Hackney's set up

[HackneyRF]

Hi folks

So I got around to taking some photographs of my kit. I was a little apprehensive at first. Some of the equipment people have on here is really jaw droopingly good and at times the knowledge people have is, well....intimidating. But never once have I felt intimidated on here, indeed quite the opposite. It's a really friendly, open and inviting forum with not a sniff of Hi-Fi snobbery or elitism.

Anyway here is a few photos of my set up. I'm always open to suggestions/thoughts on it, so don't be shy. It will evolve over time, things will come and go, things may start to look different. I'll update as it does.

Cheers

Loz

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/image.jpg2_1.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/image.jpg4_1.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/image.jpg1_3.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/image.jpg6.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/image.jpg5.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/image.jpg7.jpg

[The Black Adder]

Cool.. simple and clean... :) I likes it.

love the TT.

[Ali Tait]

Nowt wrong with that little lot. Takes up less space than mine, that's for sure..

[Wakefield Turntables]

Nothing wrong with that system, nice tidy and so long as you get enjoyment out of that's all that matters.

[stairpost]

Looks like a nice tidy set up, lovely TT.

I can't stand hifi snobbery either, nice to have a forum free of it.

If someone really enjoys what they are listening to then they have a great system, whatever it is.

[Idlewithnodrive]

Great looking rig Loz; nothing at all wrong with that :)

[Tarzan]

Cool.. simple and clean... :) I likes it.

love the TT.


Very nice!:eek: Love the look of the Thorens.

[walpurgis]

Very smart!

[Roy S]

Nice one Loz

[Floyddroid]

Lovely kit.

[Tarzan]

Looks like a nice tidy set up, lovely TT.

I can't stand hifi snobbery either, nice to have a forum free of it.

If someone really enjoys what they are listening to then they have a great system, whatever it is.


:yesbruv: Amen to that.

[HackneyRF]

Many thanks to you all for those positive comments.

Cheers

Loz

[struth]

ni e looking speakers...what model of Adam are they?

[Marco]

So I got around to taking some photographs of my kit. I was a little apprehensive at first. Some of the equipment people have on here is really jaw droopingly good and at times the knowledge people have is, well....intimidating. But never once have I felt intimidated on here, indeed quite the opposite. It's a really friendly, open and inviting forum with not a sniff of Hi-Fi snobbery or elitism.


Hi Loz,

Very nice of you to say, as that is precisely the vibe we aim for on AoS: it matters not a jot if your hi-fi budget is £100 or £100k - you'll be treated exactly the same, and with respect :)

That's a great little system; sometimes the simple ones are best! ;) What cartridge are you using on the Thorens?

Anyway, I hope you continue to enjoy the forum and become a regular contributor.

Marco.

[Anthony K]

Very tidy system , always wanted that deck, may I ask what interconnects and speaker cable you are using?

[HackneyRF]

ni e looking speakers...what model of Adam are they?

They are ARTist 5's Grant

[HackneyRF]

Hi Loz,

Very nice of you to say, as that is precisely the vibe we aim for on AoS: it matters not a jot if your hi-fi budget is £100 or £100k - you'll be treated exactly the same, and with respect :)

That's a great little system; sometimes the simple ones are best! ;) What cartridge are you using on the Thorens?



Anyway, I hope you continue to enjoy the forum and become a regular contributor.

Marco.

Hi Marco
Thanks. Well it has a modest Dual badged AT91 on it. I want to upgrade that element in time when finances allow. I have already asked other members their advice about that here.

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?38797-Cartridge-upgrade-on-Thorens-TD160

Feel free to offer any thoughts on that. All advice welcome

All the best

Loz

[Marco]

Cheers for that, Loz. I'll pop over and have a look when I get a chance :)

Marco.

[HackneyRF]

Very tidy system , always wanted that deck, may I ask what interconnects and speaker cable you are using?


Hi Anthony

Thanks. The TD160 is a fine deck. Highly recommended.

Well the speakers are active and they are connected to the amplifier by QED Performance Audio Graphite RCA cables as are the SACD player cables. TT cables are Neutrik RCA. How about yourself, what is your system?

All the best

Loz

[Anthony K]

Hi Loz, I play Vinyl on a Project 2 which I purchased years ago , but much prefer my digital headphone set up, it can be viewed in the gallery section, take a look and see what you think :)

[HackneyRF]

Hi Loz, I play Vinyl on a Project 2 which I purchased years ago , but much prefer my digital headphone set up, it can be viewed in the gallery section, take a look and see what you think :)

Certainly looks the business Anthony, are there some phot0graphs missing from your post?

