- Joined
- Jul 21, 2019
- Messages
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I use it as an equalizer with RTA, but it has a number of other features like feedback eliminator.
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What was your best (and worst) audio purchase for the dollar?
- Thread starter LightninBoy
- Start date
I use mine to EQ my loudspeakers flat pseudo-anechoically, and as my main ADC to feed the DCX2496 crossover.
I had the analogue inputs modified by Simon at Behringermods.com as he offered to do it for me as a favour. Although the unit measures somewhat better than the original, I can't say it made any noticeable different sonically, but it's nice to know that the ADC is now as good as it can be.
S
Best
1. Philharmonic Audio BMR $1700 - http://philharmonicaudio.com
2. Monolith Speaker Stands Product # 31263 - Strong stands at a great price
3. Hegel H90 Integrated amp $1200 (sale)
4. Denon 4700 - for home theatre. PreAmp mode is awesome.
5. Monolith 7x200 - the arc welder of an amp. Drives Home Theatre to extremes and is quiet as a mouse.
Worst
1. Denon 4500 Refurb from Accessories for Less. Height amps blew within 4 months.
2. Denon Warranty Service - It cost $108 to ship Denon 4500 to PanurgyOEM (Denon's Service Center). It took PanurgyOEM 10 weeks to return the 4500. When it arrived the previously new looking 4500 case was scratched all over, the front panel was bent and could not close and screws were rattling around inside. I sent it back, another 2 weeks passed and heard nothing. Contacted PanurgyOEM and they said they couldn't fix it. Called Denon and was on hold for over an hour. Two weeks later I received a replacement receiver. The 3 month wait and constant followup required was the worst repair service I have ever experienced. But Denon finally came through.
3. Dear Future Self [Blu-Ray Audio] - marketed for ATMOS experience. All tracks sound like the same technobabble.... maybe you need to be on drugs to enjoy it?
1. Philharmonic Audio BMR $1700 - http://philharmonicaudio.com
2. Monolith Speaker Stands Product # 31263 - Strong stands at a great price
3. Hegel H90 Integrated amp $1200 (sale)
4. Denon 4700 - for home theatre. PreAmp mode is awesome.
5. Monolith 7x200 - the arc welder of an amp. Drives Home Theatre to extremes and is quiet as a mouse.
Worst
1. Denon 4500 Refurb from Accessories for Less. Height amps blew within 4 months.
2. Denon Warranty Service - It cost $108 to ship Denon 4500 to PanurgyOEM (Denon's Service Center). It took PanurgyOEM 10 weeks to return the 4500. When it arrived the previously new looking 4500 case was scratched all over, the front panel was bent and could not close and screws were rattling around inside. I sent it back, another 2 weeks passed and heard nothing. Contacted PanurgyOEM and they said they couldn't fix it. Called Denon and was on hold for over an hour. Two weeks later I received a replacement receiver. The 3 month wait and constant followup required was the worst repair service I have ever experienced. But Denon finally came through.
3. Dear Future Self [Blu-Ray Audio] - marketed for ATMOS experience. All tracks sound like the same technobabble.... maybe you need to be on drugs to enjoy it?
Vict0r
Addicted to Fun and Learning
All tracks sound like the same technobabble.... maybe you need to be on drugs to enjoy it?
Only one way to find out!
Best: AVI ADM10 speakers and a good streaming service. Got rid of lots of separates, LPs, CDs, wires and changed living room from a hifi shop to a minimalist living area. Oh, and superb sound quality from the active speakers.
MiniDSP SHD, Umik Mic and SVS SB1000 Pro sub. Integrated the sub with the ADM active speakers and used DIRAC DSP to tame the room effects. Stunning. On a par with decent headphones now.
Worst: Probably paying over the odds for Van den Hul grain oriented, super duper, audiophile balanced cables. At least they are a nice yellow colour!
MiniDSP SHD, Umik Mic and SVS SB1000 Pro sub. Integrated the sub with the ADM active speakers and used DIRAC DSP to tame the room effects. Stunning. On a par with decent headphones now.
Worst: Probably paying over the odds for Van den Hul grain oriented, super duper, audiophile balanced cables. At least they are a nice yellow colour!
Best overall: Dynaudio Confidence C4. A ton of money for me even at less than half msrp used, but I have thoroughly enjoyed them for many years.
