Cmk,I am fascinated with the "Conductor"!It really seems to be a superb arm,at a fair price.I did read the wonderful,and quite thorough review,it got.How about your thoughts?My pal used to own the Air Tangent,which was fabulous,but very expensive.I own a Graham 2.2,which is a fine product,but always felt a very good linear design is FAR more relaxed,and musical.
Any thoughts comparing the Conductor to your fine Schroeder would be most appreciated.BTW,nice set-up,in general,but you know that already!
Best!

[email protected] September 06, 2006 03:48

System edited: New pictures of the added of the Cartridge Man's Conductor tonearm and the Audio Technica AT33PTG mc cartridge mounted on the second arm base. As the cartridge is fresh out of the box, it is still a little raw, but the details from this combination are very evident. Soundstage is big with each individual instrument laid out and little details coming out. Following individual instruments/vocalists are so easy as each is rendered in their own separate spaces.

cmk August 31, 2006 02:03

System edited: Took advantage of the additional armbase to mount a 2nd arm. This time its an assault on the SOTA with an air-bearing parallel/linear tracking arm by the Cartridge Man, called the Conductor. A unique design which utilises low pressure high flow to produce the air cushion to float the arm. Will be mounting it shortly and do some comparisons with the Schroeder.

cmk August 29, 2006 05:00

System edited: Latest upgrade is what I believe to be my final turntable upgrade to the Scheu Das Laufwerk No. 2. The new flagship of the Scheu TT family. Plinth in either acrylic or slate. Mine is in acrylic. Weighing a total of about 38 kg, this turntable is also a heavyweight, although it uses an entirely different design. 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)- I got this version. There is also an exclusive version with a slate shell. Armboards for various tone arms are available in acrylic, brass, aluminium or bronze. Mine is in acrylic. A description of sound is of course always subjective. During the development phase the Premier model was used as a reference. Both No.1 and No.2 turntables comfortably exceed the Premier in terms of sound reproduction. Detail is reproduced with outstanding clarity. The bass is powerful and contoured, the fundamental sound is natural and needs no boosting. Both width and depth are faithfully reproduced and everything is realistically placed in the soundscape. The treble is not overloaded, and cymbals, for example, ring long and clear. In spite of the high detail resolution and transparency, the musical flow is never lost. While Das Laufwerk No.1 sounds slightly warmer and more rounded, “Das Laufwerk” No.2 is characterized by an even more dynamic and unfussy reproduction.

cmk August 15, 2006 01:12

Nice speakers. I have the old Baltic and Strombolli which I love.

loki1957 October 12, 2005 13:08

System edited: Swapped the balanced Apogee digital interconnect for this pure silver stuff from NZ company, Slinkylinks, and it was a distinct marked improvement. The music took on a new speed, with the upper registers clearly delineated without any untoward digital glare/grain. The bass lines were also better defined and more taut. Next I tested it as a pre-power interconnect and immediately there was a similar marked improvement over the AZ Matrix reference cable, which I feel was too dark. The one notable characteristic about these cables is that they do not exhibit any form of harshness or glare or grain and they are particularly fast. Overall the music took on a new found clarity and sounded more lively. I also found that the loudness level seemed to be turned up a bit, ie I had to lower the volume to get similar SPLs as my previous cables. Highly recommended.

cmk June 26, 2005 14:13

System edited: Replaced the Meridian 566DAC with the Benchmark DAC1.

cmk April 30, 2005 00:51

System edited: Upgraded the speaker wires to Analysis Plus Oval 8s and I'm hearing more of the music, plus its louder than before. Highly recommended.

cmk February 26, 2005 05:02

System edited: This is the final step in my search for transparency. With the addition of the Diva M7 preamp, it completely removes all the barriers between the performer and me. It is so detailed and reveiling, its as good as having no preamp in the chain at all. Highly recommended.

cmk January 23, 2005 13:21

System edited: My Dynavector finally died on me after 7+ years of service. It was a good cart, and has finally gone to analogue heaven, to be replaced by the exceptional Denon DL 103R. I first heard this cart in a mid-priced system and already knew it was something special. For the price paid, there's really nothing in that range which competes with it. But in order for it to mate with my Schroeder model 2, the arm mass had to be raised to cope with this low compliance cart. I purchased a brass cart mount(+6g) from Frank and I was all set to go. I'm still running in the cart, but my first impression is already favourable. More in a while.

cmk November 22, 2004 02:08

System edited: Added 1" thick MDF under the CEC TL2 transport and the Diva Classic One preamp. This helped to stablise the musical images, giving them more specific focus. The effect after placing it under the preamp was more pronounced. Now when playing LPs, there is no blurring or hazy images. Even the bass notes are more tuneful. Morale of the story : don't place components one on top of another. Place your equipment on rigid supports.

cmk August 27, 2004 06:40

The thick curtain behind certainly helps. I've had it from my previous room and kept it as it gives the illusion of a sonically transparent background. There's no window behind it, just solid wall.

The Cabasse sound better than I could ever imagine. They fully disappear leaving only the music in its wake. Its that good. I've heard many top brands, and they all pale in comparison, but that's just IMO.

cmk July 10, 2004 14:23

Nice one. Your room sure has that right ambiance and mood for some good music listening session. By the way, does it help to put up a thick curtain at the rear wall? Is there a window behind the curtain at the rear?

