[mADmAN]

i spend like 12-16 hours a day in the office... so yeah...headphones are my primary source for sounds

 

[Bob A (SD)]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaloS /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm gonna be immature and give you a middle finger for that one Bob. I wish I had a pair of those...

Your comments gave me a good chuckle! Don't feel bad. My first exposure to Magneplanars was in 1974. I auditioned the classic I-D Tympanis driven by big Bryston amps in an audio boutique's dedicated listening room (actually not all that far from where you now live....at the time I was at Mare Island; the audio shop, now gone, was in Berkeley). Even my wife was taken aback. Well it took me until the mid-90s to find myself in the right situation which finally allowed the acquisition and room to deploy of a pair of Maggies. Mine are MG-IIIa's I bought used and then modified. I run them biamped and augmented with a custom 18" sub supported by yet another amplifier. The brick behind them does a great job handling that portion of the bi-polar radiation. The sound is just incredible... almost (grin) making the several decades wait worthwhile

 

[mochzr]

I don't even have speakers... Although sometimes I miss being able to throw the occasional party

 

[khbaur330162]

Dang, Bob! What's all that shiz over to the left for?! You got a reel to reel looking thing... and what's all them knobs for?

Nice rig you got there. Idk why, but those couch cushions look killer! Is it comfy? Big CD (or are those cassette tapes? I'd lmao if they were) collection as well. Any ELO in there?

Edit:Oh yea... the topic at hand. Almost forgot. I listen through headphones about 99% of the time. Either I'm in school and it's through my modded JVC Marshmallows, or I'm at home wishing my PPAS was here so I could listen to my CD3K's, but am subsequently again listening through my modded Marshmallows...

I feel like a lost soul with no home.

 

[Jenkins]

Nice set-up, Bob!
Since one week, I owe a Stax Basic System II and,
quite frankly,
I'm extremely happy with them! Yesterday, I spent almost the entire Sunday afternoon on the couch, listening to CD after CD.
The so often quoted sentence: "I heard things on those familiar recordings that I've never heard before!" is very applicable here!

As you can see, my dedicated listening room has some similarities to yours, but at a lower (price) level.
Rear wall:

Front wall:

A pair of MG12 speakers are driven by an Electrocompaniet ECI3.
Sources are a Harman Kardon HD970 and Rega P25/Benz MCGold/Heed Orbit/ Electrocompaniet ECP1.
The diffucers and bass absorbers in the corners have lifted the room's acoustic to a very satisfying level.

But, as mentioned above; the Stax + Sony discman offer some fierce competition! At frustratingly low costs...

 

[MaloS]

Haya Mochzr, another aggie . (including myself I count 3 so far).

Bob ... that is a hell of a dedicated rig. Although I am going to question the look of the blue lights in such a comfy looking wooden setup... could have at least gave the amps a wooden color...but then the sound is all that matters in the end anyway, you not gonna keep your eyes open when you fire these babies up.

Edit: Jenkins, now you just called a shot at competition O.o although the chimney and pretty blue lights are nowhere in sight.

 

[Jenkins]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaloS /img/forum/go_quote.gif Haya Mochzr, another aggie . (including myself I count 3 so far). Edit: Jenkins, now you just called a shot at competition O.o although the chimney and pretty blue lights are nowhere in sight.

Hey MaloS,

Compared to Bob's place

, mine looks quite cold.

The diffusers, although doing great things to tonality and soundstage are loaners. And they most probably have to be returned as the costs involved are too high compared to the sonical improvement (in my opinion).
Looking at Bob's place, I for sure will hang some thin (!!!) curtains at the front and rear walls. By doing so, I will reduce the cold and not very "homy" atmosphere. Some pictures and/or paintings should do the same thing in that field.

 

[MaloS]

amen, although curtains will have also the effect of removing unwanted reflections, which should be very beneficial.

Generally the wooden atmosphere + high end speakers are a very welcoming sight

 

[Delta_Nu]

Due to the constraint of space and limited funds, i can only listen to my cans.

Oh yah Bob, thats a helluva of a setup that you've got there!!

 

[Jenkins]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaloS /img/forum/go_quote.gif amen, although curtains will have also the effect of removing unwanted reflections, which should be very beneficial. Generally the wooden atmosphere + high end speakers are a very welcoming sight

I happen to live in a house which is built from concrete and had a hell of a time taming the poor room's acoustic. Dampening is something to be very careful with. The diffusers offer the benefit of diffusing and preserving the built up acoustical energy.
Dampening borders very quicky to over(!!!)dampening. And that's something to avoid like hell!
So I looked for a company that could provide tuned bass traps to my situation's needs. They are built from lots & lots of MDF.
Which is soft and the resonating character of the softer materials proved very beneficial in my concrete house!
Anyway, the wooden diffusers do a great job, but they do look ugly.
By hanging thin curtains, I aim for;
a) diffusion (as much as possible)
b) a little bit of dampening (as less as possible)
c) cut costs
d) improve the looks & atmosphere of the room.

I'll keep you posted about my progress.
(but don't expect this to happen within the next few weeks as I loose too much time enjoying my Stax.

)

Later!

 

[Chrysoberyl]

Cans all the way here too! I'd even go as far as to say than I often prefer cans to live concerts if we talk about classical music...(don't tell my colleagues!)
Many many halls kill a great deal of the articulation subtleties that make all the difference in music.To be fair,many recordings as well.

 

[MaloS]

Nice time to enter, welcome to the forum Chrysoberyl, don't be too shy to tell us about yourself when you get a chance.

With classical music there are really alot of subjective situations. Using speakers with an orchestral recording can be very annoying because of the dynamic range, where some parts are too loud, some parts are too quiet. I have not had such issues with headphones, even though I am using open headphones and isolation is questionable.
For recordings of some specific solo instruments I prefer speakers. The recordings usually place the instrument in your head if you use headphones, and the size of the instrument appears small. Speakers, while at the price range that I used had inferior sound quality, made the instrument more life-size and positioned in front of me, which gave it a different sense of intimacy. In the end I would be happy if I could get a room-sized sound stage, be it from speakers or headphones (guess headphones preferably because they are more mobile and are so oh so detailed

).

 

[Chrysoberyl]

Thanks a lot.I'm very new to this crazy hobby,but I find it fascinating.Expensive too,hehe.

 

[MaloS]

As long as you don't cross over from the importance of your loved one's expences live up to expectations. Although I still loath the 60 year olds above us with their humongous stats.

 

[Jenkins]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MaloS /img/forum/go_quote.gif Although I still loath the 60 year olds above us with their humongous stats.

Hey MaloS,

You weren't referning to me, were you?