Any HiFi (as in proper high fidelity) freaks?

Freebird

Digital laptop based systems can be just as good if you know what you are doing.

60cycles

Chuffola said:

pomposity

Still waiting;

Takes a special type of person to make your kind of post (and only that, sans reasoning or any contribution) prior to disappearing, but rather than make assumptions about your person, levels of education, culture or lack thereof, one finds it best to enquire rather than presume.
Even if you found pomposity in a dictionary after arduous searching, surely you possess even the 20 words minimum vocabulary?

Why not post a second time and explain?
Who knows, might be i'll learn something.

Chuffola

It’s definitely annoyed you, hasn’t it?

I haven’t disappeared. I find you unbearably pompous - specifically your style of writing but other aspects too. You asked me to be frank. I can’t be bothered trawling your posts for examples. 

As for my person, level of education, culture (or lack thereof), that’s irrelevant but the nature of your question, and the snide superiority complex that lies behind it, is a further example of why I find you unappealing. 

I don’t have to expand further, but there it is. It takes all sorts.

I probably shouldn’t have made the remark since it served no purpose but... there you go. What is done is done. 

If I was you, I wouldn’t spend another moment thinking about it. I certainly won’t be. 

prowla

60cycles said:

Chuffola said:

pomposity

Still waiting;

Takes a special type of person to make your kind of post (and only that, sans reasoning or any contribution) prior to disappearing, but rather than make assumptions about your person, levels of education, culture or lack thereof, one finds it best to enquire rather than presume.
Even if you found pomposity in a dictionary after arduous searching, surely you possess even the 20 words minimum vocabulary?

Why not post a second time and explain?
Who knows, might be i'll learn something.

Chuffola said:

It’s definitely annoyed you, hasn’t it?

I haven’t disappeared. I find you unbearably pompous - specifically your style of writing but other aspects too. You asked me to be frank. I can’t be bothered trawling your posts for examples. 

As for my person, level of education, culture (or lack thereof), that’s irrelevant but the nature of your question, and the snide superiority complex that lies behind it, is a further example of why I find you unappealing. 

I don’t have to expand further, but there it is. It takes all sorts.

I probably shouldn’t have made the remark since it served no purpose but... there you go. What is done is done. 

If I was you, I wouldn’t spend another moment thinking about it. I certainly won’t be. 

Well, that's wrecked this thread. :-/

Freebird

prowla said:

Well, that's wrecked this thread. :-/

Digital laptop based systems can be just as good if you know what you are doing.

prowla

Freebird said:

prowla said:

Well, that's wrecked this thread. :-/

Digital laptop based systems can be just as good if you know what you are doing.

Aye - each to their own.

Chuffola

Well, that's wrecked this thread. :-/

It really shouldn't. I hope it doesn't - no matter what I've inferred from the poster's comments, I should have just kept my mouth shut in a thread I hadn't contributed to.  I'd delete the comments but since they've been quoted, there doesn't seem any point. 

So apologies, all.  No more posts in this thread from me. Carry on!

viz

Not wrecked. 

Ok chaps, I want to get a good dac that’s also a proper preamp. Needs to be quite good. Suggestions please!!

Rocker

Freebird said:

Digital laptop based systems can be just as good if you know what you are doing.

Please explain what the laptop does and what ancillary gear you are using.  Thanks.

Gassage

I used to be heavilly into it with Musical Fidelity, AE1's and all that.

Until I realised that the majority of music I listen to is live recordings and the source audio is shit to begin with.

Freebird

Rocker said:

Freebird said:

Digital laptop based systems can be just as good if you know what you are doing.

Please explain what the laptop does and what ancillary gear you are using.  Thanks.

The laptop (Flac >JRiver MC >VST) feeds an uncompressed digital signal to an external RME audio interface, where it is decoded into an analogue signal, and then sent out to the headphones and/or speakers. While the DAC quality is important, the true power is in the DSP. I use headphone correction, crossfeed & tilt EQ when listening through cans. The tilt EQ is a new addition as my DAC is a little too transparent in the top end (which is good for audio production). I've also got some Nebula plugins that I use for post production, which could theoretically be used to add some analogue warmth to the sound, but I haven't really looked into that.

