To JJ2468,
My sensitivity extends to surface noise and pitch variation as well (from off-center records). No more vinyl for me, even though I have many hundreds of records. Not to mention the cost of a turntable, phew! I got used to having a good one in the old days SOTA Star/SME IV/Decca/Sumiko DTI. Still have the Decca cartridges, dynamic as hell: London Super Gold, a VDH modified Gold, and Garrot Micro-Scanner Plum. Not going there again.
One thing I didn't mention in my post is that I am moving to the humid tropics, so wooden and leather speakers are not a working possiblilty, though when choosing speakers, I did considered the Sonos Faber line based on many comments written here by SF owners.
I'll try the Speltz, IC's first.
Psychicanimal,
Power delivery? I agree with you that this may be a contributing factor, so, I am shifting to a solar/battery system, off the grid (actually, I was going to anyway). The tonal issues I am experiencing may be exaggerated by my present power situation, (Monster HTS-5000 for sources, NuForce with NuForce upgraded cables into the wall). None the less, my limited experience with power delivery suggests that the tonal imbalance I am hearing is beyond what power supply abnormalities might cause.Thank you for your ideas about Ridge St., I am ear-shy about silver. The natural cotton sheilding sounds comfortable for the tropics, I'll try a pair on for size.
Audphile1,
I will demo some of the cables suggested in this tread in my system to zero in on the cure.
Clio09,
I tried the Oritek IC over the weekend and heard it really compress the music in this system: APL Marantz/Cayin KT88 integrated/Gallo Ref 3, Harbeth Super HL5
Arni,
Surprisingly, I found the Nuforce Monos to be more smooth and mellow than the CJ MV-60 they replaced. So, while I agree that too much "transparency" - read: high-frequency energy - can add up to an unlistenable system... I do not hear NuForce's brand of transparency coming across in the form of distrorted tonal balance or exaggerated HF dynamics.
Chuck,
Harmonix is 3x my price range. Purist is 3-6x my price range, Harmonic Tech... thats the ticket, thankx, I'll try them.
Sms,
to my ear, my ancient MIT 750 'music hose' beat out the AU24 speaker cable, in all areas. Yet, the price is right for AU24, and given its popularity here I want to give a listen to a complete AU24 set up. Thank you.
Tobias,
Your system looks great, I would love to hear it. Ensemble cables... none available used at the moment. I'll keep looking.
Thanks to all! More suggestions welcomed.