Post your Speaker setup PICS!!!!!!

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Thanks!

I have listened to the Ayre, but I have not yet listened to any of the Esoterics. The one thing I don't like about the Esoterics is their use of opamps, however, many swear by them and they are probably good.

I really do like the Ayre - I think one would be VERY hard pressed to beat out the Ayre C5xe for flat out redbook or SACD playing. There's good reason why many consider the Ayre C5xe the pinnacle of real-world source components! It's really that good if you have the right system (meaning your system has enough resolution). Mind you, I've owned some speakers where I could seriously NOT tell the difference between a DAC and the computer soundcard or going from Class AB on my Plinius to Class A... in those systems, the impact of an Ayre C5xe would not be as striking, for obvious reasons of lack of fidelity (I'm talking about >$2K speakers here).

I did not get the Ayre C5xe for 2 reasons -
1. It costs $6K new.... considerably more than I was willing to spend. Even used prices are high at about $4000 to $4500.
2. It has NO digital inputs, one cannot use the Ayre as a standalone DAC. This is a necessity for me because I have 250gb of music stored as FLAC and my CD collection is pitiful.

Bottomline, I spent $1800 on the Cary CDP (used). The PS Audio DAC can be sold for $800. The net outlay is $1000. When I listened to it, after having heard a good portion of what is offered in the market, I felt that I was getting a good return on that $1K. I blew my audio budget for the rest of the year... but it was worth it.

I really want to like the Esoterics, particularly due to their transport, but found out they output the DSD signal to PCM, albeit upsampled PCM. I really don't know how I feel aobut that :confused: Steve Hoffman's Music Matters jazz series is going to be offered on SACD, which definatley pushed me over the edge to invest in a player, plus it will do redbook. I've got hundreds of gigs of lossless audio, but I tend to, for the most part, buy CDs and rip them myself, so my physical disc collection warrants a dedicated player at this point.
I got a cheap Oppo transport to tide me over, while I save and research. I'm thinking either top of the line Krell, with its transformer output stage, the Ayre previously mentioned, the all-in-one Emm Labbs or possibly the Esoteric X-05. The Emm labbs is way out of my price range, but I'm a patient man :p
 
I know they're not as awesome some of these other setups, but I just got my z-5500s and I love them.

The Logitech z-5500s unboxed (left) next to my old Klipsch Promedia set. It's hard to tell the scale from this, but that Logitech sub is quite a bit bigger than the Klipsch. The damn thing barely fits under my desk.

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Rear view, for better scale. Dig that bigass heatsink on the z-5500s (right). And the spaghetti monster in the background (going to straighten that out soon... honestly!)

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Fully set up with the center channel and control pod in view. That's the Blu-ray version of I, Robot running on my PS3. The optical connection to the z-5500s works rather nicely, and sounds great, albeit without true HD audio (DD5.1 and DTS core tracks only). The PS3 is connected to the monitor via an HDMI to DVI cable (requies an HDCP compliant display).

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All in all, it's a hell of a nice gaming and movie watching set up for me, and didn't cost much at all. Got the speakers off Amazon for $214, plus shipping.
 
That's an amazing set-up Pini! I've always lusted after Cary gear, especially the 306, but have never been able to justify purchasing such nice gear for my mediocre music collection. Your system has definitely been upgraded since I last talked to you!
 
I'm thinking either top of the line Krell, with its transformer output stage, the Ayre previously mentioned, the all-in-one Emm Labbs or possibly the Esoteric X-05. The Emm labbs is way out of my price range, but I'm a patient man :p

Ayre or Emm... that's probably the way to go. With your lossless collection, I would err towards the Emm. If the Cary 306 is world class, the Emm is out of this world.

That's an amazing set-up Pini! I've always lusted after Cary gear, especially the 306, but have never been able to justify purchasing such nice gear for my mediocre music collection. Your system has definitely been upgraded since I last talked to you!

It's been about a year and a half since we talked and I suppose I've done some work here and there with regards to my system. :)

I'll post pics once I get the system in the new place next week. I'm excited and sad. I'm excited because the system will be in a bigger and better place, but I'm sad because I'm going to lose the ability to use them anytime I want with my PC/bedroom.

Update!

Brought over a non-audiophile classmate from school over today. He has never heard a hifi set up before. Played one clip of a song, we switched from the PS Audio DAC to the Cary 306's DAC. Instantly, he told me he could hear a major difference in the way the music is presented.

He said, "It's blurry with the old thing, but with the new one, it's a lot clearer and denser."

My thoughts exactly. I wasn't hearing anything made up.
 