Your new Cabasse + Thor should sound awesome. Do they sound as good as they look? Reckon they sure do.

ryder July 10, 2004 13:36

System edited: I searched for a spk which could give me that last bit of dynamics, while maintaining the tonal accuracy and soundstaging of mini-monitors. Encouraged by a friend, I tried out the Cabasse iO/Thor at home and was immediately impressed by its ability to disappear and sound musical while hitting dynamic peaks of orchestral music. I decided to take the plunge and get the bigger Baltic II and Thor II sat/sub combination. I'm glad I made this choice. It meets all my expectations and exceeds in the most critical area - it makes music. I rationalise that its point source design has allowed the sound to eminate from the spk as it was recorded from the mics. Its main forte is its ability to make music by not sounding like any other spk. No boxy colorations. It is quick, and yet full of tonal color. The micro gradations of each note is so clearly evident, it does not take a lot of intense listening to hear detail, and yet it is there, presented in an un-analytical manner. Trying to critique it and see if there was a weakness is a difficult task, as these spks just let the music through in such a way that I am just enveloped by music and carried away with its flow. Highly recommended!

cmk July 07, 2004 16:49

Its amazing how much detail can be retrieved from the headphones. I've recently added a pair of Audio Technica ATH-W100 cans, which are very transparent and dynamic. It sounds so much like the real thing through the Melos. Also changed the tubes in the Melos from EH 6922 gold pins, to RAM 6DJ8s. The improvement, though slight, cleaned up the sound, making it faster, less time smearing, and yet still have that tube warmth, rich vocals. The AT cans are really something.

Take at look at the Melos pic, there's a closeup of the AT and Beyer cans.

cmk January 27, 2004 10:39

System edited: My latest "thing" was to add a pair of headphones, actually meant to not disturb the wife at night, but I also discovered that I couldn't really listen without a headphone amp. Looked around for one, so when the opportunity to get a Melos SHA-1 arose, I jumped at it. The setup is wonderfully transparent and dynamic, especially with the Melos plugged into the powerplant. You'll be surprised how close the main spks sound compared to the headphones. The Diva preamp was also updated with modified circuitry to accept 6SN7 tube(Sylvannia), replacing the 12AT7(Mullard). This added even better tonality and transparency. I did try the Melos as a preamp, driving my power, but the sound was "wild" and punchy. As a headamp, its wonderful. I'm just one very happy audiophile.

cmk December 25, 2003 09:02

System edited: Changed my tonearm to the outstanding Schroeder model 2. See comments in the analogue forum.

cmk December 07, 2003 07:02

System edited: Been looking to improve the digital front end, especially in the area of dynamics, where digital lags behind analogue. The answer came in the form of the JPS digital AC powercord, which in my system, lowered the noise floor, and opened up the soundstage when used on the CEC TL2. Bass impact and definition improved, while the mids and highs were further refined. This cord significantly closes the gap between analogue and digital. The digital noise filters really work.

cmk October 09, 2003 08:38

Over the weekend, I finally got my lazy self to sand-fill those cable lifters under the spk cables. This had the effect of removing image smearing. I spent the rest of the weekend listening to CDs just to confirm what my findings and true enough, system resolution went up a notch, so that I thought I had a new CD collection!

Try it, you won't regret.

cmk August 18, 2003 00:56

System edited: Picked up the Living Voices' Mystic Mat and its an important upgrade to extract the fine details from the grooves. The effect is something like focusing a lens and getting a clearer picture. Most of the improvement is in the important midrange, where notes are fleshed out. Groove noise is lowered, giving an improved sense of instrument separation. Bass lines are better delineated, having more depth and impact. The start and stop of each note stands out, without smearing the next note/instrument. I would reckon this to be equivalent to a complete turntable upgrade, and highly recommend it to turntables which have less dampening. Even with highly damped acrylic platters like the 80mm Schue, the mids were more fleshed out. It is a meaningful, high tech upgrade to the normal felt mats of old.

cmk August 15, 2003 02:23

I have had two sets of Vandersteen speakers and have gotten the best imaging and widest soundstage with no toe in at all. This was in a room that was 18 ft. wide, and the speakers were 4 1/2 ft. from each side wall (which probably helped reduce any early reflections). You might try it, although your room appears a bit narrower.

zargon July 18, 2003 12:56

System edited: Changed the speaker wires from XLO VDO to Belden M8179 8' pair biwired and immediately noticed additional detail, cleaner highs/treble. I consider this the bargain spk wire with an honest tonality and soundstaging. Ended up toeing out the spks also to get improve the soundstage width. Previous arrangement was to have the 2CEs firing directly at the listening spot. The current arrangement with slightly toe out so that the inside edge of the spks are visible, providing a wider soundstage and more spead to the performers. The soundstage starts from the spk plane and extends to the outsides where the program material exists. The effect is less in-your-face, while still maintaining musical detail.

cmk July 18, 2003 06:45

4janx
Have you heard the VTPH1mc together with your preamp? I gather from reviews that they do go together. On the other hand, my pre and power are matched.

cmk June 22, 2003 09:21

Don't know if you've tried it before, but I can highly recommend the Herron VTSP-1A linestage to go with the fine Herron phono stage. None better for the dough, IMHO.

4yanx June 21, 2003 17:38

Hi Jsawhitlock
Its not Lovan stands, but some locally assembled stuff. For the TT, what's more important is the heavy inert base(granite/marble) which shd dampen about 90% of all vibrations from the floor. I use DH Squares under the TT feet which just great! If you notice I also have a set under the CEC transport, even though the transport's already sited on Unicones.

For siting the TT, I just arranged it in a logical setup, analogue on one side, digital on the other. The length of the cables, powercords being the other limiting factor.
Cheers.

cmk June 09, 2003 07:30