Quote:
Originally Posted by cmalak
Alberto...we figured as much. It's too bad the Luxman unit didn't work out but it sounds like you are enjoying your time with the Shindo gear (at least with those recordings that don't require tone controls  ). Have you considered another preamp with tone controls and keeping the Shindo amp?
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It would be fair to say that I am in an evaluation and transition period that could take a few months to resolve - and will involve trying out a few more combinations of pre, amp and speakers. This was fully expected and, for me, part of the fun when I decided to dismantle my old system and start anew.
I love the Shindo gear. They are jewels, they look fantastic and I love the idea of point-to-point wiring and nearly "custom" build. I can't find fault with the sonics of either the Auriges or the Montille; unfortunately they - being the high-end gear that they are - seem to be finding faults with some of my listening material
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It's easy to fall in love with a new component during the honeymoon period of the first week or two. You tend to ignore the things that can turn out to be problems later one. That's why I stress the importance of long-term listening tests.
What I've (re)learned in the past couple of months is that I am particularly sensitive to certain high frequency sounds. The kind of brightness that most people would consider necessary to achieve adequate levels of realism and detail can get very fatiguing for me very quickly. I also find the noise at loud restaurants and bars very annoying and fatiguing.
I have also relearned that what I consider a good listening volume is many dbs below what most people would use. This might be the reason while I value loudness controls so much.
The Shindo gear is considered very smooth, but it's still very high-end sounding (i.e. it has a lot of detail, resolution and frequency extension.)
Right now, believe it or not, my favorite set up is the MDA1000 going straight into the $400, DIY, Bottlehead SET amp - with a REL sub taking care of the bottom octave. Problem is, with 1.8+1.8W this system sounds great at lower volumes, but the sounds becomes rapidly congested and distorted at higher volumes.
The next logical step, one I am planning to take, is to try a Shindo SET amp (the 10+10W Cortese). I might have an opportunity to try it out in the next couple of weeks.
This might sound like I don't know what I want, but it's exactly the opposite. I know
exactly in my head the sound I want and I know it will take a few iterations to get there. That's the same thing that happened when I spent a few months getting my previous system to sound just right for me - then I stayed put with very minor changes for a couple of years - and no changes at all for over one year!
Bottom line: everything is going according to plan. I am having a blast experimenting. I am learning a lot and - thanks to friendly dealers who know and trust me because I am a good customers - I am not spending too much money buying and reselling gear.
Alberto