MY CURRENT REFERENCE SYSTEM
Sony SCD-C333 ES (SACD Player and CD Transport)
PS Audio DLIII Digital Link Dac with Cullen Circuits DL3 Stage III
Modifications, (See Review Parts One and Two)
Audio Experience Symphonies Plus R Preamp
Dahlquist DQ-LP1 Low-pass Crossover
Rogue Audio Stereo 90 Amplifier (See Review and Follow-up)
Hafler 9270 Amplifier
Magneplanar MG 10/QR Speakers
Homemade Vifa 10 inch Woofer Boxes
Alpha Core Goertz MI2 Speaker Cables
DH Labs Interconnects home made from bulk wire with Eichmann Bullet Plugs
or Vampire 800CB Cryo Treated RCA plugs.
Home made Digital Cable (See Eichmann RCA Plugs Review)
PS Audio Super Punch and Prelude AC cables, various line conditioners,
tweaks, and other stuff.
HISTORY
Parts of my current audio system have not changed very much. The
Magneplanar speakers, bass boxes, DH Labs interconnects, and Dahlquist
crossover have all been in service since the mid-1990s. The Alpha Core
Goertz speaker cables and Hafler amp have been in the system for seven
years.
Even with relatively few changes in equipment, however, I have continued to
get better performance from my system.
Recent improvements have come via newer amplification equipment, the
Rogue 90 and the Audio Experience Plus R preamp, and a new dac, the
Cullen Circuits modified PS Audio DLIII.
I have also seen worthwhile improvements from better AC cables, digital
cables, vibration control, tube rolling, and other tweaks.
Here are the components I am listening to today and some of my thoughts
about them.
DIGITAL FRONT-END
SONY SCD-C333 ES
The Sony has performed the dual role of CD transport and SACD player in
my system since the fall of 2005. The addition in late 2007 of the Cullen
Circuits Dac has pretty much eliminated the advantage that SACDs once had
over CDs in my system. Given my investment in CDs, this has been a very
good thing. The Sony's CD performance on its own is still extremely good. I
have found having a carousel player to be very convenient. I did not expect
this to be the case but it is nice to shift between CDs quickly when doing
comparison listening. Overall, I am extremely happy with this player. Used,
it was $325, an absolute bargain.
PS Audio DLIII Digital Link DAC with Cullen Circuits Modifications
This dac replace my Perpetual Technology equipment in late 2007 and made
SACD, in my opinion, pointless. Use the link above to read the review.
PREAMPLIFIER
I am currently using an Audio Experience Plus R tubed preamp, purchased for
$550 used, in November 2007. It is a great sounding preamp with remote
control of both volume and input. If it has a problem, it’s that it’s too cheap
to be taken seriously. (www.ys-audio.com)
CROSSOVER
The Dahlquist DQ-LP1 low-pass crossover was bought used for $50 in
1994. One channel was not working, but proved to be just a bad solder
connection. I have replaced the power supply caps with better ones. The op-
amps were also upgraded. It has worked perfectly and shown all the
temperament of your basic electric clock.
AMPLIFIERS
I replaced my faithful VTL 50-50 with a Rogue Stereo 90 Amplifier in the fall
of 2006. There is both a review and a follow-up on the Rogue on the web
site. I am very happy with this move. The VTL is now in my living room
system with my Audio Experiment preamp.
Hafler 9270
This is your basic black box solid-state power amplifier; it drives the bass
speakers. I bought it used for $275 in 2000. I wanted a more powerful bass
amp than I had at the time. This unit is rated at 130 WPC and has never
displayed any temperament at all much less any noise. My only quibble with
it is that everything plugs into the back within the same four square inch area.
SPEAKERS
Magneplanar MG 10/QR
The MG 10 speakers are no longer being made. They listed for $1175 and I
paid $1030 for mine new. I don’t know how long Magneplanar offered this
exact model for sale; I bought mine in 1994. My wife’s grandmother left me
$1000 in her will so I went out and blew it on speakers. Actually, I went in to
Listen Up in Denver to listen to some Vandersteen 2Ces. A salesman was
setting up the MG 10s when I walked in. I had not heard any Magneplanars
before. I listened for a while and knew I had to have them.
The Rogue Stereo 90 amp produces amazing sound with them. www.
magnepan.com
Homemade Vifa 10-inch woofer boxes
These reflex boxes are tuned to about 32Hz and have both good bass punch
and depth. They keep up with the Maggies really well, which is the main
reason I haven’t done anything about replacing them.
