Thread: Morgan’s system

As promised, pics of my system and room after the latest addition of the KEF Blades. Also demoing a Parasound JC5 which you will see front and center. Enjoy, I know I sure am!

Wow, very nice place.

Looks great, Morgan! Clean setups are always fun to see, and your system looks awesome!

Thanks for sharing.

MPW, I bet it sounds as nice as it looks!


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Welcome to the forum.

Very nice set up Morgan...

Actullay I have McIntosh in my set up but on the very beggining I had Parasound.. think they are very good stuf.

Pretty!

Beautiful system and room. Thank you for posting.

Are you loving the JC5?

Morgan, very nice indeed! Those KEF's are making me drool ...

Gorgeous system! I'll bet it sounds incredible. I spent seven great years in Iowa City. Wonderful town.

I had a friend from college that owned an audio store on Kirkwood Ave. in Iowa City for many years. His older brother owned it's sister store in Davenport.

Looks very good.

Morgan.......What a beautiful room and sound system. Well done.

Originally Posted by iamnothe

Beautiful room. However, I'm awfully curious why you didn't locate the equipment at the opposing end where the walls are symetrical to allow for the opportunity for equal speaker reinforcement and have the listening chair at the base-of-the-stairs end of the room?

A far second is just from an aesthetics perspective of staring at symmetrical walls. As the is now, every time I sat down, I would be distracted by the lack of symetry in front of me as well as always wondering what I might be missing from a playback perspective.

Great question! I initially had the room set up 180 degrees opposite to what you see in the photos. What you can't see in the photos is that there is a door to a bedroom and a door to a bathroom in the back corner of the room. Visually, it looks much better this way so I don't have to look at those doors. The visuals, however, weren't my major concern in the room setup - sound quality was. To that end I discussed my room with Jim Smith during a RoomPlay Reference session at his listening room in early 2019. I showed him photos and dimensions of the room including a dimensionalized drawing of where the listening seat and speakers were placed. He immediately suggested flipping the room. Effectively the staircase becomes a big bass trap as the low frequency energy has a mechanism to escape. From the speakers forward there is good symmetry in the room. Ultimately, the room measures better, sounds better, and looks better.

It is also important to understand more about why everything is placed in the room where it is. My first step was to determine the position of the listening seat. This is the most critical element in how the system will sound. The position was determined by finding the smoothest bass response possible. Bass is really the foundation, and in small rooms it is the most difficult to get right. I accomplished this through measurements (REW) and by listening. Once I had the listening seat determined, I worked on the speakers. I have always tried to pull my speakers out from the front wall if room allows. Jim Smith talks about this in his book Get Better Sound. Since I have a dedicated room, pulling the speakers out was not a problem. It also allows me to enter the room from the staircase without having to avoid a speaker (I do have to watch out for the speaker cable). I am still dialing in the position of the speakers by listening, but pulling them out (approx. 8' out from front wall) really provides incredible depth of soundstage. The sound is very open, natural, realistic, emotional.

Still a work in progress, but I thought it would be interesting to share my thought process as I set up this system.

Originally Posted by joeinid

Beautiful system and room. Thank you for posting.

Are you loving the JC5?

I will provide a summary of what I heard with the JC5 later this week after I have spent some more time with it. Initial impressions are very positive.

Very nice system, congrats.

Enjoy in good health!


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Hi Morgan,

You've got a beautiful room and system. Looks super!

I really like the paint colors too...

Originally Posted by MikeCh

Hi Morgan,

You've got a beautiful room and system. Looks super!

I really like the paint colors too...

Thanks! When I purchased the home just over a year ago, the room was painted all the light grey color. I added the darker grey accent wall to match the bass traps. It turned out really well. The jukebox art on the front wall is a photo my daughter took in an architecture class a couple of years ago and I thought it made perfect sense in the listening room (it is a 6" thick bass trap). Visually, it really pops off of the dark grey wall.

Beautiful room and system Morgan!