Brought over a non-audiophile classmate from school over today. He has never heard a hifi set up before. Played one clip of a song, we switched from the PS Audio DAC to the Cary 306's DAC. Instantly, he told me he could hear a major difference in the way the music is presented.

He said, "It's blurry with the old thing, but with the new one, it's a lot clearer and denser."

My thoughts exactly. I wasn't hearing anything made up.

Unequivocally saying that you weren't hearing anything made up because of one other persons sighted listening test is a little bit of a stretch. You say you approach it all logically/scientifically, get a few friends together and start doing some blind testing. Coming to a conclusion because of one person that agreed with you during a sighted test isn't particularly logical.
 
He said, "It's blurry with the old thing, but with the new one, it's a lot clearer and denser."

My thoughts exactly. I wasn't hearing anything made up.

What I don't understand is why I don't tend to hear blurry sounds with my system that costs less than a fraction of yours.

I have absolutely nothing against your setup, Pini- it's just that comments like that lead me to believe that higher-end systems just hurt themselves.
 
Unequivocally saying that you weren't hearing anything made up because of one other persons sighted listening test is a little bit of a stretch. You say you approach it all logically/scientifically, get a few friends together and start doing some blind testing. Coming to a conclusion because of one person that agreed with you during a sighted test isn't particularly logical.
There will always be those who will doubt, regardless of the protocols I take in getting to a particular conclusion with regards to my system. Even if I did a double blind control trial, there will still be a loophole that I may have forgotten to taken into account and those same doubters will expound on that. Perhaps the easiest way is for you to hear it for yourself and decide for yourself.

Perhaps one person agreeing with my statement does not unequivically render my statement true, I'll give you that. But the fact that it was an unexperienced ear who listened and heard a difference - this is a testament to the magnitude of the sonic change. Who in here is confident enough to bring in a person (literally off the street) who's never heard a high end system (speaker or headphones) and bet money that he would be able to tell the difference between the last item you/anyone upgraded in their audio system? We hear people on headfi talking about how the Zu cables improve their HD650 or how a particular headphone amp is night day improvement from another one, or how a particular amplifier sounds so much better than a receiver... but how many are willing to put more than their words on the line?

I'll tell you this, the change from the PS Audio to the Cary is probably the single biggest sonic change I've heard through my system (aside from the speakers). Anyone off the street can tell the change.

Even if you came today and we wagered whatever amount of money, I am confident (100%) that you will easily tell which is the Cary and which is the PSAudio. I could care less if anyone believes or doesn't believe me, I certainly didn't expect this kind of a change in the sonic reproduction.

Put it this way, IF I had read this much of a change from the PS Audio DAC to the Cary from someone else on the 'net, I probably wouldn't have believed it myself.

Look at it this way - you come over to my place. I'll let you listen to both the PSAudio DACIII and the Cary. If you can't tell the difference, I'll let you take my Cary CDP with you back to your home. Sounds like an easy way to see the city of Chicago and gain a CDP that you can resell on audiogon, don't you think?

What I don't understand is why I don't tend to hear blurry sounds with my system that costs less than a fraction of yours.

I have absolutely nothing against your setup, Pini- it's just that comments like that lead me to believe that higher-end systems just hurt themselves.

Just because you don't hear it in yours doesn't mean it isn't there. I personally didn't know this phenomenon existed when I started out but I began to notice it as soon as I began moving up in amplification initially. Prior to the Cary, there was what I thought to be very little blur remaining, too bad I was wrong because the Cary proved to me that the source I had was lacking.

You have PM regarding your last statement.
 
Of course, I will also state the obvious.

You probably need some very transparent speakers to tell the difference. Case in point, I had a pair of hi end floorstanders (I will not name the brand/model). Costed under $3K (just to give you a reference point).

With this particular speaker - I could not RELIABLY tell the difference between the built-in stock dacs in my Squeezebox 3 vs the PSAudio DACIII. I also could not RELIABLY (i.e. I will not be willing to bet money with someone else to hear a difference) tell the difference between my Plinius Amp in Class A/B vs Class A.

With the Summits, I could easily tell when I was using the PSAudio DACIII and when the Plinius was in full Class A amplification.

That in mind, I would not be surprised (if I still had the aformentioned speaker) if I could not or barely tell the difference between the Cary and the PSAudio DACIII.
 
What I don't understand is why I don't tend to hear blurry sounds with my system that costs less than a fraction of yours.

I have absolutely nothing against your setup, Pini- it's just that comments like that lead me to believe that higher-end systems just hurt themselves.

That was the point I was trying to get at.

