Thursday, 15 December 2016

Belden Bi-wire 1810A speaker cable

My previous speaker cables were QED Original with Nakamichi banana plugs that I've ordered from Amazon UK. I was satisfied with the cable for quite some time with my previous Bowers and Wilkins 685 s1 speakers as I didn't use Bi-wire feature on them. Many people mention they sound better on single wire and I wasn't too eager to try different.

However, when I changed to Nautilus 805's , I realize I only have Bi-wire terminals on speakers without jumper cables so I decided to do some online research about speaker wires and also some of the experts I know for the opinions.

 One of the biggest experts in Hifi and audio that I know is my parent's friend from Croatia (Mr. Miro) and I quote his reply ;
"When it comes to speaker wires , they do make a difference to the sound. Wires have resistance that should be minimized but also they have inductive and capacity component which do not have great effect with smaller lengths. Cable should not be rolled (inductive component) or too close in parallel (capacity component). You should take minimum 4mm2 wire. "

 Another advise on which cables to buy I got from Mr Colin who is running his own company in Singapore setting up professional studio equipment ;
"Bi-wire and single wire give us different effect.Bi give you maybe more stage feel and single maybe more musical...for project installation we always use Belden or Canare audio cables."

This advises have greatly narrowed my choice and I found a shop in Sim Lim Tower selling the mentioned Belden and Canare cables LHS Electronics Enterprise .
Mr Robert from LHS was the sales who helped me find the cable. I decided to go with Belden bi-wire 1810A.
I recommend this shop ,service is excellent. I wanted about 30 mins for uncle to fix all the plugs and spades on the cable ends. He did it very professional.
Sound using Bi-wire really makes a difference on n805 speakers! It's quite 'stage' sounding that I like because I listen to lot's of electronic music. Sound with this upgrade seems to be crispier a bit more accurate with slightly lower bass extension.
Reason why I decided to go for Bi-wire and 16 connectors is in case one day I decide to Bi-amp the speakers. I 'm very pleased with my purchase, money well spent! :)





 

Tuesday, 6 December 2016

Bowers and Wilkins Nautilus 805 - my new speakers

Finally I've upgraded speakers after a loong search. Since I sold my 602 S3 , I wasn't really completely satisfied with what was on market so I bought B&W 685's.  They are great speakers, but I wanted more.Upgrade bug. I wanted all that was in 602 S3 and in 685 and better. Now I got it all with Nautilus 805! I was lucky to find one good cherry pair on sale. They have some small scratches so the deal was good and the sound is simply amazing! Studio quality, deep bass, silky highs and clear mid range.Very nice sounding vocals.
I love it and it plays great on my Cambridge Audio setup. I use my previous B&W stands and the support is good enough.  That was actually my main concern before buying , because during audition they were connected on other expensive equipment and original stands.

My precious! :D

Review - http://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/168/

Replacing the rubber surround on Audioengine active speaker

I've decided to replace the rubber surround on one of my speaker because it was previously badly repaired by some lousy "repair man" at Sim Lim Square. I paid $35 to fix one speaker and he completely messed it up. After a while I couldn't take it any more thus I removed the bad surrounding that was very ugly and ordered matching replacement rubber and glue from online shop - speakerworks.com.
They sent step by step instructions how to fix it. Since the cone is small on this speakers I've manage to center it properly.
I'm happy with the results as repair now looks more professional then it was done before.  What's even more important it sounds good!  Some photos of the process per below.









Replacing lens on Cambridge Audio Azur 640 v2 CD player

I bought this CD player second hand because I loved the looks and I knew that it wasn't always reading all the CD's. However, one day it completely stopped reading any CD's. After reading on many forums people were suggesting to clean to lenses. I did that, many times without fixing the problem.
I wanted to sell it after that because I was thinking somebody will buy it and fix it. It didn't happen.
So what to do? I spent some time online and ordered some parts from China. Replaced the complete CD transport and now it plays again like it's new!

Some photos of the process. See all the way below instructions;









There is only one important point to note. The laser as supplied new has a solder link in place to protect the it from static electricity damage. You need to remove this small link with a soldering iron or knife. This is shown in the last picture of this listing. It is to the left of the connector on the laser. 

1.Since the laser diode of this parts assembly is treated to prevent itself from electrostatic breakdown,make sure to remove the solder.  
2.Solder iron must use the thing static electricity.  
3.Do not shock.  
4.Do not touch lens by hands.  
5.Do not touch any adjustable parts since they have been adjusted at the factory 



 It works great! Very happy with the repair.