Nicely done Morgan !

two things ....... tell me more about your small side table next to your listening chair, make it or buy it ?

and as Joe asked, how's the Parasound performing ?

Awesome system + room! How do you like the EAT gear? I’m considering the E-Glo Petit phonostage.


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Very nice system and room. A great place to get away and enjoy the music.

Originally Posted by Mikado463

Nicely done Morgan !

two things ....... tell me more about your small side table next to your listening chair, make it or buy it ?

and as Joe asked, how's the Parasound performing ?

The side table is purchased. I have two of them and have owned them for years. I don’t recall where I purchased them. I will provide more detailed impressions of the JC5 later this week, but I can tell you already that it is a very capable amplifier.

Originally Posted by nile49

Awesome system + room! How do you like the EAT gear? I’m considering the E-Glo Petit phonostage.


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I have really enjoyed the EAT gear. I moved from a Clearaudio turntable (which was excellent) to the EAT and have never looked back. Very solid table. I would recommend replacing the clamp that comes with the table with the EAT Massive Clamp or similar as that was a nice upgrade. Also, replacing the included interconnect is important. I use the AudioQuest Leopard. After these tweaks, the table really is competitive with anything near (and well above) its price.

The phono stage came a bit after my initial positive experience with the turntable. Started with just the E-Glo S and then later added the linear power supply which powers both the phono stage and turntable. After adding these pieces I have turned my attention to other aspects of my system. I’m very satisfied with the entire EAT package. My only critique of the phono stage is that there is a hint of white noise at higher volumes using my Hana SL cartridge. With higher output cartridges requiring lower gain settings, it is basically silent. Still very good for a tubed phono stage. I wouldn’t hesitate on the Petit.

Originally Posted by MPW

Great question! I initially had the room set up 180 degrees opposite to what you see in the photos. What you can't see in the photos is that there is a door to a bedroom and a door to a bathroom in the back corner of the room. Visually, it looks much better this way so I don't have to look at those doors. The visuals, however, weren't my major concern in the room setup - sound quality was. To that end I discussed my room with Jim Smith during a RoomPlay Reference session at his listening room in early 2019. I showed him photos and dimensions of the room including a dimensionalized drawing of where the listening seat and speakers were placed. He immediately suggested flipping the room. Effectively the staircase becomes a big bass trap as the low frequency energy has a mechanism to escape. From the speakers forward there is good symmetry in the room. Ultimately, the room measures better, sounds better, and looks better.

It is also important to understand more about why everything is placed in the room where it is. My first step was to determine the position of the listening seat. This is the most critical element in how the system will sound. The position was determined by finding the smoothest bass response possible. Bass is really the foundation, and in small rooms it is the most difficult to get right. I accomplished this through measurements (REW) and by listening. Once I had the listening seat determined, I worked on the speakers. I have always tried to pull my speakers out from the front wall if room allows. Jim Smith talks about this in his book Get Better Sound. Since I have a dedicated room, pulling the speakers out was not a problem. It also allows me to enter the room from the staircase without having to avoid a speaker (I do have to watch out for the speaker cable). I am still dialing in the position of the speakers by listening, but pulling them out (approx. 8' out from front wall) really provides incredible depth of soundstage. The sound is very open, natural, realistic, emotional.

Still a work in progress, but I thought it would be interesting to share my thought process as I set up this system.

Great looking space and I can relate very much. I had flipped my space 180 after speaking with Jim and made a sig difference overall in my dedicated space.

I’ve followed the 1/3 rule as a ballpark/starting point and have my mains out 8-9ft from front wall. This was also from discussions/emails with Barry D, another invaluable resource for setting up room.

As an aside, how did you obtain the GIK QRD’s? They haven’t made them avail for YEARS.

The QRD’s are really something and have a profound influence (I only have the Gridfusor’s at the moment) especially on the front wall IME. ATS has them available which look to be very similar/equivalent to GIK’s.

Outstanding

room and system Morgan!

Looks like a great place to kick back and enjoy.

