Alex's system

[alex_san78]

http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/6983/img6598i.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/406/img6598i.jpg/)

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here's my technics sl1200 mk2
http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/9199/img6612o.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/88/img6612o.jpg/)

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jelco 750d tonearm
http://img42.imageshack.us/img42/4756/img6601j.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/42/img6601j.jpg/)

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http://img38.imageshack.us/img38/6462/img6603p.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/38/img6603p.jpg/)

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Preamp, phono stage and CD payer:
http://img823.imageshack.us/img823/7486/img6604lu.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/823/img6604lu.jpg/)

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Quad II-forty amp
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/6189/img6605d.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/35/img6605d.jpg/)

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Merry Christmas to all AOS forum members and Happy New Year!

[dantheman91]

:D Hmm quad welcome to the AOS

[DSJR]

Welcome, Merry Christmas to you - and what a lovely system :)

[alex_san78]

Thanks guys! :) I love my system. The main weak point are speakers. They're not the best match for my amps... but will replace them after my daughter will grow enough so they will be secured. :)

[Slippershod]

what a pretty set-up. great stuff.

[MartinT]

Nice system, Alexey. What's the cartridge you're running?

[Alex_UK]

A question or two if I may: ;) What's the cable hanging above the Techie? Is that a mouse or a hamster living under the Techie? And most importantly what's the ghetto blaster at the bottom of the rack? ;)

Looks great Alexey, don't mind my teasing. :)

[Spectral Morn]

Welcome to AOS

Nice set up.

What is the weight you are using on the turntable? Can you post a link to it as it looks very interesting. Thank you in advance.


Regards D S D L

[keiths]

What is the weight you are using on the turntable?


Looks like one of these:

http://www.analogueseduction.net/product/Thorens_Stabilizer_Chrome_Record_Weight_THOR-RW

[Thing Fish]

Nice quad amps...:drool:

[alex_san78]

Nice system, Alexey. What's the cartridge you're running?

Hi Martin!
It's a Benz-Micro Silver cartridge. For the beginning it's OK, but will replace it next year.

Alex

[alex_san78]

A question or two if I may: ;) What's the cable hanging above the Techie? Is that a mouse or a hamster living under the Techie? And most importantly what's the ghetto blaster at the bottom of the rack? ;)

Looks great Alexey, don't mind my teasing. :)

:) On the top of the system it's a projectors screen rope.
And the ghetto blaster :) belongs to my daughter - from time to time we're using it when going outside of Moscow (summer house). Its crap but we knew that it will be destroyed soon... :) My daughter has broken already the antenna and almost broke the CD tray... :) Now she knows how to switch it on, play cd, change the volume (1,4 y.o.).

[alex_san78]

Looks like one of these:

http://www.analogueseduction.net/product/Thorens_Stabilizer_Chrome_Record_Weight_THOR-RW

It is :) Looks and works perfectly!

[alex_san78]

Nice quad amps...:drool:

O yeah! :) Hot stuff! :)

[jandl100]

Nice looking system. :)

I'm curious that a Moscovite has a mostly British hifi. Is that usual in Russia?

[alex_san78]

Nice looking system. :)

I'm curious that a Moscovite has a mostly British hifi. Is that usual in Russia?

Hi Jerry!
:) Taking in consideration long and glorious history of UK sound, it's not really unusual. Some people prefer US type of sound, some Japanese, some German or French school of sound - I do love English one! :D Maybe I will consider old JBL speakers in the future for my system but maybe will stick with Tannoy.

P.S. didn't heard my system since Sunday... going mad... :) In two days New Year and Orthodox Christmas holidays will start in Russia, so I'll have plenty of time for music and for my family (10 days!!!!!:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::D).

[alex_san78]

Some more pics of my old and new bearing...
Technics:
http://img851.imageshack.us/img851/6404/zimg6747.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/851/zimg6747.jpg/)
Mike New's (just before installed):
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/457/zimg6749.th.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/19/zimg6749.jpg/)

[alex_san78]

My new Harbeth SHL5 speakers
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7065/6952666990_a95a584a14_c.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/79305331@N03/6952666990/)

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5279/7098737559_45f5324e82.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/79305331@N03/7098737559/)

[Reid Malenfant]

Nice :) But time for some proper speaker stands me thinks :eyebrows:

[Wakefield Turntables]

My new Harbeth SHL5 speakers
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7065/6952666990_a95a584a14_c.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/79305331@N03/6952666990/)

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5279/7098737559_45f5324e82.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/79305331@N03/7098737559/)

Lovely system. I bet the Harbie's sound great with the Quad gear. I auditioned a pair and just couldn't get on with them. You now need to get an external PSU for your 1210 and get rid of all thoses components from inside your techie, they will be having a seriously negative effect on your deck. ;)

[alex_san78]

Nice :) But time for some proper speaker stands me thinks :eyebrows:

:) Yep. I just got my speakers yesterday so now I'm looking for proper stands. As main option I'm considering Atacama SL series.

