Returning member with Triangle, Amphion, Cyrus, Audiolab, and more...

[newworld]

I used to be on these forums decades ago when streamers and youtube reviews didn't exist. Back then I blew most of my budget on speakers, then acquired most wattage I could afford. DAC's were for the riches, but NOS (non-oversampling) CD players were in fashion.

Re-entering this craziness (although no one forced me), purely out of necessity to fill my new house with music (although some Sonos would've done), coinciding with holiday season for good pricing, I was able to put together two different, but wallet-friendly systems. I'm really astonished at the level of enjoyment one can achieve with what is considered "affordable", but then I'm older and wiser. I've kept most my cables (funny how components come and go, but I have a death-grip on my cables).

I've put together Wiim Mini (replacing Bluesound Node) - Cyrus 6DAC - Triangle BR03 system for the living room and Turntable + Airport Express - Audiolab 6000A - Amphion Helium 510 (leftover from previous setup) for the study.

Here are some observations :
- I'm a little bothered by the fact that Wiim Mini's digital output sounds different from Bluesound.
- Ditto Tidal sounding different from Amazon.
- I'm no longer attracted to Hi-res contents.
- System Airplay transmission sounds fine.
- The presumably outdated DAC in Cyrus 6DAC sounds better (cleaner, less harsh) than the analogue out from Bluesound.
- The Cyrus zings with verve and detail.
- Audiolab 6000A doesn't zing, but I still like it. Its DAC filtering adds more color than expected.
- Triangle BR03 sounds very much like the Proac D2's I used to have. I love it.
- My Amphion Helium 510 has this neutrality and solidity that I keep coming back to.
- Amplifiers get much more expensive to match the quality of budget speakers these days.
- I'm going back to having a CD player in the system.
- Streams still don't sound as good as CD's.

Please feel free to discuss and comment.

 

[Al ears]

I used to be on these forums decades ago when streamers and youtube reviews didn't exist. Back then I blew most of my budget on speakers, then acquired most wattage I could afford. DAC's were for the riches, but NOS (non-oversampling) CD players were in fashion.

Re-entering this craziness (although no one forced me), purely out of necessity to fill my new house with music (although some Sonos would've done), coinciding with holiday season for good pricing, I was able to put together two different, but wallet-friendly systems. I'm really astonished at the level of enjoyment one can achieve with what is considered "affordable", but then I'm older and wiser. I've kept most my cables (funny how components come and go, but I have a death-grip on my cables).

I've put together Wiim Mini (replacing Bluesound Node) - Cyrus 6DAC - Triangle BR03 system for the living room and Turntable + Airport Express - Audiolab 6000A - Amphion Helium 510 (leftover from previous setup) for the study.

Here are some observations :
- I'm a little bothered by the fact that Wiim Mini's digital output sounds different from Bluesound.
- Ditto Tidal sounding different from Amazon.
- I'm no longer attracted to Hi-res contents.
- System Airplay transmission sounds fine.
- The presumably outdated DAC in Cyrus 6DAC sounds better (cleaner, less harsh) than the analogue out from Bluesound.
- The Cyrus zings with verve and detail.
- Audiolab 6000A doesn't zing, but I still like it. Its DAC filtering adds more color than expected.
- Triangle BR03 sounds very much like the Proac D2's I used to have. I love it.
- My Amphion Helium 510 has this neutrality and solidity that I keep coming back to.
- Amplifiers get much more expensive to match the quality of budget speakers these days.
- I'm going back to having a CD player in the system.
- Streams still don't sound as good as CD's.

Please feel free to discuss and comment.

Be happy with what you already have....

 

[Gray]

- The Cyrus zings with verve and detail.

That's what attracted me to Cyrus, when I compared it to Arcam and Roksan amps 20 years ago.

 

[newworld]

That's what attracted me to Cyrus, when I compared it to Arcam and Roksan amps 20 years ago.

Yes, I've had Roksan, Naim, Primare, and Plinius up and down the range. I can't say Cyrus is better, but it really digs deep with string instruments which is really important to me.

