Guidance needed

[jenson]

Hi Guys, i'm in a pleasant dilemma. me and my wife, we are expecting our first child in the month of August, which I believe would be the most magical thing to ever happen in our life

Now, where i need guidance is - with a baby in tow whether I should still keep my all Cadence set up (Arista + VA-1) or should I sell/swap it off and go for traditional book shelves and SS which can be kept on a higher/safer platform.

I just love my current setup, it has served me darn well over the year, especially considering my varied taste from house - trance - alternative - hiphop - metal - progressive - jazz and many other sub genres.

i'm thinking more from the perspective of keeping the system in pristine condition as it is now. i'm ok to wait till such situation arises! and if it does, will move the system back to my folks residence which has ample space.

all said I cant have two systems, cant afford two! so, can you guys put me in perspective?! would love to hear from guys who were/are in my situation

 

[corElement]

As the child of a picky listener mother, believe me when I say, your interest in audio hardware over and above music will be a technical inspiration and the stuff of your child's memories they'll will hold dear for the rest of your and their lives.

My mothers amp and speakers continue to be a reference point for me even after nearly 35 years from purchase and 28 years of my own life.

So no, dont..........








....get rid of anything!

 

[ranjeetrain]

Congrats for upcoming good news jenson!

If you like the setup don't dispose it. Trust me, getting a setup that you like, and to have it do so many things well for you is not easy. "Most" people take a lot of time and many iterations through various set of gear to get their system to sound the way they want. So, if you are happy with the system you have at home, you would be wise not to break it.

Sending it to a relative for storage seems like a good idea.

Get a decent one box system in the meanwhile. There are many bluetooth enabled one-box solutions available these days that don't put out a true blue audiophile sound but are surprisingly good sounding. Take it as a chance to have a change.

 

[GeorgeO]

You probably dont need to do anything in a hurry-probably 10 months from now is when you may enter the danger zone. The amp isnt the issue-a good rack should take care of that. Dont the speakers have a protective grill for the lower part? The ES upper unit should be out of reach of a small kid for some time, I guess.

 

[hemantwaghe]

As the child of a picky listener mother, believe me when I say, your interest in audio hardware over and above music will be a technical inspiration and the stuff of your child's memories they'll will hold dear for the rest of your and their lives.

My mothers amp and speakers continue to be a reference point for me even after nearly 35 years from purchase and 28 years of my own life.

So no, dont..........








....get rid of anything!

Think practical - do not leave in fool's paradise

EXTREME CARE is required to safekeep Valve amp - Extreme - as

Very very high voltages are involved -and valve gets hot

Invest in a tall rack where the amp in TOTALLY UNREACHABLE till ur kid becomes 5-6 old

Speakers are another challenge - see if a lower woofer can be protected by some grill ..

BTW in most of the homes -least the homes I know ( and I stay hyeah: ) child is Priority no 0,1,2,3 , Wife comes after , Parents then ( If they are with you) then and YOU are the LAST priority ... and your system come far far after that... as you are grown now , can fed your self and family , bear the child ( and buy cadence) noone will care after birth of child ... and NO-ONE SHOULD ...... hyeah:hyeah:hyeah:hyeah:

Imagine you are complaining kid damaging woofer to your father - and he will remember how naughty you were and suggesting - beta throw the junk out !! :yahoo::yahoo::yahoo: Happened with me - speaking out of experience

So IT is YOU who needs to plan ... all da best - and have a rocking fatherhood experience of changing nappies , staying up late and more ....hyeah:hyeah::yahoo::licklips::licklips:

 

[Fantastic]

