Have you got "the" sound, and are stepping off major upgrading?

[spiritofmusic]

The "point" of this thread was really to gauge the forum's membership's thoughts on whether they are continually upgrading whilst being happy/unhappy w/their sound. Ie is there a drive to just keep looking for another 5% all the time, or are many happy and have stepped off? Or are many getting distracted from a good sound and are changing more and more.
And when you get to a point where upgrading seems superfluous, is there a sort of elation/panic divergence ie true happiness at achieved sound, but wrong-footedness that a major hobby involving buying gear is to dwindle.

 

[rbbert]

I don't think "looking to upgrade" necessarily means one is less than happy with his current sound. I like to keep my eyes open even though I have no particular drive to upgrade right now. And I think it would be hard for people with LP's not to have an eye open towards different cartridges, even though it might not be an "upgrade" per se.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Rbbert, don't get me wrong, two decades of upgrading means the instinct to keep going is as strong as ever, but the feeling that, after steady progress w/the odd slip backwards, I've more recently made giant strides up this interminable mountain, and I can finally see the summit above the clouds, means I really don't feel as driven as I have been in the past. My mind is turning more to fine tuning and eeking out potential via a final series of successive tweaks (Shun Mooks under gear/Spiers air table for tt).
I am loathe to turn down this Nat Magnetostat battery powered linestage audition, because Bonzo tells me it is a truly phenomenal component, maybe the best pre he's yet heard, and I love it's true overkill engineering. It's potential by being off the grid, for the cleanest, most transparent sound, is HIGHLY tempting, esp if it can maintain all the tonal warmth and texture of my current Utopia. At the same time the Utopia remains a spectacular performer, and if the Magnetostat didn't exist, I would ABSOLUTELY not be looking beyond it - can you tell yet I'm a MAJOR Nat Audio fanboy?!

Re carts, as an analog man down to my boots, I actually feel zero impulse to expt beyond my current Soundsmith Straingauge cart, it combines so many things I've loved in all my prev choices, w/no discernable weak points at all, so I'm happy to not swap it out however long I live. Ditto my Eera cdp.

 

[bonzo75]

Actually, I didn't say Magnetostat was that phenomenal. I said the Magnetostat SE was, and that is 10k EUR more retail. I am sure you will upgrade to it at some point. I also said that as much as I like those amps, putting the Lampi in gives a much better improvement at lower cost.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Well, no point asking you about the standard Magnetostat, since you didn't slum it. Only the best DEMOS for you .

 

[sujay]

A little late in the day to chip in, perhaps, but having been 9 years into this hobby, I am at a stage where the itch to upgrade gear and explore major changes in component is kind of waning off......don't get me wrong! I continue to be as zealous, in the pursuit of the rather unattainable perfect reproduction, as i have ever been. However, I am now looking at all this slightly differently now. I think, in terms of gear ie amp, preamp, speaker combination, i am extremely satisfied at this point in time - yes, I am sure there's always better stuff out there but it doesn't bother me as much anymore. I am focussing more now on peripherals and tweaks and I will probably include cables into this category.
For instance, the single most important step up for me in the last 6 months has been changing my stock power chords. I still find it hard to believe and understand how changes in PC can help extract so much more. While I am still not in the nordost Odin league, I am definitely a convert!
I am currently demoing the mooks (thanks to my good friend Ked) and the stein music stuff (thanks to my good friend Holger)and just about beginning to realize how much more remains to be extracted from my current set-up. So, in summary, while I guess the fun is in exploring and I will continue to do so, for me, directionally, its more about tweaks and peripherals ( if I can call cable peripherals) and not so much about boxes/components.
Hope this makes sense...

Cheers

 

[bonzo75]

You need to demo some tubes in your system.

 

[bonzo75]

< Placeholder for Purite to tell you to measure your room after reading Toole > not that it's a bad idea

 

[sujay]

You need to demo some tubes in your system.

I know exactly where you are headed with this

 

[spiritofmusic]

A little late in the day to chip in, perhaps, but having been 9 years into this hobby, I am at a stage where the itch to upgrade gear and explore major changes in component is kind of waning off......don't get me wrong! I continue to be as zealous, in the pursuit of the rather unattainable perfect reproduction, as i have ever been. However, I am now looking at all this slightly differently now. I think, in terms of gear ie amp, preamp, speaker combination, i am extremely satisfied at this point in time - yes, I am sure there's always better stuff out there but it doesn't bother me as much anymore. I am focussing more now on peripherals and tweaks and I will probably include cables into this category.
For instance, the single most important step up for me in the last 6 months has been changing my stock power chords. I still find it hard to believe and understand how changes in PC can help extract so much more. While I am still not in the nordost Odin league, I am definitely a convert!
I am currently demoing the mooks (thanks to my good friend Ked) and the stein music stuff (thanks to my good friend Holger)and just about beginning to realize how much more remains to be extracted from my current set-up. So, in summary, while I guess the fun is in exploring and I will continue to do so, for me, directionally, its more about tweaks and peripherals ( if I can call cable peripherals) and not so much about boxes/components.
Hope this makes sense...

Cheers

Sujay, you're the first respondent to pretty much sum up my thoughts and my position.
I have the chance of a superb linestage upgrade, but am thinking twice about it. I've never turned down the chance of a good upgrade (who here has?), so it says something to my satisfied mindset that I may turn it down.
Now, the temptation may prove to be too great, and I go ahead, but I'm finding more and more reasons not to, the main one being the first time I've had uninterrupted serenity in my system this month.
Like you, the importance of tweaks is now the more interesting area for investigation. Sablon cables, Symposium Acoustics isolation, Westwick balanced power and Entreq grounding, just enable the system to give and give, and also stabilise the sound. My initial experience of Shun Mook Diamond resonators has been ear opening to say the least (thanks Bonzo), and along w/dedicated lines/Furutech rhodium US sockets and fuses, these are my remaining areas of discovery. The Mooks in particular, from my limited experience, are tone kings, and that's my particular weakness.

 

[spiritofmusic]

Post the screenshot of the FR of your room.
Keith.

Gosh, more subjective v objective, how exciting.
Tell you what Keith, why don't you publish the FR curves for the Liszts for when I visited, to the FR curves now. Show me the difference, and when I visit having endured the bass before, I can gauge the difference, and if I don't trust my ears, have the difference 'proved' to me.

In fact you should have published the shocking FR curves in your room at the time I visited. It wouldn't have put me off visiting, but the objective crowd would have run for the hills.

I've not seen another guy on these forums carry on ad infinitum about "measurements are all" (my quotes), slating everyone else for subjective flim flam and loose thinking, provide a demo that fails even basic quality standards, objective or subjective.

 

[sujay]

Sujay, you're the first respondent to pretty much sum up my thoughts and my position.
I have the chance of a superb linestage upgrade, but am thinking twice about it. I've never turned down the chance of a good upgrade (who here has?), so it says something to my satisfied mindset that I may turn it down.
Now, the temptation may prove to be too great, and I go ahead, but I'm finding more and more reasons not to, the main one being the first time I've had uninterrupted serenity in my system this month.
Like you, the importance of tweaks is now the more interesting area for investigation. Sablon cables, Symposium Acoustics isolation, Westwick balanced power and Entreq grounding, just enable the system to give and give, and also stabilise the sound. My initial experience of Shun Mook Diamond resonators has been ear opening to say the least (thanks Bonzo), and along w/dedicated lines/Furutech rhodium US sockets and fuses, these are my remaining areas of discovery. The Mooks in particular, from my limited experience, are tone kings, and that's my particular weakness.

Hey, thanks! Glad my thoughts resonate! Couldn't agree more about the Mooks being tone kings! Yes, unequivocally. Nevertheless, the stein music harmonisers (the complete package), albeit more expensive, provide an amazingly balanced presentation (will post more about this in the dedicated thread). At this level, it is turning out to be a matter of taste......really I am finding it hard to choose. I am now quite intrigued by the entreq grounding solutions and that will most likely be my next port of call.
Indeed, there is a lot more to explore than just box upgrades....

Cheers

 

[sujay]

Hi Keith, the room acoustics is an area where I haven't tinkered around much, I must admit. I do have absorption panels on the side walls (first and second reflection points) but otherwise nothing scientific.the room is largely untreated otherwise. The key reason being we keep moving in my field of work and I don't own the place where we reside. However, I am sure I can do with some help here as I am reasonably certain I have room node issues. I haven't measured the FR in my room. I am in the process of getting a spectrum analyzer and a mic and get on with this exercise. Will revert soon hopefully!

Cheers

 

[spiritofmusic]

Quite without treatment my main room is particularly poor, a 24dB peak at 28Hz,which is huge, and then further peaks at its multiples.
It has taken a combination of passive treatment , and EQ courtesy of Christof Faller to tame it.
The measurements now ,as you would expect reflect the enormous improvement.
I don't think I could ever make you understand the standing my wave in the room, you persisted in thinking it was something to do with 'bass integration'.
Keith.

Keith, you know how much I melted into those mids, and to this day, what 18 months on?, the positives of the demo resound w/me.
Unlike you and others, measurements aren't going to make me like or dislike the sound - I'll trust my ears, thank you.
But as someone who celebrates the supriority of measurements over the visceral experience, it would be great if you could publish "before and after" graphs.

Btw, are you fully confident if I bring a horns afficionado (AG Duos) w/me, he (and me) will melt into those mids, and not be shocked back into the room by your bass?

 

[spiritofmusic]

Hey, thanks! Glad my thoughts resonate! Couldn't agree more about the Mooks being tone kings! Yes, unequivocally. Nevertheless, the stein music harmonisers (the complete package), albeit more expensive, provide an amazingly balanced presentation (will post more about this in the dedicated thread). At this level, it is turning out to be a matter of taste......really I am finding it hard to choose. I am now quite intrigued by the entreq grounding solutions and that will most likely be my next port of call.
Indeed, there is a lot more to explore than just box upgrades....

Cheers

Sujay, I'm your man (along w/LL21, Barry2013, Guillaume) to talk about Entreq - just check out my thread which 100+ pages' strong. Feel free to ask anything you like, privately if you wish.
Please let us know your SteinMusic experiences, maybe set up a dedicated thread - I have to say I've had limited success w/tweaks other than Entreq and Shun Mook Diamond resonators. But if I get off the big bucks component upgrade conveyor belt, diverting smaller amounts of cash into rolling series of tweaks will satiate my incurable audiofool OCD.

 

[sujay]

Sujay, I'm your man (along w/LL21, Barry2013, Guillaume) to talk about Entreq - just check out my thread which 100+ pages' strong. Feel free to ask anything you like, privately if you wish.
Please let us know your SteinMusic experiences, maybe set up a dedicated thread - I have to say I've had limited success w/tweaks other than Entreq and Shun Mook Diamond resonators. But if I get off the big bucks component upgrade conveyor belt, diverting smaller amounts of cash into rolling series of tweaks will satiate my incurable audiofool OCD.

Going thro it as we speak! I will reach out to you pref PM.....
I will post my impressions on stein music separately.

Cheers man!

Sujay

 

[andromedaaudio]

Have you got "the" sound, and are stepping off major upgrading?


Yes , i am just enjoying my system , only thing i will add in the future is a solid state system as well , i am thinking off ML ref series old school , Dartzeel or Boulder , speakers will stay the same .
And some more tapemachines and mastertapes

PS i would like to try LAMM as well at some time, and off course a dedicated /isolated reverberation time perfected listening room