What new gear are you listening to now?

[EnemyoftheStoat]

Is there any point buying an all in one streamer like the 6000a play ?

For me, no. I have a ridiculous amount of CDs that I have not yet listened to. Maybe one day I'll do the streamer thing, but that time is still a fair way off.

How-ever, if I were into streaming well as CDs at this point, the 6000A Play might well have been on my shortlist.

[Pianoman]

The Audiolab 6000A amp is high on my list to audition - size is just right, and it has all the functions I need. Annoyingly it's gone up 50 quid in the last few weeks (Brexit? supply chain, who knows?...) but I reckon I could find one used. I did notice a couple of negatives floating around the web regarding reliability(or build quality, I forget which) but it does tick all the boxes so far...

[Dave2002]

Indeeed, Audiolab and Quad are both now subsidiaries of IAG, which also owns Wharfedale, Mission and Leak, amongst other venerable hi fi brands.

It’s difficult to keep up with company mergers, co-branding etc., and not only in audio.

Marantz and Denon are now part of the same group, as is also Polk (better known in the US) and Boston Acoustics.

See Sound United

https://www.soundunited.com/aboutus

[gradus]

Broadly on topic, does anyone have experience of KLH speakers? I've come across a reasonably priced s/h pair but can't find out much about them.

[hmvman]

... I am running SOUNDZ at this very moment from headphone Jack of smartphone (a clapped out 5s with a permanently flat battery.) into amp.

Ha! Sounds (or Soundz) familiar. I was using a similarly flat-batteried 5s until this very morning when I took delivery of a 2nd Generation SE. Of course, the new phone doesn't have a headphone jack so I've had to buy an adapter But the old phone used to play well from Soundz via bluetooth to our John Lewis 'Cello' unit in the kitchen. I assume that the 'Cello' does the DA conversion.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I haven't bought any new equipment for years now.
In the days when vinyl dominated the scene, I upgraded something or other every year, but since the launch of the CD format, I've been fairly content with what I have. My loudspeaker trail since 1970 has been:
1. My dad's homemade speaker, using a wonder fireguard (bizarre, you may think, but it sounded great),
2. Wharfedale Super Lintons,
3. KEF Concertos (magnificent, but my wife said they were too big)
4. NAD bookshelf speakers, which were far better than they had any right to be,
5. Bose Acoustimas 5 (not very good)
6. B & W Nautilus Technology floor standing speakers, which I still have. Every bit as good as the KEFs, but slimmer.

[Braunschlag]

The Quad Vena II system pack might meet your requirements. It’s an amp and speakers combination which is on sale for £999.



It has Bluetooth for streaming music, and a dedicated headphone point, as well as multiple digital and analogue connections. Its DAC can also cope with hi res sources up to 32-bit/384kHz, alongside DSD (up to DSD256).

I had a Vena for a few years, running small PMCs with no problems. Plenty of input flexibility, looked nice with the dark wood case/sleeve.

[Ein Heldenleben]

Ha! Sounds (or Soundz) familiar. I was using a similarly flat-batteried 5s until this very morning when I took delivery of a 2nd Generation SE. Of course, the new phone doesn't have a headphone jack so I've had to buy an adapter But the old phone used to play well from Soundz via bluetooth to our John Lewis 'Cello' unit in the kitchen. I assume that the 'Cello' does the DA conversion.

Just switched to macbook as the iphone is Ok for Sounds but not so good on the 24 bit Rattle Sibelius I am listening to on Qobuz as alternative to R3’s Sat pm fare.

[Constantbee]

[QUOTE

... As for Bluetooth/Cordless headphones, I know nothing other than that Sony, Sennheiser and Bose are the main consumer brands - and, as they always seem to be introducing "this year's model", last year's discontinued model often offers good value. Like the Sony WF1000XM3 as in:

https://www.onbuy.com/gb/sony-wh-1000xm3-wireless-noise-cancelling-headphones-black~c3241~p18099571/?ref=pricespy&exta=pspy

Much cheaper than the XM4 and I suspect will sound as good

Happy hunting![/QUOTE]

Can't live without mine. They do a good job of screening out the winter wynde howling round the rafters while I'm trying to concentrate on something. If you hang on a bit longer BBM2 the XM4 will come down in price still further and you'll end up paying a lot less than I did

Keep us posted.

[Lordgeous]

I haven't bought any new equipment for years now.
In the days when vinyl dominated the scene, I upgraded something or other every year, but since the launch of the CD format, I've been fairly content with what I have. My loudspeaker trail since 1970 has been:
1. My dad's homemade speaker, using a wonder fireguard (bizarre, you may think, but it sounded great),
2. Wharfedale Super Lintons,
3. KEF Concertos (magnificent, but my wife said they were too big)
4. NAD bookshelf speakers, which were far better than they had any right to be,
5. Bose Acoustimas 5 (not very good)
6. B & W Nautilus Technology floor standing speakers, which I still have. Every bit as good as the KEFs, but slimmer.

