ATT audio heads: Audio Gear Reviews

[WillBrink]

For those into good audio gear/audiophiles, and or want some advice on getting into audio on the cheap, I have started doing some reviews and such:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...pnEV4NaA0hjwhY

[Adrenaline_6]

Good job Will!

I've been out of it for a bit, but enjoy great sounding audio. To be honest, most don't even understand what that is, which is surprising to me, but that is another topic.

I've been getting the itch to look for some retro a/d/s speakers and a decent amp/receiver setup, because I like that type of smooth, accurate mid and highs sound. Audio as you know is highly subjective to what is deemed good and preferred also.

[OH58D]

Back in the early 1980's I was into mid-level audiophile equipment, what an Army 1LT could afford. Here's my setup:

Denon DP-45F Rosewood turntable
Nakamichi Dragon cassette deck
Carver SDA/490t single vacuum tube CD player
Carver C-1 Sonic Holography Preamp (love the separate treble and base knobs for each channel)
Carver M1.5t Magnetic Field (push-pull) Amplifier - 600 watts stereo which could be bridged to 1200 watts monaural
Dahlquist DQ-10 speakers

Sold the Nakamichi years ago, and still have all the rest of it, although haven't used them for years. One Dahlquist has a blown tweeter.

[SilverBullet432]

Sweet! Subbed.

[WillBrink]

Good job Will!

I've been out of it for a bit, but enjoy great sounding audio. To be honest, most don't even understand what that is, which is surprising to me, but that is another topic.

I was out of the audio loop for 5 years or so when I moved from NE -> Fl, sold/downsized the system. This year, due mostly to covid, I decided if I was going to be stuck inside a lot, I was going to upgrade my system, and get back to reading up on what's happening in audio (like streaming, covered in most recent vid...) and decided it may make for useful info and fun vid content. Of course, when the upgrade bug hits you, it's very hard to shut off and it's a very expensive hobby. I'd planned to just update the speakers, and well, updated just about everything. Ugh. Also, why I decided to start with how people can get into decent audio got little $.

I've been getting the itch to look for some retro a/d/s speakers and a decent amp/receiver setup, because I like that type of smooth, accurate mid and highs sound. Audio as you know is highly subjective to what is deemed good and preferred also.

ADS made great speakers. Not sure what happened to them. Vintage is now a thing, so prices have gone up. I'm not a big vintage guy. I like new gear, and while I get the nostalgia aspect, I also know the gear I have now sounds far better than what I owned or was made 70s/80s/90s.

[WillBrink]

Back in the early 1980's I was into mid-level audiophile equipment, what an Army 1LT could afford. Here's my setup:

Denon DP-45F Rosewood turntable
Nakamichi Dragon cassette deck
Carver SDA/490t single vacuum tube CD player
Carver C-1 Sonic Holography Preamp (love the separate treble and base knobs for each channel)
Carver M1.5t Magnetic Field (push-pull) Amplifier - 600 watts stereo which could be bridged to 1200 watts monaural
Dahlquist DQ-10 speakers

Sold the Nakamichi years ago, and still have all the rest of it, although haven't used them for years. One Dahlquist has a blown tweeter.

I tell you what, easiest least $ to update that system is add a streamer. Streaming audio sounds great, offers huge selection, and costs little. I just got into it after being out of the loop, and it's win. Your old enough to remember Peggy Lee. I have gone down a Peggy Lee rabbit hole listening to her stuff, which is great music and sound great. I talk streaming audio and review the Marantz NA6006 streamer in latest vid, but you can you your phone to stream to see if you like it, and there's decent streamers for $200 or less.

I doubt I will ever purchase another CD ...

[Adrenaline_6]

I was out of the audio loop for 5 years or so when I moved from NE -> Fl, sold/downsized the system. This year, due mostly to covid, I decided if I was going to be stuck inside a lot, I was going to upgrade my system, and get back to reading up on what's happening in audio (like streaming, covered in most recent vid...) and decided it may make for useful info and fun vid content. Of course, when the upgrade bug hits you, it's very hard to shut off and it's a very expensive hobby. I'd planned to just update the speakers, and well, updated just about everything. Ugh. Also, why I decided to start with how people can get into decent audio got little $.



