My 2 channel rig: a tribute to Club Polk
Norm Apter
Posts: 1,036
Well, having received several shipments of goods this week, my 2 channel system -- as I've envisioned it -- is essentially complete. It marks the end of a six-month process. Before getting into what I now have, I wanted to put all of it into context, by mentioning 3 basic facts, as damning as they may be.
1) Prior to Sept. 2007 (yes, less than a year ago) I had never heard of Polk Audio. That's right. I was searching Amazon for speakers and I came across some steller reviews of the Polk Rti4s. I was struck by the fact that at the time all 11 reviews were 5-star. Almost unheard of on Amazon. Usually there's at least one dissatisfied customer with a product, no matter what the quality of the product may be.
2) As of early Feb. 2008, I was listening to a system built of components all purchased in 1993. Yep, this not only included a Sony AVR, Sony CD player, Sony tape deck and pair of Advent Baby II speakers, but also the original 20-gauge speaker wire and the original stock RCA cables that came with the CD player (from 1993!).
3) Prior to joining CP in late April, I had never heard of Rotel, B&K, Parasound, Carver, Adcom or many of the other names that are thrown around here frequently.
The first decisive moment for me occurred in Dec. 2007. I was visiting home (Virginia) for Christmas and decided to make a trip to each of the Crutchfield retail stores to audition the Rti4s and Rti6s. They had just gotten the RtiA3s in, so I listened to those as well. But then, just for fun, the salesperson said that I really ought to listen to the Lsi9s they had hooked up. Well, that was all she wrote. Coming from what I had heard, these things were from another planet (its all perspective!). After listening to the 9s, I found that it would be impossible for me to not get them.
I picked up a pair in Feb., a Marantz single-disc player the next month, and in the meantime was floating around a few forums including Parts Express. Actually, the guys at PE are pretty friendly and helpful, but I noticed that most of them seemed to be pretty hard-core DIYers -- lots of talk about building one's own subwoofer and crossovers and that sort of thing. While they humored me by answering my silly questions, I wasn't sure that it was the best place for me to be. Then, in late April I stumbled across this forum. Oh, I still had lots of silly questions but I began to get some really pointed advice from the get go. And of course, much of that had to do with getting my hands on some decent clean amplification. One of the other valuable things I've learned here is the virtue of buying used (now all three of my main components were purchased used). That never would have occurred to me before. Beyond these things I've learned so much already about everything from cables, to FM, to bidding on eBay, speaker placement to just about anything 2 channel that I've wondered about.
OK, so with a priority on both CD and FM listening, this is what I've had a chance to get my hands on, piece by piece, so far:
Polk Lsi9s
Marantz CD-5001 CDP
Parasound Halo A23 amp
Parasound Halo P3 pre-amp
Parasound Halo T3 tuner
Signal Cable Ultra speaker wires
Signal Cable balanced Analog IIs (2 pair)
Signal Cable Analog IIs RCAs (1 pair)
Magnum Dynalab 205 Signal Sleuth
Magnum Dynalab ST-2 antenna
-- See attached photo below (no real stand yet, but you'll get the general idea)
Its been a long process that has required some patience and some learning along the way. One thing I've learned is what everybody else here already knows: the sky is the limit in terms of performance and price. But I'm not really a hobbiest so, for me, its been more of a process of coming terms with the quality of sound that I felt satisfied with at a price that seemed justifiable. As I sit back on this clear Friday evening listening to Radiohead, I've got a broad smile on my face. Life is good. I'm more interested in how the music -- than the equipment -- sound and all I can say is that everything,from top to bottom, sounds better than I knew possible a few months ago. I may do some tweeks here and there but I think I'm pretty much set for awhile...now Home Theater, thats an entirely different cup of tea. But I think I'll be enjoying this for some time.
Well, at the risk of sounding like I just won an Oscar, I did want to publicly thank some of the people who have been particularly helpful at each step along the way. While I am ultimately responsible for the decisions, be they wise or poor, I obviously drew heavily on the collective body of knowledge that makes CP such an invaluable resource. This has been amazing because I spent a good part of Feb and March trying to get info/advice from salespersons who always had an ulterior motive and thus was banging my head against the wall. So in no particular order, many thanks are due to SteveinAz, danger boy, Dorokusai, Lasareth, TroyD, Cfrizz, Gaara, Heiney9, Ben62670, Face, Nspindel, Keiko, SolidSqual, Beardog, McLoki, Mantis, Neskahi, William2, Basspedal, reeltrouble, Janmike, bikezappa, George Grand, mightymouse and by extension many others.
