JohnVF's other system. Or...one of them:

JohnVF

Lunatic Member
Hello. This is my second system, which serves as my bedroom system and home theater system. Yeah, I stuck a projector in my bedroom. Because...well, why not?

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The system consists of:

Pioneer SC-27 receiver. After having a host of vintage gear in here, I got sick of switching the HDMI cable from one component to another, and running both HDMI, S-video, and composite across the room to the projector. So I bit the bullet and went with a modern HT receiver to get video switching capability. And...well...I love this thing! I'm currently using it as a preamp only, to get some use out of my stash of amplifiers, but it sounds pretty darn good on its own. It has a Class-D amplifier.

Heybrook P2 power amplifier. This is a somewhat obscure amplifier of about 70wpc designed by Tim De Paravicini for Heybrook (it says so on the back...must be true?). All I really know about it is that is one sweet little amplifier. From the early/mid '80s.

Dynaco MKIII power amplifiers: These are supposed to go here in place of the Heybrook, but one is currently not working. The Heybrook is doing well enough on it's own.

Sony TA-N86b power amplifier: I occasionally use this, too. Its a little Class-A amplifier. About 18wpc in Class-A...a truly fantastic amp from about 1980.

Marantz TT-15s1 turntable. Designed by Clearaudio (obvious in the pictures)...great little turntable. Currently with a Audio Technica AT-150mlx cartridge.

DB-Systems DB-8 phono stage.

Sony Playstation 3. Blu-ray, video games.

Cambridge Audio 640c CD player: Just being used as a transport. I like the Pioneer's onboard DAC better than that in this CD player.

Sony SS-m7 speakers. They're sad they've been replaced by the Quad ESLs in the main system...but they've booted everything else out of here.

Optoma and/or Vidikron-Runco projectors.

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unnecessary speaker cable closeup:
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These should be further out from the wall:
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Back when the MK. IIIs were in, with Diatone speakers. They'll be back:
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John, I am hiring you as an interior designer/decorator when I get my own place.
 
Hello. This is my second system... I bit the bullet and went with a modern HT receiver to get video switching capability. And...well...I love this thing! I'm currently using it as a preamp only, to get some use out of my stash of amplifiers, but it sounds pretty darn good on its own. It has a Class-D amplifier....

John, what year were/are these in production, and what do they run?

...Marantz TT-15s1 turntable. Designed by Clearaudio- great little turntable....

John- I agree a great table. Where do you find it has it's weaknesses in relation to the big beastie, the VPI?

...Cambridge Audio 640c CD player: Just being used as a transport. I like the Pioneer's onboard DAC better than that in this CD player....

This surprises me a bit as I was pretty impressed with this (humbly) priced CD player's performance.

...Sony SS-m7 speakers...

I regret not buying the smaller 2-way versions that were available locally to me. I'd love to come across a pair of these.
 
John, what year were/are these in production, and what do they run?
It was current the last year or two. Probably replaced by something with 3d capability (just a guess? I know little about AV units). I got it as a demo unit at less than half the original price which was something close to $2k I think. That's the only reason I picked it up, really. I saw it on the shelf at Magnolia for the price of the middle of the line gear, and it was TOTL, so I did some quick research, then went back and got it. I really haven't even begun to get into what it can do..it's a lot more complicated than anything I'm used to, but works well as a video-switching 2-channel preamp. The Class-D amp section is pretty nice..very clean and detailed. The preference for using separate amps with it isn't one of necessity. I would be happy using it's amp section, but the Heybrook sounds a bit better in 2-channel. I had it running 5 channels but got sick of tripping over the speakers in my bedroom.

John- I agree a great table. Where do you find it has it's weaknesses in relation to the big beastie, the VPI?

