[rkw]

I am a total sucker for Mahler Symphonic Cycles - I thought I had them all until I met a UCSD music prof at the recent CanJam, who told me about three new ones: Gary Bertini, Marcus Stenz, and the Best IMHO, Michael Gielen. I am amazed at what these apparent "second string" orchestras can provide. I have it on good authority that Vaclav Neumann's Czech Phil cycle is equally amazing.

The Mahler cycle with Michael Tilson Thomas/San Francisco Symphony is excellent.
http://www.shopsfsymphony.org/shop/Mahler-Project/
http://www.shopsfsymphony.org/shop/Mahler-Vinyl/
Also on Spotify but not Tidal (which has very uneven discography of recordings from SFS Media label).

 

[GearMe]

2 channel is a world unto itself. I wish I could hear all the different types of speakers driven by good clean electronics.

Things like the BBC style speakers: Spendor, Harbeth.
Planar(?) speakers: Martin Logan, ESL, Janszen, Magnepans(used to own SMG IIIa, loved them but they need room).
Small single driver speakers: Airtight Bonsai, Role Audio. Cambridge Audio BMR/Minx (own these)
Small coaxial: Trenner&Friedl Sun
Large heavy hitters: Legacy Audio, Totem, Vienna Acoustic Liszt, Sonus Faber, Wilsons (yuck)
Small floor standers: Joseph Audio Profile (loved them at C.A.P.), PSB T<somethings>, Vienna Acoustics Mozarts.
Monitors: Joseph Audio Prism, Vienna Acoustics Haydn (own these), Sonus Faber Venere 1.5, Totem Rain
Exotics: Larsen, Ohm Walsh,
Line Arrays: Carver's Amazing Line source, Steinway Lyngdorf, Pipedreams

There are really a ridiculous number of speakers out there with all kinds of designs. And crazy expensive sometimes.

Would love to hear a Gauder Acoustik floor stander.

Went away from 2 channel when we became empty-nesters and downsized to a townhome. I do miss it.

For tonality, I definitely preferred electrostatic/planar speakers (Quads, Maggies). My problem was that I could only appreciate certain types of music on them -- acoustic guitar, jazz, folk, some classical, etc. So...that meant I had to have two serious listening rooms -- adding another one for rock, full classical orchestral, etc. Eventually, I had to add a home theater room in the basement to keep the peace and also the kids away from the other equipment. It became an expensive hobby!

While the listening experience is not the same, what I do like about the headphone world is that I can get a variety of very good sounding 'listening rooms' for substantially less than what I had invested in my 2 channel and home theater setups.

That said, I keep thinking about getting some MMG Super's...for $1200 out the door they'd probably help me scratch that itch occasionally. Hopefully, the neighbors wouldn't mind!

(the question then becomes...one Vidar or two)

 

[FLTWS]

I am a total sucker for Mahler Symphonic Cycles - I thought I had them all until I met a UCSD music prof at the recent CanJam, who told me about three new ones: Gary Bertini, Marcus Stenz, and the Best IMHO, Michael Gielen. I am amazed at what these apparent "second string" orchestras can provide. I have it on good authority that Vaclav Neumann's Czech Phil cycle is equally amazing.

RE Bruckner, the older EMI Jochum cycle is also amazing, but I am really liking (God the spelling) the Skrowaczewski/deutsche radio philharmonie saarbrucken kaiserslautern cycle. Amazing!!!

Oh, BTW any Mahler symphony conducted by Jascha Horenstein is reconstructed in a way that no one else can imagine symphonies - his 8th could convert atheists to deists.

The Gielen set is uniformly excellent performance and soundwise.

In addition to the above boxed sets, and after reading your post, I took a head-count of the rest of my incomplete Mahler sets on CDs.
Total of 126, by many different conductors and on many different labels.

I had some of Neumann's on LP but sold ages ago and never replaced.

I do admit to having even more complete sets of the Beethoven symphonies.

It’s an affliction I suffer from.

My first Mahler LP exposure 1970, The picture caught my attention, was able to get a Japanese reissue on CD. Ormandy and Phila. O.

 

[artur9]

That said, I keep thinking about getting some MMG Super's...for $1200 out the door they'd probably help me scratch that itch occasionally. Hopefully, the neighbors wouldn't mind!

(the question then becomes...one Vidar or two)

Magnepan also has a desktop system, the mini Maggie.

 

[Scott Kramer]

Hi @Baldr Trying out some Mahler! Tubes & i2s Multibit. It's nice!

 

[HumanFly]

What DAC is that? On your pi I mean.

 

[Scott Kramer]

A prototype pi2media (using i2s out) here's another view... Very good BNC/AES connection, on board LT3042 regulators, GND filters etc.

 

[HumanFly]

Another one I`ve never seen before(well with a prototype that might not be strange).
But wait....you feed the i2s straight into a Modi?
I didnt know that was possible. Or did you mod the Modi?

edit:
I now use a Kali reclocker with the Piano DAC.
Actually quite nice considering the investment.

 

[Scott Kramer]

Yes I added i2s, the jumpers take the USB out of circuit [http://bit.ly/2rCRGZ8] and allows direct i2s into the Modi's DSP.

Cool, the kali/piano is nice sounding! Here's the Modi with the Kali i2s:

Theres more detail out on the web about it–

 

[mhamel]

Magnepan also has a desktop system, the mini Maggie.

That's what I'm running - in my nearfield system, they are pretty incredible.

Somewhat surprisingly, someone I talked to at Magnepan said they really haven't sold well for them. I'm surprised given how good they sound.

 

[artur9]

That's what I'm running - in my nearfield system, they are pretty incredible.

Somewhat surprisingly, someone I talked to at Magnepan said they really haven't sold well for them. I'm surprised given how good they sound.

The price is a big impediment. There are all kinds of nice speakers for that much suitable for nearfield use.

Or maybe it's because they look too much like those terrible Monsoon computer speakers that used to be around.

 

[Baldr]

The price is a big impediment. There are all kinds of nice speakers for that much suitable for nearfield use.

Or maybe it's because they look too much like those terrible Monsoon computer speakers that used to be around.

Maybe I have been spared, but I have never been exposed to the Monsoon.

 

[bosiemoncrieff]

Listening to the Scottish Symphony in advance of tonight's performance at the SFS. As much as K1000 neglects the low end, and as much as multibit sound is a prerequisite to enjoying it (and HD800, perhaps to a lesser extent), the mids are so fine. It might be my favorite can of the moment. Some people complain about its tonality and even if those complaints were true, I'm such a soundstage enthusiast I might chalk it up as the price of admission.

 

[rkw]

those terrible Monsoon computer speakers that used to be around.

I've been curious about the Monsoon speakers because they seem to have a cult following, but never had a chance to hear them. How do they sound to you? Actually I never considered them because they look so ugly in photos.

 

[artur9]

I've been curious about the Monsoon speakers because they seem to have a cult following, but never had a chance to hear them. How do they sound to you? Actually I never considered them because they look so ugly in photos.

These IM-700 are the ones I have. Have had them forever, seems like. I think I found out recently that they were designed by Sanders of electrostatic panel fame, but I might be misremembering.

The panels themselves aren't too terrible but the subwoofer is awful and it's supposed to power them. I much prefer the sound of my CA Minx 10s. Maybe it's because the Minx can go to 150Hz and the Monsoons need to be crossed at 250Hz. I think tin can and string is an apt comparison.

I wish I had the mini Maggies instead. Care to buy my Monsoons to contribute to the Maggie fund?

(btw, don't use a wink smiley semi-colon dash right-paren. It's huge on here, like half my screen!)