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Now, you’re talking! I’m definitely into two channel audio. Nothing huge like @hoosier_exotics has posted. I wouldn’t last a day w/o being kicked out of our building with those two subs! 

My current setup is a Rega TT that’s pretty modded out, going into a Peachtree Class D amp, which feeds B&W speakers. 

I’m about to get a full tube amp that spits out a 100 watts (which is a lot for all tubes). 

I’ve also got a tube headphone amp that feeds three different sets of headphones depending on my mood. 

Besides beer and books, music is my big hobby. I’m at the “hiding albums from my wife stage at least once” a week phase. 

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38 minutes ago, Lostin76 said:

Now, you’re talking! I’m definitely into two channel audio. Nothing huge like @hoosier_exotics has posted. I wouldn’t last a day w/o being kicked out of our building with those two subs! 

My current setup is a Rega TT that’s pretty modded out, going into a Peachtree Class D amp, which feeds B&W speakers. 

I’m about to get a full tube amp that spits out a 100 watts (which is a lot for all tubes). 

I’ve also got a tube headphone amp that feeds three different sets of headphones depending on my mood. 

Besides beer and books, music is my big hobby. I’m at the “hiding albums from my wife stage at least once” a week phase. 

Right now I am using this system for dbl duty...  eventually I want to build a true 2 channel setup myself. 

I just picked up a pair of Rega rs3 from a friend of mine. Peachtree is on the short lost to run those as well...

Eventually i will get a turntable. Rega is what I have been researching mostly...

I was going to do entire Paradigm Persona system, but my friend talked me into the Triad Gold series for my room.  So far I have no complaints. They aren't fancy or cutting edge in design, but they sound pretty dang good.

Marantz and Parasound powering it all...

5.3.6

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3 minutes ago, hoosier_exotics said:

Right now I am using this system for dbl duty...  eventually I want to build a true 2 channel setup myself. 

I just picked up a pair of Rega rs3 from a friend of mine. Peachtree is on the short lost to run those as well...

Eventually i will get a turntable. Rega is what I have been researching mostly...

I was going to do entire Paradigm Persona system, but my friend talked me into the Triad Gold series for my room.  So far I have no complaints. They aren't fancy or cutting edge in design, but they sound pretty dang good.

Marantz and Parasound powering it all...

5.3.6

Marantz and Parasound sounds good to me! At one point, I thought about trying to do a set up with a vintage Marantz receiver. They (along with Yamaha) just continue to crank out good two-channel audio.

I liked the Peachtree b/c it sounded really nice for my small room and my wife liked the look of it. They are nice-looking amps. 

About two years ago I got a tube headphone amp to power my Audeze LCD-2 headphones and it really made me want to go all tubes for my setup. 

First pic is my Woo Audio (made here in Brooklyn) headphone amp and Audeze LCD-2 headphones, made in Cali. 

Second pic is the Rogue Audio that I’m in the process of ordering - they are made to order from Pennsylvania. It‘s a 55 pound chunk of metal and tubes! Not sure how long it will take to arrive, but I’m excited about it. 

 

 

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5 minutes ago, Lostin76 said:

Marantz and Parasound sounds good to me! At one point, I thought about trying to do a set up with a vintage Marantz receiver. They (along with Yamaha) just continue to crank out good two-channel audio.

I liked the Peachtree b/c it sounded really nice for my small room and my wife liked the look of it. They are nice-looking amps. 

About two years ago I got a tube headphone amp to power my Audeze LCD-2 headphones and it really made me want to go all tubes for my setup. 

First pic is my Woo Audio (made here in Brooklyn) headphone amp and Audeze LCD-2 headphones, made in Cali. 

Second pic is the Rogue Audio that I’m in the process of ordering - they are made to order from Pennsylvania. It‘s a 55 pound chunk of metal and tubes! Not sure how long it will take to arrive, but I’m excited about it. 

