I'm sorry America...

Well the good thing about this discovery is you did it early enough in life to make amends and enjoy nice American made products for years to come.

But let me be the first to say sorry for your loss of not having heard much of this gear up until now. Lost years listening to what you say is gear that isn't quite as good.
 
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Plus you get the lady with the crazy work station populating the boards for you by hand.
LOL!

I've owned ARC gear since 1981 with a sum total of two problems that were parts failures, the last of which occurred in 2005 with an IC based timer for the muting circuitry.
 
Ok, I'm going to be very honest with you guys: Most of my life I haven't had the highest opinion of american engineering and craftsmanship. My audio stuff came from the Brits, zee Germans or my own little country and I was always very happy with it.

But I think two of the most important traits of a grown-up are the ability to change your mind when the evidence demands it and to admit that you were wrong. And boy have I been wrong!

It all started when I bought new headphones, a pair of Beyerdynamic T90 and the A20 headphone amp. Liked them, never loved them. So I kept listening to other headphones, but nothing ever really convinced me. Until a german friend recommended the Audeze LCD2. I really didn't want to spend more than 1000$ for a pair of headphones but my friend's praises were very convincing, so I ordered a pair without having ever listened to them. And what can I say, to this day these things still blow me away and I have completely lost interest in the headphone market.

America 1 skraggs 0

Soon after that I switched out the Beyerdynamic amp with the Schiit Lyr 2, another massive upgrade.

America 2 skraggs 0 (you see where this is going)

Then came the hunt for a new turntable and I had pretty much settled on a Pro-Ject when my record dealer came along with a fantastic offer for a VPI Classic. I had always loved the vintage style of these babies but they were simply out of my league financially but at just a bit more than the Pro-Ject, I simply couldn't resist. Paired with the Benz Wood cartridge it just sounds fantastic and is the coolest thing I've every owned. If there's ever a fire at my place, the VPI is the first thing I will save.

At this point, not even Tom Brady or LeBron could turn this around...

Next upgrade: I like what Schiit are doing and I was wondering what all the fuss about their multibit dacs was. So I ordered a Gungnir Multibit and it completely destroyed my NAD dac. Never heard such good drum sound from a digital source, highly enjoyable.

I think this is what sports commentators call "garbage time".

Last but not least: A week ago I treated myself to a pair of Klipsch Forte III. I listened to a lot of speakers over the past few months. Like, A LOT! Apart from a pair of Tannoys, they were the only ones that had IT. I can't really define what IT is, but it's the kind of thing that makes you listen to the music, not the speaker, that makes you listen with your entire body, not just your ears. These speakers are just pure fun and they are beautifully made, the wood work and the lamb wool grills are simply a work of art. I think speakerwise I'm all set for the next 20 years.

Final whistle, what a blow out...

So, this was a long and silly thread. I guess what I'm trying to say is: Cheers to my american audio friends, your stuff kicks ass and I'm going to play Jimis Star Spangled Banner now.

Also, if there's an american company that builds nice tube amps, let me know... :biggrin:


Well, like Italian things, American products carry a certain emotion. You have to take that into account, "emotion". It usually means that down the road, you will see that it is not up to snuff, engineering wise. You don't have that with German or Japanese products. You also have zero emotion. Well. German emotion. :p

"Èmotione" usually breaks after 50K miles. Or rusts.
 
Well, like Italian things, American products carry a certain emotion. You have to take that into account, "emotion". It usually means that down the road, you will see that it is not up to snuff, engineering wise. You don't have that with German or Japanese products. You also have zero emotion. Well. German emotion. :p

"Èmotione" usually breaks after 50K miles. Or rusts.

ARC, Conrad Johnson, McIntosh, Levinson, Boulder, Pass Labs and other higher end gear not up to snuff engineering wise? Puleeeeeze!!!!

Nakamichi was so enamored of the Threshold Stasis design (Nelson Pass designed) they paid Nelson to design and license them their own version of a stasis amplifier.

Next you'll be claiming that D'Agostino amplifiers are not up to snuff.

Momentum preamp

Momentum power amp.
 
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VAC, Counterpoint (when in business)

What's not to like about the craftsmanship of this?
Dan-044428-landscape.jpg
 
I've got a toaster that looks like that.

As an amplifier... I've no doubt it's well constructed, but clearly aesthetics are a matter of personal preference.
Yep, we all don't like the vintage look.

As a Toolmaker and Machine designer for 25 years, The D'Ags are works of Machining Art.
 
I've got a toaster that looks like that.

As an amplifier... I've no doubt it's well constructed, but clearly aesthetics are a matter of personal preference.

Okay, you don't like the Momentum preamp. How about this Boulder integrated?
productimg_865_front-1200x642.png


or this power amp from Pass Labs?



I could easily live with the looks of either.
 
Okay, you don't like the Momentum preamp. How about this Boulder integrated?

or this power amp from Pass Labs?

I could easily live with the looks of either.
Yeesh, so much oogly. All those needless flourishes...

Gear should look simple, elemental, and stark, with every element contributing to its function. The design language should express pure semantics, without irrelevant and unnecessary adjectives. Like this:

PassLabsAleph5.jpg
Pass Labs Aleph 5.

Though I do find the blue light to be a bit much.
 
I loves me some vintage design, but to be perfectly blunt, the pictured D'Agostino unit doesn't look vintage to me. It looks like a steampunk monocle artlessly mashed into a Delonghi toaster with hand-drawn lettering by a failing first-year Web design student.

But that's just me.
Sorry, you misunderstood, The D'ag is the opposite of Vintage
 
I think the D'ag is not very pretty but I also dislike the million switches of vintage receivers.
A black Threshold S/500 is more my preferred style but everyone is different.
 
Sorry, you misunderstood, The D'ag is the opposite of Vintage
Ah, yes, I see what you were doing there. I thought you meant...

Yeah, I get it.

I guess the D'Agostino is the opposite of vintage, if post-modern Italian-coffeemaker steampunk retro-futurism is the opposite of vintage. ... .
 
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