Ear Candy & Occasional Eye Candy Too

by audiofankj on Ever Evolving

Description

In process of revising virtual system thread... information below needs to be updated...

After selling my system several years ago, I have been rebuilding and finally assembled a very satisfying system. Upgrades have been more frequent than recommended however, improvement with system synergy in mind is always welcome.

The system goals are to accurately portray lifelike music reproduction - vocals, harmonics, timbre, tonal textures, decay, etc. first and foremost... With that in mind, I want a full range, musical presentation with lifelike dynamic impact, both micro and macro.

We have recently moved into a new home, in which my loving wife allowed me to dedicate the 2nd floor bonus room (16'W x 22'L x 9'H) into a listening room. We had the rear wall configured with built in bookshelves for the vinyl albums, as well as pull out drawers for cd storage. Exposed beam coffered ceiling to help break up standing waves, as well as a double stagger stud wall behind the speakers (shared wall with master bedroom). There is also info in this thread about the "rebuild" of that entire wall...

With the excitement and joy of a dedicated listening room, came the room anomalies that plagued the music reproduction. A great pair of speakers (Meadowlark Audio Blue Heron 2's) were displaced in an attempt to move to a speaker with adjustable bass (Martin Logan Summit). As the Martin Logan's were on order - I became aware that adjustable bass will help, yet not fix the problem... thus started the "wall renovation project." As luck would have it, the room response was improved, however I had been struggling with placement of the Martin Logan Summits. Once finally "dialed in" when you would listen at moderate volumes, you would over excite the room a bit... I tried (for months) to get "permission" to hang drapes behind the Summits - the same ones on the side wall... but no green light. Alas, it was a festering concern that the room wasn't treated properly for the Summits to perform optimally. If they couldn't be allowed to perform their best, the search began for their replacements, and the Summits went up for sale.

As of a couple of weeks ago, I received delivery of the Salk Sound HT3's. They are currently breaking in, and I will be working on room placement and positioning in the upcoming weeks. I am looking forward to getting the system back to a "stable" point!

This is the system "snapshot" as of early September 2006.
Read more...

Components Toggle details

    • Porter Port Porter Port
    1 20A Porter Port utilized on each of the five dedicated 20A lines
    • Fusion Audio Enchanter 20A
    20A IEC used on the RSA D'mitri
    • Running Springs Audio D'Mitri
    Line conditioner
    • Fusion Audio Enchanter Power Cord
    Fusion Audio Enchanter power cord utilized on AMR CD-77
    • Abbingdon Music Research - AMR CD-77
    review here: http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/abbingdon/abbingdon.html
    • JPS Labs Aluminata - 1m Interconnect
    1 meter - from CD-77 to preamp
    • First Sound Audio Paramount Mk II Special Edition
    Top of the line 3 chassis unit offered by Emmanuel.
    • JPS Labs Aluminata - 1.5m Interconnect
    1.5 meter from preamp to mono blocks
    • Fusion Audio Enchanter Power Cord
    One on each H2o Audio M250 SE monoblock
    • H2o Audio M250SE (Special Edition Monoblocks)
    The absolute latest from the mind of Henry Ho. This takes the former top of the line M250 Signature and improves upon it. Details to follow. This is the latest top of the line set of monoblocks from H2o Audio... the M 250 Special Edition.
    • JPS Labs Aluminata 10 ft. Speaker Cable
    10 foot pair, used with Aluminata Jumpers
    • Meadowlark Audio Blue Heron 2
    Pommele Sapele sides and rear, Honduran Mahogany front baffle with dual offset Red Heart stringers.
    A phenominal 1st order, time & phase aligned, transmission line speaker. Have tried many other speakers that fail to produce music they way these speakers do.
    • Sistrum SP-101
    One under each Meadowlark Audio Blue Heron 2 speaker
    • Sony STR-DA5200ES
    http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?ProductSKU=STRDA5200ES&INT=sstyle-homeaudiocomponents-tophero-7channel_receiver Used in Home Theater for center channel, and rear surrounds. Upconverts analog video to 1080p
    • Sony VPL-VW50
    http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/%3Cwbr%3EINTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?ProductSKU=VPLVW50&Dept=tvvideo&CategoryName=tv_FrontProjectionTVs

