DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Good news all round then apart from the price bump. Looks like I got two from the good batch, and nothings changed with the baskets.
What 4kw amp are you using? Speakerpower?
Audio Equipment
- Thread starter ddrueding
- Start date
Good news all round then apart from the price bump. Looks like I got two from the good batch, and nothings changed with the baskets.
What 4kw amp are you using? Speakerpower?
Stereodude
Not really a
Yes, SP1-4000. I don't have the latest iteration though. Mine is the prior model (no RCA's & no delay knob).
DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Nice, I prefer your style with the exposed heatsinks verus the seamless current style.
My ultimate sub amp would be the SP2-12000 running on 240V at 30A. Four UM18s per channel. One day.
My ultimate sub amp would be the SP2-12000 running on 240V at 30A. Four UM18s per channel. One day.
Stereodude
Not really a
Stereodude
Not really a
I've been using my Fostex TH-X00 Purpleheart at work pretty much exclusively. The Massdrop x Grace Design m9XX DAC/Amp is tempting me now.
How are those Fostex? I almost got in on a pair of those but wasn't sure it was my type of cans.
I ended up buying a XDuoo XD-05 DAC/Amp for $177 a few months back from Massdrop. I find it's ok, but a bit fickle on several levels. It really does not sound good if you have it charging at the same time as using it. There is a decent amount of whine through the charing mechanism. I also find it is a bit slow to change bit-depth/resolutions depending on the music I'm listening to.
I ended up buying a XDuoo XD-05 DAC/Amp for $177 a few months back from Massdrop. I find it's ok, but a bit fickle on several levels. It really does not sound good if you have it charging at the same time as using it. There is a decent amount of whine through the charing mechanism. I also find it is a bit slow to change bit-depth/resolutions depending on the music I'm listening to.
Stereodude
Not really a
I like them. I wish they had a bit less mid bass emphasis. From the frequency response curves I've seen posted I think the frequency response on the Ebony would be a bit more my speed.
Edit: I dove in on the Massdrop x Grace Design m9XX DAC/Amp. It's my gift to myself for getting a new job. :bomb:
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Stereodude
Not really a
I installed a dedicated 20A circuit to my great room for my subwoofer tonight. Before I had it plugged into one of my power conditioners. I was able to trigger the overload protection on the power conditioner if I pushed it really hard before. No problems with that now (of course it's plugged directly into the wall). :bomb:
Stereodude
Not really a
Yes, I've added a few other circuits too. One 20A 120V in my basement with 4 pairs of outlets on the wall for my computer equipment and a 20A 240V circuit in my garage for my air compressor. The house as it came from the builder only had two outlets in the basement on the side of the electrical panel box. :nono:
ddrueding
Fixture
All of my AV gear is on an exterior wall, so doing such things is more challenging.
Nice.
I will say though that the MassDrop web site is annoying as F&CK!!! I highlighted "Sennheiser HD 650" on their page so I could do the right-click|search google option and a F&CKEN "Sign Up For Massdrop" box opens up. WTF. Annoying site. Sorry. /endrant
Yeah, I see the same. I also hate those club sites where you have to sign up and be spammed ad infinitum. By the time you log in the prices have changed or the product is not longer available. Life is too short for such bullshit: mad:
Stereodude
Not really a
I don't think Massdrop has sent me any "spam" e-mails. Considering some of the products are exclusive to them if you want them, you don't have any other choice if you want to buy it. It's not as bad as you make it out to be though.
Stereodude
Not really a
So Massdrop only charged me $199.99 for the Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX Headphones. I thought they were $249.99.
Edit: They had to pass 5000 sets sold for the price to drop to $199.99 which I guess they did.
Edit: They had to pass 5000 sets sold for the price to drop to $199.99 which I guess they did.
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Stereodude
Not really a
I didn't realize these weren't going to ship for almost 6 months when I joined. It's not a big deal to me as I have plenty of headphones to listen to in the mean time, but that is a LONG wait.
Wait a sec. Don't you already have a "high-end" set of headphones that you converted to XLR?
Stereodude
Not really a
I have numerous pairs of headphones that people would consider "high-end". Like AKG-K7XX, HiFiMan HE-500, & Fostex TH-X00 Purpleheart. Why would that preclude me from buying more?
Do they charge when the product is shipped or up front?
Stereodude
Not really a
Up front.
I was wondering why the new set when you already had a better set of phones. I was thinking you already had a $1000 pair with separate amp and everything.
Different phones for different music types? One for each room of the house? Sold old ones? Shits-n-giggles?