Look, I'm not going to say I'm a sound professional with years of experience under my belt. I play a few instruments, I've been in a few studios, I've done a bit of recording myself. I know enough to know what muddy sound is and what crystal clear sound is. I can hear subtleties enough that I can tune an instrument by ear and be every bit as accurate as any digital tuner, if that says anything. I've also listened to audiophile gear, and to an extent some of it is worth the money.

The problem I have is when people start talking about the subtleties in sound in regards to something like a CD player. There just isn't that much difference between even consumer level gear and audiophile gear to justify the difference in cost. If you want to argue the subtle differences between different tube receivers, sure, I'll buy it. But if you're going to try and tell me that your $5000 cd player is so much better as to justify the cost, well, you're pissing into the wind. It's cool if thats what you're into, and as I said, I can appreciate your hobby for what it is. But trying to justify the purchase to everyone else? Enjoy your purchase and save the justifications.

Sound is not some magical thing. The manipulation of and transmission of an audio signal is basic science, and once you have an understanding of it and know a thing or two about it, you start to see through the smoke and mirrors of the audiophile industry. Your CD player is in a nice case and I'm sure all the components inside are of the highest quality. That said, in a blind listening test, I don't think the differences you hear would be so pronounced. Perhaps you can tell the difference between your two, I'm not going to tell you that you can't. I just find it doubtful that anyone else would.

And your new apartment is nice. My comment wasn't meant to disparage your living arrangement. I was just saying that your money would be better spent on other things. You will (and likely have, judging by your new place) heard a load of difference just by having a proper listening area to enjoy your gear. One of the things I do know from time spent in studios is how the acoustics of a room can affect the subtleties of sound. I apologize if you took my comment the wrong way, it was not intended as such.
 
The problem I have is when people start talking about the subtleties in sound in regards to something like a CD player. There just isn't that much difference between even consumer level gear and audiophile gear to justify the difference in cost. If you want to argue the subtle differences between different tube receivers, sure, I'll buy it. But if you're going to try and tell me that your $5000 cd player is so much better as to justify the cost, well, you're pissing into the wind. It's cool if thats what you're into, and as I said, I can appreciate your hobby for what it is. But trying to justify the purchase to everyone else? Enjoy your purchase and save the justifications.

I am not trying to justify the purchase, this is a forum for speakers and equipment. Each time I post a new product, I include a brief review. If you go through the other sites (audiogon, martinloganowners, clubpolk, audioasylum, av123, htguide, etc) you will see that I've posted in-depth reviews of products I've had experience with. It's not a means for justification - I post my thoughts on the particular product in my particular system under my particular biases so others who may be in the same situation regarding the same equipment may have a rudimentary guide with accordance to the sound of the particular item.

If you looked at it as a justification, you are dead wrong. I don't come here for your or anyone's approval - I come here to post my impressions, post pics (as the thread suggests), and I try to help out (or ask for help) when I can.

And to answer your statement - yes, I am not the most gullible of consumers, I've been very leery of cd players. However, I've heard a few that are a good improvement over stock dacs and this Cary (in my system) is easily distinguishable from the PSAudio DACIII it replaced. I'm not justifying it, the purchase justified itself to me. I'm merely stating my opinion on the matter.

You can come over too if you want, take the Cary home with you if you think I was wrong.

Look, I'm not going to say I'm a sound professional with years of experience under my belt. I play a few instruments, I've been in a few studios, I've done a bit of recording myself. I know enough to know what muddy sound is and what crystal clear sound is. I can hear subtleties enough that I can tune an instrument by ear and be every bit as accurate as any digital tuner, if that says anything. I've also listened to audiophile gear, and to an extent some of it is worth the money.
Great! I could probably learn a thing or two from you with regards to certain equipment. I'll be sure to keep you in mind when I have a question.

And your new apartment is nice. My comment wasn't meant to disparage your living arrangement. I was just saying that your money would be better spent on other things. You will (and likely have, judging by your new place) heard a load of difference just by having a proper listening area to enjoy your gear. One of the things I do know from time spent in studios is how the acoustics of a room can affect the subtleties of sound. I apologize if you took my comment the wrong way, it was not intended as such.

No apologize needed, I probably took it the wrong way. I should be the one to apologize.

I have no doubt that the new place will be better, it's just going to be a pain for me to set the system up in a new place. 6 days and counting. ;)
 
I'm not here to dispute anybody, but I've played several musical instruments throughout my life, and can tune by ear. I had already been doing so by the time I got started in the world of high end/ high quality audio. Yet my ears have been trained a great deal since then. There is more to sound than the simple beating of notes in/out of tune. There is more than muddiness. There are so many more variables than that.
Few people, if any, who read this thread will ever own Martin Logan speakers. Thats just the way it is. I dont think anyone is trying to convince others that the Logans are the speaker they must have, and nothing else. I think it, and the spirit of the entire thread, are more like "hey everybody, just got some new speakers and I'm pleased...here is what I hear...".
 
