My Current Audio Systems

[tmallin]

Here are brief descriptions of my current audio systems. I will try to keep these up to date as components and configurations change.

If components I've talked about in threads of Tom's Corner are not listed here, you can assume that I have either sold those items or that they are currently for sale.

The links in these descriptions are either to my own descriptions of these components at WBF, or to sales or manufacturer's information.

Audio Room

• Streaming: Xfinity Gigabit internet service, Xfinity xFi Advanced Gateway, CAT6 shielded ethernet cable, Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6 Patch Cords ethernet cable, UpTone Audio EtherREGEN ethernet switch powered by 12V output of Keces P3 LPS, GigaFOILv4 Inline Ethernet Filter powered by 5V output of Keces P3 LPS, feeding two-foot Blue Jeans Cable Cat 6a ethernet cable, feeding Lumin X1 streamer.
• Sources: Lumin X1; Roon Nucleus+ powered by Keces P8 LPS; Qobuz, Tidal, Spotify, internet radio; 1200 CDs converted to local music files on Patriot 1TB Supersonic Rage Elite USB 3.1 Type A, USB 3.0 Flash Drive inserted into USB slot of Roon Nucleus+.
• Speakers: Dutch & Dutch 8c white/natural finish (internally tri-amped with DAC, DSP crossover and equalization) toed in to face listening position
• Stands: Salamander Archetype three shelf 20"-high equipment stand; Skylan four-post 26-inch high stands with Skylan Q-Bricks and glider feet, with speakers bolted to the stand top plates.
• Cables: GTT Audio Absolute Power Cord MkII for all components; Blue Jeans Cable Belden 4505R SDI BNC/BNC digital link from Lumin to left speaker; Canare BNC to XLRM 75-ohm to 110-ohm transformer to connect digital link to left speaker; Blue Jeans Cable Belden 1800F AES/EBU cable for connecting left to right speaker.
• Vibration Control: A/V Room Service Equipment Vibration Protectors (EVPs)--usually four each of proper load rating under each electronic component on equipment rack, although with a couple of very small and very lightweight items (e.g., the EtherREGEN and GigaFOILv4) I only use one EVP carefully placed under the item to distribute the load evenly on the EVP's bellows suspension. Large (17" x 12" x 1.5") Bright Star Audio Little Rock on floor under equipment rack to damp local laminate wood floor vibration near where the rack feet contact the floor.
• System Control: Apple iPad Pro
• Room: 13' x 11' x 8.5' rectangular converted bedroom with plaster walls, one double hung window on right wall, one door on left wall, and one closet behind listening seat.
• Listening Chair: Drexel with Target audio rack shelf below cushion to raise ears to 38.5" design axis of speakers on 28" stands.
• Room treatment: Live-End, Dead-End arrangement with P.I. Audio Group AQD Sound Diffusers at the listening end and Acoustical Solutions AlphaSorb Flat Foam at the speaker end of the room; see discussion at this thread.
• Electrical: Two dedicated 20-amp circuits; P.I. Audio Group customized Pass & Seymour 5362A wall outlets, P.I. Audio Group UberBUSSes, P.I. Audio Group BUSS Depot; JENA Electrical Contact Enhancement Fluid for all non-soldered electrical connections.

 

[Addicted to hifi]

Very nice enjoy

 

[tmallin]

My latest changes include updates to the streaming path in the audio room system and a whole new computer for my desktop system. The above pictures and system descriptions have been updated to account for these changes.

 

[tmallin]

My latest system update is the change to a LEDE acoustic treatment configuration with the substitution of Alphasorb Flat Foam for the P. I. Audio Group AQD1 diffusers at the speaker end of the room. See my thread, "Acoustic Treatment for Small Listening Rooms: Absorption vs. Diffusion" for discussion. Here is a wide-angle photo of the new speaker-end of the room with the Alphasorb Flat Foam panels.

 

[tmallin]

Computer Desktop Electrostatic Headphone System

I use this system primarily for video streaming, but also for some music streaming. See generally, "My Electrostatic Headphone Adventures."

• Computer: Apple 27‑inch iMac with Retina 5K display; Nano-texture glass; 3.6GHz 10-core 10th-generation Intel Core i9 processor, Turbo Boost up to 5.0GHz; 128GB 2666 MHz DDR4 memory; Radeon Pro 5700 XT with 16GB of GDDR6 memory;8TB SSD storage; 10 Gigabit Ethernet; Magic Mouse 2; Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad - US English; MinimServer for Lumin X1; Big Sur OS, no Windows OS
• Streaming: Various video services plus Roon, Tidal, Qobuz, Spotify, internet radio and 1200 CDs on local file storage.
• DAC: Benchmark DAC3B and here.
• Electrostatic Headphone Amplifier: Mjolnir Audio KGSSSHV Carbon
• Headphones: Stax SR009S; Koss ESP 950; NAD Viso HP-50, Apple Air Pod Max.
• Cables: GTT Audio Absolute Power Cord MkII for all components; Triode Wire Labs/P.I. Audio Group Discrete USB cable; Benchmark Studio&Stage Starquad XLR Cable for Analog Audio.
• Headphone Stands: Acase leather (Stax) and Avantree aluminum (Koss, NAD)
• Electrical: JENA Electrical Contact Enhancement Fluid for all non-soldered electrical connections.

 

[tmallin]

Here is a picture of my Audio Room system with the latest acoustical foam arrangement and the Dutch & Dutch 8c speakers mounted on Skylan four-post 26"-high stands.