Best value: prob minidsp shd, maybe oppo 103
Nothing I really regret buying overall: maybe vpi scout. It is fine and works well but Id much rather have something a bit more compact with an integrated dust cover.
Best value: prob minidsp shd, maybe oppo 103
Nothing I really regret buying overall: maybe vpi scout. It is fine and works well but Id much rather have something a bit more compact with an integrated dust cover.
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2021
- Messages
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- 26
Best Accuphase P-300, 1982 in my early years, used for $200, still have it today the heart of my system. A dental student was playing around the stock market and lost big time, went for some Large Advent Loudspeakers (doubling up in the day was the thing), but when I saw all the gear and prices, couldn't stop.
Worst Teac A400 Cassette Deck, maybe $3-400, constantly broke
Worst Teac A400 Cassette Deck, maybe $3-400, constantly broke
I am tempting to get Sabaj D5 but it is beyond my budget - where did you get the D5 at 375? Seem you have a very good deal. Do you mind to share the link ?
I purchased it from the Sabaj Store on Aliexpress. (There's currently a minor sale going on right now.) I made my purchase in early November, 2020. That's the time of year when they do the rough equivalent of Black Friday in the U.S. That's why it was at such a deep discount.
(Computed based on what it cost - what it sold for/ how much fun it was)
RME ADI-2 dac. Sold it for more than I paid for it after 10 months.
(Replaced by MiniDSP SHD and active speakers )
Worst B&W 801 ver 2.
Second owner - had to go get them.
Moved them three times.
(Twice to upper floors without elevators)
Sold at auction for a third of my outlay and most of that went to shipping.
They never sounded particularly good, even with multiple amp changes.
RME ADI-2 dac. Sold it for more than I paid for it after 10 months.
(Replaced by MiniDSP SHD and active speakers )
Worst B&W 801 ver 2.
Second owner - had to go get them.
Moved them three times.
(Twice to upper floors without elevators)
Sold at auction for a third of my outlay and most of that went to shipping.
They never sounded particularly good, even with multiple amp changes.
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2019
- Messages
- 70
- Likes
- 70
Best:
- 15" PowerSoundAudio 15V subwoofer (pair for $2500). They created a massive step up in the enjoyment I get out of my system from my little 8" DefTech.
- Revel F208 towers (used $2250/pr). Wow. Ridiculously even dispersion and frequency response for the money.
- UMIK-1 and REW ($100 + a donation to REW). Eyes for the blind, a check on the ego.
- Sound Reproduction: 3rd Edition by Floyd Toole. System performance is limited by what the listener understands about sound. This book is the bible for understanding how and why we hear what we hear.
- DefTech ProCinema 1000 bookshelves ($500/pr). Wtf sound that makes you squint one eye.
- Beyerdynamic DT990 Pro headphones. Sounded like they rolled off below 1khz.
Best : Sony Walkman WM-DC2 & Koss porta pro headphones bought back in 1988, my introduction to decent quality sounds and it was an absolute joy to use and listen to.
Worst : Biggest disappointment was probably a Ray Samuels Tomahawk headphone amp bought back in 2007ish, quite expensive once import/shipping/duty charges were applied here in the UK.
Worst : Biggest disappointment was probably a Ray Samuels Tomahawk headphone amp bought back in 2007ish, quite expensive once import/shipping/duty charges were applied here in the UK.
Best:
Chromecast Audio Puck
Roon lifetime subscription
9 JBL 7-series monitors on half price b-stock sale.
Worst:
AQ Dragonfly Red
Chromecast Audio Puck
Roon lifetime subscription
9 JBL 7-series monitors on half price b-stock sale.
Worst:
AQ Dragonfly Red
Best: Sennheiser HD555 headphones like-new at garage sale for $10.
First experience with open back headphones and my entry point to this hobby.
Worst: Sennheiser HD555 headphones like-new at garage sale for $10.
Let's just say ignorance was bliss. I had no idea how much money that purchase was REALLY going to cost me over time... Actually, I still don't know, lol...
First experience with open back headphones and my entry point to this hobby.
Worst: Sennheiser HD555 headphones like-new at garage sale for $10.
Let's just say ignorance was bliss. I had no idea how much money that purchase was REALLY going to cost me over time... Actually, I still don't know, lol...
