tobias

Responses from tobias

Step up from NAD PP2
I second the Moon LP3 or LP110 recommendation. I remember liking the Cambridge too, but the Moon really impressed me at its price point. 
Ipod Touch as a music server
Ditto the above advice. I'm very happy with my Touch as the source connected to a PURE i-20 dock. I use a good coax cable 1.5 meters in length to connect to a DAC. The quality of the digital signal is good enough for very good downstream gear. The... 
Inexpensive integrated tube amp recommendations?
Audio Space AS-3i might go for around your figure used.Point-to-point, three inputs, the output power you want plus the ability to switch to triode mode from the front panel. 
Best integrated for $500?
Rogue make a very good-sounding, very well-built integrated and I bet you would be very happy with it over your Onkyo. It's the tubes--they just make music so liquid.Even tube amps don't all sound the same, though, so here's another suggestion, ju... 
What does it take to qualify as a reviewer?
Ears. Just ears.No, I'm serious. When I was asked to participate in review sessions, I agreed of course. The first or second time I showed up, the magazine editor took pains to mention that no special qualifications were necessary.Over the noise o... 
Power: surge protector, conditioner, ups
A good-sized isolation transformer will condition AC power ( thus improving sound ) and also protect against spikes ( but not surges ).I wouldn't put a UPS on audio gear -- so I could keep listening durning a power outage -- because the large batt... 
A review of the whole Ortofon 2M Series
Now that's an interesting review, written from a slightly different viewpoint than many but rigorous in the objectives it chooses. Nicely done, and the rest of the site I looked at (the Apple stuff) was interesting too. Thanks for the post and I l... 
great bookshelf speakers vs 12-18 k floor speakers
I'm adding my 2 cents to the Joseph Audio Pulsar recommendation above. They are a most attractive-sounding speaker and were very capable in the bass when I hear them at the Montreal show in 2010.Of course at the price they had better sound good bu... 
Shindo pre + buget amp or Leben amp + budget pre
Knowing only the TT and cart combination first-hand, I would still say spend on the preamp and phono stage now, upgrade downstream later.Have to agree with 4musica44107, that is a seriously nice system you are building, one I'd love to hear. IMHO ... 
Have you ever turned on your system, only to find
My tube monoblocks have a switch on the front panel that inverts phase.My adult kids use the system occasionally and don't always remember where the power switch is. That's all you really need to know -- that and Murphy's Law. But it took me a bun... 
sonic image shift from my Laptop
Can you verify the output levels of your DAC using a voltmeter or an oscilloscope?Recently my preamp has been away for service, so no balance control available. I ran the DAC directly to the power amps using its volume control. There appeared to b... 
What does it take to have a revealing system?
Your components have to be able to resolve detail. That is absolutely the first requirement IME. After that, room setup, and acoustical, mechanical and electrical tweaking make the difference, but the first requirement is resolution in the gear.Yo... 
Anyone compared NAD and Cambridge Intergrateds?
Beave, my impressions, above, were not based on level differences. 
Is the Accuton driver that good?
Well, Shadorne may be right that the Accuton takes things too far, but it seems to me the counterargument is: there is a tradeoff in any technology used to reproduce music. Belt drive accelerates like a boatload of pig iron. Ribbon tweeters are ha... 
Anyone compared NAD and Cambridge Intergrateds?
When I compared NADs and Cambridges several years ago, it was the C320BEE vs. the 540/640 series. Well Cambridge may have had better digital sources at the time but NAD had the better-sounding amp to me. The Cambridge amps' highs sounded harsh in ...