My 2nd system

Since I managed to get a nice s/h pair of Dynaudio Audience 42s (thanks Gambit ) to do rear surround duties I finally had a set of speakers to use for my office system. I took the old Tannoy mx2s and stuck them on my desk and then brought back to life my old Arcam Alpha 6+ integrated and Marantz CD50SE which have been gathering dust in the corner.

Lashed up with a pair of VDH D102MkIII interconnects and some Dynaudio OCOS speaker cable (all from my pile of 'spare' bits and pieces) and it's sounding very nice Even had a spare level of IsoBlue to put the amp and CDP on. No room for it on the desk and anyway, I think I prefer it where it is underneath.



Most surprising is the very strong central image it has. Music doesn't appear to be coming from the speakers at all No real bass to speak of of course, especially as the speakers are right back against the wall but hey, I have my main system for that This sounds just soooooo much better than the old POS Altec Lansing 2 mini satellites and sub I had before (when hooked up to the PC) and of course I can play CD's independently of the PC.

I hooked up my soundcard (Creative SB Live! ) to the amp via a 3.5mm jack -> RCA cable (cheapo thin plastic effort) but it's not bad at all. A lot of noise on the input from the soundcard though. If I crank up the volume it's really noisy.

Now all I need as a finishing touch is one of those £1750 Nordost Valhalla power cables

Michael.

 

It looks very nice. Most PC speakers I have heared sound very Bosey. I.e forcefull and your face but no bass or treble.

I have my PC connected to my HIFI but I have to use various extension leads (3.5mm ones) under my carpet to get it to reach. I also am using my built into crappy sound card as my SB 128 packed up.

I hardly listen to sound on my PC though, the only time I need sound on my PC is when I am editing sound waveforms or making multimedia applications.

 

Not a bad lil setup there Mike. If I may suggest you pick up a decent soundcard like an M-Audio Revolution or Terratec 6fire Lite, as they will offer a very noticable improvement for very little money. Some of these new soundcards really are better than many would imagine, and it'll be worth it if u spend much time in front of the PC.

My system is based around the PC, as I like the convenience, and its all in the same room anyhow, and I have found that the EWX is just as good, if not better than any CD player I can afford.

 

michaelab,

You really must treat yourself this Christmas to:

1: A lovely 17 or 18" LCD Monitor.

OR

2: A bigger PC table.

More space required.

LOL.

Have a smashing Christmas, Mate.

 

Having lived with both, I can imagine that the CD50SE and the Alpha 6+ make a very good pairing. The smoothness and warmth of the Arcam are just what is needed with the forward and slightly edgy Marantz. I bet it sounds pretty good.

 

Wm's second system, simple but rewarding

Wadia 6i CDP (minor tweeks only)
Densen B 300 (minor tweeks again)
Kef Q55.2's Rewired
Townsehend Isolda speaker cables
Omiga Audio Mosquito's
Trichord power block.
Great for when using the computer at home, you lot have it all intergrated I have to go and hit the track change, wadia remotes are shit in anything other than 'straight on' formation Tone

 

Do you guys with second systems use it more than the main system?

(No I'm not trying to start a fight before anyone starts )

 

my second system...
a knackered cd/clock/radio alarm that won;t play cd's anymore...
i use my main rig the most - in fact i listen for at least 10 hours most days.
cheers


julian

 

No kidding! I've been spending the last few days trying in vain to lay my hands on an LG L1710B 17" LCD monitor but all that's available in the shops here are the cheapo models without DVI

I eventually put in an order at a place who said they could get it in 2 days. Went there yesterday to pick it up and they said: "Oh no mate, at least 2-3 weeks delivery time for one of those." :inferno: :bub: Got back my deposit and had another look around but no joy

Looks like January before I get a new monitor. Tried Amazon but for some inexplicable reason they don't deliver electronics outside the UK So, www.computeruniverse.net in Germany it had to be. Two good experiences with them before but.....2-3 weeks delivery time on the monitor I want

Anyway Mark, you have a smashing Christmas too mate

Now that I have one, yes, I probably will When I'm working from home I sit in my office all day so that's the system I'll be listening to.
As you saw from the other thread Paul, I'll be getting a better soundcard soon...

Chris - yes, the CD50SE & Alpha 6+ combo really is surprisngly good

Michael.

 

I am getting a TFT monitor after christmas I think. I am sick of this CRT thing. Its too big.

Is a 15" TFT monitor the seem viewable size as a 17" CRT?

 

No. a 17" CRT will typically have a 16" viewable.

Resolution on a 15" LCD will probably be 1024x768, which is pretty poor. Any decent 17" will display (and display well) 1280x960, which is perfectly usable on that size display. Not to mention the poor contrast, dynamic range, viewing angle, ghosting artefacts, low brightness, etc that are inherent to TFT screens. Yes, they've got a lot better, but they are still nowhere close to a good quality (ie professional CAD models) Aperture Grille CRT.

 

I used to say all of that, but having used a 17" TFT at work for six months or so now, I would not consider buying a CRT again for my home PC. The sharpness of text and complete lack of eyestrain on the TFT I use is light years ahead of CRT IMO.

 

Not my experience, having used a good many LCDs... but my priorities are different obviously. Each to their own, but for now CRTs are ahead for me.

 

I think it depends what you are doing. Office applications have different requirements to CAD/imaging, so one should choose a display based on what apps you want to run on it. My previous work monitor was a Sony CPD G500 FD Trinitron, btw.

 

I use my PC mainly for web development and surfing. There is a lot of graphics work but I don't do anything like cad.

 

I agree, and I have a VERY good, professional grade CRT here, connected to a pretty good graphics card with BNCs. I'd still swap it for a 19-inch Samsung TFT anyday of the week.

 

Those Isoblue-esque shelves get everywhere in your house don't they!

I need to get myself some....

 

Yes - I had a couple more made than I needed. There are still two in the spare bedroom acting as a kind of bedside table

Re LCD monitors, I'm using a 19" Flat Trinitron CRT which is excellent but the eye-strain is starting to take its toll. We have NEC 17" LCDs at the office in London and they are sooooo much better.

I might lose out a little when it comes to photo editing (which I do a fair amount of) because of the colour depth and contrast ratio but that's a small price to pay IMO for the benefits of a TFT.

Michael.

 

I have an NEC 1760nx 17" LCD and it is excellent. Trade, make sure you get an LCD with 16ms update rate. There is no ghosting or blurring.

I would say that you have to take the viewing angles with a pinch of salt. Yes, you can still clearly read the display at + or - 80 degrees horizontally, but colours suffer as you move away from the centre line. White becomes yellowed.

It's worth playing with different colour profiles to get the most out of your LCD. I find the sRGB one is best for viewing photos. It gives more detail in the shadows.

It's also worth getting a graphics card and an LCD with DVI in/out.

 

My main system resides in the same room as the PC, so no problems there, although they're not connected as they're at opposite ends of the room.

Got some really crappy Cambridge Audio Works sub/sat speakers on the PC, and only used very very rarely to listen to the sound clips... like to the joke links that some of you guys post up in the chat forum!

Second system, well that's the a/v (non-surround) TV sound system - probably gets no more than 1 hours use a day - although now Christmas is here maybe I'll get to see some of the movies on the TV that were out in the cinema 3+ years ago that I never got round to seeing when they were out originally!!