Official A/V Thread

Neo Ash

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My cd player goes from internal dac->power amp

There is no shorter signal path.

And I understand your liking for 80-90's gear, like that 1988 cd player, but it doesn't compare to modern equipment, sorry, its low end consumer stuff pretty much, even the 'reference' gear. No true audiophile would have a system comprised of pioneer equipment, sure for a surround setup maybe as they make some of the best televisions, but not for a 2 channel system - the products they make simply aren't good enough in that area and are consumer items.

Brand loyalty is nice, but ..

Quoted for the truth. Source ---> Amp is the way to go.

I do use a preamp between my sources and amp for switching. I also prefer the sound of a tube preamp and ss amp combination.

No one uses 80's style EQs today....shit does nothing more than fuck with things.

Speaker technology has come a long way in the past twenty to thirty years. Most speakers of that vintage will have to be re-foamed and then after that the integrity of the crossover come into question. Driver and crossover technology has improved greatly. Designers are now able to design speakers using software; knowing all most exactly how they will sound before they are made. This not only brings a better production to the consumer, it cuts costs as designers no longer have to waste time building test speakers and tweaking crossovers.

Now....is someone going to offer suggestions for this....:down:


------------------------

I'm in the market for a TV somewhere between 32 and 42 inches. I'd like it to look good without spending a lot of money; it will not see much use.

Any suggestions? Thanks
 

Master Tasuke

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Quoted for the truth. Source ---> Amp is the way to go.

I do use a preamp between my sources and amp for switching. I also prefer the sound of a tube preamp and ss amp combination.

No one uses 80's style EQs today....shit does nothing more than fuck with things.

Speaker technology has come a long way in the past twenty to thirty years. Most speakers of that vintage will have to be re-foamed and then after that the integrity of the crossover come into question. Driver and crossover technology has improved greatly. Designers are now able to design speakers using software; knowing all most exactly how they will sound before they are made. This not only brings a better production to the consumer, it cuts costs as designers no longer have to waste time building test speakers and tweaking crossovers.

Now....is someone going to offer suggestions for this....:down:


that may be true, but the one thing MOST of today's audio/A/V gear
is missing is CRAFTSMANSHIP and PRIDE OF PARENTAGE.

they just don't make stuff this well at this price point anymore.

oh, and i DO NOT use the EQ function of my GR-777 except for
the rare case in which i have to correct a bad videocassette recording
to make it watchable.

the main reason i possess it is because I LIKE IT,
and because i also LIKE THE SPECTRUM DISPLAY.

it is connected via a MONITOR loop, so it is NOT introduced
to the signal chain unless i WANT it to be.

i, for one, am no MR. MONEYBAGS, and i'm only doing the best
i can with what i can.

it may not be STATE-OF-THE-ART, but it's beautiful gear,
capable of a beautiful sound,
(I SHOULD KNOW, AS I AM THE ONE LISTENING TO IT)
and i take great pride in it.

if you have a problem with that, then i suppose that that is your prerogative...
 

Kristian Meller

Vanguard Pilot
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Sorry, I hadn't noticed there'd been a reply ;)

I had a (region free*) Panasonic DMP-BD35 and a Denon DVD-2930 before. The Oppo is not a major upgrade, but it blows both players out of the water in terms of operating speed, which is a very welcome improvement, as I watch quite a lot of DVDs and Blu-rays. 1080p Blu-ray is the same (I didn't expect any improvement here), but the world class de-interlacing the player has helps on 1080i discs of course. On DVDs I see a slight improvement, as there should be in theory, over the HQV Reon in the Denon 2930, but I won't claim exactly how big this improvement is, as I haven't bothered with any serious comparisons. I'm using it on a professionally calibrated Pioneer 4280XA.

What I'm contemplating now is whether I should be using digital or analogue for sound. I have an old-ish Marantz SR4001 (which was also somewhat cheap, and much cheaper than the new Oppo), so the Oppo might have better D/A conversion. I use the receiver in a stereo setup, and the stereo D/A converters in the Oppo are better than the ones it has for 7.1 analogue. It's not the SE version I have, but for the price, they should be good. I have two short and rather high quality analogue cables available, so I should be able to take advantage if the D/A conversion in the Oppo is better. Problem is that I have to turn on the attenuation feature on the receiver when it receives an analogue signal from the Oppo, and this changes the volume so much that it's hard for me to judge which method gives me the best result.