 

[MrReaper182]

I still love CD's The CD is my main way I listen to music on my hi-fi system. CD's are so cheap these days to it makes sense too and anyway nothing beats the sound of a nicely recorded album on CD. My stereo amplifier cost me brand new 450 quid which is not that much more expensive than a pair budget speakers so you don't need pay much for a very good sounding stereo amplifier if you are buying budget speakers these days.

 

[MrReaper182]

Be happy with what you already have....

That's all most impossible with What hi-fi always writing about shinny new hi-fi separates equipment. New hi-fi separates equipment is like a flame and we audiophiles are the moths, we can not stop ourselves heading to that flame.

 

[WayneKerr]

That's all most impossible with What hi-fi always writing about shinny new hi-fi separates equipment. New hi-fi separates equipment is like a flame and we audiophiles are the moths, we can not stop ourselves heading to that flame.

I got so close I burnt my wings off Whilst the flame may still be compelling I have no more energy or the desire to crawl to it... I'm stayin' put where I landed

 

[plastic penguin]

I used to be on these forums decades ago when streamers and youtube reviews didn't exist. Back then I blew most of my budget on speakers, then acquired most wattage I could afford. DAC's were for the riches, but NOS (non-oversampling) CD players were in fashion.

Re-entering this craziness (although no one forced me), purely out of necessity to fill my new house with music (although some Sonos would've done), coinciding with holiday season for good pricing, I was able to put together two different, but wallet-friendly systems. I'm really astonished at the level of enjoyment one can achieve with what is considered "affordable", but then I'm older and wiser. I've kept most my cables (funny how components come and go, but I have a death-grip on my cables).

I've put together Wiim Mini (replacing Bluesound Node) - Cyrus 6DAC - Triangle BR03 system for the living room and Turntable + Airport Express - Audiolab 6000A - Amphion Helium 510 (leftover from previous setup) for the study.

Here are some observations :
- I'm a little bothered by the fact that Wiim Mini's digital output sounds different from Bluesound.
- Ditto Tidal sounding different from Amazon.
- I'm no longer attracted to Hi-res contents.
- System Airplay transmission sounds fine.
- The presumably outdated DAC in Cyrus 6DAC sounds better (cleaner, less harsh) than the analogue out from Bluesound.
- The Cyrus zings with verve and detail.
- Audiolab 6000A doesn't zing, but I still like it. Its DAC filtering adds more color than expected.
- Triangle BR03 sounds very much like the Proac D2's I used to have. I love it.
- My Amphion Helium 510 has this neutrality and solidity that I keep coming back to.
- Amplifiers get much more expensive to match the quality of budget speakers these days.
- I'm going back to having a CD player in the system.
- Streams still don't sound as good as CD's.

Please feel free to discuss and comment.

I'm a huge fan of Amphion speakers. Last year I demoed a pair of Argon 1. Quite easily in my 3 or 4 fav small standmounts. Not heard any Triangles but people like them really like them.

 

[plastic penguin]

I got so close I burnt my wings off Whilst the flame may still be compelling I have no more energy or the desire to crawl to it... I'm stayin' put where I landed

I can't see myself veering away from my current set-up - contented personified

 

[newworld]

I'm a huge fan of Amphion speakers. Last year I demoed a pair of Argon 1. Quite easily in my 3 or 4 fav small standmounts. Not heard any Triangles but people like them really like them.

Wow, I remember you from back in the day! Old habits die hard, huh? Yeah, Amphion home speakers for some reason are overlooked, but they kind of remain my measuring stick. Harbeths and Proacs have come and gone. These remain!

 

[MrReaper182]

I got so close I burnt my wings off Whilst the flame may still be compelling I have no more energy or the desire to crawl to it... I'm stayin' put where I landed

That is what everyone says (including me in the past) until they are drawn in by the light again.

 

[jjbomber]

- I'm a little bothered by the fact that Wiim Mini's digital output sounds different from Bluesound.

Please feel free to discuss and comment.

Do you mean the digital output from the Wiim sounds different to the digital output from the Bluesound?

 

[plastic penguin]

Wow, I remember you from back in the day! Old habits die hard, huh? Yeah, Amphion home speakers for some reason are overlooked, but they kind of remain my measuring stick. Harbeths and Proacs have come and gone. These remain!

Haha, that's one you've got over me. Don't recall your previous username.

