it's been a journey, but after a Yamaha midi system which i used for 19yrs, i began to explore the world of hi-fi. and about 10yrs later this is my room from the listening chair.



and the chair itself





to call a speaker - Living Voice you need to back it up. i bought them on a punt. and won!








and to make them work




and my attempt at some acoustic absorbtion - you may have noticed there is a lot of glass in the room!


and to clean the occasional record my fairly recent acqisition


classic corner

That is an impressive system.

The flash Living Voices with external crossovers have always interested me. When are you upgrading to the Vox Olympians aye? = )

Feb 23, 2017 19:01:38 GMT 12 Gryffles said:

That is an impressive system.

The flash Living Voices with external crossovers have always interested me. When are you upgrading to the Vox Olympians aye? = )

i think i'll do it the same time i get the Walker Proscenium TT and the LFD monoblocks and pre. bugger - that's too many changes - might just stick with this for a while longer.

and i may be wrong but  think the major difference between the speakers is the ability to deal with bass and a larger space.

Nice 'den' - the drapes should deal with the glass, do you think?

I like the VPI HW-17 in wood & white.

DarkLantern blog - darklanternforowen.wordpress.com

Feb 23, 2017 20:32:09 GMT 12 Owen Y said:

Nice 'den' - the drapes should deal with the glass, do you think?

I like the VPI HW-17 in wood & white.

they do, and that is their only purpose as the room is at the rear and totally private and i dislike curtains, but in this situation are a necessary evil. or even a useful tool.

the vpi came from Qld courtesy of SNA. i dithered a while because it is 110v and needs a step down transformer. the main reason i dithered is t/me's policy on foreign plugs should i wish to sell it. but i have noticed 2 tt's recently sneak through so they might not be policing as strongly now.

That's a nice looking room with some great kit rocl, I've long admired the LFD gear.

Very nice system - external power supply to get around the plug issue & might give a useful upgrade?

Feb 24, 2017 14:26:30 GMT 12 beeman said:

Very nice system - external power supply to get around the plug issue & might give a useful upgrade?

the vpi is an RCM. the tt is a WTAmadeus and that is supplied from the Geisseller psu as is the router and the ssd in the computer. the JS-2 powers the mobo and the sotm usb card. the usb goes to the AMR and the sound is very good. the usb card has had the caps, port and dc connector upgraded. i run snake-oil os. 

You mean changing the power supply on the RCM won't give you a better sound ?

Feb 23, 2017 21:00:19 GMT 12 rocl said:

the vpi came from Qld courtesy of SNA. i dithered a while because it is 110v and needs a step down transformer. ....

If the power transformer is not multi-tapped primary, it may be worth seriously considering just rewinding the transformer for 230v, not expensive if you send it to the right person (there are not many one-off TX winders now). I've had PTXs rewound for $100-200.

The main reason is not the voltage, but the 50Hz mains freq heats up a 60Hz PTX about ~20% more & IME cleaning machines with vacuum pumps can get fairly hot anyway - hence the cooling fan.

(The winder will measure & replicate the output sec windings, but it may be worth providing a cct schematic so that he has a better idea of the load/s.)
Cheers.

DarkLantern blog - darklanternforowen.wordpress.com

Hi rocl,Congratulations on putting together such a wonderful system. LFD gear is so good. Not in the same league as yours, but I had an Integrated Zero LE years ago and have regretted selling it. And your AMR - well the best CPD I have heard. Great job

Feb 24, 2017 18:02:14 GMT 12 Owen Y said:

Feb 23, 2017 21:00:19 GMT 12 rocl said:

the vpi came from Qld courtesy of SNA. i dithered a while because it is 110v and needs a step down transformer. ....

If the power transformer is not multi-tapped primary, it may be worth seriously considering just rewinding the transformer for 230v, not expensive if you send it to the right person (there are not many one-off TX winders now). I've had PTXs rewound for $100-200.

The main reason is not the voltage, but the 50Hz mains freq heats up a 60Hz PTX about ~20% more & IME cleaning machines with vacuum pumps can get fairly hot anyway - hence the cooling fan.

(The winder will measure & replicate the output sec windings, but it may be worth providing a cct schematic so that he has a better idea of the load/s.)
Cheers.

thanks owen. very handy info. i'll have a look when the weather gets colder and wetter. a bit busy atm. after the initial flurry i have been only doing 1 or 2 discs at a time. having it sitting there ready to go is soooo good, after the Kab EV-1. i don't think it cleans any better but i now clean each record before i play it, so it works better for me. anyone want a Kab?