Stereodude
Not really a
The Hifiman HE-500's are the most expensive ones. They were $699 when I bought them. (They were $899 when they first came out.) I have them wired for balanced operation with a 4-pin XLR and have a fully balanced DAC/amp to drive them. They are probably the best sounding headphones I have. However, they're fairly heavy, inefficient, and offer no outside isolation. As a result they're not suitable for listening in anything but a quiet environment or somewhere no one else can be annoyed by the sound they make. I also have to have a HP amp handy.
I'm not a different headphones for different music types person. I had the Fostex TH-X00 at work because they're closed back cans and offer some isolation and don't leak sound like crazy. The AKG K-7XX sat unused due to a rattle in one of the ears with low frequency content. I finally RMA'd them back to Harman right before the warranty ran out and got them fixed.
I haven't sold any headphones. Selling things I've acquired generally isn't in my playbook. I have many pairs of cans mostly because I wanted them and could afford them. I guess that's S&G.
Interesting. Thanks for the insight.
I totally get that. I do not get rid of books. I still have plastic crates full of old college textbooks. Absolutely nothing wrong with buying nice things simply because you want and can afford them.
I totally get that. I do not get rid of books. I still have plastic crates full of old college textbooks. Absolutely nothing wrong with buying nice things simply because you want and can afford them.
DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Switched the drivers to basket in orientation. With the basket out and the drivers facing up the boxes were going walkabout on the concrete floor. With the driver facing the side the center of gravity is not ideal, just more vibration compared to the more centrally dense basket in config. I'm thinking of coupling these together with plywood top and bottom to make a single 8 cuft dual opposed, and then put the center channel on top. No more walkies.
Stereodude
Not really a
Yesterday, I build a small electrical circuit to fix a fundamental design flaw in the Furman MP-20 I have. The MP-20 is a 20A remotely controlled pair of outlets that I bought many years ago on eBay and never used. I thought I could wire it up to a +12V trigger output or similar and have it turn on/off my subwoofer with the rest of my system since the amp lacks a trigger option or automatic standby / power off based on signal. Well, I didn't read the manual closely enough before buying the MP-20 to discover a remote 12V trigger signal isn't what the MP-20 was designed to work with. They made it to work with a remotely mounted SPST switch and it turns on the outlet when the switch circuit is open. So, when you connect it to a +12V trigger it turns the outlets off when the +12V signal is present and the outlets on when the +12V signal is off. Of course that's exactly backward.
The MP-20 has a weak 12V output (6mA max) in the connector block so I was able to use a P-channel FET and two 12k resistors to effectively invert the logic of a external 12V trigger signal and make it work correctly.
I made this:
The other resistor is inside the 5.5x2.1mm barrel jack housing. The FET is the small lump dangling off to the right with wires run to it. I have a 12V wallwart plugged into the subwoofer outlet on the power conditioner that is the trigger signal for this circuit & the MP-20 since I wanted the turn on and off to be delayed. Now the MP-20 does exactly what I want, but somehow audio related things are always a project.
The MP-20 has a weak 12V output (6mA max) in the connector block so I was able to use a P-channel FET and two 12k resistors to effectively invert the logic of a external 12V trigger signal and make it work correctly.
I made this:
The other resistor is inside the 5.5x2.1mm barrel jack housing. The FET is the small lump dangling off to the right with wires run to it. I have a 12V wallwart plugged into the subwoofer outlet on the power conditioner that is the trigger signal for this circuit & the MP-20 since I wanted the turn on and off to be delayed. Now the MP-20 does exactly what I want, but somehow audio related things are always a project.
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
Are Emotiva X Series a great value or overhyped? Need a good amplifier to feed a pair of Paradigm Prestige RF-85 tower speakers. Knowing that speakers makes a far greater difference than the amp in overall sound quality, I don't want to go mad on the amp. I probably could just opt for a Yamaha RX-A670 and it wouldn't make much difference. It isn't for a huge room (~20' x 15' max).
Stereodude
Not really a
Do you need an amp or a receiver? You mention an amp, but the Yamaha piece you referenced is a receiver. You linked to the Emotiva X-series gear which does not include a receiver. It has pre-amps and amplifiers.
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
I need something that will receive the audio signal from a source (TV, computer, USB stick, whatever) and push it to a pair of Paradigm speakers. Ideally not too expensive but still capable of sending high-quality audio to the speaker towers.
If I'm not clear enough, then I guess I just need to include a link to a reply forum page, pretending it's meant to show something completly different.
If I'm not clear enough, then I guess I just need to include a link to a reply forum page, pretending it's meant to show something completly different.
