Tristan
Member
Good Evening. My name is Tristan. I live in Wausau, WI with my wife Danielle and our dog Mauser. I've been serious about music my whole life. I started playing piano when I was 10 and guitar when I was 16 and play in two rock bands. I've always had my finger in high-end audio equipment, but never was able to dive "head first." I love classical, rock, metal, some jazz, bluegrass, electronica; basically anything but new country and hip-hop rap. I listen to mostly indie rock, metal and classical.
I'm the kind of guy that likes to buy one piece of quality gear at a time. I can already see where this hobby can swallow you whole. I started out fairly naive and purchased a Bose system when I was first getting into audio gear. I quickly realized this was not the best purchase. i still have the system, installed in our living room. The low footprint is unobtrusive. No highs, no lows, you get the picture!
In my theatre/listening/mancave/cigar room; until last week I was running a pair of Marantz from the 70s that my father gave to me in my teens. They actually sounded very nice and warm. I had recently upgraded my surrounds and it became clear I needed to upgrade the fronts. I like a more natural, warmer sound personally. Some guys really like the super analytical sound. I can appreciate that sound but it isn't my preference. I've heard quite a few high end speakers over the years and I can truly say I've wanted a pair of Martin Logans for my entire adult life.
A few weeks ago I went looking around the internet with the intention of just "drooling" and saw Source were on closeout at Audio Advisor. I couldn't resist the temptation and pulled the trigger. Last week Monday the moment of glory arrived. I was very pleased with the way the speakers were packed in their individual "foam fortresses. I had taken both of the speakers out of their boxes in order to facilitate easy transport into the basement. This was mistake number one. I carried one speaker down with no problem. Unfortunately, the friend I had helping me grabbed the other speaker and proceeded to "miss a step" on his way down and dropped one of the speakers. He was okay and just ended up with a bruise and a superficial cut when he took a panel to the face. Thank god he was okay; speakers can be replaced but friends cannot.
The speaker ended up with moderate cosmetic damage (rash on the cabinet and the panel mounts also broke). My friend insisted I order a new speaker at his expense. I tried to argue with him to meet half way; as it was partially my fault for asking him to help me. He wouldn't budge. I am currently working with ML tech support to acquire suitable parts to remount the panel and intend to put the speaker up on E-bay for sale.
I ordered a new speaker and received it on Thursday of last week. I had a different friend help me and this time we left the speaker in the box until it was situated adjacent to it's new home. I put Chopin Trio SACD on and was absolutely floored. Shivers down my spine. I never thought I'd have sound like this in my home. The speakers sound fantastic and I couldn't be more happy with my purchase. I was even more stunned listening to the Chopin Concerto Warsaw Philharmonic bluray in DTS-MA. It's just unbelievable what these speakers can produce.
One thing I realized immediately is that these speakers are totally unforgiving to low quality audio files and recordings. Just incentive for me to not play low quality audio files and recordings
I have this pair of Source down in my 10X11 man cave/cigar room. I have a serious ventilation system set up for enjoying cigars, one of the other hobbies that take a big chunk out of my budget. I have a respectable 50" Samsung 1080p HDTV hooked up to a Lenovo Q150 running Ubuntu 11.10 and XBMC. I run HDMI to the TV and optical to my Sony V333ES receiver. This baby is over 10 years old, but amazingly still handles DTS-MA. I haven't found an audio format that won't work (sans 7.1). Along with the Martin Logan Source I own one Polk CS2 Center channel, a pair of Definitive Technology BP2X Surrounds and a Definitive Technology 10" powered subwoofer.
When I built the room I did 10 guage in-wall speaker wire from Monoprice. This is one area in which I am somewhat ignorant. I am however aware that the cabling I have running to the MLs is sub-optimal. This is the next piece I plan to upgrade. Looks like a few more hours browsing forums. Good stuff!
Forgive my rambling and verbose nature. I look forward to learning from the community here!
Cheers!
Tristan
I'm the kind of guy that likes to buy one piece of quality gear at a time. I can already see where this hobby can swallow you whole. I started out fairly naive and purchased a Bose system when I was first getting into audio gear. I quickly realized this was not the best purchase. i still have the system, installed in our living room. The low footprint is unobtrusive. No highs, no lows, you get the picture!
In my theatre/listening/mancave/cigar room; until last week I was running a pair of Marantz from the 70s that my father gave to me in my teens. They actually sounded very nice and warm. I had recently upgraded my surrounds and it became clear I needed to upgrade the fronts. I like a more natural, warmer sound personally. Some guys really like the super analytical sound. I can appreciate that sound but it isn't my preference. I've heard quite a few high end speakers over the years and I can truly say I've wanted a pair of Martin Logans for my entire adult life.
A few weeks ago I went looking around the internet with the intention of just "drooling" and saw Source were on closeout at Audio Advisor. I couldn't resist the temptation and pulled the trigger. Last week Monday the moment of glory arrived. I was very pleased with the way the speakers were packed in their individual "foam fortresses. I had taken both of the speakers out of their boxes in order to facilitate easy transport into the basement. This was mistake number one. I carried one speaker down with no problem. Unfortunately, the friend I had helping me grabbed the other speaker and proceeded to "miss a step" on his way down and dropped one of the speakers. He was okay and just ended up with a bruise and a superficial cut when he took a panel to the face. Thank god he was okay; speakers can be replaced but friends cannot.
The speaker ended up with moderate cosmetic damage (rash on the cabinet and the panel mounts also broke). My friend insisted I order a new speaker at his expense. I tried to argue with him to meet half way; as it was partially my fault for asking him to help me. He wouldn't budge. I am currently working with ML tech support to acquire suitable parts to remount the panel and intend to put the speaker up on E-bay for sale.
I ordered a new speaker and received it on Thursday of last week. I had a different friend help me and this time we left the speaker in the box until it was situated adjacent to it's new home. I put Chopin Trio SACD on and was absolutely floored. Shivers down my spine. I never thought I'd have sound like this in my home. The speakers sound fantastic and I couldn't be more happy with my purchase. I was even more stunned listening to the Chopin Concerto Warsaw Philharmonic bluray in DTS-MA. It's just unbelievable what these speakers can produce.
One thing I realized immediately is that these speakers are totally unforgiving to low quality audio files and recordings. Just incentive for me to not play low quality audio files and recordings
I have this pair of Source down in my 10X11 man cave/cigar room. I have a serious ventilation system set up for enjoying cigars, one of the other hobbies that take a big chunk out of my budget. I have a respectable 50" Samsung 1080p HDTV hooked up to a Lenovo Q150 running Ubuntu 11.10 and XBMC. I run HDMI to the TV and optical to my Sony V333ES receiver. This baby is over 10 years old, but amazingly still handles DTS-MA. I haven't found an audio format that won't work (sans 7.1). Along with the Martin Logan Source I own one Polk CS2 Center channel, a pair of Definitive Technology BP2X Surrounds and a Definitive Technology 10" powered subwoofer.
When I built the room I did 10 guage in-wall speaker wire from Monoprice. This is one area in which I am somewhat ignorant. I am however aware that the cabling I have running to the MLs is sub-optimal. This is the next piece I plan to upgrade. Looks like a few more hours browsing forums. Good stuff!
Forgive my rambling and verbose nature. I look forward to learning from the community here!
Cheers!
Tristan
