Thiel CS 3.5 Loudspeakers.
Purchased used a couple of years ago right here on the 'Gon.
Drove to Massachsetts to get them, got em in the room, wired em up, fired up the system and before I could reach the chair I literally spun around in my tracks in amazement.
Maggies can can do that for you as well, and they have for me but I returned to the Thiels. |
Merrill audio Veritas monoblocks, no questions about. the most live like music that I ever hear.Tango |
Me too Czarivey. I still have my Lambdas---they're keepers. |
Beveridge 2sw2 electrostatic speakers, back in the late 70's I believe. They were amazingly realistic sounding and unlike any other stereo reproduction I ever heard. They were responsible for getting me started on an endless almost 40 year old passion for high end audio gear. |
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Over the years, the following products have been the ones that left the strongest lasting impressions on first listen:
Verdier La Platine
Genesis 300 speakers (at their current used prices, one of the best bargains in audio)
Counterpoint SA-9 / Magnum Opus
Siltech Emperor
Melbguy1's list isn't so bad either - love the TechDas AF1 and Infinity IRS V. |
First McIntosh tubes...why am I frozen in place?
Heil AMT 1...the music sparkles!
Apogee Stages setup almost nearfild...where are they?
Hyperion 938 speakers...came back to their room five times. |
Spectral Audio amp and preamp comdo.
Took the glass right out of the "audio" window (not the glass ones). Cheers. Pete |
The following gear along my 25 year journey as an audiophile have knocked me out..
- Infinity IRS-V's. Stunning in every way. Thunderous concert-level bass and ethereal "reach out and touch it" imaging across a vast sound stage. Simply awesome.
- Vitus SIA-025 integrated amp paired with a Vitus SCD-010, Siltech Royal Signature cables & Magico Q1's. Amazingly pure, analogue-like sound which sounded dynamic and mellifluous at the same time. That demo shocked me and directly led to me selling my old system. I'm happy to say the Vitus SCD-025Mk2 is much better than the old SCD-010.
- Magico S5's. They were the first speakers which brought back the same sense of awe and excitement as the Infinity IRS speakers. The S5's sound well balanced, coherent, a touch warm & have very good bass which has texture & inner detail. They are great "all rounders".
- Crystal Arabesque. I was blown away by the overall coherency, wide, even sound stage & natural sound of these speakers. The unique glass arabesque-shaped cabinet & superb RAAL 140-15D tweeters certainly helped. The RAAL is the fastest, most grainless and natural sounding tweeter I've ever heard. The Acapella TW 1S ion plasma tweeter is faster, but did not as natural to my ears. I'm looking forward to seeing how far along Magico have come with their new diamond-coated beryllium tweeter.
- Tech Das AF1 tt with Graham tonearm. The AF1 sounds very solid, velvety smooth & coherent. Resolution and dynamics of course are outstanding, as are its build quality and industrial design. To sum up: One of best designed and looking decks ever made. Natural sound which draws you in and makes you want to listen. |
1985, the Mati Otala Citation XX amp.
