this room and system is the result of 10 years in High End audio. my
system has been stable for a couple of years (except for transport and
amplifier upgrades within the same brand). the room has been in the
planning stage for about 18 months and i actually moved in a little over
a month ago.
my audio philosphy is to have the system get out
of the way of the event. i like as pure and simple a signal path as
possible and, at this point, prefer passive to active gain stages. i
love all the formats and enjoy having lot's of music.....vinyl is my
favorite but i listen to at least 60% digital. the new room really
reveals the benefits of SACD over redbook.
the system and room
truely allow the event to be recreated before me. i love the way the
speakers disappear and i am transported to another place/time.
i have choosen my cables, sources, amps, speakers to have as little of their own sound as possible.
recently, i upgraded my digtial transport from the modified Philips
SACD 1000 to the new emmlabs CDSD.....this was a significant step upward
in performance.
i have written an article in Positive Feedback regarding my room building experience.....here is a link;
new version of these cables, a big step over the amazing TRSC model i have used for 10 years. fantastic performance.
WADAX SA Reference DAC
Wadax Reference Dac----state of the art dac with 2 separate power supplies. the best dac i have heard by a good margin. below is a link to a thread about my Wadax experience.
WADAX SA Reference Server with Akasa optical interface
ultimate state of the art music server using Roon. includes the Akasa optical interface.
CS Port LFT1 turntable w/arm
air bearing platter and air bearing linear tracking arm; string drive with zero feedback dc motor, low pressure, low flow air system with zero noise air box.
world class musical flow, nuance and delicacy, combined with authority and ease. serves the music completely.
Esoteric T1 Turntable
magnetic drive/rim drive idler turntable with torque adjustment.
https://www.esoteric.jp/en/product/t1/top
Esoteric G1X Master Clock
Master Clock Generator for speed improvement for the T1 turntable.
https://www.esoteric.jp/en/product/g1x/top
Wave Kinetics NVS
direct drive turntable
Durand ---Two Tosca tonearms.
gimbal bearing design. the finest tonearm i have heard.
one Tosca on the Esoteric T1 turntable
one Tosca on the Wave Kinetics NVS turntable
Primary Control 12" FCL tone arm
Field Coil Loaded uni-pivot tone arm. with power supply.
amazing natural and very high resolution tone arm. link below.
Experience Music/Intact Audio phono corrector + silver wound MC Trio SUT combo for three different tonearms.
bespoke tubed phono preamplifier. silver wound, with custom dual power supplies.
https://myemia.com/LR.html
LFD -3- Phono Cables DIN to RCA
3 sets of very high performance phono cables. amazing performance. built by Dr. Richard Bews in the UK.
one cable uses a DIN to RCA short Dongle + an RCA to RCA interconnect. the Dongle improves the performance of the DIN connection. details at the link below.
two Etsuro Golds, ---a pair of Reference MC Phono Cartridges.
duraluminim (A7075) body, 24 carat 'Kinpaku' Gold Leaf finish, diamond cantiliver. .3mv output, 4 ohms. these are both special versions of the Etsuro Gold.
one is mounted on the CS Port linear tracker.
one is mounted on the Primary Control FCL arm.
finest cartridge i have heard by a significant margin. WOW!
Audio Technica MC-2022 60th Anniversary cartridge
uses the unified stylus cantilever design. which results in extreme lack of distortion and linearity. maybe the best i've heard at musical truth.
mounted on the Durand Tosca tonearm on the NVS tt.
https://www.audio-technica.com/en-us/at-mc2022
Koetsu Azule Platinum Stone Body, boron cantilever
.3 Mv output moving coil cartridge. mounted on the Durand Telos 12" wood arm wand tone arm and NVS turntable.
Miyajima Labs --2--Infinity mono cartridge's.
one Infinity cartridge has 0.7mil stylus for modern narrow groove mono pressings.
one Infinity cartridge has 1.0 mil stylus for early wide groove mono pressings.
https://www.miyajima-lab.com/e-mono.html
DS Audio Ion 001 Vinyl Ionizer
generates positive and negative ions to remove static charge from vinyl records. i use this with my NVS turntable.
https://ds-audio-w.biz/products/181/
CS Port Static Eliminator IME1 (two of them)
An unprecedented accessory focusing on cartridge friction. It suppresses the effects of static electricity and makes records clearer.
one is on the CS Port tt, one on the Esoteric T1 tt.
active isolation under 5 separate components: (1) the NVS turntable, (2) the MSB dac, (3) the darTZeel preamp, (4 + 5) both darTZeel mono block amplifiers. custom modifications by Taiko Audio add a linear power supply plus panzerholtz top layer + Daiza platform to provide full frequency resonance attenuation to each platform.
Taiko Audio Daiza isolation platform--22 used in the system
Panzerholtz Platform with spiral cutouts reducing mid and high frequency resonance while retaining life and energy and not changing tonality.
22 Daiza platforms in the system of various sizes under every piece of the signal path.
Adona Zero GTX rack---3 of them--each 4 shelf.
all three with 27" x 21" turntable top.
solid rack for best direct floor connection.
