Introductions Thread

[kay]

Welcome everyone! As Greg suggested, it would be cool to know who's who and what system they have (or plan on building). So let me be the first

My real name's Pavel, I'm in Jo'burg, and like most yuppies these days -- work in IT I'm a petrolhead of note, and only recently became interested in HiFi. Always been a huge cinema and music fan so it's only natural but I never really had the funds to get nice kit. So over the last half a year or so I've been learning about HiFi and listening to various systems, and of course planning my own one.

Finally about two months ago I bought a used Denon 2105 receiver, which I was using with a PC-based DVD source and a (crappy) pair of borrowed speakers. I had to return the speakers two weeks ago so now I really have to buy something I also have a Sansui CD player which looks pretty decently built but I haven't had a chance to evaluate it properly - speakers were always the limiting factor.

I've listened to the B&W DM300, Wharfedale Evo's, Mordaunt-Short Avant's and out of those the B&W and Evo's are my favourites. I plan on listening to the Acoustic Energy Aegis and the Monitor Audio Bronze series and hopefully making a purchase soon. At least I've decided on a budget - I'd like to spend about 8-10k on speakers excluding the sub (for a 5-channel setup). Perhaps I should find a shop that has the Quad L series as well, been reading great things about those.

I also plan on building an HTPC to become my DVD player and music jukebox, and in the long term getting a DLP projector. No sub for now due to neighbour proximity  :oops:

Your turn now

[skinnyfat]

Hey Kay

Sorry, looks like I started a similar thread while you were posting this..

Hello all

My real name is Greg (as well), Reside in durbs, 30 yrs old. I dont have a lounge, just a home cinema . Fortunately my wife enjoys HC as well. My current ( I say current because it does change now and again  :wink: ) kit list is below in my sig. Met Kay on an overseas forum along with kuberkoos and alphabet and we said lets get this thing going in SA. Thanks kay for getting it up and running, this is your gig and you've done well. This forum is here to help those in need of advice, discuss A/V and generally make the SA community aware of home cinema should be. Enjoy one and all.

Skinny

[kay]

Congrats on the Yamaha, Greg! Only noticed now. Fantastic receiver.

P.S. Forgot to mention that I'm 22, and among other things studying Computer Science at UNISA

P.P.S. Sig updated!

[skinnyfat]

Thanks

BRILLIANT amp. Thats all I can say about it   wanted the Rotel rsx1067 but budget couldnt afford it. Maybe next year :lol:

Skinny

[tptb]

I am Andrew.  Live in Gauteng, was informed of this site by Kay, who ever so often uses his real name and confuses me.

I have various items including Krell, Theta, B&W, Aura, Marantz, Rotel, Infinity and the cheapest and nastiest LG HT system you would ever not want to hear.

Anything else?

[tptb]

I also have a Sansui CD player which looks pretty decently built

Oh - the system in the bar has a Sansui amp.  Actually works quite nicely if not the last word in control. (Rotel 865 used as transport/Theta Progeny DAC/said sansui amp/B&W LM1's/dont even ask me what cables and interconnects but they are not good)

[Viagara]

Hi Guys

OK, let me jump onto the bandwagon as well! Seeing that I appears to be oldest so far, it takes a while to get going! Ha, Ha, Ha! Oh yes, Kay that may be another reason for us differing on the MS908s - my hearing has not escaped from years of relentless pounding!

I am Abe and I reside in Cape Town. I cannot be classified as a yuppie, but I am also in the IT field.

I have always been interested in sound, well since I bought my first "hifi" in 1977. I have only been introduced to the magic of Home Theatre about two years ago when I bought a Sansui receiver which lasted less than two years and was replaced by a Yamaha RX-V450 that I found disappointing power-wise. At that stage I used a mix of speakers B&W DM560 fronts, Wharfedale centre, Tannoy MX1 surrounds & Wharfedale sub.

Since January I have been auditioning speakers with the idea of only replacing the speakers and I have listened to all the different speakers I could source in CT - MS, Monitor Audio, Sonor Audio, Kef, Cerwin Vega, Mission, B&W, Boston Accoustic, Wharfedale.

Eventually I purchased the MS Avant series as it appealed to my ears and was very good value for money. Whilst in the shop I listened to the Cambridge Audio Azur 540R after reading glorious reviews and promptly decided to include that in my purchase - for once I made a impulsive decision that was well worth it, as I am still extremely impressed with this powerful, no-nonsense receiver.

But, it does not mean that it all stop here! I already have my eye on a Parasound power amp to bi-amp my front speakers! Why? Because it can be done! I just have to find a way to justify that to my other half!

Phew! Enough verbal diarrhea for now!

[kay]

I used the word yuppie jokingly, I'm quite far from that in reality

[Viagara]

Don't worry, we know that. Same here, firstly not young enough, secondly don't have all the flashy things to qualify:-)

[siphiwe]

Hello

I'm Siphiwe and I'm in Durbs. Kay posted a link to this site in another site. I love music.

My main system is : Classé Seventy/Thirty Pre/Power Amp, B&W 602S3 and Marantz 5400OSE.  The other is : Arcam Delta 90.2 Amp, Philips CD720 and Paradigm Titans.

Thanks for the site Kay. Oh! I'm 31.

[kay]

Welcome, hope you enjoy it here Excellent systems!