Yeah, mightily impressed by the Argon 1s, along with Harbeth P3 and my Dali Rubis.

Not really a box swapper -- still have the Leema from 2010, Arcam CDP died two years ago blah blah blah

 

[newworld]

Do you mean the digital output from the Wiim sounds different to the digital output from the Bluesound?

Yes. The Wiim sounds more upfront and sibilant. The Bluesound has more depth with natural decay. I really don't know how this is possible. I'm guessing the Bluesound does some kind of digital correction. It has an option called Audio Clock Trim that can be turned off for external DAC's that are incompatible. One interesting thing is that the Audiolab 6000A has the same kind of option on its second set of digital inputs.

 

[plastic penguin]

Remember the Carpenters sounded great with the Argon 1s. The only thing wrong with the Argons is the Dali Rubicon 2s.

 

[newworld]

Remember the Carpenters sounded great with the Argon 1s. The only thing wrong with the Argons is the Dali Rubicon 2s.

I swear, 6.5 inch woofer bookshelfs are the sweet spot for many speaker manufacturers and listeners alike. It's just big enough to replace small floorstanders and just small enough to bring some monitors' magic.

 

[nopiano]

I swear, 6.5 inch woofer bookshelfs are the sweet spot for many speaker manufacturers and listeners alike. It's just big enough to replace small floorstanders and just small enough to bring some monitors' magic.

I believe there’s a quite widely held belief that speakers about the width of a human head are best at vocal reproduction. I’m sure there’s something in that. Certainly, when 8”, 10” and 12” woofers were much more common, and wide baffles were more typical, those designs lacked the focus of the smaller ‘bookshelf’ designs.

 

[matthewpianist]

I got so close I burnt my wings off Whilst the flame may still be compelling I have no more energy or the desire to crawl to it... I'm stayin' put where I landed

This is exactly where I am. The flame has certainly singed me financially more than once and beyond my means. I've finally got a system which is musically satisfying, and I'm sticking with it. The only thing I might do in time is to buy a back-up CDT - I still love CDs and have a large collection (c.4,000), the CDT is superb and there will come a day when the format is no longer supported.

 

[SteveR750]

I used to be on these forums decades ago when streamers and youtube reviews didn't exist. Back then I blew most of my budget on speakers, then acquired most wattage I could afford. DAC's were for the riches, but NOS (non-oversampling) CD players were in fashion.

Re-entering this craziness (although no one forced me), purely out of necessity to fill my new house with music (although some Sonos would've done), coinciding with holiday season for good pricing, I was able to put together two different, but wallet-friendly systems. I'm really astonished at the level of enjoyment one can achieve with what is considered "affordable", but then I'm older and wiser. I've kept most my cables (funny how components come and go, but I have a death-grip on my cables).

I've put together Wiim Mini (replacing Bluesound Node) - Cyrus 6DAC - Triangle BR03 system for the living room and Turntable + Airport Express - Audiolab 6000A - Amphion Helium 510 (leftover from previous setup) for the study.

Here are some observations :
- I'm a little bothered by the fact that Wiim Mini's digital output sounds different from Bluesound.
- Ditto Tidal sounding different from Amazon.
- I'm no longer attracted to Hi-res contents.
- System Airplay transmission sounds fine.
- The presumably outdated DAC in Cyrus 6DAC sounds better (cleaner, less harsh) than the analogue out from Bluesound.
- The Cyrus zings with verve and detail.
- Audiolab 6000A doesn't zing, but I still like it. Its DAC filtering adds more color than expected.
- Triangle BR03 sounds very much like the Proac D2's I used to have. I love it.
- My Amphion Helium 510 has this neutrality and solidity that I keep coming back to.
- Amplifiers get much more expensive to match the quality of budget speakers these days.
- I'm going back to having a CD player in the system.
- Streams still don't sound as good as CD's.

Please feel free to discuss and comment.

Decades??

i'm intrigued by your appraisal of the Audiolab, I guess I can cross it off my list, it was only just about on in last place anyway. In fact, I hadn't considered adding a CDP, but I've got so used to streaming and my experience was different. Once I discovered J River and stand alone DACs in 2009 or so, I sold my Cyrus CDP as it wasn't any better, and sat gathering dust. Like you, I don't see the importance of hi-res streaming, I'm perfectly content with 16/44.
Interesting comparison of the Wiim and the Bluesound; from the raving hyperbole on the internet you'd expect them to be identical, as the argument is all about the minimum cost required to obtain an effective perfection.

