If your finances/partner gave you free rein ...

Theophile, I love your analog set up with the TOL vintage table and modern Soundsmith cart and phono stage. I can only imagine the sound quality they bring. That said, to me, the real wildcard is the Truth preamplifier. Ed Schilling told me that it is a better audio revelation than the Great Horned Heils. And, for the record, the GHH's are the cat's ass, so the Truth must be pretty awesome. Tell us about the TRUTH!

There's almost nothing to tell. The Truth is a no-gain powered switching/ attenuation component. I think that the signal passes through one resistor, one cap an optocoupler attenuator and a buf-03.

I doubt that The Truth has an identifiable sound other than the ability to clear away a fog. Anything that might lead one to point the finger at The Truth, is attributable to the source components. It's signature is no signature. What that means in practice is remarkable clarity which throws the burden of responsibility back on the Source. The Truth adds or subtracts nothing. Lots of components promise that. Few deliver.

I knew that I had a great front-end(GT2000, Voice, Moon 5.3 and the 21 Clearaudio Magix). I knew I had a dynamite pair of true monitor speakers(designed to do just that). What I didn't know until The Truth arrived was just how good the front-end and speakers both were. Now I was able to faithfully transfer the signal from my wonderful front-end to my wonderful speakers and lose nothing in the transfer. What a difference that made.

The Truth's circuit simplicity and novelty mean that the unfulfilled promise of the passive preamp(which The Truth is not) is finally fulfilled but with the benefit of a stable high input impedance and a low output impedance that can easily drive long interconnects.

The sound can be whatever your front-end is capable or incapable of conveying. No interpreting. No adding or subtracting. Use it with a well tuned front-end, or use it to fine tune a front-end. I gives an honest enough, capable enough, sufficiently anonymous rendition, that the changes the fine tuning is providing are rendered unambiguously. It's like being a scientist and having a better microscope or an astronomer and having a better telescope. What was hazy and uncertain before is now rendered without ambiguity. Changes that are unfavourable, move the sound away from the ideal. Changes that are constructive move the sound toward real life sound. There is no mistaking which way a system change has taken things with The Truth in the system.

I actually think that in a lot of systems The Truth would be so swamped by the flaws in the front-end and the inability of the speakers to translate the entirety of what The Truth is capable of, that many who buy The Truth would be in no position to understand what it is truly capable of. In other words The Truth can convey greatness, but it needs greatness to convey all that it is capable of.
 
Sounds like an excellent system, Theophile, but I fear that monitors would only lay the production bare on too much of my music, particularly the rock/pop from the eighties. If my focus veered more to jazz and classical I may see it differently - in any case, I hope to audition the Event Opals and Dynaudio BM15A's in 2014. So many choices, but I guess that's all part of the fun.

Maybe with a poor Source component. What my system has shown me is that nearly all recordings have captured way more information than we give them credit for. That makes the ordinary sound fresh and wonderful and the extraordinary sound like the original performance.

I think that many recording engineers/producers need to hear systems like this in order to fully comprehend just how good recorded sound can be. If they realised how well their recordings can be reproduced, they might put a little more effort into capturing the event more faithfully.

These speakers don't tear apart a recording, they fulfill it.
 
Let's assume you had 20K USD and a clean slate, and your partner didn't have an issue with the size, shape or number of components. Fantasyland, right ? :D

The question is simple : do you go all out on a single 'killer' rig or do you accept that the price-performance ratio is constantly improving and adopt a more cautious approach ? This isnt just idle chatter for me 4 months from retirement, but I expect that many here asked themselves similar questions, particularly as DACs get cheaper and the range of absolutely fantastic mid-level speakers seems to have exploded.

Thoughts ?

WOW!!!!!

$20K!!!!

On an Audio System??? Of MY Dreams???

I would start with the speaker system. I would buy what sounds absolutely sensational to MY ears only. And fortunately for me, my dream speakers will not cost me an arm and a leg (but yet, they'll be a significant upgrade over the speakers of which I now own). Regardless of whether I buy them new. Or used. The sound I would get out of them will only be influenced by the amplification and front-end of which they're going to eventually be partnered with. And that would be a good thing.

My train of thought then would be to buy used/pre-owned (in mint condition, of course) whenever possible, and only buy new when it is necessary.

So then, let's just say that if I find my dream speakers on sale as a former demo model in the store, or I even find them locally on e-bay (that's providing that they're available locally for pick-up), then that would save me a significant amount of the budget just on the speakers alone. And wherever I can save whenever possible, that could do nothing but only free up funds for the other components further up the chain.

