[Sonic Youth 37]

I looked for a thread like this, but I couldn't find that one existed.

Here's is a picture of my new (old except for the Numark) stereo components and the repurposed TV stand that worked perfectly to house it all. The speaker to the left is part of a set.

 

[Sonic Youth 37]

Originally Posted by Bytor Peltor

Great idea for a thread! How old is the Numark and how is it working out for ya?

It's about 2 years old (The rest of the set-up I've only had about 2 weeks as I replaced all my old components with the Technics set)and I've been really satisfied with it. Though, I'm thinking about replacing with an Audio Technica for a daily use turntable. The counter-weight arm and pitch correction are nice features for ripping to a computer and listening while near the unit, but I would prefer to have something with a hinged dust cover and auto-cue/reject for my primary workhorse.

[gmku]

 

I'll have to take some better photos when I have time. For now I can show one of my three turntables, the Technics SL-23 (vintage 1978) with Shure M97xe cart. In the background, one of my two Large Advent speakers (vintage 1973).

My stuff is mostly vintage. Other stuff includes:

Technics SL1200m3d turntable with Grado Blue cart
JVC QL-y5F turntable with Shure M97xe cart (vintage 1982)
Yamaha A1020 integrated amp (vintage 1985)
Pioneer T 7500 receiver (vintage 1975)
Yamaha K960 cassette deck (vintage 1982)
Yamaha S700 CD player (circa 2011)

[gmku]

Oh, and my beloved headphones: Grado Labs Prestige Series SR-125i's.

[gmku]

Originally Posted by Bytor Peltor

That is one pricy CD player, gmku. Just curious, what about it makes the unit so expensive?

Yeah, you know, I generally dislike CD players. I've never been able to put my finger on it exactly. They don't sound good to me, and they are almost always inelegant looking and functioning.

This one makes my CDs sound as good as my LPs, i.e., it makes the CD player quality compatible with my turntable quality, meaning I have audiophile quality in both the CD and LP parts of my system.


It's no frills, but it's also very much an audiophile piece soundwise. It has a Pure Direct button that disables digital output and the front panel display, which supposedly makes a difference in the sound. It has a USB port for hooking up an MP3 player or your computer or whatever.

I love the minimalist exterior. Inisde, from what I've read, it has 24-bit DAC, and three separate power supplies for tansport, and for the digital and analog stages.

Has what is called the Silent Loader mechanism. The tray is insanely quiet and smooth--I can put in a CD, load it, press my ear to the unit, and hear NOTHING. No whirring, no running sounds. Nothing.

I decided that if I'm going to enjoy my CDs, I was going to spend some bucks on the playback system.

[Sonic Youth 37]

GMKU, would you recommend that Shure M97xe cart for a replacement to my stock one? The stock cart has a few years on it and tracks between 3 and 5 grams (I have it set at 3.) I have been reading up on carts for the past few days and had it narrowed to the Audio Technica AT95E. However, I could be persuaded to go double the price for the Shure, if it is such a quality cartridge.

[gmku]

Hell, yes! The M97xe is the greatest cart in the world in its price range. Beats many in price ranges above it, too, in my opinion. It tracks very light, too--1.25 if you keep the brush guard up or 1.75 with the brush down.

3 grams is gonna eat up your vinyl, man. If at all possible, never go with a cart that has to track more than 2 grams.

[Sonic Youth 37]

Sold. I'll pick one up next time I have $90 to spend on stereo equipment.

[gmku]

Start saving your pennies! And keep checking prices. $90 is high for this cart. You can find them on sale for around $60.

In any case, $90 is not bad for a cart, especially when you consider how nicely it will treat your records.

[stu666]

 

I've had this amp and tape deck for about 16+ years now...

[gmku]

Foreground, Chipper: "Play that one Ride CD again, okay?"

Background, couch, Bella the Cat: "I don't care what the fuck you play, just keep that damned dog away from me."

Stereo (clockwise starting on top shelf left): Technics SL-1200, JVC QL-y5f, Yamaha K-960 cassette deck, Pioneer TX-7500 receiver (bottom), Yamaha CDS 700 CD player (top), Grado phones and extension cord on top of CD player, Yamaha A-1020 integrated amp. On each side, Large Advent speaker (utility style).

On the floor beneath stereo, LP collection, roughly S-Z.

Beyond the windows, a beautiful Spring day.

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about the orange cat in upper left. That's Scooter. Who says, "Whatever. I'm cooler than all three of you put together."

 

[Sonic Youth 37]

Update for gmku and all others:

Amazon dropped the price of the Shure cart to $70 and I had $22 in Amazon credits, so I got it for $48 and it should be here on Monday. I'll post reviews sometime next week hopefully.

Additional picture of the the former stereo configuration (turntable is out of frame) and of speakers:

 

Plus this beauty:

 

Edit: pics are fixed. Thwarted by cached images again.

[gmku]

All right!!!

But can't see the pix.

[Sonic Youth 37]

GMKU advice needed again.

I just installed the Shure cart and adjusted the track force. Is the cart supposed to ride super low to vinyl? I'm talking damn near touching it. Or do I need to redo my adjustments? (And yes, I recalibrated the zero force point from the other cart.)

[gmku]

Can you show a photo? You might have to adjust the arm height. The cart shouldn't ride too low.

[gmku]

So... SY37, what happened? Is it okay?

[gmku]

Originally Posted by gmku

 

The speaker on the right blew about a week after I took this picture. It's now with the audio doctor who assures me it is nothing serious. The patient should be home and resting by Monday afternoon, complete with new lead wires on its voice coil.

[gmku]

I don't think my Advents need them. I also don't like how most speaker stands look. I do have them sitting on top of a couple of thick text books (see that whitish strip under the speaker on the left?). So they're about 4-5 inches off the floor. I think that's all they really need.

I have thought about making some stands. They would basically just be a small open box made of some medium-quality lumber pieces, just a little smaller than the bottom of the speaker and about 4 inches tall. I'd stain them to match the speakers. For now the books work though.

[Sonic Youth 37]

Originally Posted by gmku

So... SY37, what happened? Is it okay?

So, this is how it's looks with 1 gram. I think the issue may be the my table can't handle a low-mass cart and the fact that it doesn't have tone arm height adjustment.

 

[gmku]

Hmm. Sorry about that. I didn't realize that. But actually it doesn't look that abnormal. Mine rides pretty low too. By the way, have you tried leaving the brush down? It helps with tracking, I think.

I didn't think this was a low mass cart actually. There are many much lower. I thought this was medium?

Whatever you do, hang onto the cart. If it doesn't work out on this, it could work with something you might upgrade to.