I've heard plenty of live music, be it organized on stage or a matter of walking through the halls. If I didn't hear the details then, I'll never hear them.

Pini, your PM has a response.

Read your pm... completely 100% agree. Hi end is double-edged sword indeed. Once you get higher end, more resolute items - it doesn't stop there as inadequacies down the chain are revealed and you're back in the merry-go-round that is "upgrading".

You are right when you said that in the end, hi-end hurts itself.

But another way to look at it is that, perhaps there is truly a hi-end in all this madness. No we're never going to approach live sound, but in the effort to replicate it, we can get to a place where it sounds damn good and it allows us to enjoy what music we have even further.

I am a skeptic, I've always questioned whether there is truly such a thing as "hi-end" or is it just a made up idea of a bunch of people just slapping expensive price tags on gear which we can barely discern the subtle differences between hifi and more hifi.

I'm really glad I was proven wrong with the Cary and that there just *might* be something called the hi-end. There is probably a reason for all this madness.

And perhaps that's what hi-fi is, it's uncovering and releasing yourself from preconceived notions of what is technically possible in reproduction. I'm a believer that almost anything in the audio reproduction chain affects the sound and can be improved upon (though to what extent.... I have no clue...).

Though I'll never buy the whole cables thing.... just my thoughts. Others may disagree.
 
I'm not here to dispute anybody, but I've played several musical instruments throughout my life, and can tune by ear. I had already been doing so by the time I got started in the world of high end/ high quality audio. Yet my ears have been trained a great deal since then. There is more to sound than the simple beating of notes in/out of tune. There is more than muddiness. There are so many more variables than that.
Few people, if any, who read this thread will ever own Martin Logan speakers. Thats just the way it is. I dont think anyone is trying to convince others that the Logans are the speaker they must have, and nothing else. I think it, and the spirit of the entire thread, are more like "hey everybody, just got some new speakers and I'm pleased...here is what I hear...".

I agree... completely. This is not an effort to make people buy what I own, it's a thread for showing "what's new and what's hopping". I just include a bit of what I thought about the particular item.

It's definitely not a way for me to justify my purchase by writing deluded thoughts on the forum, the sound is what justifies it and I made sure of it before I put down the $1K delta.
 
I agree... completely. This is not an effort to make people buy what I own, it's a thread for showing "what's new and what's hopping". I just include a bit of what I thought about the particular item.

Well I appreciate you taking the time to take pictures and file reviews of your equipment for the [H] .
 
My personal philosophy is that your system should have closely matched components. Cheap receiver with high end speakers: you probably aren't getting the most that you could out of those speakers. Vice versa with cheap speakers and a nice amp (been there) the speakers will sound better than with a cheap receiver, but you're still using cheap speakers.

Where am I going? My theory is that if you have the money to spend on nice speakers, a nice amp, a nice preamp, a power conditioner, etc... then there's no reason why not to have a high quality and nice source such as a CD or DVD or Blueray player. Why not? Why use 128 kbps MP3's playing from an iPod on your $20,000+ stereo? Because it really doesn't do its justice for your system. You should have a source that matches your other equipment. (unless you really cannot tell the difference, then you should not own a $20,000 stereo in the first place)

(Blueray battle)
In all honesty, everybody here in Seattle has been questioning why anybody would get a standalone Blueray player when you could get a Sony PS3 with a built in Blueray player for fairly close to the same price. My answer: quality. The quality of the movie or sound will not be good enough for people with high end equipment who have the transparency to hear and see the difference.

I respect everybody here at the forum, but the ones who just put out the stupid comments questioning what other people can hear are just oblivious to the world of hi-fi. Each day that goes by that I listen to music and play music (via guitar and piano), the more my ears open up to sounds. I can only imagine the people who have really developed their ears far more than mine.

For musical people, that's their priority. That's their money. Some take out loans to buy it, others can actually afford it after working for a week or two. My philosophy is buy what I can afford in conjunction with the rest of my life's spendings and when some component dies, goes out, or is simply too old, then I will replace it.

Don't question people's opinions, as the internet is the fullest book of them out there.
 
Thanks fellas.

The next pics I'll be posting will be of another upgrade - ROOM. Keep an eye out for further improvements to the system.

Thanks again. :)
 
Where did u find this Equipment Rack? It's perfect for what i need.
I was wondering the same thing.

