The Audio Thread

Oddly enough, my scheme has changed -- it always changes, doesn't it?

I ended up buying a pair of very compact Audioengine speakers for my computer desk and then a small Audioengine 6.5-inch subwoofer to augment the bass. I'm expecting delivery of the sub today and expect that will suffice for my computer.

Never heard of them. Seems like a nice product.

Funny thing is I have a very old set of Altec Lansing ATP3s. Haven't had the upgrade-itis with these at all. Sound is pretty decent and has deep enough bass for the gaming I do. Enough where my neighbor thought I was at war one time when I had my windows open. LOL.

I am no audiophile so I have no business pretending to contribute to this thread. I do, however, have had the experience listening to one of the greatest, for it's time, speaker systems, the JBL Paragon speaker system back in 1968-9 time frame.


My college roommate worked at JBL. We got to be good friends with one of the JBL executive who owned a beautiful home featuring an amazing sound system including the JBL Paragon. The Blood Sweat and Tears album had just been release and he held a listening party at his house.

I had never heard a home stereo system sound so perfect. To this day, I've never heard anything like it. Simply analog perfection.

I have no idea what amp, preamp, and turntable he was using, but my god, what a sound. Probably the modern systems are better, but I've never heard one that blew me away like that.

I'm now hard of hearing probably from to much loud rock and roll, so great sound is lost on me, but that moment for me was so special.

Now, back to your thread.

sygazelle wrote

I am no audiophile so I have no business pretending to contribute to this thread. I do, however, have had the experience listening to one of the greatest, for it's time, speaker systems, the JBL Paragon speaker system back in 1968-9 time frame.


My college roommate worked at JBL. We got to be good friends with one of the JBL executive who owned a beautiful home featuring an amazing sound system including the JBL Paragon. The Blood Sweat and Tears album had just been release and he held a listening party at his house.

I had never heard a home stereo system sound so perfect. To this day, I've never heard anything like it. Simply analog perfection.

I have no idea what amp, preamp, and turntable he was using, but my god, what a sound. Probably the modern systems are better, but I've never heard one that blew me away like that.

I remember the Paragon, though I never saw one in the flesh.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JBL_Paragon

I had a similar experience in the very early 80's with somebody who had those Infinity towers; it takes the experience to a new level.

Llarry wrote

I remember the Paragon, though I never saw one in the flesh.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JBL_Paragon

You can pick one up used for about $25,000.

Llarry wrote

Oddly enough, my scheme has changed -- it always changes, doesn't it?

I ended up buying a pair of very compact Audioengine speakers for my computer desk and then a small Audioengine 6.5-inch subwoofer to augment the bass. I'm expecting delivery of the sub today and expect that will suffice for my computer.

Back in the late 90's I bought an Alienware system (before Dell bought them out) and a Klipsch ProMedia 4.1 computer speaker system. I still have the ProMedia. It still blows me away for a PC system. 400 total watts.

sygazelle wrote

You can pick one up used for about $25,000.

Apparently, this is what replaced it.

https://theaudiosolutions.com/products/jbl-project-everest-dd67000-dual-15-3-way-floorstanding-loudspeaker-pair?gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAC4gvZD_2ycUtJd9VcbLgwKAgCrST&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIk_GX8tHQigMVCTYIBR2anw-1EAQYAiABEgIfkfD_BwE

The one that got away...

When liner-tracking tonearm turntables were introduced -- I think around 1980 or so -- I read the reviews and was convinced. The earliest one that I remember was a Technics unit that was barely larger than an LP record. Maybe 13 x 13 inches.

I had a perfectly good Technics turntable and so was interested in an upgrade but waited a year or two, then jumped.

My first linear-tracking turntable was a Technics SL-Q3 that I bought in the military exchange in 1982 for a great price: $135 including a Technics cartridge. It performed well and I liked the easy P-mount cartridge mounting system. There was a minor aesthetic problem, though, it was silver and the rest of my system (Yamaha preamp, power amp, etc.) was black.

For five years or so, the SL-Q3 performed well, but the silver color bugged me, so around 1986 or so I replaced it with a similar Technics SL-L3 which came in black. I fitted an Audio-Technica P-mount cartridge to that one and I still have and use that phono setup.

But as a Yamaha fan boy, I remember lusting for one of the big Yamaha liner-tracking turntables. The PX-2 was top of the line and had a less expensive sibling the PX-3. But they were a lot pricier than the Technics units and I could never bring myself to make a purchase.

Just today I googled the Yamaha PX-2 and found that it is apparently now a collector's item that goes for as much as $2,000!

I believe most of the photo setups I've seen in this thread have not been linear-tracking and I'm not sure if anyone still makes such a turntable. Anybody else into linear-tracking phono?

