Skibum00 Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 Denon DP300-F Sonos Connect Amp Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 Wharfedale Diamond speaker stands Sorry for the crappy camera phone pic. I have been mulling getting the Diamond 10.1's for my living room 2.1 set up. How do you like them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurtz Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Don't have any pics right now, but here is what I am working with.... My living room setup: Audio Technica AT-PL120 w/ Shure M97xE cartridge Denon AVR-3200 reciever Tascam 102 cassette deck Sony CDP-CE345 cd player Definitive StudioMonitor 350 speakers My spare bedroom/record storage room setup: Dual 504 turntable Pro-Ject Phono Box preamp Pioneer SX-990 reciever Cerwin Vega VS-150 speakers (I really liked these on my main setup, but the GF decided they were too big for the living room when we moved in together.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tooclosetosee Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 I like the Diamond 10.1's and got them and the speaker stands for $400 shipped because they were open box or something like that. They sound really nice and have more and clearer sounding bass than I was expecting. To be honest, I didn't demo different speakers or anything like that. I just went with the internet general consensus that they are really good speakers for their price range. What they replaced was nothing special so I don't have anything to compare them to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetboy Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Rega RP3 Marantz PM6004 Next purchase will probably be the Wharfedale Diamonds. Was also wondering if it was worth getting the Bellari VP530 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Enjoy the internal phono pre on your Marantz for a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetboy Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Enjoy the internal phono pre on your Marantz for a bit. Right on, I'll probably put in a few other upgrades on it until then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxmartinxx Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Right now I'm pretty content with my setup. It consists of: VIP Aries Scout w/ Denon DL103 cartridge Rogue Audio Triton Audio Research VSi55 Monitor Audio RX1 The only thing I even think about changing is the RX1's, but due to space/wife limitations, it's going to be hard to find something to upgrade to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Right now I'm pretty content with my setup. Jealous of being content. I've been struggling to be happy with my set ups. Main: Pro-Ject RPM 1.3 with Denon DL-103 cartridge Parasound 2100 pre-amp Parasound 2125 power amp x2 Sonus Faber Venere 1.5 speakers Cambridge Audio Dac Magic Apple TV Secondary: Rotel RA-1062 integrated amp Rotel RDV-1050 versatile disc player Definitive Technology StudioMonitor 350 speakers Apple TV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 don't worry, be happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 If only it was that easy. Taking a break from one hobby means more focus on another hobby. Audio usually takes the back seat, but lately, its been the #1 priority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biodigitaljazz Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 If only it was that easy. Taking a break from one hobby means more focus on another hobby. Audio usually takes the back seat, but lately, its been the #1 priority. A hobby should pass the time, not fill it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 If only it was that easy. Taking a break from one hobby means more focus on another hobby. Audio usually takes the back seat, but lately, its been the #1 priority. what's the issue? turntable not cutting it even with the new cart? time for a new pre-amp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Unhappy with cart so far, but it could just be the break-in period. Could be a number of reasons. I think just audio boredom/having the itch/etc is making me want to sell everything and get a completely new setup. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 my biggest complaint now is the room. I'm pretty convinced everything would sound better if I had a little space to work with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxmartinxx Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 I just messaged you that it's probably your phono stage, but what is the tracking force set? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 I have guessed that too. I'm not sure what the Parasound 2100 load for mc is... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 And 2.5g Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxmartinxx Posted August 19, 2014 Share Posted August 19, 2014 Try 2.7 and see what that does for ya. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 Does your phono stage have options for loading? MC carts it's usually wrong tracking force or loading and sometimes VTA but they can be quite fussy until you find the sweet spot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 No loading adjustments. Plan to adjust tracking force a little heavier (recommends 2.5g, but going to try 2.7g) and go from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearchuck Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 No loading adjustments. Plan to adjust tracking force a little heavier (recommends 2.5g, but going to try 2.7g) and go from there. I haven't been paying attention to the forum much lately so maybe I missed it, but have we considered that the DL-103 - which has an extremely low dynamic compliance - is not a great match for the low effective mass (8.5 g) of the 1.3 tonearm? I've used a few different calculators and I'm getting a resonant frequency in the 13 Hz range. There's no accounting for real world experience, but at least on paper, that's a bit high. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 I can't remember if I posted here or else where, and yes, this was a consideration too. Except. I've read other places stating that the cartridge will still sing in lower effective mass tonearms. I did consider adding a weight (as they make plenty for this specific purpose), considering the low effective mass of the 1.3 tonearm. My biggest issue was that it does sound great with cleaner music. Singer/song writer stuff sounds incredible, hearing things I've never heard through my system before... But punk/metal sounds pretty bad. Like mp3 through Apple TV sound better... So my thoughts are.... 1. Low effective mass could be the culprit (purchase a weight). 2. Parasound phono could not be proper loading for 103 (purchase new phono pre). 3. Audio is stupid and sell everything (purchase a Bose). OR I could just get a different cartridge too. I have 30 days from delivery date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxmartinxx Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 My VPI JMW 9 tonearm, which is fairly low mass doesn't display the issues that ajxd is having, but it's possible. You can buy a headshell weight which might help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjglor Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 Haven't taken proper pictures yet but I will eventually get to that. But here's what I'm working with: Stanton ST-150 w/ Ortofon 2m Red Cart Marantz SR-6008 Epos Epic 2's Technics RS-B57R Been trying to unload the Stanton to get either a Debut Carbon or MMF 2.2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearchuck Posted August 20, 2014 Share Posted August 20, 2014 My VPI JMW 9 tonearm, which is fairly low mass doesn't display the issues that ajxd is having, but it's possible. You can buy a headshell weight which might help. It also has fluid damping, which is going to help tame some of those resonant frequencies. I'm sure that makes a big difference in the JMW 9 being able to handle a wider variety of cartridges. And in general, I'm guessing that it's a much better tonearm than what the 1.3 has. Honestly, I've always heard that the DL-103 is much better suited to a heavy tonearm. Of course, real-world results may vary. It's certainly possible that it works well with some low mass tonearms. Buying a headshell weight isn't a bad idea though. 100 ohms is a pretty standard load impedance and I'm betting that's what your Parasound is set at ... and that's what Denon recommends for the DL-103. My first MC cart was the Denon DL-103D, which is the high-compliance / elliptical stylus version of your 103 ... so not exactly the same, but I'm sure the overall sound and presentation is pretty close. I really liked it and the cart was a great introduction to the world of moving coils. Still, was it that much better than some of the nicer MM cartridges I had used in the past? Better for sure, but not by leaps and bounds. I upgraded to an Audio Technica AV33EV last year and while it had a similar sonic signature as the 103D, it was a big step up when it came to detail and especially soundstage and imaging. It's more money, but totally worth it in my opinion. It also has a much higher compliance than the DL-103 and is probably a better match for your tonearm. Also, I believe that the Denon DL-301MK is very similar to the 103 ... but higher compliance as well. And not too expensive either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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