Unexpected tax rebate… what could possibly go wrong?

[JDL]

Soo… auditioned some monitor audio gold 300. It wasn’t to be.

When they were good, they were sublime- strings and folk music in particular were exactly what I was hoping for. Sadly, the bass was too prominent at volume, and at that, sometimes a bit flabby or vague. The most disappointing part was an Alice in Chains/Pearl Jam/Nirvana triptych. I found the treble overpowering for almost anything heavy rock adjacent. Also, the size. Didn’t realise they were bigger than my silver 500s.

RS didn’t have any other similar floorstanders for me to try, so I headed up the road to Premium Sounds. Was surprised and impressed by the volume of stock they have ready for demo, I’m booked in next week to check out some speakers from Elac, Fyne Audio, Klipsch and a few others 🤩

On the phono front, I might have heard a Hana ML cartridge. And, well, let’s just say I’m revisiting my MC and preamp budget… stay tuned for more updates in a week!

I like the look of the Fyne Audio Classic 8. However, in so far as they're........out of the question due to price, I can't consider them realistically.
Anyhow, best of luck with one's auditioning. Fellow enthusiast.😀

 

[Revolutions]

A surprising benefit of these speakers is reduced hum with vs the monitor audios. Have to take the volume to insane levels with nothing playing to get any serious noise.

Also, not sure if I’m imagining this, or that I’ve only been playing clean/new records: there seems be less surface noise from vinyl. Even on the runout it’s quiet 🤔