My humble beginnings in Hi-Fi world

[esanthosh]

@corElement

^ thanks cor

Usually I aim to make it "neat", but 'sexy' is an unexpected complement

My trusted carpenter has become too busy. Otherwise, both setups would look a bit more neat, esp the stereo setup on TV stands

@cooltoad

Audire IO2 costs Rs. 55,000 + VAT

I am not too particular about movies, so it would end with an upgrade to a plasma/LCD when HD content is very easily available. In addition, may be a Blue Ray Player / enhanced media player should seal the deal.

But, this music setup is another story. Unlike movies, I have a sort of sound signature in mind and I have to keep going until the system effectively reproduces the music the way I prefer. Going by how much I stretched myself (and still going to), cost wise, I'd not say these are "modest". It is still a humble beginning in chase of my desired sound signature. I don't know if a few hundreds / thousands would get me there or it will continue to drain me in an endless upgrade spiral for years. I am hoping, it would be short and sweet for the sake of my wallet

 

[cooltoad]

Santhoh, just curious to know, how does the Topping drive the speakers ?

 

[esanthosh]

TP20 drives IO2 well. Initially, I was very skeptic whether this amp would drive the IO2s well. But with time, I am happy with it. When I kept the Amp @ below 12 o' clock position, I was not happy. I turned it up and adjusted the source volumes using SPL meter to match my needs (normally 70-80 db at listening position). Since then, I've not been finding faults. In terms of Price / Performance, not many can beat the TP20.

But, does it drive IO2 to it's full potential? I doubt that. The other day, I added Bravo V2, a cheap headphone amp in the chain and it made some difference to the final result. I am guessing that at the end of the day, a bit more power (a used pre in the chain?) could help drive the IO2s better, allowing me to keep the volume lower in the process.

 

[corElement]

55k rs for the audire pair? hmm from where? and what are the specs again?

whats your take on it vs the wharfs I understand theyre different amps but

an approx comaprison of

highs
upper meds
meds
lower meds
lows
lower lows.

 

[esanthosh]

@corElement,

You are asking me to do something out of my element

I'll eventually set the wharfs one day in the same setup, just compare speaker to speaker. But, my audiophile lingo is like a 3 line book and my ears do not hear anything more than 'they seem a bit different'. I think it's better for me to write in layman language than to use the wrong terms or adjectives and provide a wrong impression. I'll just be honest about how I feel - that's all

Speakers from here : Audire, Precious Jewels That Sing

Specs from here : IO2 Specifications

 

[corElement]

Thanks dude will read up

 

[thevortex]

Congrats, Santhosh! As always you are too humble. Forget that this is your first setup. Even when people hear multiple setups, reviews are still pretty biased. One cannot help it. Please go ahead and put the review in your own words - I am sure it will be interesting and enlightening.