steveaudio

Responses from steveaudio

members with no feedback?
The last time I had a potential Buyer with no A'gon feedback, he was local, & called me. I was selling a mint condition one mo. old TT. It was a weird conversation where he was asking some very odd questions, like, "what did I do for a living"... 
Merlin TSM comparisons
IMO, Merlins are not like other speakers. They don't do high SPL's, they don't have great bass, they don't have that precise, studio-monitor type sound like some Dynaudios or Totems. They "need" tube amplification, so part of that sound may be usi... 
Contemporary composers. Please help.
I'll 2nd Bartok, Stravinsky, and Shostakovich, & add Elliott Carter & Messian. Britten, Ralph Vaughan Williams, & Copeland tend to be very "accessible", serious, but you don't have to wear a Hair Shirt to listen to them.You HAVE to hav... 
Sub $1k Power Amp to pair with Bryston B-60
What is the size of your new room? Sub $1k Power Amps: various Classe's, McCormack DNA .05 or 1.0, various older SS c-J's like MF2300. Or newer like MF2250. I have a couple of SS C-J power amps that I love, & had a McCormack DNA .05 for about ... 
Cleaning out my closet
How much are you spending to get the old broken stuff fixed, vs. what you could get for them once fixed? Sell it all "as is"--assuming you have the shipping figured out, boxes, know the weights for UPS, put the components on Fee-bay starting @ $9.... 
Best way to spend $2k on a used Turntable & Arm?
"Meanwhile there is a nice looking Rega P25 and a VPI Scout"Questions: Do you want to buy new or used? Are you good at installing cartridges? And what are you seeing used that seems like a good deal? I'm biased towards Rega, besides excellent soun... 
B&W Matrix 802 series 2 vs series 3 vs ATC SCM40
You've heard B&W Matrix 802's? IMO, if you want "authority and slam" look elsewhere. Also, no matter what powerful SS amp(s) you use, you'll never get tight, well defined bass, at least with the S3's.What they do well is classical orchestral m... 
Need speaker advise for "budget" speakers
"Totem Audio. Can't remember all the models but most of that I heard were great, I love the wind. powerful sound but not over the top."I've had Totem Mani 2 Sigs. for 2-3 years & love them. Very "neutral", like great studio monitors, but with ... 
Best way to spend $2k on a used Turntable & Arm?
"For $2,000 you could have a used Rega P-5 with a brand new Benz Glider!" (Elizabeth)For a lot of us, $2k would not be a "limited" TT + cartridge budget. About 12 years ago, I bought a slightly used Rega P25 w/a new Benz Glider for about $1275, &a... 
Advice on going from mid level to high end
I've read both your posts, & I still have no idea, of what's bugging you about your current system, or what you're trying to improve, or change to a diff. sound, or any new components you're interested in???? It can take a lot of research &... 
Moderate Priced Integrated Amp
I'd add Classe--an older CAP-80 or 101 or CAP-150 or 151 would be a no-brainer IMO. I'd add older Plinius units as well, unless you want tubes (??). 
Advice on going from mid level to high end
Whadaya want? Whadaya tryin' to do? (I just watched some John Wayne movies). I could relate my own experience over the last 15 years, upgrading 2 systems 4-5 times each, buying and selling used, if I had enough time.I pretty much made each decisio... 
Entry Level Turntable?
*been experimenting a bunch with different speakers, amps and pre-amps. I'd like to try some true analog sound by getting a decent turntable and some records*You asked some very trenchant (I like that word, trenchant) questions. I can come up with... 
VTL 2.5 preamp not too shabby
Do you know if yours is the v.1 or v.2? It won't say on the unit, you have to call VTL w/the SN to find out. And does yours have the phono stage? Sorry, I don't know about diff. tubes, but you can call VTL & usually talk to Luke's wife I think... 
W/ $200 what amp would you buy?
Yeah, the "usual suspects": old NAD, Rotel, Adcom. But if you can get a Hafler for that price, I might go for that.Last I knew, you could get a McCormack DNA 0.5, basic version for about $500, great little amp......