Equipment Rack Between Speakers...Good or Bad

roxy54

So, back to you, have you decided to try anything different after various input?

The ideal system will have balanced input mono amps right behind the speakers keeping the speaker wires as short as possible. Balanced ins and outs let you use long low level signal cables without ill effect. Now you can put the rack anywhere in the room you want unless you have a turntable in which case you want to get it as far away from the speakers as possible in a place where the bass is not amplified.

^^ This.

My system is in my living room, which is connected to the dining room. My equipment rack is actually in the dining room, completely out of the direct radiation of the speakers; my amps reside right by my speakers with a balanced connection driving them. I did a frequency sweep of the room and found that it favored a certain bass frequency, then went around the living and dining room with my sound pressure meter and found the area where the bass was at its least. That space is occupied by my equipment stand. Fortunately readily accessible from the living room and out of the way of any activities in the dining room.

@atmasphere Would you care to mention the brand of XLR interconnects you are using into your amps? How long are they?

I have also been thinking of hiding my rack behind a wall. Some discussion posts on PRO balanced connections and long runs have made me seriously consider getting the rack out of the way. I likely need 20 - 25 feet of XLR to make that work.

Would you care to mention the brand of XLR interconnects you are using into your amps? How long are they?

My equipment supports the balanced line standard so the actual brand of cable doesn't affect the sound. I built some 30 foot cables using Mogami Neglex cable. I've used a variety of cables but they all sound the same. However, take away that bit about 'supports the balanced line standard' and that all goes out the window! FWIW a lot of the balanced line equipment I've seen in high end audio doesn't support the standard (also known as AES48) so YMMV depending on the equipment you use.

@mikelavigne 

I see you have MSB Select ll DAC with two mono powerbases (two separate mono PSU). Just curious, are you running a Femto 33 clock, which is its flagship clock? Spectacular setup/system by the way. 

I also have MSB Select ll DAC with two mono powerbases with a Femto 33 clock. I also purchased the MSB Select transport with its separate PSU for CD & SACD playbacks. 

As for linestage preamp & monoblock power amps I'm using Naim Statement NAC S1 linestage preamp & Naim Statement NAP S1 monoblock amps driving a pair of Magico M6 (Magico's flagship speakers). What are your speakers? They are very tall. Are those passive subwoofers or powered ones? 

For analog front end source components I'm using the same Clearaudio Statement Goldfinger cartridge as the one you have. For a turntable I'm using a Clearaudio Statement v2 with a Statement TT-1 tonearm. And I'm using a D'Agostino Momentum phonostage pre. 

For cablings, I'm using Transparent Magnum Opus speaker cables, XLR analog interconnects & power cables. Using Transparent Opus digital interconnects. What are your cablings? 
For AC power product I have Shunyata Hydra Triton/Typhon combo.
However, my Naim Statement NAP S1 monoblock amps are plugged directly to the wall, which have been upgraded as well. 

Just wondering, those Studer tape recording machines that you acquired, are they also put into use?