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

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.
Yes. That's an XDA-1 DAC. It's a very nice sounding unit, very transparent. I don't have many high quality DACs to compare it to, but it sounds better than the Audioquest Dragonfly, Creative X-Fi HD, Asus Xonar U3, and Fio D3 DACs/soundcards I have to compare it to. Plus it's a nice looking unit and has lots of inputs.

I paid ~$200 for mine used. They retailed for $300. Unfortunately, Emotiva has stopped making the XDA models and the higher end Stealth model in favor of more portable DACs (which are still nice quality, I've read).

I painted the trim on mine metallic gold. It originally had silver trim (black trim is also available from their website).
 
Yes. That's an XDA-1 DAC. It's a very nice sounding unit, very transparent. I don't have many high quality DACs to compare it to, but it sounds better than the Audioquest Dragonfly, Creative X-Fi HD, Asus Xonar U3, and Fio D3 DACs/soundcards I have to compare it to. Plus it's a nice looking unit and has lots of inputs.

I paid ~$200 for mine used. They retailed for $300. Unfortunately, Emotiva has stopped making the XDA models and the higher end Stealth model in favor of more portable DACs (which are still nice quality, I've read).

I painted the trim on mine metallic gold. It originally had silver trim (black trim is also available from their website).
Thanks. It good to know. This would be my first DAC so I am looking at various options models. Dont want to spend more then $300 on a DAC.
 
Per everything I've read on the Emotiva forums most if not all agree the DAC in the TA-100 (and PT-100, which is the same thing with an integrated power amp included) is superior to the XDA-1 / XDA-2, so while I also regret the loss of their mid to high-end dedicated DACs, these are solid replacements, and you get a quality preamp as well (easily bypassed if you choose). Both also include a moving magnet / coil switchable phono stage for those who care about that sort of thing - and again, from what I've read they're very good. I don't personally llsten to records.

All in all? They're very well-reviewed.

(Obviously there are still halo level DACs available)
 
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IMHO, It's a buyers / finders market atm for 70s/80s/90s era audio. Most of the deals I've stumbled upon have been from friends cleaning out their parent's basement, or ditching their own dusty components for their phones :duh: I've found alot of good condition vintage audio on Ebay. Especially, deals on BOSE speakers.
 
IMHO, It's a buyers / finders market atm for 70s/80s/90s era audio. Most of the deals I've stumbled upon have been from friends cleaning out their parent's basement, or ditching their own dusty components for their phones :duh: I've found alot of good condition vintage audio on Ebay. Especially, deals on BOSE speakers.
I agree. Even the best of the 80s and newer components can be had for reasonable prices still, like Luxman. I prefer dealing with BarterTown sellers, but eBay is still a great resource.
 
I sold my Audiosource power amp for a decent amount of money last night, so I decided to pick up this Magnavox stereo console that has been sitting in one of the stores for over a month. Turntable nor the tubes seem to have any life, but the needle seems to track alright. Has a 3 way speaker in there. Weighs about 80 pounds. I wish it had the other speaker to go with it, but that's okay - it didn't cost much.

I've been wanting a nice console to play with. I've seen a lot of nice work done to the Magnavox tube amps. What really drew me to it was the cabinet.

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You had me at the VU meters on the lcd screen. :)

I had moved out of the dorm by then, but I put my speakers in mesh nets in an apartment and hung them from the ceiling to allow for more surface space.
Worked great once you got the positioning just right. And over a desk they werent' a header accident waiting to happen.
 
That seems like an impressive find (even though you say it was sitting in a store for a few months). Have fun with it.
Thanks! There's a lot of potential with this one.

You had me at the VU meters on the lcd screen. :)

I had moved out of the dorm by then, but I put my speakers in mesh nets in an apartment and hung them from the ceiling to allow for more surface space.
Worked great once you got the positioning just right. And over a desk they werent' a header accident waiting to happen.
Man that brings back some memories. I really haven't used that program since my dorm days ~2 years ago. I've graduated to real meters now :D
 
Moved a couple things around on the stand today for aesthetics - moved the cable box down to on top of the Yamaha, moved the Rotel shelf up and brought the Sony Blu-Ray player up there with it. The SAE 5000 is out for now. I'll get it back hooked up eventually.

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I traded my KLH Model 6s for a Marantz 2215b. The guy I traded them to had just sold a pair of 6s and had sellers remorse. He was thrilled to have another pair. And I was thrilled to finally get my hands on a Marantz receiver. It's been a plan for a while to build a Marantz system with the Marantz Imperials and this is the second step.