 

 

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Very cool!  It's hard to beat the sound of a good tube amp. Thanks for sharing, and please update us when your Rogue comes in.

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10 minutes ago, hoosier_exotics said:

Very cool!  It's hard to beat the sound of a good tube amp. Thanks for sharing, and please update us when your Rogue comes in.

I will. I had also really been considering a new Yamaha AS-2200. Different look, but those view meters make me weak in the knees. Not sure how old you are, but this one screams 1970s to me. 

 

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2 minutes ago, Lostin76 said:

I will. I had also really been considering a new Yamaha AS-2200. Different look, but those view meters make me weak in the knees. Not sure how old you are, but this one screams 1970s to me. 

 

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Born in '76. And yes, that has retro written all over it.  My stuff is all the latest from Marantz,  but I certainly appreciate the direction you are going.  I can see myself heading that way as well, for a designated two channel system.

I like Harbeth quite a bit... although im not a klipsch guy, I find myself drawn to their La Scala...  either ran on tubes will be good i think 

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7 minutes ago, hoosier_exotics said:

Born in '76. And yes, that has retro written all over it.  My stuff is all the latest from Marantz,  but I certainly appreciate the direction you are going.  I can see myself heading that way as well, for a designated two channel system.

I like Harbeth quite a bit... although im not a klipsch guy, I find myself drawn to their La Scala...  either ran on tubes will be good i think 

DUDE, are we twins? Harbeth HP5+ or La Scala’s are my absolute end goal in speakers. Harbeth if I end up with sold state amp and La Scala if I end up with tubes. 

Are you on the Steve Hoffman forums? The only reason I ask is if you mention Harbeth and La Scalas then you are obviously lost to the audiophile bug! 

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4 minutes ago, Lostin76 said:

DUDE, are we twins? Harbeth HP5+ or La Scala’s are my absolute end goal in speakers. Harbeth if I end up with sold state amp and La Scala if I end up with tubes. 

Are you on the Steve Hoffman forums? The only reason I ask is if you mention Harbeth and La Scalas then you are obviously lost to the audiophile bug! 

Lol I am not quite there yet.. only due to the fact I promised the wife we would finish this theater room. 

I was really back and forth on saying screw it, and putting a pair of La Scala up front.  My friend owns a Home theater business, and was really wanting me to try this Triad stuff, so I did. 

If things get back to semi normal over the next year, I will be picking your brain on some of this stuff. I'm just learning,  but have similar tastes to yours obviously. 

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  • 1 month later...

The Rogue Audio CMIII finally arrived today. UPS dropped it off in the lobby and ignored the signature required part. Good thing the box at 60 lbs was too big for anyone to steal. 

I hooked it up this afternoon and had to bias the driver tubes (they provide a little screwdriver and it only took a few minutes). Have been listening to it since about 3pm and it’s really opening up in the last hour or so. I know they say components need time to break in, but this thing is already a SHOCKING improvement over my Class D integrated amp that I’ve been listening to over the last six years. 

I’ve been told to give it a few days or up to a couple weeks for it to really sound good, but am already just gobsmacked. Even my wife was like, “Damn, this sounds incredible.” 

I’ve never seen something so thin and relatively small weigh so much though. I guess that means it’s high quality and US made in Pennsylvania!

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On 2/23/2021 at 7:07 PM, Lostin76 said:

The Rogue Audio CMIII finally arrived today. UPS dropped it off in the lobby and ignored the signature required part. Good thing the box at 60 lbs was too big for anyone to steal. 

I hooked it up this afternoon and had to bias the driver tubes (they provide a little screwdriver and it only took a few minutes). Have been listening to it since about 3pm and it’s really opening up in the last hour or so. I know they say components need time to break in, but this thing is already a SHOCKING improvement over my Class D integrated amp that I’ve been listening to over the last six years. 

I’ve been told to give it a few days or up to a couple weeks for it to really sound good, but am already just gobsmacked. Even my wife was like, “Damn, this sounds incredible.” 