    1080p projector
    • Stewart Filmscreen Firehawk SST 100
    http://www.stewartfilmscreen.com/ Firehawk SST - optimized for Sony VPL-VW50 1080p projector - Luxus Deluxe
    • JL Audio Fathom 113's (x 2)
    http://home.jlaudio.com/products_subs.php?prod_id=371 Pair of these 130 lb. each monsters... Used in HT
    • Onix Rocket - RSC200
    http://www.av123.com/products_product.php?section=speakers&product=100.1 Center channel speaker - used in HT
    • Onix Rocket - RSS300's
    http://www.av123.com/products_product.php?section=speakers&product=7.1 Rear surround speakers. Used in HT
    • StudioTech U-22T RW/B
    Component Stand - 67" W x 22" H
    • Eighth Nerve Room Pack
    Accoustic room treatment
    • --- Room Renovation --- (listed below)
    pics attached
    • Room Reno - Room Prep - Rear Wall
    Pic of the rear wall. Everything was removed and the shelving for the vinyl was tarped and taped. Furniture that was not moved out of the room was also tarped over.
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Before
    Pic of the front wall before renovation commenced.
    • Room Reno - Drywall Removal
    Pic of the start... drywall cut above and below metal furring strips in horizontal rows to allow for removal of drywall
    • Room Reno - Drywall Removal continues
    Pic taken after 8 solid hours of work. The metal furring strips were spaced 12" apart. Screws had to be removed from the strips as well as all of the blown insulation.
    • Room Reno - Furring Strips
    This pic shows how poorly the furring strips were installed in some of the areas.
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - drywall mostly down
    Pic of the front wall with most of the drywall removed. There are still some metal furring strips up to be removed.
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Drywall Removal
    Pic of front corner, most of the drywall removed, metal furring strips yet to be removed.
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Progress
    Pic of the drywall removed, metal furring strips removed, and insullation removed. Some original studs are removed and laying on the floor.
    • Room Reno - Studs
    stack of studs ready to be installed...
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - New Stud Installation
    Pic of the new studs being installed
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - New Stud CloseUp
    pic close up... studs were glued with Liquid Nails, and screwed together with 3" drywall screws. Spacing was roughly on 9" centers.
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - New Studs Complete
    Pic of the front wall... studs are complete, and insulation installed.
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Plywood Begins
    Pic of the front wall... 3/4" tongue & groove plywood being installed. Liquid Nails and 3" drywall screws.
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Plywood Continues
    Pic of the front corner, plywood installation continues
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Plywood Complete
    Pic of all the plywood up. All Liquid Nailed and screwed with 3" drywall screws. The white lines in seams and around outlets is acoustical sealant caulk.
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - First Layer Drywall
    Pic of the first layer of drywall going up.
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - First Layer Drywall Up
    Pic of the first layer of drywall up. Audio Alloy's "Green Glue" was used between drywall and plywood. First layer was mudded prior to second layer going up. Yes, one piece of drywall is backwards, as the Green Glue was applied before it was realized...
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Layer Two Drywall Up
    Pic of the front wall, second layer of drywall up and initial mudding
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Second Layer Drywall
    Pic of the second layer of drywall up and initial mudding
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Semi Final Mudding
    Pic of the front wall - semi final mudding
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Semi Final Mudding
    Pic of the front corner - semi final mudding
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Primer Application
    Pic of the coat of primer being apllied - before final mudding and sanding then final paint
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Final Paint
    Pic of the front corner, final coat of paint
    • Room Reno - Front Wall - Finished
    Pic of front wall - finished and ready for system to be put back together.
    • Room Reno - Front Corner - Finished
    Pic of the front corner, finished and ready to have system moved back into the room and set up.