Goodness. That's sparked me off on trying to remember all the loudspeakers I've been through (not nrcessarily in order, apart from 1 & 2:

1. Home made (mono) by my dad - a sand-filled corner reflex based on Wharfdale design, with a ribbon tweeter (KitKat foil suspended in a huge ex radar magnet with dual exponential welded brass horns!!!)
2. Home made (stereo) by me, two Fane units on corner baffles with unknown tweeters
3, KEFs (Cadenzas?)
4. IMF Transmission Lines (Huge - un-veneered prototypes)
5. Chartwell LS3/5As (which I kept for many years, only sold recently)
6. Spendor BC1s
7. Spendor BC3s
8. ATC SM50s*
9 ATC SM10s*
10 ATC SM25s*
11 iLoud monitors which I use for computer audio. Astonishing for their size. Anyone else come across these? They always amaze my professional audio friends.
* These still in use in different rooms

I've only listed speakers used domestically. Having had a recording studio for many years I also got through many huge beasts!

[geoffm]

Now deeper into rustic retirement I refreshed most of my system: Dali Epicon 2 speakers, which are small but sound lovely; and an Innuos Zen mark 3 streamer, which I've found a bit tricky, but also has good sound. Innuos have just completed a fix so the device provides BBC Sounds. That feeds a Chord Qutest DAC. Oh, and the aforementioned Audiolab CDT which is extremely impressive for the price.

[EnemyoftheStoat]

Now deeper into rustic retirement I refreshed most of my system: Dali Epicon 2 speakers, which are small but sound lovely; and an Innuos Zen mark 3 streamer, which I've found a bit tricky, but also has good sound. Innuos have just completed a fix so the device provides BBC Sounds. That feeds a Chord Qutest DAC. Oh, and the aforementioned Audiolab CDT which is extremely impressive for the price.

Agreed about the 'Lab, very impressive and seems superior to the more expensive Cyrus CDi that now languishes in the study as a very rarely used back-up. I might get around to a direct A/B play-off sometime but I wouldn't be surprised to hear my thoughts confirmed. One very minor gripe is that it doesn't do gapless playback of a programmed sequence of tracks - i.e. where I only want to listen to a particular segment of a CD - although it's fine in non-programme mode.

I'm using it with the 6000A and my old AE Aelite 2 speakers.

[Pulcinella]

Our trusty Cambridge azur851 CD player recently started to misbehave.
Initial attempts to find the problem proved unsuccessful, but as it was out of warranty anyway and a repair might have been fairly costly, we have replaced it with an audiolab 8300CDQ, which got installed yesterday, together with a replacement better set of leads (Chord); we did indeed find that they gave a cleaner sound than the original (already pretty good) set.
The CD player is a bit quirky compared to the Cambridge one (and it means yet another remote control added to the pile on the coffee table!) but so far I'm very pleased with it.
Stravinsky Rite (Boulez/Cleveland/Sony) on as I type.

[cloughie]

Our trusty Cambridge azur851 CD player recently started to misbehave.
Initial attempts to find the problem proved unsuccessful, but as it was out of warranty anyway and a repair might have been fairly costly, we have replaced it with an audiolab 8300CDQ, which got installed yesterday, together with a replacement better set of leads (Chord); we did indeed find that they gave a cleaner sound than the original (already pretty good) set.
The CD player is a bit quirky compared to the Cambridge one (and it jeans yet another remote control added to the pile on the coffee table!) but so far I'm very pleased with it.
Stravinsky Rite (Boulez/Cleveland/Sony) on as I type.

Happy listening Pulc!

[teamsaint]

Our trusty Cambridge azur851 CD player recently started to misbehave.
Initial attempts to find the problem proved unsuccessful, but as it was out of warranty anyway and a repair might have been fairly costly, we have replaced it with an audiolab 8300CDQ, which got installed yesterday, together with a replacement better set of leads (Chord); we did indeed find that they gave a cleaner sound than the original (already pretty good) set.
The CD player is a bit quirky compared to the Cambridge one (and it means yet another remote control added to the pile on the coffee table!) but so far I'm very pleased with it.
Stravinsky Rite (Boulez/Cleveland/Sony) on as I type.

Bad news, Pulcers. But good to hear that you are back up and running.
A bigger coffee table may be a solution……

My Marantz all in one MCR 610 has developed a fault rendering it unusable.

Making do with a cheapie that I had in the study run through my Dali speakers while I consider my options.