[alex_san78]

Lovely system. I bet the Harbie's sound great with the Quad gear. I auditioned a pair and just couldn't get on with them. You now need to get an external PSU for your 1210 and get rid of all thoses components from inside your techie, they will be having a seriously negative effect on your deck. ;)

Hi Andrew! They are perfect! :) I've installed them yesterday but didn't had enough time for listening. But today... From 9AM till now. Non-stop. :) From Jazz to Guns'n Roses. Grate speakers!
As for my Techie, you're right. External PSU is my next (last?) upgrade. Need to choose from several that are available: PH and Main Cables. Paul's are quite expensive... Will see.

[alex_san78]

Hi guys.
Need your advice. I'm on the way to upgrade my pre-amp. So the question is - are there any available tweaks of the QUAD QC24 or shall I look to another pre-amp? If another one, can you please advice me the model.

[hifi_dave]

Croft - as much as you can afford.

[alex_san78]

Croft - as much as you can afford.

This one looks nice: Croft Micro 25 version "R" Pre-amplifier
The price is quite high, hope I can find some good deal. How it will work with the Quad II-forty amps?
Any oter options?

[hifi_dave]

It will work absolutely perfectly. As for options, I can't think of anything, anywhere near the price which is it's equal.

[synsei]

Sorry Alexey but I am a bit late to your thread, that is a wonderful system matey. The Harbeth's were a very good call... :D

[alex_san78]

Thanks Dave! :) Second week that I'm own them. They are simply fantastic... ;)

[Wakefield Turntables]

Alex,

An all Quad system synergistically is VERY hard to beat, I have a full Quad 77 pre-amp and x2 power amp setup and when played through my then Quad 22L speakers sounded bloody lovely, are you sure you wanna bust up your all Quad system:scratch: Croft stuff is also very nice and may actually work very well with your Quad gear, I'd really recommend an audition before making any rushed decision. Now regarding your 1210, defo get the PSU sorted before worrying about a platter. I'm selling my TimeStep HE PSU which is very good, there are better out there but would cost more.

Andy

[alex_san78]

Hi Andrew,
The thing is that my CDs sound less lively then my vinyl. I would even say that they're dead... :) That's not only my observation. It could be due to Quad CDS performance is far behind my vinyl equipment... So I will have a look on both parties - the preamp and the CD itself.
As for the TimeStep HE PSU thanks for your offer, but I am not considering TimeStep equipment for me due to I had bad connection with the owner I think or maybe with some of his managers... Black listed. Any of their equipment. :)

[hifi_dave]

The best stands, by a country mile, I have found for the Harbeth range are Something Solid. A lightweight but rigid open frame. What you really don't want is a mass loaded column of any sort.

Ideally, you should move the speakers away from the walls at a level in front of the speakers and wider apart if you can.

I've had a few customers for 'British hi-fi' from the Moscow area.

[alex_san78]

At the moment my Harbeth speakers already impressed me a lot. :) They are about 45 cm from the wall and 50 cm from the floor. I wonder what will happen when I'll find right stands for them. The Skylan looks OK but for the plastic stands they are overpriced and frankly speaking they feel cheap when you're touching them. Adjusting the spikes is another issue on Skylans... What stand can you suggest to me Dave?

[hifi_dave]

As I said above - the Something Solid XF. They sound much cleaner, better focussed and dynamic than the mass loaded variety. On the Something Solid stands, the spikes are adjusted from above.

[Tim]

What stand can you suggest to me Dave?
Something Solid XF Stands ;)
David I think can source these for you - I have the Atacam SL stands as a stop gap, as I had nothing else. My recommendation would be to get the SS XF's, you will ultimately sell the Atacamas and as you have a stop gap already, don't go for the Atacamas - mine are being sold very soon and I am going for the SS XF's. And as said, bringing the Harbies a little away from the wall if at all possible and moving them further apart will open them up. I love mine to death and they are never leaving me ;)

http://i457.photobucket.com/albums/qq295/musical_submarine/Harbeth2/DSC04845.jpg

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showpost.php?p=219616&postcount=1

(I hope its OK to link to your pics Joe?)

[alex_san78]

:) That's a good name for an AC rack. :) What's the price for it for SHL5?

[alex_san78]

Thanks Tim for your advice. They’re shortlisted now. :)
My feelings are same as yours. Will keep them for life :)

[hifi_dave]

I'm getting a bit confused..:scratch:..what's an "AC rack" ?