Evolution Acoustics 'system' power cables
a new version of the TRPC model i used on my darTZeel 468 mono blocks for the last 10 years. a big step up.
Sablon Audio King power cord
used on the Wadax Reference Server.
https://www.sablonaudio.com/power
Absolute Fidelity power interfaces
power cords specifically designed for either motors (tt and tape decks), amplifiers, and components. 11 in the system.
Tripoint Audio Troy Signature
Grounding box for chassis grounding the darTZeel 458 mono block amplifiers + grounding the passive main towers of the Evolution Acoustics MM7 speaker system.
Tripoint Audio Elite
Tripoint Elite grounding box. this does chassis grounding for my sources. it uses a a pair of Tripoint Thor SE Master Reference ground cables for my dart preamp and the MSB Select II dac. there are also 4 Signature Silver ground cables to the two arm boards of the NVS tt, the power supply of the NVS tt, and the SGM server.
Equi=tech 10WQ
10kva balanced Isoltion transformer and distribution panel.
Furutech GTX-D NCF Rhodium duplex outlets
10 in the system. used with 10 Furutech covers and frames. uses NCF (nano crystal formula) material to reduce noise by emitting negative ions.
Wave Kinetics A10 U8 decoupling footers
8 sets-of-4 in the system for individual tuning of each piece of gear.
Auralex T-Fusor diffusers
i use 20 of these. 6 each on the front side walls, and 4 each front ceiling and rear ceiling.
Klaudio Record Cleaning System
automatic record cleaner
Acoustic Revive RL-30 mKIII CD-LP demagnatizer
for demaging any disc.
Furutech DF-2 LP disc flattner
will remove warps from Lps
Audiodharma Cable Cooker, Anniversary Ed.
will cook any cables
Winds ALM-01 Stylus Force Gauge
easy accurate, repeatable, measurments.
i-Tower by Koncept LED floor lamp
(3) are used. best audio light ever. 2 'warm', 1 'cool'.
Quietrock THX 545 drywall
specialized drywall with a 1/4" metal layer. used in my front sidewalls to establish proper room boundaries.
Continues to sound like an amazing system. I live in calgary where meitner is based and we have given thought to trying to get him out to one of our small audio club events, but don't know whether he would be interested. What did you do with the linn and the marantz?
i love your system. Although i've never gone though analog path. This is by far one of the most high-end system i've ever seen. i bet you must get as close as 80%-90% to live music. very nice. One more thing, may I ask why did you give up wilson/levinson path. Is this setup sound better than your old setup?. I also post my system under goldmund29/maxx and i'd love to hear your comment on my system also thanks!!
Mike I checked the manufacter list here the link for meitner is not active. What is their website. How much is their DAC? ps. My partner has the KHARMA GRAND CERAMIQUES If your ever in Baltimore let us know.
let me check.....the Rockport appears to feeling just fine and happy just where it is.... but it sends it's greetings.
Tim, you'll love the Meitner. i may end up with a 2-channel Meitner in my 2-channel room and the DAC6 in the HT room......i want to hear DSOTM in SACD multi-channel thru the DAC6.
If your looking for a place to let the Rockport 'rest' I am sure I could help you out ;) in the mean time I am looking forward to taking delivery of my meitner as well, though I am getting the 2 channel unit. Happy listening!
System edited: my update is replacement of my 24-bit Linn CD-12 and my Marantz SA-1 with the new Meitner emmlabs DAC6 and modified Philips SACD 1000. the Meitner combo is very, very close to the Linn on redbook cd and way better than anything i have heard on sacd. i am now listening to much more digital than i was.
Brulee, it is good to have company in my affliction.
i think being obsessive is simply finding all the enjoyment one can find from something.....to keep going down a path as long as it leads to continued discovery.....whether that discovery is musical or community....and hopefully both.
and Siriusly, in my case becoming an audio obsessive actually improved my life balance......you know, the kids leave.....all of a sudden you have time.....and all your friends are work connected....you need your own hobby or thing that you can get caught up in.....you have a love of music.....it either fits or it doesn't......i don't get involved with anything in this hobby that isn't satisfying or fun.....it is a stress reliever and pleasure creator.
in my case my job hours and commitment eliminate many other hobbies that might have been considerations. your spouse basically knows where you are all the time and likes it enough to support it.....i'm happy, she's happy....who needs/wants a cure?
I admire your your balanced life. Yes, you are obsessive. I gotta felling we have a lot in common. I understand we both may need help. Help in finding an even more balanced life. Is being obsessive some sort of disease? if it is,please give me the cure. I am very Sirius.
thanks Brulee, you are correct.....i don't get out much.....where would i go?
it can become a problem when all you want to do is play records......and more records.....and talk about audio.....and listen to new gear.....and meet with my audio friends....
what? you think i'm obsessive.....you only THINK i'm obsessive?
there must be a benefit to a balanced life......but at the moment i can't think of one......maybe when they say a balanced life they mean using balanced cables......i can do that.
