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Embarassed to admit...
#1
So I was getting bored with my prior setup (Expert Pro 140; Dynaudio Special Forty).  Shunyata Sigma all around made the sound very compelling, but the speakers just weren't doing it for me.  

The dealer in Dubai that sold me the 140 was also selling Klipsch, which I found strange at the time.  All signs said "no," but while the 140 was out for repair (front button, cosmetic issues on outside, binding posts, turned out to need a more substantial overhaul but never received a reason), I decided to pick up a set of Heresy III.  Out of the box, they surprised me, a little less polite than the other speakers I had been considering, but wanted to be a bit more conservative with my budget. 

I had a PS Audio amp and preamp/DAC as well as a Sonos AMP that I was toying with, seeing what type of performance I could eke out of it.  Listenable, fatiguing a bit, but also compelling. 

140 is back quickly, and I couldn't prep SAM quickly enough; I just plugged everything in with the Delta EF mains and Alpha SC and a long run of Wireworld Chroma CAT8.  Even without isolation, without SAM, I was impressed with what I heard, noting that some tracks really fell short and others were more engaging.

They were on probation until I put a set of Aperta 300s underneath the Heresy III.  Insane.  I had some inexpensive isolators under the feet prior, but this time removed the bottom wedges from the Heresy III and placed each speaker atop one of the 300s.  Game changers; this speaker had been hyperactive with the room prior.  They are playing clean, tight, and I'm satisfied.  I'm very happy with the current setup.  Poor taste?  Sure.  But I'm sure I'll have them for at least the next six months.  Still in shock.  Anyone else running something similar to this?
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#2
Not running anything like that but many years ago, before I got my Devialet and current speakers I was running Dynaudio Contour 1.3 SEs with a NAD M3 integrated and a digital front end and a friend was running vintage Altec Lansing horn loaded speakers with a single ended triode amp and a vinyl front end. Chalk and cheese systems.

We both liked a lot of the same music, especially jazz, and we'd visit each other often. At his place we'd play 50's and '60's jazz and rock and at my place we'd play stuff recorded much more recently, from the '90's on. We both agreed that for most music from the '70s or earlier, his system did a better job but for a lot of stuff from the '90s on my system did a better job. His system did a good job on more recent stuff and mine did a good job on older stuff, it wasn't that each system did something good and something bad but that each did a good job but each was better at a different thing. He listened to more early stuff than I did so we were each quite happy with our own system though we really appreciated each other's very different system as well.

We all like different music and we all like a slightly different sound to the way music is reproduced. We buy our systems and listen to them for enjoyment. If you aren't enjoying your own system you're doing something wrong, if you're enjoying your own system you're doing something right and it doesn't matter what other people think about your choices. They get to make their own choices in their systems and people who criticise other people's systems aren't going to care what you think about their choices.

Don't be embarrassed, enjoy your own system. Make your own equipment and music choices and have fun. That's why we're all doing the sorts of things we do.
Roon Nucleus+, Devilalet Expert 140 Pro CI, Focal Sopra 2, PS Audio P12, Keces P8 LPS, Uptone Audio EtherREGEN with optical fibre link to my router, Shunyata Alpha NR and Sigma NR power cables, Shunyata Sigma ethernet cables, Shunyata Alpha V2 speaker cables, Grand Prix Audio Monaco rack, RealTRAPS acoustic treatment.

Brisbane, Qld, Australia
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#3
(29-Jul-2019, 01:37)David A Wrote: Not running anything like that but many years ago, before I got my Devialet and current speakers I was running Dynaudio Contour 1.3 SEs with a NAD M3 integrated and a digital front end and a friend was running vintage Altec Lansing horn loaded speakers with a single ended triode amp and a vinyl front end. Chalk and cheese systems.

We both liked a lot of the same music, especially jazz, and we'd visit each other often. At his place we'd play 50's and '60's jazz and rock and at my place we'd play stuff recorded much more recently, from the '90's on. We both agreed that for most music from the '70s or earlier, his system did a better job but for a lot of stuff from the '90s on my system did a better job. His system did a good job on more recent stuff and mine did a good job on older stuff, it wasn't that each system did something good and something bad but that each did a good job but each was better at a different thing. He listened to more early stuff than I did so we were each quite happy with our own system though we really appreciated each other's very different system as well.