[struth]

They are ARTist 5's Grant

nice speakers . Not seen that model b4

[Anthony K]

Yes for some reason they seem to have been taken down , the mains cables are Nordost Heimdall 2 on cd (a recent change ) Argentum acoustics 12 on amp and Shunyata taipan on Isotek Orion . Bryston CD player to Lehmann head amp to Grado GS1000. The interconnects are Graditech Kide 3 .I also have a Vertex aq Jaya which works well at controlling noise and stray frequencies.

[jandl100]

Nice system, Loz.
I've heard Adam speakers quite a few times at hifi shows, small ones up to big ones, and I have always enjoyed them. :)

[HackneyRF]

nice speakers . Not seen that model b4

I believe they are aimed at the computer/digital audio crowd but for home use Grant. I had bought them for that purpose, but found they sounded great with analogue stuff too. The sound reproduction absolutely belies their diminutive size. Very pleased with them.

[HackneyRF]

Nice system, Loz.
I've heard Adam speakers quite a few times at hifi shows, small ones up to big ones, and I have always enjoyed them. :)


Cheers Jerry

Out of curiosity, if you can remember, did the 'big ones' live up to the high price tags?

[jandl100]

Cheers Jerry

Out of curiosity, if you can remember, did the 'big ones' live up to the high price tags?

Sadly, once you allow for the big and good and seriously powerful on board amps, yes. Something of a bargain, really - a proper audiophool brand would have a queue if they asked twice as much, imho.

[HackneyRF]

Yes for some reason they seem to have been taken down , the mains cables are Nordost Heimdall 2 on cd (a recent change ) Argentum acoustics 12 on amp and Shunyata taipan on Isotek Orion . Bryston CD player to Lehmann head amp to Grado GS1000. The interconnects are Graditech Kide 3 .I also have a Vertex aq Jaya which works well at controlling noise and stray frequencies.

Sounds great Anthony, pity the photos are missing!

[HackneyRF]

Sadly, once you allow for the big and good and seriously powerful on board amps, yes. Something of a bargain, really - a proper audiophool brand would have a queue if they asked twice as much, imho.

I guess I better start saving up then Jerry!

[Reffc]

Nice set up Loz, and I agree with Jerry. The floor standing Adams audio actives are something of a hifi bargain for vfm and sound quality. Very good indeed. I listened to the Classic Series Mk3 shortly after release and its a pretty stunning sounding loudspeaker if you have the cash resources. At £5200 including all the inbuilt amplifiers, they have to be something of a hifi bargain for what they do.

[Anthony K]

Sounds great Anthony, pity the photos are missing!

I will attempt to update the photos in the near future

[HackneyRF]

Nice set up Loz, and I agree with Jerry. The floor standing Adams audio actives are something of a hifi bargain for vfm and sound quality. Very good indeed. I listened to the Classic Series Mk3 shortly after release and its a pretty stunning sounding loudspeaker if you have the cash resources. At £5200 including all the inbuilt amplifiers, they have to be something of a hifi bargain for what they do.

Cheers Paul

I do wonder if Adam are somewhat thought of in the Hi-Fi world as being well....a Pro Audio company! There seems to be scant mention of the home audio stuff online.

[HackneyRF]

I thought it was time for a little update of how things are shaping up with my set up now. With the help and advice of fellow members there has been several changes. The Thorens has been replinthed with an Ash Pope made plinth, and one of his Perspex covers, cartridge upgraded to a Denon DL110 and replaced headshell wiring with Cardas wires. Cabling is slowly being upgraded with MS Audio/Klotz5000 thanks to Brian. Running a Pi/Audiophonics I-Sabre DAC ES9023 and Chromecast for all my digital stuff. Gone is the two teir rack to Ian (ijrussell) up in The Midlands. In the meantime I was given an old piece of IKEA furniture which I tarted up with a lick of paint. This is my temporary rack until funds allow for something a bit more elegant.

I think overall my set up has never been/sounded better. Each source imparts its own uniqueness, and I'm really enjoying listening to my music in all of these different ways. And it's fun shifting back and forth between digital and analogue. Although, and I guess this is a given, I am now feeling a slight itch that I may have to scratch at some point. As great as the Adam speakers sound, I am contemplating going back to a passive speaker set up. Of course I'll be looking for suggestions on that when the time comes. So a few photos to show how things are looking. No close ups, they are more about the space really.

Cheers and thanks to those who have helped with advice etc along the way.