Awesome setup Pinipig! I've seen some of your other posts/reviews in the past and you've always had pretty amazing gear. props. Lookin forward to seeing pics of everything set up in your new living arrangement. Pain in the arse to set up, I know how that goes!
 
My personal philosophy is that your system should have closely matched components. Cheap receiver with high end speakers: you probably aren't getting the most that you could out of those speakers. Vice versa with cheap speakers and a nice amp (been there) the speakers will sound better than with a cheap receiver, but you're still using cheap speakers.

Where am I going? My theory is that if you have the money to spend on nice speakers, a nice amp, a nice preamp, a power conditioner, etc... then there's no reason why not to have a high quality and nice source such as a CD or DVD or Blueray player. Why not? Why use 128 kbps MP3's playing from an iPod on your $20,000+ stereo? Because it really doesn't do its justice for your system. You should have a source that matches your other equipment. (unless you really cannot tell the difference, then you should not own a $20,000 stereo in the first place)

(Blueray battle)
In all honesty, everybody here in Seattle has been questioning why anybody would get a standalone Blueray player when you could get a Sony PS3 with a built in Blueray player for fairly close to the same price. My answer: quality. The quality of the movie or sound will not be good enough for people with high end equipment who have the transparency to hear and see the difference.

I respect everybody here at the forum, but the ones who just put out the stupid comments questioning what other people can hear are just oblivious to the world of hi-fi. Each day that goes by that I listen to music and play music (via guitar and piano), the more my ears open up to sounds. I can only imagine the people who have really developed their ears far more than mine.

For musical people, that's their priority. That's their money. Some take out loans to buy it, others can actually afford it after working for a week or two. My philosophy is buy what I can afford in conjunction with the rest of my life's spendings and when some component dies, goes out, or is simply too old, then I will replace it.

Don't question people's opinions, as the internet is the fullest book of them out there.

Doesnt your setup have power conditioners and cables that add up to several thousand dollars?
 
I respect everybody here at the forum, but the ones who just put out the stupid comments questioning what other people can hear are just oblivious to the world of hi-fi.

If you believe everyone that says their 800 dollar power cord made an enormous night and day difference in their system then maybe you're making some stupid comments and are just oblivious to reality.
 
I was wondering the same thing.

Awesome setup Pinipig! I've seen some of your other posts/reviews in the past and you've always had pretty amazing gear. props. Lookin forward to seeing pics of everything set up in your new living arrangement. Pain in the arse to set up, I know how that goes!

Thanks man! It will be a pain, but hopefully it'll sound better than where I got them now. Too bad I'll lose my system as my PC speakers... now I gotta find a decent pair for sole pc use. :(

Anyway, I had another guy come by today - he's heard my system many times before. Same thing, said it was a worthy upgrade and worth the price delta - same comments with regards to improved imaging and better overall tone and placement of images. He was sorta dumbfounded when the Cary kicked in, he commented as to how mediocre my system's imaging was before in comparison. We played Corinne Bailey Ray... and in addition to the improved are more pinpoint imaging of her as a singer, it was obvious when the bass began to hit in her song "Like A Star" whether the PS Audio was playing or the Cary was... the PS Audio had a very dull and almost overbearing bass compared to the Cary. I dunno why.

Anyway, looking forward to the new place. Will post new pics when I get the chance. Now I gotta pack up the system. This will be a pain.
 
If you believe everyone that says their 800 dollar power cord made an enormous night and day difference in their system then maybe you're making some stupid comments and are just oblivious to reality.

Lets be realistic; this is not a litmus test, 100% one way or the other. Theres always going to be debate and varying opinions. The way your post reads, it sounds like you want to shit on anyone enjoying anything high end, to justify NOT buying high end yourself. If you dont want it....dont buy it! There. Wasnt that easy? ;)
 
I remember when this thread was about pics, and not about flaming pini's rig

agreed. moar pics.

this is at a buddy of mines house I went to for memorial day weekend down in Houston. I unfortunately missed taking a picture of the screen that comes down. GTAIV was great on a 165" screen. ;)

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Now that's a nice rig... is that his or his parents?

Are those Diamonds?

I think they were the 800 series.. I will ask him tonight.

all of it's his.. he's a 33yr old lawyer and actually lives by himself in a 7500sf home. heh His house isn't too far from Tmac's.
 
I received my Swans M10 yesterday. I will post pics tonight. They are gorgeous!

Not exactly sure if they are placed properly... had to rearrange some things. Sounds good to me, hopefully it looks kosher.
 
OMG, I hope you didn't put your Swans M10 subwoofer on your desk, you n00b!~!!!!11!!!!1oneone!!1


</justkidding>
 
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