I’ve never seen something so thin and relatively small weigh so much though. I guess that means it’s high quality and US made in Pennsylvania!

E9E115C1-77DE-4BA1-B8C0-62C5DDFBACFC.jpeg

Congratulations buddy! That is a beauty! Couple weeks and you will love it even more

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On 2/23/2021 at 7:07 PM, Lostin76 said:

The Rogue Audio CMIII finally arrived today. UPS dropped it off in the lobby and ignored the signature required part. Good thing the box at 60 lbs was too big for anyone to steal. 

I hooked it up this afternoon and had to bias the driver tubes (they provide a little screwdriver and it only took a few minutes). Have been listening to it since about 3pm and it’s really opening up in the last hour or so. I know they say components need time to break in, but this thing is already a SHOCKING improvement over my Class D integrated amp that I’ve been listening to over the last six years. 

I’ve been told to give it a few days or up to a couple weeks for it to really sound good, but am already just gobsmacked. Even my wife was like, “Damn, this sounds incredible.” 

I’ve never seen something so thin and relatively small weigh so much though. I guess that means it’s high quality and US made in Pennsylvania!

E9E115C1-77DE-4BA1-B8C0-62C5DDFBACFC.jpeg

It’s been a couple generations, but people do not understand how much better analog is over digital! But, Lostin, what happens if a tube goes out? It’s not like the 60’s and you could go to the grocery store and test all your tubes and then then find the replacement in the cabinet below? :coffee: Enjoy the the sound my friend!

 

 

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11 hours ago, hoosier_exotics said:

Congratulations buddy! That is a beauty! Couple weeks and you will love it even more

That’s exactly what someone lse who recently got one said. He said, “Sure it sounds good now, but just wait!” 

10 hours ago, Drroogh said:

It’s been a couple generations, but people do not understand how much better analog is over digital! But, Lostin, what happens if a tube goes out? It’s not like the 60’s and you could go to the grocery store and test all your tubes and then then find the replacement in the cabinet below? :coffee: Enjoy the the sound my friend!

 

 

I agree that even with all of the advances in audio, analog really can sound so much better and fuller with the right system. I like streaming too and some CDs, but they don’t sound near as good as my vinyl rig.

Great question about the tubes. This amp is supposed to be pretty easy on tubes and they say you can get up to 10,000 hours on the big tubes and like 3,000-5,000 hours on the smaller ones. Rogue sells tubes and there are a few reputable places online where you can buy them too. I don’t know if you remember this, but some tubes sound better and are highly sought after. It’s not uncommon for people to pay $400+ for a single tube.

 I do remember the cabinet of tubes at the grocery store and the stereo store though. Those were the days! They also make new tubes now in Eastern Europe and China, but people still seek out the old US or Holland-made tubes. 

I will say this, the amp looks amazing in the evening with the lights low and a beverage in your hand!

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On 2/24/2021 at 8:36 PM, Drroogh said:

It’s been a couple generations, but people do not understand how much better analog is over digital! But, Lostin, what happens if a tube goes out? It’s not like the 60’s and you could go to the grocery store and test all your tubes and then then find the replacement in the cabinet below? :coffee: Enjoy the the sound my friend!

 

 

I have nothing close to as good as @Lostin76’s system, just a quartz turntable from the 80’s and a 2.1 Jamo Speaker system (which is pretty good). My downfall is that I’m running it through an Onkyo with no phono; therefore I’m using a battery powered preamp. 😬 

Anyway, in regards to the sound....I don’t know why but when thinking about warmth, I always come back to the one album that pushed me into vinyl: Dire Straits - Bothers in Arms. Maybe it’s just me, or how this album was produced/mixed, but the sound just blankets me every time I listen to it. Especially the intro for Money For Nothing. If you see this record picking through cases at a record shop - you have to pick it up. 