I can, indeed, supply the Something Solid stands. They are made to fit the speaker and to a height to suit your ear when seated. IMO, it is vital with most speakers, to get the tweeter at the correct height.

[alex_san78]

Sorry for my English - AC stand... :)
What will be the price for them? I didn't found SS stands on your web site.

[hifi_dave]

Alex, it's probably best if you PM or e-mail me and we can discuss it properly.

[alex_san78]

Hi guys!
Long time to see you. :)
Some changes in my system... I had to sell my power amps last week. Miss them.
So now I'm looking for a new power amp or pair of monoblocks. Have heard already Rega Brio R (just to see the difference :) ), Leema Tucana II (didn't like it), Naim 252 (to aggressive), Bryston 4B SST2 (not bad but with my pre amp it was to soft on rock music, with Audio Research pre it was to analytical, with Leema pre it was terrible...), Plinius SA-103 also with my pre amp - at the moment THE BEST. :)
Will have some more listening sessions next week, so hopefully will make the best choise.
If you can give some advice on what else should i look to, I will appreciate that.
Cheers.

[alex_san78]

Forgot to mention that I have also had the opportunity to take home for audition Sugden MASTERCLASS IA-4 and have also heard with SHL 5 a setup from CARY Audio SA 500.1 monoblocks with CARY Audio SLP 05 pre amp + Transrotor tt.
Sugden is not for me. Not my type of sound.
Cary was really fantastic. And the price of Cary was... :)

[plastic penguin]

Forgot to mention that I have also had the opportunity to take home for audition Sugden MASTERCLASS


Hi Alex.

Oooo... must say I'm an envious bunny. The Masterclass is great. May also be worth considering, if you can locate the brand, Accuphase.

(PP quickly compiles a early Santa list) :D

[jandl100]

Interesting comment that you didn't like the Leema Tucana. I've always wanted to try one, but haven't yet.

What was wrong with the sound for you, Alex?

[alex_san78]

Hi Alex.

Oooo... must say I'm an envious bunny. The Masterclass is great. May also be worth considering, if you can locate the brand, Accuphase.

(PP quickly compiles a early Santa list) :D

Hi Richard!
The Masterclass was good, but not enough for me. :) It was good for jazz and classic music but not for rock music.
Will try to find some dealers that have Accuphase and Harbeth in their showroom to arrange proper listening session.

Best regards,

[alex_san78]

Interesting comment that you didn't like the Leema Tucana. I've always wanted to try one, but haven't yet.

What was wrong with the sound for you, Alex?

Hi Jerry,

Well, honestly I have also expected a lot from this amp. But... At least with Harbeth SHL5 the sound was to soft and with very small amount of details. It's like a dirty window - you can see something, but you don't see everything and you even don't like to look through this window... Maybe with other speakers it will shine... Not with Harbeth.

P.S. Had also the opportunity to hear Leema's pre amp Pyxis with Bryston 4B SST2 with Harbeth - same story. Dead music. :) With My QUAD QC24 Pre, the music was sounding so real. The guys from the dealer showroom were really surprised. The price difference of my pre amp and Leema's is 4 times...:scratch:

Best regards,

[Reffc]

Hi Alex

Interesting thread and in some ways I still miss my SHL5s. Getting them to rock or do deep bass was always a struggle as that's not really their forte but having said that, I once tried them with a tweaked (upgraded) Quad 405, and that was quite a decent match. You can buy the tweaked versions for under £400 if you search around. I think that Alan Shaw still uses Quad amps with his Harbeths :scratch: The Moon i5 is also well worth a shout with the Harbeths, although it is an integrated. Fab amp and again, reasonable used prices.

[alex_san78]

Thanks for the advice. Moon is not very loved in Russia...
I will have an audition this weekend of Quad 909 amp just to understand the difference with more expensive amps. I don't expect anything interesting from it. Will see.
BTW, today I have auditioned the Harbeth SHL 5 with Nime SuperUniti. Terrible sound. Flat and dead. Best words that will describe this combo.
Hope that will get ATC integrated soon for audition and maybe one EAR 899 (again valve amp...).
Still Plinius Sa-103 is the best for me among those auditioned amps. The only point is the price... :)
P.S. Harbeth are not easy load for amps. :) At least SHL 5 model. Trust me. :)

Best regards,

[jandl100]

Thanks for the comments about the Leema amps, Alex. Very interesting and quite surprising, not what I'd expected at all!

I had Leema Xavier speakers for quite a while - they were amazingly good, overall quite possibly the best traditional 'cones and dome in a box' speaker I have heard.

