rmdmoore
Responses from rmdmoore
| Reasonably priced preamplifier A couple years ago I ran through a series of highly regarded amplifiers. I'm a tube guy so keep that in mind, but I landed on ModWright, in particular their ls100. It's not fully balanced but Dan will put a transformer in it if you want. For me, t... | |
| Rogue M180 replacement tubes I was using NOS clear tops in the 12au7 positions and a Telefunken smooth plate 12ax7. Stellar. | |
| Rogue M180 replacement tubes @500homeruns I ended up buying JJ kt88s. I ended up liking them better than the kt120s. If you can afford some nicer 88s or 6550s I think you’d be happy. I would not bother spending a ton on NOS power tubes. Spend your money on the smaller signal... | |
| Speaker Suggestions for Next Move You mentioned Vandersteen in your list and at the price point you're looking at with your room size, I'd recommend a pair of Quattro Wood CTs. They might press your budget a little bit but if what your looking for is imaging and depth they'll have... | |
| Decisions, decisions, decisions I fully agree with your approach! Go as big as you can in the speakers. As a Vandersteen guy and as someone that used to own model IIs I'd fully support a pair of those. What I will say is you need enough space in the room to get them a few feet f... | |
| Bookshelf speaker recommendations You say you're looking for bookshelf speakers. Are you placing them on a bookshelf or will they be more stand mount? This makes a huge difference as most "bookshelf" speakers are not suitable to be place in the closed confines of a bookshelf. If s... | |
| New speakers for a new start? As a proud Vandersteen owner I’d suggest you add something from their line to your list. While they are not planar, the drivers that Richard has designed are incredibly light yet stiff so they are incredibly accurate. The models that don’t have a ... | |
| PrimaLuna dialogue hp I have 20 year old Atma-Sphere amps. While not quite as good as the current model they are nearly there. Tube technology has not changed all that much so if it's a well build component you should be fine. It is worth having it serviced early on th... | |
| Have you noticed as your system improves? I've had a similar experience for sure. I always used my system but started making significant upgrades in 2017. It took me a little longer to get through all the components than you but 2 turntables, 3 tonesrms, 3 cartridges, 4 ramps, new amps, n... | |
| Tube Amps needing mods. Needing a referral for the work. I think if you don't like how they sound they're probably not the right amps for you. Alternatively, ARC stuff is super sensitive to pairing so it could be that your preamp isn't a good match. Either way, rather than mod a fairly expensive unit I'... | |
| Used tube preamp $2-3K My experience is that the type of tube in the preamp plays a huge role in how it actually sounds. My personal preference is a 6SN7. These are what Don Sachs uses in his design. I had a model 3 for a period of time and it was truly a sublime soundi... | |
| Preamp suggestions for Atma-Sphere Class D Monoblocks As others have mentioned, you'd surely do well with a matching Atma-Sphere preamp. But as others have mentioned, there are other options also. I have a pair of MA-1s and use a ModWright LS100 and it sounds sublime. It's not fully balanced but does... | |
| Help me understand the current amp market @jyaki I think if you have audio stores near you that should be part of your decision making process. Being able to go in and listen will help so much with helping you decide on preferences. Don't feel bad about "wasting time". Salespeople in thes... | |
| Turntable setup NYC area I spoke to Mike trei at some point and decided to not have him do it as if I brought by table to him he said I wasn't going to be able to watch. I did have Steve at VAS set one up for me and he did a fantastic job. Ive since learned to do it mysel... | |
| joule la150mkII- preamp Also, maybe call Rich at signature sound. He's the guy that does my part of the repairs on those at this point. He'll know and likely be able to tell you what to use to clean them as well. |