And then, being that I feel that I have a "more than decent" analog front-end right now, I can feel free to incorporate that into the system as well, with the fringe benefit of already owning it, thus, saving me even a more significant amount of the budget. And for me, in my case, getting the speakers used/pre-owned and using my existing analog front-end frees up a lion's share of the budget, of which will go towards the amplification, a laptop computer, a dac, and cables, with possibly enough left over to either get some room treatments, buy vinyl, or even put into the bank as I see fit.

So then...... without further ado, let's get on with the components, shall we??

Speaker System: Vandersteen 2Ce -- $1,100.00 (used -- local pickup only)(gives me everything my KEF Reference 102's give me now, but with the addition of a natural, but airy top-end, that is coupled with a tight and extended bass response which goes down into the upper 20's/lower 30's, with authority, but at the same time, not dominant or overbearing either)

Integrated Amplifier: Sim Audio Moon 340i Neo -- $4,750.00 (new)(fitted with XLR Balanced Inputs, 100 Watts Per Channel @ 8 Ohms, 200 Watts Per Channel @ 4 Ohms -- the Integrated Amplifier I am REALLY in love with is their 600i Evolution. The problem with that is that the Sim Audio Moon 600i Evolution starts at $8K (which is almost half of the budget all by itself), and by the time I get it optioned and configured the way I want it, then the price tag is going to be between $9K and $11K. The Sim Audio Moon 340i Neo, on the other hand, will give me roughly about 90% to 95% of what the Sim Audio Moon 600i Evolution would give me, but at about a third of the price, a nice tradeoff and compromise. If am going to compromise somewhere in this system, this would be the place where I would do it. I would also get a 10 Year Warranty in the bargain. A "GREAT" baby brother to the Sim Audio Moon 600i Evolution)

Phono Stage: PS Audio GCPH (see my signature below)

Turntable/Tone Arm/Phono Cartridge: Thorens TD-160/Jelco SA-750D/Sumiko Blue Point Special EVOIII (see my signature below)(has EVERYTHING that counts now. Mechanicals were redone, replaced the Stock TP-16 Tone Arm with a MUCH BETTER looking and sounding arm. Would love to get me a Polished Platter and a Polished Rosewood Plinth for it eventually (to make my analog rig look sexier, if nothing else), but that's all cosmetic right now, and none of that plays any part in how the table performs and sounds now. Right now, it's fine the way it is)

Laptop Computer: Toshiba Satellite Series -- $1,000.00 (new) (it will have the latest Intel CPU's, a Lighted Keyboard, a 15.6" Screen, a Gigantic Hard Drive, and as much Memory as I can cram into that thing. It will be flanked with about two more EVEN BIGGER External Hard Drives which will not only store my ENTIRE music collection in Lossless or FLAC, but will have enough space for me to update and expand the collection for years to come. And because it's going to have my ENTIRE music collection in storage, that will alleviate the need for a Compact Disc Player. And plus, with the 10,000's of radio stations available in cyberspace, I'll be listening to the radio over the internet as well. So, there will not be a need for an FM Tuner either)

External Disk Drive: G-Technology G-Drive (x2) -- $700.00 (new) (@ $350.00 each)(8 TB (4 TB each))

Digital Audio Converter: Bryston BDA-2 -- $2,500.00 (new)(Dual 32-Bit AKM DAC's, Balanced Outputs)

Interconnects: Audioquest, Cardas Audio or MIT -- $700.00 (new)(2 Pairs @ $350.00 each)

Digital Interconnect: Audioquest, Cardas Audio or MIT -- $200.00

Speaker Cables: Audioquest, Cardas Audio or MIT -- $600.00 (Bi-Wired)

Record Cleaning Machine: Keith Monk Record Cleaning Machine -- $5,000.00 (First Class Care For My Prized, Precious Vinyl)

System Total -- $16,550.00

And put the rest back into the bank, or put into my 401K or IRA.

See, it's okay to dream, and be within your budget too.

I didn't do too badly at all.

What do you think??? Eh??

--Charles--
 
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20k to spend ....approaching retirement ......hmmmm.......lightly used Mustang Gt and a long road trip with my wife ....I'll enjoy the tunes in the car .
 
As a lot of folks have mentioned I'd spend the majority on the room. Maybe 1/4 on gear. I'd like a room with better power and acoustics that's a more pleasant place to be.
 
Let's assume you had 20K USD and a clean slate, and your partner didn't have an issue with the size, shape or number of components. Fantasyland, right ? :D

The question is simple : do you go all out on a single 'killer' rig or do you accept that the price-performance ratio is constantly improving and adopt a more cautious approach ? This isnt just idle chatter for me 4 months from retirement, but I expect that many here asked themselves similar questions, particularly as DACs get cheaper and the range of absolutely fantastic mid-level speakers seems to have exploded.