I had a tube mac amp at the time and it sounded as if you had removed some heavy moving blankets of the speakers. I still use it as a back up. |
HiFiMAN HE-1000 planar magnetic headphones at Axpona. Astounding! Audiophile cliches are actually justified for these: "Game changers"
LISTEN to these if you ever get the chance. |
I take it back! My number one knock-out was hearing a Decca cartridge for the first time. The immediacy, the presence, the dynamics, the color! Makes all other cartridges sound like pale ghostly apparitions. |
1970: ESS Transtatics, 1972: Magneplanars Tympani I-U's, 1974: Fulton Model J's. All speakers. |
Terrific Game Changer Experience from my memory:
Fidelity Research FR-64s (compared to Graham Phantom Supreme II)
Lamm LL2 (compared to Aesthetix Callisto Signature)
Lamm ML2.1 (compared to Atma-Sphre M-60 II.3)
Micro Seiki 5000 (compared to Kuzma Reference)
Takeda Miyabi (compared to Koetsu Coralstone)
Rowland Cadence with own BPS (compared to Klyne 7 Phono)
Signal Cable Silver Resolution (compared to Purist Audio Venustas) |
Back in 2002 I mentioned the Berning zh270 as the single component I purchased that knocked me out on first listen which is the reason I bought it. It still knocks me out 12 years later. It allows music to naturally happen without any distraction on how it sounds. |
Kronos turntable. Simply music. Out of my budget, unfortunately. |
Kronos turntable. Simply music. Out of my budget, unfotunately. |
Lamms L2 Ref Preamp/Lamm M1.2 Ref Monos are awe-inspiring. So I bought them. The system consists of:
Lamm L2 Ref Preamp
Lamm M1.2 Ref Mono Amps (atop SRA VR-Series IsoBases)
Meitner MA-1 DAC
Meridian Sooloos Ensemble Music Server
Wilson Sasha ver. 1
Transparent Audio Ref ICs and Spkr cable
Transparent Ref XL IC between the Meitner and the L2 |
I would have to say, a revox tuner, the b160 , I have never heard any tuner sound so good, just incredible it just blows everything else away and this is a vintage tuner. Those revoxes sure do look and sound good. |
Tandberg receiver TR2075. |
MAGICO Q3 whow the best!! |
Infinity's IRS driven by Phase Linear gear!!!
1979 in Germany. |
Of all the different systems I've heard, the component that made the biggest impression on me was the original Croft Micro driving a refurbished (by me) Leak Stereo 20 blowing away a very expensive Naim NAC/NAP250 set up. |
The current Naim CD5i cd player.
Happy Listening! |
After years of trying better and better S.S. equipment, I bought an Atma-sphere MP-1 and a pair of MA-1s. When I put the cartridge to the LP, it sounded as real as anything I'd ever hoped for. Currently I'm using Maggie 1.7s and a Quad sub woofer with which they mate very well. Recently, I changed the 6SN7s to Sophias and that took things to a new level. |
Legacy Audio Focus 20/20's, Martin Logan Ascent i, Ayre Acoustics, |
Infinity kappa 9s driven by nakamichi amps (or sumo) back in 91 at rogersound labs. man, that was incredible. |
Mrdecibel,
If only we had more Audiogon members, 'hell USA Citizens'! like you...
06-18-10: Mrdecibel wrote:
"I was at my friend Scotts house. He had MBL101's with all top Jadis gear. He had an air bearing turntable and arm with a moving coil cartridge(I wish I remembered the phono gear). All top end. I brought over Santana "Amigos" and listened to both sides. He let me crank it to a level that I liked(he was not as loud of a listener). I placed myself closer to the speakers than he so we can both have the sweet spot. Sometime during the track "Europa" I became emotional and started to cry."
Lordy, when I read this post, realizing how candid you were/are, I was really, really moved. Not many 'men' in our society will admit to tears.
Actually, I'm in the same camp when it comes to music.
Time for one of my famous "STORIES"
Years ago, when I owned a retail business, a man called to ask to audition the STAX headphones.
I was a dealer for them briefly...he was a business guy, who traveled (back when people had significant jobs in this country) and made an appointment.
I had everything 'set up' for him...using a Conrad Johnson preamp to feed the STAX, he brought his own material, LP's with him, mostly Classical.
He began listening--I was doing busy work and trying to not hover over him, but kept noticing his body movement, with the music, he'd blanche or stiffen occassionally, really a visceral experience.
Then, during one work that was particularly beautiful to him, he began to tear up--I tried not to intrude on his personal moment and space, and stayed across the store.
He, finally stood abruptly , and almost ran to the front door.
At that time, my store was in a 'walking mall', outdoors, with sitting/floral areas for smoking or relaxing.
I looked out, and there he was, face burried in his hands, weeping openly. It was all I could do to not run out and try to comfort him--torn between business and a simple moment of human compassion.
He came in (after smoking about three cigarettes) and pulled out his check book...he bought the STAX, the cj preamp, and other various things.
Then he did a curious thing...as if reading my mind, he looked me in the eye and said, "Thanks for understanding, Larry."
I'll never forget that day.
