Member
Post by enginah on Feb 14, 2020 23:58:54 GMT 12
Gidday Folks.
I posted here about 6 months ago as i was starting out my hunt to enter the HIFI market.
So far i have chopped and changed amps and landed on what feels like a pretty solid combo.
currently i am set up in this format:
Cambridge audio DACmagic + > Meridian 502 < house of marley TT \/ \/ Meridian 557 > Polk LS-90 speakers
im running xlr's from the dac / pre to power amps. currently finishing off some 64 strand cat 5 speaker cables.
the TT is just a cheapie to whet my appetite and see if i wanted to start into vinyl again (upgrade in next 12 months or so)
my question is where to from here?
my initial feeling of the ls90's is that they are very very bright and i have not treble / bass adjustement with current setup. is there something i can do crossover wise to thin out the top end a little so i can appreciate the mids a little more ?
the pre amp also has no phono stage to the best of my knowledge so am having to rely on the crappy onboard one for the TT should i be looking for an external phono stage and a separate tt or are there decent TT's out there with onboard phono stages ?
appreciate any and all input!
thanks
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Post by cartridgeguyonline on Feb 15, 2020 8:59:14 GMT 12
My usual suggestion would be to replace one component at a time. However personally I wouldnt get too carried away on a phono stage until you get yourself a better Turntable. The SME synergy has a built in phono stage if that helps LOL.
Again I wouldnt bother mucking about with the crossovers in your Polks, find a dealer that has some speakers you might like and book an audition would be my advice.
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Post by Owen Y on Feb 15, 2020 9:38:45 GMT 12
Hi enginah, Polks - I was never too keen on Cat wire as spkr cable, but must admit I've never tried 64-strand. I'd try some 'solid-core' (0.7mm copper) of some sort, which might tame the HF, if a bit too energetic. (If the Polks are sensitive and/or your runs are not long, then a single strand ea way might do it.) Meridian 502 - does this not have MM/MC phono inputs? TTs - maybe consider: - Rega Planar 1 + Rega Fono Mini A2D phono-stage - if serious abot vinyl, then upgrade to an elliptical styl;us cartridge when/if you can, eg Ortofon 2M Red. I'm guessing here, but the Rega should be at least as good, if not better than TTs with inbuilt phonos (Audio Technica, Lenco, etc)
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Post by jon on Feb 15, 2020 9:57:29 GMT 12
The Polks are not a bad speaker, however like Cartridgeguy, I'd not recommend playing around with the crossover. The Meridian pre and power are also quite good and again I'd leave well alone.
However when you say the Polks are very bright I would check the Polk drivers (are they actually working?) and check the crossovers whilst you are at it for faulty components and replace as needed.
As to the TT, I'd purchase a separate phono stage and there are some good entry level ones such as Rega, Graham Slee, and many others, just make sure you buy one that suits your cartridge!
Again there are many better TTs than the Marley, consider Rega, Pro-ject and Sony entry level decks amongst others.
Good luck with your journey, do let us know how you get on!
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Post by Graham on Feb 15, 2020 14:01:56 GMT 12
If you are seriously considering going down the vinyl 'rabbit hole' I just happen to have an excellent classic Systemdek III that I have begin restoring. In its day this was considered to be a serious rival to the Linn Sondek ( don't tell the Linnies I said that ! ).Do a Google search to see how well respected Systemdek are. This one is having the dreadfull Nextel coating removed and being resprayed in satin black. The tonearm is the legendary Rega RB300 fitted with an Ortofon VMS20E Mk ii with brand new genuine stylus. PM me if interested in a friendly Dark Lantern deal . Cheers Graham
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Post by cartridgeguyonline on Feb 15, 2020 14:46:09 GMT 12
FWIW they are an excellent deck. I did one up here a while back with an RB300 and a 2M bronze and it sang beautifully. A lot easier to keep in tune than an LP12 too...
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Member
Post by enginah on Feb 15, 2020 21:22:03 GMT 12
Thanks for all the replies! !
im going back to meridian to see if they can tell me if i have actually got a phono stage. (currently o-seas or i would just open it) it has the lp inputs but according to the manual online it is an optional extra to have either the mm or mc installed. (entirely possible im running an mm into an mc i guess ?)
as to the marley. yup its a POC but i think i paid a whole $200 for it, could have even been a flybuys points thing, my mind is cloudy from all the googling / hifi buying i was doing at the time! ill certainly be having a look at some quality units in the near future. i was eyeing up a planar 3 one night after a few too many cold ones but the wife caught me and we (she) decided i had spent too much that month already ! !
the polks i must say are really outstanding when at low volumes its just once they really start to open up that they become very treble heavy. I dont think its an issue with drivers as they are all firing when checked up close. I must say its been nice going from my onkyo power / pre setup up to the meridian stuff without changing speakers as it has really allowed me to observe the differences between the two. so much more nuianced and musical. this is my first real foray into hifi and i have had a few moments when doing something in the room with the music playing and i hear a lyric crystal clear that i have never quite got before. or if there is a car door opening in the background i have spun around quickly to check if its someone in my driveway when its actually in the recording which i have listened to 100 times but never heard. im sure you are all nodding your heads and smiling thinking this poor sod has the bug huh!!
as to the Cat 5 cables. im a Marine engineer and i jsut happened across a 300m roll of it one swing away so it was/is an experiment which has cost me nothing. ill report back once i finish em.
also as an aside im jsut running the biggest cable i could find at jaycar until i finish the cat5 cables. could that be augmenting the brightness of the system ?
cheers again! B
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Post by jon on Feb 16, 2020 12:33:34 GMT 12
Hi Yours and Owen's comments reminded me of something... I have Cat 5 cable for my speakers. It works well. I use this build: www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/triple_t_2_e.htmlI'd recommend variation 3 in that build as I too found it bass light, I'd suggest an additional run to the bass drivers portion may help.
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