For me it was a challenge to locate a sound system that that followed form equals function. In other words, audiophile sound and design that would compliment modern and post modern design. The Krell KAV-400xi (discontinued), JA Michell Syncro turntable (vintage), and Vienna Acoustic Schonberg speakers is the system I picked for use in the library (the only private room in my home). In the main room (I know as the family room - all guest welcome) I use the McIntosh 60th-anniversary MC75-amplifiers and C22-preamplifier, McIntosh MVP871 CD/DVD, three pairs of Vienna Acoustic Beethoven speakers in piano black, two REL Acoustics Strata III subwoofers (black), and a Panasonic TH-42PW4 - 42 plasma display monitor. The Beosound 1 is used outdoors, the Beosound 3 in the kitchen, the Porsche P7131 XM-AM-FM table radio for Eton in my bedroom, and a few Tivoli Audio® Henry Kloss Portable Audio Laboratory (iPAL® and PAL®) in the bathrooms.
I truly would enjoy seeing and reading the solutions other design aficionados that participate in this forum have chosen to fit their listening desires and design parameters.
<img class="wpforo-default-image-attachment wpforoimg" src=" http://old.designaddict.com/sites/defa
I've got stock photos, too.
In the bathroom: Jensen AM/FM Shower CD Radio with Fog Resistant Mirror feeding a pair of AvantGarde Trio Classicos through an Audio Note Kegon integrated amp.
Computer speakers: Wilson Audio WAMM 7s, driven by Krell MRA monoblocks.
In the car: Basis Work of Art turntable, OEM head unit, OEM speakers, Aura Pro Bass Shakers.
In the living room: Two dozen vintage Linn LP12s, each driving a pair of B&W 801s through a basic Levinson/Krell amplification chain -- so each of my party guests can play the music he or she likes best.
In the bedroom: Sony ICF C318 clock radio, on a solid-gold nightstand encrusted with Swarovski crystals.
In my listening room: Renee Fleming.
Sigh... Seriously, Ark, when you post photos of all your most-expensive-in-the-world stuff, why not post snapshots that you've taken yourself?
Well played, fastfwd...
Gave me a laugh there.
Sadly for Ark, none of that high tech stuff sounds as good as a quality vintage amp powering vintage speakers. And I rather doubt any of the high end compact stuff sounds much better than a Bose Wave, if at all.
But hey, that'd be all too lowbrow right?
But I digress.
Getting back to the question...
I don't think I see the problem.
If you're really serious about hi-fi, you don't care whether your rig fits the decor. Your amps are out in the open, you've got inch-thick speaker cables snaking across the floor, there are tube traps in the corners of your room and acoustic panels on the walls... Your furnishings are chosen for compatibility with the system, not the other way around.
If you're just a normal audiophile, then unless you have super-esoteric gear, the stuff on your equipment rack will just be a bunch of black or silver boxes -- inoffensive no matter who made them -- so I don't think you'll need to worry about the look of anything but your speakers and maybe the equipment rack itself. If you can't find a rack that looks good and fulfills all your other requirements, you can buy one that doesn't look so good and put it in a closet or another room, or hide it behind a screen or something. There are SO many speaker designs and speaker-finish options that you should never have trouble finding speakers to fit your decor, especially if you don't mind the sound of separate subwoofers.
If you simply want to listen to background music, or want surround-sound for your television, your equipment will probably be hidden in a cabinet. Only your speakers will be visible, and they'll undoubtedly be pressed up against the walls (or hanging ON the walls), so they won't sound very good anyway. In that situation, there's no point in buying anything too fancy; just choose whatever looks best and plays loud enough.
Stock photos
fastfwd,
I will never post actual photos of my home nor the items contained within my home for security reasons. What is the problem with stock photos? Professional photographers do a better job than I could ever do with their skill in lighting and composition.
These are not the most expensive pieces in the world, there are a great many things that cost more. My good fortune is a result of my family's and my hard work.
