Shigaraki and other simplistic gear


I am fed up. I have amassed a collection of to date, 4 amplifiers, 2 preamps, as well as 3-4 pairs of speakers, and the more that I try to achieve a pleasing performance, spending not inconsiderate amounts of money, I soon become desillusioned. Therefore, I am in the last stage of my audiophilia ridiculosa....I have ordered some cabinets from a speaker maker, to properly have my fostex full range driver housed, and I am in the path of either running them with my stashed 300B Platinum edition Assemblage amplifier along with WE tubes...or, I am truly considering acquiring the 47 labs Shigaraki integrated. What I wonder is the type of sound I will get from the Shigaraki set up. Some people have loved the Gaincard to death, but then, the Shigaraki seems to have a different sound. Have anyone here compared the Gaincard with SET tube amp and also heard the new integrated? I wonder. If you are the unlikely candidate who have the fortune of comparing all the about, then, what sort of speaker was used for the set up. Will I reach nirvana with the combination of shiny aluminum and ceramic pieces?
bemopti123

Showing 4 responses by bemopti123

can you expound on the EMI/RFI and vibration issue? What sort of specific problems do you have with them?
I am going to drop in a pair of Fostex FE208 sigmas. I want to use what I already have, not having to plunge into another pair of drivers like the Jordan drivers. I think the Fostex will have better highs than the Jordans. The cabinets are those Garudas from ZHorn, a cross between many different designs....a back loaded horn with front output. I am running out of space, do not want to get more gear...cannot sleep on top of speaker cabinets and boxes, therefore of my choice of getting these cabinets and even getting the Shigaraki. If I am absolutely satisfied, I might be unloading gear via Audiogon. Strange how I used to be able to carry 60+ lbs amps without a problem, but now, I am either getting weak, old or do not feel the effort of moving and setting gear up is worth the effort.
Viggen, I do like these acronym, sounds like a Saab model. I do not trust those autotransformer anything in my path. I have read much of the work that goes into them, and people seem to like them, but if you see the reviews, the praised that come from using them, most of them come from owners of Atmasphere OTL or some other OTL design amps running what it seems to me more of a heavy loaded speakers. The drivers you have are nowhere near as difficult or outrageous as those that I have seen partnered in those reviews. I recall many of them being some sort of electrostats and some even using the Merlin VSM. There is no way I can see how the autotransformer will benefit CONSIDERABLY the set up you already own. I am striving for simplicity, closeness to the source and putting a autotransformer, I do not know if THAT is going to be too good. I know the designer of the AUTOTRANS said that the signal does not go looping around the winding cords, but WHY add more distance, one more something while you try to be immediate in the sound, with the mm between signal and amplification as with the CARD? I vote to dump the idea of adding the AUTOTRANSF.....it will change the sound, but I doubt it will be an improvement that might justify the cost of the time to get it and set it up.

PS: Cannot afford to pay moving people for the gear I have, cannot trust them with such sensitive equipment, so being a Do myself type, I am trying to DIET my extra audio pounds.
Dekay and Viggen, I wonder, I am getting my BC 2 picked up after a tech check up and they guy, who is an expert, knows a lot of people who actually designs the gear that many of us have heard about and possess, stated that all his clients, have gone to the simple full range SET or other minimal power camp to return to large behemoths and power sucking monoliths. He said that the sound of the SET camp is limited in the extremes and one can hear compression. Do you have any experiences with compression of lack of slam with the minimal power set up that you have? What about the extreme frequencies? I think my tech might have been exaggerating...for I think there are many ways of fix the end extreme compromise...Fostex sells tweers and have recommendations of installing them along with their fullrange. Furthermore, in the low end, I think I have cross it with a real fast and musical subwoofer. So, the question still stands, was he exaggerating or do you think he is right. I have plunged a couple of K on the SET or minimal camp gear, I wonder if I will ever be unsatisfied. If that is the case, I think I am going to a Asylum for audio lunatics who seem to hear and see visions, when toying with equipment. Tell me about your fullrange driver experiences. Viggen, you can tell me for it seems as if you have had different set ups before, as in your systems posts.