Originally Posted by Swisstrips

Great looking space and I can relate very much. I had flipped my space 180 after speaking with Jim and made a sig difference overall in my dedicated space.

I’ve followed the 1/3 rule as a ballpark/starting point and have my mains out 8-9ft from front wall. This was also from discussions/emails with Barry D, another invaluable resource for setting up room.

As an aside, how did you obtain the GIK QRD’s? They haven’t made them avail for YEARS.

The QRD’s are really something and have a profound influence (I only have the Gridfusor’s at the moment) especially on the front wall IME. ATS has them available which look to be very similar/equivalent to GIK’s.

The GIK QRD's are probably four or so years old. A number of these treatments were repurposed from my previous home and a number of them are new. It is a bit of a hodge podge, but everything turned out great sonically. If I were to start from scratch it would be a bit more cohesive visually, but sometimes compromises must be made!

Nice! I love EAT!

Yes, first thing I did with my C Sharp was to purchase the Japanese imported Oyaide carbon piped clamp.

Originally Posted by MPW

...I would recommend replacing the clamp that comes with the table .......

Listening to London Grammar tonight and the sense of space the Blades create is really something. I am very satisfied with these speakers. They won’t be going anywhere for a really long time.

Thanks for for all of the positive comments. Great community here on AS!

Morgan, I'd love to see and hear your system sometime. I'm about 1:45 minutes from Iowa City. I spent 7 years there as an undergrad, dental student, hospital dentistry resident, and later as an adjunct professor at the College Of Dentistry. You're welcome to hear my system anytime. I've only had it a couple weeks. It's breaking in as I write this.

My wife and I live in a small house. We have no children except one of the four legged variety. My listening room is 27' x 12'. The Harbeth Super HL 5+ 40th Anniversary Model speakers are perfect for my listening room. I'm really enjoying my entire system although it's not nearly as elaborate as yours. Great hobby, this.

Originally Posted by bluegrassphile

Morgan, I'd love to see and hear your system sometime. I'm about 1:45 minutes from Iowa City. I spent 7 years there as an undergrad, dental student, hospital dentistry resident, and later as an adjunct professor at the College Of Dentistry. You're welcome to hear my system anytime. I've only had it a couple weeks. It's breaking in as I write this.

My wife and I live in a small house. We have no children except one of the four legged variety. My listening room is 27' x 12'. The Harbeth Super HL 5+ 40th Anniversary Model speakers are perfect for my listening room. I'm really enjoying my entire system although it's not nearly as elaborate as yours. Great hobby, this.

Let me know when you’re in Iowa City and we will try to make it happen!

Originally Posted by MPW

Let me know when you’re in Iowa City and we will try to make it happen!

Cool! I'll let you know when I can go your direction. Maybe we can try and coordinate our schedules?

Originally Posted by bluegrassphile

Cool! I'll let you know when I can go your direction. Maybe we can try and coordinate our schedules?

PM me when you are free.

@mpw - Have you ever put the QRDs on your front wall (e.g wall behind spkrs). If you haven’t I’d be interested to hear your impressions with all 4 or at least 2 of them.

It would be an easy experiment and their effect can be pretty significant IME. Keep broadban at first reflection points though.

Originally Posted by Swisstrips

@mpw - Have you ever put the QRDs on your front wall (e.g wall behind spkrs). If you haven’t I’d be interested to hear your impressions with all 4 or at least 2 of them.

It would be an easy experiment and their effect can be pretty significant IME. Keep broadban at first reflection points though.

I had the QRD’s on the front wall in my previous room and liked the effect. I am going to be honest and say that I don’t really like looking at them. This is why I had the GIK art panel made with the juke box photo. This is a 6” thick bass trap. I did try broadband at first reflection but really liked the effect of the QRD’s at first and second reflection. I can switch the sequence of the panels around to do broadband at first reflection and will experiment more before settling on a final solution. I am using the setup that was optimal for my Reference 3’s but have not yet optimized the Blades. I don’t expect a change, but stranger things have happened!

