Inmate Systems - Audio Asylum

Bob(SD) 's Main, home theater, and bedroom System
IP Address: 24.111.30.183	Last Update: March 10, 2021 at 10:43:51
Amplifier:	Pair of Odyssey Audio Stratos SE+ Monoblocks (180w RMS @ 8 ohms / 120 amperes continuous current) and a Parasound HCA-1200 (200w RMS @ 8 Ohms / 40 amperes continuous current, 57 amperes peak)
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Odyssey Audio Tempest preamplifier with dual outputs.
Speakers:	Magneplanar MG-IIIa (upgraded with "Parts Connection" style xover modifications) augmented with custom subwoofer based on a Cerwin-Vega 18" 189ES (Earthquake movie) woofer.
Sources:
CD Player/DAC:	EastSound CD-E5 (Philips VAM 1202/12 transport). Retired from the system: Chris Own's battery powered dAck! v2.0 (Kusunoki style filterless D-to-A converter) and associated Ack! 75 ohm digital BNC S/PDIF cable (as well as a BlueJeansCable Belden 1695A S/PDIF spare).
Turntable/Phono Stage:	George Merrill modified The AR Turntable with Sumiko Premier MMT tonearm, VTA-16 base, and Premier PIB-1 phono interface box. [Mods: Merrill acrylic subchassis/tonearm board, upgraded high torque AC motor with Foucault shield, inner platter balanced and lead coated, new spindle, bearings and oil well, new springs. From Merrill/Scillia Research an acrylic platter with a Whitacre copolymer ring available.] The table is supported by Immedia Finite Elemente/Ceraball isolation feet which sit on a 23 3/4' x 15 3/4' slab of polished Brazilian granite in turn resting on a set of MapleShade IsoBlocks, all on a Target VW1 Pro wall mount turntable shelf. Denon DL-304 (0.19mV @ 1.2g) & Denon DL-103D (0.28mV @ 1.5g) low output moving coil cartridges in Orsonic AV-1 anti-vibration and Sumiko HS12 headshells; Extremephono stylus cleaner; AuralThrills / VanDenHul D501 cable or PIB-1 w/HomeGrownAudio Super Silvers; 592g SC-101 spindle weight; Disc Doctor and Nagaoka CL-152 vinyl cleaners; Audioquest anti-static brush; Herbie's HAL-O Jr tonearm dampers I'm using step up transformers for my low output moving coil cartridges, currently running Cinemag CMQEE-3440As. To my ears the SUT coupled to the normal phone stage betters the quite capable ~60dB Tempest preamp MC stage. I find the HomeGrownAudio Super Silvers less veiled but somewhat brighter than the Aural Thrills/VanDenHul phono cable. I also found the Whitacre copolymer ring to take a bit too much of the edge off the treble registers for my liking.
Other Source(s):	Carver TX-11a AM stereo/FM stereo tuner; Nakamichi Dragon cassette deck; Kenwood KX-1100HX cassette deck; Tandberg TD-20A reel deck; Concord DBA-10 Dolby B unit
Other Accessories/Room/Misc.:
Speaker Cables/Interconnects:	Nordost Gold Flatline II and Groneberg Quattro speaker cables; various brand interconnects including Analogue Research Gold Raincoats, DIYcable Superlatives, BlueJeansCable Belden 89259 cables; Cryotweaks Asylum power cord
Other (Power Conditioner, Racks etc.):	Monster Power HTS2600 on main system; Monster Power HT800 on both other systems. Monster Power SW200 on 2nd sub in HT system. TNT-Audio.com DIY dual 'Flexy' equipment racks; Sanus EFAB-II amp stands; Target VW1 Pro turntable shelf; Boltz-USA CD-600 ; Pioneer DT-510 digital timer; dbx 200X signal router; Fanfare FM-2G antenna with Magnum Dynalab F-205 Signal Sleuth; Terk AM-1000 antenna; Grado Prestige headphone extention cable. BCB/Shortwave/UHF-VHF scanners: Palstar R30CC; Sony ICF-SW77; Sony ICF-SC1; Yaesu FRG-7(Gilfer modified); Kaito KA-1130; RS PRO-2005 (modified); RS PRO-64; Heath HW-101; Sangean DT300VW; PAR EF-SWL antenna; Centerfire Discone antenna; Eavesdropper trap dipole antenna; C.Crane twin coil ferrite AM antenna; Autek QF-1A audio filter; Radio Shack DSP-40; 2 ea Diamond CX-210A coax switches; Yaesu YH-77 mono comm headset; RadioShack Minimus 7 wood speaker #40-2039; RadioShack 21-549 extension speaker; Novatech 100Hz crystal calibrator; Minuteman MMS7100RT AC filter/surge protector
Tweaks:	Various isolation tweaks including Mapleshade Isoblocks, Immedia Finite Elemente/Ceraball isolation feet, KAB Sonic Domes, etc. Magnepan XO-1 and Dahlquist DQ-MX1 used in the bi-amped subwoofer augmented Magneplanar IIIa speaker system.
Room Size (LxWxH):	34 x 17 x 8.5
Room Comments/Treatments:	The system is in a 'great' room with an adjoining dining area, kitchen nook and kitchen. The brick wall/fireplace behind the Maggies is very effective in handling the rear bi-polar radiation. Speaker placement: -- 5'8" between speakers which are toed in aimed at the listening position and have the ribbon tweeters inboard -- 3'2" from rear wall (brick) -- 3'4" between left speaker and wall -- 2'2" between right speaker and forward edge of window frame -- 12'10" from rear of speakers to listening position
Music Preferences and Comments:
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Jazz/classic rock/new age/blues...no rap or country for me.
