Description

This system represents my quest for fidelity to the music, to move one's soul and calm my ragged nerves when work is overwhelming.

The parts were put in a slow process which has been my audio journey over the last 28 years. Each step has been positive toward that goal.

Over time, I have realised that it is not soundstage. The instrument's tonality and body must come through. Even when everything else is there, if there is no dynamics, the music will not have "life". Pace, rhythm and timing (these oft misunderstood terms) are only right when every piece of the audio spectrum is served, resulting in one coherent whole.

This has led me to mate a transparent tube preamp with a high fidelity solid state power amp to drive high efficiency & resolution speakers. With the subwoofer blending seamlessly, it covers the entire music spectrum and can play any genre of music without losing its tonal accuracy or resolution. These speakers were specially chosen as they drivers are time-alined and produce musical images of correct proportion. The tweeter is particularly clean and does not irritate like most metal dome tweeters.

The system is situated in a dedicated music/study room which is shaped in a pentagon. Thick velvet curtain is draped over back wall and a Persian rug covers the teak floor. Windows are curtained. A bookshelf holding LPs, CDs and books lines one wall.

I hope you enjoyed following the progress of the system as I have enjoyed the music it produces.
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Components Toggle details

    • Esoteric P5
    CD & SACD transport employing VMK-5 clamping system optimised for high speed disc rotation.
    • No name made-in-Japan iLink
    iLink cable with 6-4 pin configuration.
    • Esoteric D5
    32bit dual mono DAC employing the AK4397 developed by AKM Semicon Inc.
    • Scheu Das Laufwerk No. 2
    The new flagship of the family. Plinth in acrylic. Weighing a total of about 38 kg, this turntable is a heavyweight. By omitting the lead shot chamber and joining two shell halves, a turntable of unadorned elegance came into being. Since no lead shot could be used to diminish resonance effects, other solutions needed to be found. This turntable also features three tone arm bases along with the electronically regulated DC motor with its fine speed adjustment and string drive, an 80-mm platter and height-adjustable steel feet in spike or flat format. “Das Laufwerk” No.2 is available in polished black acrylic and satin-finish colourless acrylic (glazed white). Armboards for various tone arms are available in acrylic, brass, aluminium or bronze.
    • Denon SS-103R
    Soundsmith-retipped ruby cantilever with line contact stylus. Currently mounted on Conductor arm at 1.68g VTF.
    • Schroeder Model 2
    9 inch string suspended, magnetically damped, carbon fibre based tonearm, wired by Incognito.
    • Cartridge Man Conductor
    Parallel air bearing tonearm. The Conductor uses a simple high flow low pressure aquarium based air pump system that negates the need for expensive stainless steel pressure fittings and fixings.
    • Dynavector DRT XV-1s
    Dynavector's top of the line cart. The genius of Dr Tominari.
    • Van den Hul D-501 Silver Hybrid
    Used from the Conductor tonearm to the Herron phonostage. The D - 501 SILVER HYBRID is a special version of the D - 501 HYBRID with both stranded signal lines made of highest grade Matched Crystal Silver. This mat black HULLIFLEX ® 4 jacketed balanced cable was designed to support the tone-arm and mixing console industry: very flexible and with extremely good electrical qualities. The D - 501 SILVER HYBRID is a cable with a very high shielding factor. Sonically this is one of the best cables. The D - 501 SILVER HYBRID is regularly used as a microphone cable in critical professional recordings and as a special product for SME in England together with their prestigious tonearms which on customer request can be fit with this silver version of the D - 501 HYBRID. The 2 signal lines are made each of 19 x 0.1 mm. highest grade Matched Crystal Silver strands. The signal line insulation with the colours white and red is made of cell-PE, so the stripping can even be done with your fingernails to prevent damage of the silver strands commonly caused by mechanical stripping. The resistance per signal lead is: 11.9 Ohm/100 meter. The capacitance between the 2 signal leads is a very low 58 pF/meter. The hybrid shielding consists of a dense and very pure silver coated high grade Matched Crystal (MC) OFC 72 x 0.1 mm. wire helix with underneath a Linear Structured Carbon ® (LSC) saturated conductive sub-jacket. The resistance of the shielding is: 3.2 Ohm/100 meter.
    • Audio-Technica AT SS33PTG Prestige MC
    Specifications Playback frequency range: 15 - 50,000Hz Output voltage: 0.5mV (1kHz and 5cm/sec. Channel separation: 30dB (1kHz) Output balance: 0.5dB (1kHz) Stylus pressure: 1.8g (stock: 1.6 - 2.0g) Coil impedance: 17 Ohms (1kHz) Direct current resistance: 17 Ohms Load resistance: 20 Ohms or more Coil inductance: 70 mu H (1kHz) Static compliance: 40×±0 - 6 cm/dyne Dynamic compliance : 10×±0 - 6 cm/dyne (100Hz) Needle tip form: Soundsmith Line Contact (Stock: Micro linear) Vertical tracking angle: 23deg External size: L26.5 × W 16.6 × H16mm Mass (cartridge): 6.8g
    • Living Voice Mystic Mat
    Turntable mat made of polyurethane fibre(record side), kevlar, and carbon fibre base(platter side).
    • Herron Audio VTPH-1mc
    MC phono stage with 66db gain. Tubed with Tesla ECC803s(gold pins) x4 and RCA 12AT7. Placed on Feet of Silence footers.
    • Mapleshade Brass footers
    Heavyfeet solid brass footers placed under the Herron phono and the Audio Magic Eclipse PLC.
    • Magnum Dynalab MD 90T
    MD 90T is the successor to the FT101A. The MD 90T continues the tradition by re-defining state-of-the-art in analog FM tuner design. The MD-90T combines the very latest in discrete, analog technology. In addition to its highly renowned MOSFET front end, which provides 3 stages of very careful and precise RF amplification, it has added the Triode audio section, which includes a NOS Tesla gold pin ECC88 tube in the amplification stage. Upgraded with Kimber silver wires.
    • Nordost Ti Pulsar Points
    Under Magnum Dynalab MD-90T.
    • Audio Magic Sorcerer 4D RCA 1m
    Interconnects from Esoteric D5 and Herron VTPH1mc: employs 2 ultra-pure silver flat ribbon conductors. Bullet plugs. Air dielectrics. Cryo treated with MST treatment. Welcome to the high-end cable! The Sorcerer 4D is very detailed and dynamic! Fantastic soundstaging... it is smooth, transparent, and very musical.
    • ModWright SWLP 9.0SE
    Tube rolled the following: Amperex 7119 replace 5687 Westinghouse(RCA) 6CG7 replace 6N1P Mullard GZ30 replace Sovtek GZ34
    • Walker Audio Valid Points
    High mass solid brass footers with pointed tips placed on MDF.
    • Audio Magic Excalibur 1.5m
    Used between the Dynalab tuner and preamp. Employs 2 pure silver ribbon conductors. Silver shield. Lockable connectors. Teflon air dielectrics. Cryo treated with MST treatment. These cables are detailed, very smooth, quiet and dynamic. They offer great staging, musicality.
    • Audio Magic Illusion 4D RCA 1.5m
    Used between pre and power amps. -- Two large ultra-pure silver conductors. -- Silver bullet plugs. -- Air dielectrics. -- Cryo treated with ultra MST treatment.
    • Sanders ESL Amplifier
    Technical Details
    This amplifier will deliver more than 2000 volt-amps per channel into an ESL, and when driving magnetic speakers, the ESL amplifier will deliver over 360 watts/channel into an 8 ohm load, and over 600 watts/channel into a 4 ohm load. Momentary output into a 2 ohm load exceeds 1000 watts.