CABLES
ALPHA CORE GOERTZ MI2 SPEAKER CABLES
I was using DH Lab's T-14 speaker cable and was happy with it in my prior
listening room. In my new listening room I needed longer cables, so I did
some looking around the Internet. The Alpha Core cable's low inductance
seemed ideal for connecting a tube amplifier to planar speakers. I found the
Alpha Core cables at a very good deal and decided to try them out. I have
been very happy with them since 2000. www.alphacore.com
DH LABS BL-1 INTERCONNECT AND EICHMANN RCA PLUGS
I am using DH Labs wire in interconnects that I have made myself. The
article that got me started was in the June 1994 Speaker Builder magazine. I
have replaced the Canare F-10 RCA plugs, that I initially used, with copper
Eichmann Bullet RCA plugs at every connection but the crossover where they
will not fit. I feel that the Eichmann plugs are a worthwhile improvement. I
like the fact that the BL-1 is 20-gauge wire, well shielded, and silver-plated
copper. I continue to hear subtle details and small improvements through
the BL-1 cable. I do not know if I can afford anything that will significantly
improve on them. I have used Vampire's 800CB copper RCA plugs for the
crossover connections and they improved the overall sound noticeably. Both
RCA plugs are excellent.
www.silversonic.com
AC CABLES, CONDITIONERS, AND TWEAKS
I have recently purchased a PS Audio Prelude AC cord for the Rogue and
have been stunned by the improvement it has made over my home made
cord. This is the first AC product to do that. My other home made AC cords
have all been replaced with PS Audio Super Punch cables. Line conditioners
that I am using include a Monster HTS-1000, a Tripplite 1200, and an
isolation transformer.
The most noticeable tweaks in my room are my home made room lenses. I
do think they work well as diffusers and I have played with them in different
locations. The room itself was built as a dedicated listening room to the
extent that my budget allowed.
IN CONCLUSION
I am aware that my system is not the final word on what an audio system
can be but it is good enough that improvements do not come easily or
cheaply any more. On a well-recorded CD, I get a level of sound quality that
I could not even have imagined ten years ago.
Drop me a note with any comments or remarks.
Kent Johnson
April 2005
Updated May 2007
Updated February 2008
Sony SCD-C333 ES (SACD Player and CD Transport)
PS Audio DLIII Digital Link Dac with Cullen Circuits DL3 Stage III
Modifications, (See Review Parts One and Two)
Audio Experience Symphonies Plus R Preamp
Dahlquist DQ-LP1 Low-pass Crossover
Rogue Audio Stereo 90 Amplifier (See Review and Follow-up)
Hafler 9270 Amplifier
Magneplanar MG 10/QR Speakers
Homemade Vifa 10 inch Woofer Boxes
Alpha Core Goertz MI2 Speaker Cables
DH Labs Interconnects home made from bulk wire with Eichmann Bullet Plugs
or Vampire 800CB Cryo Treated RCA plugs.
Home made Digital Cable (See Eichmann RCA Plugs Review)
PS Audio Super Punch and Prelude AC cables, various line conditioners,
tweaks, and other stuff.
HISTORY
Parts of my current audio system have not changed very much. The
Magneplanar speakers, bass boxes, DH Labs interconnects, and Dahlquist
crossover have all been in service since the mid-1990s. The Alpha Core
Goertz speaker cables and Hafler amp have been in the system for seven
years.
Even with relatively few changes in equipment, however, I have continued to
get better performance from my system.
Recent improvements have come via newer amplification equipment, the
Rogue 90 and the Audio Experience Plus R preamp, and a new dac, the
Cullen Circuits modified PS Audio DLIII.
I have also seen worthwhile improvements from better AC cables, digital
cables, vibration control, tube rolling, and other tweaks.
Here are the components I am listening to today and some of my thoughts
about them.
DIGITAL FRONT-END
SONY SCD-C333 ES
The Sony has performed the dual role of CD transport and SACD player in
my system since the fall of 2005. The addition in late 2007 of the Cullen
Circuits Dac has pretty much eliminated the advantage that SACDs once had
over CDs in my system. Given my investment in CDs, this has been a very
good thing. The Sony's CD performance on its own is still extremely good. I
have found having a carousel player to be very convenient. I did not expect
this to be the case but it is nice to shift between CDs quickly when doing
comparison listening. Overall, I am extremely happy with this player. Used,
it was $325, an absolute bargain.