I remember being exposed to a linear tracking turntable when I was a teenager. It was at a friend's home. His dad had a B&O linear tracking turntable. I don't remember the model number of that turntable. But I just did a search on the B&O linear tracking turntables and B&O had this resurrected model for sale for a bit.

https://www.bang-olufsen.com/en/us/speakers/beogram-4000c

Now it appears, they're teaming with another company to sell 10 limited edition ones at a cost of $30,000.

https://www.whathifi.com/hi-fi/turntables/bang-and-olufsen-has-given-its-iconic-beogram-4000-series-turntable-a-stylish-rebirth-but-good-luck-getting-one

Your post of looking to see how much the PX-2s are going for these days got me to look at current values of my B&W speakers. I did a search on them a while ago and found that the speakers I have have retained their value on the used market to the point they're going for more than what I paid for them 20 years ago. Granted I had a special discount price when I bought them as I knew the store manager at the local audio boutique store. But it seems the smaller speakers in the B&W Nautilus line are fetching pretty high prices. The N805 and N804 speakers I own are going for about $1000 to $1700 more than what I paid for them new. The HTM-1 center channel I have seems to be going for a few hundred more than I paid for it new.

My plan has changed again... With two nearly grown cats in the house, I think floor standing speakers are out; they'll rip up the grilles. So I bought a couple of JBL center channel speakers and put them up on top of the stereo cabinet. I think I need augmentation with a subwoofer. But the Yamaha R-N303 network receiver I bought has no sub output.

So now I've taken advantage of some sale prices to buy an upgraded network receiver -- the Yamaha R-N600A. It arrived yesterday and sits in an unopened box for the moment.

And the list of audio equipment that I will advertise for sale just keeps growing as I add the nearly new R-N303 receiver to the list.

Certainly none of this is audiophile gear but will suffice for my old ears.

Llarry wrote

My plan has changed again... With two nearly grown cats in the house, I think floor standing speakers are out; they'll rip up the grilles. So I bought a couple of JBL center channel speakers and put them up on top of the stereo cabinet. I think I need augmentation with a subwoofer. But the Yamaha R-N303 network receiver I bought has no sub output.

So now I've taken advantage of some sale prices to buy an upgraded network receiver -- the Yamaha R-N600A. It arrived yesterday and sits in an unopened box for the moment.

And the list of audio equipment that I will advertise for sale just keeps growing as I add the nearly new R-N303 receiver to the list.

Certainly none of this is audiophile gear but will suffice for my old ears.

You can still add a sub to the Yamaha R-N303 setup. Some subs come with speaker level inputs. SVS sells subs that have this. All you do is run a set of speaker wire off of the speaker outputs of the Yamaha receiver to the speaker level inputs of the sub. Then set the low pass crossover to the desired frequency. It's not the best setup but it can work.

Has anyone seen the Miniot Wheel 2 in person? Vertical turntable. I checked it out online and frankly for the price I expected super sound quality, but it has limited cartridges and I’m not sure it would be good for an old analog system (fine for SONOS or other digital system, I guess). Interesting tracking (wow and flutter).

Long ago I thought a modern vinyl player would do a scan of the album without touching the tracks, digitize, buffer and play from memory. I’m not aware of anyone trying that approach.

I have been using the Yamaha R-N600A network receiver for a while now and playing CDs and records through the speakers that are on top of the cabinet -- not at all ideal placement but keeps the speaker grilles from being torn up by cats.

And I have also been listening to Spotify via a pair of Yamaha MusicCast 50 (WX-051) speakers. The sound quality is not outstanding, but certainly satisfactory for us.

I have a 11-year-old Sony 55-inch TV that has a great picture but subpar sound, so now I want to use those MusicCast speakers for TV audio. See first photo for the general layout -- TV on the wall and speakers to either side on cabinets.

The speakers can be wired -- see second photo for the back panel of the speaker: 3.5mm stereo receptacle, pair of RCA inputs (since each speaker can be used for stereo) and an optical input. (Also see gratuitous photo of exploded Yamaha speaker with integral 35W x 2 amps.)

Outputs on the back of the television: Single 3.5mm stereo receptacle and an optical receptacle.

What I want to do is have the left speaker play only the left channel and the right speaker play only the right channel. But I only have a single output of each type on the back of the TV.

Buy a 3.5mm stereo plug that then splits the signal into left and right? I've never heard of such a beast.

Buy an optical cable that splits the audio into left and right? Again, I don't think that exists.

Would any audio gurus be so kind as to suggest a solution?

Llarry wrote

I have been using the Yamaha R-N600A network receiver for a while now and playing CDs and records through the speakers that are on top of the cabinet -- not at all ideal placement but keeps the speaker grilles from being torn up by cats.

And I have also been listening to Spotify via a pair of Yamaha MusicCast 50 (WX-051) speakers. The sound quality is not outstanding, but certainly satisfactory for us.

I have a 11-year-old Sony 55-inch TV that has a great picture but subpar sound, so now I want to use those MusicCast speakers for TV audio. See first photo for the general layout -- TV on the wall and speakers to either side on cabinets.

The speakers can be wired -- see second photo for the back panel of the speaker: 3.5mm stereo receptacle, pair of RCA inputs (since each speaker can be used for stereo) and an optical input. (Also see gratuitous photo of exploded Yamaha speaker with integral 35W x 2 amps.)

