@david_ten Included in the DI shootout are Spatial Audio M3 Triode Master and B&W 702 S2.
Will be driving it with PrimaLuna Dialogue HP Premium power amp (EL 34) and PrimaLuna Dialogue Premium preamp (wide assortment of 12au7 -- Mullard, TeleF, Brimar, Ciftie, stock).
Content is delivered via vinyl on a VPI Prime, w/2 3d arms outfitted with Dynavector XX2 and Ortofon Cadenza mono, via SoundSmith MCP2 phonopre; via digital through a Rocketfish bluetooth dongle by way of either Android or iPhone/iPad; via SACD through a SONY drive. Vinyl is typically (but not always) either original pressings and/or the newer 180g releases but in all cases I run them through an ultrasonic cleaner before use.
I’d have to double check but I believe that my interconnect cables are the ones <$100 purchased from Magnolia at Best Buy. Speaker cables are #10 Monoprice.
Room dimensions are 28x16x8, drywalled, carpeted, drop ceiling, no treatment; speakers facing into the long run, however this room is separated by a structural beam and so I have only half the space for listening. I’d like to try to post some images so that you can see the actual layout although it’s unclear how I’d do that.
Musical tendency leans toward vocal harmony groups and solos with decent (sometimes complex) instrumentation: Beach Boys, Beatles, Mamas & Papas, Turtles, Shirelles, Zombies, Ventures, Adele, Shadows, Dick Dale, Nat King Cole, Sinatra, ABC, B-52s, Go-Gos, Bow Wow Wow, Zeppelin, Elvis Costello, Gary Numan, Siouxie, Classics IV, et al.
I rarely play above 85db, most sessions are in the 68-78db range.
I read T. London’s review of the Pass Labs AX25 and Linear Audio ZOTL40 (when combined with the LTA pre) and he used a phrase that connected with me -- "palpability of individual players" during playback. He expressed in words the sensation that I would seek to recreate.