Current HiFi setup  ;

 Here is a photo of my current setup. You can notice new B&W STAV24 speaker stands and The Chord Company speakers cables. This current setup seems to be good enough since I don't really play music very loud (how i used to do) thus smaller Rotel amp does the job.

If I think about some improvement - maybe I will get some sound-proofing material.

Meanwhile , I'm just enjoying music every day. :)

 

 

 

Big changes in setup

Couple of months ago I've sold the following B&W 805N , CM1 and speaker stands with speaker wires.

Sadly, Emotiva UPA-2 was sold as well and I've shifted my CXN and QED interconnect cables overseas. 

New in system are TV Hitachi : http://tv.hitachi.eu/eu/en/product/58/43HAK6150/specifications .

It's best value buy I could find . I like smart features and ultra HD picture.

I have new black B&W 805S speakers .  I was very sad selling 805N so I had to grab these. 👍

I also have brand new B&W speaker stands (haven't install them yet) and new The Chrod Company speakers cables.

Currently I listen to my old Mission 702 speakers , while sooner or later will sell those and bring back the B&W's.

Rotel RA1060 is now heart of my system as I prefer amp that doesn't take up too much space.

 

 

Ipad 10.2 inch

It's been a year or so since I've sold my old ipad 3 and bought new 2019 10.2 inch Ipad 7 (WiFi,32GB Black). It's faster ,lighter and it has slightly bigger screen. What more to write about ipad? It's the best tablet you can buy at thi price. Period.

New android phone Mi9 SE

 After over 4 years of using my old iphone 6 time has come and I've replaced it with new Xiaomi Mi9 SE phone. I've got Redmi Note 8 for my wife and she is very happy with it.

 I've took version with 128 GB blue in color as that was the only one left in shop. Phone comes with one year warranty and so far it's been with me over 2 months. I have to say phone is really good. I have no regrets of buying it as it's hardware works well and it's a sleek looking devide as well with nice screen.  

Moving from iOS back to Android wasn't a easy task and it took me a while to transfer all my things.

Bigger (Samsung) AMOLED screen is welcomed due to  bigger viewing area however accidental touch of any edge of the screen will result in pressing things wrongly when I play game :P.

 Customization is always good, dual SIM cards slot , IR port as well as on screen built in fingerprint reader are great features. 

So , what I don't like? Xiaomi camera app sucks. I use Gcam instead.
No headphone jack. No memory card slot.Some built in apps come with free adds.
But considering price paid - I can't be bothered about it.It's still a great phone. :)

Many reviews can be found online ; 

https://www.trustedreviews.com/reviews/xiaomi-mi-9-se

Bowers and Wilkins CM1 s1

I saw this little CM1 s1 speakers on sale and I just had to buy them because I always wanted to own B&W CM series as they look stunning.
How do they sound? There are many reviews online, but most accurate review I found is here is here. In short, what you get is about 80% of performance for 1/3 of price of 805n. Of cos they can't replace 805's  as my main speakers but they do offer a lot at this price point. They are better sounding than B&W 685 speakers for sure and they can be very enjoyable to listen if you don't over force them at high levels with too demanding music tracks. Size of speaker just cannot cope with that. But simple jazz or even rock music in a smaller listening area is where they shine with great imaging and control. Only minus would be their low sensitivity at around 84 dB per W/m. But, if you have proper amp with enough power to drive them this shouldn't be a problem.
 Annoyingly I lost one of the screws from speaker terminal and already ordered new one from official B&W shop for about S$20.

Even my cat approves them. :)

Emotiva UPA-2 new heart of my setup

It's been a while since my last post, there are some interesting changes in my setup. :)  I've sold my Cambridge Audio 740 amplifier mainly due lcd display  'burned' out. :/

I was monitoring second hand market for Emotiva amps and finally I found used UPA-2 that I quickly picked up from seller. What I didn't pay attention is that front panel had some 'spots' on it that end up to be a pain as I was annoyed by it.

I tried everything - polishing , cleaning , even painting it, however special type of blacked brushed aluminium is impossible to fix thus I end up buying another front panel and fixing it.

 But, why 'Emotiva'? Unknown brand? You may wonder. So did I , until back few years I've heard my speakers on Emotiva amp from seller. I was amazed with the sound and bass reproduction thus it was a non-brainer to get one of this amps after that.Just had to find one used because  I didn't want to buy new because of import and shipping cost - and I'm glad I didn't - because old Emotiva UPA-2 is heavier as it uses passive cooling while new models use active (fan) and many people complain about that.

Since Emotiva UPA-2 is a power amp, I'm now using my CA CXN in pre-amp mode. Other components are connected using digital inputs on CXN. 

Verdict : Amazing upgrade. I just can't believe that an amp can make such a difference. Cambridge audio was a good amp, but it simply couldn't feed 805n with enough current to control the bass like Emotiva does. This is what I needed to wake my speakers up and demonstrate their full potential. Now I just listen music and enjoy every day. :) 

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! :)

 

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.