Best:
Node 2i
JTR Caps 2400ulf’s
ML Electrostatics
Buckeye 502 amps
Qudelix 5k
Umic-1
Audyssey Multi EQ AVR and Audyssey App
Worst:
Bose Acoustimas
Umic-1
Onkyo AVR w/HDMI failures
Klipsch Subs
Bose 501’s
Node 2i
JTR Caps 2400ulf’s
ML Electrostatics
Buckeye 502 amps
Qudelix 5k
Umic-1
Audyssey Multi EQ AVR and Audyssey App
Worst:
Bose Acoustimas
Umic-1
Onkyo AVR w/HDMI failures
Klipsch Subs
Bose 501’s
Heatsink
Member
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2021
- Messages
- 13
- Likes
- 36
Best:
Soundesign boom box, 1983, $70. It was not hi-fi. The radio antenna broke off in the first month. Each end of the box was a removable speaker, but the connection was wonky and they fell off any time you tried to carry it anywhere. But it was first, and it started me off on decades of music obsession by teaching me not to buy cheap crap at Walmart.
Nikko Alpha 220 power amp, $200 on eBay. My first home theater purchase was a set of B&Ws, with DM603 S2s for the main left and right. This was long before ASR, and I knew nothing about the B&W house curve, but there seemed to be something missing. I don't know what the Nikko does to a signal, but it must boost where the B&W's are deficient, because it puts the missing parts back into the music. It sounds better than any other amp I tried, including an Adcom GFA-535. Until I bought the Nikko I was thinking about replacing the B&Ws. Now, as long as both the speakers and the amp last, I'm keeping them together.
Roon. I know it's not for everyone, but it is by far the best interface I've experienced with my music since I stopped rolling my own in the crease of my double LPs (and that's been quite a while).
Worst:
An early-2000s refurb Denon DVD/SACD player, probably $100. I had my first 5.1 system, and wanted multichannel music. I got around to buying amps for the center and rear speakers just after the 60-day warranty period, only to put in each of the DVD-As and SACDs I'd bought only to discover that the only outputs that ever worked were the L and R. I'm still kind of pissed off at multichannel music...which leads us to...
Emotiva UMC-200, $600. If Satan himself developed a user interface, this would be his only competition. I am the only person in my household who can operate the thing, and I have to keep the manual in the room at all times. There is no excuse.
Soundesign boom box, 1983, $70. It was not hi-fi. The radio antenna broke off in the first month. Each end of the box was a removable speaker, but the connection was wonky and they fell off any time you tried to carry it anywhere. But it was first, and it started me off on decades of music obsession by teaching me not to buy cheap crap at Walmart.
Nikko Alpha 220 power amp, $200 on eBay. My first home theater purchase was a set of B&Ws, with DM603 S2s for the main left and right. This was long before ASR, and I knew nothing about the B&W house curve, but there seemed to be something missing. I don't know what the Nikko does to a signal, but it must boost where the B&W's are deficient, because it puts the missing parts back into the music. It sounds better than any other amp I tried, including an Adcom GFA-535. Until I bought the Nikko I was thinking about replacing the B&Ws. Now, as long as both the speakers and the amp last, I'm keeping them together.
Roon. I know it's not for everyone, but it is by far the best interface I've experienced with my music since I stopped rolling my own in the crease of my double LPs (and that's been quite a while).
Worst:
An early-2000s refurb Denon DVD/SACD player, probably $100. I had my first 5.1 system, and wanted multichannel music. I got around to buying amps for the center and rear speakers just after the 60-day warranty period, only to put in each of the DVD-As and SACDs I'd bought only to discover that the only outputs that ever worked were the L and R. I'm still kind of pissed off at multichannel music...which leads us to...