Mrdecible:
We certainly seem to appreciate and even possibly understand one another on this site--and of course I think, from my side to yours, for good reason.
Apparently, when I rail on about the MBL's I have AT LEAST one person who agrees with their capacity to excite and even overwhelm huh?
Thanks for your absolutely wonderful post. |
Basis Audio Work of Art w/ Pass Components. |
Went over to a colleague from work's house for dinner. Unknown to me he had an amazing system. He was kind enough to audition a few cd's after dinner and I was awestruck.
JM lab / Focal Grand Utopia Be speakers, no idea what the other components were. I'd never heard music like that before, it changed my life. |
i got shocked by a tube amp once. It didn't really knock me out, but it did feel like a baseball bat hit me in the arm ! |
For me, knockout power is correlated to the difference of actual performance over anticipated performance. The EMM Labs CDSA knocked me out. |
Coincident Pure Referance Extremes doubled up
4 Pure Mini Monitors and 4 pure subs
All powered by an 8 watt set no less.
Absolutely blew me away! |
The NAD 1020 is a pretty decent mid-fi component, yet a direct swap out with the ARC had me amazed at the depth of sound and clarity. This was especially noticeable with complex or classical music, where some of the 1020 rendered muddled, ambiguous content, while the ARC resolved so much better. |
EgglestonWorks Fontaine speakers - my first, and still current, main speakers. I had auditioned several speakers for my first venture into high end audio. Up until then the speakers (all far cheaper, retail-wise) I heard were nice, and obviously better than my current low enders, but none knocked me out. When I auditioned the Fontaines they knocked me out cold. At that moment I knew I had to have them and begin a pursuit of high end sound.
My wife was pissed at me when I got home with them for blowing my budget, but after setting them up and selecting the "Miss Sarajevo" track on the Passengers CD, she was equally floored and thus quickly forgave me. These speakers really are special. |
JL F100
JL
F112
JL F213
JL F113
B & W 802D |
Klipsch LaScalla
McIntosh C32
McIntosh 6200
Krell 300
Wilson Watt 2
Wilson WAMM
Thiel CS 3.5
Thiel CS 3.7
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Recently, when I switched back in the DNM Reson ICs in place of some others (MIT and Harmonic Tech), they surprisingly knocked me out with their tonal clarity and seeming coherence and have taken over my system since.
Massed strings on Magico mini's with good tube amplification almost floored me couple years back when I heard them.
Also recently, a pair of GOTO custom horns of some high end tube electronics and vinyl rig at Capital Audio Fest knocked out most everyone I encountered who heard them with various classical and jazz pieces played.
My current system setup overall mesmerizes me regularly, particularly with the OHMs, but it took a good bit of tweaking and refinement to get it there. If I allowed it to knock me out, I'd be dead and buried by now. |
Oneobgyn's system(a few years ago); Magnepan speakers with the old Rega Planar 3; Vandersteen speakers with the original Oracle turntable; some old Infinity speakers with a tweeter that looks like the old Ohm Walsh(this one grew on me); Linn Linto with an all Linn front end; Linn Lingo I on Mapleshade's isolation with triplepoints; Oriek's modified Dynaco Stereo 70; Oritek's preamp/dac in comparison to other top-line preamps; Lessloss power cord; Oritek's X-2 interconnect; APL's designer(Alex) home system's high frequencies which was matched by the high frequencies of Nordost's Odin wires and power conditioner; APL's mk111(?) silver interconnect; Klipsch Heresy speakers; Valab's silver interconnect(for price); APL's modified Denon 3910(the first decent digital that I heard. I still use the transport with a Lessloss power cord.); Oritek's battery-powered(one version)pre/dac on cd-the best, by far, cd I've ever heard; NAD 3020 with DCM Time Windows. Given the current state of reproduced music, don't take my early experiences as a buying guide. |
I was at my friend Scotts house. He had MBL101's with all top Jadis gear. He had an air bearing turntable and arm with a moving coil cartridge(I wish I remembered the phono gear). All top end. I brought over Santana "Amigos" and listened to both sides. He let me crank it to a level that I liked(he was not as loud of a listener). I placed myself closer to the speakers than he so we can both have the sweet spot. Sometime during the track "Europa" I became emotional and started to cry. |
iPod, ATC 100 speakers, Luxman 509 integrated amp, Benchmark DAC1, Leben 600 tube amp. |
Altec 19's. At Purchase Radio in Buffalo NY. I'm not even sure if these speakers were considered high end or not, but I remember hearing Aja by Steely Dan, and getting hooked on good sound. |
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years ago, klipschorns and Magnepan Tympanis. Hearing them the first time may have been the event that made me into an audio nut for life.