Hi Mikelavigne, I have always enjoyed your posts because of your knowledge and mild manner. After seeing your system I can see why you have such great knowledge. You know the sound of music. I imagine you don't leave your listening room much. Congratulations on one of the better systems I have seen on Audiogon. Very thoughtful of you to give Jonathan some of the credit. I am sure you will agree, he can be very helpful. Wonderful system, wish I lived near by. But maybe it best I don't hear a system like yours. I might not be able to go back and listen to mine.
Rwd, i have since added the vdH Colibri XWG Mytlewood to my cartridge stable.
the Colibri XCP is the clear winner so far.....it is the most explosive and detailed cartridge i have heard.....and still totally natural. the XWG Mytlewood is also very good but trades the ultimate explosiveness for slightly more ease and smoothness. the Insider Gold and Koetsu RSP II are still excellent cartridges but don't do it for me like the Colibri's. neither of the Colibri's are fully broken in yet and i am suppose to send them back for a tune-up after 300 hours (i have not yet decieded if i will let either one out of my sight).
the Colibri's are somewhat fragile and may not work in every system.....they have a very short canteliver and need a good amount of vta flexibility to get right.....but what they do has become essential to my mental health.
hi Robert, you are absolutely right. the one limitation i have is size of my room. my room has excellent dimentional ratios and the height of the room (11"), stepped ceiling and bay window really help. the 10 1/2 foot tall bookcases behind my listening position also help. the room is tweaked and has a great "feel".....music just sounds right with the correct degree of natural balance.
one note; the Kharma Exquisite 1D speakers do make the room 'look' more narrow than it actually is. the Exquisites are 16 inches wide and 53 inches tall (and 565 pounds heavy) but appear to be smaller so they make the room 'look' smaller. when you are in the room you get a feel for the real scale of the speakers.
but at the end of the day there are limitations to the soundstage and the feeling of openness and air due to the 12 foot width......so i am in negotiations with my very supportive wife to either build a separate, dedicated larger room, or find a home with a larger suitable room......stay tuned for the result.
my system in total is still the most satisfying music reproduction system i have yet heard but there IS room for improvement.
The gear is great. Have you thought about a better bigger room. I think it would allow the system to breath. That much expensive gear really deserves a larger room. Those speakers would throw a huge walk into soundstage if they were spread apart a good bit more than your room will allow. I have heard many systems that the room hindered there true perfomance.
Arooj, i think you give me way too much credit. i certainly intend to be clear and humble.....but i'm sure not all would consider me so. in addition, even though i have expensive gear, that doesn't mean i posses any particular listening skills. so my opinions hopefully will be considered as just personal opinions based on personal experiences and nothing unique or particularly profound. in any case, i appreciate your kind words.....and.....let the chips fall where they may....no one made me post this system.
i totally agree on the Glacial moves.....the wife will see to that for sure. .^)
it would be interesting to compare vinyl on the Sirius III to mastertapes.....i would assume the mastertapes would sound better.....but tape deteriorization could tilt the table in favor of the vinyl. also, how would a person actually come to own a reasonable collection of quality master tapes? enough to justify that direction.
Mike, this is an AMAZING system. You're probably one of only a handful of people in the world who can explain your system philosophy in a manner everyone can understand without a hint of pretension. I hope to drop by sometime next year (maybe around the S'phile show in Frisco).
It will be very interesting to see the future evolution of your gear; I'd expect rather glacial moves from now on.
You're now in the enviable position of only having to worry about software - can you imagine what original mastertapes (like, maybe on the Nagra system) would sound like?
Judit, there is a slight difference in sound with and without my tall chair.....but not so much 'good and bad' just slightly different....when it comes to extended, singular, listening.....comfort is definitely king!
Slipknot, thanks for your comment.....i think i got lucky on a few choices that openned my eyes to some concepts i had been previously ignoring.....all of a sudden it all made sense.
Fatparrot, basically it sounds un#@%*$#&believeable! if i had to sell my soul for this.....well.....hell probably ain't that bad anyway.
Mike- Beautiful synergy of aesthetics and setup. You should be very proud of your efforts! I always enjoy your thoughtful insights when replying to posts as well.
Beyond beautiful. I notice that your listening chair has a head support. I have often wondered whether a listening chair with an absorbent headpiece affects what you hear.
Twl, thanks. as system performance improves the advantage of vinyl performance over (any) digital increases. there is simply lots of information in those grooves waiting to be enjoyed.
Sc53, the laptop is for the web.....mostly personal but some business. i don't catalog my recordings on the laptop but do keep them fairly well organized.
i am not particularly computer literate so i had my son set up a wireless LAN network using broadband....my wife and i can walk around the house useing our laptops.
Hi Mike, I had viewed your system a couple of weeks ago on that other website where you posted a bunch of photos. The room and the system and the bookshelves just look fantastic together! What do you use the laptop computer for? I was thinking maybe you had all your recordings catalogued. I love the simplicity of the room and your whole philosophy. Great job!