Loz



http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/Mobile%20Uploads/20160416_202831.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/Mobile%20Uploads/20160416_202853.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/Mobile%20Uploads/20160416_202407.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/Mobile%20Uploads/20160416_202816.jpg

[Firebottle]

Lovely set-up, I notice you are keeping the beer hidden - hope it was something nice ;)

[Frazeur1]

Fantastic looking space to relax and settle in to good music! Enjoy!

[HackneyRF]

Lovely set-up, I notice you are keeping the beer hidden - hope it was something nice ;)

Just an ordinary old Hobgoblin Alan, that's as good as it gets from my corner shop but it goes down very nicely!

[HackneyRF]

Fantastic looking space to relax and settle in to good music! Enjoy!

Thanks Timothy
Probably too relaxing mate, need to get out a bit more with Spring/Summer upon us. ;)

[Firebottle]

Just an ordinary old Hobgoblin Alan, that's as good as it gets from my corner shop but it goes down very nicely!

No ordinary Hobgoblin Loz, that's one of my favourite beers (there are a few), enjoy!

:)

[tapid]

Cosy looking listening room there, like the way the street stretches down both sides of the road. Hackney s a really up and coming area lately ( house prices gulp ! )I always enjoy my bike ride from Camden town
along the canal path through to victoria park. nice system btw, good use of alcove.

[HackneyRF]

Thanks Brian

I'm Walthamstow nowadays. The cost of housing in Hackney forced a move. And those are Warner Flats running up the street. Yes Gotta love the canal rides around London. Between Camden and here being particularly good.

[HackneyRF]

An update.

So my set up is slowly evolving. My Adam active speakers have been put to one side for a while and i have introduced these Kef Reference 103 speakers. Early impressions are very good, sounding very open indeed on some of my favourite recordings. I think as a result I have come to realise that the Adams actually sound 'boxed in' by comparison. Cables are Fisual Hollywood Dark Twist as recommended elsewhere on AoS. Aesthetically they get my wife's approval and she also commented on the 'open sound'. A winner all around then! I think they look rather nice too.

I'll stick some better photos up when I get the chance.

But for the moment I'll just sit back, get to know them a bit more and enjoy

All the best

Loz

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/Kef%201st%20photo_1.jpg

[walpurgis]

The Reference 103 have a fine reputation. One of KEF's best compact speakers.

[Firebottle]

Good one Loz, glad it's doing the business for both of you :)

[Macca]

Good photograph too.

[HackneyRF]

A small update to report. Some of you might remember my frustrating channel dropping woes recently. So fingers crossed this Schopper TP60 headshell replacement has solved it! Aesthetically I prefer the original TP60 but this one looks not bad at all. Sonically it's in the testing stage. Not much obvious difference noticed so far but I'll give it some time.

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/20170402_194539.jpg

http://i1169.photobucket.com/albums/r502/lozring/20170402_194555.jpg

[HackneyRF]

Well over three years since I last updated with a photograph! Changes go at a snails pace with me. Amplifier is now a Audiolab 8000A, phono stage is a Firebottle +. The Thorens TD160 is currently up in the Midlands with Angus having some magic sprinkled on it along with a Toshiba SR370 that may/may not make into my set up! Oh and I had a TT shelf made for me by a really nice guy in Exeter. Looks nice i think and no more wobbles when anyone stomps over the floorboards!

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50154980557_d357dae76f_c.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/2jq2om6)TT Shelf (https://flic.kr/p/2jq2om6) by Loz Ring (https://www.flickr.com/photos/147459222@N02/), on Flickr

[Idlewithnodrive]

Love the look of your TT :stalks:

[HackneyRF]

Thanks Mike. Very happy with it. Sure, there are many better out there but it does what I ask of it very well for a fraction of the cost and will still be around when I'm no longer. 😉

[jahsavage]

Hi Loz

I like the look of those speakers could you tell us some more about them such as age and sound, they look ideal for a small apartment?

Thanks

[HackneyRF]

Hi Loz

I like the look of those speakers could you tell us some more about them such as age and sound, they look ideal for a small apartment?

Thanks

Hi Paul

Which one are you referring to? There are Adam Audio Artist 5's early in the thread or Kef Reference 103's in the later photos.

Cheers

Loz

[HackneyRF]

https://i.ibb.co/DV3zB59/20230226-130540.jpg (https://ibb.co/r7nFB4x)

[Barry]

What is it - record player, amplifier or the speakers?

[HackneyRF]

Amplifier Barry.