Planning to buy an entirely new system.

Oh I wont they are awesome, is interesting to learn about the a/b circuit though

 

they look truly great on the TNT site. The large transformer, and decent parts like the nichicon caps.

The passive pre though, not suprised they reccomended DIY'ing a better pot in there.

I bet they would sound great with a transformer based pre, which is my new flavour of the month.

Ive just bought one from site below (know the owner well). He reckons the C-core ones are even nicer, but it was a bit of a financial stretch. Incidentally he only has one left of the c-core if anyone has been wantingly eyeing it!

http://www.hificollective.co.uk/kits/glasshousehome.html

Anyway, have fun and enjoy the music

 

Well I dont have that pre u seen in the tnt review I have their newer CM-1 the one in the review is a CM-0.5

 

Hi there guys. I've got a bit of an update. Thanks for all the advice so far.

Just been down to seven oaks.

Listened to:

Leema Pulse Amp
Leema Stream CD

(best two I heard - both end of line reduced to £750 each)

with:

Monitor Audio Silver RX6 (not that great)

Leema Acoustic Xone: Really good for some stuff. Bass seemed really tight and controlled, maybe the rest of the sound was too controlled though? Also, seemed to be less forgiving to you listening to them outside the sweet-spot - as I'll often be in funny listening positions this is quite a prob.

Dali Suite 2.8 : Excellent for heart swelling atmospheric beauty - bass less tight though. All the speakers felt a bit lacking in depth, but these sounded a bit poorly defined too. I'm thinking of going back to hear if a sub could tighten things up.

I spent about two and a half hours listening to things (they didn't seem sorry to see me go) and it confirmed some of the concerns I'd mentioned earlier in the thread. The clarity of the system really brought out the flaws in a lot of my music. Ok Computer sounded broken at points. Some Aphex Twin stuff had annoying sharp 'ticks' cutting through the sound that I'd never heard before. I don't want to spend all my money on a hi-fi that will make half my music less enjoyable to listen too! The clarity was wonderful for some things (vocals sounded amazing, a lot of instruments came alive) but a lot of more electronic or sample based music sounded strange.

What should I do? Will I get used to the new revealing look at my favourite records, and have it add to my joy? Or will I end up listening to less interesting music just because it's more appealingly recorded and mastered?

Any advice from those who've been down this route would be greatly appreciated. What's the best thing to do if you enjoy listening to music, much of which is poorly recorded and seems to sound worse on a good hi-fi?

(Also -why do so many audiophiles assume that if you want deep bass, you want inappropriate booming bass? I just want to hear the full depth of the music, yet people always seem to assume this means I'm some boy-racer! I don't want to be missing the treble either.)

Ta.

 

bumped in the hope I'd get some more advice.

I've also thought of a possible get around for my less well recorded cds:

I could invest in an Allen and Heath DJ mixer, which are known for adding a certain warmth to digital sources, and then running a cd player through that, so I'd have a CD player for clear, audiophile style sound and a cd player for softer more forgiving sound too.

What does anyone think?

With the sevenoaks stuff, they've said they don't let you try things out at home or offer refunds, so I'm a bit worried about committing.

Thanks all.

 

Gargal Hi, whereabouts are you?
Keith.

 

Hi Keith. I'm in Brighton.

 

They have to give refunds its the law!!
U have 7 days minimum, check out trading standards

 

That's true. It might take that long for me to sort things out, and get it worn in though.

It would mean that if it was a clear disaster I could take it back, although I got the impression that I'd have to squabble for my money.

 

Ummm I think if sevenoaks want to be funny in anyway I would take my business elsewhere, the guys in my branch are really good and u can take whatever u want home but unfortuanatly these days its not just down to what company u use its the person ur dealing with that creates the impression!

Do u have clear picture now of exactly what ur budget is obviously u dont have to spend it all but what is the limit?
Have u also decided what components u need to get for that budget?

 

I think the sevenoaks guy got a bit annoyed by me being their for nearly three hours, yet not really been happy with anything, and not buying anything. He tried not to show it, but I just seem to have a way of annoying sales people. I'm interested in their advice, but often don't take it, and a lot of people seem to find that annoying.

My budget maximum is still £3,000, but the kit I was listening to in sevenoaks would only cost £1900 (although I thought I'd probably need a sub to go with it) and the sales guy seemed to think he wouldn't be able to find anything better for under 3k. This wouldn't include a DAC, which I thought I could live without.