Comments 316

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Owner
Muralman- Oh yeah, I am quite sure the Epiphanies are well shielded... as for technically what, how much, etc. I have no idea. If I remember correctly from their website they employ ERS cloth somewhere in the cable... the outer cable "sheath" is also a braided foil, rather than plastic which I would imagine may be for help with shielding... *shrug* I am not certain of what is going on inside, however I know they are the most dead silent, quiet, revealing, refined, etc., etc. power cord I have used. Hell for the price, they should come with a lead vest you wrap around em... although not sure it would help :)

FYI all of my Synergistic Research stuff has active shielding on it... that coupled with the BPT 3.5 Sig. Plus has combined to drop the noise floor into the basement... low level detail retrieval is phenominal... just last weekend I had the First Sound preamp set to "1" (lowest volume setting) and was trying to nap in the room, and the transients and dynamics were so involving I couldn't fall asleep... was actually a bit frustrating... it wasn't loud, yet I kept getting drawn into the music... ended up trying to nap and after realizing the cd repeated back to the first track - I went to the bedroom to catch a nap... don't get me wrong a good problem to have, however suprising as I haven't tried *very* low levels in many months.

audiofankj

Kirk, are all of your power cords well shielded? I am finding that is a must. My Scintillas are sounding so crazy real!

muralman1

Owner
Tvad & Atrg - I was already looking into getting a pair, and Artg probably just snagged the "good" pair from the site I saw them on... :) No worries. I am going to be swapping speaker cables back and forth and want to leave as much of the system the same to get a feel for the true sonic differences between the two cables. Once that is completed, I will have to order a pair of the tubes. In all honesty, I too think the Siemens 7308 can be a bit analytical or perhaps not as full in the vocals as I would prefer. Whether "euphoric" or not, I always love to have a bit of "bloom" on female vocals... especially if it doesn't detract in other areas as well...

I greatly appreciate the info from both of you! Thank you.

audiofankj

TVAD - just installed the PQ's, and i agree with you 100%, i prefer the First Sound Best with these! Better than the Siemens 7308's, better than the 6DJ8's i was diggin....

Kirk, that's TWO highly satified rolls with these, you should give it a whirl. at $~300 a set, its actually an "affordable" tweak!

artg

Tvad, I also think the Siemens is a bit analytical. I love the bloom and presence of the Phillips Miniwatt (1959 German prod) 6DJ8's, but miss the more quiet, more open and tranpsarent sound of the Siemenss 7308's.

I'm soon to receive the Amperez PQ's you like so much, and am looking for the best of both worlds....

artg

Kirk, as you know I owned an Empirical Audio modified EMC 1-UP for
over a year. I can tell you with total conviction that an APL Denon 3910
would take your system to a completely new level. Superior extension
and dynamics. Wider and taller soundstage. It would blow your mind.

Also, I'm also using the First Sound, and I have found that Amperex PQ
6922 white labels made in the USA offer the ever-so-slight midrange
bloom you mention without sacrificing any of the clarity, dynamics, or
extension of the Siemens 7308. To me, the Amperex are musical while
the Siemens are analytical.

In my most humble opinion.

tvad

Owner
Lew4 - thanks for the compliments... the BH2's are coming along nicely. I have just over 1,000 hours logged on them at this point. However, I will confess about half of the total time has been at lower volume over night - so I am not certain they are all the way just yet. For those doubters... read the review of the BH2's from Wayne Donnelly and notice Pat McGinty chose to break in the BH2's for 3 months at high volume 24 hours a day... well over 2,000 hours. I think it has to do with the keldamp layers, the intermediate baffles, the dual woofers, the transmission line all add up to a longer than normal break in. From what I am hearing now, it will be more than well worth the wait. I will keep you posted. :)

Artg - Thanks as well. I am actually running the Siemens 7308 gold pins in the FS. I went with these on the recommendation of Emmanuel Go, and have not tried tube rolling in the preamp just yet. I have been told the Siemens 7308 are very neutral and dynamic as well as quiet. I would perhaps like a bit more midrange bloom, however not at the expense of higher noise floor, or lack of detail and dynamics. I would be very interested to hear your findings on other tubes in this preamp, as I am becomming *very* satisfied with the sound of my system overall as it is finally getting "dialed in" more so than I expected.

