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Linn Ninkas now Aktiv but a couple questions.

Three days with the aktiv set-up and K400 wire. Nice. Got a few questions though. (1) Did anyone initially experience the sense that there was almost too much information? The set-up sounds wonderful in simpler passages like a voice and guitar but tends to get kinda swallowed up when the rest of the band kicks in. It might just be my room. Though the effect may be linked to the following questions as it seems to be softening.(or is it just my head that's getting soft?)(2) Is there a burn-in time for the cards? (3) I noticed quite a difference between hooking up the output from the pre into the bass amp first then from there to the treble amp than the opposite. Problem may be that my IC's are not the same as whatever is hooked up first sounds better The pre out has yamamura m5000 the other, between the amps, is a .6m blue heaven. Any tips or suggestions? What about splitting at the pre out? What kind of PC's and IC's are you others using successfully? (I have a cary slp-50a pre and rega planet2000 cdp, with synegistic re. master coupler pc's) Look forward to your answers and thanks for your past help getting me here and in advance for any suggestions. PS my test cd right now is Aimee Mann's "Lost in Space" (I'm a bit timid about breaking out the orchestral works until I get all this sorted)
stuartbranson
lugnut
1,190 posts
 
Stuart,

I concur with Tim about moving the speakers farther into the room when going Aktiv. Sorry, I forgot to mention that. I also agree that music at lower volumes had more detail than prior to Aktiv. The only area I disagree with Tim on is finding more faults with recordings. I have a Genki but only have about 40 CD's so I can't really judge the digital domain accurately. I'm vinyl based and find I enjoy way more of my collection. Still, the stellar recordings stand out above the rest.

Patrick
stuartbranson OP
183 posts
 
Thanks. Tim, I am interested in the before and after measurements on distance from the rear wall. Also thoughts on distance from the side wall? My room is about 12'l x 9'w x 7.5'h. Tiny I know as it has the speakers only about 4.5 to 5 feet apart, about 15" from the rear wall with a toe-in, according to patrick's method, of only about 0.75". Don't get me wrong here, the sound is incredible especially in the added bass and the clarity. The "too much" is that everything seems so clear that the singer seems to have a big head and is only 3.5 feet tall but gets back to normal size and palce when the whole band plays. I guess I can't convey the sense of what I mean but as I write this I have become more convinced that the problem is that the room is constricting everything. Thanks again.
samir
17 posts
 
Stuart,

Do not mess up with non Linn cables: I experienced several interconnects (from Wireworld to Stealth) and I can assure you they do not work. You might get a first impression of more details, a more bases, but at the end you get less musicality and an unbalanced presentation. Switch to Linn IC and you will be turning the volume up rather than down. The Linn silver is of course more detailed and smoother than the black, but the black comes free with your amplifiers, so use them!
stuartbranson OP
183 posts
 
Thanks for the thought Samir. I have been swithching things around including putting the Linn IC's back in but I have to disagree. The yamamura's are so much more transparent and detailed than the Linn. The Blue Heaven vs. the Linn is a different story.(each has benefits) So far the best set-up with what I have is the Yam's btw the cdp and pre then same to the treble with the nordost daisy chained to the bass. I think I'll try the Linn back in there and see. (My second LK-85 was bought used and came w/o the second Linn IC's so unless I buy them I don't have that option) About the PC's, the S.R. master coupler is much better on the amps than the stock cable.
keech
17 posts
 
Stuart:
My room is 17.2L x 11.2W x 8H. My listening chair is around the 13-14 foot mark.

Measuring from the top of the speaker to the back wall: Passively, the Ninkas were installed by my local dealer who set them up 3 3/16” from the wall on “the inside” of speakers and 3 3/4” from the wall on “the outside” of the speakers. The toe in being almost ½ inch. When going Aktiv, I moved them to 8” from the wall on the inside and 8 1/4” from the wall on the outside. My toe in is just the 1/4 inch. I have tried greater toe in, but didn’t think the speakers disappeared as well.

Measuring from the Kustone bases: Aktiv, the distance between the two speakers is 57 1/2”. I am measuring from the front, inner corner of the two speaker bases. The left speaker is 28 1/2” from the left wall and the right speaker is 29 3/4” from the right wall. I am measuring from the wall to the outer corner of the base on each speaker.

I hope these measurements make sense and aren’t too confusing.

I think I can understand what you are hearing and you aren't necessarily complaining. I have noticed listening to some CDs Aktiv, instruments are more pronounced than previously. This can some times be distracting. I found this with the Barenaked Ladies CD, Maroon. The cymbals in one of the songs are really pronounced. . I think this is why some people feel Aktiv systems are fatiguing. There is a lot of sharp, crisp, detail without much forgiveness. I dunno. I love it. My ears have "burned in" ;) to loving the Aktiv reproduction of music. I think the tune is easier to follow.

Also, don't forget you can control the treble volume on the treble card. This may help, or may not.

Tim
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