It took me more than a year to finally get my CL gifted Thiel 03a's up and running. Carl refoamed the woofers and midranges. Narodow helped my tremendously by rebuilding the active EQ. Gordon fixed a woofer I bent :tears: And Thiel replaced a tweeter - twice after my first solder hack disconnected the driver leads :tears:
So I was looking forward to hearing what true Audiophile grade speakers sound like. I've read numerous times how Thiels will expose shortcomings upstream and I must admit not all of it would qualify as Audiophile grade - the Sansui 890DB mostly though it drives the Thiels with aplomb.
Source material are BIC 980 TT with Ortofon F/FF cart and mostly Squeezebox Touch streaming Apple Lossless to Music Hall 25.2 DAC with upgraded Mullard NOS tube.
So my setup is not too shabby. And the Thiels did not disappoint. These babies are no slouch in the bass. They are the most neutral, accurate sounding speakers I've ever had in my listening space. I'm listening flat with maybe one or two notches of bass added - I like bass.
Great recordings sound unbelievable. I can understand lyrics I could not with other speakers or setups - tubes included. Nuances abound. Imaging is great though I probably haven't maximized in my smallish living room.
But there are disappointments. My Beatles Mono collection sounds thin. Blues do well but some guitar leads get a little piercing.
I've been listening to this setup for about 3 weeks now to get aclimated. But last night I decided to put my previous setup back in place. Eico HF-81 nicely redone by Narodow, Dan Nicotera, and Craig Otsby at NOS Tubes. And my Klipsch Forte's with Crites caps, Ti diaphragms and all new coils.
The Eico - Forte setup just draws me in :tresbon: Beatles sound glorious. No I don't get the ultra detail as with the Thiels but I enjoy the sound more.
I belive some will say the Thiels need better pre and amp to sound their best. Or cables. But this is my Deserted Island setup for sure :thmbsp:
Are you an Audiophile or a Music Lover?
So I was looking forward to hearing what true Audiophile grade speakers sound like. I've read numerous times how Thiels will expose shortcomings upstream and I must admit not all of it would qualify as Audiophile grade - the Sansui 890DB mostly though it drives the Thiels with aplomb.
Source material are BIC 980 TT with Ortofon F/FF cart and mostly Squeezebox Touch streaming Apple Lossless to Music Hall 25.2 DAC with upgraded Mullard NOS tube.
So my setup is not too shabby. And the Thiels did not disappoint. These babies are no slouch in the bass. They are the most neutral, accurate sounding speakers I've ever had in my listening space. I'm listening flat with maybe one or two notches of bass added - I like bass.
Great recordings sound unbelievable. I can understand lyrics I could not with other speakers or setups - tubes included. Nuances abound. Imaging is great though I probably haven't maximized in my smallish living room.
But there are disappointments. My Beatles Mono collection sounds thin. Blues do well but some guitar leads get a little piercing.
I've been listening to this setup for about 3 weeks now to get aclimated. But last night I decided to put my previous setup back in place. Eico HF-81 nicely redone by Narodow, Dan Nicotera, and Craig Otsby at NOS Tubes. And my Klipsch Forte's with Crites caps, Ti diaphragms and all new coils.
The Eico - Forte setup just draws me in :tresbon: Beatles sound glorious. No I don't get the ultra detail as with the Thiels but I enjoy the sound more.
I belive some will say the Thiels need better pre and amp to sound their best. Or cables. But this is my Deserted Island setup for sure :thmbsp:
Are you an Audiophile or a Music Lover?