I have a Neuance shelf on order to place under my EMC-1UP and also may try it under the FS... I am also going to "experiment" with Synergistic Research's Resoultion Reference X2 speaker cable compared to my current FX Resolution Reference speaker cables. I am hoping one or both of these options may make an improvement. Where? I am not sure, but if they do, I will be satisfied - which I didn't expect. :) It is really at the point now where I am *almost* afraid to try or change anything. I will just keep tunes spinning and logging the hours and changes...

audiofankj

i love those speakers. I also have the FS Pres deluxe and some electraglide PC's - very good stuff indeed. What tubes you running in your FS?

I have had some interesting experiences: I found a cryo's pair of 1959 Phillips Miniwatt 6DJ8's which, while sligthly less transparent and less detailed, provide the very best emotional window on vocalists. Less air than my Siemens gold pin 7308's, but the images are so "there," really amazing. Next-up: a pair of early 1960's Amperex PQ 6922/D getters.

artg

Audiofankj, Nice system and great comments from you. Keep us posted on how the Blue Heron 2s are preforming

lew4

Owner
System edited: System change: Upgraded my BPT 3.5 Signature to the new BPT 3.5 Signature Plus. Just inserted into the system - should be about 2 weeks for full break in on this unit, the majority of break in / improvement in the first few days. The Blue Heron 2's also have just under 700 hours at this point, so two weeks or so, both should be real close to fully broken in. Looking forward to the end of the "break in" game and sitting back and spinning some tunes.

audiofankj

Owner
Hey Ken - I look forward to hearing some more vinyl spun at your pad sometime soon! Anytime you are feeling up for company, let me know, as your turntable is always singing beautifully! Yeah, once everything does "break in" and settle down, you will definately have to stop over for a listen! A few more months and I will be seeking your advice on "perfect" cartridge set up! (hopefully)

audiofankj

Hey, glad to hear your having a great "Epiphany" over there! Man,very nice.Your old Mini Khan Plus cords are right at home in my system!..Good to know that the new Epiphany is such a nice upgrade, that I am hopefull that these too will find their way into my house when your ready to move on! :)( please not too soon though! )

I have to get a listen soon to those nice Blue Heron 2's and H2O monos, and will hopefully have you over too for some Vinyl madness soon as I get the Analog all tweeked!

All in All, Excellent Job Kirk!

kehut

Owner
System edited: Power cord upgrade... all power cords (formerly Electraglide Ultra Khan II Statement and Mini Khan Plus) were upgraded to the Electraglide Epiphany. I made the "mistake" of auditioning one in my system... and it was all down hill from there. After all the years of playing with cabling and such, it is still very frustrating to me to hear such a significant improvement in sonics when I inserted this cord in place of older Electraglide cables. A couple of the cables still need a week or so to "settle" and break in, however it is an obvious improvement out of the gate (err box).

audiofankj

Very interesting, thanks for the reply. Looking forward to your additional comments as things progress. Good luck.

jsen

Owner
Jsen-

So far, so good! Unfortunately for the break in process, the wife and I went to Europe for New Years, and the system was shut down two weeks straight. They have been playing constantly since I have been back and have logged about 500 hours or so at this point. There has been definate improvement in dynamics and refinement so far, however I also know from experience my Ospreys and Nighthawks took well over 1,000 hours to finally attain that "relaxed" presentation if not a bit more. This is one area where I feel Pat McGinty of Meadowlark is WAY off on his literature that ships with speakers and why so many "like new, barely broken in" Meadowlarks are for sale on the 'Gon. The Meadowlark literature states approx. 300 hours for break in. That makes me laugh, especially when you can read Wayne Donnelly's review in Enjoy the Music / Superior Audio and read that even Wayne comments on his first pair of Blue Herons taking almost 6 months to open up. Wayne requested the review pair of Blue Heron 2's to be broken in prior to them being shipped to him... Pat played them 24/7 for 3 months! That is well over 2,000 hours... a bit of a far cry from 300. However, if you can tolerate and talk yourself through the *long* break in period I have always been rewarded with very natural and musical sound.