[alex_san78]

Thanks for the comments about the Leema amps, Alex. Very interesting and quite surprising, not what I'd expected at all!

I had Leema Xavier speakers for quite a while - they were amazingly good, overall quite possibly the best traditional 'cones and dome in a box' speaker I have heard.

Hi Jerry,
It might be the combo of Leema with Harbeth. Today I herd it with Heco (their reference speakers) and was not really satisfied with the sound. It was a bit different from Harbeth SHL5 but still not my type of sound.

[alex_san78]

Hi guys! I have had the chance to test in my apartment Quad 909 amp.
Here is the story... Short one. :)
The amp is very powerful and dynamic with deep bass.
What I've liked: Plenty of power to drive SHL5 speakers, deep bass and very involving sound, not too aggressive.
Cons.: It lacks microdynamics, air, bass articulation and details are far from my expectations, the sound is too plain and without good manners if I can say so.
Still the amp is a real treasure in this price range in my understanding. And if your speakers are not so demanding and your favorite music is Rock, give it a chance to prove what is made of! :)
P.S. I'm done with cheap amps. :)

Cheers!

[alex_san78]

Hy everyone! After 4 month of research, finally got my NEW amp today! :)
In a few days will provide some more details. See ya! :)

[alex_san78]

Some pictures of m new Plinius Sa-103:
http://img30.imageshack.us/img30/6782/36r.JPG (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/30/36r.JPG/)

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http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/4230/2xr8.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/15/2xr8.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/6389/2e07.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/708/2e07.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/1500/bqio.JPG (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/198/bqio.JPG/)

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[Wakefield Turntables]

shit! that looks good.

[WOStantonCS100]

Beastly!!!

[alex_san78]

shit! that looks good.
Well, it's not just looks good. My first experience with classic music was awesome! Class A is a must.... :)
And yes, it's really heavy. :) I have managed to unpack and install it myself.
Runs really hot in class A, like a valve amp. :)

[walpurgis]

Nice. Yes solid state 'Class A' has a sound of its own, a very good one!

I use one of these with mine: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MEI-XING-MC-9-Passive-Preamplifier-Recommended-/170465480435?pt=US_Home_Audio_Amplifiers_Preamps&hash=item27b088cef3

It sounds sensational!

[alex_san78]

At the moment I'm using QUAD QC24 pre. How the one yo're describing will compare with QUAD?

[realysm42]

That things a mutant lol!

[walpurgis]

At the moment I'm using QUAD QC24 pre. How the one yo're describing will compare with QUAD?

Not having used the Quad I can't say, but it runs rings round my VTL Deluxe and Forte Model 2 (which I sold recently). The new unit is a proper TVC pre-amp and has gain, not a huge amount though, about 6db if I recall. It works fine with every power amp I've tried it with. Input options are limited, but I don't mind that as I seldom swap sources. A friend of mine bought one too after hearing mine to replace his EAR 834L and it's doing a great job with an EAR 861 power amp. He only has two sources and just uses the balanced and unbalanced inputs switching between the two. Seems to work. It's made by Ming Da, so the quality is very good, it's an absolute bargain at the asking price..

[alex_san78]

Not having used the Quad I can't say, but it runs rings round my VTL Deluxe and Forte Model 2 (which I sold recently). The new unit is a proper TVC pre-amp and has gain, not a huge amount though, about 6db if I recall. It works fine with every power amp I've tried it with. Input options are limited, but I don't mind that as I seldom swap sources. A friend of mine bought one too after hearing mine to replace his EAR 834L and it's doing a great job with an EAR 861 power amp. He only has two sources and just uses the balanced and unbalanced inputs switching between the two. Seems to work. It's made by Ming Da, so the quality is very good, it's an absolute bargain at the asking price..

Thanks! Will consider it for me. The only point is that both sources I have are unbalanced... :) Will have to change my DAC.

[alex_san78]

That things a mutant lol!

:) Something like that. :) Had some more time today to listen some rock music - WOW! :) Didn't knew that my speakers have such a deap bass... :)

[alex_san78]

BTW got the new preamp few days ago. This one: http://www.pliniusaudio.com/Plinius_Range/Preamplifiers/Tautoro.html but in black.
Still packed. Will conect it in comming week or two due to we're moving to another flat.
Now I'll have to find the right power cable for this "litle" preamp and a good XLR-XLR cable...
More to come. :)

[alex_san78]

Last changes: I've sold my rack due to it didn't suite the amp.
The new preamp Plinius Tautoro is magic with the SA103 amp. So much more details discovered! :)
I have changed the flat... :) Listening room is smaller than the ex-one so there are some room issues to be solved.
Pictures will follow.

[struth]

Look forward to seeing the pictures Alexey