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Which components knocked you out on first listen?

I've been listening to stereos since 1973 and I am still waiting to be truly knocked out by the sound of a component. I have sat in showrooms across the country and have been pleased by what I have heard but never truly blown away.
The closest I came was when I listened to a Meitner str-55 amp and VTL preamp a few years ago, sourced by a Linn Ikemi and Revel loudspeakers. However, I also have been moved by a
Apple computer cd drive, circa 1994 through a Creek 4040 and RA Lab speakers, estimated cost about $1,200; maybe more so than the Linn,Revel 10K system. How about you?
cody
route9's avatar
route9
55 posts
 
when i first heard magnapan speakers back in the early 70's.the clearest most open sound i have ever heard.it took over 25 yrs.,but i finally got a pair of 1.6's.
r_burke
212 posts
 
About 7 years ago when I purchased my Vandersteen 2C's my wife went with me for the final look/buy. She asked to see/hear something significantly better.

The owner took us into his high end room and let us listen to Apogee Grands powered by 4 giant (not sure what they were) tube amps.

I have lusted after the Apogees ever since.
muralman1
1,527 posts
 
R - Where was that? - an Apogee Scintilla owner.
r_burke
212 posts
 
Muralman - Elite Hi-Fi in cupertino, CA. Sadly no longer in business
sean
6,231 posts
 
In no specific order:

Ohm F speakers: My first taste of TRUE "dimensionality" and "surround sound".

AGI 511A preamp: SO much cleaner, clearer, faster than any preamp i had ever heard. The phono stage was miles beyond comparison to anything else.

Forte' / Threshold amps: SS with the sweetness, air and delicacy of tubes.

Cary tube amps: There's a reason that people talk about "Cary Magic". The warmth, depth and spaciousness of these products speak for themselves. Maybe not all that accurate, but highly musical and enjoyable.

Atma-Sphere OTL amps: My first taste of tubes that could be as fast and effortless as good SS amps.

G&D Mobie: I could not believe that such a device could change how cables sound. The results of using this device forever changed any notions that i had about cables up until that point of time.

Goertz flat speaker cables: The most natural presentation from any cable that i've ever heard. Introducing these into a system was a revelation to me in terms of musicality, harmonic structure, body, warmth, flow and "liquidity". No sense of "hi-fi" at all i.e. the opposite of Nordost's sonically etched / "highly detailed" presentation. Sean
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