Originally Posted by MPW

I had the QRD’s on the front wall in my previous room and liked the effect. I am going to be honest and say that I don’t really like looking at them. This is why I had the GIK art panel made with the juke box photo. This is a 6” thick bass trap. I did try broadband at first reflection but really liked the effect of the QRD’s at first and second reflection. I can switch the sequence of the panels around to do broadband at first reflection and will experiment more before settling on a final solution. I am using the setup that was optimal for my Reference 3’s but have not yet optimized the Blades. I don’t expect a change, but stranger things have happened!

Cool, good to hear. I enjoy the acoustic stuff immensely. The room and the supporting treatments are so profound, it amazes me people spend thousands on other items rather then understanding how the room and acoustics interact with the overall sound one hears.

Read it all the time in other threads where some poo poo it and think it’s of little significance- a couple book shelves and you’re good to go . Im not referring to living rooms /shared spaces where a “studio” feel isn’t gonna happen, but I digress.




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Originally Posted by Swisstrips

Cool, good to hear. I enjoy the acoustic stuff immensely. The room and the supporting treatments are so profound, it amazes me people spend thousands on other items rather then understanding how the room and acoustics interact with the overall sound one hears.

Read it all the time in other threads where some poo poo it and think it’s of little significance- a couple book shelves and you’re good to go . Im not referring to living rooms /shared spaces where a “studio” feel isn’t gonna happen, but I digress.

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Totally agree. This room was unlistenable when I started. The flutter echo was awful. Now it is very controlled without being overdamped. It took a while to get there, but now the room is a real pleasure to be in and the music sounds great.

Originally Posted by joeinid

Beautiful system and room. Thank you for posting.

Are you loving the JC5?

I started a new thread with my thoughts on the JC5.

Parasound JC5 thoughts

Hi Morgon. Very beautiful space! Love it.

Well, I couldn’t leave well enough alone and went back to a brand that I have owned in the past and have always loved, Pass Labs. I purchased a Pass X250.8 to replace my old Forte amplifier and couldn’t be happier. The Pass really brings the Blades to life. Tremendous musicality, gorgeous midrange, power to spare. What’s not to like?

If any of us could leave well enough alone, there would not be a Hi Fi industry

Enjoy in health!


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Nice! Well played, Pass are indeed special. Congrats

Originally Posted by MPW

Well, I couldn’t leave well enough alone and went back to a brand that I have owned in the past and have always loved, Pass Labs. I purchased a Pass X250.8 to replace my old Forte amplifier and couldn’t be happier. The Pass really brings the Blades to life. Tremendous musicality, gorgeous midrange, power to spare. What’s not to like?

Congrats Morgan, had it in my system for a while as well. A great amp, performance is solid as a rock.


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What does one do once he is fully satisfied with the sound in his listening room? In my case, the answer is to buy a new home and start all over again! Excited to share details and pictures of my new space soon (teaser pic attached from real estate listing). The space will not be dedicated, but will be much larger with incredible views. Of course, there will be significant acoustic issues to deal with, but since room optimization is my favorite aspect of this hobby I am excited for the challenge. I am currently running electrical lines and working on layout and room treatment plan. It may be a while before the process is complete and I am ready to share pictures and details. Much more to follow. Stay tuned.

Originally Posted by MPW

What does one do once he is fully satisfied with the sound in his listening room? In my case, the answer is to buy a new home and start all over again! Excited to share details and pictures of my new space soon (teaser pic attached from real estate listing). The space will not be dedicated, but will be much larger with incredible views. Of course, there will be significant acoustic issues to deal with, but since room optimization is my favorite aspect of this hobby I am excited for the challenge. I am currently running electrical lines and working on layout and room treatment plan. It may be a while before the process is complete and I am ready to share pictures and details. Much more to follow. Stay tuned.

That’s audiophile spirit!

The new place also looks gorgeous, congrats. Looking forward to see how you develop it.


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