Frankyc2003's System

[Frankyc2003]

Right, since I am brand new to this forum, I'd better introduce my setup in more detail.
http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/IMG00015-20100815-1548.jpg
http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/IMG00014-20100815-1546.jpg
That's the whole lot there.

I run a Project Xperience 2 with a Sumiko Blue Point 2 cartridge.
An Arcam CD82

all that going into a Conrad Johnson PV12A preamp
and vertically Bi-amping 2 Cyrus 8 Power.

ICs are VanDenHul D 102 mkiii from deck to Pre
Nordost Blue Heaven from CD to pre
Cambridge Audio Artic from Pre to both Powers.

All this then run into a pair of PROAC Studio 110 with Monster M1.4s Biwire cable.

I listen to loads of Jazz and Classical, and I collect vinyls...

:)

Francois, London, UK

[petea]

Hi Francois,

Nicely integrated. I assume those shelves slide out to give access to cables etc. What are the individual units standing on. I'm in the process of 'designing' some 'hi'fi' furniture myself so I'm looking for inspiration.

[DSJR]

Can you investigate isolation for the turntable. A stone chopping block sitting on half-squash-balls would make a good start I think ;)

[petea]

Stone, acrylic and more wood are next on the list after the session on wood, rubber and glass (almost sounds like I'm on the wrong sort of forum here ;) ) - http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=7235

[DSJR]

Oo-er missus ;)

[Frankyc2003]

Basically its an original piece of furniture from Danemark that I have stripped from one of its back plate. It then gives full access to the back plugs.
The piece of furniture rests on the carpet, no spikes as it is heavy! So no trouble about vibration. And the kit rests on slices of insulation pipe. I kind of change it every 3 month, when it slouches too much...
I have been toying with the idea of a dedicated plinth for the turntable so I will investigate different avenues... Thanks for the suggestion.

[Jason P]

Nice setup Francois, and a superb avatar BTW! Takes me back...

HijvLV63rKk

[Frankyc2003]

Thanks a lot Jason...

What a clip! I absolutely love the cut up sequence at the end, great music too!

[Frankyc2003]

Afternoon Ladies and gentlemen,

I thought after a couple of years I should really update this thread with some more up to date piccies...

First a pic of the Ariand PRO845SE, a wonderful SET amplifier running a pair of brand new Psvane tubes...

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20120519_165125.jpg


http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20120519_165145.jpg

It produces a healthy 28W, plenty for my sensitive Triangle Antal ES (92dB)... Both are connected with Tellurium Q Black cables

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20120519_165212.jpg

I have just recently added a pair of ribbon super tweeters handmade by Derek Brooks... great addition in my eyes (ears...). A lot more air and space around the music has suddenly appeared...

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20120519_165254.jpg

Then we have my beloved Gyro, with updated platter and HR PSU. The arm is a SME 309, which is a great upgrade from the tecnoarm in my opinion. A lot less fussy to setup and much more friendly to a wide range of cartridges... The cartridge is a Rondo bronze from Ortofon and it is all connected to a Tom Evans Microgroove Plus with the Lithos PSU.
Onto the ugly duckling of the system, my laptop running Sonata music server...

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20120519_165338.jpg

Ohh ugly hulk of plastic, USB linked to a rDac from Arcam... What a great little DAC, I can't stop being surprised by the quality of such a small box. It is connected to the CA Azur 650BD via SPDIF...

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20120519_165405.jpg

And that's about it. Now we are really up to date...
And the missus is away till diner, so I am blazzing some tunes!:cool:

happy Weekend to all!:grouphug:

[wiicrackpot]

Francois, lovely system, bet it sounds sublime, :cool: can i ask you do you own a RCM?, can't help but notice the amount of record cleaning stuff you have,
most concerning of all is your continue use of the Last Stylus fluids, there has been reports of cartridge damage due to it's use, Google is your friend on this issue,
i personally don't like putting fluids on vinyl or stylus.

wii.

[Frankyc2003]

Ahah, indeed I am very happy with the sound it makes...
I own a mini record cleaning machine, a Disco Antistat... I fill it up with L'art Du Son, sounds like it works well for me...
I know that the LAST products have had a bit of a rap on the web... I used them on 3 cartridges, and none had any problems...:scratch:
I am pretty careful though applying it...
But I take your word of advice. How do you look after your cartridges?

[wiicrackpot]

Francois, if you've used it for a few years with various carts with no harm done, who are we to say otherwise, do you need anymore?,
i've got quite a few bottles for the various stages of the stylii cleaning ritual, price of postage and it's yours.

