Show us your equipment / kit !

[WuNgUn]

 

 

 

[tranz]

Thanks, Chris.

In all honesty, I have not found a TV with a better display than the Kuro (too bad they are no longer available).

 

Next TV will have to maybe be an OLED some day!

 

+1 Still waiting for the one to kick the Kuro off the throne after all these years!

[tboooe]

Just upgraded my speakers to Sonus Faber Evolutions.

 

 

[HIFI]

 

 

 

 

[jcfergus]

I use an iMac (2010) as the music server, running Mac OS X 10.9 with iTunes 11 and BitPerfect 2. Most of my CDs are now ripped in the ALAC format and I have some high def downloads in 24/96. The optical output of the iMac drives a M-Audio CO2 Converter via TOSLink optical. The CO2 is kind of nice as all inputs and outputs work simultaneously, allowing it to be used as both a splitter and format converter. The optical output of the CO2 drives an AudioEngine D2 transmitter and the CO2 coax output drives the JBL LSR-4326 monitors in the office. I'm using an USB port to drive a DACMagic Plus which is currently being used only as a headphone amp.

 

The D2 receiver is in the living room with the analog output driving a Musical Fidelity A3.2CR preamp. The Arcam CD92 CD player analog output is connected to the preamp rather than using the digital output, as I like to be able to play the few HDCD discs I have decoded for HDCD. The Music Hall MMF-5/Goldring turntable goes to the phono input on the preamp. The preamp drives a Behringer DEQ2496 which is used to tame room acoustic issues. This drives the Adcom GFA-555II which are connected to Paradigm Studio 100 v.3 speakers.

 

I had been using the DACMagic as the DAC for the D2 receiver, connected via TOSLink optical cable but I'm trying to simplify the chain, so am trying the AudioEngine DAC to see if I can tell the difference. So far, the verdict is still out.

 

I also drive three different AirPort Express units which are connected to other audio systems in the house. These include a hobby room with vintage gear, home theater system which also drives the patio and the garage. These are connected via Ethernet or WiFi, depending on the location.

 

The one anomaly with this system is that BitPerfect won't seem to allow Airplay to function concurrently with a 24/96 output. If I drop BP out of the stream, all the wireless receivers work well and I get 16/44.1 everywhere, but if I enable BP, AirPlay is disabled. While this is probably OK from a serious listening perspective, the UI seems to allow it to be configured to all work simultaneously.

 

In the office is the source ...

 

And in the living room is the output.

 

 

FWIW, I did have some wireless connection problems with the AudioEngine D2. By moving the WiFi router/access point across the room (office) from the D2, these problems seem to have gone away. Right now, things are fairly stable.

[StephenJK]

 

A bit of an old fashioned system, two channel stereo. Most of the equipment is new except for the speakers, those we've had since about 1982.

 

The goal has always been "straight-wire with gain". If it sounds bad, it's because it's a poor recording.

[Allan F]

Thumbnails

 

I guess I'm a bit of a dinosaur with the old TV, but it still works. The sound system is more important to me.

[wgb113]

I use an iMac (2010) as the music server, running Mac OS X 10.9 with iTunes 11 and BitPerfect 2. Most of my CDs are now ripped in the ALAC format and I have some high def downloads in 24/96. The optical output of the iMac drives a M-Audio CO2 Converter via TOSLink optical. The CO2 is kind of nice as all inputs and outputs work simultaneously, allowing it to be used as both a splitter and format converter. The optical output of the CO2 drives an AudioEngine D2 transmitter and the CO2 coax output drives the JBL LSR-4326 monitors in the office. I'm using an USB port to drive a DACMagic Plus which is currently being used only as a headphone amp.