We all like different music and we all like a slightly different sound to the way music is reproduced. We buy our systems and listen to them for enjoyment. If you aren't enjoying your own system you're doing something wrong, if you're enjoying your own system you're doing something right and it doesn't matter what other people think about your choices. They get to make their own choices in their systems and people who criticise other people's systems aren't going to care what you think about their choices.

Don't be embarrassed, enjoy your own system. Make your own equipment and music choices and have fun. That's why we're all doing the sorts of things we do.

I can't seem to find anyone who is running this setup; would love feedback if anyone has given it a try.  Maybe even with Fortes.  If I'm compromising, at this price point, it's to be expected.  I must stress that the Apertas made a massive difference.
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#4
(28-Jul-2019, 23:58)awkaplan Wrote:  But I'm sure I'll have them for at least the next six months. 

Not sure that’s the highest praise?


Quote:So I was getting bored with my prior setup...

When you’re addicted to novelty, you’re going to enjoy a new setup... even for as long as six months.
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#5
(29-Jul-2019, 02:52)awkaplan Wrote: I must stress that the Apertas made a massive difference.
Agreed.  I have Aperta 100 under Phantom Golds, as well as Isoacoustic Iso stands (in ProAudio range) under Monitor Audio speakers.  They do make a difference.
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#6
(31-Jul-2019, 23:53)Snoopy8 Wrote:
(29-Jul-2019, 02:52)awkaplan Wrote: I must stress that the Apertas made a massive difference.
Agreed.  I have Aperta 100 under Phantom Golds, as well as Isoacoustic Iso stands (in ProAudio range) under Monitor Audio speakers.  They do make a difference.


Similar experience with Special Forty and smaller speakers; would never have thought to try the 100 under a Phantoms!   This tightened everything up beyond expectation.  Was exploring the ISO but was advised that Aperta was best in this situation.
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#7
(31-Jul-2019, 23:03)antilles Wrote:
(28-Jul-2019, 23:58)awkaplan Wrote:  But I'm sure I'll have them for at least the next six months. 

Not sure that’s the highest praise?


Quote:So I was getting bored with my prior setup...

When you’re addicted to novelty, you’re going to enjoy a new setup... even for as long as six months.

Hedonic treadmill, guilty as charged.  If anything, I was expecting much less...these could be longer-term keepers.
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#8
(02-Aug-2019, 10:46)awkaplan Wrote: Was exploring the ISO but was advised that Aperta was best in this situation.
Initially tested using the ISO but they only come in black. Switched over to the Aperta silver. There was not a big difference between them.
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#9
(02-Aug-2019, 13:35)Snoopy8 Wrote:
(02-Aug-2019, 10:46)awkaplan Wrote: Was exploring the ISO but was advised that Aperta was best in this situation.
Initially tested using the ISO but they only come in black. Switched over to the Aperta silver. There was not a big difference between them.

Not to speak for the company, but the Aperta was suggested as the best solution, and I was willing to go custom.  Just settled on a more modest cable choice after demos and demos, and am realizing why this speaker gets a bit of flack.  I'll give it a few days.  Is it a $7,000 difference?  I'm not even sure.  I will say though, when fed with the top of the top, they defy all the noise and assumptions made about them. I've had speakers that are supposed to be "better," to less satisfaction. They're sounding a little thin with the lesser SC, but I'm also appreciating the difference.
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#10
(31-Jul-2019, 23:53)Snoopy8 Wrote:
(29-Jul-2019, 02:52)awkaplan Wrote: I must stress that the Apertas made a massive difference.
Agreed.  I have Aperta 100 under Phantom Golds, as well as Isoacoustic Iso stands (in ProAudio range) under Monitor Audio speakers.  They do make a difference.
can you show a picture of how it looks on top of the aperta 100? thanks.
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