Of the most serious i've read is the capillary effect having apply too much fluid and it's drawn up the cantilever into the fragile coils,
me i just carbon brush record and Dom's putty the stylus, besides i've never been too hung up about the whole cleaning thing.

wii.

[Frankyc2003]

Dom's putty? What is it?

[wiicrackpot]

Scroll down the bottom. ;)

http://northwestanalogue.weebly.com/shop.html

[Frankyc2003]

ordered!

thanks for the heads up!
:cool:

Otis Redding is playing now... I love Saturdays!!!

[Frankyc2003]

It is now high time to post an update on my system...

The last few weeks have been eventful!

Thanks to Rob (Puffin) I have had the chance to acquire his home made Fostex based Horns. A well documented design, based on the Fostex 206 full range driver.:cool:

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20130415_225928_zps7c952efd.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/20130415_225928_zps7c952efd.jpg.html)

Big, chunky enclosures, finished in black gloss... 60 kilograms each! indeed, we are talking solid wood here, and in multi layered quantities. And castors provide easy placement within the room... (great design Rob!)

The construction and design are discussed here:
http://www.atrj13.dsl.pipex.com/na-fostex_fe208es_rear_horn.htm

And as highlighted here, I have also implemented my supertweeters with some high grade Polypropylene 1uF capacitor...

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/20130415_225953_zps749bab20.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/20130415_225953_zps749bab20.jpg.html)

They are basically still bedding in. Constant listening is imperative!:eyebrows:
Those coils need to move!

So I will give it a bit more time to make some solid initial impressions and I will post a complete review in the next few days!

[Puffin]

I missed this thread when you posted your initial pics. I must update (if I ever did post any pics:scratch:) my system. It is very different to that of late and back to what it was...oooh about 15 years ago:lol:

[realysm42]

If you don't mind me asking how much were your super tweeters? And do you have a link to their spec?

Great looking system btw.

[Frankyc2003]

Cheers guys!

The supertweeters were I believe £135...

The guy making them is called Derek Brooks, he used to advertise his stuff on eBay, but now has gone to Gumtree...

here is the link...
http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/custom-sls-audio-ribbon-super-tweeters-pair/1013713334

the specs of mine are almost identical to these...

Hope this helps!

[Frankyc2003]

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/temporary_zps9b2a0917.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/temporary_zps9b2a0917.jpg.html)

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/temporary_zps81fa9cc1.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/temporary_zps81fa9cc1.jpg.html)

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/temporary_zps31f65179.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/temporary_zps31f65179.jpg.html)

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/temporary_zps82aa48b3.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/temporary_zps82aa48b3.jpg.html)

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/temporary_zps57f345b2.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/temporary_zps57f345b2.jpg.html)

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/1d26987b-a397-4bd7-87f6-f0cb9a604e9a_zps35f2f053.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/1d26987b-a397-4bd7-87f6-f0cb9a604e9a_zps35f2f053.jpg.html)

http://i835.photobucket.com/albums/zz275/frankyc2003/7a40551a-d1c3-4428-9c0b-4ba188cbd222_zpse08a904b.jpg (http://s835.photobucket.com/user/frankyc2003/media/7a40551a-d1c3-4428-9c0b-4ba188cbd222_zpse08a904b.jpg.html)

A brief but well overdue update.

I am amazed at the quality of the Heybrook. It is such an amazing deck in my view. Even against fierce competition like my upgraded Lenco and SL1210, it does stuff that still amaze me, and with a budget cartridge too (Goldring 2200 or Sumiko Blue Point Evo3).
Proof that a wonderfully simple idea perfectly executed will outlive many of its comeptitiors... ;)

Very much enjoying this beautiful recording at the minute!
http://assets.rootsvinylguide.com/pictures/weber-der-freischutz-keilberth-asd-319-321-hmv-ed1-white-gold-3xlp-box-set_6195817

:cool:

[walpurgis]

Nice turntable and system.

[struth]

Fabulous Francois, fabulous.:)

[Andrei]

Top specs there Francois, like Decca, Turandot - clearly a man of distinction!

[Puffin]

Nice system which I would love to hear. Are you still in my old Battersea?

[Idlewithnodrive]

Don't you just love it when you put together a pretty unique system that really sings ?

[Frankyc2003]

Nice system which I would love to hear. Are you still in my old Battersea?

Yes Rob, still in lovely Battersea. Up the Junction!
You are welcome to have a listen if you are around. :)

[Frankyc2003]

Thanks guys.
Yes very rewarding experience.
Making bespoke arm boards, aligning cartridges… Love that stuff!

:)

[Puffin]

Aah yes The good ol Junction. I was just off Lavender Hill.