Vicioussid's man cave and setup

[Vicioussid]

Hi Everyone,

Well here's some pics of my setup.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/hificomp.jpg

At the moment this is a humble beginners set up. One of my Celestion speakers is sitting on the shelf, the other on the left is sitting on top of an Infinity RS7 speaker (not in shot). Both the Tweater and Bass speakers have blown on the Infinity so this might be a project down the line as they did sound great before the blowout. My next purchase will be some Stands.

Ok first up is the Pro-ject Debut Esprit turntable. This is my first higher grade TT, my previous purchase was a second hand AKAI for about AU$40, to replace the cartridge was $35. Ha ha junk!!!. It has an Ortofon cartridge that came with it. In about a years time I might replace with Ortofon RED.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/Project_Debut_Esprit.jpg

Next up is the Cambridge Audio 540P phono amp and the Beresford Caiman Dac. At the moment the CA Phono is doing its job ok, yes its all an improvement from the AKAI TT running through my old Pioneer AV Receiver. The sound to me could be a bit more dynamic, however the TT, Cartridge and Phono are more on the budget side. The Caiman is a different story. Ok I don't have another Dac to compare it with but as far as should you or shouldn't you get a Dac the answer is a resounding YES! Its like night and day, Im loving it. Both the amp out and headphone out are superb.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/CA_Phono_BCaimen.jpg

Next the meat end of the setup the NAD C326BEE Integrated Amp. I've been researching amp around my price range (AUS$750) for a couple of months. It came down to the Cambridge Audio Azur 550A and the NAD C326. I went in and had a listen. Now, both amps sounded great however the NAD was a bit tighter and upfront, also my main music is Metal so it complemented each other. The CA was more open and probably suits more Classical or Acoustic music. My Celestions are more dry sounding with a soft treble again this suits my music style and the amp. I love the more Spartan look about it too, its a work horse.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/NAD_C326BEE_Amp.jpg

The speakers are a pair of Celestion Impact 15. These were a handme down from Dad. I also have the Infinity RS7 set but I need to fix them they were great sounding. The Cels are dry sounding but seem powerful. The treble is smooth and doesn't sound over processed. The bass is again dry and not too swooshy, god how do I describe them. Ah use music. When I put on Metallica's ...And Justice album the sound is just killer, really meaty, like an engine with the pistons just pounding away. I'll give up.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/Celestion_Impact_15.jpg

Well then we just have the Apple Mac and the room all this sits in. This started out as a office but other stuff has crept in. I don't need too much volume to drive this size room so hence the no need for too a powerfull amp. I just needed a great sound. The headies are Monster Beats by Dr Dre and Sennheiser HD 435. The Senn's are not too comfortable and the sound is a tad processed. The Beats are great for Metal. I've got some BOSE but the two I had both broke on me so BOSE never again. I'm thinking of getting the AKG 701 or 702, but I have not heard them yet. Could you believe they are selling them here for AUS$1000. eBay US has them for AUS$310. I'll have to have a listen, I think they will sound similar to the Senn's HD 650 open wide sound, good for Classical and Movies.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/Room_angle1.jpg

I used to have my CD cases out but its just a waste of space, all are now on a separate 750GB Hard drive hooked up to the Mac.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/Room_Angle2.jpg

I think the books give the room a softer sound so it all helps.

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac266/hungrychild/Room_Angle3.jpg

By the the way the DEAN Flying V rocks the house Schenker style!!!

[Alex_UK]

Great piccies and write up Sid - always very interesting to see someone elses system in the context of their home. Very nice kit, and a very nice "man cave" as you put it!

[DSJR]

After me being lampooned for being less than complimentary about an obviously very wealthy man who's built his own room especially for his mega-stereo, may I hope you get loads of fun and enjoyment from your setup.

The Debut cartridge looks like an Ortofon 500 series, which was the immediate precursor to the current range. If the body is the same as the other 500's, I'd suggest just getting a 520mk2 stylus for it and making a support for the deck out of a chopping board and a couple of squash balls cut in half (you know the sort of thing). If you can justify some more money, then sorbothane "boots" on the turntable feet may offer some more isolation.

What's with the bass and treble controls turned well up???????? methinks you need to either get the Infinity's sorted quick or alternatively some good old used bigger speakers.....

Keep posting...

D

[John]

Thanks for the pictures If you ever get the opportunity; put the speakers on stands and have them around 24" from rear walls I know it might not be possible with your present room set up but it will give you a huge improvement in sound
Do you play guitar?

[Vicioussid]

Thx for the TT advice D, yes the cartridge is an Ortofon Alpha and based on the 500 series. The TT support sounds very doable, can you fill me in how the isolation affects the sound?

Yeh - the bass and treble turned way up. ...mm, well its like this, so I'm playing some In Flames (some Swedish Death Metal) and I'm fiddling with the bass first. Not much is happening until I get to around 3 o'clock, I can hear the bass really kick in and distort beyond that mark, so I have it around that point. The treble, well its around 4:30, again it sounds right. The NAD has a tone defeat but it all sounds a bit flat. Mind you I also have the iTunes EQ in a V shape. I like the sound to rumble just before it distorts. Again it works in this size room/speakers.

It might have something to do with the Celestion speakers, like I have mentioned their treble is on the dry side. I'm mean if it was terrible you couldn't listen to it right?. So maybe on better speakers a different bass/treble tweak would be needed.

Anyone else out there with Celestion speakers? The strange thing with these is the left and right look identical they both have the left ear look (the woofer being on right hand side).

[Vicioussid]

Hey John, If I place the right speaker on a stand and in front of the shelf do you think I will be creating some kind of bass vortex (as the space behind the speaker is a kind of closed up box)?

This sounds really retarded. As if I would notice.

[Alex_UK]

Buying an Audiolab amp 13 years ago without tone controls cured my "fiddling" - now, whatever device I have (ipod, car stereo, laptop etc.) I just leave the eq flat, or off. I think it takes a while to become acustomed to music this way, but it will be a lot closer to the original recording and how it was intended - well, that's how I see it, but if you are happy then that's fine, it's your ears not mine (and yes, the Celestions do look like ears, don't they!)

[Spectral Morn]

Hi Sid


Thanks for the photos...nice room.



Regards D S D L

[John]

To get the best out of the speakers they would need space away from the rear walls I can see at the moment this is not possible You are losing both bass and treble and this maybe causing some of the issues you mentioned. No easy soloutions with your room it would mean quite a radical change to make it work so think you stuck with what you have until circumstances change
I tend to agree with Alex around the Tone contol best to bypass this when you upgrade in the future, remember the EQ has already been mixed to tailor its sound