
Welcome. I’m an old guy as well. But have been actively improving my system for fifty years. Choosing the right speakers is non-trivial. But from what you have said, my first impression is definitively B&W speakers driven by MacIntosh electro... 
ARC REF 750
@fsonicsmith1  I have broken in three Audio Research Reference 160s and found they are not fully broken in until 1,000 hours. The pattern is the same on each. I will say that most of the breakin occurs in the first 600 hours and then trails off. ... 
Vintage turntable with a modern phono stage, is it worth it?
Yes, definitely. Phonostages are critical and without a good one you are missing out on your turntable / cartridge. My rule of thumb is to invest as much in your Phonostage as your TT/cartridge.   
Rogue Audio. Reliability issues? Anyone?
While admittedly a long time ago, I recommended Rogue to a friend. He bought a new amp. Within a short time a tube blew taking out some resisters. It was still under warranty, but they would not cover it. My friend argued with the founded. I think... 
Speaker cable comparison: Purist Audio Venustas LR vs. Transparent Ultra G5
No. But I am a fan of Transparent. There was a pretty large upgrade between Gen 5 and Gen 6. I have all Ultra Gen 6.  
ARC REF 750
Congratulations. That will be a great pairing with your Audio Research Preamp. I have a REF 6SE. Given the relatively expensive the upgrade is versus, say waiting for the 7 and then trading in. It seems like a pretty good route. I went from a REF ... 
If it sounds 'great', everything is ok?
You don’t know what you don’t know. It is likely it could sound better to you. Hence, experimentation with your system can be beneficial. It starts with basic setup then goes to interconnects, vibration control and spreads out. Turns out there is ... 
Did the Old Receivers Sound Good?
@mikem  +1 good one.