With the sales on, and itchy fingers near wallets, this may be a good time to
ask everyone on the ng what they think is the best seperates and system they
ever heard in their entire listening lives. You can nominate:
a) Front end
b) Amplifier
c) Speakers
d) Entire system

Should be interesting to see the results!

=== Andy Evans ===
Visit our Website:- http://www.artsandmedia.com
Audio, music and health pages and interesting links.

In article , Andy Evans
wrote:
With the sales on, and itchy fingers near wallets, this may be a good
time to ask everyone on the ng what they think is the best seperates and
system they ever heard in their entire listening lives. You can
nominate: a) Front end b) Amplifier c) Speakers d) Entire system

Should be interesting to see the results!

IMHO It would be more interesting if you'd also included:

pre-a) Sound recordings/broadcasts which are providing the actual music.

pre-d) Room acoustics.

Since in my experience once you have decent a/b/c/d/e these have more
effect that fiddling about changing components in the system.

FWIW my personal 'best' systems are those I currently use. Otherwise I
would be using something else... :-)

So in my case:

a) Meridian 200 and 263 (or 563) / Yamaha CT7000 / Quad FM (BBCR3)
b) Armstrong 700 range with modifed Quad 34's
c) Quad ESL63s or 988s with a subwoofer.

then spend ages fiddling about with the room placements of the speakers and
the mods to the 34s, combined with spending the real money on 'pre-a' and
collecting the music you want to enjoy. :-)

The most impressive and memorable system I recall hearing in the past,
though, was one that Armstrong used in an audio show. Think it was a Revox
A77, 500 range amp, and a pair of KEF speakers. (Concerto's I think.)
This was playing a tape which included the Hollies "Long cool woman in a
black dress". Sometime around 1970, but I forget exactly when.

However that system was only heard in a demo room at an Olympia show. Doubt
I'd prefer it now. :-)

Hear all sorts of systems in audio shows and shops. Also 'borrowed' all
sorts of items

For Iain: The 500 amp had an output impedance of about 1 Ohm, and used
AL102 output transistors (germanium). Could sound remarkably good, but the
AL102's would go off like firecrackers if too much current was demanded.
Despite this some people still use these amps, and like the results they
get. Circuit design of these amps is a nightmare. Don't look at the circuit
diagrams unless you want a headache... :-)

Slainte,

Jim

--
Electronics http://www.st-and.ac.uk/~www_pa/Scot...o/electron.htm
Audio Misc http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/AudioMisc/index.html
Armstrong Audio http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/Audio/armstrong.html
Barbirolli Soc. http://www.st-and.demon.co.uk/JBSoc/JBSoc.html

On 26 Dec 2004 12:17:54 GMT, Andy Evans
wrote:
c) Speakers

http://groups.google.co.uk/groups?se...&output=gplain

--
Anthony Edwards

On Sun, 26 Dec 2004 12:17:54 +0000, Andy Evans babbled on about:

With the sales on, and itchy fingers near wallets, this may be a good time to
ask everyone on the ng what they think is the best seperates and system they
ever heard in their entire listening lives. You can nominate:
a) Front end
b) Amplifier
c) Speakers
d) Entire system

Should be interesting to see the results!

Well a bit OT but the most impressive was in Sheffield many years ago, I
was after a CD transport and walked in on spec and immmediatly noticed the
sound of what had to be something very special, after much wandering
around and putting my head to speakers I spotted a group of sales people
discussing a very modest looking system. As if reading my mind one grinned
at me and told me it was a Yamaha that was most certainly not for sale.
"Maybe in a few years" were his final words.

--
/d

Andy Evans wrote:

With the sales on, and itchy fingers near wallets, this may be a good time
to ask everyone on the ng what they think is the best seperates and system
they ever heard in their entire listening lives. You can nominate:
a) Front end
b) Amplifier
c) Speakers
d) Entire system

Should be interesting to see the results!

=== Andy Evans ===
Visit our Website:- http://www.artsandmedia.com
Audio, music and health pages and interesting links.


Neumann mics, Neve 8048 mixer, Studer A80 16 track with Dolby A noise
reduction, and Tannoy 15 inch monitor Golds in cabinets you could live in.

Ian
--
Ian Bell

On 26 Dec 2004 12:17:54 GMT, ohawker (Andy
Evans) wrote:

With the sales on, and itchy fingers near wallets, this may be a good time to
ask everyone on the ng what they think is the best seperates and system they
ever heard in their entire listening lives. You can nominate:
a) Front end
b) Amplifier
c) Speakers
d) Entire system

Stax SR-303/SRM-313 headphones connected to any modern competent CD
player.

(They sound like Quad electrostatic speakers, but with a little more
bass extension.)


--
Chris Isbell
Southampton, UK

On Mon, 27 Dec 2004 21:27:31 +0000, Chris Isbell
wrote:

On 26 Dec 2004 12:17:54 GMT, ohawker (Andy
Evans) wrote:

With the sales on, and itchy fingers near wallets, this may be a good time to
ask everyone on the ng what they think is the best seperates and system they
ever heard in their entire listening lives. You can nominate:
a) Front end
b) Amplifier
c) Speakers
d) Entire system

Stax SR-303/SRM-313 headphones connected to any modern competent CD
player.

(They sound like Quad electrostatic speakers, but with a little more
bass extension.)

A *little* more? They're flat down to better than 5Hz!

d

Pearce Consulting
http://www.pearce.uk.com

I heard two interesting sources at the same Hi-Fi fair - one of the
last held here in Harrogate.

The first was Peter Walker demonstrating his (then) brand new ESL63's.
The source was an LP, the amp I know not but presumably either the
33/303 or a 405, and all in a very large room before a medium
audience. It was just so realistic!

The other was held in the ballroom of the Old Swan Hotel (remember
Agatha Christie?) The demo was by Philips using the biggest of their
then range of three motional feedback units. Again I don't know what
the recorded sources were, but it was of one of the famous Yorkshire
Brass bands - Black Dyke I think - and it was an A-B test with the
band live. Now THAT was something!


--
Woody

harrogate2 at ntlworld dot com

On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 10:24:07 GMT, "harrogate2"
wrote:

The first was Peter Walker demonstrating his (then) brand new ESL63's.
The source was an LP, the amp I know not but presumably either the
33/303 or a 405, and all in a very large room before a medium
audience. It was just so realistic!

I remember hearing the then new ESL63s with a recording of the
Winchester Cathedral choir in a music shop in Winchester. The
recording was made on a reel-to-reel tape deck (a Revox if I remember
correctly) at 15ips. For its day, it was amazing.


--
Chris Isbell
Southampton, UK

In article , Chris Isbell
writes
On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 10:24:07 GMT, "harrogate2"
wrote:

The first was Peter Walker demonstrating his (then) brand new ESL63's.
The source was an LP, the amp I know not but presumably either the
33/303 or a 405, and all in a very large room before a medium
audience. It was just so realistic!

I remember hearing the then new ESL63s with a recording of the
Winchester Cathedral choir in a music shop in Winchester. The
recording was made on a reel-to-reel tape deck (a Revox if I remember
correctly) at 15ips. For its day, it was amazing.



I've still got some old tapes like this. Warts and all recordings, but
they do sound absolutely lifelike

Over ESL63's of course)
--
Tony Sayer