    Specifications
    Power - 360 watts RMS per channel into an 8 ohm load
    Gain - 26dB
    Bandwidth - DC through 100kHz
    Slew Rate - 50 Volts/microsecond
    Input Impedance - 50kohm (both balanced and unbalanced)
    Noise - More than 110dB below rated output
    Output impedance - Less than .04 ohm, 20 Hz - 20 KHz
    THD + Noise - Less than .08%, 20 Hz - 20 KHz
    17
    • Audio Magic Illusion 4D 6' speaker cable
    Massive 1 1/2" ultra-pure silver conductors. Screw-on bananas. Air dielectrics. Cryo treated with ultra MST treatment. Super-dynamic, detailed, transparent and musical!
    • Audio Magic Xstream speaker
    Copper with silver coating.
    • Cabasse Baltic
    Triaxial satellites which redefine what is possible with dynamic speakers. These literally disappear and leave the music in its wake. Wonderful tonal accuracy and fast response, without any smearing of notes.
    • Cabasse Thor II
    12" woofer powered by 250w built in amp, finished in santos. Integrates well with the Baltics, fast and tight bass response.
    • Audio Magic Illusion, Sorcerer, Power Drive
    5' silver, silver/copper power cords to preamp/DAC/Phono(Illusion), poweramp/subwoofer (Sorcerer), CD TPT/tuner (Powerdrive).
    • Audio Magic Eclipse II
    Fitted with Filter Matching, the Eclipse II has 3 totally isolated circuits, two detachable silver power cords, two 20 amp breakers, 10 ga. silver conductors, cryo treated with MST treatment, specially designed duplex's (with surge and spike protection), two super filters, premium teflon caps, as well as premium and ultra premium parts.
    • MDF 1 inch
    Cut and varnished 2 pieces of 1
    • Loricraft PRC 3
    THE Professional Record Cleaner.
    • Audio Magic Large Noise Disruptor
    Placed on ModWright SWLP9.0 has helped to reduce tube microphonics.

Comments 85

Showing all comments by marakanetz.

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will cans of beer do the same cable-lifting job?
unfortunately i usually drink beer from botles.
can you recommend any descent canned beer if there any?

marakanetz

Think of higher power amp such as VTL MB185 if you wish to stay with tubes.

marakanetz