Hi From Sunny Lancashire (anyone got a canoe?)

[simmobb2]

Hi, I joined today after finding the forum whilst looking for a Monarchy Audio DIP (didn't find one but thought this place looked interesting). AS you've probably guessed I live in the rather damp wastelands of East Lancashire so an indoor hobby is essential. My wife thinks I'm crazy as a box of frogs cos' I'm forever changing my system around but I think that she's really rather happy that it's stopped me developing other, more dangerous and / or exotic, pastimes.

I currently use a Cyrus Quattro (CD/Pre with a Cyrus Smartpower and PSX-R, Naim Nsat and a BK Gemini II sub as well as an Apple Airport Express through a Musical Fidelity V-DAC.

I'm very cynical re. fancy wires and have yet to hear any significant difference between any of them (though I'm daft enough to keep trying). I have just bought an Arcam FMJ A32 and a Creek Evolution CD player as I'm overdue a change. Depending on how they sound I might be selling the Cyrus stuff in the not too distant.

My musical tastes are mostly 70's and 80's pop/rock (David Bowie, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Pink Floyd etc) but I am also into Arcade Fire, Snow Patrol, Keane, Paul Weller and Coldplay and I love Kate Bush (I wish).

Anyway, hope that we'll have some good crack and learn a bit about our hi-fi adventures.

[Alex_UK]

Hi John, and welcome to the forum.

I'm sure you will have a good read through and soon get to know what we are all about - in a nutshell, though, probably the friendliest most open minded and helpful bunch of audio geeks you will find on the interweb. Oh, I forgot to mention modesty... ;)

I tell my wife the same about my audio habit, but that fell a bit flat when she then reeled off the list of "exotic" items she had discovered around the house and on my hard drive... :eyebrows:

I'm afraid I don't know much about your kit - but your music taste sounds a-o-k :fingers: (If your half as pleased with your Evolution spinner as I am with my amp you'll be all right, but no idea how it compares to the Cyrus.)

Look forward to seeing your posts - (any chance of a system piccie or 3 in the Gallery section - we love to see other peoples kit and "audiophile dust" ;)) - enjoy your stay.

[The Grand Wazoo]

Hi John.
Welcome to the Art of Sound, from someone else who's currently residing in the damp NW.

Don't be afraid to get stuck in!
Cheers
Chris

[Reid Malenfant]

Hi John, welcome to AoS :)

I should imagine you probably dropped in on a thread that i posted on as i happen to own & use a DIP24/96. Whatever you do i suggest you keep on the hunt as it's one bit of kit i'd never part with due to the difference it makes :eyebrows: It's not exactly subtle either.

I hope you enjoy your stay ;) Good luck tracking one down, try & get the DIP 24/96 as i know it works at jitter reduction at all frequencies, not just mid & treble.

[Spectral Morn]

Hi John

Welcome to the forum :)


Regards D S D L

[Techno Commander]

Hello John. :)

[DSJR]

Welcome :)

The larger FMJ amps and CD players used to be sensitive to supports, sounding a bit wishy washy for some reason. We tried them on a Something Solid XR (IIRC) rack and they were transformed for the better and this was repeatable too, so it's something to bear in mind.

I'm sure Cyrus is fine, but the constant banging on by What HiFi and the Naim-like blind loyalty have rather put me off the brand TBH. The fact that every main product they make is crippled until you add the whizz-bang power supply gets my goat too (in a shrinking market, why not just put the better supply with the main items as standard?)

I haven't heard the current Creek CD players but the older models were very good. if you don't like them, try the Cambridge 840 series amps and CD players...

Regarding interconnects. there are some really good ones available for well under £20 on fleabay (the SoundStable one for £13.50 makes a great general purpose interconnect and there are others too) and of course most of us are Mark Grant fans here. Since we don't have over-damped listening rooms that need a "screamer" to sound impressive, we've had NONE of the "characteristics" alluded to by WTF in a recent product annihilation (you can see I/we don't think much of that magazine from decades of bad past experiences).