 

[tmallin]

Yesterday I replaced my Netgear Nighthawk Pro Gaming Switch S8000 with the UpTone Audio EtherREGEN ethernet switch. The Netgear Nighthawk had been a clearly audible improvement from the TP Link and Cisco switches which proceeded it and Archimago found much to like about it, as did I. I really heard no problems at all and have been delighted with the sound of my Dutch & Dutch 8c-based system throughout my use of the Nighthawk switch.

However, the reviews of the EtherREGEN got me very curious about it. Then, when The Absolute Sound named it one of its 2020 Products of the Year, I had to see what all the fuss was about. I knew from half an hour into its warm up (yes, the EtherREGEN runs hot, Class-A-amp hot) that something really special was happening. I'll refer you to the reviews in Audiophile Style and The Absolute Sound. But I'll just say that the combination of greater three dimensionality, greater small musical detail of both tones and transients, and expanded moment-to-moment microdynamics, without any tonal brightening is impressive and enthralling. Who knew an ethernet switch could make such differences? It's as if the time coherence of the D&D speakers has been truly unleashed. These improvements are clearly audible as I write this from my computer desk, well outside the audio room with the system playing at background music levels.

Yes, at $640 it's expensive as ethernet switches go, but it's a bargain in terms of the audible difference it has made in my already pretty well-tuned system. You may have to wait a while to get one; it regularly seems to be back-ordered for at least a month.

Did I mention that this thing runs physically HOT? It does, so don't be surprised or alarmed. Just give it some space and enjoy!

 

[Ron Resnick]

Dear Tim,

I don't understand the computer equipment discussion, but I am glad you are happy with the improved sound!

 

[tmallin]

Thanks, Ron. There is a Great Divide between traditional audiophiles--those who listen to analog (and perhaps digital-disc-based sources) only--versus those who also or even exclusively now listen to music sourced from internet streaming or computerized music files. If you are still primarily an analog LP listener, much of what goes into constructing an audiophile-grade computer-based audio and streaming system may well seem like gibberish.

An analogy might prove helpful. Just as the simplest LP-based system is the old briefcase-sized all in one "record player" many of us oldsters had as kids--it had a latchable lid, a single built-in speaker, amp, and turntable/arm/cartridge--the simplest modern computer-based music system is a smart phone connected to the internet streaming music through its own built-in speaker.

With an analog system, the system can get a lot better sounding if you separate out the various parts: separate speakers, power amp, line amp, phono preamp, turntable, tonearm, cartridge, cables, etc., plus a lot of careful set up, paying a lot of attention to the audible effects of each physical part of the system.

A computer-based system also can get better sounding by separating out its parts and connecting those parts in particular ways, paying careful attention to the resulting sound of each part change as you go. With computer based systems, one major choice is between Wi-Fi connectivity and wired ethernet connectivity. Many of us have found that wired ethernet systems sound better. Once you wire internet-connected components together with ethernet cables, you will need at least one ethernet switch to act as a "hub" for all the wired internet connections. As it turns out, different ethernet switches have different sonic qualities--thus the comparisons I made among the TP Link, Cisco, Netgear, and now the EtherREGEN ethernet switches. As with analog audio, most every step in the signal path has a "sound" and some components sound "better" than others.

 

[Ron Resnick]

Thank you, Tim, for the analogy and the explanation. I understand!

 

[tmallin]

If you look at my system description, you will notice that it now includes both the Uptone Audio EtherREGEN (ER) and the GigaFOILv4 (GF). In my system, the ER feeds the GF, which feeds the Lumin X1.

I am very much aware that the manufacturers of both the ER and GF state that their unit should be the last item in the chain before the streamer/DAC. In fact, the manufacturer of the ER is on record stating that fiber optical isolation such as that provided by the GF should not be necessary either before or after the ER in the signal chain.

Well, both units can't be the last one in the ethernet chain. And in my system I have tried the units with the ER feeding the GF, the GF feeding the ER, and with the ER alone. To my ears, in my system, the best sounding result is the ER feeding the GF feeding the Lumin X1.

Using the GF fed by the ethernet cable which comes from my router and having the GF feed the ER does not really result in any improvement over the sound of the ER alone.

The ER alone also is far superior sounding to my old set up of the Netgear Nighthawk S8000 Pro Gaming Switch feeding the GF feeding the Lumin X1. If you had never heard the system with the ER feeding the GF, you would never know what you were missing.

But using the ER feeding the GF removes additional noise/blur/grunge around each note and further blackens the background. In my system, to my ears, this is the way to go.

 

[ddk]

Thanks, Ron. There is a Great Divide between traditional audiophiles--those who listen to analog (and perhaps digital-disc-based sources) only--versus those who also or even exclusively now listen to music sourced from internet streaming or computerized music files. If you are still primarily an analog LP listener, much of what goes into constructing an audiophile-grade computer-based audio and streaming system may well seem like gibberish.

This is true IME and true for myself as well but avoiding computer audio has to do with the sound quality not technicality.

david

 

[ozzzy]

tmallin,
I own the Lumin X1 and the EtherRegen also! Great units!
Do you turn the EtherRegen off? With my linear power supply I can turn it off at the end of the day. Just wonderin' if it takes time to come back to best sonic state once turned off.

ozzy

 

[tmallin]

All my equipment in this room stays turned on 24/7. I even keep the streaming going 24/7, just at a low level not audible outside the room when I'm not listening.

 

[Addicted to hifi]

All my equipment in this room stays turned on 24/7. I even keep the streaming going 24/7, just at a low level not audible outside the room when I'm not listening.

I have the habit of turning everything of. Maybe I should start to leave my system on standby.