Having recently picked up an Adcom GFA-555II power amplifier and a pair of B&W DM 602 S3 speakers, I finally had all of the pieces to finish my home office system. Today I spent some time rearranging things, moving the gear that is destined for my listening room out of the way. I still need some stands for the B&Ws, but this will work for now.

Most of this gear you all will probably recognize from my previous posts. The complete list, following the signal path, is...

Marantz DV4001 DVD Player (as a transport)
MIT AVt 2 Digital Interconnect Cable
PS Audio Ultralink Two Digital-to-Analog Converter
MIT AVt1 Interconnect Cables
PS Audio 5.6 Preamplifier
MIT MI-330 CVT Plus Interconnect Cables
Adcom GFA-555II Power Amplifier
Monster Cable Z3 Reference Speaker Cables
B&W DM 602 S3 Speakers

All of this gear was bought used/demo/refurb, which allowed me to put the system together for about 1/3 of the original MSRP. In fact I put this entire sytem together for less than I paid for the Adcom GFA-5802 power amplifier in my main 2-ch system. While its performance doesn't quite match the overall quality, or volume, of my main 2-ch system, it is still very good. Currently my plan is to keep this system in current configuration for the long-term (but we all know how that goes ).

After I spend some more time listening I will share more observations.

Rob

that a sweet looking little rig. being the office system i would assume that you will be spending a lot of time with it ... i'm jealous, i know its going to sound as good or better than it looks.

Little, hey, size isnt everything, or so they say, anyway, I bet that system puts out some big sound.

elroy

Without a doubt I will listen to the office system more than any other in the house. I work from home so I have it on most of the day unless I am on a conference call. While I love my 9 Kappas, they were simply WAAAAY too big for this room, and the Adcom GFA-5802 power amp generated too much heat in the summer.

So far I would rate the 555II only a small step down from the 5802. The biggest difference is the change from the Kappas to the 602s. I think the 602s do a good job until you get them really loud, where they start to sound boomy. Perhaps this is due to port noise. However, at moderate listening levels they are a suprisingly good speaker for the money.

Perhaps one day I will replace the 602s. If the Nautilus 805s ever dip below $1000 on the used market I would be tempted to pickup a pair. For now I just can't justify it. Another option I have considered is building my own speakers based around SEAS drivers. This wouldn't necessarily be any cheaper, but it would be more fulfilling. For now I will be very satisfied with the 602s.

Rob

Very nice.
Harmony, detail and class in your office sound system. I'm sure you have a great synergy. Congrats & enjoy.

I figured it was time to update this thread. Back in the first post I wrote "Currently my plan is to keep this system in its current configuration for the long-term." Well... that didn't last very long.

The first change was swapping out the B&W DM 602 S3s for a pair of Klipsch Forte II and the B&W's were sent to the living room system. The Forte IIs were then chasing the B&Ws to the living room and were replaced with a pair of Infinity Modulus satellites. I LOVE these little speakers, but needed to add a subwoofer to handle the bottom end. I tried both an Infinity SSW-212 and Velodyne F-1200. While the Infinity sounded a bit better, the smaller Velodyne was more practical in this 14' x 14' space.

On the source side of things I traded my Marantz DV4001 DVD player (and a small amount of cash) to my brother-in-law for his DV6001. The most important difference is that the DV6001 can also play SACDs. I have not yet listened to this player's upsampling option for CDs, nor do I yet own any SACD media, but I am curious how it will sound.

Due to the relatively low efficiency of the Modulus speakers, this system is somewhat volume limited. This may be a problem in a large listening space, but in my office it is more than sufficient, while sounding wonderful.

I hope you all enjoy the pics.

Rob

Oh, and BTW... "Currently my plan is to keep this system in its current configuration for the long-term."

That system fits like a glove in your office. Beautiful.
Enjoy.

Thanks, I have been really enjoying it.

How do you get any work done? I would be sitting there enjoying the music so much that nothing would get done

elroy

I work in the software business. When I am not on conference calls, I find that listening to music helps my brain just go onto auto-pilot, and I work really effectively. Something about the music just makes me more creative.

Rob