larryi
Responses from larryi
| Tally up best digital player ever I've heard several systems with Pitracers in them. That is a funky transport. It makes horrible mechanical noises, has an unreadable "readout," spends more time in Japan (being repaired) than in the states. I would vote no on it. Then again, in bo... | |
| Has anyone heard the Magico Mini? Wow, there are quite a lot of differences in opinions expressed here. I heard them two years ago at CES/THE SHOW. Under those conditions, I thought they were among the best sounding speakers at both shows. What they had that I particularly liked w... | |
| Mid/high unit on the new SF Amati Anniversary The Anniversario and the Stradivari have identical tweeter/midrange units housed in the same truncated pyramid enclosure. The woofers on the Stradivari are larger, and the Strads also have a completely different baffle and enclosure. Both are beau... | |
| "Reference" Preamps I own both a Placette Active and a Levinson Ref. No. 32. As far as control flexibility, ease of use, and all other non-sonic considerations are concerned, no question that the Levinson is better. As far as sound, both have their strengths. The Pla... | |
| Remote volume control for preamp? The Placette remote volume control works very well. It offers something like 128 discrete steps and the manufacturer can set the level of the initial "on" step to match your needs. It does not have provisions for setting balance, but it does track... | |
| Best AMP for Avalon Eidolon, ARC, CAT, VAC..? I think it is very hard to make any specific recommendations, given different tastes, room setups, completely unpredictable interaction between components, etc. So, at best, we can recommend items for you to try in the hopes of achieving what you ... | |
| Which Jazz Albums are similar to Kind of Blue Looks like you got a lot of good recommendations. The following are some additional albums to look into that are all classics with great, and quite accessible music:Oliver Nelson: Blues and the Abstract TruthMal Waldron/Eric Dolphy: The QuestMingu... | |
| CD Player recommendations for a SET system The only way to determine which component is the limiting factor is to actually do some experimenting. If you can borrow some alternatives, you can at least determine if available power is the issue. You could also try different tubes to see if th... | |
| CD Player recommendations for a SET system Congested sound with large-scale orchestral music suggests that the issue is with the amp/speaker combination. How does it sound with large-scale choral works? I find choral works to be the most demanding for tube amps.You need to first determine ... | |
| Review: Audio Note Conquest Tube amp Nice review. Good to hear that you are enjoying this quite special amp.I am from the other side of the Audionote family. No, I don't mean the Japanese Audionote gear (Kondo). Rather, the Audionote line has some models which sound fuller (warmer) a... | |
| Phono preamp & Cartridge? for Sota Millennia/SME 5 I don't know how much stock anyone should put in reviews, but a recent issue of the British publication Hi Fi News & Record Review did a shoot out of about six cartridges in the price range you are shopping. I believe the review included a ZYX... | |
| Tube preamp suggestions. Linestages seem particularly sensitive to associated electronics so it is a bit tricky trying to guess how they will sound in your system. I have found that a lot of models sound completely different depending on the system. So, given this caveat,... | |
| do NAIM cdp sound good only with Naim components? Naim claims that the best performance is obtained by run DIN to DIN in an all-Naim system. That may be true, but it also happens to be a good marketing ploy. However, Naim players are very good in non-Naim systems as well. I use a CDS3/555PS combi... | |
| How's your music library? Around 1200 classical CDs, and 800 jazz, pop, rock. Around 900 classical lps and 900 jazz, pop, rock albums. | |
| Tranfiguration Orpheus description I have the O in my system right now. I borrowed it from a friend. It does not yet have 100 hours on it, so I will withold judgment on its ultimate performance. So far, in my system, I rather like its sound. It has a good, well integrated and tight... |