A FEW FINAL changes. NOW I'm truly done!

Gentle Reader,

I've made a few, final changes to the stereo. I'd experimented with the speakers being toed in so that they pointed directly at me.

After a while, listening, I decided to try them facing forward. This occurred after buying (via eBay, of course) a set of really nice, heavy black chrome speaker spikes. The speaker's bases were pre-drilled for spikes, but had none. The hole required for these was EXACTLY the size in the bases. So installing them was a snap. Here they are on eBay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Set-8-New-Dark-Silver-Black-Chrome-Speaker-Spikes-/160543206330?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item25611eebba

I very carefully measured and placed the speakers exactly 22" from the side and back walls. The combination of spikes and square placement has nicely improved the sound, especially the soundstage. I can close my eyes and point to the individual instruments.
The music sounds like it's coming from behind the speakers.

Which when you think about it makes sense. The microphones were in front of the musicians, therefore the sound's image should appear behind the speakers, being they are the opposite and end-user of the music.

As you can see in the photo at the top of the page, compared to the last photo posted of the speakers, that I have wired the subwoofer. I bought Monster Cable THX certified subwoofer cable and two "Y" cables. That way, both left and right channel's bass will be reproduced. Since the Power amp and RCA interconnects as well as the speaker wiring is all THX certified, it makes sense to have the sub supplied by THX cable as well.

With the bass response of these A/D/S/ speakers, the sub is not really needed. Only something with cannons, like the Telarc SACD or LP of the 1812 Overture does the
sub really add to the experience. In fact, sitting in the listening chair with my legs on the ottoman, when the cannons fire, the back wave from the sub actually blows up my pants legs!

The other changes were to the power cord for the Denon SACD/CD player. It is equipped with an IEC power cord inlet. Like the kind on the back of your computer's power supply. There is a huge market for replacement "audiophile" cords/cables. I admit that I have subscribed to this way of thinking. As you may recall all the Liberty RCA cables I installed on the stereo and home theater.

I'd replaced all the power cords with Belden 19364 cable and heavy duty three-way hospital grade plugs. I'd gotten a nice Audio Research brand C7 type power cord for a great price, even though it was WAY too long.

The Denon SACD/CD player is newest component and since the prices for in-the-USA
IEC plugs is ridiculous, I finally bought one via eBay from China. It arrived today, so I connected it to the Belden cable and power plug. Hooked it all up.

You can see the A/R blue power cord coiled in the lower left and snaking up to the Pioneer CD recorder. The Belden cable is kind of hard to see, well all the thick round black ones are Belden, but the newest one coils around the other two that are climbing upward.

Lastly, you can see in the top-of-the-page photo, that I installed the red cryrogenically treated hospital grade AC receptacle in the wall. I feel that the main cable from the AC surge suppressor and power cables from the two Adcom ACE-515 power conditioners do not require the Belden cable.

Why? Because all the components, save the turntable, have Belden cables that plug into the ACE-515s. Since they condition and clean the AC power for the actual components, the Belden cables are right where they should be.


Google Belden 19364 cable and see what they have to say about it. Here's a HOW-TO:
http://www.audiotweaks.com/diy/bobcrump_pc/page01.htm

So, you may be thinking, "Why didn't he put Belden 19364 on the turntable?" Because the power cord for the turntable is for the motor. There is no reason to shield the power for a motor that has no physical function in the audio stream other than to maintain 33 1/3rd RPM speed.

So that's it. Aside from possibly replacing the Denon CD changer (DCM-290) with a DCM-390 which decodes HDCDs, I can not think of a thing that needs doing with the stereo.

Thanks for looking and reading!

Scott

Baby's got new shoes!

Gentle Reader,

Hello. It's been a while since I've made a posting to the blog. Things have been happening, naturally.

Since buying the '91 Capri XR2, I've wanted to replace the nasty original alloy wheels with something nicer.

I've restarted on the simplification of my live, visa ve, my possessions. So, I went through the cameras and picked out the few that I really wanted to keep and started selling the rest on eBay.

They've been selling well, so the first expense was the new wheels and tires. I got them via Tirerack.com.

The wheels are 15x6.5" verses the stock 14x5.5". They are Sport Tuning T6:
http://www.tirerack.com/upgrade_garage/BigPic.jsp?wheelMake=Sport+Tuning&wheelModel=T6&wheelFinish=Machined+w%2FBlack+Accent
The tires are General Exclaim UHP (Ultra High Performance):
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/BigPic.jsp?sidewall=Blackwall&tireMake=General&tireModel=Exclaim+UHP
They are the same tires I put on the Audi TT quattro. Only smaller to fit this car.
I've been a Tirerack.com customer for years. Saves a lot of money.
The tires arrived the NEXT day after ordering, ready to bolt on. GREAT!If you look at the photos of the original wheels:
http://therobbcollections.blogspot.com/2010/10/tt-is-gone-and-austrailian-ford-takes.html
you'll have to agree how much better, newer even the car looks. The old tires were about worn out too. The increase in grip and handling is terrific!

That's it for now. Thanks for looking!