[kuberkoos]

jikes. i missed this thread. pleased to meet you guys. i'm koos. i work in IT. (along with 60% of this forum it seems... :wink: )

i recently got back into AV hardware after my previous HT setup was burgled. :evil: i like to believe that i'm into this hobby largely for the "right reasons"  :!: i.e. the movies, music, artists and performances. but i'm a HOPELESS gadgeteer so the equipment and technical sides interest me as well.

i listen to most things (with some "popular" exceptions ). i listen from steely dan to slayer, tori amos to tool, rachmaninoff to revolting cocks, 'nude girls to nina hagen & fleetwood mac to faith no more. at the moment i tend to favour the medium and heavier stuff.

chz,
kk

[Dolby]

Hi,

Just found this AV forum now (looking for a place to post a classad) and I think it's really something that was needed! I'd like to be able to ask questions, advice, pricing and availabily from South Africans!

Anyway, I'm 25 , live in Randburg and I'm currently not working. I'm simply standing in for a lady on maternity leave. I've been interested in audio video for a while, but lack the funds to really get what I want I enjoy both home and car sound.

Currently at home I have a Marantz CD17 MKII KI Signiture, Marantz DV6400 universal player, Onkyo 575 amplifier, MBQuart/AR speakers and a Velodyne subwoofer. Speak cable is Cable Talk. In the car I have MBQuart splits/coaxials, JL Audio 12" subwoofer, Kenwood Mask head unit and Infinty/Targa amplifier. Speaker cable is Stinger

[Timber_MG]

Hi guys (there is no PC-neutral term for soundman afik)

I am mostly active in the pro-sound fora on the internet thesedays (speakerplans.com and the german paforum.de), though as many I got hooked on the art over at DIYaudio from as early back as we had an internet connection just about in the late 90s when I was still in high-school (gasp).

After getting involved in pro-sound I always missed the dynamics in hi-fi gear and local cinemas (many have not had the pleasure of a well equiped cinema, IMAX is just the start) and the more I got involved into building my own kit and researching the acoustics behind small rooms the more my listening taste got trained to the the advantages of high directivity high clean output systems. An appreciation for large orchestral works and electronic music helps in this regards too I suppose and people always think I am crazy when I tell them that good stereo is better than crappy surround.

At the moment I am doing a practical for my 4th year of study (B.IT at Tuks) in Pietermaritzburg and only have my trusty pair of Beyerdynamic DT-880 headphones and my PC for sound (I don't own a CD-player and would likely have turntables before I purchase such a device). Foobar 2000's crossfeed works wonders on the small soundstage of headphones (which one gets used to) and the detail retrieval leaves almost any speaker for dead.

My main home rig is a pair of Tannoy HPD 386 (15" dual concentric) speakers in large vented oak enclosures, but these are currently being rebuilt by my carpenter. Then I have lots of little hi-fi projects floating around unfinished (from a large 3x6.5"/4"/1" floorstander to a rear-loaded horn 4" fullrange). I have over the yeas ammassed mroe components than I care to count up.

My passion for pro-sound gear has ended up with 4x Behringer EP2500 (no fan noise with 20m long cables ;-) a little Yammy mixing desk (for pre and measurement mic preamp) and a whole host of Kit (4x 15", 6x18", 2x12" cone drivers, 10x1"exit drivers with horns, 4 x large format 1.4" exit drivers with horns) which is waiting for time to finish building the various PA kit. My small toy system is two 18" in 185l enclosures with extremely solid bracing and tops containing 12" P.Audio neo mid-basses and 1" horns (RCF H100). LF is 97dB@1W Mid is 95.5dB@1W and HF around 113dB sensitive, so one can hear some hiss close up. All active and run by a Behringer Ultradrive DCX2496. Cross 130Hz, 1.5khz acoustic and the whole system is within+/- 1.5dB from 35hz-19kHz with a slight post 1kHz contour. Sound is not quite perfect yet (mostly due to the cabinett which with even more bracing would makeit impractical for PA use) but more than pleasing on classical works, even with more demanding vocals. Electronic music is a laugh on this system, the anti bose when it comes to dynamcis and neutrality (try the Berlios death mass with 50 kettle drums and 4 full orchestra brass sections, I routinely shock people wiith this)

Only thing is, that with so little distoriton, people turn to tell me something and only then realize how load it actually is. Scarry (just like headphones regarding SPL). I have mild tinitus since a bout of meningitis, so I dose my SPL carefully and take along hearing protection when needed.

[/ramblings]

Martin

PS: hope this forum grows, perhaps even some meets organized sometime, as there is not enough communal sharing in this country in audio as people are sop widely dispersed. Unlike London where the London-live DIY audio round circle used to meet at least nce a month and have home meets. Wonderfull what the internet can do to build up communities.

[Hennie]

Hi Guys,

I am 48, an electronic engineer and live in Pretoria. I became interested in audio at a very young age, and started DIYing amplifiers and speakers in the late 70's.

Current interests are high efficiency speakers, dipole speakers, acoustical waveguides, HTPC, digital speaker processing and digital room correction. I'll stick to two channel stereo for the time being. When I have achieved my fidelity targets with stereo, I will consider expanding to surround. I hope to achieve my targets with DIY high efficiency, controlled directivity, and maybe dipole speakers. Longer term I'll replace my current sub with an infinite baffle sub.

Hope to have fruitful discussions with all. Good to see some DIY discussions too.

I have the following:

Rotel RCD-971 CD Player
Rotel RC-995 Pre-amp
Rotel RB-991 Power amp
Pioneer DV366 DVD player
Sonus Faber Grand Piano speakers (old version)
Sonus Faber Gravis sub

Previously used:

Linkwitz active sub/sat system
Tannoy 15" coaxial in dipole configuration
Yamaha NS-1000
Wilson Watt / Puppy / Bryston