I've been very happy with my XPA5 (Gen 1) and felt like for the money it does a nice job. I'm assuming you're looking for a 2-channel amp? If you're going straight from a PC into an amp you'll want something in-between for a more-discrete volume management.
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
I might opt for their 3-channel model. Reading back the beginning of the thread, Mercutio wrote that a center speaker significantly improves the listening experience. I'd like to have the option.
So it would be better to get a receiver, plug the receiver to the amp and then plug the speakers to the amp? Any suggestion for a good receiver model, ideally less than 600$?
You may need to experiment to see what you like but like most things that are audio related you'll get a lot of opinions. Speaking of more opinions, I find that the center channel detracts from the listening experience instead of helping it when listening to music. A nice pair of front speakers with good imaging will negate the need for a center channel. You may be better of investing in room treatments and experimenting with speaker placement in your room to improve the audio quality than to add the center channel. That said, I know nothing about the speakers you have, so it's possible they may benefit from a center channel more than other front speakers.
It sounds like you would want a DAC without amplifiers if you plan to use an Emotiva amp. This depends on how many use cases you want to support in terms of the source input. You mentioned a computer, TV, etc, but each of those may offer different output sources. For example on the PC, you could use HDMI, SPDIF, or even the line out as a source. If you're using a TV, you'd likely be using SPDIF out or possible HDMI ARC if your TV supports either of those. My point being, if you need a flexible amount of source types, you may need to consider a receiver or a DAC that has multiple input types but also has preamp outputs if you want to use a specific dedicated amp like the X series sold by Emotiva. In my specific setup, I use a Marantz AV7005 Preamp/Processor to manage the various input sources. This device then outputs the preamps to the amplifiers as it has no amplifiers built into it. This does the DAC of the various source formats and does bass management for my subwoofer in a 2.1 setup.
The Yamaha RX-A670 you listed has no pre-amp output (except for the sub) so you wouldn't be able to utilize any of the Emotive amps or any amp for that matter (at least not cleanly). You would need to rely entirely on their built-in amplification for your speakers.
It sounds like you would want a DAC without amplifiers if you plan to use an Emotiva amp. This depends on how many use cases you want to support in terms of the source input. You mentioned a computer, TV, etc, but each of those may offer different output sources. For example on the PC, you could use HDMI, SPDIF, or even the line out as a source. If you're using a TV, you'd likely be using SPDIF out or possible HDMI ARC if your TV supports either of those. My point being, if you need a flexible amount of source types, you may need to consider a receiver or a DAC that has multiple input types but also has preamp outputs if you want to use a specific dedicated amp like the X series sold by Emotiva. In my specific setup, I use a Marantz AV7005 Preamp/Processor to manage the various input sources. This device then outputs the preamps to the amplifiers as it has no amplifiers built into it. This does the DAC of the various source formats and does bass management for my subwoofer in a 2.1 setup.
The Yamaha RX-A670 you listed has no pre-amp output (except for the sub) so you wouldn't be able to utilize any of the Emotive amps or any amp for that matter (at least not cleanly). You would need to rely entirely on their built-in amplification for your speakers.
Stereodude
Not really a
I'd suggest a receiver. One with pre-amp outputs to allow outboard amps later if desired.
DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
At the $600 pricepoint I would suggest something like the Denon X3300W:
It has pre outs so you can hook up outboard amps if needed. Down from $999 because this is last years model (no major changes)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HL8KYAY
Of course $200 more will get you to the X4300W which can decode 11.1 channels and amplify 9 - this will let you run up to 7 base channels and four heights with an additional two channel amp.
https://www.amazon.com/Denon-AVRX4300H-technology-featuring-Bluetooth/dp/B01KZRPNIQ/
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
Thank you all for the suggestions. I'll see what I can get locally* and at what price.
* More often than not, Amazon.com doesn't ship to Québec and selection from Amazon.ca is more limited than the U$ version. Prices on the Canayan site are also higher, even after figuring out currency convertion.
* More often than not, Amazon.com doesn't ship to Québec and selection from Amazon.ca is more limited than the U$ version. Prices on the Canayan site are also higher, even after figuring out currency convertion.
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DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Sorry Coug yes doesnt look like Amazon.com will ship over there, and these aren't tremendous value at full retail. Considered delivery to someone close to the border and then a daytrip over to pick it up?
DrunkenBastard
Storage is cool
Actually that was for the 4300, looks like the 3300 model is available from US shipping to Canada,
I used an adress in Quebec City:
I used an adress in Quebec City: