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Hawkeye83's systems

Latest addition. Beveridge Model 5.

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Wanted to give an update on the current state of affairs in the Hawk's nest (pardon cheesy pun).
I also wanted to give an homage to speakers and gear that have come and gone.
I'll just list the gear that has come and gone (notable stuff only) and post pictures of what I currently have. Maybe I'll post pictures of other stuff later, but you can all look it up on the internet too LOL. Don't want to bore anyone.

Notable gear come and gone! Much of it great, just no room! Most of it probably sold to you fine folks! :)
Pictures upon request for this list. In alphabetical order.

Gear owned

Accuphase E-212 with DAC-10 option card
Allo Volt +D - integrated amp
Apogee Centuar
Audire Forte
Bel Canto DAC 2.5
Bel Canto DAC 3.5VB, with VBS-1 power supply and Reflink USB converter
Bel Canto CD2
Bel Canto Reflink USB converter
Beveridge Model 5 speakers
Bozak B-305 speakers
Cambridge CXA-60 integrated amp
Crown PSA-2 amp
Denafrips Ares DAC
Denafrips Pontus 2 DAC
DGSE-1 tube amp
Emotiva stack - USP-1 preamp, XDA-2 DAC, can't remember which amp I had! UPA-200 or something like that?
Empire 208 turntable
Fairchild 412 turntable
Harmon Kardon Counterpoint II tube tuner
Heathkit SA-2 tube integrated amp
Hornshoppe "The Truth" preamp
Janszen ZA2.1A electrostatic speakers
Juicy Blueberry Xtreme preamp (w/Cream option)
KEF 103.2 speakers
KEF 107 speakers
KEF LS50 - black/gold, and white/blue
KEF LS50W - white/gold
Klipsch RF series - RF-35 I think - surround system
Klipsch SF-3 speakers
Leben CS300XS
Leben RS30EQ
Legacy Focus speakers
Legacy Audio amplifier (forget the model number!)
Lii Audio F15 speakers
Luxman T-400 tuner
Magnepan 2.7QR speakers
McCormack DNA 0.5 amp
Mirage M3si speakers
Monarchy SM-70 amplifier
Oppo PM-3 headphones
Pass Labs Amp Camp 1.6
Pioneer SX-525 integrated amp
PS Audio Perfectwave MKII DAC
PS Audio Sprout 2
Quad ESL-57 speakers
Quad VA-One integrated amp
Quicksilver "Silver Mono" tube monoblock amps (90 wpc!)
Rega RP-1 turntable with Rega Fono
RCA LC-1A speakers
Sherbourn integrated amp - forget model; much like the little Emotiva mini-amp; maybe model PA-250 or something along those lines
Sony SS-M7 speakers
Tannoy Arden speakers
Townshend Audio Maximum supertweeters

Also of note - Wurlitzer jukebox!
 
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Sorry no flashy/artsy pics here, just what I have, how it is! This is probably what I'll have for the forseeable future. If we move, I may downsize.
Any questions or comments welcomed.
 
Hawkeye83 said:
System 4 - KEF LS50 and PS Audio Sprout II.

View attachment 2324779
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Hey Hawkeye. You must have very good taste in speakers cuz I have a pair of R107s in walnut, and my buddy has a pair of Tannoy Ardens. Both sets have been refurbished, but I believe his Ardens still need the crossovers recapped.
Anyway, congrats on the three great systems that you finished up with after all the selling and shuffling.

Dave
 
david1111 said:
Hey Hawkeye. You must have very good taste in speakers cuz I have a pair of R107s in walnut, and my buddy has a pair of Tannoy Ardens. Both sets have been refurbished, but I believe his Ardens still need the crossovers recapped.
Anyway, congrats on the three great systems that you finished up with after all the selling and shuffling.

Dave
Click to expand...

Hey thanks Dave! I am also thinking about redoing the cross overs in my Ardens. The mainly Tannoy cross overs appear to be pretty well done so I might try those out at some point. It is actually kind of nice to be off the gear merry go round for a while… I was starting to get dizzy LOL. It was a good ride for around seven or eight years though. I think I would have to spend quite a bit more to achieve more musical satisfaction than what I have right now. I’ve been buying a lot more vinyl since stopping buying the gear!
 
Yes, you really had a good chunk of gear there. Kind of enviable, really.
At my best times (worse times?), I only ever had about a third of your accumulation. Very impressive!!

When I did the crossovers in the R107s, it took a good long while for them to settle in. But they eventually did, and they're great now. I had the Kube rebuilt as well.
My buddies Ardens sound excellent.

I guess now, there's a little more unencumbered time for you to spend just listening. For me, I rarely just sit and listen. Usually my wife and I are listening while we are doing something, and I always have a playlist going while I'm cooking.
Cheers.
 
david1111 said:
Yes, you really had a good chunk of gear there. Kind of enviable, really.
At my best times (worse times?), I only ever had about a third of your accumulation. Very impressive!!

