Late Night System

[Ninanina]

I've just discovered that my system is also great for late nights when listening at low levels :)

I'd love a detached house but its not to be, therefore, like many others, I have to consider my lovely neighbours. Luckily I've discovered that my current system is able to give the impression of full range even at much reduced listening levels. I put that down to having very sensitive speakers, about 96dB 'ish, even when driven with a mere 8w of Audio Note

The only other system I've had that gave similar results, with the volume turned down, was using Quad 57's

The Heresy's seem so clear and defined at pretty low levels, it's so emotional too

Anyone else have a great late night system ?

[The Grand Wazoo]

Yes, my night system has a few special elements:
1. 2 foot thick solid stone walls
2. a neighbour to one side who works away a lot
3. a church as the other neighbour

[The Grand Wazoo]

Yes, my night system has a few special elements:
1. 2 foot thick solid stone walls
2. a neighbour to one side who works away a lot
3. a church as the other neighbour

[The Grand Wazoo]

........and an echo!

[daytona600]

Very hard trick to pull-off a system that sounds nice and dynamic at very low levels
Find Efficient single driver horns & Stats do a rather fine job

[Andrew B]

I really love my Puresound A30 and Audio Note Ks for this very reason.

I got hooked on insane volume levels with a Krell amp driving Impulse horns and I almost missed how good the Puresound can be because I was trying to make A/B comparisons when it first came my way. Listening to the amp on it's own terms, I quickly realised how beautiful it can sound.

I almost never listen loud any more. I don't have to make sure the neighbours are out, I don't suffer from room effects (suspended wood floor), I can listen as late as I like and I get more enjoyment than ever. I'd still love a detached too, but at least the hifi isn't the main reason anymore!

I'm out of the UK until the end of the summer now, but I also have a pair of Heresies lined up for when I return. I still want La Scalas , but that means me converting the oversized and oddly shaped garage into a listening room. As I seem to be getting ever more lazy, this may take a while :)

[Anti Meep]

Yup, one of the things I love about my system is its ability to convey a great sense of scale and musical emotion at low spl's. There are times when the only real chance I get to listen are really late at night and into the early morning. Our bedroom is just through the wall behind the speakers so I don't get a second chance if I open the choke too much:D
Late night listening always seems to sound more pure too. Maybe cleaner power since the rest of the hood are in bed with all their TV's and computers turned off.
Craig.

[Marco]

Very hard trick to pull-off a system that sounds nice and dynamic at very low levels
Find Efficient single driver horns & Stats do a rather fine job

Not sure if it's really hard, Scott, or simply just a matter of assembling the right group of components... :)

I only have to use two clicks on my preamp, from the off position (that's like the 7 o'clock position on amps whose volume pots start at '6pm'), to fill either my dedicated listening room upstairs, where the Lockwoods live, with musically convincing sound, or to create the same effect downstairs in the lounge (a much larger room), where the Celestion 66s are. 'Cranking it up' is only required if I want to shift air, to create 'physicality' and achieve a 'live performance' effect.

I completely agree with Bev. Her Heresys (like Tannoy DCs, etc, and even my Celestion 66s) are voiced like all good speakers were at one time: able to 'breathe' properly, and where the sound had scale and 'presence' without them needing listened to loudly - and that, amongst other things, comes largely down to efficiency. I simply cannot fathom why anyone would want to own 'hard to drive' (low-efficiency) speakers!

Think about it: don't the very descriptions of 'hard to drive' and 'difficult load' just sound WRONG and therefore the concept, completely 'arse about tit'?? :doh: Employing a 'monster amp' to 'wake up' up a pair of stubbornly inefficient speakers is, IMO (and experience), as daft as using a sledgehammer to crack a nut!!

Why make anything hard or difficult?

For me, the answer to achieving musical satisfaction (and realism) from a hi-fi system is to give the electronics and speakers an EASY time of it, which means the boxes kept as simple inside as possible, with no excess amount of components, and thus over-complication, strangling the music signal (although what's in there should be as high-quality as possible), coupled to speakers that don't require large amounts of cone excursion to 'come alive' and make a convincingly realistic (BIG) sound :exactly:

This is where the best valve amps (with their simple, high-quality, hard-wired circuits) and high-efficiency speakers, with uncomplicated, high-quality crossovers, and crucially, which feature the use of large (lightweight) cones, which don't have to move much in order to make a big sound, come into their own. Quite simply, give your kit and speakers as EASY a time of it as possible, by keeping things simple, stupid: using the old K.I.S.S principle. *THAT*, in my experience, is the most effective way of achieving musical nirvana.

Marco.

[dantheman91]

Not sure if it's really hard, Scott, or simply just a matter of assembling the right group of components... :)

I completely agree with Bev. Her Heresys (like Tannoy DCs, etc, and even my Celestion 66s) are voiced like all good speakers were at one time: able to 'breathe' properly, and where the sound had scale and 'presence' without them needing listened to loudly - and that, amongst other things, comes largely down to efficiency. I simply cannot fathom why anyone would want to own 'hard to drive' (low-efficiency) speakers!

Think about it: don't the very descriptions of 'hard to drive' and 'difficult load' just sound WRONG and therefore the concept, completely 'arse about tit'?? :doh: Employing a 'monster amp' to 'wake up' up a pair of stubbornly inefficient speakers is, IMO (and experience), as daft as using a sledgehammer to crack a nut!!

For me, the answer to achieving musical satisfaction (and realism) from a hi-fi system is to give the electronics and speakers an EASY time of it, which means the boxes kept as simple inside as possible, with no excess amount of components, and thus over-complication, strangling the music signal (although what's in there should be as high-quality as possible), coupled to speakers that don't require large amounts of cone excursion to 'come alive' and make a convincingly realistic sound :exactly:

This is where the best valve amps (with their simple, high-quality, hard-wired circuits) and high-efficiency speakers, with simple, high-quality crossovers, and crucially, which feature the use of large (lightweight) cones that don't have to move much, in order to make a big sound, come into their own. Quite simply, give your kit and speakers an EASY time of it, by keeping things simple, stupid: using the old K.I.S.S principle, as *that*, IME, is the best way to achieve musical nirvana.

Marco.



+1 :)

[Marco]

There's a balance to be had, though, as ever... 95db efficient is about as far as I'd go with speakers, before one compromises on bass response. I'm as NOT into using, 'flea-powered' 2W SET valve amps with 110db speakers, as I am 84db efficient speakers with 400W solid-state behemoths!! :nono:

As usual in audio, the best solution lies somewhere in the middle ground... Quite simply, when the sonic compromises begin to outweigh the benefits, you know that you've gone too far one way or the other. Extremes are never the answer to anything! ;)

Marco.