Ok, this e-mail has been a little heavy so for anyone who has made it this far, I'd like to remind you:
Have a nice day.
I know I am
(I really am)
1) Prior to Sept. 2007 (yes, less than a year ago) I had never heard of Polk Audio. That's right. I was searching Amazon for speakers and I came across some steller reviews of the Polk Rti4s. I was struck by the fact that at the time all 11 reviews were 5-star. Almost unheard of on Amazon. Usually there's at least one dissatisfied customer with a product, no matter what the quality of the product may be.
2) As of early Feb. 2008, I was listening to a system built of components all purchased in 1993. Yep, this not only included a Sony AVR, Sony CD player, Sony tape deck and pair of Advent Baby II speakers, but also the original 20-gauge speaker wire and the original stock RCA cables that came with the CD player (from 1993!).
3) Prior to joining CP in late April, I had never heard of Rotel, B&K, Parasound, Carver, Adcom or many of the other names that are thrown around here frequently.
The first decisive moment for me occurred in Dec. 2007. I was visiting home (Virginia) for Christmas and decided to make a trip to each of the Crutchfield retail stores to audition the Rti4s and Rti6s. They had just gotten the RtiA3s in, so I listened to those as well. But then, just for fun, the salesperson said that I really ought to listen to the Lsi9s they had hooked up. Well, that was all she wrote. Coming from what I had heard, these things were from another planet (its all perspective!). After listening to the 9s, I found that it would be impossible for me to not get them.
I picked up a pair in Feb., a Marantz single-disc player the next month, and in the meantime was floating around a few forums including Parts Express. Actually, the guys at PE are pretty friendly and helpful, but I noticed that most of them seemed to be pretty hard-core DIYers -- lots of talk about building one's own subwoofer and crossovers and that sort of thing. While they humored me by answering my silly questions, I wasn't sure that it was the best place for me to be. Then, in late April I stumbled across this forum. Oh, I still had lots of silly questions but I began to get some really pointed advice from the get go. And of course, much of that had to do with getting my hands on some decent clean amplification. One of the other valuable things I've learned here is the virtue of buying used (now all three of my main components were purchased used). That never would have occurred to me before. Beyond these things I've learned so much already about everything from cables, to FM, to bidding on eBay, speaker placement to just about anything 2 channel that I've wondered about.
OK, so with a priority on both CD and FM listening, this is what I've had a chance to get my hands on, piece by piece, so far:
Polk Lsi9s
Marantz CD-5001 CDP
Parasound Halo A23 amp
Parasound Halo P3 pre-amp
Parasound Halo T3 tuner
Signal Cable Ultra speaker wires
Signal Cable balanced Analog IIs (2 pair)
Signal Cable Analog IIs RCAs (1 pair)
Magnum Dynalab 205 Signal Sleuth
Magnum Dynalab ST-2 antenna
-- See attached photo below (no real stand yet, but you'll get the general idea)
Its been a long process that has required some patience and some learning along the way. One thing I've learned is what everybody else here already knows: the sky is the limit in terms of performance and price. But I'm not really a hobbiest so, for me, its been more of a process of coming terms with the quality of sound that I felt satisfied with at a price that seemed justifiable. As I sit back on this clear Friday evening listening to Radiohead, I've got a broad smile on my face. Life is good. I'm more interested in how the music -- than the equipment -- sound and all I can say is that everything,from top to bottom, sounds better than I knew possible a few months ago. I may do some tweeks here and there but I think I'm pretty much set for awhile...now Home Theater, thats an entirely different cup of tea. But I think I'll be enjoying this for some time.
Well, at the risk of sounding like I just won an Oscar, I did want to publicly thank some of the people who have been particularly helpful at each step along the way. While I am ultimately responsible for the decisions, be they wise or poor, I obviously drew heavily on the collective body of knowledge that makes CP such an invaluable resource. This has been amazing because I spent a good part of Feb and March trying to get info/advice from salespersons who always had an ulterior motive and thus was banging my head against the wall. So in no particular order, many thanks are due to SteveinAz, danger boy, Dorokusai, Lasareth, TroyD, Cfrizz, Gaara, Heiney9, Ben62670, Face, Nspindel, Keiko, SolidSqual, Beardog, McLoki, Mantis, Neskahi, William2, Basspedal, reeltrouble, Janmike, bikezappa, George Grand, mightymouse and by extension many others.
Ok, this e-mail has been a little heavy so for anyone who has made it this far, I'd like to remind you:
Have a nice day.
I know I am
(I really am) 2 Ch.
