Ya know, when I first decided to have a good stereo I decided that I could spend 2000 dollars per year to aquire a good one. I had a Pioneer reciever w/ pre-amp output jacks and a 100 dollar CD player and JBL LX44 8" 3 way (Best Buy) speakers. The first piece was the SF Anthem Amp1 which I was able to hook up to the Pioneer and it made a big difference w/ especially voices. When I went shopping for a Pre-amp, I took home a CJ PV10. When I hooked that all up I was astounded. All of a sudden I had bass..! and thought..thats what a good pre-amp does. But I did'nt buy it because I wanted the remote control and headphone jack and...features which the SF had. Then came the ProAc SC1's and Goldmund CD player. I know that all of this is good equiptment but the sound has never glued me to the couch. Last time I was glued to the couch and late for work the next day was when I hooked up my Fisher tube reciever to my JBLs and my cheap CD playe with cheap interconnects. That sound was to die for! Soloists were spotlit, everything was on a soundstage and there was a complete vivid picture before my eyes. I wanted to listen to the same cd over and over again. I upgraded the Anthem amp to the SF Power II, upgraded the speakers to the big B&Ws and added a REL Stadium! Interconnects are Straightwire Rhapsody. I have hooked it up single endedly and balanced and balanced sounded like the noise floor was lowered. But with everything I've done I still dont have a stereo that makes me even want to wait for the tubes to warm up. 20 grand into this stereo. And I read Stereophile and have come to the conclusion that they aint helping me at all. I really can't tell from reading their reviews if a component is for me or not. In the last issue they reviewed the CJ ACTII. The review reads like every other amplifier that they review. I've heard the B&W's sound warmer at a dealer hooked up to a SF Power1 amp though I can't recall the other equipt in the chain.
Sonic Frontiers to Conrad Johnson .
I have a Sonic Frontiers Power 2 amp and Line 1 Pre-amp hooked to B&W 801 III. I want tube sound- warm, rich, liquid. I don't care about accuracy, I want the sound to be inviting like I remember from long ago. I don't want the stereo to drive me from the room. I changed the tubes in the Line 1 to Brimmars- it helped but did'nt go far enough for me. I also hook up the PS Power Plant 300 to the Pre-amp and while making it a little more dimensional seems to lean out the sound. The question is what brand of equiptment would you trade the SOnic Frontiers gear for to give me the warm inviting tube sound that I crave? I'm leaning towards a Conrad Johnson LS16II for a pre-amp. And perhaps replace the Power 2 later w/ a CJ amp. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
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- 29 posts total
- 29 posts total