Audiophiles hifi appreciation thread old and new

Thanks again all for the insights. The room. As rendered by it's imminent inhabitant. Not a great deal of scope for speaker placement. 1 and 2 seem obvious, but for ease of knob fondling position 2 is best for the amp etc, but then I get one speaker for my toes and one directly in my right ear. Overthinking the impossible. Bike temporary.

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that's, umm... quite compact!

maybe have a look at fitting a triangular shelf / desk at location 1 and placing a couple of nearfield monitors on it. could the record deck fit in at location 2?

that room is too small for speakers. Just get some nice open back headphones.

Hmm, have you/would you consider headphones? A nice DAC/amp combo plus a set of lightweight open back headphones would likely give you a much more calming space. And far better audio. I think the issue with fitting a stereo in an old shower room (still tiled?) Is going to be reflected sound and mistimed sounds hitting your earballs...

Otherwise, I know this is bad for audiophile type placement but small speakers mounted high on the wall and tilted down will give an immersive relaxed sound, just not the most resolved.

Another vote for headphones, and as said, open back if you need to be aware of what else is happening in the house without using electronic wizardry like ‘transparency’.

https://www.hifiwigwam.com/threads/grado-sr-325e-or-swap.116032/

Yep something like that, maybe directed @DisappointingBob?

Tempted to buy them myself!

@DisappointingBob something like this would connect to your turntable of choice and also have the flexibility to add a digital source later, plus it'll amplify a set of headphones. Not the only option but the first example I found that seems decent.
https://www.mcru.co.uk/product/ex-dem-furutech-adl-gt40a-usb-dac-phono-stage-headphone-amp/?v=6cc98ba2045f

Wholeheartedly agree. Please don't put speakers in here. That room is crying out for headphones.

Something like this combination would work well for a turntable. Even with any potential import duties these headphones at this price are an absolute bargain.

Headphones

iFi Headphone Amp

iFi Turntable Preamp - or something cheaper, but its neat that this stacks nicely with the iFi amplifier.

And then the turntable of your choice.

Can anyone point me towards a turntable stand, that I can fit my amp and cd player underneath?
I need to move everything to the top of some bookshelves so they're out of reach of a toddler, but the space is only big enough if everything stacks on top of each other. The record player has a bigger footprint than the amp and cd player, so I can't just make a pile as is.

I've got a similar issue - my turntable just about fits on top but the (separate) plastic cover overhangs a fair bit at points, looking at geting some himacs / oak ply cut & adding some sorbothane feet to widen the footprint on top of the amp, probably won;t be the most aesthetically pleasing mind...

Some of the modular racks might work - if you like the chopping board on legs look?

I just changed my set up last weekend for the same reason. I had mine on a dedicated floor stand where it was all within reach of little hands. Now stacked it on top of a small cupboard and it’s well out of reach. Separates are stacked up with the turntable beside it on the left.

That might not help you if you don’t have the space but how about putting the turntable on a shelf bolted to the wall? It’s meant to be one of the best ways of isolating a turntable from vibration

You can't beat a dedicated wall mount for a turntable if you can spare the room / remove a shelve to isolate it from vibrations and tiny hands. It's the only part that really needs to be child-proof.

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So. I did the thing. I have purchased a 2nd hand Inspire/quest/rega/Ortofon yaddah,yaddah somesuch, because I saw it, and it gave me happy vibes, like the typewriter in Garth Marenghi's TerrorTome it drew me in. More benignity, than horror obviously. Sexy wood veneer benignity. Torlyte benevolence.

But also cos I decided this was going to be a learning experience, I'd give myself some headaches along the way.

Tl:dr. Headphone amp for low output MC cartridge (methinks?), namely Ortofon Quintet Red? Cambridge Audio Duo do the business?

Oh yeah, headphone advice heeded.

I think you'll need a phono stage and a headphone amp.

I can't think of a headphone amp with a phono stage in it, but then again, they may well exist. Otherwise, your headphone amp will be expecting a line level input, not the minuscule signal from a MC cart.

Edit:

Cambridge Audio duo do the business?

oh.

forget about all that, you have already realised this and found one that does exist - looks fine!

As you have discovered, yes they exist. Probably not as good as individual boxes but convenient. There's all manner of combined magic boxes when you delve into the chi fi brands too.

Does anyone have any speakers for sale? Anything that might work well with a pair of Quad IIs? Or recommendations for something that would?

Some Klipschorns perhaps.

New speakers, a massive improvement on my 20-year-old B&Ws. Just need a better amp and turntable now :/

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Oh schwingggggggggggg. Very nice. What will a new amp do that your Audiolab won't? Genuine q. What do you need, just more current?

Just get some nice open back headphones.

I just realized I would probably enjoy some nice, open back headphones - to use instead of the Sennheiser HD 25's I have - I'm thinking even better sound and more comfort would be nice (I'll wear headphones sometimes when working at home late in the evening, so neighbours are not disturbed).

What do people recommend / how much do "good" ones cost?

I would really like to use them with old iPhones I keep around just as music players (it's convenient with the syncing etc. - plus I'm finding their built in DAC is fairly good) - as I'll be moving around a lot (headphones plugged into an amp not an option, and to be fair I haven't even considered Bluetooth / wireless yet - should I?)

Sound quality wise it should be a step up from the HD 25's as mentioned, if possible keeping the rather neutral, solid sound.

Thanks in advance for help / suggestions!

Sort of, yes - the ProAcs are 4 ohm, and need a bit of oomph. The Audiolab does drive them nicely, but the difference at the listening appointment when we A/B’d a Rega Brio (similar power & price point to my Audiolab 6000A) vs a Rega Aethos was obvious. More power, refinement, control and separation, fewer of the compromises involved in producing a (highly capable for the money, let’s be fair) £600 amp.

My Pro-Ject turntable is a definite weak point - the RP3 I demoed the speakers with today was far from perfect, but was very lovely and miles ahead. A used RP6 would make a lot of sense.

If you like HD25s, get more Senn's. The highest end ones you can drive without an amp is probably a pair of Sennheiser HD 560S.

Yeah, makes sense. Cash money amp!