Surprising systems

[Charlie1]

There's no purpose to this thread other than curiosity and I don't have anything of special note to suggest myself.

I wondered what systems members have heard (in their many years of being Hi-Fi nutcases) that struck them as...

• punching well above their weight

• being more than the sum of their parts

• representing particularly good value for money

That sort of thing :)

[tpetsch]

Crosly C3 ...Was surprised how this sub $100 "WITH AT3600L CARTRIDGE" -& built-in switched bypassable phono Pre -which is pretty awful BTW & should be switched to bypass- sounds. My buddy bought one on a whim a few years back, now he owns 3, I own 1 (paid $60 on sale Inc. shipping) and other friends have them too. Great to grade bunches of records you want to sell/trade without having to wear out "the good deck" bits, or for the kid or that garage system, but it's actually very musical, which I'm sure was all just a happy accident of parts & pieces that just happened to came together in a positive way on Crosly's part, one friend has it as his only deck -plugged into his Rotel integrated & Sekrit On-Walls- and sometimes we listen to it for hours while BBQ'ing, too bad it's now discontinued.

[markiteight]

HAKAI -> Kikkin -> JBL LSR308P.

Klimax level (or better!) performance for less than used LK prices...when it works*

Is it perfect? Hardly! Does it have its issues? Absolutely! Is there a more musical system under $10,000? Possibly, but highly unlikely!

*Note to potential HAKAI owners (and future self): don't lose/sell/toss/etc. that surplus computer monitor and keyboard. You'll need them when HAKAI stops working. I've been without music for weeks because I can't find my monitor!

[Charlie1]

Crosly C3 ...Was surprised how this sub $100 "WITH AT3600L CARTRIDGE" -& built-in switched bypassable phono Pre -which is pretty awful BTW & should be switched to bypass- sounds.

I'd never heard of this deck. Looks quite neat too.

HAKAI -> Kikkin -> JBL LSR308P.

Nice!

[springwood64]

Despite owning hifi for decades, I have not really treated it as a hobby and so have not listened to more than a handful of systems over that time. I have relied very heavily on this forum to improve my own system. Consequently my experience is rather limited.

I have compared my home system to just 3 dealer-hosted systems over the last 10 years:
1. Majik DSM + Majik 109s
2. Selekt Classic + Martin Logan ESL
3. Naim NDS + Naim amps + Kudos Titan 808

So that gives my experience a context.

I also have a high regard for Hakai - Hakai+Boazu+Espek was much more engaging than '1' and no less engaging than '2' and hit all of the OP criteria, especially value for money.

Swap Kalla for Hakai, and I feel the result puts all of the above in the shade while still doing pretty well on the value for money front.

[Charlie1]

Your system does seem very good value (this end of the digital divide) especially for full range.

[u252agz]

I agree - JBL 308P ( Mk1) and any Lejonklou preamp with a decent source , is very good and great value.

With Kala / Spotify and the recommended network set up ( I would now add Amplify HD to this) it leaves you wanting for nothing.

[sunbeamgls]

This system we put together for the Wam show - we had a small room so went along with the idea of what to do in a small space.

FiiO X3 DAP
Musical Fidelity V-DAC (and its upgrade PSU)
Tisbury passive pre
Silvers
Linn AV5125
K400
Active Katans



Here are the comments from visitors to the show, it seemed the majority were surprised by its abilities: https://audiophilemusings.blogspot.com/ ... -from.html

[sunbeamgls]

Another one in the "amazing small system" category - Hegel and Amphion seem to do a great job together. So many shows I've been to and they musically massively out perform much bigger and more expensive systems - including the big box big money Hegel / Amphion room.



https://audiophilemusings.blogspot.com/ ... 18_24.html

[Rutger]

This system we put together for the Wam show - we had a small room so went along with the idea of what to do in a small space.

FiiO X3 DAP
Musical Fidelity V-DAC (and its upgrade PSU)
Silvers
Linn AV5125
K400
Active Katans



Here are the comments from visitors to the show, it seemed the majority were surprised by its abilities: https://audiophilemusings.blogspot.com/ ... -from.html

Interesting reading.
The 5125 is still a fantastic amplifier. I have had one in my listening room recently doing evaluation of the sound compared to a ncore amplifier.

[Charlie1]

Cool!

And proper Katan stands too :)

Good luck with the show.

[Ianw]

I liked my old Kiko. Very tuneful and took a lot of people by surprise.
OK not earth shattering bass or the last word in revelation but tuneful nonetheless.

[Rutger]

There's no purpose to this thread other than curiosity and I don't have anything of special note to suggest myself.

I wondered what systems members have heard (in their many years of being Hi-Fi nutcases) that struck them as...

• punching well above their weight

• being more than the sum of their parts

• representing particularly good value for money

That sort of thing :)

I think most people would be very surprised If listening to a system with :

Rega planar 2 with AT95
Naim Nait 1 ( red light )
Kef C10 on stands.

This is an example of a vintage system without any Linn gear to point out there are also other musical brands.

In my opinion, not many modern systems below 3000 dollars beats this system in musicality.
This system is also a reminder of all the bad things happening with audio the last 40 years, were dsp room correction programs and lack of knowledge how to install a system is two of the worst.

[Zee9]

In all my (y)ears the best system (I rate the system in terms of if I would ever sell it) is a tundra + kan II’s on oem stands. Split K400 cable. I’ve tried this with multiple sources and even enjoy it with a WiiM mini into a Schiit modi3+ dac

The tundra 2.5 and a pair of Kan II’s is just mesmerizing

[Spannko]

I think most people would be very surprised If listening to a system with :

Rega planar 2 with AT95
Naim Nait 1 ( red light )
Kef C10 on stands.

This is an example of a vintage system without any Linn gear to point out there are also other musical brands.

In my opinion, not many modern systems below 3000 dollars beats this system in musicality.

This system is also a reminder of all the bad things happening with audio the last 40 years, were dsp room correction programs and lack of knowledge how to install a system is two of the worst.

And not many above it either!

[Charlie1]

I think most people would be very surprised If listening to a system with :

Rega planar 2 with AT95
Naim Nait 1 ( red light )
Kef C10 on stands.

This is an example of a vintage system without any Linn gear to point out there are also other musical brands.

In my opinion, not many modern systems below 3000 dollars beats this system in musicality.
This system is also a reminder of all the bad things happening with audio the last 40 years, were dsp room correction programs and lack of knowledge how to install a system is two of the worst.

Thanks for sharing Rutger. Only familiar with the Nait and modern P2. I feel the same about most modern components.

[Rutger]

I think most people would be very surprised If listening to a system with :

Rega planar 2 with AT95
Naim Nait 1 ( red light )
Kef C10 on stands.

This is an example of a vintage system without any Linn gear to point out there are also other musical brands.

In my opinion, not many modern systems below 3000 dollars beats this system in musicality.

This system is also a reminder of all the bad things happening with audio the last 40 years, were dsp room correction programs and lack of knowledge how to install a system is two of the worst.

And not many above it either!

True.