mbl 101s almost did it more recently except I am a bit more jaded these days and harder to knock out. |
I was a teen when a friend invited me to work together for some school project when his father was listening to a pair of JBL L300, mac amps and a Nakamichi 1000 ltd, wooow!
My other notable system was a friends all- tandberg equipment with 4 jbl100 setup.
Still miss that feeling! |
Addendum: Studer A820 RTR and Tape Project media.
Vbr,
Sam |
I am owner of Sroll Lyric for last few month.I have heard Dartzeel integrated in hifi show in Prague this year and I was disappointed as well,sounded little to bright and mechanical,maybee the speakers Wilson Benesh Chimera were the reason,I don't know but for the same money you can get the best inetgrated in the world Sroll Lyric.Please,it is not an advertising from the company,I am just an admirer of this product and I am very sad that the wide public is not aware of this treasure in hifi world.
These words you can find on his website and let me tell you there are absolutely correct,never heard anything like this in one box nor in 2,3,4 or more boxes!!!
Music is like Poetry. It is very abstract and everybody can feel something quite else when hearing it. Emotions from Music express themselves in us like invisible poetic lines. By means of our amplifier you can fully devote yourself to music Poetry, experience non-specifiable feelings. This amplifier has such extraordinary abilities that it literally excels in this poetical performance. That´s why we called it LYRIC.
During years of successful experiments with new technologies concerning analog signal processing we discovered what topology and physical properties of circuits are important for clean, natural and true sound reproduction. The output is the SIL technology in which these pieces of knowledge touch the very end of physical borders of capabilities of today´s component parts and production technologies. The LYRIC is a unique product of the highest possible category not only from the point of view of utility and technical characteristics but also as to high reliability and durability.
This amplifier reproduces a really clean and natural sound, perfectly controlled with a real dynamics and an excellent resolution of even the finest details. Its distinct characteristics is the precise depth of focus of all the dynamic peaks which don´t mask even the most silent instruments in the background of the record.
The reproduction is always full of emotions and pleasure and it is not tiring even during a long-term listening. On the contrary, when choosing a suitable genre, it works positively on the listener´s psyche and so it supports maximally healing effects of music. Thanks to the SIL technology the sound is not changed at all and it keeps all the described characteristics for very low, middle and high loudnesss.
These characteristics wouldn´t be fully used with a standard quality signal source. That´s why the amplifier contains an equally perfect D/A convertor which corrects jitter signals on the top level and in that way it needs above all data read in an errorless manner, which is only done well by the newest CD transports.
The experience with such a high amp and D/A technology shows that it is possible to get really top performance even from CD format which is comparable with high resolution formats. Even output sound from digital radios surprises the listeners.
The advantage of the SIL revolutionary technology comes to light above all during long-time hearing, best on precise loudspeakers capable of high resolution. They are commented upon too large drawing of records disadvantages, though, but after some experience with our technology you find out that huge majority of those disadvantages surprisingly disappears in full. |
1982 - the Bang & Olufsen Turntable demo by the audio store salesman. He banged the table, wiggled the tonearm and did other crazy things and the table never skipped.
1985 - first time I heard separates. 70 wpc B&K amp, Counterpoint preamp, Rauna Tyr speakers - A magical combo
1991 - Vandersteen 1B, Adcom 545, Pioneer PD65 at Sound by Singer - the 1B's sounded amazing
1993 - Fisher 500B receiver - WOW - one of the best things I've ever heard
1997 - Phila Triode Society show - first time I heard SET amps - incredible! |
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