Avantgarde Duo 2.1, vinyl, good music

[deepak]

Yesterday I made the trip to hang out with a friend I made this year. It was mainly to hear my NIN- The Fragile vinyl since my analog setup still isn't up

I should have taken down more details of his setup, but briefly the speakers were the latest Avantgarde Duo 2.1s, his vinyl setup was a modded VPI Aries3, with I believe SET amps powering the mids/tweeter. The Duos have self powered woofers. Digital front end was some Naim gear (didn't listen to it much). It was in a dedicated speaker room which seemed really well setup. I wish I brought my camera. I've heard his system a few times but this is the longest listening session I've done, I was there for around 8 or 9 hours.

Briefly, the setup was breathtaking with pretty much all the music we played. We listened to some Shostakovich #5 (Sony, 1959 Bernstein) through the Naim and it was the best reproduction I've heard to date. From here on we stuck to vinyl- mainly jazz and classic rock.

The system filled the room with sound and the imaging seemed razer sharp. I was specifically looking for any gaps between where the upper bass and mids integrate and I was hard pressed to hear any; the integration seemed seamless. The setup was dynamic, rich, and just fun to listen to. It wasn't harsh or sibilant unless the recording called for it. On Sabbath's War Pigs you could feel the kick drums. I wanted to keep thumbing through his collection looking for albums I was familiar with.

Now onto hearing The Fragile. We listened to three sides mostly so my buddy could keep his sanity . Also sounded extremely good and very detailed. My first time hearing it in any form on hifi speakers and it was eye opening. There are some very complex and layered songs on this double album, and I've heard it turn very good headphone systems to mush. Not the case here the speakers kept up with all the complexities.

Lastly I borrowed my friend's M^3 amp and brought my L3000 up there to hear on a good vinyl setup. The M^3 is an alright amp for the L3000 (I didn't want to deal with moving the Melos). Again I heard a new level of what these cans are capable of. Using his vinyl source made the headphones simply disappear. To confirm my suspicions I let him listen to them, and he was very surprised with the headphone reproduction. He's now looking for either an L3000 and I gave him the PS-1 as another possible recommendation (after he gets the RS-2).

/rantings from a fanboy in love.

[humanflyz]

You got some rich friends j-pak; isn't the Avantgardes something like 15k retail?

[deepak]

You got some rich friends j-pak; isn't the Avantgardes something like 15k retail?

His wife's an attending physician and he's a cardiology fellow (interventional cards attending in 2 years). They aren't hurting for money

No idea what a dealer would ask for, but list is close to $20k.

[humanflyz]

fucking doctors

[n_maher]

that sounds like porno.

In my experience pornos tend to err on the side of nurses rather than doctors. The outfits are much more suitable.

[909]

vinyl is so appealing, but such high maintenance.

[postjack]

jpak, I'm hoping you'll be pleased with the results vinyl can provide even on a budget setup. my humble 1200 has a visceral impact that neither of my digital sources can match.

[mulveling]

Nice impressions, thanks. The L3000 really steps up to the next level with good vinyl. The HD650 steps up a level and possibly a bit more (I still usually prefer the L3000 though).

[909]

reading all the vinyl praise starts my wheels spinning every time. over the past few weeks, i did a bit of vinyl research and price checking and thought a rega p5 w/ power supply, exact cart and the cambridge 640p is a nice relatively no fuss package that i can get new for under $1500. but the question remains will it sound better than my reimyo. i've a hard time thinking it would, though, it might sound different or better in some regards, yet it might not in others. something tells me i would need to get a really high end vinyl rig to equal or better my digital source. i've been putting it off, but i've got to make a trip to Brooks Berdan to give the P5 a listen. life is so simple with cds.

[TheSloth]

reading all the vinyl praise starts my wheels spinning every time. over the past few weeks, i did a bit of vinyl research and price checking and thought a rega p5 w/ power supply, exact cart and the cambridge 640p is a nice relatively no fuss package that i can get new for under $1500. but the question remains will it sound better than my reimyo. i've a hard time thinking it would, though, it might sound different or better in some regards, yet it might not in others. something tells me i would need to get a really high end vinyl rig to equal or better my digital source. i've been putting it off, but i've got to make a trip to Brooks Berdan to give the P5 a listen. life is so simple with cds.

I can tell you that the vinyl system you are looking at is really very nice, and will make it worth your while. Of course, you'll need to be playing source material that's in good condition. I wouldn't think of it as something to compete with your Reimyo - it might just give you a different perpective on sound reproduction and what is possible.

[909]

thanks, for putting things in perspective. i've got about 40 of my favorite albums, but even the 15 or so new LPs could probably use a wet cleaning. i'll select a few and make the trip, should probably bring my amp and cans too.