One added and unexpected advantage the aquisition of this Oppo BDP-83 gives me is that it frees up an HDMI input on my receiver (I'd use optical for stereo HD sound if I decide on digital anyway), so now I can use HDMI with my Xbox 360. Fallout 3 looks AMAZING in 1080p! It only runs in 720p internally, but there really is a lot to gain by raising the resolution on the Xbox 360, and then downscaling to 1024*768 in the display. It's like getting a new pair of glasses, again. (I got my first pair ever in Feb this year)


*Region freedom on Blu-ray players like the BD35 require modification with a half expensive kit. This player cost me double the usual asking price a year ago, because I wanted region freedom :make_fac: I've made arrangements to sell it to a friend when he gets his plasma tv in a few months, for less than half what I paid a year ago.
 

not sonic

King of Typists,
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im just looking for something for my room because my tv's speakers blow ass. like so bad it might as well not have any.

theres another craigslist ad for a yamaha htr-5550 with some yamaha speaks, no sub, for 125.

i'll probably be using some mid 90's yamaha speakers (at least theyre wood) from an old htib i've got, though the sub is huge and passive, probably wont use it.
hell i might as well just use that receiver too. pro logic :buttrock:

not looking for anything remotely audiophile, just something for every day use with a remote. id use a decent set of pc speakers if they had a remote.
 

SetaSouji??

There Can be Only One
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Mar 31, 2009
Posts
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Hey smokehouse, where'd you get that Nintendo sign at? That's fucking bitchin' and would look awesome in my office.
 

Neo Ash

NG.com Audiophile, Club Member,
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Get the craigslist guy as low as you can on the price. The included speakers are a bonus.

I'd take the Yamaha over the Denon. The Denon may sound slightly warmer than the Yamaha. It doesn’t really sound like that is a concern you have. I wouldn’t want to pair the Yamaha with horn loaded speakers. Just my 2 cents.

I own a Yamaha RX-V550 and have had it for several years now. It's around 10 years old. It is used in my kitchen...sits on top of the fridge. I placed some floor standing three way speakers horizontally above the cabinets. It's only used for FM and occasionally iPod & PC.
 

not sonic

King of Typists,
15 Year Member
Joined
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Posts
9,327
i ended up setting up my pioneer vsx-455. no sub but im not missing it. but i am missing the remote. :<

still debating picking up a newer receiver with hdmi and shit just for the convenience.
 

Neo Ash

NG.com Audiophile, Club Member,
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There hasn’t been a post in this thread for a while…..so here’s a short review.


I had the chance to audition some 3D TVs and speakers this past weekend.

3D TV

Looked at a Samsung and a Panasonic, and was not impressed. I wasn’t struck with an instant headache like I was thinking. Image quality for non-3D was great. The 3D was just not impressive to me, I was under the impression that images would jump out more. The overall 3D affects were not as jaw-dropping as I expected. My biggest complaint is the glasses, which are a pain in the ass if your wear prescription glasses.

Anyone here own a 3DTV???:conf:


Martin Logan - Motion Series


Oh man…where to begin.:oh_no: The Motions are a new line of speakers by ML, they have only been out for a few months. I’ve never been a fan of Martin Logan, in my opinion they don’t do electrostatics correctly; Magnepan is where it’s at for electrostatic speakers. At any rate, these new speakers are a departure for MLs in the past…even from speakers like the Preface. I was shocked by how cheap they are. The Motion 10s are $1000 and the 12 is around $1,500. I only heard the 12….and that was enough. These speakers basically use Martin Logan’s glorified version of a ribbon tweeter. The reason I was shock by the price is that any type of ribbon tweeter that is of any sort of quality is not cheap.

These speakers were a really big let down. The bass was boomy with no control or definition. The midrange was not in any way open; vocals did not sound natural. The tweeter crossover was horrible, bleeding into the upper section of the mid range in a very unpleasant way. Basically, the mid rang and bass was a train wreck. The highs were ok…but lacked air and fine control. There was all but a total lack of imaging.

It looks like Martin Logan is loosing some of its direction. Guess they are going to start cranking out cheaply made low end bullshit.
 

xiao_haozi

Avid Neo-Expert
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Posts
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Sorry ahead of time if this would be better suited in another thread, but figured it was a direct A/V related question and probably would get an easy solution pretty fast in here...