You can't predict how kids will be. Some are very careful other are not.
For the first year or two the child will not be able to reach up to the drivers. You could teach the child to be careful and not touch it. If you act belligerent when the kid goes near the speakers it might 'get at it' when you are not watching. On the other hand if you 'plead' with the kid to be careful there is a better chance that it will not be damaged. In any case you have about 2 more years to determine if the speakers need to be lifted by a foot or not. The amp has to be on a elevated rack which cannot be reached by the child. While the speakers will not be in the right position when lifted it will still sound quite acceptable.
Most people who 'dispose' off their beloved system regret the decision later on. So if it does reach a situation where your kid is too naughty and you can't afford to have the system around, shift it to your parents house and retrieve it when the situation calms down a few years hence. To bridge the gap get something that isn't too expensive .
I've had similar problems with just visitors who bring in their naughty kids.
First, you can't hide your system and second, you find out they are naughty kids only after they get to your house !!
You can always get a covered cabinet/shelf for the amp. It will keep prying fingers out. Your hifi is like another kid. Try not to get separated. There will always be some solution and it isn't getting rid of it !

 

[Vinod.R]

First of all congratulations. Welcome to the world of lots of love, baby milk, crying, nappies or cotton pads if you are so inclined and lovely late nights under the stars!!!!

What about some transparent plastic box kind of covering for the gear? Should be light to lift and child proof. (Not that anything can be made childproof, I speak from experience!!!)

I know not a very aesthetic option, but at least keeps the gear safe.

I had to play the toy train and ask him not to touch it, but children will be children.

Welcome to our club of indulging fathers.

 

[jenson]

Thanks all...i guess i need to take protective measures like orderign a speaker grill from Cadence, which they do sell for 1300/pair. keeping the valve amplifier out of reach is of top priority as well, a wall rack perhaps...

corelement, i can see how this system can indeed leave a impression on kids mind

 

[Fantastic]

Kids and music. My two nieces used to listen to my large collection of 70's music as they were growing up. Today they are grown up and have kids of their own. They still prefer 70's music !

 

[Paritosh Jani]

Congrats for the good news buddy. It starts a new era of your life.

From what I've experienced, I would say it would depend on how careful other members of your family are about the the setup. My little nugget - less than 1 year old then-took the sub woofer port of my old SONY HTiB as a toy storage and we found a couple of small teddy bears inside after a while along with a few other trinkets.

So soon after I switched over to my current stereo set up, I took extra care while designing the rack for the amp and source as well as banned the 1 feet radius area around the Paradigm monitor towers for not only the kid but for any living being other than my self. Now my wife and parents knew it was OK if the speaker grill looked dusty.

Hope you've got the picture....

I would tell you not to mess up at all with what you have. After all what would you be left with to do after the kid? Music will be a good companion....got it?!?!?'

 

[jenson]

teddy bears inside bass unit ...and that too 1 year old. hmmm ill have to give it a firm thought now..

 

[Paritosh Jani]

Don't get bigger ideas.... they were tiny winy teddies.... about 2 inches in size.... off the toys one hangs to a cradle of young ones...

 

[Shivam]

I was in a same state some time back but then I decided to keep my system as it is. The only precaution I took was to block all the unused power sockets in my power strip using inexpensive plugs.

My daughter sometimes tried to fiddle around with the source selector or gain knob on preamp and sometimes she presses the buttons on the front of the player. Nothing much to worry about. We have been telling her from the time she started crawling about what was not to be touched. She understands it well.

Now she has started speaking a few words and one of her favorite pass-time is 'daksi' which she says when she wants us to switch on the system. The word she uses sounds like something derived from 'dance' and 'disk' to me. I enjoy my system more with her company now.

 

[Fantastic]

............ I enjoy my system more with her company now............

So true. Almost anything thing in life is better when shared !

 

[hydra]

Congratulations, Jenson!

...
If you like the setup don't dispose it. Trust me, getting a setup that you like, and to have it do so many things well for you is not easy. "Most" people take a lot of time and many iterations through various set of gear to get their system to sound the way they want. So, if you are happy with the system you have at home, you would be wise not to break it.

...

I'd like to echo this exact sentiment. Don't sell this system.

Invest in a tall rack for the electronics. And for the speakers, perhaps you could close off the area around them with furniture itself (or a custom made protective playpen for the speakers itself), so the kid can't get to them.