Parasound Halo A23 Amp
Parasound Halo P3 Preamp
Parasound Halo T3 Tuner
Bada HD22SE tube CD Player
Magnum Dynalab Signal Sleuth
Magnum Dynalab ST-2 antenna
polkaudio Lsi9s (upgraded cross-overs)
MIT Shotgun S-3 Bi-wire Interface Speaker Cables
MIT Shotgun S-3 Interconnects (3)
IegO L70530 Power cords (3)
HT
Denon 2808ci AVR
polkaudio RTi A5s (fronts)
polkaudio RTi A1s (rears)
polkaudio Csi A6 (center)
Signal Cable Ultra Speaker Cables
Signal Cable Analog II Interconnects
Parasound Halo A23 Amp
Parasound Halo P3 Preamp
Parasound Halo T3 Tuner
Bada HD22SE tube CD Player
Magnum Dynalab Signal Sleuth
Magnum Dynalab ST-2 antenna
polkaudio Lsi9s (upgraded cross-overs)
MIT Shotgun S-3 Bi-wire Interface Speaker Cables
MIT Shotgun S-3 Interconnects (3)
IegO L70530 Power cords (3)
HT
Denon 2808ci AVR
polkaudio RTi A5s (fronts)
polkaudio RTi A1s (rears)
polkaudio Csi A6 (center)
Signal Cable Ultra Speaker Cables
Signal Cable Analog II Interconnects
Post edited by Norm Apter on
Comments
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Congrats man!!! Excellent work you've done. As I've said, this forum is a beautiful thing!:D
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Same boat here. I played with too much junk in my travels. Glad to see you just did it right the first time:) All you need now is a TT;)
BenPlease. Please contact me a ben62670 @ yahoo.com. Make sure to include who you are, and you are from Polk so I don't delete your email. Also I am now physically unable to work on any projects. If you need help let these guys know. There are many people who will help if you let them know where you are.
Thanks
Ben -
No doubt. Think of the money and aggravation he saved.Glad to see you just did it right the first time:)
~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~ -
Congrats - looks great. (might have a few papers to sort through though....
)
So, where is the link to your review??Mains.............Polk LSi15 (Cherry)
Center............Polk LSiC (Crossover upgraded)
Surrounds.......Polk LSi7 (Gloss Black - wood sides removed and crossovers upgraded)
Subwoofers.....SVS 25-31 CS+ and PC+ (both 20hz tune)
Pre\Pro...........NAD T163 (Modded with LM4562 opamps)
Amplifier.........Cinepro 3k6 (6-channel, 500wpc@4ohms) -
Very nice setup!Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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Looking Good!!!"SOME PEOPLE CALL ME MAURICE,
CAUSE I SPEAK OF THE POMPITIOUS OF LOVE" -
These kind of threads are always Cool... It seems we get one from time to time. I have probably even started a thread similar to this at one point and time. It always makes me wonder. Are other forums continually getting threads like this?? Either way I always get that warm fuzzy feeling for being part of a great forum that has helped many. Including me....
Congrats on the setup Norm!!! Enjoy!!
Nick -
Nice post and system Norm. Sounds like you may be that rare person that has reached audio nirvana......for now. If you have reached that point, I envy you! And I've said it before, it is about the music and not the equipment. Enjoy the music.
Gordon2 Channel -
Martin Logan Spire, 2 JL Audio F112 subs
McIntosh C1000 Controller with Tube pre amp, 2 MC501 amplifiers, MD1K Transport & DAC, MR-88 Tuner
WireWorld Eclipse 6.0 speaker wire and jumpers, Eclipse 5^2 Squared Balanced IC's. Silver Eclipse PCs (5)
Symposium Rollerblocks 2+ (16)Black Diamond Racing Mk 3 pits (8) -
Great story Norm. Mine is very similar in that I started out being clueless about audio and after reading this forum for a couple years, have managed to learn a ton of info and now have a killer rig. This forum Rocks!
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Great looking system Whats even more amazing is that you can have a great system like that next to an open window in Los Angeles The first rule of Fight Club is you don't talk about Fight Club
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Congratulations Norm!
Seeing a newbie come here soak up all the knowledge that is freely & happily given & put together a terrific system like yours is what it's all about on this forum!
Enjoy!!!Marantz AV-7705 PrePro, Classé 5 channel 200wpc Amp, Oppo 103 BluRay, Rotel RCD-1072 CDP, Sony XBR-49X800E TV, Polk S60 Main Speakers, Polk ES30 Center Channel, Polk S15 Surround Speakers SVS SB12-NSD x2