When I did the crossovers in the R107s, it took a good long while for them to settle in. But they eventually did, and they're great now. I had the Kube rebuilt as well.
My buddies Ardens sound excellent.

I guess now, there's a little more unencumbered time for you to spend just listening. For me, I rarely just sit and listen. Usually my wife and I are listening while we are doing something, and I always have a playlist going while I'm cooking.
Cheers.
Click to expand...

Yeah I was really attracted to the rare/highly-rated vintage stuff for awhile. Doesn't get a WHOLE lot more rare than the Beveridge and RCA speakers. Quads don't grow on trees. Apogees either. It was definitely an "education!" Never been to an audio show, that's my next step before I would buy anything else.

I'm kind of the same way, most of my music is playing while at work (I work from home) or cooking/cleaning/running.

I see some new Ardens for sale that I was thinking about, but man they are 8x the price I paid for mine (new) and 4x what I paid for mine (used) so I don't know if I can pull the trigger just yet. Would rather save up for some Westminsters! HA!

Really glad you enjoy the 107's and your buddy's Ardens. Mine aren't going anywhere unless I move up the KEF and Tannoy food chain, I think. Westminsters are what I want for Tannoy. Not sure yet for KEF. I think the 107's are kind of special, honestly. Perfect, no, of course. But I think they are my keepers. Price/performance ratio is insane, IMO. Never heard such awesome bass from any other speaker (yet). Not likely to hear any better bass for a speaker you can get for $1-2k. And I dig the MCM looks.

Cheers buddy!
 
Another friend of mine had Quad 57s. He was very experienced in audio gear, and he always insisted that the Quad 57s were the best sounding speaker ever made. He wasn't local, and sadly, I never got to hear them before he died last year.
There's an old pair of Arden's on Canuck Audio Mart right now for $2800.

And yeah, the 107's are a good value, and no, they're certainly not perfect. The bass is exceptional and the mids are very good. But the tweeters aren't the very best, and I find some music a tad grating at higher volumes, however, it's usually because of the recording/production.
I spoke with my local speaker guy who is very talented, and knows the 107's well, and he said he could modify the crossovers in the head units and eliminate that particular frequency. Probably with a specific Capacitor.
Anyway I like the looks of them as well and will always keep them, but I wonder if I'm missing out on some amazing music by not having some other newer speakers. But now is not the time for me to be adding to my gear. We'll be moving, and downscaling in a few years.

Cheers Hawkeye.
 
david1111 said:
Another friend of mine had Quad 57s. He was very experienced in audio gear, and he always insisted that the Quad 57s were the best sounding speaker ever made. He wasn't local, and sadly, I never got to hear them before he died last year.
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Quad 57's are pretty great for "music only." Obviously not for home theater LOL. I have two regrets:

1) Selling them so cheap - $800! They had a couple of minor dings and one was slightly louder than the other. A twist of the preamp balance knob fixed that. I should have just kept them, but it bugged me. I thought I would need to fix them and not be able to. With dynamic drivers, even I can fix them LOL...just pop a new driver in. Thought I might kill myself trying to fix an electrostatic.

2) Not giving them enough play time in a larger room. I had them in a tiny room, jammed into corners. Not ideal! The day I sold them, I moved them out into a slightly larger room, had more room to breathe, wow they sounded good. I feel the Tannoy give me a lot of what they do too though...with better bass.
 
david1111 said:
And yeah, the 107's are a good value, and no, they're certainly not perfect. The bass is exceptional and the mids are very good. But the tweeters aren't the very best, and I find some music a tad grating at higher volumes, however, it's usually because of the recording/production.
I spoke with my local speaker guy who is very talented, and knows the 107's well, and he said he could modify the crossovers in the head units and eliminate that particular frequency. Probably with a specific Capacitor.
Anyway I like the looks of them as well and will always keep them, but I wonder if I'm missing out on some amazing music by not having some other newer speakers. But now is not the time for me to be adding to my gear. We'll be moving, and downscaling in a few years.
Click to expand...

I used some Townshend Audio maximum supertweeters with my 107's for awhile, and it DID add...something! You might try adding on some super tweeters sometime. If I could ever come across a spare set of heads for cheap, I want to experiment with them. Trying different tweeters. I've come across a handful that are "recommended." I don't want to mess up my restored, working pair though! I really want to hear the RAAL ribbon in them, but even some cheaper domes have been highly recommended by some others...providing more high frequency energy. Whether it's "accurate"/balanced is another story, I suppose.
 
Yes, I did consider some super tweeters with them, and I'll probably give that a try once we move. The room can make a big difference. The second edition Townshends are only about 800.00 on Amazon.
And I can understand you not wanting to mess with your restored set of 107's.
 
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