motown-l

Responses from motown-l

Made in USA
My only USA made product are some Grado Headphones and a 23 year old Velodyne subwoofer.   
Symptoms of UN-CLEAN power
I had all of the sound issues listed in above comments plus my house is old with 2 phase, ungrounded circuits. I purchased a fairly inexpensive Panamax conditioner and the previous grounding problems (slight current running on metal faceplates, so... 
What I wish I knew before starting my audiophile journey
A factor in my audio journey is system synergy. At one point I had an Arcam amp paired with Paradigm speakers. It worked because the Arcam had a laid back presentation with the forward sounding Paradigms. They complemented each other. When I upgra... 
Audiophile sound quality from a more "mainstream" company?
I was using a NAD 3020 as a preamp with an early PS Audio Power Amp (can't remember the model) in the late 70's early 80's. Great phono section and the 80 WPC amp pushed any speakers I had. The 3020 was utterly unreliable but I fortunately worked ... 
Using streaming as a main source ---DSD, FLAC, MQA Streamers and DACS
mlsstl - Thanks for the informative reply. I agree that a well engineered recording, whether analog or digital, does make the biggest difference. I also appreciate the discussion of bit rate vs sample rate.     
Using streaming as a main source ---DSD, FLAC, MQA Streamers and DACS
I was a fairly early adopter of streaming. My mistake was buying a low-ish end Denon streamer around 2012. Denon no longer provides support for various streaming platforms on that old unit, so it became an iPhone playback unit via a Firewire cable... 
Aftermarket headshell leads
I bought some Amazon OFC Leads, with gold plated connectors, to update the leads on a vintage Philips AF 877. The head shell pins are smaller than standard. I had to carefully pre-crimp them. The original leads had corroded connectors and stiffene... 
SPDIF Coax cable recommendation?
I recently purchased a 1 meter Pangea Premiere SE demo from Audio Advisor. I can't remember the price, but it was under $100. Well made, flexible and a major improvement over an okay Monoprice coax that preceded it.  
Vintage worth the time to explore?
Unless you are willing to resuscitate vintage electronics, I wouldn't bother. I do have some vintage source equipment (an analog tuner and a turntable), but modern speakers and amplification. A great used amp that will chill out your bright speake... 
Plug Amp directly to Mains or use a Power Conditioner?
Thanks all. I guess I left off some details about my question. I have read in various publications that an amp has internal voltage regulation that could be adversely effected by external power conditioning. If that's the case, in general, I woul... 
Types of Audiophiles
I am in a different category called "Audio Enthusiast". I don't enough invested in my system to be an Audiophile.  
How crucial is the quality of a digital cable?
designsfx` - Thanks for asking. Maybe I wasn't clear in my post. I am using an iPhone 12 to stream Amazon HD to the amp. The output sound is very close or at times better than CD's. No external cables required. This is what made me think it was th... 
How crucial is the quality of a digital cable?
I am very grateful to all who responded. The tone of responses was also very positive. No knocks for having a lower budget set up than most on the site. I will be experimenting with some of the suggested cables and cords. I can post the results i... 
Cartridges
I also think there should be synergy between the cartridge and the other components. I have Revel bookshelf speakers which tend to be a little "laid back". Using a Grado, I found the sound very smooth in the mids, but the bass and treble were mute... 
How much is about the recording
I have a mixture of new, used and vintage equipment in my entry-level system. My listening space is the exact opposite of what an acoustically appropriate listening room should be. I am also approaching 70 with some hearing loss in my right ear. A...