john_l
Responses from john_l
| To Preamp or not to Preamp, that is my q I don't think there is a yes/no answer until you a/b stuff in your own system. I have gone back and fourth with my Sony XA7ES's variable output. Currently I favor the use of a vk-5i tube preamp with my vt100m2 tube amplifier. I lose a little resol... | |
| Best and Worst Product Names Worst name : I.M. Fried speakers. (guy's initials were I.M. & Fried is pronounced 'freed'). He put 'I.M. Fried' on a fairly large brass place on each speaker's pedestal. Guess it would go well with a lava lamp.Best name : 'The buffy kit'. This... | |
| Audioquest Diamond Sound I thought the diamond x3 was EXTREMELY detailed and transparent. I preferred the nordost spm and quattro fil to it. They have equivalent detail but are smoother. The diamond still has a tiny tiny hint of 'silver harshness'. Less than any silver ca... | |
| Kudos to several dealers Favorite Retailers: Kurt Doslu at Echo Audio (echohifi.com), Portland, OR Chambers Audio, Portland, OR Advanced Audio in Tacoma, WA John Rutan at Audio Connection, NJManufacturers: Steve Mccormack Pass Labs (these guys DEFINE perfect customer ser... | |
| Recievers versus separates I would go with inexpensive separates. You can have great performance from brands such as adcom, mccormack and conrad-johnson (even more so if you are willing to go to lesser known brands). The quality and longevity will be greater too. The modern... | |
| Low powered SET w/ Virgos? I would say you are pushing it to drive the virgo's with 15 watts. It might work. I have run mine with a 45w el-34 amp and thought it had plenty of strength, but none of the bass that you are paying for with a virgo. They definitely sound better w... | |
| Vpi 19mkIV or linn sondek 12 For the 1200 range, I recommend a rega 25. That's what I have. A friend of mine who's a turntable guru said I should stick with that instead of 'moving up' to a Linn. Another who has owned both commented that the Linn was very frustrating because ... | |
| How do people dust their systems? Cardas ultrasonic room sweep. | |
| BAT 30SE? Awesome preamp. In an A/B comparision it walked all over my $4000 pass labs preamp. This was when used with an ARC vt100m2 tube amp. The pass pre was a little better when matched with it's own aleph 2 amps. With tube amps, I think the BAT preamps ... | |
| Inexpensive DIY Speakers Great post Telja. | |
| Which XLR interconnect for spectral gear One of my friends has all spectral gear. He too found that using top shelf MIT cables for pre->amp & speaker worked wonders. According to him and several magazine articles I have read, the spectral gear is specifically engineered to work wi... | |
| Amplification for Maggie MG 1.6Qr s Dear Whatjd, Tube amplification seems to do wonders for the 1.6. The best amp overall I have used with them is the vt100m2. I found the pass labs and the mccormack dna-1 to a little less alive with them. The CJ-mv50 was wonderful too. If I had to ... | |
| Most emotionally involving cables? I say MIT is most emotionally involving because I see more heated arguments on it than any other cable. The most involving to me are the nordost valhalla/quattrofils because of their clarity and lack of grain. Lots of good cables out there. | |
| Most emotionally involving cables? MIT (but not for the sound) | |
| I bought a GREAT cd the other day. Right on with the Gillian Welch (and David Rawlings!). Funny I met her and David Rawlings at a songwriters workshop at the Lyon's Folk Festival in Colorado in 1996. I didn't care for their stage performance (mainly because you couldn't even hear h... |