mulveling
Responses from mulveling
| Sennheiser 650 Headphone Cable Upgrade I'm a longtime fan of the HD650 for its coherent, non-fatiguing sound, and great value for the price. I've had most of the legendary headphones at one time or another. I've used the Equinox, Cardas, Blue Dragon, Silver Dragon, and Zu Mobius cables... | |
| What benefits to expect from tonearm upgrade I agree with Chayro in thoughtfully questioning where the investment should go. Your current Jelco-made Ortofon looks pretty good. The $5K level arms are certainly nicer, but your current platform seems solid. And don't underestimate the convenien... | |
| Of all your gear, what piece impresses you most? Knee-jerk reaction would be my Tannoys, but I've been a fanboy of them for a while now, so it's no surprise I love my current Canterbury SE; I expected to be impressed. I'd say I've been most surprised & impressed by my preamp, the Rogue Audio... | |
| Need Advice Sota Sapphire III + SME IV arm Doh, I was misinformed; I though all older Sapphires has 3-point. I have played with an old Sapphire (with the Jelco-made Koetsu arm that's not nearly as heavy/nice as a FR64fx) that was definitely 3-point. The 4-point suspension is much nicer. | |
| New cartridge - Benz Micro or Ortofon Cadenza? I've had the Benz Wood M2 and a Ref 3 (low output, copper coils) in my system a few years ago. I've also had an Ortofon Jubilee (predecessor of Cadenza Black), MC Windfeld, and Kontrapunkt c (predecessor of Cadenza Bronze) in my system around that... | |
| Need Advice Sota Sapphire III + SME IV arm Good call; I didn't consider possible weight issues with the SME. Though on my Star III, I had a Fidelity Research FR64fx running beautifully -- and I can't imagine an SME IV being heavier than that. The 4-point vs. 3-point suspension may be cruci... | |
| Need Advice Sota Sapphire III + SME IV arm Agree with the others; you'd be crazy to trade that in for Rega, unless you were to net a wad of cash back (of course the reality is they'll ask you for your table/arm PLUS a wad of cash, which is ludicrous). Is that really a vacuum model? The Sta... | |
| Charge for TT setup? Given the typical disposition of us audiogon forum goers, "years of enjoyment" is much more likely to be: "days of bliss, followed by months of tepid satisfaction, giving into doubt, followed by days of increasing upgrade urges, finally culminatin... | |
| Charge for TT setup? Expecting your ass to be kissed is ridiculous, no matter the margin. That's not a good way to live life or conduct business. Be a reasonable human being. However, in this case you can expect to have the upper hand in bargaining, and use that to yo... | |
| Charge for TT setup? On a $6K table there WILL be ample margin to at least include free setup. And if they're at all competent, it won't take much of their time to do so, and do it properly. The dealer sounds rather stingy to me, unless they've got those $6K tables fl... | |
| upgrading the analog setup Upgraded to a Clearaudio Innovation Wood last year, but ran an old Series III SOTA Star before that. The SOTA was my 1st table, and it made me fall in love with vinyl. I can heartily recommend it, and I'd urge you towards a SOTA table with the 4-p... | |
| Rogue Apollo v. VAC Phi 300.1a Hey Bill, Yep, the RCA 12AX7 black plate has been one of my favorites too. I'm currently running a pair in the Rogue Ares phono, though they sound good in the Apollos too. In addition to some of the usual suspects -- Mullard LP, Telefunken RP, RCA... | |
| Rogue Apollo v. VAC Phi 300.1a Hi Bill,Sounds like we have similar price pain-points. I stretched on the analog source and speakers, but $20K for a single amp/preamp component is well past my comfort zone.I remember rolling a few times in the VAC Ren III preamp, and going back ... | |
| Rogue Apollo v. VAC Phi 300.1a I've run the Apollos for a few years now, and they're excellent. Probably loafing on my 96dB/Watt Tannoys, but I do like it loud ;)Dynamics as good as anything I've heard. Responds like crazy to tube rolling! All of the tube slots respond signific... | |
| Why aren't new vacuum tubes as good as old ones? Lost art. That's why. New stuff can be very good, but will always be different. I wish some of these way-to-damn-rich philanthropists would occasionally pick a dying (beautiful) technology to keep alive (like vacuum tubes back in the 60's-70's) --... |