artmaltman

Responses from artmaltman

Sony SCD-777ES availability?
Sometimes I like a product but since I trade gear a lot, I hesitate to buy it unless I perceive a good resale market for it. A good review in a major publication, online or paper, goes a long way towards creating a strong sale and resale market. T... 
Thiel 3.6 vs. Spendor SP100 vs. PSB GOLD
3.6 are severely revealing and inefficient. They require LOTS Of CLEAN power but can reward you nicely. Spendors are very forgiving and will sound beautiful. I think Thiel is best for your audiophile periods, where you want to clearly hear the dif... 
Harm. Tech. Pro9 or Anal. Plus Oval9
HT in my system was a bit more neutral and detailed, but I chose the AP. The AP sounded more natural overall, and was deeper in the bass (even that the HT is quite good in the bass). When I have compared these cables for other people in my system,... 
Hovland-Pre,anyone heard it ?
Yesterday I heard the "First Sound" preamp, the $4k model, and was blown away by the sound (once warmed up). Liquid, present, deep powerful bass, etc. Anyone compared this to Hovland, SF3, CJ, etc? 
Cary 303 CD - Very Detailed - Fixes?
Break in is crucial, as are cables. I am getting best results for my 303 with Harmonic Tech Silway II (better even than Cardas Golden Ref or Quattrofil, which is very odd, because these latter two stomp the Silway from preamp to amp). 
Analysis Plus Oval Copper 9s or 12s
I would expect a vast improvement in bass. Definitely try it out, on loan if you can. I bought them on trial from Audio Advisor and ended up keeping them. They are not so expensive that getting them used (vs new) is critical. 
Valhalla
Heard them at Stereophile show. I think the demo was fair, because the other Nordost cables demonstrated sounded familier to me. The Valhalla was a new league of sound, expansive, open, the sound flowed like nothing I had ever heard. It stomped ev... 
Audio Tekne
I found the Audio Tekne speaker cables to be shockingly good, absolutely amazing. I have used HT, Analysis Plus, Cardas, etc. I hated to part with them (loaner) but since I trade gear often (hobby, fun) and don't think they have much of a resale m... 
Best CD player under 5000
I am thrilled with my new Cary 303. Does require warmup and breakin. 
Sonus Grand Piano Home vs. Red Rose R3
Both are excellent speakers. Be careful about version I vs version II of the Grand Piano. I liked version I a lot and my limited experience with version II is positive as well, but of course version I is no longer current and should sell for reduc... 
Basis 2500 vs Debut vs 2800
What about 2001 vs 2500? 
Which software are you buying?SACD or LP
I had an opportunity to borrow the Sony "777" player and test a stack of SACD's. Many of them were barely better than their cd counterparts. Others were astonishingly good, really everything one dreams of and then some. Then there is the compatabi... 
Spendor, Harbeth...why so hot ?
Spendors are somewhat polite, very natural sounding. Long break-in. Not for rock and roll or very dynamic music. They are superb at what they are intended to do. 
Cary 303 or Van Alstine?
Make sure you hear the Cary 303 after a good break-in. It is startlingly good. 
CD Players Getting Better?
I find my new Cary 24/96 model "303" to be of stunning quality, and I don't think this quality was available at this price (3k new, 1800 used) until now.On the other hand, I recently heard an old $200 cd player on a system that was naturally warm ...