Audio Asylum - Inmate Systems

John C. - Aussie's Surround Sound 7.1 all electrostatic HT/music System
IP Address: 121.223.154.159	Last Update: August 14, 2011 at 19:47:41
Amplifier:	* Total of 12 channels (6 powered by Plinius) in the 7.1 system * Halcro DM-68 for main L/R * Plinius SA250 amp for the centre channel * Plinius SA50/100 for the front side surround * Rotel RB 980-BX amp for the rear channels * Two custom built mosfet stereo amps for the 4 subs
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	* McIntosh C200
Speakers:	* NOT A SPEAKER BUT THE MAIN LISTENING SOURCE FOR MUSIC ONLY: Sennheiser HD800 headphones. In the main surround system: * Majestic Sound Labs 945 full range electrostatic speaker system for the main stereo L/R channels * Sound Labs 845 centre speaker & E/S elsewhere * 4 of 0.1 sub channel speakers, 3 with KEF B139 drivers, 4th has a dual coil Alpine driver
Sources:
CD Player/DAC:	* Meridian Sooloos Sysyem with Control 10, MS600 & 2 twinstores (twin 2 TB HDDS) for 8000+ CDs Sooloos -> NuForce DAC-9 -> headphones * Esoteric UX-1 limited edition universal player modified by David Schulte at "The Upgrade Company" For top music: Benchmark DAC 1 -> direct to preamp via Kimber balanced lines -> amp -> speakers + from preamp -> Meridian 861 -> surround speakers - the L/R from SACD (via Esoteric) -> preamp -> amp etc + 4 channel surround via Meridian 861 -> amps & speakers Meridian 861 version 4 (has room correction software) -> 11 channels -> speakers
Turntable/Phono Stage:	* Dual 1019 with Shure 91 using phono stage of McIntosh (very rarely used)
Other Source(s):	* Nakamichi 582 cassette deck (very rarely used) * FM tuner via a Rotel RTC 940AX tuner/preamp
Other Accessories/Room/Misc.:
Speaker Cables/Interconnects:	* Very short Furutech speaker cable to both the main & centre channel Sound Labs electrostats with long Furutech interconnects to the Halcro & Plinius SA250 amps involved. * van den Hul speaker cable to the 0.1 B139 surround subs in transmission lines * Siltech & Kimber interconnects to front end components on shelves 18 ft away from the nearest left channel speaker.
Other (Power Conditioner, Racks etc.):	Belkin 600 watt USP
Tweaks:	Esoteric player modded (see above)
Room Size (LxWxH):	36 ft x 36 ft x 8.5-14 ft
Room Comments/Treatments:	No special treatment required for this pentagonally shaped room (see the gallery). Meridian room correction does very little * Carpeted concrete slab floor * Plastered double brick walls * Special tiles on cathedral ceiling
Music Preferences and Comments:
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	* LPs (only a very few left), CDs, SACDs, DVD-As, DVDs & Blue-Rays of instrumental, chamber, orchestral, opera & other choral, some jazz & blues, no rock * CDs, SACDs, DVD-As, LDs & DVDs of opera, ballet, choral, jazz & other musical works ALL CDs & SACDs burned into FLAC files into the Meridian Sooloos system.
System Goals/Comments:	Surely I've come to the end of this audio-video madness?
System Strengths:	* Resolution & articulation, soundstage, dynamics both with small scale & large scale works. Superb bass foundation for all audio now particularly cohesive with the Sound Labs units. * Digital sound now the equal of or superior to analog quality on good software. * Speaker position optimised so music at the listening position tests within 5 db from 20 hz to beyond audibility with no beaming
System Weaknesses:	Nothing glaring (in all senses of that word).
Video/HT System: Integrated
TV/Projector:	* Sony VW200 projector (only one HDMI input used) * Stewart EMH 110 Screen (96" wide)
Processor/Receiver/Amplifiers:	* Meridian 861 version 4 audio processor * DVDO VP50 Pro video processor used for s-video inputs from laserdisc & S-VHS. * Meridian HD621 processor to split HDMI audio away from the video & buffer out jitter * All amps as per audio system above
Speakers (Center, Surrounds, Sub):	As for the audio above
Sources (DVD/VCR):	* Esoteric UX-1 Limited edition universal player modfified by "The Upgrade Company" * OPPO BD-83 Blu Ray player, modded with upgraded power supply and clock + region free * Pioneer HLD-X9 (modified) laserdisc NTSC player (very good) * Pioneer CLD-D925 (modified) laserdisc PAL/NTSC player * JVC s-VHS recorder (now rarely used) * Topfield 7100 HD PVR with 325 GB HDD * MAGIC HD PVR with 1 TB HDD * UltraPlus 900 satellite PVR with 1 TB HDD * Pioneer DVR-LX60D DVD-R recorder (250 GB HDD)
Other HT Gear:	* HTM 850 programmable remote replaces 20 for easy system operation * 12 CH relay board for switching between items & power on/off for other items
Comments on HT System:	* Best pictures from Blu Ray but not far behind from the HD video recorders * The iScan does a great job processing DVD & laserdisc
Other Interests/Hobbies/Occupation:	Cars (BMW 540i), travel (50+ countries), photography (Nikon D7000) Audio obsession has now extended to video.