The sound doesn't have the same weight/impact. The VPI just sounds bigger and more dynamic, with more immediacy to the sound. The Marantz has a more delicate sound, which made a nice compliment to the VPI when I ran them both together in the main system. I can also use higher compliance carts with it, like the AT and my Shure V-15vmr, which didn't sound great on the VPI...and they sound really good on the Marantz. It has a really nice arm. The VPI is less finicky to use..the motor unit on the Marantz is separate and the on/off switch is sometimes a pain to get to without moving the motor unit, which drops the belt. It's also easier to switch the belt on the pulley to a different speed on the VPI.
This surprises me a bit as I was pretty impressed with this (humbly) priced CD player's performance.
I like it as well. The DAC in the Pioneer is pretty outstanding, though. It was just a subjective call after comparing the two back to back.
 
CRT projectors?

DLP. The one I am using currently is an Optoma HD20 1080p projector. My other projector is a Vidikron Model 15, 720p, which is basically a runco. It has a much much better image, almost filmlike, but it's huge and has more noise than the tiny Optoma, and doesn't have the ultimate resolution of the Optoma..though it more than makes up for it in how it handles color and movement. The size and noise make it more ideal for a ceiling mount, which I haven't done in here yet. So the optoma sits on top of a bookshelf...I put the whole projection system together quickly just to get video in here. I will probably bring the Vidikron back online as it can throw the picture to a pretty good offset angle, so I could better center the screen to the sitting position. I just haven't figured that all out yet. Image is probably 7' wide? Only limited by the screen really. i could just project onto the wall.
 
I think the cat looks even bigger on the bed. Maybe likes the bedroom system more then the living room?
 
You have my vote for best bedroom system. Pretty stellar!

Myself? I much prefer the sound of the 2 inch speakers with integrated .3 watt amplifier, all built in to my 26" LCD TV! The TV has a "virtual" surround mode that envelopes you in 7.1, bone jarring, theater sound...

But seriously, very nice set-up you got there. Does your room do your Sony's justice? I know you already stated that they are not ideally placed, but sometimes rooms can surprise you.

Enjoy!

P.S. Your cat reminds me of my buddies cat "Junior", he was a giant! I remember going to his place after a night at the bars. I was making a sandwich on his kitchen counter-top. Junior was so big, he could literally stand at the kitchen counter. He'd stand there with his back paws on the ground and pull lunch-meats off the middle of the countertop. It was hard to get mad at him because he was such a character.
 
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Holy Cow! A turntable in the bedroom, now that is an achievement!

Have you thought about slinging a hammock between the speakers to get that "surrounded by music" feeling? ;)
 
Holy Cow! A turntable in the bedroom, now that is an achievement!

Have you thought about slinging a hammock between the speakers to get that "surrounded by music" feeling? ;)

I love the priorities..most people comment on the giant movie screen..but you notice the turntable! And yes, I think everybody should have a record player in the bedroom. The hammock is a good idea...the bed is offset to one side and its not easy to get into the sweet-spot. A hammock? Much easier to place.
 
You have my vote for best bedroom system. Pretty stellar!

Myself? I much prefer the sound of the 2 inch speakers with integrated .3 watt amplifier, all built in to my 26" LCD TV! The TV has a "virtual" surround mode that envelopes you in 7.1, bone jarring, theater sound...

But seriously, very nice set-up you got there. Does your room do your Sony's justice? I know you already stated that they are not ideally placed, but sometimes rooms can surprise you.

Enjoy!

P.S. Your cat reminds me of my buddies cat "Junior", he was a giant! I remember going to his place after a night at the bars. I was making a sandwich on his kitchen counter-top. Junior was so big, he could literally stand at the kitchen counter. He'd stand there with his back paws on the ground and pull lunch-meats off the middle of the countertop. It was hard to get mad at him because he was such a character.

The problem with the Sonys right now, and this room in general, is traced to one thing..the projector can't offset it's image, meaning, it has to be directly in line with the screen. My other one can project from a pretty far off angle, so that might fix things but I need to bring it out of storage. But this means that the bed..the primary listening position...is not in the sweet spot until I either put my other projector in use or get a wall/ceiling mount for this one. The Sonys image really really well...but best when right in the middle. So when I sit a chair in the middle of the room (there is a chair in the room for this), everything sounds great! A bit off to the side...and they still sound good, but they don't get to do what they do best.

This whole system is a work in progress. Now that the main system is set, I'm going to play with a few different approaches to this one.
 
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