Finally built the new system! Harbeth, Luxman, Border Collie, Marantz

[jason]

Very nice Jack, I too love the stands.....

[Marco]

Hi Jack (did I really write that? Lol),

What a superb and very well thought out system, which no doubt fills your room very nicely with music... I particularly love the Luxman amp. Lexus-build quality Jap amps with VU meters always get me rather excited!

Incidentally, is the Luxman Class A? I can't remember.

I listened to my speakers on those metal frame stands prior to purchase and preferred the black ones.

I've heard Harbs and Spendors on both high-mass Target stands and on the light, 'open frame' Something Solids. It depends on the sonic presentation you're after and also how the speakers interract with the room.

High-mass stands will usually add weight to and tighten the bass, and generally give a fuller sound with more 'control', at the expense of agility and 'freedom of expression' in the midrange. Overdo the mass, however (such as sometimes with sand or lead shot-filling) and you can kill the music by adding too much in the way of damping.

Low-mass stands, will usually give a lighter, quicker sound, and open out the midrange more, allowing music to 'breathe' better and thus 'flow' more effortlessly, at the expense of a slight loss of 'control' and ultimate bass extension.

Generally, I prefer BBC heritage speaker designs on light 'open frame' stands, but it's all down to personal taste, what one is looking to achieve, and also even the music one generally listens to. In that respect, since you're mainly a classical fan (and considering the sonic presentation of the Luxman), I can understand why you've chosen the high-mass route.

Enjoy - it's a fabulous system!

Marco.

[Nick]

Lovely system, Jack. Always nice to see more Luxman lovliness too. Those Harbeths just look so beautifully understated.

Marco, I believe the 505u, like my 509u, is not Class A. The 550 and 590 both are Class A.

[Marco]

Hi Nick,

Thanks for the clarification

Marco.

[JJack]

Lovely system, Jack. Always nice to see more Luxman lovliness too. Those Harbeths just look so beautifully understated.

Marco, I believe the 505u, like my 509u, is not Class A. The 550 and 590 both are Class A.

That's right. I did audition the Class A integrated from Luxman. Gorgeous midrange, of course, but just a bit flabby in the bass.

I was leaving a Class A valve setup (Cary monos and Conrad Johnson preamp) so I had already assumed that I would be surrendering a little midrange magic but I'm not at all dissapointed in that regard.

[JJack]

Hi Jack (did I really write that? Lol),

What a superb and very well thought out system, which no doubt fills your room very nicely with music... I particularly love the Luxman amp. Lexus-build quality Jap amps with VU meters always get me rather excited!

Incidentally, is the Luxman Class A? I can't remember.



I've heard Harbs and Spendors on both high-mass Target stands and on the light, 'open frame' Something Solids. It depends on the sonic presentation you're after and also how the speakers interract with the room.

High-mass stands will usually add weight to and tighten the bass, and generally give a fuller sound with more 'control', at the expense of agility and 'freedom of expression' in the midrange. Overdo the mass, however (such as sometimes with sand or lead shot-filling) and you can kill the music by adding too much in the way of damping.

Low-mass stands, will usually give a lighter, quicker sound, and open out the midrange more, allowing music to 'breathe' better and thus 'flow' more effortlessly, at the expense of a slight loss of 'control' and ultimate bass extension.

Generally, I prefer BBC heritage speaker designs on light 'open frame' stands, but it's all down to personal taste, what one is looking to achieve, and also even the music one generally listens to. In that respect, since you're mainly a classical fan (and considering the sonic presentation of the Luxman), I can understand why you've chosen the high-mass route.

Enjoy - it's a fabulous system!

Marco.

Thanks! I like it a lot. And now you see that I have a fairly substantial equipment rack (referring to my other thread in the Artists Palette).

I do think that I was looking for the firmer bass control that I found with the higher-mass speaker stands.

In any event, I worked in a small REL subwoofer for the big orchestral pieces. I'm actually very surprised by how well it keeps pace while subtly filling out the range from 30-50 hz.

It's so small that it's completely hidden by the Swan Lake LP that I leaned against it.

[Alex_UK]

Well that system would get me jumping Jack! Lovely!

[Tim]

Nice system there Jack and I'm a fan of the Harbeth sound too. Enjoy

[JJack]

Nice system there Jack and I'm a fan of the Harbeth sound too. Enjoy

I'm enjoying it a great deal

[goraman]

Jack, I have heard a Sumiko black bird on that arm and it was stunning. http://www.needledoctor.com/Online-S...ono-Cartridges
They make a blue point for less $$$ but I'm told it dose not sound quite the same.
A nice inexpensive cart that works well on most belt drives with medium mass arms is the Grado Gold and if you break a needle or bend a cantilever it can be easily replaced with out having to remove the cartridge from the head and sending it out then realigning the whole dammed thing again.and there not horribly over priced a new needle is around $80.00 U.S.
and you just slide the old one out and the new one in. http://www.needledoctor.com/Grado-Go...2&category=893

I replaced a Goldring Eroca H that came new on my Music Hall MMF7 with the Grado Gold it just sounded boring and didn't have much dynamics,look at the price! price is not everything. http://www.needledoctor.com/Goldring...2&category=373 I sold the $750.00 cart with less than 60 hours to a guy in Washington for $200.00 he was very happy to get it,I was equally happy to get it off my turntable.