 

Replacing tweeter on B&W 685 S1 speaker

I have replaced dented tweeter on one of my Bowers and Wilkins 685 s1 speaker with the new one.

 It was quite simple process that took me about 20 mins.

 New tweeter costs about 100$ plus shipping but I found mine for about 80$ with delivery included.

Some photos & notes as per below;

Use your nails to pull out the plastic/rubber cover;

Make sure you use right torque with screws holding the mid-woofer.

Slide the box to side so woofer comes out

 

Use your hand to unscrew plastic ring that holds the tweeter

Dented tweeter is out

Repeat same steps to install new one.

Done!

Bowers & Wilkins 685 , QED reference 40

 I sold previous B&W 602 s3 after I had to repair them and bought 685's to replace them. 

 Sound is similar as before, more details in mid range and a top, however , bottom is not as deep as before. I expected this due to reduced cabinet and meantime I ordered MS Alumni 9 subwoofer.

These speakers are slightly less sensitive at 88dB and have power handling at 100wRMS. They sound excellent with both rotel and CA amp, but as usual for this brand - more power you feed them  is better.

It took them about two weeks to burn in because previous owner used them as surround only. I had to be more careful with positioning to get best results.

For now I'm pleased with the sound, looking forward to add on sub.

685 s1

Testing different amps. I also upgraded to new interconnect RCA - QED reference 40.

Room acoustic treatment

Notice the acoustics treatment panels behind speakers and the bass trap in the corner. 

After  installation that was quite simple , room acoustic is improved and the music sounds better. 

I have two additional panels and one more bass trap that I keep in another room. 

Iphone 6 , Ipad 3

 Forgot to update this two gadgets. I've been using iphone for quite some time already.
I bought new one , 64GB version silver grey and using privacy glass filter on it. Really excellent phone, made me move away from Samsung, but I still keep the S4 as a spare phone.

Recently I bought used ipad3 (cellular ,16 GB retina display). I use it for Spotify and music apps control, but it's also an excellent device for surfing web. For what I need this older ipad is great.

        

Replacing the rubber surrounds on B&W 602 S3 speakers

 My cat revenged on one of the speakers and left a hole in the rubber surrounding the cone.
 I've ordered the replaceable rubber surrounds and glue from online shop in Europe and shipped it back to Singapore. Good friend suggested to leave this work to experts because it's not easy to do the cone centering. After researching ,I found the old repair shop servicing speakers in Burlington square (Martin electronics) who did good job repairing.
After repair was done in 2-3 days , I've mounted back the mid-bass units and the music is back! :)  

Cambridge audio new setup

I'm very pleased with the sound upgrade. Still keeping the B&W 602 s3 as I can't find better speaker under 1k. 

Sony Playstation 4

After a long period of thinking and deciding if I should buy a gaming desktop PC or playstation4 decision has been made. Well experienced staff in shop explained to me that I's better to buy bundle including the game because I will get additional one year free membership and extra warranty.
Graphics look really amazing on playstation 4, especially when I hook it up to big HD TV. Controller is wi-fi and it has many functions. Really impressive device.Now enjoying the GTA 5.:)

ASUS Fonepad 7

I bought ASUS Fonepad 7 tablet maybe half year ago. It serves it's purpose mostly for streaming music via soundcloud and for surfing & playing games. Performance wise it can't compare to Samsung S4, but it's still a useful device with it's 3G feature and it's dual SIM card support is very useful when traveling overseas.

Upgrades to my AV - 50' Sharp TV LC-50LE460X , Teac CD-P1260, Rotel RA-1060

It's been a while since my last update. I have many new gadgets, and I've just sold my previous Rotel amp and tuner.
This post is dedicated to my upgraded living room system , as follows;

• 50' Sharp Aquos TV LC-50LE460X - digital ready - it's not a smart TV because I still use my WDTV for watching movies and streaming music/ internet radio.
• Integrated amplifier Rotel RA-1060 - comes with remote control. Unit is using large toroidal transformer. Power is more than suffitient for my living room 60watts rms per channel (8ohms).
• Interconnects are QED Performance Graphite Stereo Interconnect and QED Qunex (that I use for CD as sounds much better). I've just ordered same brand speaker wire with Nakamitchi plugs thus I'll review it later.
• CD player Teac CD-P1260 I've ordered it online from USA since I couldn't find it in Singapore. Amazing sound for it's budget price. It plays mp3s as well.
• My cable TV /Samsung HD receiver is also connected to amplifier seperatly via it's analog outputs.

Toshiba TV , B&W 602 s3 speakers

New setup; 42" Toshiba TV, Bowers & Wilkins 602 s3 speakers.

  

I heard this speakers many years ago at my friend's house and that made it easier for me to decide - buy them or not. How do they sound? Powerful, yet very clear and enjoyable.Quite sensitive speaker at 90dB but still eats amp's power at ease. Slightly over bright highs but deep and controlled bass.Even second hand,these don't come cheap but it was well worth the money. Next in plan are speaker stands & CD player.