The receiver works great besides the left channel being out, so that's on my to-do list. Luckily, these are fairly simple receivers. I was surprised the lights were in working order.

With the high price of Marantz equipment and the low price I paid for those 6s, I'm happy. And I'm happy the 6s found a nice home with some who will appreciate them.

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Got some new goodies yesterday:

Mitsubishi DA-U111 Integrated Amplifier
Mirage SM-.4 (Consecutive model #'s!)
ElectroVoice 13a
Single Utah? Speaker (Utah according to my GAD thread)

The speakers all came from the same store - barely all fit in the cart.

Almost snagged a Pioneer SX 440 and a nice Kyocera receiver, but an older guy had gotten to them first. A little heartbroken over the Kyocera because it was a beast and I want one, but that's okay.

Everything sounds good except for the Mitsubishi, which I think needs a new fuse. I'll probably switch the Mirage and EVs in and out for my Polk Monitor 4s in my computer setup. I feel like I'm obligated to use the Mirage in the computer setup at least once since I have a Mirage sub there, and they were part of a 2.1 package originally.

Pretty sure the EV woofers aren't original, but they sound good.

I'm giving them all their due testing of course. It's a tough call between whether the Mirage or EVs sound better. The Peerless cone tweeters in the EVs fair well against the domes in the Mirages.

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Utah
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EVs
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Mirage
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Here's my system from a couple of years ago, some of the equipment has been replaced since then, all vintage Japanese goodness :)

Pioneer M-25 solid state amp
Luxman CL-38 tubed preamp
Kenwood KF-8011 de-noiser
Luxman CL-36U tubed preamp
Kenwood KR-8340 'two-four' quad receiver
Luxman MQ-80 tubed amp
Luxman C-5000A ultra rare solid state pre
Kenwood KC-6060A audio scope
Hiding in the bottom left corner is a HK Citation XX mega-rare amplifier

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Here's my system from a couple of years ago, some of the equipment has been replaced since then, all vintage Japanese goodness :)

Pioneer M-25 solid state amp
Luxman CL-38 tubed preamp
Kenwood KF-8011 de-noiser
Luxman CL-36U tubed preamp
Kenwood KR-8340 'two-four' quad receiver
Luxman MQ-80 tubed amp
Luxman C-5000A ultra rare solid state pre
Kenwood KC-6060A audio scope
Hiding in the bottom left corner is a HK Citation XX mega-rare amplifier

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Very nice!
 
A couple updates:

Got a Luxman K-406 to complete my Luxman champagne gold collection (besides a turntable). Can't get it to play a tape, so it's in line for repair.
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I picked up a practically new in box pair of Sansui SP-2000s. They look like they just got shipped back from 'Nam and it's 1969. Even the boxes are complete and in good shape. Sound pretty sweet too.
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I found one of those curvy CD racks to store the CDs I haven't listened to yet in style.
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And a couple of nice CDs to keep on hand: a Mobile Fidelity 24kt Gold copy of Blood Seat & Tears, and The Digital Domain Demonstration Disc (One of the first CDs in 1983).
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Got some more Luxman yesterday:

GX-101 Equalizer/Spectrum Analyzer
TX-101 Tuner (With original box)

The GX-101 will be a permanent resident of the main system for visualization and quick adjustment. I want to put the TX-101 in there as well, but it won't quite fit at the moment.

I love the LEDs and the "ice cube" buttons on these. The trim is grayer (since they're from a different set), so it they don't quite match the champagne gold trim, but it still looks sweet.

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Obligatory Luxman class photo
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Adjusted some stuff in the main system.

I traded the spots of the SDA-2s with the VR40s, so that the SDA-2s are set up a bit more properly (according to the instruction manual). I've been meaning to do this for a while, but I've had school, work, etc etc going on. Plus they're heavy and I had to recalculate my surround system. The soundfield is much wider and deeper, with better sound separation.

I did a shoot out with the VR40s and the SDA-2s. The SDA-2s won, of course, mainly due to their soundstaging and sound separation, along with their airy highs. The size of the image is the most life-like I've gotten.
The VR-40s compared favorably in tone and image, and have a bit more defined center image. However, they put too much emphasis on the center image at the expense of sound separation left and right of center. All in all, a fairly close competition, especially without close attention. Of course, I've always been very pleased with the Bostons.

I also added the TX-101 to my setup, by removing its feet. Not my preference, but a fine sacrifice for more Luxman and ice cube buttons front and center.

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A night shot before I took the feet off. The ice cube lights are ice blue-green like the tuner displays in person.
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