Emotiva UMC-200, $600. If Satan himself developed a user interface, this would be his only competition. I am the only person in my household who can operate the thing, and I have to keep the manual in the room at all times. There is no excuse.
for me, i think worst is not the objectively worst, but the stuff i bought that i just don't use. it may be pretty good sounding, but if i don't use it it's a complete waste of money. hence:
sony XM4s: never paired to the right device, have to find the device to disconnect it, find the other device i want to connect it to, rinse and repeat. it turns out i hate bluetooth, i mean, ANC is great, it sounds good with EQ and is tolerable without, but my god if i turn it on, it automatically connects to my ipad and then i can't find the ipad for 15 minutes, it's not particularly convenient, which bluetooth is supposed to be. result is that i just use the sonata BHD or an apple dongle or something and leave it sitting. would be good for gaming, but the latency is way too high, sooooo..
sony ex-800s: sound good, but don't sound as good as er4xrs despite what crinacle thinks. also turns out that IEMs that don't isolate and leak aren't that useful for me because i use them in the office (ok i haven't been to the office in a year, but you get the idea). maybe XM4s will find their way into the office.. the ex-800s will be making their way to the for sale pile.
fiio BTR1K: only 50$ (or less, i can't remember) and just meant to add bluetooth functionality to some headphones for a trip, but i would bet it performs pretty poorly and i'd just sprung for the btr5 (there was no qudelix then), it probably wouldn't just be sitting. have i mentioned that i just can't get into bluetooth?
worst: too many frickin cables! i don't mean audiophile cables either, but just all the different cables you need to connect things in all the different lengths that keep the spaghetti in check. at one point a couple years ago i just started counting up all the different usb, rca and 3.5mm cables i had into varieties with identical function because they were overflowing multiple ikea boxes and started tossing the lengths i would never use. the worst part is that you NEVER HAVE THE EXACT CABLE YOU NEED! it's one of those universal mysteries like socks disappearing in the dryer.
also worst: i have too many single board computers. they just started collecting from research and other projects and now i have a box of them. none of them were expensive, and almost all of them have served some purpose, but now that the project is over, do i really need 4 beagleboard xms? no, the answer is no. could i run volumio on all of them? yes. would it do me any good? no, no, it wouldn't. except for the pi4s for octoprint and the duet 3 sbc, they're all getting donated to a high school/makerspace before i leave.
sony XM4s: never paired to the right device, have to find the device to disconnect it, find the other device i want to connect it to, rinse and repeat. it turns out i hate bluetooth, i mean, ANC is great, it sounds good with EQ and is tolerable without, but my god if i turn it on, it automatically connects to my ipad and then i can't find the ipad for 15 minutes, it's not particularly convenient, which bluetooth is supposed to be. result is that i just use the sonata BHD or an apple dongle or something and leave it sitting. would be good for gaming, but the latency is way too high, sooooo..
sony ex-800s: sound good, but don't sound as good as er4xrs despite what crinacle thinks. also turns out that IEMs that don't isolate and leak aren't that useful for me because i use them in the office (ok i haven't been to the office in a year, but you get the idea). maybe XM4s will find their way into the office.. the ex-800s will be making their way to the for sale pile.
fiio BTR1K: only 50$ (or less, i can't remember) and just meant to add bluetooth functionality to some headphones for a trip, but i would bet it performs pretty poorly and i'd just sprung for the btr5 (there was no qudelix then), it probably wouldn't just be sitting. have i mentioned that i just can't get into bluetooth?
worst: too many frickin cables! i don't mean audiophile cables either, but just all the different cables you need to connect things in all the different lengths that keep the spaghetti in check. at one point a couple years ago i just started counting up all the different usb, rca and 3.5mm cables i had into varieties with identical function because they were overflowing multiple ikea boxes and started tossing the lengths i would never use. the worst part is that you NEVER HAVE THE EXACT CABLE YOU NEED! it's one of those universal mysteries like socks disappearing in the dryer.
also worst: i have too many single board computers. they just started collecting from research and other projects and now i have a box of them. none of them were expensive, and almost all of them have served some purpose, but now that the project is over, do i really need 4 beagleboard xms? no, the answer is no. could i run volumio on all of them? yes. would it do me any good? no, no, it wouldn't. except for the pi4s for octoprint and the duet 3 sbc, they're all getting donated to a high school/makerspace before i leave.
Best: presumably broken Topping Dx7 Pro for cheap off ebay , which I fixed by sliding the mains voltage selector from 220 to 120V.
Worst: Metrum Pavane DAC, it was interesting to listen to for a while but in the end the deficiencies became annoying forcing me to sell it off. Good thing I got it used, but I still lost at least $500 in the process.
Worst: Metrum Pavane DAC, it was interesting to listen to for a while but in the end the deficiencies became annoying forcing me to sell it off. Good thing I got it used, but I still lost at least $500 in the process.