Feb 24, 2017 18:27:43 GMT 12 robertr said:

Hi rocl,Congratulations on putting together such a wonderful system. LFD gear is so good. Not in the same league as yours, but I had an Integrated Zero LE years ago and have regretted selling it. And your AMR - well the best CPD I have heard. Great job

thanks robertr. all bought unheard on reputation alone. hadn't even heard them in a system. same with the LV's. something about the idea of a guy with a good idea working away and developing it, seeking continual improvements, and then putting it together himself that really appeals.

jason said my amp was the first of the mk2's. evidently the good doctor changed a couple of things and decided that the number of changes he had made since the NCSE came out was significant and warranted an appendage.

the AMR was on t/me for a few months and very slowly got cheaper and cheaper until i thought i would grab it. i was thinking og getting into computer audio and the usb socket was the clincher. had it over 6yrs now.

I heard a lot good things about LFD. Good stuff.

well, "now" is a very flexible word it seems. because "now" things are a little different. something new has arrived and after several hours of putting things together i have this-








a big thanks to tony. some adjustment of platform height will be required.

Love the look of that turntable.

Your counterweight seems to be set quite far back. I'd try adding a weight to the arm, so that the weight can be set closer to the pivot point.

on to my 3rd side now. started with telegraph road because i have been using it recently to check out some previous changes. lots of variety in it. the 301 captured it all and seemed to impart a stronger sense of purpose. then the 1st side of darkness on the edge of town as bruce was with us recently. there was a strong and solid feel to the music which i hadn't heard for a long time. and then it was my favourite test - abraxas by santana. the chimes in the opening track test most gear and reveal a lot. percussion everywhere and of course carlos's guitar. all a bit more immediate that before.

i also swapped mats with a very expensive A23 product going on after the 1st track which i then replayed. i expected a significant difference when compared with the new rubber one, but it was fairly subtle and i will need to spend more time with both.

overall i am very pleased with my purchase and tony's service.

Feb 27, 2017 20:17:03 GMT 12 Citroen said:

Love the look of that turntable.

Your counterweight seems to be set quite far back. I'd try adding a weight to the arm, so that the weight can be set closer to the pivot point.

thanks cliff. i originally set it up with 3 balance plates and 2 side plates but i couldn't get 1.8g pressure so i took out a side plate. the cart is 9.8g. tony also included some heavier weights so i might have a play with them later in the week.

Cart weighs about 12gm. I use 2 large plates plus three smaller plates for a 2.5g pressure.

on the charts that came with the wand - 8g falls right at the edge of 2 possibilities. if i replace a smaller plate with a larger one that may do the trick, but then i might have a problem with side pressure. i'll have to see what happens. tonight was all about getting it together!

Yeah, leave as is, enjoy for a few days/weeks to get to know the sound.

Then maybe fiddle/fettle.

Feb 27, 2017 20:17:03 GMT 12 Citroen said:

Love the look of that turntable.

Your counterweight seems to be set quite far back. I'd try adding a weight to the arm, so that the weight can be set closer to the pivot point.

had a play today. replaced the weights with 3 large ones this is how it ended up.







i also put the amp back on top. the phono was there because there was less noise through the phono. now, fortunately, no longer an issue.

Hey I recognise those speakers holding up well I trust. Nice system. Got myself a 301 these days too. It's been a revalation
Hope you are enjoying the LVs
Martyn

Jun 3, 2018 17:46:43 GMT 12 301oil said:

Hey I recognise those speakers holding up well I trust. Nice system. Got myself a 301 these days too. It's been a revalation
Hope you are enjoying the LVs
Martyn

they are still in the same pristine condition as when you shipped them to me. they are wonderful and i appreciate them often. would take something extraordinary for them to be replaced. i hope the devores have been a worthwhile replacement.

the 301 arrived early last year. the room will be renovated "soon" so will put up new photos then.

Indeed they are very special. Very natural sounding... especially in the mids upwards, on voices and acoustic instruments.
The Devores are great... work particularly well with the Shindo amps. Not as refined on top but more thump at the bottom end.
Glad to hear you're still enjoying them