[postjack]

thanks, for putting things in perspective. i've got about 40 of my favorite albums, but even the 15 or so new LPs could probably use a wet cleaning. i'll select a few and make the trip, should probably bring my amp and cans too.

I look forward to hearing your impressions, especially in regards to how the P5 sounds compared to the Scout (to the best of your memory).

[909]

will do, but only my amp and whatever lp i selected would be the same.

[Augsburger]

I will be very interested to hear if the P5 eats the Scout (best memory) ...or the other way around. Have Laser TTs fallen off the "to be auditioned" list?

[909]

i would still like to listen to one, but can't justify or swing the hefty price coupled with the fact the laser needs to be replaced every 4 to 6 years done only in japan at the factory and owner pays both ways and what if they go out of business... \

[deepak]

Keep in mind the Naim sounded really good as well.

jpak, I'm hoping you'll be pleased with the results vinyl can provide even on a budget setup. my humble 1200 has a visceral impact that neither of my digital sources can match.

I hope so too. My mind was blown listening to The Fragile. I'm now going to hunt down a sealed copy just in case.

[aerius]

Interesting...I've been wanting to hear the Duos for a while but can't find anyone who has them. I heard the Unos a long time ago and was quite impressed by them, except for a bass integration problem and a bit of a gap between the horns and bass module. But that was a couple generations of horns and bass modules ago so a lot has probably changed. What impressed me the most about the Unos was speed and dynamics, those suckers were every bit as fast as electrostatics with the effortless big dynamics that only horns can do. Really cool stuff.

[JBLoudG20]

You are all perverts.

jpak.. so you like the M^3 with teh L3000? I tend to like it a lot with my VTG, but my tube amp gets all the play these days, with the M^3 out of commission till the end of the week.

[deepak]

Interesting...I've been wanting to hear the Duos for a while but can't find anyone who has them. I heard the Unos a long time ago and was quite impressed by them, except for a bass integration problem and a bit of a gap between the horns and bass module. But that was a couple generations of horns and bass modules ago so a lot has probably changed. What impressed me the most about the Unos was speed and dynamics, those suckers were every bit as fast as electrostatics with the effortless big dynamics that only horns can do. Really cool stuff.

Though I'm sure they command an enormous mark up I can say that these will be the speakers I'm saving up for. The FR integration was something impressive.

You are all perverts.

jpak.. so you like the M^3 with teh L3000? I tend to like it a lot with my VTG, but my tube amp gets all the play these days, with the M^3 out of commission till the end of the week.

The M^3 definitely drives them really well. I think it's more a synergy issue, where the Melos sounds more liquid with the L3000 (and my preferred sound).

[hungrych]

reading all the vinyl praise starts my wheels spinning every time. over the past few weeks, i did a bit of vinyl research and price checking and thought a rega p5 w/ power supply, exact cart and the cambridge 640p is a nice relatively no fuss package that i can get new for under $1500. but the question remains will it sound better than my reimyo. i've a hard time thinking it would, though, it might sound different or better in some regards, yet it might not in others. something tells me i would need to get a really high end vinyl rig to equal or better my digital source. i've been putting it off, but i've got to make a trip to Brooks Berdan to give the P5 a listen. life is so simple with cds.

Why not buy an old idler wheel table (Garrard, Thorens, or Lenco) on ebay and restore it? I've read lots of accounts about how when done properly these TT's better newer TT's costing above 10k. It'd probably be a fun project too.

[deepak]

just buy this and be done with it. and make sure you pair it with this phono stage.

So bling. Can barely see the platter.

[postjack]

just buy this and be done with it. and make sure you pair it with this phono stage.

nice! pyle also makes subwoofers you can only buy new at sketchy pawn shops off the interstate.

[Dusty Chalk]

just buy this and be done with it.

If it weren't for the nightmares it would give me (robot, sic!), I'd want one.

[909]

Why not buy an old idler wheel table (Garrard, Thorens, or Lenco) on ebay and restore it? I've read lots of accounts about how when done properly these TT's better newer TT's costing above 10k. It'd probably be a fun project too.

thought about going that route, but based on my reading buying something like that on eBay could easily turn into a major headache and money pit. i don't have the experience or patience to do it so i'd hire professionals to help me and it could easily exceed my budget. if i do vinyl again, i want an extremely easy set-it and forget-it turntable and rega for better or worse fits the bill. additionally, i can listen to what it sounds like before i pull the trigger and the P5 seems well suited for classic rock. i'm still undecided if i even want to go back down this road again. i sit and listen to my cdp-77 and think, why?

[909]

just buy this and be done with it. and make sure you pair it with this phono stage.

thanks! i'll definitely read up on them..., not!