HiFi for sale

I'm thinking of selling my kit as it is being utterly strangled by the room. I've tried it all in somebody else's bigger room which was worthwhile if backbreaking and the leap in performance was enormous. Its taken me a while to admit this to myself but there is little point having this stuff which has the potential to sound fantastic elsewhere but is ultimately not suited to my own listening envionment. Its frustrating and, to be blunt, upsetting but we're not going to be moving into a bigger place for a while and until then these big boxes are just pointless.
So, its crunch time:


Audio Research SP9 preamp. Excellent condition with recent valves. Just gets out of the way as far as sound is concerned so difficult to describe what it does.


Krell KSA-100 power amp. Effortless music with muscle from proper old school yank behemoth. 100wpc in class A with full dual-mono construction and fan cooling. Great combination of speed, weight and massive scale of sound. The power rating belies the sheer wallop available and my rambling about its total unflappability and prodigious welly doesn't hint at the equally impressive soundstage and "in the room" 3D recreation of tone and sound.


Yamaha NS-1000M. These speakers were fitted with NOS drivers, rewired with silver cable and possibly tweaked in the crossover department by a mad bloke in Japan. He painted them red while he was at it too and fitted a decent pair of terminals on the back for good measure. Formerly owned by a WigWammer and enjoythemusic (who imported them in 2005) before that. These speakers are probably the closest thing to a new pair of NS-1000Ms you will find.
These speakers are responsive, fast and transparent. They look like a '70s disco throwback but nothing could be further from the truth. If the sound is bad, look elsewhere in the system, these things are an open window. I'm still continually amazed by what they do, even after several months of ownership.
They WILL show up any deficiency in upstream kit and/or source material.
They DO need a good amp to drive them properly. I heard them before purchase with the big Michi pre/power and the JVC class A integrated (which was good enough to make me hand over the folding stuff...) and have used them here with amps from ARC, Michi, Sumo, VTL and Electrocompaniet and they sounded good. The big Krell is different and has the grunt to control the Yams and flesh out the bottom end, it makes them sound special. They will go LOUD too without loss of composure or sign of compression. The best sound I had from them, however, was with the ARC pre and a GRAAF 5050 power amp (which I promptly and stupidly sold ), not quite the lazy slam of the Krell but more believable and musical. It's tempting just to box these up and keep them, nothing I've heard sounds quite like them.




Right, I've blathered enough. Anyone brave enough to give these old warhorses a go?! I'm already regretting posting this and I haven't even posted it yet! So, if you want any of it, please make it quick and painless. Haven't the heart for protracted negotiations or hassle.


btw, there's an Audio Analogue Maestro II cdp too but I haven't got a suitable replacement yet...

 

Wow I always wanted red speakers! NICE system, (even if the speakers were not red)!

 

What year is the AR pre?

 

Its a Mk1. Guess that makes it '87-'89?

 

Thanks

 

Is the Krell a genuine UK sold item? Or is it a personal US import running off a power converter?

 

The brass plate rivetted on the back of the amp says 230v, 50Hz.
Make of that what you will?

I'm running it straight from the wall, FWIW.

 

Yes they're big and heavy and I probably live miles away from you but that's what couriers are for...

Ask me questions, make offers etc . I don't bite and this kit is worth the effort