 

[SteveR750]

This is exactly where I am. The flame has certainly singed me financially more than once and beyond my means. I've finally got a system which is musically satisfying, and I'm sticking with it. The only thing I might do in time is to buy a back-up CDT - I still love CDs and have a large collection (c.4,000), the CDT is superb and there will come a day when the format is no longer supported.

Been there too, got a couple of T shirts, threw them away, and in the process of printing a new one... <sigh>

 

[newworld]

I believe there’s a quite widely held belief that speakers about the width of a human head are best at vocal reproduction. I’m sure there’s something in that. Certainly, when 8”, 10” and 12” woofers were much more common, and wide baffles were more typical, those designs lacked the focus of the smaller ‘bookshelf’ designs.

So the bigger the head, the better the sound?

 

[newworld]

Decades??

i'm intrigued by your appraisal of the Audiolab, I guess I can cross it off my list, it was only just about on in last place anyway. In fact, I hadn't considered adding a CDP, but I've got so used to streaming and my experience was different. Once I discovered J River and stand alone DACs in 2009 or so, I sold my Cyrus CDP as it wasn't any better, and sat gathering dust. Like you, I don't see the importance of hi-res streaming, I'm perfectly content with 16/44.
Interesting comparison of the Wiim and the Bluesound; from the raving hyperbole on the internet you'd expect them to be identical, as the argument is all about the minimum cost required to obtain an effective perfection.

Yeah, decades. I started meandering in HiFi back in 2003, so this year marks the 20th year anniversary!

Don't cross the Audiolab off just yet. I love it because it does everything I need it to, to power the rather inefficient Amphions, feature a rather updated DAC with enough inputs, and include a decent phono stage (just starting out in vinyl). I've come to find its other features extremely useful such as separate pre-power configuration, jitter control options in its 2nd set of digital inputs, and etc.

20 years ago I would've scoffed at these features, blindly following the purist trend. Not these days. I only stopped short of an all-in-one because I didn't want to be tied down to its software. And the Audiolab sounds good! It has pacey and controlled sound that's perfect for more intimate settings.

 

[SteveR750]

My journey started in 1977 when my father bought our first system. I can remember the model names etc
to this day; in 79 I bought my own first system. Over the years indulged in multiple brands, before Internet and digital it ended up at an LP12 +Ittok, from NAD to Big ATC floorstanders; with sprinklings of CA, Roksan, Cyrus, Spendor, Hegel, Musical Fidelity on the way from solely analogue to solely digital. In the early days, what hifi was just that, no TVs etc, hifi choice and hifi news were probably the most popular magazines of the era.

 

[newworld]

My journey started in 1977 when my father bought our first system. I can remember it to the day, in 79 I bought my own first system. Over the years indulged in multiple brands, before Internet and digital it ended up at an LP12 +Ittok, from NAD to Big ATC floorstanders; with sprinklings of CA, Roksan, Cyrus, Spendor, Hegel, Musical Fidelity on the way from solely analogue to solely digital. In the early days, what hifi was just that, no TVs etc, hifi choice and hifi news were probably the most popular magazines of the era.

Amazing. I absolutely love the ATC floorstanders in whatever iterations they are in. Had a chance to buy a pair until I realized how heavy they were. I was still a student back then. I used to love the system shootouts in magazines because I had no access to most of them. Now people do shootouts in their own room and return. How times have changed.

 

[SteveR750]

Amazing. I absolutely love the ATC floorstanders in whatever iterations they are in. Had a chance to buy a pair until I realized how heavy they were. I was still a student back then. I used to love the system shootouts in magazines because I had no access to most of them. Now people do shootouts in their own room and return. How times have changed.

ATC SCM40 Mk2. Beautiful in every way. I'd have a pair of SCM11 in a flash if I could justify the expense, there are some things that you know are just right. Properly engineered, and no BS marketing. Lots of interviews etc with them, inside the factory etc. all online.