Nightwisher's Systems In "Luxman's Room" And Beyond: Some New And Lots of Vintage

A couple new pieces of Onkyo gear: Onkyo TX-901 receiver and DX-1400 CD player. These aren't of the Integra variety, but still nice.

I used the receiver to demo my Infinity Primus 150s last night, which got sold to a guy who is putting together a nice system for his granddaughter.

20180323_154211.jpg

And a little more gold for the tray of the Rotel.

20180325_173737.jpg
 
New project

Audioanalyst A100. I'm slowly making my way through owning all of the New England speaker companies. (Sold my DCMs to make space for these.)

View attachment 1116674

View attachment 1116676
I have a pair of Audioanalyst A100X speakers for my vintage 2 channel system. The woofer surrounds had already been replaced when I purchased my pair. But the grill clothes were yellowed like yours. I used K2R dry cleaning spray and Resolve carpet cleaner to clean mine with pretty good results. I have not owned any of the other classic New England speakers yet, but I am pleased with the sound of the Audioanalyst. I like the tight, low bass response of the Audioanalyst’s as compared to my JBL L19’s.

6F6FC695-876F-46A9-97EF-C132BB16131E.jpeg
 
Giving some love to some other, lesser loved gear - inspired by the "Gear in the closet" thread.

I enjoy the KLH Model Sixes a lot - they do a lot of things well. They do lack the dynamics, extreme highs and lows, and precise imaging of the Polk SDA-2s. All that being said, I could live happily with the Sixes. I was considering taking them off the market since I sold 2 pairs of CVs this weekend, but I'll probably still send them off with someone who will enjoy them more.

The Pioneer SA-6800 was my dad's that he gave to me. That definitely deserved to be hooked up and given some love.

20180402_195416.jpg

20180402_193634.jpg
 
Last edited:
Made some slight changes to the main system

I took out my dbx DAV-600 switchbox, which I don't need anymore because I have 2 tape loops (I only had 1 when I bought it). Everything looks cleaner now.

20180409_210441.jpg

I ordered some acoustic foam from Amazon in ice blue color to block some reflections from my windows (Foamily brand like the bass traps I have). It definitely tightened the bass and the image. It's in between the blinds and the curtains, so not much sun should hit it. It should also minimize some of the noise of the train that goes by every couple hours a few blocks away.

20180409_210315.jpg
 
I'm in the process of adding more champagne gold Luxman gear to my setup. Today's addition is a T-407 Stereo TV Tuner. I'm using it as a RCA switch since it has 3 inputs. It's got LED meters, which is cool.

I think the previous owner left it in Muting mode because the output is low and the meters barely register. As a solution for volume, I hooked up the output to the record out, which is selectable, and the sound is normal. I've got a remote on order to see if I can get that solved. Not a great design choice to have that a remote-only function.

20180421_061705.jpg

20180421_061803.jpg

I scored a Bang & Olufsen Beogram RX turntable yesterday. It's a bit banged up (seems like it was dropped), but everything works including the automatic functions. The MMC4 cartridge is still in good shape. A bit of TLC and it may be my main table.

I also found a single Marantz Imperial 6G (not pictured). I haven't tested it yet. It's in mostly good shape but is missing the grille and has a crack in the woofer. Couldn't resist for the price though.

20180421_064144.jpg

20180421_073316.jpg

20180421_064155.jpg
 
Last edited:
The speaker repair business has been good, so I filled out my Luxman collection by adding a M-02 and a D-405, in addition to my C-02, T-02, and T-407. Now I have everything except a tape deck and a turntable. The M-02 works great, just needs meter lights. I've been watching the Bay like a hawk the past couple weeks since there weren't any offered in BarterTown. The D-405 at least needs belts, but I got it cheap. It's currently unconnected.

I also got the remote for the T-407, but it needs repair because some of the battery connectors aren't there. :no:

I've been using the Beogram RX in place of my Kenwood. The Beogram with the MMC4 cartridge sounds better than the Kenwood with the Ortofon 2M Red. I also love the modern looks and simplicity of it - I don't have to constantly watch the speed like on the non-quartz locked Kenwood. Moving that in allowed the Onkyo Integra TA-2044 tape deck to truly be on the stand for the first time.

Very happy now. :banana::jump::D

20180425_162524.jpg

20180425_161723.jpg

Luxman class photo:
20180425_162137.jpg
 
Last edited:
Really curious what those Polks sound like in particular. That's an interesting driver arrangement.
The SDA-2s sound incredible. It's the most dynamic and 3D sound out of any of the speakers I own or have owned. And with the RDO-194 tweeters, the frequency response is smoother and the imaging is tighter than with the original SL2000s. I really am in love with these.

SDA stands for Stereo Dimensional Array. The speakers are connected and the array cancels out the sound from the other speaker, so that each ear hears only the speaker on that side. Really cool stuff.
 
Last edited:
Hey Nightwisher. Very nice collection of equipment. I see you have a Emotiva. Is that your DAC? Im in the process of getting a DAC but dont know with one.
 
Hey Nightwisher. Very nice collection of equipment. I see you have a Emotiva. Is that your DAC? Im in the process of getting a DAC but dont know with one.

Strongly recommend Emotiva DACs. Very good value for money. I have a TA-100 DAC/pre/tuner -- excellent unit. Wouldn't spend more than the $300 I paid (on principle) though. Prices have recently gone to $400 via Amazon, not sure if Emotiva has stock available direct at better prices.

Can't claim my ears are the best, but I'm running electrostats and would consider myself "picky" to be generous. System is very transparent.
 
Strongly recommend Emotiva DACs. Very good value for money. I have a TA-100 DAC/pre/tuner -- excellent unit. Wouldn't spend more than the $300 I paid (on principle) though. Prices have recently gone to $400 via Amazon, not sure if Emotiva has stock available direct at better prices.

Can't claim my ears are the best, but I'm running electrostats and would consider myself "picky" to be generous. System is very transparent.
Hey thanks for the reply.
 
Back
Top Bottom