rroobbcc's main 2-channel system

In my listening room/home theater project thread I mention that the room will be home to two systems, one to power the home theater and one for 2-channel music. Ultimately there will probably be four (or five) systems throughout the house (not counting the kids rooms). Before anyone asks, no, we aren't really interested in a whole house multi-room setup. I prefer to keep individual systems that are tailored to their intended purpose in the room where they are being used. This will also give me an excuse to search for, buy, and listen to more pieces of equipment in the future.

Until my LR/HT is completed my main 2-channel system is living my home office. Unfortunately it is simply way too much for my little 12' by 14' office, and I am positioned too close to the speakers to achieve a decent soundstage. Nevertheless I am still very pleased with the quality, especially after the recent upgrades that have brought it to its current state.

Here's a (not so) brief history of how this system has evolved...

1986 -> I started with a Kenwood integrated amp and tuner, a fisher dual cassette and some old speakers (brand???) that my mom's boy firend gave me. Those old speakers had nice furniture grade cabinets that I was too young to appreciate back then. I have no idea what happened to them.

1988 -> After joining the Army I saved my first few paychecks to buy a pair of Polk Audio Monitor 10b speakers and a Kenwood CD player.

1989 -> An ADC SoundShaper SS-525X Equalizer is added, and later a Yamaha preamplifier and power amplifier (don't remember model #s) replace the Kenwood integrated amp.

1990 -> Carver CT-7 preamp/tuner and M1.0t power amplifier replace Yamaha equipment which is sold to my future best-man (I should check if he still has it). Soon after Polk Audio SDA 1C replaces Monitor 10b and Carver TL-3220 CD player replaces the Kenwood.

1991 -> Infinity 9 Kappa replaces SDA 1C, and a Carver M1.5t is added to bi-amp the 9 Kappas.

1992 -> A Sony DTC-75ES DAT Deck and TC-K850ES Cassette Deck are added, and I picked up a pair of Polk Audio Monitor 5jr from a friend in need of the cash. I also picked up another Carver CT-7 and M1.5t for $500 (which was a steal at the time, remember this was still really recent gear back then). Unfortunately the ADC EQ passed on.

1993 thru 2000 -> "The years in the wilderness..." I did a lot of moving around during this time. Sometimes pieces of equipment went with me, other times they didn't. There was a Sony receiver and vintage DBX equalizer that entered my life at some point in '93 or '94, both of which I gave to my brother and he still owns. I also passed along the Polk 5jr to my brother, and got them back a few months ago in still very nice shape. At one point the Kenwood integrated amp spent five years powering the PA system of a small church in Germany before it was returned to me in 1996. Ultimately it would finally be lost, along with the Kenwood tuner and Fisher cassette deck, when my mother's house burned to the Ground in 2004. I do not remember what happened to the Kenwood CD player.

2001 -> At this point my system consisted of the Infinity 9 Kapppa, Carver CT-7, Carver M1.0t, Carver M1.5t, Carver TL-3220, and the Sony DAT and Cassette decks. I then lost the M1.0t and one of my two M1.5t amps, and replaced them with an Adcom GFA-5802. Due to shipping damage the mid-bass in the 9 Kappa were replaced with the mid-bass from the Infinity Renaissance 90. If I had to do it again I would have searched out a replacement of the original on eBay (never thought of it at the time), but I didn't perceive any loss of quality. I still have the one good one, and might later go back, just for originality's sake.

2003 -> My remaining Carver M1.5t passes on. It was a real shame to, because the 9 Kappas never sounded better than when the 5802 was running the mid-bass thru highs, and the M1.5t was powering the woofers. It was this setup that proved to me just how important it is to bi-amp the 9 Kappas in order to get the best from them.

So that now brings me to 2007. Having purchased my first house in the US in 2006, and having full intentions to settle down in this house for the long-term, it was finally time to focus on audio again. I spent some time listening to some other speakers, and while I did fall in love with the B&W 803S, I realized that I would have to dig really deep (tooooo deep) in my pockets just to match the quality of the 9 Kappa, so I decided that they would stay around for a while in my main 2-channel system. I may look into a pair of smaller B&W for the office system, perhaps B&W CDM 1NT.