ADS made great speakers. Not sure what happened to them. Vintage is now a thing, so prices have gone up. I'm not a big vintage guy. I like new gear, and while I get the nostalgia aspect, I also know the gear I have now sounds far better than what I owned or was made 70s/80s/90s.

Yea...most hobbies can get expensive....audio is definitely one of them.

I can see things like DAC chips, amp technology, etc getting somewhat better, but a good speaker is a good speaker. Sure, they may make more materials that are lighter and more durable, but like I said, a good sounding speaker is pretty timeless. I mean look at Mcintosh, those are tube amps and are very high end stuff.

[WillBrink]

Yea...most hobbies can get expensive....audio is definitely one of them.

I can see things like DAC chips, amp technology, etc getting somewhat better, but a good speaker is a good speaker. Sure, they may make more materials that are lighter and more durable, but like I said, a good sounding speaker is pretty timeless. I mean look at Mcintosh, those are tube amps and are very high end stuff.

Don't agree. Materials, computer modeling, engineering, etc it's made for far superior speakers, especially for the $, than what existed in vintage times. You'd have had to spend big $ to get what costs a few grand today sound wise, and what's big $ today, didn't exist at all.

If anything, I'd take vintage amp and preamps before I would get speakers. What people are doing is buying vintage speaker and updating them with better caps, crossover, drivers (if needed), etc. Me, I see no value in that other than nostalgia and nostalgia has no place in my audio gear decisions personally.

[Adrenaline_6]

Don't agree. Materials, computer modeling, engineering, etc it's made for far superior speakers, especially for the $, than what existed in vintage times. You'd have had to spend big $ to get what costs a few grand today sound wise, and what's big $ today, didn't exist at all.

If anything, I'd take vintage amp and preamps before I would get speakers. What people are doing is buying vintage speaker and updating them with better caps, crossover, drivers (if needed), etc. Me, I see no value in that other than nostalgia and nostalgia has no place in my audio gear decisions personally.

I guess we can agree to disagree. The 335/336is a/d/s car separates speakers made into the 90's are still to this day considered one of the finest sounding separates ever made by many.

Forgot to mention, a/d/s was bought out by a bigger audio company and then retired into oblivion. There was a guy that worked there that rebuilt speakers for people. Not sure if he is still around.

I do agree it can be done cheaper, like most anything else. My argument is that good is just that....good. That hasn't changed much.

[tb-av]

The cheapest thing anyone and everyone can do to make their audio sound better is to treat their room with acoustic panels, bass traps, etc. They can be made easily with goods from home depot.

If you can walk into your room and clap your hands and let out a big Whooop! 99% of everyone here will hear a very fast echo and ringing. Until you fix that the money you spend on audio gear unless it's headphones only will never reach it's potential.

Contrary to what you might think even in a small den or bedroom, placing acoustic panels around the room will actually make the space sound bigger and sort of endless whereas before it sounded small and boxy.

For a couple hundred bucks you will transform the sound. Listen to any youtube video these days from people working from their homes. Someone not in the media. You will hear the boxy room sound. Well guess what, your sound system sounds bad in that room too unless it is incredibly advanced and has analyzed the room and corrected for it.

Here is the style I am speaking of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo8zhjiBvT0 notice the sound of his room. That is a classic sound of an untreated room. He simply has one panel on the wall to show what he made. There are varieties to be made but that box with Roxul and some material from Walmart is cheap and easy and works great. Many more vids on youtube.

Some of the basic science can be found here. https://ethanwiner.com/basstrap_myths.htm

A down to earth review of teh whole room situation can be found here for a small studio but a lot carries over. Plus he's an interesting speaker ( no pun ) that has made his living with sound.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1d9WmjTJniI


Back in the 70s I was going downtown to listen to $50-$60K systems. They were for all practical purposes invisible with a sound stage that made it feel like you could go shake hands with each musician at their place on the stage as the song played.

If I didn't have so many other projects I would pull a tube amp out of a box I have and assemble it. I built a set of speakers and one 3W mono 300B amp that sound great but I never got around to building the other matching amp.

Will check out your reviews Will. I'm sure I don't know anything about anything new other than Sonos... a lot of engineers seem to like that setup but I've never actually heard them. Haven't been down that rabbit hole since right before 9-11