20 years in the making - my Cyrus/Arcam/Mission system

Sweet system.

I know Andy in person and have heard this system for real, it sounds really great, even at low volumes there is plenty of tight bass and a good balanced sound.

What I am wondering though, since this is a 5.1 system, what sort of kit would give comparable sound for stereo only?

Andy G XXX:

My dad used to have a great B&O system at home when I was growing up and I saved up my pennies from my paper round to buy an Ariston Q deck from Acoustic Arts in Watford, which opened up just a few doors down from where we lived. Around about the same time I stafted reading What Hi Fi and over the years have followed the reviews and enjoyed some great kit. As a student I saved up for the Rotel RCD 965BX back in the days when CD was relatively new and the debate about bitstream vs multibit was raging. Added a DPA PDM1 series 2 and was in hi fi heaven. Fell for a Sony CDP 3000ES and then for the Micromega Stage 4 which served in my main system until just last year when I could not resist the tempatation to buy the Cyrus CD8 SE.

I had a Roksan Caspian amp for a while but never warmed to it (it was an early model) and swapped it out for a multi channel Yamaha and  bobby basic Toshiba DVD as my attention turned towards home cinema. I moved on to an Arcam AVR300, loved it so much that I eventually went for an Arcam AV9/P7 which I don't plan on changing any time soon.

 My £25 second hand Sony speakers were replaced by Mission 733i's which served me well for many years and were eventually replaced by 782s. Then I upgraded to the  excellent 782SE's (Wow, enjoyment reached a whole new level) and eventually added the 780SE's as rears and got the matching centre. Subwoofer came later, when I picked up a Mission E8AS1. Then I was seduced by the awesome sound of the Mission Elegante range and swapped for the E83's/E81's/E8C & E8AS2 (not widely reviewed, but absolutely amazing).

For a long time I had a Grundig 32"CRT, but when my lovely wife suggested a flat screen was required I quickly obliged and picked up the Sony KDL 40 W2000. She was a bit unhappy when she saw the size of the box and I didn't actually get it out and set it up for 2 months, to allow for a cooling off period. All because she fell asleep in the car when we went to the Sony Centre and didn't come in (to be fair, she was heavily pregnant at the time). I also picked up a Sony HD/DVD recorder.

Other bits and pieces. Somewhere along the line I purchased the Isotek GII Minisub and having started out with Supra LoRad2.5 power leads I have replaced almost all of them with VdH Mainstreams. (If anybody knows anyone who can terminate one of these cables with a high current IEC I'd like to hear from you). I bi-amp the fronts with QED XT400 and use VdH interconnects between the amps (D102 Mk III), I also use the VdH First Ultimate to connect my CD player. Just added the PSX-R which makes a big difference in the system and has had me up late listening the last few nights!

 Two young children mean that the speakers have to sit in the corners, which is not ideal, but is a compromise on safety grounds.  I am saving up for a projector (possibly a JVC, and a blu ray, but I'm not sure what to go for?,...must have multi channel out's though). Any comments or suggestions are  most welcome.

 Thanks for reading my story, hope you like the pictures.

Very nice, although I'd be tempted to see how it sounds if you moved the rack with the Arcams on towards the TV unit, and move the speakers away from the corners.

Very beautiful setup and +1 on speakers away from corners.

Here's a couple of shots of the projector I bought a while ago.

It's great watching movies on the big screen!

HDMI is Black Rhodium Pearl

For music I have now upgraded to the Cyrus CD XT SE2

The transport is connected to the DPA PDM 1 Series 2 via a Missing Link Cryo Reference Binary Star

I also have a Bigger Bit which I experiment with sometimes along with the Dac in the AV9

I've also upgraded the interconnects with Missing Link Cryo Reference between the transport and AV9 and between the AV9 and the P7. I just need one more set for the out and in on the P7 as I am bi amping

Hi Andy

This is the first time I've seen your system which is lovely.....interesting mix of equipment with Cyrus and Arcam. I really rate the AV9/P7, and can see the reasoning for mixing it with the Cyrus.

Did you consider a streaming solution?

Cno

Many thanks Cno,

The Arcam/Cyrus combination works very well, with some vintage DPA in the middle it's a good showcase for the Brits!

I have not yet gone down the streaming route although the time will inevitably come and I recently picked up a new n router to replace my ageing g router. I don't really have a lot of spare time for listening to new music, which is what is holding me back. I did recently get an iPod and Wadia 170i, just for the convenience of being able to download a few tunes now and then. Funnily enough I may go down the vinyl route before I invest in streaming.

Short term I'm thinking about Tellurium Q black and longer term replacing the main speakers, and those are my priorities for now. Did you go down the Tellurium Q route yourself? I saw that you were impressed in another thread.

Andy

Very neat system. Agree with speakers away from corners and dare I suggest some moddest bass trapping? It will transform your system I recon. Happy listening

Hi Andy

With regard to streaming your music collection from a NAS.....once done, you'll never look back, and IMO a Linn DS is so good, it makes you question the need for the hassle of a TT (I had several over 15 years or so).

I don't use TQ, but Cardas cables.....but having heard the Blacks, I was so impressed that I have been recommending them since. There are now, a few very happy owners on here, which is great. IMO They are a "must listen" at their price range.....a good dealer will let you borrow them.

When you're ready to look at speakers, you might like to consider PMC and Kef R Series, which are a great match with Arcam.