This sucks

I agree with you, "What the hell were your thinking?" It's not surprising that you're not happy now since you were never able to clearly articulate why and for what purpose you wanted to change your system. Changing things just to change will get you nowhere faster than the rest of us.

Herman is partially right, headphones do not soundstage like speakers, but they can have deep bass. In fact, headphones are capable of far better bass reproduction than speakers because they are not effected by room modes.

What were you thinking, indeed.

Seriously, as the other posters have asked, what were/are you trying to accomplish with your new system? It seems a fairly radical departure from the system you had.

You might try KR 300BXLS tubes to replace the Sophia's. In my experience, the KR's have more weight and bass than the Sophias.

By the way, I'll bet the Cary SLM-100's made a great combo with the VR4jr's.

Like phones? STAX STAX STAX

Pawlowski6132: I hope you were not EXPECTING headphones to deliver good bass and soundstaging like a quality loudspeaker can...no? Headphones can be great, especially with things like detail. But, they can't move room air for good bass and don't project a soundstage like speakers. The presentation of the two transducers is completely different.

Thanx everyone for your excellent insights and sage advice.

First of all, what I neglected to to explain initially was that I sold my system because it simply was too large for my room (13x11x7) which I was forced into AFTER I assembled the system. I just could not treat the room effectively. So, I took that situation as a cue to also experience the SET sound I coveted for so long. I listen to primarily acoustic music (Jazz, Classical, Blue Grass, etc.)

What became painfully apparent, as many of you pointed out, is that I should have adjusted my expectations accordingly. It's clear now that I won't have the wind knocked out of me or experience any three dimensional aural effects - for now anyway. And I was pretty dissapointed while that realization was setting in.

However, last night I settled in for a long night of listening (and a nice Shiraz). The third CD I popped in was the Stan Getz/Joao Gilberto recording of all those wonderful Jobim songs. Rather than the usual dejected sigh, my ears perked up! By the third track I had heard an ambience of the recording, texture in the voices and details in the drums that I don't recall EVER hearing. Very exciting. I scrambled through my CD collection...

As you might guess, my initial dismay distracted me from the resolution and timbre definition which was lacking in my original system.

So, in conclusion, I still miss my bass and am resolved to ultimtely finding a set of speakers. I'm intrigued by the Cain & Cain Abby's. does anyone have any experience with these and the Cary 300SEI - in a small room!! How 'bout a pair of monitors??