It will be a few more weeks before I have a "solid" comparison for you, however I was prepped quite well from my dealer that the new Blue Heron 2's are not great out of the box and the bass will be quite light until they break in, as stated in the owners manual as well. Brand new, out of the box and set up, I spun a few songs, I was calling my dealer in astonishment - and asked, "I thought you said they would be bass shy, as does the manual, when new?" The sheer amount of bass depth, presence, control, power was all readily apparent quite better than the Nighthawks even though the Blue Heron 2's were brand new. The highs seem to be a bit more extended and have more dynamic impact on cymbals and were the first area to sound close to being broken in. The midrange has just recently seemed to start to "blossom" and also exhibits more dynamics - even in vocals and such. I assumed the Nighthawks were 85% maybe 90% of the Blue Heron 2's performance. I can assure you, I was far from correct. Just how much better are the BH2's? I will keep you posted on my personal opinion as they break in.

audiofankj

Audiofankj~

How are you liking your Blue Heron 2's? They must be getting close to full break in. I am very interested in your comparisons with the Nighthawks.

jsen

Owner
System edited: Speaker Upgrade: Meadowlark Blue Heron 2's replaced my Meadowlark Nighthawks... The "break-in" game has begun...

audiofankj

Owner
Heh I posted it here on A'Gon before I replied here under my thread... If I don't see it up there in an hour or so I will repost it. It should be under the amp / preamp forum.

audiofankj

Thank you AudioFanKJ, please post here the URL of your review when it becomes available.

guidocorona

Owner
Hello Guidocorona - I have just posted a review on the H2o Audio Signature Monoblocks... it should be in the forum threads after moderator approval...

Yes, they have progressed beautifully and I now consider them to be a "staple" in my system.

audiofankj

Audiofankj, I notice your last update on your H2Os dates to the end of October. How are these amps progressing? Are you going to post your detailed findings?

guidocorona

Owner
Another brief H2o update... I left town early this week on business with the mono's having a bit over 500 hours on them. I was out of town all week and figured I would write up a blurb this weekend upon return. I did leave the amps on and playing while I was out of town. To my suprise (and delight) there continues to still be noticable improvement. I would imagine this has to be close to being fully broken in, as of this weekend will have just under 700 hours of play time on them. Initially when speaking with many other H2o owners - most stated about 150 hours to become close to fully broken in. I can only imagine the load of the Apogee Scintilla as well as its impedance drops to nearly a 1 Ohm load may help expedite the break in process compared to my 91 db, nominal 4 Ohm load. I shall continue to let the mono's play 24/7 and as soon as the presentation solidifies I will write up my impressions. Thanks for the interest and appreciate your patience for those of you who have contacted me.

audiofankj

Owner
System edited: Well the H2o Signature Monoblocks have now logged a bit over 300 hours (although about half of the hours have been at low volume during the night) and have gone through some noticable refinement. The changes are still happening, to my ears the sonics are still improving from just a few days ago. The finesse and liquidity just seem to become a bit more palpable every few days. I am trying to not listen every day, just keep the music selection diverse and the amps playing. I will then check every few days with familiar recordings. I know many of you have emailed me regarding my opinions on the H2o Signature Monoblocks. I will be more than happy to share my opinions on the amps - I just want to make sure I have given them time for full and proper break in before any premature conclusions are made. They sounded good out of the box and new, however there has definately been modest yet steady improvement in finesse, refinement, imaging (becoming more pinpoint), as well as liquidity... I am hoping in the next 50 to 150 hours (couple of days to a week) I won't notice any further improvements and sit down for a serious listening session or two. If they continue to improve, I wont mind however, I just want to ensure they have fully evolved in their sonic presentation before judgement. I also plan to invite some locals over for a listen as well to get their thoughts on the new amps. Will keep all posted as it progresses.

audiofankj

Owner
Muralman1-

At this point (11 p.m. EST, Sat. 9th) I have 205 hours of play time logged on the monoblocks.

They are still going through noticable changes in the past day or two. I chose to reserve judgement until the breakin process has finished. Hopefully, that won't be too much longer.

audiofankj

Well??

muralman1

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