That was not the point of this posting, I was asking a serious question to which I believe Olive replied in an honest and sincere fashion.
Well, you asked, so I guess I should answer...
Ark - If I want to see uninteresting stock photos of expensive items, I can read the Robb Report [I mean, I COULD read the Robb Report, if I could keep from gagging]. Prefacing those same photos with "I own and enjoy two of these, and I paid 27.666 cents on the retail dollar for them. P.S. Australians are criminals. P.P.S. I win, you lose" doesn't make them any more interesting.
What IS interesting is the conversation that usually develops when people post actual photos of the items that they actually own. There's often a lot to say about the other stuff in the background of the photos, or questions that arise about aspects of the item that aren't visible in the stock photos.
Take your post at the top of this thread. You say that you've found hi-fi equipment that complements modern and post-modern design, but the photos you posted don't show the equipment in any context whatsoever, let alone in a modern or post-modern interior. BORING...
Wouldn't it be more interesting to post real photos that show how those speakers fit with your other mirror-image furniture pairs, or how the turntable's glass platter echoes the porthole windows in the wall above it, or how the sleek lines of the amp somehow work with the craziness of your Memphis collection, or even how you've cleverly hidden the wires? (Or whatever; I don't know whether you have portholes or Memphis pieces.)
This forum's for sharing and learning, right? Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see what we can learn from stock photos posted more-or-less without comment.
Plus, there's the credibility thing. If I were the guy who was recently asking how to get deals on expensive furniture, I'd pay a lot more attention to your advice if I could see that you actually seemed to have put it into practice. Of course you don't NEED to prove anything -- and of course you could fake it anyway -- but nevertheless, real photos would make an impression that no amount of talk can.
And finally... I'm not unconcerned about security, but "I won't post real photos for security reasons" doesn't make any sense to me. If I write, "I own and enjoy a Honda automobile," why is it safer to post a stock photo than to post this one?
Tell me quick; I'm going to be here at work for another couple hours, and I don't want my car stolen before I leave.
I love you, fastfwd
I recently asked arc the same thing about using stock photos and he told me "it's just easier" than taking pics of his own things. Go figure.
I'm not the one in charge of audio equipment in this house because I live with two male techno-geeks who are far more passionate than I am about such matters (though I used to be a classical musician, so I know something about the sound end of it).
That said, for awhile I bought vintage speakers at auctions. I'd phone my son with makes and model numbers and he'd look up value and then I'd buy, usually for under $30 a pair. My favorites were some 70s ESL speakers. They were really, really nice soundwise
, if a bit big and boxy.
I'm a fan of vintage audio...
I'm a fan of vintage audio gear and have way too much of it. In the pics below you can see my Brionvega and Braun consoles. My primary system, that is wired throughout the house is powered by a McIntosh Mac 4800 receiver. I also have a lovely Telefunken Opus 5500, a 60's Harman Kardon receiver and a Braun Transistor 1 radio scattered throughout the house. My wife thinks I'm mad.
Very nice
jesgord,
Very, very nice. I did not get involved with McIntosh soon enough to be the original owner of any vintage pieces, so I took the opportuniy to get the anniversary system when my local dealer "made me an offer I could not refuse". This unit should last my lifetime. Your Nakashima coffee table is a great piece and is that a fish childs rocker in the photo. Also too cool. I have my picker searching for a Mario Bellini, Cuboglass television for Brionvega with case at the right price as we speak. Thank you for the courteous and informative reply.
Thanks Ark. I got lucky with ...
Thanks Ark. I got lucky with the McIntosh. Picked it up at a barn sale for pennies on the dollar. Alas, the table is not Nakashima but the work of an anonymous woodworker. That said, I love it. That is a fish rocker and really belongs in the kid's room LOL. My younger daughter likes to drag it from room to room. Lastly, the Castiglioni stereo in no longer in the same place. There is now a Kerf bookshelf there and the Brionvaga has been moved to a wall with a Cado wall unit surrounding it.
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