So it's been over 20 years since I've owned/used a turntable. We recently picked up the Audio Technica AT-LP60 (this one : http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002GYTPAE/ref=oss_product).
It has a preamp built-in and so we just hooked it up to the receiver and everything was really great sounding.
Well the other day I moved the needle a bit I think when trying to recap it after use, so then we couldn't get any sound the next go around. I moved the needle assembly down a bit figuring that it would hit the record better. This now gave us sound again... however, we consistently have about half the volume that we were getting before. Essentially the receiver has to be cranked up 2x louder (or more) than before to get to a listenable level.
So my question is... did I mess up something with the needle that can be easily remedied.... and/or should I also try to add another preamp inline to the receiver?

Thanks in advance for any tips/suggestions :)
 

Neo Ash

NG.com Audiophile, Club Member,
Joined
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Posts
4,893
Sorry ahead of time if this would be better suited in another thread, but figured it was a direct A/V related question and probably would get an easy solution pretty fast in here...

So it's been over 20 years since I've owned/used a turntable. We recently picked up the Audio Technica AT-LP60 (this one : http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002GYTPAE/ref=oss_product).
It has a preamp built-in and so we just hooked it up to the receiver and everything was really great sounding.
Well the other day I moved the needle a bit I think when trying to recap it after use, so then we couldn't get any sound the next go around. I moved the needle assembly down a bit figuring that it would hit the record better. This now gave us sound again... however, we consistently have about half the volume that we were getting before. Essentially the receiver has to be cranked up 2x louder (or more) than before to get to a listenable level.
So my question is... did I mess up something with the needle that can be easily remedied.... and/or should I also try to add another preamp inline to the receiver?

Thanks in advance for any tips/suggestions :)

Can you post a picture of the cartridge so I can see how it connects to the tonearm...not familiar with that brand of turntable?


If you have a switchable preamp...make sure you are connecting to "aux" with the "line" switch selected.

Do you also hear any sort of hum? Check your ground connection.

Do you think you could have bent the stylus?

Be careful when making adjustments to a turntable. Turntable setup can be complex...with tracking...azimuth adjustments....proper down force...on...and on....

More down force on the surface of the record doesn't mean increased volume; there is a proper setting range in grams when setting up the cartridge counterweights. This varies based on cartridge of course.
 

genjiglove

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No Time
For Games.
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Just out of curiosity, what are some tvs that are considered the best on the market right now?
 

xiao_haozi

Avid Neo-Expert
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Can you post a picture of the cartridge so I can see how it connects to the tonearm...not familiar with that brand of turntable?


If you have a switchable preamp...make sure you are connecting to "aux" with the "line" switch selected.

Do you also hear any sort of hum? Check your ground connection.

Do you think you could have bent the stylus?

Be careful when making adjustments to a turntable. Turntable setup can be complex...with tracking...azimuth adjustments....proper down force...on...and on....

More down force on the surface of the record doesn't mean increased volume; there is a proper setting range in grams when setting up the cartridge counterweights. This varies based on cartridge of course.

Thanks for all the tips and recommendations.

So I checked the arm and all of the say 'upstream' mechanisms to the needle and everything seemed just fine.
I then decided to put my attention more on the needle. It was a stupid fix I guess. When we bumped the needle before we apparently dislodged it from the stylus. So I think the contacts (?) for the needle to the arm were not making a full connection (?) -- sorry not sure the best/correct terminology here. So I took the needle housing off and put it back in and it sort of clicked into place and now we are back to full volume.

As for the line/aux part, we do have it set to line (before and present) and so I figured it couldn't have been that, but good tip and was actually the first thing I looked into... if we flip off of line with that switch we actually get zero sound.

Anyhow, thanks so much for the help. Problem solved.

One thing I'll ask you since you have such great advice... what are your recommendations as to an amp inline between components like the turntable and others and the receiver. Some components like the turntable and systems like the Neo have a weaker level. I have always thought of getting a tube amp kit and building and wondered how it would work with components that are already sending out amplified sound (weak as it may be) to the receiver... would I end up just saturating the sound?

Thanks again for all the help (can still post those pics of the stylus and needle if you want later). Much appreciated! :glee:
 

Neo Ash

NG.com Audiophile, Club Member,
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One thing I'll ask you since you have such great advice... what are your recommendations as to an amp inline between components like the turntable and others and the receiver. Some components like the turntable and systems like the Neo have a weaker level. I have always thought of getting a tube amp kit and building and wondered how it would work with components that are already sending out amplified sound (weak as it may be) to the receiver... would I end up just saturating the sound?