The reduced speakers (Leema Acoustic Xone and Dali Suite 2.8) both blew away the Monitor Audio Silver RX6 which are apparently recent award winners at £750. I typed up some thoughts in posts 44 and 45, and I'm not really sure where to go from there.

It could well be so based upon personal preference that I'm not going to be able to get much useful advice from others, but I thought I'd check.

There were lots of things I really liked about the Dali speakers, but the bass did seem a little soft, especially compared to the Leema speakers, which seemed much more precise. Do you think a sub would be able to tighten things up a bit? Or just add depth?

Annoyingly sevenoaks have just sold out of the dali suite sub, which was also half price. Drat balls.

 

I'm planning to give another listen to the sevenoaks system, this time with a sub, in the hope that this will tighten up and extend the bass.

I think these speakers seem good value and have a lot of attributes I really like, so if they work out with a sub I might just get them and then start to work on the other components afterward.

Any thoughts?

Ta.

 

Hi, it's Bob here. Glad you like the Anatek's (hi Dean). If your near me, you are more than welcome to try themm out etc..

 

Hi Dan, the CM-0.5 is a later pre, as it's a cut down CM1 done to lower the price point. The CM1 has the fancy phono plugs on all the inputs/outputs etc... Both are cracking amps. Bob

 

Hi Bob
I see didnt realise that, am more than happy with them they are awesome IMO!
If I had the cash I would have the int also,

Hi Gargal I am using the rx6's on my anateks at the mo and they are sounding really good, its all about system matching not just price
Good luck with the next step but be careful!

Dan

 

Hi Dan. That is quite possible. I only compared them on the Leema kit.

Jeez - I was there for three hours and the one judgment I managed to make was rather tenuous! How long would it take to do a proper assessment of this stuff?

I think I'm going to head to richer today and listen to their suggestions. If nothing totally blows me away, I'll head to sevenoaks and give another listen to their stuff, checking to see if a sub can tighten up the bass of the Dali 2.8 and also seeing how the sound of book stands & sub compare to Dali 2.8 and sub. Maybe the bookstands would give me a tighter sound?

If that works out I think I'll buy the speakers and have a listen to them at home. They weren't keen on giving any sort of discount at sevenoaks if I bought the Leema kit and Dalis at once, and if that's still the case, I might buy the speakers alone, and then start trying to build a system around them.

Ta.

 

The thing is with the RX's is if they have not been run in properly they are a bit poo! Once run in they are alot better.

Its a shame u have transport problems but if I were u knowing how good the Anatek integrated is I would buy that off Bobif he still has it and then take it to Sevenoaks and try some speakers out on it.

The other good thing with Anatek is that u can speak to Martyn directly who owns it as he gives his mobile number on the site, I have to ring him in a bit actually as he is gunna tell me how to rewire a pre out to make it variable, he is a great guy and the service is second to none!

Without transport and confidence in someones advice (not just mine) u are left with alot less options at a much higher price!

Dan

 

I think I may have been slightly confused by some of the Anatek discussion, so may have missed out there.

I feel a bit uncomfortable buying blind, as I think I want a less precise and revealing sound that a lot of hi-fi fans do (perhaps especially in Britain?). While feeling slightly silly trying to describe the sound I'm after 'full' and 'rich' would probably be emphasised over the typical sound desired.

The fact I listen to a lot of Drum and Bass, Dub, Dubstep, etc also means that controlled deep bass is more of an issue for me than for many.

You're right that transport, and not feeling happy with buying blind, I'm likely to have to pay a premium, but I'm just too scared of spending the next 20 years worth of hi-fi budget on something that doesn't fit my preferences.

 

I suggest you listen to some big cone speakers from 10" to 15". They will be in big cabinets so you will have to compromise. You will not need a sub imo. Try Wilmslow Audio they do kits and even make them for you.

 

I went back to sevenoaks.

After much consideration I decided that the reason I preferred the bass on the Leema Xones was that they were just more expensive, and provided more detail. Seeing as overall I still preferred the Dalis and they seemed like a good deal, I've decided to go for them. I'm not going to be able to afford £3k on speakers, so compromises must be made.

I now need to get to work on the other components...

Thanks for the advice so far.

@jimbo: The dalis are already going to dominate the room... I don't think I could have managed any bigger!