Ohm Walsh Micro Talls: who's actually heard 'em?

Just updated my system with a Pangea AC-9SE power cord hooked up to my McCormack DNA 250. I know that this is a somewhat controversial subject, but Steve McCormack himself recommends upgraded power cords, so I bought a 2 meter cord from Pangea (and got $50 off- now through the end of the month!). I immediately noticed that the ground loop hum became barely audible. As to the performance, it may just be my imagination, but the bass notes seem slightly clearer and "fuller", to the extent that I just can't imagine using a subwoofer with my 5000's. Does anyone else think that a high quality power cord makes a difference in sound? BTW, this thing is as thick as a garden hose!

Rbf1138: I use a pair of Vandersteen 2Wqs with my 2000s, but that's not in your budget. In your budget, I'd look into the Velodyne EQ Max 8. IMHO, having the ability to EQ the in-room response of a sub is very important, and in this price range, not many subs offer that capability. If your room is appropriately sized for the MWTs, the EQ Max 8 should be sufficient, especially for music (as opposed to home theater). As for the connection, I prefer the subs to be in-line with the main speakers, the only way the Vandys can be connected. However, it is often the case that the sub's built in high-pass filter for the speaker-level connections is inferior to the crossover in an AVR or preamp or integrated amp. If your Peachtree has an internal crossover with an RCA subwoofer output, it will probably be better than the crossover in most subwoofers. But try it both ways and see which sounds and blends better.

Finsup: Although my 2-channel signal chain does not use any room EQ, my surround signal chain does. I have a Pioneer AVR with MCACC, which works rather well, especially compared to the Audyssey built into my previous pre-pro. I have to admit that there is a "rightness" to the sound when I have even lo-res sources on, like Music Choice on FiOS. The jazz channel, which in my set up must come through the room EQ'd Pioneer AVR, sounds amazingly good for a compressed, reduced-resolution digital signal being converted to analog by a <$500 AVR. If I had more money, and was not such a die-hard analog fan, I might look into the higher end room EQ products. My main suggestion here is to insist on the ability to fine-tune the room EQ results after the device does its thing. My old pre-pro was all-or-nothing; if you didn't like the way the Audyssey EQ'd the room, your only choice was to turn the whole room EQ thing off. With the MCACC, I can fine tune it, correcting any setting I don't like, while keeping the rest.

Bondmanp, that sub looks nice. Maybe I could even scrounge up some extra cash and get the 10' version...

As for the connections, here's the back of my Nova:
http://www.listenup.com/lu/graphics/00000001/PeachtreeAudio.Nova_Back.jpg

So I could either connect the sub directly from the Nova using the preamp output and then leave the speakers connected to the Nova like normal, or I can connect the speaker out of the Nova to the Velodyne, then the speakers to the sub (which is what "in-line" is?)? Is that how things work? Sorry, I'm totally new to all of this and don't totally grasp some of how it works together.

I went ahead and ordered the Velodyne since it's on special for $400 right now. I think because I can't afford another pair of nice speaker wire to do the in-line method, I'll have to just stick to using the preamp output on my Nova directly into the subwoofer for now (if I understand correctly, that's how to most simply connect the Velodyne to the Nova).

You are correct about the "in-line" set up. Go ahead with your plans. I would do some critical listening before and after the sub is in the system. Don't pay much attention to the bass, which will of course be different. Listen for changes in the upper bass, mids and treble. Listen for detail, soundstage dimensionality, timbre, etc. If you feel these are worse with the sub in the system, consider using the line outputs from the Nova. Make sure the output is variable level, so volume changes to the speakers will match volume changes to the sub. Note that, from what I see in the image, there is no internal x-over in the Nova, so that the Ohms will still get a full-range signal. This will eliminate some of the advantages of a powered sub - less amp power is required for the main speakers, which usually improves performance. Of course, you can always look into outboard, higher quality crossovers in the future.