Greetings,
My setup is as follows: speakers: Dunlavy SCIII's, amp: VAC Avatar standard, subwoofer: Hsu 1220(?) w/500W amp, turntable/cartridge: SpaceDeck/Dynavector 20XL, cd: Rega Apollo, speaker wire: Synergistic Alpha Quad, Room Treatment: misc foam and homemade Shakti Hallographs ( Misc: 30 band graphic eq, Chang lightspeed, black sand power cable, speaker spikes, brass supports, maple bases)
First a few minor insights/observations. Recently after about 5 years I ended up moving my listening chair about 16" forward mainly due to the fact that every time I leaned forward in my chair it sounded--better. For a long time I thought it was just that I was hearing louder (better) sound because my head was closer to the speakers therefore the db was raised and so on. What I learned was, If it sounds better, it is better--at least until you find a way to make the better sound sound better! So I now move my chair forward for listening as not only is speaker placement critical, listener placement is as well!
I have found myself listening to vinyl 90% of the time, I recently upgraded from a Nottingham Horizon, both bought sight un-heard, same for the VAC Avatar, so thanks to all you reviewers whose comments are of value. Over the years I have of course experimented with various tweeks and have noticed subtle but noteworthy changes, but for my money (and time) my homemade Shakti Hallographs are something I would not want to be without. I put about 30 hours into making them and if you paid me $30 an hour to make from scratch they would cost about $1000 so I highly recommend giving them a try. Also, for any EL34 fans, I am using new stock Tung Sols, they have added a punch. Lastly, I want to plug the controversial topic of EQ. I use a 30 band eq and find it invaluable for smoothing the bass and other areas. I tried a digital Behringer model but did not like what it did to the sound, especially the highs. If I could, I would want a remote controlled eq that I could tailor to my own liking, such as any recordings that are too bright or not bassey with multiple presets, perhaps conforming to what HP writes about with RIAA problem, because so many recordings are so different from each other.
OK, now to the topic for those of you with knowledge, I throw myself upon the mercy of the court. The question for YOU is: If this were my system, I would __________________. I am toying with the idea of speaker wire upgrade, amplifier upgrade via electronics upgrade, speaker upgrade, etc. Keep in mind that " I could happily live with my current sytem" (and do) but whenever anybody says that, of course it means they won't, it's just a hypothetical that helps sweeten the sour grapes of system building. And I'm anticipating a question such as: what are you not getting out of your system that causes this question? Hmmmm. More Wilson type deep bass or crisp clean highs--actually the midrange is pretty good. Part of all this is the "what's next" of constantly wanting more in the never ending quest for audio nirvana. Thanks for listening!
The VAC electronics are known for their wondeful midrange, but the presentation is a little soft in the bass and treble. You might consider borrowing another amplifier from a local dealer and seeing how your system sounds with something like the Pass Labs INT-150 integrated amplifier.