The listening chair was the best to suit the above system 
Yes. Some here could very well think of the hifi as a piece of furniture that makes a nice noise.
Needing to blend in with the wallpaper and colour match the slippers.
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Both in equal measure. Itās doesnāt matter how good it sounds I it doesnāt fit in the room. Main reason I have no Chord gear to me they have a horrible aesthetic, suited to more modern architecture possibly but definitely not for me.
Is that a hot water bottle and blanket I can see ?
OMG, the secretās out! You missed to Horlicks though.
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The changes to B&Wās 800-series looks on the D3s almost turned my stomach when I first saw them. It was hard to stomach after loving the previous generationsā looks. Thankfully, the revised prices are way beyond my budget, so Iāll never bother auditioning them but, unlike formerly, this wonāt worry me in the slightest.
The current Naim black look is great, and my liking of CB kitās looks has grown hugely in the past couple of years. As for Olive kitā¦ I couldnāt believe premium kit could be so ugly when I first saw it in the 90s and I havenāt shifted in that opinion since. To my eyes, it looks like a rushed school electronics project gone wrong.
Mark
Tough question! Naim works for me because despite rabbit-like (multiplying) boxes, the looks are fairly innocuous. If I could find the same sq in a more attractive box or boxes, I wouldnāt have minded a better looking piece. The one piece that Iām sorry I got rid of over time (for looks alone) was a Yamaha cr-820 receiver. Unfortunately, Mr. Underhill encapsulates the problem of veering too far from a basic box. I agree his ear equipment is very attractive, but just within his own household, two completely opposite opinions on it. So manufacturers are stuck with safe mundane design if they want the largest appeal.
I recommend a hard wood 3mn platform under the Rega. Maybe 10 dollars cost and significant upgrade .š„ø
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Itās moving to the top level of the Fraim Lite when it arrives. Unless the shelf is needed for something else later, in which case, Iāll get a platform for it.
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Ah ok, of course. No need so.
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Obviously Iām a massive fan of how they sound but Itās a big bonus that I like the understated and industrial looks of Naim since Iāve ended up with 9 of their boxes split between 3 racks! I couldnāt handle the looks that amount of gear if it was all bright & bling.
Same goes for LP12 & the Radikal PSU - it looks good to me without shouting about it. Some of the oil rig decks in the TT thread do make me chuckle.
Thereās no space here for a dedicated listening room to the gear has to have visual appeal for me.
If the kit was to (bar speakers obviously) was to hidden in units then thatās a different thing but I still donāt understand why a manufacturer would purposely design something to be ugly/bling unless itās just for shock/look at me value. A simple good looking well made case with the real work inside it is what I like to see.
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I love the look of the Ear. Iām a sucker for VU Meters if well done (there are some bad design implementations).
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Is that an amplifierā¦or is it a coffee machine?
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Some B&Ws look like Daleks to me.
Good grief! But I suppose that it is probably the best thing that can be done with bagpipes, if you are unwilling to burn them.
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And I suspect that you succeeded. Also the most impracticable.
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SQ should always come first as that is the main reason for buying hi fi in the first place.
I find the Naim range to be coherent and aesthetically pleasing. The latest range to me looks far sleeker than previous Naim designs.
The retro Luxman approach, for example, just looks dated and unappealing. A bit like Far Eastern cars.
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Same here! I think I could accept that in an odd way, though I donāt know how my wife would take it - however an audition of the 802D2 took it out of contention.