Thoughts ?

After glancing at this thread once in a while, and idly speculating about which turntables and cartridges I fancy and the resulting arithmetic, I finally clued into the positive Wife Acceptance Factor part, and began actually thinking about the issues...

I think I would go for a single killer rig, but with multiple personalities.

I'm going to assume that I can keep whatever I like from my current system. To me, the "clean slate" part comes from the WAF, not a desire to start over.

I have two pair of the original Quad ESLs, one black and one bronze. Here is my listening room currently, our living room in an open floor plan:

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My wife likes the Quads a lot more than the Magneplanar 1.7s they replaced. They're unusual, and a conversation piece, and she's comfortable with the impression they give. Her friends are used to them, in other words. ;)

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If she really were comfortable with going further, the Quads would likely lose some of their current charm. I'd refurbish both pairs and stack them! Not a new idea, I know. And there goes almost half my budget.

But as much as I love the Quads, I've also been thinking of an alternative presentation. I built a pair of corner horns in my youth, and loved them, too. I think the two presentations are complimentary. Jon Dahlquist once said there are only two kinds of speakers, "You are there", and "They are here". His DQ-10s were "You are there", and so are the Quads. His own example of "They are here" speakers were Klipschorns. I want both! Or maybe a DIY mix of the corner-horn bass bins and Altec horns in a two-way, or Altec 19s, or...

So to do both, I think I'd remove part of the stub walls separating the living room and the dining room, and put the stacked Quads in the enlarged opening. Then add a stub wall to the front door entrance-way to form another corner for the left corner horn, behind the current left Quad. I'd have two listening chairs then, at 90 degree angles to each other, in short wall plus long wall configurations. Her friends would probably conclude that she's married to a nut. :D

What I might actually be able to get away with is leaving the Quads as they are, where they are, and adding either used corner horns behind them, or Altecs opposite them, flanking the chair.

And of course, I still want that new turntable. And a mono cartridge. And some diffusion on the wall behind the chair. And...

And now I'm idly curious about what our OP, estreeter, actually went with, why, and how it's working.

:music:
 
Let's assume you had 20K USD and a clean slate, and your partner didn't have an issue with the size, shape or number of components. Fantasyland, right ? :D

The question is simple : do you go all out on a single 'killer' rig or do you accept that the price-performance ratio is constantly improving and adopt a more cautious approach ? This isnt just idle chatter for me 4 months from retirement, but I expect that many here asked themselves similar questions, particularly as DACs get cheaper and the range of absolutely fantastic mid-level speakers seems to have exploded.

Thoughts ?

Down payment on a VPI Direct Drive. :banana:
 
Let's assume you had 20K USD and a clean slate, and your partner didn't have an issue with the size, shape or number of components. Fantasyland, right ? :D

The question is simple : do you go all out on a single 'killer' rig or do you accept that the price-performance ratio is constantly improving and adopt a more cautious approach ? This isnt just idle chatter for me 4 months from retirement, but I expect that many here asked themselves similar questions, particularly as DACs get cheaper and the range of absolutely fantastic mid-level speakers seems to have exploded.

Thoughts ?

I'd put at least half into the room (the "component" that too many people take for granted despite the huge influence it has on sound) and the rest into upgraded analog and digital source components for my current system.
 
OK... after reading through the whole thread, I would first of all not blow the whole wad on one component... I was kidding hence the banana... (ok I was the tiniest bit serious...)

BUT...since it's free rein here I would definitely spend it all on a killer system. My version of that would be analog.

4k give or take 1000 bucks on a turntable/arm combo. I would most likely go used to stretch that 4k as far as possible maybe a used Transrotor Fat Bob... a thing of beauty available for 3 to 5k used.

2k for a used preamp. There are many to choose from on the market but with that budget you will and up with something wonderful.

10k for amp/speaker combo. I've always thought you need to buy these two together. Amps and speakers come as one unit in my book. Cary and Lowther or Bottlehead, B&W with MacIntosh or Classe. If I had to choose I would find some used 801s and some used Krell monoblocks.

You can even keep the the fun going by using this method since buying top line used equipment in good shape means you can probably sell it for the same or a fraction less than what you paid for it. This would allow you to "roll" amps and speakers until you hit on your preferred combo.

The rest of the money (a not insubstantial 3 to 4k if my drunk math is correct) would go towards cables, racks and room tweaks.
 
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