I used to have a tidy separates system with fancy cables, etc., but what I am using now is as good or better, and it's portable. I use it mainly for recording purposes, so the audio playback function is an added bonus.

TheMarlin

viz said:

Not wrecked. 

Ok chaps, I want to get a good dac that’s also a proper preamp. Needs to be quite good. Suggestions please!!

Aries Ii

60cycles

Chuffola said:

It’s definitely annoyed you, hasn’t it?

That's you projecting your petty level on others, sorry to disappoint. You haven't annoyed me, no; this isn't the cause of this.
It's about principles, ethics and whether one conforms to them where it suits them, where it matters, or all the time.
You obviously don't need to share mine, but you do need to respect them when addressing me. Which might also seem pompous to you (the bare minimum of civility expected on your behalf), but that's on you. Qualities or lack thereof, should you recall.

I don't and go pick random people i've never met, give them one-liner 'smart' remarks about their person and walk away. Which is why i also don't do it in here. Maybe you do; walk down the street, hear two people talking, stop them and call one of them pompous, walk away.
I don't.

As mentioned, i tend to be very honest and i really don't mind the odd or even frequent mud thrown my way.
I am here to talk however, something which apparently means different things to us both.
You acted like many teenagers do today (fire and walk away), only this isn't my age bracket and this isn't Twitter or Reddit.

That you lack the self awareness to grasp all this and instead come back to respond the way you did says enough about you. Whatever issue or minority complex rides you (because this is the truth is it not? Something rubbed you off the wrong way and you lacked the self discipline to act maturely about it), you need first deal with it, internally; then perhaps you may bother judging others.

(i'm not even defending my way of expressing myself as you may have noticed; you have every right to consider it and me howsoever you wish, that i respect)

60cycles

On topic, am expecting a Nyquist DAC for repair. If anyone's wondering, synopsis here:
https://www.brinkmann-audio.de/main.php?prod=nyquist&lang=en

Will be a very good opportunity for me to listen to it, never heard it and i've been curious ever since it was first mentioned.
* and yes, i did mention i'm not a fan of "streamers".. but i cannot blame them for adding such functionality, they do need to sell. The DAC though, that's what i'm interested in. Diminishing returns and all, but.. for that pricing, it better be spectacular.

viz

TheMarlin said:

viz said:

Not wrecked. 

Ok chaps, I want to get a good dac that’s also a proper preamp. Needs to be quite good. Suggestions please!!

Aries Ii

The ares ii?

Freebird

60cycles said:

On topic, am expecting a Nyquist DAC for repair. If anyone's wondering, synopsis here:
https://www.brinkmann-audio.de/main.php?prod=nyquist&lang=en

Will be a very good opportunity for me to listen to it, never heard it and i've been curious ever since it was first mentioned.
* and yes, i did mention i'm not a fan of "streamers".. but i cannot blame them for adding such functionality, they do need to sell. The DAC though, that's what i'm interested in. Diminishing returns and all, but.. for that pricing, it better be spectacular.

My latest DAC has allowed me to hear things I have never heard before on familar recordings, and it's not even top of the range. Being able to further fine-tune the sound is the cherry on top, and has me wondering what I would have to do to better it.

TheMarlin

viz said:

TheMarlin said:

viz said:

Not wrecked. 

Ok chaps, I want to get a good dac that’s also a proper preamp. Needs to be quite good. Suggestions please!!

Aries Ii

The ares ii?

Yes, sorry, typos. 

The Ares Ii is a superb DAC with really well liked pre amp functions. It’s pretty much universally loved, and the darling of many a Hifi forum. 

https://hometheaterhifi.com/reviews/dac/denafrips-ares-ii-dac-review/

I personally use a Topping D90MQA, which also has Pre amp functions, but I have turned all of those off (as I don’t need them, and it improves the sound). I purely use it as a DAC for my CD Player, and modded Bluesound Node 2i. 