PS Audio DLIII Digital Link DAC with Cullen Circuits Modifications
This dac replace my Perpetual Technology equipment in late 2007 and made
SACD, in my opinion, pointless. Use the link above to read the review.
PREAMPLIFIER
I am currently using an Audio Experience Plus R tubed preamp, purchased for
$550 used, in November 2007. It is a great sounding preamp with remote
control of both volume and input. If it has a problem, it’s that it’s too cheap
to be taken seriously. (www.ys-audio.com)
CROSSOVER
The Dahlquist DQ-LP1 low-pass crossover was bought used for $50 in
1994. One channel was not working, but proved to be just a bad solder
connection. I have replaced the power supply caps with better ones. The op-
amps were also upgraded. It has worked perfectly and shown all the
temperament of your basic electric clock.
AMPLIFIERS
I replaced my faithful VTL 50-50 with a Rogue Stereo 90 Amplifier in the fall
of 2006. There is both a review and a follow-up on the Rogue on the web
site. I am very happy with this move. The VTL is now in my living room
system with my Audio Experiment preamp.
Hafler 9270
This is your basic black box solid-state power amplifier; it drives the bass
speakers. I bought it used for $275 in 2000. I wanted a more powerful bass
amp than I had at the time. This unit is rated at 130 WPC and has never
displayed any temperament at all much less any noise. My only quibble with
it is that everything plugs into the back within the same four square inch area.
SPEAKERS
Magneplanar MG 10/QR
The MG 10 speakers are no longer being made. They listed for $1175 and I
paid $1030 for mine new. I don’t know how long Magneplanar offered this
exact model for sale; I bought mine in 1994. My wife’s grandmother left me
$1000 in her will so I went out and blew it on speakers. Actually, I went in to
Listen Up in Denver to listen to some Vandersteen 2Ces. A salesman was
setting up the MG 10s when I walked in. I had not heard any Magneplanars
before. I listened for a while and knew I had to have them.
The Rogue Stereo 90 amp produces amazing sound with them. www.
magnepan.com
Homemade Vifa 10-inch woofer boxes
These reflex boxes are tuned to about 32Hz and have both good bass punch
and depth. They keep up with the Maggies really well, which is the main
reason I haven’t done anything about replacing them.
CABLES
ALPHA CORE GOERTZ MI2 SPEAKER CABLES
I was using DH Lab's T-14 speaker cable and was happy with it in my prior
listening room. In my new listening room I needed longer cables, so I did
some looking around the Internet. The Alpha Core cable's low inductance
seemed ideal for connecting a tube amplifier to planar speakers. I found the
Alpha Core cables at a very good deal and decided to try them out. I have
been very happy with them since 2000. www.alphacore.com
DH LABS BL-1 INTERCONNECT AND EICHMANN RCA PLUGS
I am using DH Labs wire in interconnects that I have made myself. The
article that got me started was in the June 1994 Speaker Builder magazine. I
have replaced the Canare F-10 RCA plugs, that I initially used, with copper
Eichmann Bullet RCA plugs at every connection but the crossover where they
will not fit. I feel that the Eichmann plugs are a worthwhile improvement. I
like the fact that the BL-1 is 20-gauge wire, well shielded, and silver-plated
copper. I continue to hear subtle details and small improvements through
the BL-1 cable. I do not know if I can afford anything that will significantly
improve on them. I have used Vampire's 800CB copper RCA plugs for the
crossover connections and they improved the overall sound noticeably. Both
RCA plugs are excellent.
www.silversonic.com
AC CABLES, CONDITIONERS, AND TWEAKS
I have recently purchased a PS Audio Prelude AC cord for the Rogue and
have been stunned by the improvement it has made over my home made
cord. This is the first AC product to do that. My other home made AC cords
have all been replaced with PS Audio Super Punch cables. Line conditioners
that I am using include a Monster HTS-1000, a Tripplite 1200, and an
isolation transformer.
The most noticeable tweaks in my room are my home made room lenses. I
do think they work well as diffusers and I have played with them in different
locations. The room itself was built as a dedicated listening room to the
extent that my budget allowed.
IN CONCLUSION
I am aware that my system is not the final word on what an audio system
can be but it is good enough that improvements do not come easily or
cheaply any more. On a well-recorded CD, I get a level of sound quality that
I could not even have imagined ten years ago.
Drop me a note with any comments or remarks.
Kent Johnson
April 2005
Updated May 2007
Updated February 2008
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