First Impressions of all my new gear hooked up.

[Shicks18]

Well, over the summer I moved down to Houston and was able to snag a few good local deals on brand new LSi9s and HSU STF 2 and also bought a Parasound amp for pretty cheap on ebay and my marantz for about 60% off, just things I coulnd't pass up.

All my new gear was sitting up in my computer room in houston waiting to be shipped back to Columbia. I had to look at it not being used for about 6 weeks!!!

Anyway I finally got all of my stuff back and hooked up today so I will give my first impression rundown on all of my stuff.

LSi9s:
- The imaging is great. When listening in 2 channel, I would at times put my ear next to my center channel because I thought there was sound coming out, but nope!
- Plays instruments and female vocals extremely well.


HSU STF-2:
- 10x12 bedroom, so this covers all the bass I need.
- Had to turn the volume down to 50-60% because I was tired of having my head vibrate.
- A good punchy sound. No booms or long lasting rattles.
- In my room can it can hit low, hard, and fast.

Parasound HCA-1000A:
- Haven't cranked up my LSi9s very much but the 2 or 3 times I did, the amp kept up with ease.
- Doesn't run hot
- Some people have had issues with a hum or buzz. I did for the first 5 min of owning, then it disappeared.
- Delivers crips, clean, detailed power.

Marantz SR6001:
- Runs pretty warm, only used to power center, surr, surr back.
- Haven't explored this unit too much as of now.
- Seems to deliver pretty good on all of its features.
- A little difficult to navigate and turn on certain features. Some of this could be from unfamiliarity.
- Gives a good sound to the speakers it runs.

All in all I couldn't be any happier with my setup. The sub and 9s work extremely well together. The amp details the highs very well. I brought in a buddy of mine to hear it and all he could say was "I am beside myself right now"

All of the audio I have listened to have been MP3s, and live concerts. Can someone tell me how much of an improvement I will see when I use a nice CDP/DVD Player, and even SACD?

Thanks for taking the time in reading this, I will update my thoughts/opinions/experiences as I get used to this. If someone knows how long the 9s take to break in that would help me a lot!

- Scooter

[ben62670]

Glad to hear you are enjoying your system. Was the 6001 the source for your listening? SACD, CD, or both?
Thanks
Ben

[Shicks18]

I have my computer plugged into the sr6001 playing the music, and an xbox 360 playing dvds.

I plan on either getting an Oppo 980 or Marantz 6600 for sacd/cd/dvd

[nikolas812]

Sweet!!

Nothing worse than having to look at a bunch of gear and not being able to listen to it.

What are you using for a source right now?


Nick

[nikolas812]

I have my computer plugged into the sr6001 playing the music, and an xbox 360 playing dvds.

I plan on either getting an Oppo 980 or Marantz 6600 for sacd/cd/dvd

Would you be using the these for video to? Or just audio? If its just audio I think my Denon I have for sell would beat the crap out of the Oppo sound wise. I have owened both and the Denon is much better IMO. But the denon doesn't upconvert. So if you were going to use the other players for upconversion they would be better for that.


Nick

[Shicks18]

unfortunately, it will be 80% video, 20% audio.

[nikolas812]

Oh. well in that case the Oppo would excel.


By the way to answer your question. IMO I think there would be a improvement sound wise from what you are doing now. As for how much though. I'm not sure.



Nick

[Shicks18]

Do you know anything about the Marantz DV6600 ?

[nikolas812]

No sorry. I don't have any experience with marantz at all.




Nick

[Ron Temple]

Shicks get a SPL meter and calibrate, in a room your size you shouldn't have to turn the sub's amp up past 9:00.

[Shannon W.]

Hey Shicks,
Great review! I've been watching your system build up and I'd like to say congratulations! I looked at the HSU stuff before I bought my SVS. I do have one question for you. Is that system in TX or MO.? I live about an hour east of St. Louis. I can tell you that SACD & DVD Audio really make the LSi stuff stand out. I have a Pioneer player that does both and to tell you the truth I listen to my iPod the the small collection of SACD and DVD Audio. but I had to remove (because of I ran out of room in my rack for more wires) the 6 Channel Audio Output cables. But no big deal.
Shannon

[Shicks18]

Thanks Shannon. My system (and myself) are in MO. If your a Mizzou fan send me a PM!

Ron, my subs volume is more around 7 o'clock.

[candyliquor35m]

Go tigers. I grew up 60 miles from there. I got to play in the hearnes center my senior year of hs when we went to state. Lost both games tho :(

Got suspended from playing the first or 2nd game for getting caught in some girls room after curfew. It rocked.

[Shicks18]

hahaha! that place is used for gymnastics, wrestling, and volleyball now. Both basketball teams moved to Mizzou Arena

[Shannon W.]

Shicks,
PM sent to ya. L8ER!
Shannon

[Shannon W.]

Hell, I only have my SvS at like the 9 o'clock position. thats like the first notch. and it still will pull 8 amps at times. LoL
Shannon

[DesertPilot]

Hi there and congrats on your LSi9s! I've owned mine now for a few years and still love the sound they produce. There's a lot of controversy around SACD vs. CD for sound quality. But, I will offer you this comment from my experience. Multi-Channel SACD or DVD-A is absolutely breathtaking...especially classical and jazz. My favorite right now is the DVD-A included in the "Return of the King" soundtrack from Lord of the Rings (it's a bit expensive because both CD and DVD-A are included in the package). I own plenty of SACDs as well. You LSi9s will sound quite impressive.

Looks like audio engineers and studios are beginning to migrate away from DVD-A and SACD over to Blu Ray format. You might want to invest in a less expensive SACD player like OPPO so you can afford a better Blu Ray player. Only time will tell if blu ray becomes the format most supported by music studios.

Marcus

[nikolas812]

Did you get your stands?

If so How are you liking the nines now?





Nick

[AndyGwis]

Shicks, there are plenty of reasonably priced sources. I think a good starting point would be to get a decent universal that plays everything (DVD, CD, SACD). If you aren't too concerned with it having the latest video features (HDMI, 1080i/p, etc.), you can get one for $100 - $200 that will sound good.

I really liked my pioneer elite dv-59avi. Great sound and video. Can probably find one for $200-ish if you look around. Denon 2200/2900, Marantz 8400/8500, etc.

Lot of good options. Others like Oppo for a budget player. If you are looking to spend more than $200, tons of good options out there.

[Shicks18]

Nick - I got the stands all set up, and yes it improved the sound.

Andy - My budget for a universal player is <$200. My two options I am looking at are the Oppo980 and Marantz DV6600. Im not set on anything yet though.