 

The D2 receiver is in the living room with the analog output driving a Musical Fidelity A3.2CR preamp. The Arcam CD92 CD player analog output is connected to the preamp rather than using the digital output, as I like to be able to play the few HDCD discs I have decoded for HDCD. The Music Hall MMF-5/Goldring turntable goes to the phono input on the preamp. The preamp drives a Behringer DEQ2496 which is used to tame room acoustic issues. This drives the Adcom GFA-555II which are connected to Paradigm Studio 100 v.3 speakers.

 

I had been using the DACMagic as the DAC for the D2 receiver, connected via TOSLink optical cable but I'm trying to simplify the chain, so am trying the AudioEngine DAC to see if I can tell the difference. So far, the verdict is still out.

 

I also drive three different AirPort Express units which are connected to other audio systems in the house. These include a hobby room with vintage gear, home theater system which also drives the patio and the garage. These are connected via Ethernet or WiFi, depending on the location.

 

The one anomaly with this system is that BitPerfect won't seem to allow Airplay to function concurrently with a 24/96 output. If I drop BP out of the stream, all the wireless receivers work well and I get 16/44.1 everywhere, but if I enable BP, AirPlay is disabled. While this is probably OK from a serious listening perspective, the UI seems to allow it to be configured to all work simultaneously.

 

In the office is the source ...

[ATTACH=CONFIG]11490[/ATTACH]

 

And in the living room is the output.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]11491[/ATTACH]

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]11492[/ATTACH]

 

FWIW, I did have some wireless connection problems with the AudioEngine D2. By moving the WiFi router/access point across the room (office) from the D2, these problems seem to have gone away. Right now, things are fairly stable.

 

Nice setups! How do you like the JBLs? How is their room correction compared to the Behringer?

 

Bill

[BANSwee]

here is my modest set-up..

 

[jcfergus]

Nice setups! How do you like the JBLs? How is their room correction compared to the Behringer?

 

Bill

 

I LOVE the JBLs. If my wife would tolerate them in the living room, I'd probably try replacing the Paradigms with the larger JBL monitors, although I don't know if speakers designed for near-field use work well in larger rooms. The JBLs just sound so natural to me. This is not to say I'm not happy with the Paradigms. There is enough similarity in the sound of the music through both systems as to not create aural conflict for me.

 

The primary reason for the DEQ2496 is to compensate for a 10db hump from about 100-300Hz in my living room. Without compensation, it makes most music sound extremely boomy, almost like having BIC-Venturi speakers.

 

I'm fairly constrained to a specific layout, so there is no real option to tune the room acoustics by speaker and seating location. I don't really like the idea of so many D-A and A-D conversions, but I haven't come up with any practical solution that blends both analog and digital inputs at the listening end. I've come up with a couple of solutions, but they're pretty clunky from a usability standpoint. I'm not really seeking a lab in the living room. I want to be able to listen to and enjoy the music without a lot of fiddling around, and my wife needs to be able to use it, too.

 

Jim

[Andrew Allen Ballew]

My humble desktop/bedroom second audio system

PC

CoolerMaster case

Custom PC with AMD FX 8320

Corsair H100i water cooling

Asus MB

8 GB Kingston Ram

Radeon R9 270X video card

LG blu ray

4 TB internal storage

6 TB WD NAS

Lenovo 23" monitor

Windows 7 with JRMC19

Audio

iFi iDSD nano DAC

iFi iUSB clean power

iFi Gemini USB cable

iFi iPurifier

Audioquest Cinnamon USB cable with tape mod on 5v pin

Grado RS1i headphones

Oh, and 1.7 Terrabytes (and growing) of at least 24/88.2 files! (With a few redbook files thrown in

[mourip]

Cool. Dynaco mark 3's. Had some a couple of decades ago. Loved'em...

 

 

 

[WuNgUn]

thanx...yup, heavily modded too.

[gfroman]

Updated pic showing new Ayre - MXR mono amps and Mojo Audio modded Mac-Mini with upgraded Joule Power Supply and Atomic Labs platform.

