A system now designed to sound both natural and dynamic. My first goal was to reproduce acoustic instruments and voice well enough to create an illusion that they were in the room with you.
Since then I have been working to get a system also able to play funk and reggae too. By using dynamic components such as a Decca cartrdge, a Garrard deck and amps without sluggish output transformers I have got a superbly natural sound without colouration, but with a dynamic and full sound that can put many high-end boxes to shame.
When I've paid for everything here, my next move is to mod the Garrard bearing then look at interconnects, as what I use is pretty basic. I'd also like to get the deck out of the corner but at the moment bass feedback isn't audible so I'm not in a rush. I also have a spare arm and still have a weakness for Ortofon Spu's or maybe a Dynavector DV17, especially for my slightly bright Joni Mitchell albums.
Quad ESL - 57 (Stacked) Rebuild by Onething Audio with OTEC treble panels (Thinner front stator + thinner membrane gives high frequencies without supertweeters)
Roksan Attessa
Top loader with 3 layers of internal sprung suspension
Pink Triangle Dacapo
Bought cheap and resprayed by yours truly
Croft Charisma X
Tube phono/line using 6SL7's and a 6336 in regulation. I have changed some caps to suit my taste so any dodgy soldering is mine not Glen Crofts
Futterman Stereo OTL
Stereo OTL power amp produced for European market and hard-wired by Glen Croft. This is my favourite amp but is not practical for many hours use daily, so I keep it for Sunday best.
Croft Twinstar
One-off version of hybrid mosfet amp using a Cetron 6336B valve for power regulation
Garrard 401
Mounted in home made Birch-ply plinth
Bluenote Borromeo
Really tasty unipivot
Decca Blue
Decca Blue modded and re-tipped by the Garrott Bros.
Versalab Woodblock
I have two of these which I use on digital components. Dramatic improvement when used on DaCapo
System edited: I'm still shocked how constant experiments bear fruit. The Quad 57 set up has been a marathon. With original Quad treble panels it's necessary to have bottom and top panels tilted towards you to get monitor like treble. This set up has to be precise to avoid phasing and the sweet spot is a cube about 1 foot square. Onething Audio panels do not need any extra help and the original Quad/Levinson angle works fine, and the sweetspot is big enough for a sofa-full of friends. Stiffening stands and removing front grills has tightened things up too, especially in the bass. Quads also have a famous resonance around 100hz which helps with singles but makes the bass a bit vague in stacks. Removing front grills seems to remove this coloration. The Croft amps are amazing. I upgraded from my Art Audio pre and got a power to match. Both amps are very uncolored and have large 6336's as regulator valves. By changing cap makes and values in the power supply circuits you can get your amps fine-tuned to your system. I loved the midrange from my Quads but wanted the speed,drive and high range sparkle of monitors. It has been possible to get this and retain the Quads inherent qualities. Of course using a Garrard and Decca help, but I also works with my famously "musical" DAC. I'm very excited at the moment!!!
System edited: Finally got the Bluenote U3 running after rewiring with single core pure copper. I can now run my Ortofon SPU on a direct drive and my Denon 103r on a belt drive. I hope to move up to a Shelter 901 on the Bix at some point. At the moment I get punchy dynamic sound from the Denon and wonderful natural mid-range from the Ortofon SPU
Very impressive! I especially like the stacked Quads. The Art Audio is a great first step for your vinyl set-up. A good friend of mine just picked up the VPI Scout with JMW-9 tonearm and Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood cartridge and is very happy.
Although I know nothing about the components in your system, I still think it LOOKS cool! Given your occupation, the only safe bet would be that it sounds good too. Thanks for taking the time and effort to post your system. It's really fun to see other people's systems, at least for me. The speakers look intriguing, and someday I WILL hear some Quads, especially since I live in the "Quad" Cities (really, that's what the place is called, I swear).