It’s superb, but you might prefer the fantastic deep functionality of the Ares II

steveledzep

I'd hate to be thought of as a freak because I have a HiFi system.
I started enjoying music at 14 and bought a Garrard SP25mk?, a Clive Sinclair integrated amp and a pair of Sony headphones.  I worked weekends on a local farm and the boss was upgrading(?) his kit to B&O.  He let me have his Thorens TD150 and Cambridge P40 for £25 each.  I bought a Wharfedale Glendale kit and made the cabinets in my school woodwork class (they sounded crap btw).  I soon replaced them with a pair of Mission standmounts.  I had a nice set-up for a schoolboy.

Along the way since then I've had a Technics TT, a Roksan Xerxes/SME3009mkII combination and now I have a Michell Engineering Gyrodec SE/Roksan Tabriz/Ortofon MC Quintet Bronze.

First CD player was a Sony CDP70(bassless, or was it the early CDs?), had a Mission DAD5 with DAC5 then my current Roksan Kandy.

Amplifiers have been a JVC Receiver, NAD3120, Audiolab 8000A(cracking amp), Musical Fidelity A3.2 and my current Musical Fidelity A308.

Had a couple of pairs of Missions, Castle Avons and Harlechs, Kef Reference 102(?), Quad 22L2 and my current Piega TP5.

No special mains circuit, no Russ Andrews, no wooden cones holding speaker cable up, all interconnects less than £20 and a pair of Mogami speaker cables s/h off eBay for £25.  A lot of the changes I've made have been in the last 20 years buying and selling on the internet, upgrading components without losing on the previous kit.

I don't play many cds as my music collection is mostly 1970s vinyl records, hence the emphasis on my TT and cartridge.  It was painful the end of last year spending £500 on a replacement cartridge for the worn one.  Even if I had the resources, I'm not sure I could spend £5k on a Koetsu like @viz has, but I'd love to hear one hooked up in my system to see what it brings.

Sorry if this falls into the TL/DR category, hope some of you have enjoyed it.

https://i.imgur.com/KJXgxhc.jpg

viz

That’s very nice! Go on, get a koetsu! You’ll fall in love with it!

(I didn’t pay 5k for mine btw - I started with a broken koetsu black for £200 and had it repaired and have upgraded since then. Now I’m on the rosewood signature through buying, selling and retipping. All good clean fun)

60cycles

Freebird said:

My latest DAC has allowed me to hear things I have never heard before on familar recordings, and it's not even top of the range. Being able to further fine-tune the sound is the cherry on top, and has me wondering what I would have to do to better it.

Well, it would depend on what you have now and what your budget is
Which you already know, sure..

The good thing with DACs is that there are no moving parts; maybe the only good thing compared to other sources, but regardless.
So you can always restrict your search to used units, a boon you don't or wouldn't easily enjoy on say CD players or worse yet, turntables. Someone telling you their turntable works can mean a number of things, all but one of which entail your visiting a specialist after purchase; someone telling you their DAC is working.. their DAC is working ^^

Edit: was that "better it" as in the 'sound' altogether? May have misunderstood you.

steveledzep said:

Sorry if this falls into the TL/DR category

Nothing to be sorry about man, we're here to talk about them!

While i fully respect your approach, i would assure you, 101%, that a good choice of cables and feet/bases would surprise you. And i do really mean surprise you.
If you think you're hearing your equipment right now? Truth is you're not.
What you're hearing is your equipment after a lot of noise, a lot of it, plus vibrations resulting in damping of certain frequencies.
Not a cheap upgrade, but again, if done wisely, you'll be surprised.
(to each their own and everything, just mentioning this in case you find such upgrades meaningless or superfluous. They can be, lots of snake oil around, but that's on the individual brand/"boutique" scammer, not the physics behind the actual principles)