How satisfied?

[GallantListener]

Hello friends? How are you? Glad to be here. Just wondering how satisfied people are with their married lives....oops, I mean audio system (that is another kind of wife)

 

[spiritofmusic]

Freudian slip there Lol.

All good here, sorting my analogue setup after less than optimal results, is my big take this year. In the twilight of my upgrading now.

 

[NorthStar]

Very very very happy with my deck (tape) and DAC, and arm (tone).
The stereo sound we get is amply satisfying, we're having a high fidelity ball.

 

[SuperDave]

I love my current setup but always open to try another...stereo that is.

 

[Vienna]

If I wasn’t happy, I would have the whole system replaced ...again!
i have done it three times the last 18 months

 

[bazelio]

If I wasn’t happy, I would have the whole system replaced ...again!
i have done it three times the last 18 months

Only because you haven't had Kuzma yet.

 

[Vienna]

Only because you haven't had Kuzma yet.

Bazelio the Kuzma dealer in Greece has just announced that he is selling electric bikes too !!! really (check golden acoustics and golden wheels )
That good are Kuzma that dealers have to find alternative sources of income !!!!!

look how nice they are presented next to room correction diffusers and bass traps

The Kuzma turntables are on the other side !!!!

 

[christoph]

Hello friends? How are you? Glad to be here. Just wondering how satisfied people are with their married lives....oops, I mean audio system (that is another kind of wife)

Hi Ish
Long time no read from you.
Nice to see/read you here

 

[Al M.]

Hello friends? How are you? Glad to be here. Just wondering how satisfied people are with their married lives....oops, I mean audio system (that is another kind of wife)

Extremely satisfied, thanks for asking. My acquisition of an Octave HP 700 preamp earlier this year was a game changer that made everything fall into place, and a few changes in speaker set-up were the icing on the cake.

I am all set with my system as I do not intend to change from a monitor/sub configuration and my current speakers/subs are incredible (Reference 3A Reflector monitors/JL Audio F112v2 subs). My Octave pre/power amplification is end game for me, and cabling is optimal as well.

I did think the only place where I seriously would contemplate an upgrade would be my DAC. Yet the rest of the chain now reveals just how incredible the Schiit Yggdrasil Analog 2 DAC is in every way, even in tone. Perhaps I may try an MSB DAC sometime in the future, but I am in no hurry at all. In like, not-in-a-few-years hurry, which is also good for my wallet as the high end is not my sole priority. Certain other DACs that cost many multiple times more than the Yggdrasil do not need to apply, so good is this thing. And it easily justifies the purchase of a preamp that was more than 6 times as expensive. As I said, this DAC is incredible (and I bet few have ever heard its potential).

Do other systems do certain things better than mine? Sure, but at what cost? And all systems, no matter how expensive, have their own compromises. My system was not exactly cheap, in fact, very expensive (even though not perhaps by today's audiophile standards ), but I don't think you can beat it easily by bang for the buck. So yes, I am extremely happy with what I have achieved.

 

[PeterA]

Interesting question. I think we all think about this from time to time. To dig deep, we must really be introspective and honest with ourselves. I like to think that I have been more or less satisfied with my system for years now. I listen for at least a couple of hours almost every day. I share the system with various audio buddies and friends. And yet, I continue to explore ways to improve it. I do change gear, perhaps more often than some here, but not nearly as much as others. Currently I am exploring new cartridges and trying to implement a second tonearm solution for my turntable.

So, to answer your probing question: I am satisfied with the sound of my system. I certainly enjoy it regularly. And yet, I am always searching for ways to improve it and to retrieve even more information out of those grooves. I guess that is one aspect of this hobby.

The real question for me is this: what does the hobby mean to you? It can be about so many different things.

 

[Steve Williams]

Hello friends? How are you? Glad to be here. Just wondering how satisfied people are with their married lives....oops, I mean audio system (that is another kind of wife)

Ish

how are you?

As soon as I saw your avatar I said to myself that I know that system

Great to have you here

ish and I go back many years. When Marty lived in Dallas the 2 of us visited Ish. IIRC his system is on the 3rd floor of his home. Ish paid a visit to me when I lived in the SF Bay Area.

 

[RogerD]

My core system hasn’t changed in many years. I’m just adding new sources ie a Sequerra tuner and a few Crown tape machines. Happily married till death do us part.

 

[NorthStar]

So OP, that's it...one post starting one thread...satisfied?
About you, are you satisfied with your wife...oops...I mean your stereo hi-fi sound system?
Are you into Opera or Classical Orchestral or Chamber Classical or Jazz or all Choral/Vocal music including Rock&Roll?

 

[marty]

I know that system as well and a damn fine one it is. Ish, glad to have you here! Although I haven't heard Ish's system in many years, I can assure you that's a system to seek out and listen to if you're in the area. (Ish, sorry but I think I just invited a bunch of people to your home! Oops...)

 

[Joe P]

I love the combo of my Chord Mojo and TIN HiFi T3s.

 

[GallantListener]

Thank you guys for your kind words. I almost completely disappeared from the audio scene a number of years ago for several reasons, the main reason among others being highly satisfied with my audio system, which has been stable for nearly a decade now. Being satisfied in audio is an oxymoron notion. On the one hand, if you are not satisfied (not matter how much you claim you are -- and you may be lying not just to others but yourself), there is some fun in it as its keeps looking for improvements with exciting products and of course making you empty pockets if you have spare cash for pleasure. Then, you have a thirst to quench, and you are hungry for more. On the other hand, when you are actually satisfied (honestly), you enjoy your system and yet you lose the excitement of reading magazines and reviews and trying new components. You just listen and enjoy music but what do you do with your audio itch?


So the problem is that I reached a sound level that gave me ultimate satisfaction nearly 8-10 years ago which led to some boredom even though every time I listened it was a thrill. But as I said satisfaction is an oxymoron term in audio -- I know one guy who (as a matter of fact it’s not one guy but may) has been so satisfied that he keeps trying new components and every new component brings another level of improvement and hence making it more satisfactory than before which means the previous level was unsatisfactory relatively speaking and honestly speaking! But the man does not know that because he is in a different state of mind! And even more ironic is the fact that at that rate the sound quality of his system must have reached beyond any earthly standards and must have reached astronomical levels according to some alien species. But does it even matter to other if *he* is happy with what he is doing? It is not other people’s business as it is purely his choice but if he asks me I will tell him which of his past system sounded better But at the end what matters is how happy he is.

So t is my problem with satisfaction? In my becoming quite satisfied with the sound level, I became bored and I lost interest in audio. I also found myself interacting less with friends in audio although I gained more friends through other common interests and priorities in life. Most importantly I missed sharing the audio hobby and giving out ideas gained through lessons learned. And then there is some audio itch which motivates you to "do something" in the system. Sometimes I also thought sharing of ideas could come out as bragging -- in fact some people do post just to brag, but then we have a few role models like Mike Levine and Steve Williams who share their great systems without giving the impression that they are bragging. Thank you guys. A major spirit of this hobby is sharing ideas and listening.

So, to keep the itch going and to make improvements in audio beyond the stereo system components, I decided to build a new house and a new media room, from scratch. I started conceiving the idea of the new house about four years ago. The construction started about a year and half ago, all under a tight budget of course. The house and the new audio room completed about 4 months ago. It is all DIY which means I even literally participated in the construction, and it goes without saying that I conceived and designed, right or wrong, the whole design (of the house not just the audio room) myself. It is all done now and the stereo is up and running for the past 3 months. Details to follow. Friends are welcome for listening.

Coming back to the satisfaction, maybe I should itemize my level of satisfaction with respect to each component after having tried 100s of speakers, amps, preamps and CD players (100% means I will not consider changing it even if I win a lottery).


Speaker: Apogee fullrange (satisfaction 100% meaning it will go with me in the grave)

with DIY reconstructed speaker level crossover

Amps: TRL GT-800, GT-400 driving the Apogee speakers (100% satisfaction)

Jeff Rowland Model 7 monoblocks: spare

TRL Dude preamp with DIY built in line level crossover for the big Apogee speaker (100% satisfaction)

DIY X-2 Charlie’s preamp based on video op-amp: Spare

TRL moded Marantz CD player (100% satisfied)

TRL moded Sony CD player 98% satisfied

Computer server audio: None (0% satisfied and have liked none that I have heard so far)

Microseiki RX-1500fvg Turntable, with Reed tonearm, and Ortofon A90 cartridge (70% satisfaction

Pass lab Xono phono stage (70% satisfaction)

Cables: DIY (100% satisfied)

New room: (100% satisfied)

DIY diffusors: 80% satisfied (I plan to make 2-3 DIY 2’x8’ wooden skyline diffusers)

Spare speakers: Apogee Fullrange, Apogee stage, Apogee Centaur Majors, Apogee Slant 8


I also have Integra receiver for home theatre and surround speakers with REL stadium for video only (70% satisfied)

 

[GallantListener]

I know that system as well and a damn fine one it is. Ish, glad to have you here! Although I haven't heard Ish's system in many years, I can assure you that's a system to seek out and listen to if you're in the area. (Ish, sorry but I think I just invited a bunch of people to your home! Oops...)

Marty: the system you heard at my house was Apogee Divas with Jadis JA-500 amps. Everything here is different, from speaker, and electronics to room.

 

[GallantListener]

Ish

how are you?

As soon as I saw your avatar I said to myself that I know that system

Great to have you here

ish and I go back many years. When Marty lived in Dallas the 2 of us visited Ish. IIRC his system is on the 3rd floor of his home. Ish paid a visit to me when I lived in the SF Bay Area.

Hi Steve, great ti touch base with you, my friend. You are so passionate about your hobby with a great system. Plus the best avatar award goes to... Steve Williams

 

[NorthStar]

Very nice of you Ish to add some more.

Cheers,
Bob

And there is the discovery of new music ... the biggest share of the audio pie. IMO

 

[Sencha]

There is a Zen saying that goes, ‘If you are not satisfied with what you have, why want more’? Sometimes the striving state of mind is just that, a striving state of mind, of which there are more than likely a few like that residing in this neck of the woods. I have a bit of that myself to be honest but hey-ho, I would rather be fully satisfied with what I have (honest........I don’t want Dartzeel 468’s!!) than have a constant clamouring want to upgrade and improve around every hifi corner. But heck, there are soooo many wonderful pieces of equipment available nowadays it is hard to say no to something once you have heard it knowing it will take you a few steps up to a new level of audio satisfaction for however brief a period that may be. It is up to us to decide if that moment is to last and if we are satisfied with what we have or not. The question though is not ‘if’ but ‘why‘ we do this. Most likely nothing to do with audio unless we have made an absolute pigs ear with our buying choices and have bought something with a sound that makes Bob Dylan sound like Jilted John and certainly nothing to do with music as most of us here (I hope) can still rock out to our car radios. But life is a journey and there are worse things to do that pursue a never ending line of upgrades to our stereos but there may be more rewarding things to do also. Let’s hope we can all find a balance somewhere.