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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
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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newbee
4,768 posts
 
Quad ESL 63's, properly set up and powered with tubes, in a large room - Jazz at the Pawn Shop on a Linn 12 and a Grace F9E. Talk about dimensional with the "you are there" feeling! Been trying to duplicate that sound for years, got all the gear, but I never got the right room.
unsound
7,332 posts
 
Sean, what is a G&D Mobie?
rsuminsby's avatar
rsuminsby
152 posts
 
I recall my first exposure to the Ohm F as well (at tech Hi Fi in Boston)...incredibly powerful.

Koss ESP-9 electrostatic headphones.

Magnapan Tympani 1Ds, driven by Audio Research electronics....one of the first true high end systems I ever heard (many thanks to Lyric in White Plains for indulging a poor college student!)

The first time I heard Thiels (can't recall the model, unfortunately), I was blown away by the imaging and coherency. That launched a long obsession with soundstaging....although my speakers at the time, Dahlquist DQ-10s, were no slouch, they were no match for those Thiels. Today I own both 1.5s and 2.3s.
sean
6,231 posts
 
Unsound: A Mobie is G&D's model name for their cable burner, which is no longer produced. Sean
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