System Pics 2016

My PMC's are having a short rest whilst i have some Larsen speakers on loan. Melco and Devialet continue to deliver the music (via some embarrassingly cheap speaker cable) and i seem to keep buying lots of music so all must be well 

PS - Not totally lacking Naim kit. 2 Naim power cables and 8 Fraim chips still left...

james n posted:

My PMC's are having a short rest whilst i have some Larsen speakers on loan. Melco and Devialet continue to deliver the music (via some embarrassingly cheap speaker cable) and i seem to keep buying lots of music so all must be well 

 

PS - Not totally lacking Naim kit. 2 Naim power cables and 8 Fraim chips still left...

Looks like a perfect speaker for cocktail parties, letting you find the sweet spot in a standing position.

Haim Ronen posted:

Winter antiquities:

Luxman tuner and LP-12 from 1978, Nait 3, 3.5 player, 2 Flatcaps, Proac Response 1.5 from 1999, Quadraspire arrived in 2004. Things change rather slowly around here, or in other words, we are trying to age gracefully.

 

I like that a lot. Have a Nait 3 in the workshop with Quad FM3 and Epos 14s and it sounds great. The 'rounded box' Naim kit is the hidden gem of HiFi. Buy now before they reach cult status (which they will IMO).

What arm and cart are in the LP12?

Mr Tibbs

Mr.Tibbs posted:

Haim Ronen posted:

Winter antiquities:

 

Luxman tuner and LP-12 from 1978, Nait 3, 3.5 player, 2 Flatcaps, Proac Response 1.5 from 1999, Quadraspire arrived in 2004. Things change rather slowly around here, or in other words, we are trying to age gracefully.

 

I like that a lot. Have a Nait 3 in the workshop with Quad FM3 and Epos 14s and it sounds great. The 'rounded box' Naim kit is the hidden gem of HiFi. Buy now before they reach cult status (which they will IMO).

What arm and cart are in the LP12?

Mr Tibbs

 

It is an original Grace 707 arm and a Denon 103D MC working through a small Denon transformer:

Regards,

Haim

Very nice Haim and an excellent source for the Nait 3. I still have my original 707, now boxed up since I stumbled across an RB1000 at a good price some years ago. I'll never sell the 707 (or my last Supex 900 that partnered it) though.

Mr Tibbs

Mr.Tibbs posted:

Very nice Haim and an excellent source for the Nait 3. I still have my original 707, now boxed up since I stumbled across an RB1000 at a good price some years ago. I'll never sell the 707 (or my last Supex 900 that partnered it) though.

Mr Tibbs

That's a proper looking LP12 Mr Tibbs. How are the Gales ?

The Gales are as wondrous as ever, thanks James. Very dull and wet Sunday morning here midst the Drumlins so a good excuse to crank 'em up

Mr Tibbs

An earlier pic by Dave***T looked similar to my set up, so thought I would try to be clever and mirror his shot...

Ha, snap! Nice and stylish.

Hungryhalibut posted:

Nice and simple. I like that. 

Hungryhalibut posted:

HungryHalibut, You have a nice simple system.

However, am I correct in thinking that your NAP 250 is on the bottom shelf of your rack? Also, have you experimented as to whether the XPS or the 250 sounds best there?

I'm asking as the empty space on my rack will be filled with a second hand 555PS which has been upgraded to DR spec. later this week.

The XPS needs to be where it is in order to prevent the Burndy resting on the floor. The 250 needs to be where it is because the speaker cables are only 3m long. 

Hungryhalibut posted:

The XPS needs to be where it is in order to prevent the Burndy resting on the floor. The 250 needs to be where it is because the speaker cables are only 3m long. 

Mr.Tibbs posted:

The Gales are as wondrous as ever, thanks James. Very dull and wet Sunday morning here midst the Drumlins so a good excuse to crank 'em up

Mr Tibbs

I've never heard the Gales, but when I was a child my dad had a nécessaire with a refillable small cologne bottle, with a silvery fascia on the bottom, that fascinated me. The Gales remind me of that bottle... and they too fascinate me. Hope it doesn't sound blasphemous.

Lanesra,

I like the sx5i how close are they to the rear wall? I am contemplating a pair to replace my Allaes and was wondering about the bass response.

Massimo Bertola posted:

I am one who tries and then admits failure. I've tried (alternatives) and all I could get was boredom. So, since I cannot live without a (Naim) system, here's mine (it's deja vu I know).

CDX2 (my third one)

HiLine (lost count)

NAC282 (a first!)