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1 hour ago, tdhoosier said:

I have nothing close to as good as @Lostin76’s system, just a quartz turntable from the 80’s and a 2.1 Jamo Speaker system (which is pretty good). My downfall is that I’m running it through an Onkyo with no phono; therefore I’m using a battery powered preamp. 😬 

Anyway, in regards to the sound....I don’t know why but when thinking about warmth, I always come back to the one album that pushed me into vinyl: Dire Straits - Bothers in Arms. Maybe it’s just me, or how this album was produced/mixed, but the sound just blankets me every time I listen to it. Especially the intro for Money For Nothing. If you see this record picking through cases at a record shop - you have to pick it up. 

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Yep, that album is mastered so well. Their self-titled LP with Sultans of Swing is also mastered really well. Just sounds incredible on any system. 

I have a 45rpm version of both of those albums and man, they just sound so rich and full. Sometimes, you just have to laugh it sounds so good. 

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27 minutes ago, Lostin76 said:

Yep, that album is mastered so well. Their self-titled LP with Sultans of Swing is also mastered really well. Just sounds incredible on any system. 

I have a 45rpm version of both of those albums and man, they just sound so rich and full. Sometimes, you just have to laugh it sounds so good. 

Thanks for validating that it 'wasn't just me'. haha. 

It's funny, because specifically that album makes you think how the art of mastering trumps even the technological advances. I have a few current 'headphone vinyls' - the one that comes to mind is M83 - Hurry up, We're Dreaming. The writer/producer of M83 is Alex Gonzalez and he's no slouch. He's written scores for movies and has a unique knack for the ethereal. And as big as 'Hurry Up, We're Dreaming' may sound on the surface (with all the layering, multitude of instruments and synths), it just doesn't hold up to Brothers In Arms - an album made in the 80s. It's just crazy to think about. 

Knowing that Sultans Of Swing has that same sound quality, I'll be keeping my eye out for it. 

edit/add: and to be specific, I'm listening to the original pressing, not the re-released 2LP/180G

Edited by tdhoosier
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25 minutes ago, tdhoosier said:

Thanks for validating that it 'wasn't just me'. haha. 

It's funny, because specifically that album makes you think how the art of mastering trumps even the technological advances. I have a few current 'headphone vinyls' - the one that comes to mind is M83 - Hurry up, We're Dreaming. The writer/producer of M83 is Alex Gonzalez and he's no slouch. He's written scores for movies and has a unique knack for the ethereal. And as big as 'Hurry Up, We're Dreaming' may sound on the surface (with all the layering, multitude of instruments and synths), it just doesn't hold up to Brothers In Arms - an album made in the 80s. It's just crazy to think about. 

Knowing that Sultans Of Swing has that same sound quality, I'll be keeping my eye out for it. 

edit/add: and to be specific, I'm listening to the original pressing, not the re-released 2LP/180G

The original pressing is pretty hard to beat. And I always tell people great mastering on an old medium will always beat compressed/crappy mastering on the latest tech. I think that’s what really hurt CDs eventually. Sure, they were quiet, but they also often sounded thin and grating b/c of compression and loudness levels. 

I also stream a ton of music, but I hate not being able to choose the version I want. Sometimes it sounds great and then other times, it’s subpar. 

9 times out of ten it’s the good old fashioned album for me. And then there’s always this cartoon that really captures it for me:

 

 

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5 hours ago, Lostin76 said:

Their self-titled LP with Sultans of Swing is also mastered really well. Just sounds incredible on any system.

I hadn't listened to that album in years. Bought it when it came out (78?)...

Listened to it today...great LP...And it does sound really good on an android phone and Bose wired ear buds 😁

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1 hour ago, IUFLA said:

I hadn't listened to that album in years. Bought it when it came out (78?)...

Listened to it today...great LP...And it does sound really good on an android phone and Bose wired ear buds 😁

It’s such a well-mastered album that it literally sounds great on anything! Those guys knew what they were doing in the studio. 

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