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best sound I have ever heard from hifi

A

audiojoy

pfm Member
I had the most amazing experience yesterday at the home of a retired speaker engineer with 60 years of experience and knowledge.


His own speaker design ( of which there is only one)-highly camouflaged, were in all my 25 years of hifi listening the best i had ever heard. It did not matter the quality, age, or type of music played via cd, the sheer purity of the sound was such that it made everything sound so captivating, i was entranced for hours. Even a 1920's blues recording sounded amazing. Again I can only describe it as captivating, the entire recording as dated as it was sounded so alive, the entire presentation was crystal clear, there was no doubt as to what was presented by the musicians both emotionally and technically. No fogginess, no distortion or ambiguity. The entirety of each voice and instrument was captured as cleanly as you would expect in real life. The sound hung in the air between the speakers, which had completely disappeared and every note and every vocal cord was a living breathing life form to my ears and senses. Mind you this is all IMHO.

These DIY speakers were placed into corners surrounded by bits and pieces of hifi and boxes, waist high, and yet they sounded as I described. I of course assumed the associated equipment would be of the highest calibre. What did i find a £70 sony integrated from the 90's and a £80 sony cd player with cheap diy audio cables!!!! Both units totally original and unmolested. The story goes many years ago he collected them from the doorstep of a neighbour who had dumped them there for collection as unwanted!!

The moral of the story????? 1) imagine the amount we spend on our front end and amps!! 2) Manufacturers have no idea ? patience ? talent ? financial freedom from profit on how to build a speaker that does everything an audiophile would dream of!!!
 
What type of speaker design were they, e.g. ported boxes, horns, transmission line? How many drivers?
 
Ok I want one......:)

Do you happen to note the type of integrated and cd player?

"His own speaker design ( of which there is only one)-highly camouflaged, were in all my 25 years of hifi listening the best i had ever heard. It did not matter the quality, age, or type of music played via cd, the sheer purity of the sound was such that it made everything sound so captivating, i was entranced for hours. Even a 1920's blues recording sounded amazing. Again I can only describe it as captivating, the entire recording as dated as it was sounded so alive, the entire presentation was crystal clear, there was no doubt as to what was presented by the musicians both emotionally and technically. No fogginess, no distortion or ambiguity. The entirety of each voice and instrument was captured as cleanly as you would expect in real life. The sound hung in the air between the speakers, which had completely disappeared and every note and every vocal cord was a living breathing life form to my ears and senses."
 
the speakers were camouflaged somewhat with tacky sellotape. I think the speakers are not the point here, as they are unobtainable. It is the fact that we could have a speaker with cheap ancillaries and get the best sound I have ever heard IMHO and blame the Hifi Industry for not trying hard enough to advance speaker design. Money Money Money, time time time, care care care!!! I have after years of trying AVantgarde Duo's , Harbeths, Devore orangutans,Obelisks, KUdos, Naim Ovators , Tannoy Prestige Canterburys etc etc etc , ended up listening to 1970's Tannoys as my preferred speakers!
 
audiojoy said:
the speakers were camouflaged somewhat with tacky sellotape. I think the speakers are not the point here, as they are unobtainable. It is the fact that we could have a speaker with cheap ancillaries and get the best sound I have ever heard, and blame the Hifi Industry for not trying hard enough to advance speaker design. Money Money Money, time time time, care care care!!! I have after years of trying AVantgarde Duo's , Harbeths, Devore orangutans,Obelisks, KUdos, Naim Ovators , Tannoy Prestige Canterburys etc etc etc , ended up listening to 1970's Tannoys as my preferred speakers!
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To the contrary, I think the speakers are very much the point here, as IME their sonic impact very much dwarves that of the ancillary equipment driving them. Get the speakers right and you are most of the way there IMO...
 
Agreed, which is why I’m curious as to what genre they fit into; giant air-movers, mini-monitors, full-range single drivers etc? Something has to be conceptually different to what you are used to!

PS I’ve also ended up with Tannoys and what most would consider remarkably modest amplification (vintage Quad solid state).
 
Also agree.
Getting amplifiers and (digital) right to the point where differences matter little, costs little.
The best loudspeakers require seriously good engineering and talent = expensive and often large.
 
Speakers make, by some margin, the largest difference to the quality of the sound. It is no surprise that an excellent loudspeaker, driven by good quality ancillaries, sounds excellent. I could very happily live with the sound I achieve from my speakers and integrated amps.
 
Craig B said:
Why would a retired speaker engineer bother to camouflage his own-built speakers that reside in his own home?
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Audiophile burglars?

audiojoy said:
I had the most amazing experience yesterday at the home of a retired speaker engineer with 60 years of experience and knowledge.


His own speaker design ( of which there is only one)-highly camouflaged, were in all my 25 years of hifi listening the best i had ever heard. It did not matter the quality, age, or type of music played via cd, the sheer purity of the sound was such that it made everything sound so captivating, i was entranced for hours. Even a 1920's blues recording sounded amazing. Again I can only describe it as captivating, the entire recording as dated as it was sounded so alive, the entire presentation was crystal clear, there was no doubt as to what was presented by the musicians both emotionally and technically. No fogginess, no distortion or ambiguity. The entirety of each voice and instrument was captured as cleanly as you would expect in real life. The sound hung in the air between the speakers, which had completely disappeared and every note and every vocal cord was a living breathing life form to my ears and senses.

