aldoallen

Responses from aldoallen

Low gain dac!
Benchmark DAC's have internal pads that can be moved to lower the gain by 10 or 20 db. I have an older DAC1 and I use this feature when switching from a tube amp to a solid state amp. The DAC1 actually has a -30db pad as well. The pads lower gain ... 
Too much gain in preamp
I don't know what your source of music is, but for me, I use jriver for playback of digital files on a computer with a Benchmark DAC. I can lower the gain through jriver or by making internal adjustments through the DAC. This may be an option for ... 
Shopping for new speakers-need ideas... Selling old DQ-10's...
You may want to look into Spatial Audio open baffle speakers. I used to own the DQ-20's and now own the Spatial Audio M4 Triode Master. They check all the boxes for the type of sound you described. New speakers are over your budget but used ones c... 
Spatial M3 Triode Master Preamp/amp choices
I own the Spatial Audio M4 Triode Masters. These are the smaller version of your speakers. I started with a Cary Rocket 88R tube amp that was good for 60 watts in ultralinear mode. I tried EL34 and KT88 tubes but the bass just disappeared when mus... 
Pondering a change after 30 odd years...
You might want to research open baffle speakers, I am a very happy owner of Spatial Audio speakers but there are others as well. 
LTA - Has Anyone Had First Hand Experiance?
The speakers i am using are the M4 Triode Masters.They are placed 15 inches from the side walls and 41 inches from the wall behind them. They are in a 10' wide by 20' long room with the speakers placed on the short wall. They could be placed close... 
LTA - Has Anyone Had First Hand Experiance?
I don't have any experience with those exact bundles but I do own the LTA MZ3 and ZOTL 10 power amp. Also using an older Benchmark DAC. My speakers are Spatial Audio open baffles and the result is superb in my opinion. Before I owned this system, ... 
Leaving a PSU on - yea or nay?
I started with the MZ2 also but I bought it new from LTA. I traded it in to LTA for the MZ3 and used it as a preamp with a CODA 10.5R amp that had way more power than I needed. I then bought a ZOTL 10 from LTA and it sounds better on my speakers (... 
Leaving a PSU on - yea or nay?
I have the LTA MZ3 and I leave the PSU on all the time. It does not put out any heat when the MZ3 is not being used. I believe the manual says it can be left on as well. My Benchmark DAC does not have an on/off switch and it is left on all the tim... 
Demo'ing Class A amps, Appreciation Suggestions from those who recently been there
Decooney:I would say the LTA amp leans more toward very good solid state and less towards lush tube sound. Compared to my CODA amp it has a little more detail and adds some air around the individual instruments and voices if that makes any sense. ... 
Demo'ing Class A amps, Appreciation Suggestions from those who recently been there
If tube amplification is an option, my suggestion would be Linear Tube Audio. I am using a ZOTL 10 amp with the MZ3 preamp on Spatial Audio M4 Triode Master speakers. The speakers are rated at 93db and average 12 ohms. These are open baffle speake... 
Recomend Some Albums Recorded with True Imaging.
A couple of CD's I have sound like what you are looking for. One is call "The Pizza Tapes". It is Jerry Garcia, David Grisman, and Tony Rice playing together in a home studio. It is a little raw but it is definitely live and unedited.The other I c... 
Amp for Polk Audio Lsi15
I used to own the LsI15 speakers and used an Audible Illusions S-120 amplifier. The amp was rated at 120 watts into 8 ohms and 240 into 4 ohms. They sounded great with this amplifier.    
Speaker With Least Room Interaction
Definitely Spatial Audio. I am using the M4 Triode Masters and have no issues with bass boom. My room is 10' by 20' with an 8' ceiling and the previous box speakers I owned really boomed on the bass notes. Spatial Audio speakers are open baffles a... 
Easy to drive, outstandingly natural sound from 40-50 Hz up.....AN-E, O/96, others?
I would suggest the Spatial Audio M3 Triode Master or M4 Triode Master depending on what size room you have. I own the M4 version and they fit your description to the tee.Al