I stopped by Whetstone Audio again today to visit Brian DiFrank and to find out what was new. He had this orange "University of Texas" Rega P3-24 set up with a Dynavector 10X5 cartridge running through the new LFD phono stage. He had a red felt mat on the platter which really matched well with the Dyna. I can imagine how striking this would look if it was one of the red P3-24s.
Brian, a fairly new Harbeth dealer, finally had a pair of the Compact 7-ES3s to demo. For those of you who have never heard this speaker, it is one of the best all-around monitors in the world. I couldn't believe how big and open the Harbeths sounded in Brian's big room. The bass was very impressive for what are basically a medium-sized pair of bookshelf monitors.
Since my brother Mat was with me (his first visit to Whetstone), Brian found the perfect music to audition (see above). We also listened to the new Grinderman album and even the Ohio Players. We were able to crank the volume up on this system to party levels with almost no strain. So much for the idea that British monitors are polite and reserved. The Compact 7s rocked!
I'm going to drop by again after the first of the year and give the new white Rega turntable belt a try. I've talked to a couple of engineers concerning how a mere belt can affect the sound of the Regas so dramatically, and there's some very sound reasons why. For every skeptic who may balk at the idea of a $59 rubber band, there will be others who will find that this is one of the most cost-effective upgrades you can make to your analog rig! I can't wait to give it a try...I've heard it once before and it does make a huge difference. In fact, Brian didn't even have any in stock because they're flying off the shelf. I've had no less than three Rega fans asks me why I haven't bought one already.
I will, I will!
No comments:
Post a Comment