 

[Harpy]

Rebuilt Dynaco MkIII's. STS board replaces quad cap and a dual bias added, otherwise a stock circuit. Cloth transformer leads covered with Teflon shrink tubing.

 

 

[WuNgUn]

Rebuilt Dynaco MkIII's. STS board replaces quad cap and a dual bias added, otherwise a stock circuit. Cloth transformer leads covered with Teflon shrink tubing.

 

 

 

Looks good Harpy! I thought about the STS cap board, but went a different route...a pair of JJ's in series wired into a bigger can...

 

Gold Lion KT88's?

Obligatto caps?

 

If you want to take those to the next level, ya gotta build some Posedion boards!

[Harpy]

Thanks, yes the tubes are Gold Lion KT88's the caps are Russian military K40y-9 paper in oil. I want to try the big Russian Teflon caps, but haven't found a good place to mount them as the don't fit the board.

 

 

I would love to try the Posedion boards. I don't have a good grasp of even basic circuits and used the 1959 manual to rebuild these. I would like to bypass the dual biasing of the Posedion board and use the Dynakit. I'll have to take another gander at the Posedion schematics. Running SS amps now, so maybe it would be a good time to do "phase 2".

[shredocaster]

Old system is B&W 800d's and Rotel

New is KEF R900 spks and R400b sub, Ayre ax-5 Integrated amp, QB-9 DAC and Lx5e Power system, Shunyata Power, signal cables and Outlet, Audio Note sub connect, Audio Quest TRUE 2.0 USB Connect, Mac Pro 16 GB running Amarra ... basically pulling from the fastest external SS hard drive I could find and dumping to the DAC using only the Cache as a hold... All components on AYRE isolation blocks except power being on Symposium rollerblocks... Guarded by Lady Deat (My son is a HUGE comic nerd and what started out as a joke has turned into a permanent fixture)...

[mayhem13]

Nice space and system!

[extracampine]

Really enjoying this thread, some great pics - keep 'em coming!

[WuNgUn]

Thanks, yes the tubes are Gold Lion KT88's the caps are Russian military K40y-9 paper in oil. I want to try the big Russian Teflon caps, but haven't found a good place to mount them as the don't fit the board.

 

 

I would love to try the Posedion boards. I don't have a good grasp of even basic circuits and used the 1959 manual to rebuild these. I would like to bypass the dual biasing of the Posedion board and use the Dynakit. I'll have to take another gander at the Posedion schematics. Running SS amps now, so maybe it would be a good time to do "phase 2".

 

Ive seen the big Russian caps mounted on the bottom of the PCB...

I have some .44's I might try at some time...

[harmonica2]

Here's a different take on this thread: Toddler-friendly audiophile design. Instead of displaying my gear, it it neatly tucked away in the adjoining closet. There are sandbags holding down the speaker stands and grills are installed. The subwoofer is downward firing to avoid inadvertent kicks to the cone (and helps the little guy turn on the TV himself). The D-Class amp creates little heat, so the closet and drapery never gets hot. The black drapes and black gear create a minimalist illusion. The top shelf actually has the drape hung in the front - behind which is battery chargers, router, cable modem, etc.

[The Computer Audiophile]

Here's a different take on this thread: Toddler-friendly audiophile design. Instead of displaying my gear, it it neatly tucked away in the adjoining closet. There are sandbags holding down the speaker stands and grills are installed. The subwoofer is downward firing to avoid inadvertent kicks to the cone (and helps the little guy turn on the TV himself). The D-Class amp creates little heat, so the closet and drapery never gets hot. The black drapes and black gear create a minimalist illusion. The top shelf actually has the drape hung in the front - behind which is battery chargers, router, cable modem, etc.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]13057[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]13056[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]13055[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]13054[/ATTACH]

 

I love it!

[joveral]

Nice and neat!

 

What speaker cables are those?

 

Just upgraded my speakers to Sonus Faber Evolutions.

 

 

[simplon]

Currently I'm happy with the eqbuipment ans enjoy the music.