System Pics 2023

IME spikes work well in certain situations. But the often quoted ‘isolation’ properties of them are IMO clearly incorrect. Particularly as they are often attributed properties of achieving ‘rigid coupling’ elsewhere in the very same blurb! One can’t have it both ways!

Interestingly the original raison d’être of spikes was simply to avoid the rocking of speaker stands when placed on carpeted floors. First introduced by Linn Products I believe on their then revolutionary (because up until then speaker stands were just to hold the speakers up at the right height!) floorstand for their Sara speakers. The idea being that the spikes pierced the carpet and rested on the floor beneath thus preventing the stand from rocking. Nothing magical or very complicated.

As time has passed all sorts of wonderful and magical properties have been attributed to them by various manufacturers who have jumped on the bandwagon. I have seen them described as mechanical diodes. What I have never seen or heard is a plausible explanation as to how they isolate anything. Just pseudo-scientific clap-trap from people who very obviously haven’t a clue what they are talking about.

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Following on from recent discussions on this thread regarding layout, here is my revised system pic😊


Yes, Rafiji and Orion are not hung correctly yet, temporary solution. They will be hung and spaced properly in a day or 2😉

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I take it the newest addition is staying then?
:wink:

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:face_with_peeking_eye:

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@Dan_M sorry to hear your news. Your are very brave sharing here but you know you are among friends of course.

Wishing you all the best and keeping fingers crossed for you.

I enjoy reading your posts and seeing your fab system.

Sharing pics of my two setups:

Need to sort second rack and cables under the telly (btw, Guinness is 0% alcohol - very tasty!)

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It’s not about being convinced, but it’s about being convicted for that part of the world :slight_smile:

Opps! What did I write? Does my odd comment warrant citizenship?

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That’s some wonderful Sugden amps. How are you getting on with them? They look incredible.

And thank you so much for your message.

Got consultants appointment on tuesday. Hopefully will know more then about secondary liver cancer. Staying strong and hoping for the best :ok_hand:

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Thoughts with you Dan.

G

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Wishing you the very best❤️

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All the best for you !

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I’m very much enjoying my Sugden amps thanks. Being Class A, they have a very different presentation to Naim, and they pair very well with Marten speakers.

Hope your appointment goes well next week. My thoughts are with you.

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I have a pair of Contour 20i - incredibly organic sounding and the treble is very detailed without being tiring. Great speakers.

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Will someone start a (pointless, truly) thread about the gear one should have bought and didn’t…?

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Is there any gear that you have not bought Max? :wink:

Could be the forum theme tune :joy:

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Of course. I have never bought NAP135s, S-600s, Solstice and Statement… Definitely a Naim Rookie. :slight_smile:

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I had a chance at a pair of S600’s earlier this year, but was given a cautionary warning and didn’t buy them…:man_shrugging:t2:
They almost certainly would not have worked in my space anyway.

I’ve heard S-400s sound very good and S-600s sound big, too big and too ‘full’. But when I compared 400 and 600 in the same system, at a dealer’s, the 600s had a definitely better midrange and overall balance.
Mysteriously, neither of the two shines by itself but in direct comparison the larger is audibly better.
In the end, the wisest choice is to buy a 400 without any comparison… :slight_smile:

(Ovators may be often criticized by some, but considering level of engineering, build, finish, the ideas behind them, the amount of stuff you get for the money on the 2nd hand market, I’m frankly amazed at how someone can toss six, seven times as much for ugly parallelepipeds that sound like empty boxes when you knock on them, with a couple of plain drivers screwed on the front… How I’d love to name names, but each to his own. I’d gladly make, and possibly will, another experiment with S-400s in a different room.)

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Oh go on Max. I would be interested to see your views on speakers. It would possibly help me a bit in my speaker quest for the second system. I cannot comment on Ovators but I’ve heard a number of times the bass integrates poorly with that full range driver. Then again maybe this is a Naim thing when the speaker is not in the right room and environment?

That’s incorrect I’m afraid. The bass integrates very well actually. It’s like electrostatics with good bass. I have to say that I’ve my ovator 600 now in my fairly large living room and there they are superb. I’ve also used them in small rooms but that wasn’t as great unless I listened on low volume and the bass wasn’t overpowering the room.

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