Most receivers now do not have a phono stage. They require a preamp that sits between the turntable and the receiver. In the audio world, the only device that needs a preamp is a turntable. A phono preamp can be solid state or tube...it comes down to what sounds good to you.

I'm not sure of the specs of your turntable or the price range it falls into. The NAD PP2 is a good affordable preamp for entry level turntables. The Cambridge Audio 640p is a nice step up....don't mess with their lower end unit...540p b/c it doesn't have support for both MC & MM cartridges. There are some tube ones that are in the high $200 range...but they're not too great. There are some DIY tube kits...never had too much interest in them.

As for the Neo...tech support would be the best place to ask that. One of the repair/mod experts would know.
 

xiao_haozi

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Most receivers now do not have a phono stage. They require a preamp that sits between the turntable and the receiver. In the audio world, the only device that needs a preamp is a turntable. A phono preamp can be solid state or tube...it comes down to what sounds good to you.

I'm not sure of the specs of your turntable or the price range it falls into. The NAD PP2 is a good affordable preamp for entry level turntables. The Cambridge Audio 640p is a nice step up....don't mess with their lower end unit...540p b/c it doesn't have support for both MC & MM cartridges. There are some tube ones that are in the high $200 range...but they're not too great. There are some DIY tube kits...never had too much interest in them.

As for the Neo...tech support would be the best place to ask that. One of the repair/mod experts would know.

Alright, I'll take a look at those. Thanks.
The DIY tube kit I have been eying up for a while is the K12M:
http://diyaudioprojects.com/Tubes/K-12M/K-12M.htm

Figured if I build that I can just turn off the preamp in the turntable and run to that amp and then to receiver.
 

Nesagwa

Beard of Zeus,
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Hey Ash, wheres a good store online to look at 2 channel stuff?
 

Neo Ash

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Hey Ash, wheres a good store online to look at 2 channel stuff?
http://www.needledoctor.com/

Personally, the vast majority of the stuff I get online comes from audiogon.com. I'm also lucky to have a shop in the Atlanta area that sells new and used gear; I have a very good relationship with them.

Crutchfield is reliable from what I hear; but I have never had any interest in what they have to offer. They have a "signature" site. http://signature.crutchfield.com/
But I'm sorta....meh...the only the product they have that I like is Thiel and PSB.

What are you looking for?
 

Nesagwa

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Just amps in general. I think I'm pretty set on getting that Pro-Ject RM1.3 table if I can sell some stuff or spare the cash. I think my speakers are good enough. Just need to find an amp I like to replace this old Sansui 441 receiver I'm using.
 

Neo Ash

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Just amps in general. I think I'm pretty set on getting that Pro-Ject RM1.3 table if I can sell some stuff or spare the cash. I think my speakers are good enough. Just need to find an amp I like to replace this old Sansui 441 receiver I'm using.

Nothing wrong with Pro-Ject. I like Rega, look at the P2 with their Bias2 cartridge. I wouldn't go any higher than Elys 2 cartridge on that table...after that the jump to a P3 would be the most logical.

Listen and compare if you have dealers in your area...very important. In general I'd say the Rega's have better upgrade options. You could start out with a P1 which is a nice table...upgrade the cartridge as funds allow...maybe a better tone arm. However, when it's all said and done it will be more of less the same cost wise had you taken the leap and bought a P3.

Just find a good used amp on audiogon.

I have been very interested in a company called Virtue Audio, strongly considering their amps to power some speaker in a bedroom for TV/DVD playback.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsPjsA6Cln8
 

thirdkind

Chin's Bartender
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Cool topic.

Here's my current setup, which is 2-channel at the moment and much more conservative than prior setups:

system.jpg


Pioneer Kuro KRP-500M 50" plasma
Pioneer Elite SC-27 receiver
Ascend Acoustics Sierra-1
Oppo BDP-83 Blu-ray player

I'm thoroughly in love with the SC-27 and Sierra-1 combo. I'm stunned that a bookshelf speaker can go so low and still sound controlled--no boom in the bass at all, and the stereo imaging is fantastic. I'll be adding 3 additional Sierra-1 speakers and one of these for center/surround/sub in the coming months.

I used to have a Music Hall MMF-5, but sold it when I got laid off along with the rest of my gear at the time. I kept all my vinyl though. Looking forward to getting back into it again at some point. Is Music Hall still a great option for entry-level audiophile turntables?
 
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