Hi-fi systems ?

[plasmoplas]

diy

if anyone is (a) in boston and (b) wants to roll their own and (c) has some time in january, do check this out:

http://student.mit.edu/searchiap/iap-1340.html

[lowrey]

Anyone know about old Braun Audio systems, mainly their sound quality?

I love Rams and have always wanted to get a setup such as the 310 paired with L45 speakers, but I have no idea what these actually sound like. I would imagine they are not very high-end as while Braun was well made and all, they weren't a hifi producer.

I'm by no means an audiophile, a good part of my music is mp3's played through some basic sennheiser's, so I am not looking for exceptional sound, but I do want it to be decent. I'm also curious how the L45's or an L50 would work in a larger space.

[Dane]

They sound okay, but not spectacular...dont expect exceptional bass by any means. I imagine most buy for collectible reasons only.

[Faust]

Finally found the center channel I've been hunting for a looooong time.

Anthony Gallo Due

[Dane]

^awesome. I had a AG setup a few years ago but sold it when I realized I didn't watch tv...now I regret it.

[Faust]

But what about music? Especially now with some artists doing multi-channel recordings. Oh, the glory of The Downward Spiral in 5.1!

[Dane]

But what about music? Especially now with some artists doing multi-channel recordings. Oh, the glory of The Downward Spiral in 5.1!

Here's the thing - I was obsessed with multi-channel recordings. I bought all the equipment solely because of them. I literally bought every album I could find...which wasn't easy at the time. I even bought a Britney Spears album...britney-fucking-spears!

Anyway, I had one issue with the Gallo's I owned, which were all micros...the treble sucked because they technically don't have a tweeter. My options at that point were to either move to the Due's, or sell and get "regular" speakers. There was another turntable fiasco in the middle of that, but I ended up with standard-issue veneered monkey coffins.

ps - if you're into multi-channel, and you can stomach bjork, Verspertine in 5.1 is very good.

[Faust]

I can stomach Bjork + ! Funny, I started listening to her again only three days ago. What a coincidence...

My front channels are also coffins. My center/surround are micros.

[Dane]

At some point I'm going to re-build my surround system...and I think I'll probably do the same and keep the coffins for the fronts, as I listen to 2-channel most of the time. I just hate spending too much on rears because they rarely get any use, and when they do it's minor background noise at most. The centre is tres important though, so I think you went with the best solution...at least in that size package.

What subwoofer are you using? I had the gallo canon-style...good price for a sturdy unit.

If you're looking for other 5.1 rec's - Flaming Lips have a few combo CD/5.1 discs that are (at least were) quite a bit cheaper than other 5.1's. I also have R.E.M., and a few Fleetwood Mac discs with superb sound and mixing.

[Faust]

I don't have a sub - don't need one. Not a fan of ear-shattering base and live in an apt building. Actually, plenty of hi-fi specialists (of non-salesman variety) will tell you that a sub is superfluous if you have good front towers.

I suppose I am blessed living in NYC, but you should master the art of Ebay/Craigslist :-)

Also, for anyone who is looking to minimize their home theater/hi-fi print, get the OPPO Blu-Player and throw out your BluRay, DVD, and CD players. I'd've done it were it not for the way my home theater stand is set up. Best $500 you will ever spend on AV gear.

[Dane]

Right...I didn't take into account that your fronts were towers...I was thinking smaller for some reason.

And funny you should mention Oppo...I was going to suggest it!

A few years back I ripped all my CDs and now listen to virtually everything electronically. Doesn't work for multi-channel (that I'm aware of?). I went through the whole "lossless" debate and frankly, couldn't hear a damn difference between it and 320 aac, so I went with the latter.

[Faust]

I hear a slight difference in some recordings that are quite complex in terms of number of tracks (Nine Inch Nails), but overall, yeah. Where I do hear the difference is in a car stereo. MP3 sounds plain flat compared to a CD. Oh, and there is also a difference in the MP3 movie soundtracks on DVD and lossless on BluRay - at least to my ears.

[gavagai]

I highly recommend Harbeth.

They are easy to power and the midrange is sublime.

I use the "COMPACT 7s" and there is nothing compact about them. They are large.

For those with very limited space some version of the BBC LS3/5A are recommended.

A few different manufacturers including Harbeth have made some iteration of these. Highly accurate but won't provide you with low end if that is what you are looking for.

I've never used a sub woofer as these just generally suck unless in a home theatre with a dedicated person who sets it up. For regular music the reaction always seems a little slow for me.

[endorphinz]

I hear a slight difference in some recordings that are quite complex in terms of number of tracks (Nine Inch Nails), but overall, yeah. Where I do hear the difference is in a car stereo. MP3 sounds plain flat compared to a CD. Oh, and there is also a difference in the MP3 movie soundtracks on DVD and lossless on BluRay - at least to my ears.

I'd wager that any difference you think you hear is only due to preconceived perception. From all the literature I've read, abx tests prove that people can not distinguish between lossless formats and properly encoded,quality vbr mp3.
Over the years I've collected over 1.5 terabytes of mp3 music. I wouldn't even consider storing the equivalent amount of music in lossless formats.
I realize that this debate has been going on for years and no matter what the abx tests prove, some people claim that they can differentiate. I am not one of those people.

The only reason to use lossless is if you intend to trade burnt cds. in this case CDs made from burned lossy formats could then be re- ripped producing way too many artifacts from digital generation loss. Transcoding and re encoding lossy files are no nos. also,only lossless files should be edited before encoding to lossy

I'm not lookin for any fights. I just wanted state MY view.

good audio forum

[Faust]

I did say that for the most part I cannot hear the difference. :-)