I knew I needed a new CD player because the Carver TL-3220 was getting picky about which discs it would play. I wanted to try using an outboard DAC and picked up an Adcom GDA-600. For a transport I initially used a cheap Cyberhome DVD player that was hooked to the guest room TV. When I first tried it out I thought something must be wrong with it. The treble was non-existent, and there was way too much bass. Then I remembered that I always ran with loudness on and had the tweeters on the 9 Kappas turned down so things wouldn't sound as bright and harsh. So I set everything back to flat and and WOW! Everything sounded smooth and well balanced. Over the years I had basically adjusted things to correct as much as possible what was basically a crappy signal from the Carver CD player. Replacing the CD player was nothing short of a revelation. Interestingly it also allowed me to notice another phenomenon that I had written off in the past. I had often read that the Adcom 5802 amplifier sounded best after it had warmed up. Personally I had never noticed a difference, but it seems I was being confused by the garbage signal from the Carver CD player. After switching to the Adcom DAC I actually could tell the difference when the 5802 was warm, as it was a good quality signal getting through.

Knowing that an office system would still be needed in the future, I decided to search for another DAC, and picked up a PS Audio Ultralink Two. I also picked up a PS Audio 5.6 preamplifier which provides a "straightwire" mode which essentially makes it a passive preamp, i.e. a source selector and volume control. I am still searching for a long-term CD transport. I thought I had found one when I purchased an Adcom GCD-750 from a seller on Audiogon. Unfortunately, the GCD-750 only has a digital input (so it can also be used as a DAC) but no digital output. That is what I get for not doing my homework first. In the meantime I had to disassemble the livingroom system, as my wife has been moving around furniture. So I am using the Adcom GCD-575 from that system for now, until I have to set things back up. Various interconnect and speaker cables have also been purchased, mostly from eBay.

So here is the equipment list of my main 2-channel system currently running in my office, but destined for my listening room when it is finished. Following the signal path...

Adcom GCD-575 CD Player (I have also used a Marantz DV4001 DVD player)
MIT Terminator 4 Digital Interconnect Cable
PS Audio Ultralink Two Digital-to-Analog Converter
MIT AVt1 Interconnect Cables
PS Audio 5.6 Preamplifier (in "straightwire" mode)
MIT MI-330 CVT Plus Interconnect Cables
Adcom GFA-5802 Power Amplifier
MIT Terminator 3 Speaker Cables
Infinity 9 Kappa Speakers

I can't wait to hear this system in the finished listening room. In the picture you also see the Adcom GDA-600 on top of the stack. This is only because I was doing a little A/B testing of the two DACs, as well as against the GCD-575 player, which really held its own. When the listening room is complete, I think a DAC shootout may be in the cards.

This a list of other equipment that I own...

Sony DTC-75ES DAT Deck (intended for main 2-ch in listening room)
Sony TC-K850ES Cassette Deck (intended for main 2-ch in listening room)
Carver TL-3220 CD Player (probably destined for eBay)
Carver CT-7 Preamplifier (probably destined for eBay)
Carver CT-7 Preamplifier
Adcom GDA-600 Digital-to-Analog Converter
Adcom GCD-750 CD Player
Adcom GFA-545II Power Amplifier (staying in the livingroom)
B&W DM 602 Speakers (headed to the home theater)
Polk Audio Monitor 5Jr Speakers (headed to the livingroom)

Rob

This post has been edited by rroobbcc on November 01, 2007 02:55 pm

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Great systems. I'm sure they will sound awesome in your future listening room.
Tanx for sharing.

very nice collection of gear and a good read of your audio evolution. i'd love to hear those huge Kappa's.

The reality is that not even I have truly heard the 9 Kappas. The 9 Kappa has a switch that limits its impedance drop at very low frequencies. "Extended" is the position that allows for the best low frequency response, but it also allows the impedance to drop to 0.8 ohms at 22Hz. If I remember correctly, they never go below 3 ohms in "normal" mode. I have never had an amp capable in running them in "Extended" mode, so even I have truly never heard what they are really capable of.

One of the reasons that my listening room will have four 20 amp circuits for the 2-channel system is that I still hope to one day fulfill my long time dream of driving the 9 Kappas with one (or even two) Krell amps. A single Krell KSA-200 would probably do the trick, but prices are $2000-2500 so it will be a while. Another less expensive option would be bi-amping them with two PS Audio 200C (a former Stereophile class A rated amp) or 200CX amps, which are rated for 1050 watts into 1.5 ohms. A guy can dream, right?

BTW, when the listening room is finished you are more than welcome to have a listen, but you would have to come to Atlanta for it.

Rob

thanks! you never know, i might just take you up on that, stranger things have happened. if you ever find yourself in the Pacific Northwest, i'd enjoy having you visit and have you listen to my rig.

That Adcom amp is massive. Always loved that later Adcom period's gold chrome plate on the facia.

I also run some PS Audio- in my case, a Superlink II I got for a very good price.

Impressive kit.

The Kappa 9's are awesome speakers. You are missing what they are capable of though if you don't use them in extended mode.

nice!!!

cool story!