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I have been on the horns of a dilema regarding refurbing or replacing my BOM amplifier sounds great when working, will it last another 10 years if repaired? would I be better off with a new/newish amplifier?. I have worn the lettering off my keyboard researching amplifiers for Quad 57's not that I had not read it all before, Net Quad 303, Radford, Leak, Mullard, Ming Da, the list goes on, I re read the the 6 Moons write-up on amps for 57's http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/r...our3again.html. I then read up on the No 2 amp the Rogue Atlas, I could not afford ?20000 at current prices for the No. 1. I found one on another forum, so my son & I undertook the journey from dismal overcast NW london to rain in Seaford. To be met by the sunny and effervescent Steve. He could not have been a more charming host, who had suggested that I took LP's & CD's with me I listened to the amp via his "maggies" in sumptuous comfort in his cavernous lounge where Quads & the amp did not work for him. Once I had decided to buy, he showed me how to bias the tubes/valves he even reset the 4ohm taps to 8ohm for me as I watched . The amp has 4 x KT120's fitted I was also supplied with 4 x KT90's their amp top plate & what was ?200 option. I joined it to my quads today, once warmed up all was syergy & bliss not quite as much apparent bass as my previous amp, however more accurate & superior in every other way.

Good evening to you all..... I currently run my Hifiman HE-500 headphones via the headphone output of the MDAC but I have been wondering if I am getting the best out of the headphones,being orthodynamic and all that. They sound ok ,although I could do with a bit more volume,but they are not wowing me. My question is could the performance of the headphone be improved by the addition of a dedicated headphone amp....I have read that the Schiit Lyr amp drives them to magnificence mainly due to the high dynamic power on tap,but was also wondering about upgrading the cable and using the Balanced outputs on the MDAC as an alternative to getting a dedicated amp. If I went down this route what improvements could I expect and how would I configure the cable for my headphones.Sorry for all the queries but I am a bit of a dullard with this sort of thing!! would I still be able to keep the interconnect in the unbalanced analog sockets on the MDAC while I was using the XLR outputs. Would appreciate some replies and help on this..preferably someone who has gone down the same route and recommendations for xlr headphone cables that dont break the bank!! I saw one for sale in a US hi fi shop for over ?1000 dollars! Cheaper to buy a headphone amp as the Lyr retails for ?419 here in the UK. Sounds a bit of a bargain to me?

Thinking about putting my Spacedeck up for sale and just wanted to do an interest check first, to see if this is the best place to sell? Comes with Spacearm and new Denon DL-110 just fitted by Deco Audio, all in excellent condition. Would be looking for ?1000.00 Will have made up my mind by the weekend. Cheers, Bill

Advice please. I got a small bonus from work this Xmas and decided to buy a camera. I'd been taking more and more pics on my i phone and thought the bonus would be a chance to have a real camera for the first time since I was a student. I was going to go for a CSC but the good people in Jessops ( the week before it shut) talked me round to an entry level DSLR - I went home with a Canon 1100D, a 50mm prime and a cheap Tamron 70-300 zoom. Having been bitten by the bug I then picked up a Fuji x10 as a carry round. Having taken a 1000 or so shots and done some reading up I'm wondering whether I should have picked up a higher spec camera. I'm getting some good shots, especially with the prime, but am finding the kit lens pretty unexceptional by comparison and while the 1100 seems efficient enough it's menu doesn't really lend itself to adjusting settings... and it feels very plasticky compared to the Fuji which is a much more enjoyable camera to use in that tactile sense. If I'm looking to upgrade would you recommend getting a better body - a 60D or 650D say - or keeping the 1100D, keeping on the learning curve but looking for a better quality zoom lens (18mm-70mm?)to get similar quality images as with the 50mm. Budget around ?300 - with potential for a bit of trade in if I change bodies. I did for a while ponder fogging the Canon, the lenses and the Fuji and going for a x100s but I quite like the choice of the two cameras - they do different things which is good for me as a relative rookie. Any advice appreciated. Kevin

Thought this might just be a reminder that there is always someone out there trying to scam us out of our money . Many will know of the pitfalls that can be on the bay. Well I want some Martin Logan Speakers so in my search for some Martin Logan Speakers I spotted and add very recently, Martin Logan Audiophile Speakers Theos, Stage, & Dynamo1000w in London ?10,000 new. Ok so could buy the package for the right money and sell the sub and center if not keepers and the Theos are current .. The seller was new to Ebay, No History, and very little detail to the goods, age, reason for changing and so on. So everybody has to start sometime on Ebay but better safe than sorry . So contacted seller and asked would it be OK to collect with cash if successful? No Reply! Placed bid giving the a benefit to my doubt, second email sent. No reply, so no more bids even if they didn't want collection a reply was needed. Auction ended at under ?1500 bargain, wow if genuine a good deal for the buyer but it seemed too good to be true and have missed out on ithence my caution. Guess what yep received email from Ebay Loss Prevention Department not to proceed with the purchase ect. ect so just a reminder to be cautious on Ebay if you go there.

This should be interesting. i was once yold by a hi-fi dealer that Quad equipment was pipe and slippers stuff. i have owned very little Quad gear over the years and moved it on because it was a little grey sounding. However, in the right system does it boogie? The 606 power amp i always felt could do with a little more pizaz. does it's successor the 909 do the job?;)

As we all know Amazon are under the cosh at the moment for paying bog all corporation tax on their UK earnings. Whilst this rankles with me I have to admit buying from Amazon is just so easy and fuss-free 99% of the time. One questions I have, if you buy from an Amazon Seller does the correct proportion of your money end up in the UK coffers? Often a highly rated Amazon seller has the same item for a similar price. If so it would be a good way to get the benefits both ways. Just a thought. Jonathan

Every hifi owner should own a copy oy of On her Majesty's Secret Service by The Propellerheads. a great burn in disc if ever i heard one. Mine is the vinyl version i bought for four quid at Sound it out Stockton on Tees. Thunder in your living roon. should carry a heaalth warning.;)

I'm experimenting with a radically different room arrangement, but my current speaker cables are much too short. I've been using Transparent Music Wave and I like them, so I'm looking for something of similar quality, but about 6m long. At least one of the them needs to be 6m whilst the other needs only be 2.5. If anyone has a SINGLE 6m run of Transparent Music Wave that would be of interest too.

The queen mother apparently liked it and she lived to a hundred. I gather at her last Christmas at Windsor she didn't feel like eating but managed down for two glasses of Krug.