These DIY speakers were placed into corners surrounded by bits and pieces of hifi and boxes, waist high, and yet they sounded as I described. I of course assumed the associated equipment would be of the highest calibre. What did i find a £70 sony integrated from the 90's and a £80 sony cd player with cheap diy audio cables!!!! Both units totally original and unmolested. The story goes many years ago he collected them from the doorstep of a neighbour who had dumped them there for collection as unwanted!!
Click to expand...


Apropos of nothing could you PM me your friends address, and any information re: his security measures please?
 
Robert said:
Also agree.
Getting amplifiers and (digital) right to the point where differences matter little, costs little.
The best loudspeakers require seriously good engineering and talent = expensive and often large.
Click to expand...

Have we finally found something we all agree with?
 
audiojoy said:
I had the most amazing experience yesterday at the home of a retired speaker engineer with 60 years of experience and knowledge.


His own speaker design ( of which there is only one)-highly camouflaged, were in all my 25 years of hifi listening the best i had ever heard. It did not matter the quality, age, or type of music played via cd, the sheer purity of the sound was such that it made everything sound so captivating, i was entranced for hours. Even a 1920's blues recording sounded amazing. Again I can only describe it as captivating, the entire recording as dated as it was sounded so alive, the entire presentation was crystal clear, there was no doubt as to what was presented by the musicians both emotionally and technically. No fogginess, no distortion or ambiguity. The entirety of each voice and instrument was captured as cleanly as you would expect in real life. The sound hung in the air between the speakers, which had completely disappeared and every note and every vocal cord was a living breathing life form to my ears and senses.

These DIY speakers were placed into corners surrounded by bits and pieces of hifi and boxes, waist high, and yet they sounded as I described. I of course assumed the associated equipment would be of the highest calibre. What did i find a £70 sony integrated from the 90's and a £80 sony cd player with cheap diy audio cables!!!! Both units totally original and unmolested. The story goes many years ago he collected them from the doorstep of a neighbour who had dumped them there for collection as unwanted!!

The moral of the story????? 1) imagine the amount we spend on our front end and amps!! 2) Manufacturers have no idea ? patience ? talent ? financial freedom from profit on how to build a speaker that does everything an audiophile would dream of!!!
Click to expand...
Just goes to show how relative hifi is to your own personalized tastes,
It's what makes the hifi world go round.

Sometimes it just comes together for you on a personal level, no matter the cost or mythology surrounding hifi equipment.

Of course, someone else may have hated it :D

Nice post.
 
Hearing a system that sounds great, when this has been a rare or non-existent event in the past, is a wonderful, disorienting experience. The fact this one used an £80 CD player tells me all digital sources are pretty good. I don't think it precludes the amazing system sounding even better, if one has enough time to adjust, with a better source.

There are other persuasive arguments for an £80 CDP being as good as megabuck players. Still I don't agree!
 
Julf said:
Have we finally found something we all agree with?
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Yes I agree, I never once said that the time and effort that went into making the speakers would not cost a significant sum. I still think manufacturers could do more to find the talent to get speakers designed correctly, and I bet not at a price that would be beyond many of us.

How many of them (manufactures) appreciate what designers exist out there and what can be achieved?? how many of them have made the effort to identify these people? How many of them actually appreciate when a speaker is reaching a certain point of greatness?? Those that run these companies are not doing their homework for various reasons and we are all losing out IMO. When they do find a designer that they know could provide them with something special what financial compensation do they offer them to make it worth their while, or do they decide the profit margin would be too limited to pursue that lie of action?? Answers to which i have no idea. What I do now believe is that progress in speaker development is going no where and is at a stand still from what i have heard.

Also now fully appreciate , get the speakers right and the ancillaries dont have to cost a fortune to have a great sounding system. Loudspeaker first and foremost for me from now on.
 
audiojoy said:
How many of them (manufactures) appreciate what designers exist out there and what can be achieved??
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Seems their idea of "designer" is more like "fashion designer" instead of "design engineer" these days.
 
Julf said:
Seems their idea of "designer" is more like "fashion designer" instead of "design engineer" these days.
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There are notable exceptions of course. Linkwitz comes to mind. His DIY designs sound ridiculously good, and are inexpensive. I had a WTF moment a few years back at RMAF. After visiting a number of extreme high-end rooms, I was shocked to hear how good his LXmini sounded. Maybe it was the contrast between how ugly it looked and how good it sounded.
 
Julf said:
Absolutely. But how many commercial manufacturers use his designs?
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None that I am aware of. Of course, given his plans for DIY are ubiquitous, why would they?

IIRC, there are a couple of very small shops that customize speakers based on his plans. Seem to remember a gloss black version of the LXmini that looked a bit less agricultural.
 
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