Outputs on the back of the television: Single 3.5mm stereo receptacle and an optical receptacle.

What I want to do is have the left speaker play only the left channel and the right speaker play only the right channel. But I only have a single output of each type on the back of the TV.

Buy a 3.5mm stereo plug that then splits the signal into left and right? I've never heard of such a beast.

Buy an optical cable that splits the audio into left and right? Again, I don't think that exists.

Would any audio gurus be so kind as to suggest a solution?

You have three options with that speaker. One is to use a 3.5mm to 3.5mm stereo cable. Second is to use a 3.5mm stereo jack to L/R RCA male cable. Yes, they make these. I have a few on hand that I've used. Lastly, go optical cable (Toslink). There is no splitter. The cable just shoots light and transmits data as a series of 0s and 1s (binary). It appear your speaker has an internal DAC (digital to analog converter).

Personally, I would go with option 1 (maybe 2) but definitely option 1. It's simpler with cable connection. The only issue going with option 1 or 2 is that it's most likely intended as a "headphone" jack off of the TV. This means the jack in the TV has a volume control associated to it. You'll have to turn up the volume to a satisfactory level for the speaker to take in as an input. This may not be a problem if you don't intend on using that 3.5mm jack in the TV for anything else. The ideal situation is if the TV has the ability to set that jack to be a line level out. Then the volume of the speaker would be controlled at the speaker and the signal is cleaner going into the speaker.

I wouldn't go optical. The reason being it's a mix bag on how well the DAC in the speaker handles multichannel signals being fed into it. Theoretically, the speaker should be able to handle it and do the proper multichannel to stereo conversion. But in practice it's not so smooth. I have a Vizio sound bar I use with my TCL TV at my vacation home. They're connected optically. So the Vizio is handling the digital to analog conversion. Depending on the source material and what the multichannel CODEC is, the Vizio soundbar has a hard time reproducing proper dialogue (voices) that have been mixed down to come from the center channel. I have to configure the audio manually at the TV to fix the problem. This can get annoying. Using the 3.5mm jack in the TV forces stereo audio at the source....the TV.

Hope this answers your question.

Was visiting my mom (93) and she persuaded me to bring home the turntable they bought in the 1980s, a SystemDek IIX, and some of her albums (as many as I had room for). I cleaned it, replaced the bearing and belt, oiled it and rebalanced it and it is really performing well. Of course I had to buy several other items, including isolation feet, a new disc and stylus cleaner, amp (NAD) and speakers (Klipsch 600M). This is in a small room, my study, and it sounds great.

It has been decades since I had a turntable working so it is nice to be able to play my albums again.

One thing that seems to be new these days is a weight over the LP spindle. I guess these reduce movement of the vinyl - but are they really worthwhile? If so, what to look for?

2000cs wrote

One thing that seems to be new these days is a weight over the LP spindle. I guess these reduce movement of the vinyl - but are they really worthwhile? If so, what to look for?

Well, they have been in use for at least forty years in many set-ups. They can prevent slippage and absorb vibration according to various audio rags.

Anyone still spinning vinyl?

2000cs wrote

Was visiting my mom (93) and she persuaded me to bring home the turntable they bought in the 1980s, a SystemDek IIX, and some of her albums (as many as I had room for). I cleaned it, replaced the bearing and belt, oiled it and rebalanced it and it is really performing well. Of course I had to buy several other items, including isolation feet, a new disc and stylus cleaner, amp (NAD) and speakers (Klipsch 600M). This is in a small room, my study, and it sounds great.

It has been decades since I had a turntable working so it is nice to be able to play my albums again.

One thing that seems to be new these days is a weight over the LP spindle. I guess these reduce movement of the vinyl - but are they really worthwhile? If so, what to look for?

Lady Jane wrote

Well, they have been in use for at least forty years in many set-ups. They can prevent slippage and absorb vibration according to various audio rags.

Anyone still spinning vinyl?

My VPI turntable setup has what looks like a weight that goes over the spindle but it's not. While this thing does have some weight to it, it's actually a clamping device. The clamping device screws down onto the spindle and creates a positive mechanical grip/coupling of the LP to the platter.

zx10guy wrote

My VPI turntable setup has what looks like a weight that goes over the spindle but it's not. While this thing does have some weight to it, it's actually a clamping device. The clamping device screws down onto the spindle and creates a positive mechanical grip/coupling of the LP to the platter.

I’ve seen those too, and of course people arguing for and against both. My turntable is sprung/suspended, so adding too much weight will defeat that suspension. A clamping style might be better for it. (The recommended upgrade is to replace the glass plate with an acrylic one, and a new pad (cork or acrylic), then re-level the suspension and then add a heavy weight. - too much for occasional listening)

Meanwhile the motor developed an oscillating hum (wah wah wah). I isolated it to the motor by removing the belt. I tried a drop of oil on the motor shaft but it persists, so I’ll probably remove, clean, lubricate and reinstall it to see if that fixes the problem. Fortunately the hum doesn’t transfer to the speakers (yet) but this is in a small room so I can hear it.