System Goals/Comments:	I've been putting this together since 1973 and continue to add pieces as I feel the need. Selections are made on sound quality and cost-performance ratios.
System Strengths:	The modified Maggies are exceptional and my sources, while not state-of-the-art, present excellent sound. I get an absorbing full range sound with outstanding soundstage and presence... the big sub adds the visceral bass punch that Maggies lack. The Merrill modified turntable with the venerable Denon MC cartridges do a darned good job on vintage vinyl -:) Use the Disc Doctor system and a Nagaoka CL-152 on my LP collection to keep the vinyl pristine. The Odyssey Tempest preamplifier (aka Symphonic Line SL RG2 Mk3 sold in Europe which differs from the Tempest in front panel and knobs) provides a rich tube-like sound. Not much I can say about the huge Odyssey Monoblocks that hasn't been said elsewhere... current delivery, taut control, dynamics, detail... they simply do it all, besting equipment costing many times as much.
System Weaknesses:	None as far as I'm concerned :)
Video/HT System: Separate
TV/Projector:	TCL 65R615 4K 65" HDR/DV ROKUTV mounted on a Latitude Run Stemple TV stand (150 lb / 85" capability). 6500K bias lighting affixed to panel rear.
Processor/Receiver/Amplifiers:	Onkyo TX-SR705S AV 7+1 Receiver (7x160w IEC @ 6 ohms / 12.5 amperes of peak current for its front channels and 6.2 amperes for its surrounds)
Speakers (Center, Surrounds, Sub):	HT room measures 30'x16'x8.5' with an 18' opening along one side. A 7+2 system comprised of Definitive Technology BP8B mains, Definitive Technology C/L/R2002 center plus four Energy C-50 as side and rear surrounds and a dual powered sub (both Hsu designed) set up with an Outlaw Audio LFM-1EX 12" 350w/RMS corner loaded and an Outlaw Audio LFM-1c 10" 225w/RMS in nearfield position. The subs measure 20-200Hz +/-2.6dB in my room and if I had a test track below 20Hz I'm sure I'd see 16Hz fitting this same response curve :)
Sources (DVD/VCR):	Philips BDP7502 4K Blu-Ray player; Philips CDC-935 CD carousel player; Sony SLV-585HF stereo VCR; BlueRigger HDMI and iVanky digital optical interconnects; Cat 7 ethernet cable
Other HT Gear:	Walker Edison Everest V35CMP component stand; two pair Bell'O SP-200T 36" speaker stands; JVC QL-7 Quartz DD turntable w/Grado ZF3E+ MM cart in an Audio Technica headshell; Recoton Powerwave TV600 indoor antenna. BEDROOM SYSTEM: Nakamichi TA-3A Stasis receiver, Ed Frias AudioReview.com DIY Peerless 2-way monitor speakers on DIY 8"x8"x27" concrete stands. TCL 49S515 4K 49" HDR/DV ROKUTV on a Perlesmith stand, Samsung BD-J51 Blu-Ray player, Philips DVP3560/F7 DVD/CD, Panasonic NV-FJ4620PX VCR. PORTABLE SYSTEM: xDuoo X3 "Rockboxed" DAP and Samsung YP-T6 MP3 player; Topping TX1 portable headphone amp; Philips SHL5500/28 headphones; Trinity Audio Phantom Master, Phantom Master 4, and Techne (2 pr); Puro IE500, Easy UEs Customs (aka Ownlux A1), and VSonic VSD3S IEMs. COMPUTER AUDIO SYSTEM: Sennheiser HD600 (w/CustomCansUK 5' Ultra Low pf braided 84 strand litz copper cable; Neutrik plug/Cardas connectors); Sennheiser HD580 (w/HD650 drivers, HD600 grills, Brainwavz HM5 velour earpads, NewFantasia 6.5' cable, and spare HD650 10' cable); Philips SHP9500 w/2mm felt mod and uGreen 2m braided cable; Grado Prestige 15' extension cable; Topping D10 DAC; Garage1217 Project Polaris v1.1 SS headphone amp w/"Mellow" bandwidth option; Schiit Vali-1 Hybrid headphone amp; GhentAudio interconnects. Also have a Kloss Model 88 receiver for AM/FM near my computer desk. Tascam DR-05 used for digitizing analog media (vinyl and tape) into WAV files for processing in VinylStudio software.
Comments on HT System:	Retired a Mitsubishi 65" RPTV after 15 years for the 65" TCL RokuTV. Same with my 2008 Oppo DV-980H which replaced by a Philips 4K blu-ray player. HT system is fantastic for movies even with my meager 7+2 setup. The speakers DefTech / Energy set and have been extremely pleasing with the bipolar soundstage of the DefTechs. Gives spectacular soundtrack reproduction! But I'm still a purist that loves my stereo set up for pure musical enjoyment -:)
URL Link: http://i.imgur.com/vYdKLls.jpg
Other Interests/Hobbies/Occupation:	Retired since early 2007, in addition to enjoying music: road trips, sports cars (currently a S2000); target shooting; handloading; custom cutlery; hiking; biking; reading; astronomy; horology; radio monitoring to include AM DXing.