NAP200DR (my third 200, my first DR)

N-Sats/N-Stands (my fifth pair, third in cherry)

Only derogation from canon, TelluriumQ black speaker cables instead of NAC A5 (or the excellent Vertere Pulse X mini I last had). The only apparently successful experiment.

P.S. Guizu SRW-2A 

Hi Max

just seen this, the N-sats look really good in your room...a matching N-sub would be the finishing touch..

enjoy

BR

Anthony

In the 70's i worked for Norman H Field hifi in Birmingham, some of you may remember them. I sold numerous pairs of Gale Gs401, never could afford a pair at the time but remember them as magnificent. Very often with an lp12, supex grace or hadcock, and quad 44 405. 

Mr Tibbs ..great choice of speakers, are they original?

Bob F

Iron Cobra posted:

Lanesra,

I like the sx5i how close are they to the rear wall? I am contemplating a pair to replace my Allaes and was wondering about the bass response.

They're great speakers and work very well powered by my 250. They sound musical with tight, deep and fast bass. Drums sound great through them.

Mine are 20cm from the wall and despite the ports, they're comfortable that close. I think it helps that they have ISO-bardic bass loading and the bass port is right at the top of the bass enclosure, well away from the downwards firing drivers.

Neat recommend a distance from the wall of 20 to 30cm.

My living room is only about 3.7m x 3.7m, so I needed to have speakers that are comfortable fairly close to the wall.

ameden posted:

Hi Max

a matching N-sub would be the finishing touch..

Anthony

Thanks

Max

Hi Frank,

the TQ blacks seem to sit somehow at the opposite side, in an equally excellent sort of way; the Vertere (Pulse X mini) are structured, intense, rich, retain PR&T but add (in comparison to the NAC A5) greater participation from the lowest octaves; they sound 'human' and expressive. If I may dare a silly comparison to wine, they are a very good Californian Red.

The TQ blacks, on the other hand, are all transparency and luminosity, tend to take some of the inherent character of electronics away in favour of an open window on events; have a really smooth, extended top end and occasional tight bass, deep enough. Are more 'elegant' and narrative. They are more like a great Champagne.

(I am not very good at wine comparisons, though; it was just to have fun. The Verteres would probably suit my n-Sats better in terms of range completion, but the TQblacks are perhaps more akin to my character, that appreciates being left enjoying things at some distance.)

MX

Massimo Bertola posted:

Mr.Tibbs posted:

The Gales are as wondrous as ever, thanks James. Very dull and wet Sunday morning here midst the Drumlins so a good excuse to crank 'em up

Mr Tibbs

I've never heard the Gales, but when I was a child my dad had a nécessaire with a refillable small cologne bottle, with a silvery fascia on the bottom, that fascinated me. The Gales remind me of that bottle... and they too fascinate me. Hope it doesn't sound blasphemous.

They were available in two versions, the other being the usual veneered box for those who preferred the traditional look.  I'm still happy I went for the cologne bottle look

Mr Tibbs

I remember seeing a picture in Popular (Practical ?) hi-fi on my teachers desk when i was about 8. I think it was a readers system. I can never remember the preamp but the Linn, Radford STA amp and Chromed Gale's (on their stands) stuck in my head so seeing the marvellous job that Mr Tibbs made on his restored 401's is always a pleasure. 

Bf56 posted:

In the 70's i worked for Norman H Field hifi in Birmingham, some of you may remember them. I sold numerous pairs of Gale Gs401, never could afford a pair at the time but remember them as magnificent. Very often with an lp12, supex grace or hadcock, and quad 44 405. 

Mr Tibbs ..great choice of speakers, are they original?

Bob F

Great to hear from someone who remembers them well. I've owned them from new in 1978 and (when finances recovered) did end up getting the obligatory LP12/Grace/Supex the following year. Amps were Quad 34/405 but unfortunately the Mk1 405 was never happy driving the power hungry Gales, so I fished around and managed to swap them for a Meridian 101 preamp and TVA1 valve power amp. Now things were sounding very good indeed. In 1987 I traded those amps in against a new 42.5/110 combo and that was quite shockingly better again, though the big TVA1 needed a valve set by then. After a spell in the wilderness with Epos 14s I brought the Gales out of retirement a few years ago and restored them with a new set of outer 'foams' for the drivers and a complete rebuild of the crossovers. The magic returned and the sound is nothing less than magnificent indeed

Thanks James for the very kind comments.

Mr Tibbs

One of my favourite audio memories was some 37 years ago, hearing for the first time, a friend of my fathers system. It consisted of an LP12/SyrinxPU2/SupexSD900/QuantumPre/Power combo into Gale401 speakers, playing Dark side of the moon.