(h/t to REM for the title)
When you’re seriously into music, it’s easy to get obsessive about what you listen to it on. Some people simply spend their money on the best headphones they can afford, then connect it to their iPhone or laptop, and stream their music. Or maybe their system is a pair of great powered speakers like the Audioengine A5s connected to a preamp-equipped turntable. Still, many music lovers build a good, standalone, two-channel stereo with at least an integrated amplifier, a turntable, probably a CD player to play all those CDs you bought in the previous decade(s), and a pair of passive loudspeakers. Then, you listen. And maybe one day you’re listening to your latest find, and think: hey, I think my system should sound better. (this usually happens when you hear someone else’s audio setup and you go, hmmmmmm.) So you come into some money (tax refund, money from Granny) that’s enough to cover a new pair of speakers, and you shop around for a “better” pair. Or, you fry your amp and replace it or upgrade to something with more/better power. Eventually, you get to a place where your system really makes you go, “ahhhhhhh.”
Then, one day, you’re walking around town and you wander into the sound room of an audio store. Fool! There before you, someone is auditioning a pair of speakers; AND they’re listening to a record that you know and love, and so you draw closer. Your brain whispers to you things like “I’ve never heard those fingers on the bass strings before”, or “wow, this really sounds like you’re in the front row.” Excited, you look at the price tag of those beautiful speakers, and after you get over your shock, you smile, and head back out to the street. But, you know what kind of great sound is possible (albeit with probably more dollars than you have at your disposal.)
Really great and reputable audio stores are in the business of selling you the best gear that will work in your space, at a price that meets your budget. But they always have available no-holds-barred “dream” components that, even if they’re way out of your budget, you just have to hear. That was the case the other night when I was in Chestertown, MD, a really fun little college town on the eastern shore. I always visit The Listening Room when I’m there. It’s been in its current location for over two years now, having moved from its original location in suburban Baltimore. The owner, Mike, has done a great job of renovating his building over that time, and it’s a welcoming, no-pressure place to shop for gear and vinyl. The front of the store houses a great vinyl store, with reasonably priced new and very clean vintage vinyl, and the audio stuff is in the back. Well worth a visit if you’re visiting the Chesapeake Bay area!
I was there this past weekend to see what a top-shelf system sounds like. Magnepan is a US maker of highly-regarded planar speakers, and their rep was on hand to show off their top of the line speakers, the 30.7s. It’s an imposing, four piece, four-way speaker system (a “wall of sound” if there ever was one) that doesn’t always make the rounds or is even available to listen to in stores – most of the time you’ve got to visit their Minnesota factory to hear them. But Magnepan is on a tour right now showing off the 30.7, so: good timing!
I was lucky enough visit in the morning before the special event that night, and spend some a little one-on-one time with the Magnepans and the incredible electronics driving them: Oracle Delphi MkVI turntable fitted with an SME Series 5 tonearm and Dynavector TKR cartridge, a Rogue Ares Magnum phono preamplifier, an Aurender A10 network music player, Rogue RP-9 stereo preamplifier and Rogue Apollo Dark monoblock power amplifiers, and Straightwire cables. The Listening Room has a lot of great vinyl for testing, so I had to give the Mobile Fidelity Ultradisc One-Step pressing of Bill Evans’ Sunday At The Village Vanguard a try. This is a really well-engineered and warm recording of Evans’ legendary trio playing at the Vanguard in 1961, and the half-speed remastered MoFi version is peerless.
When the stylus dropped on the first track, Gloria’s Step (Take 2), I felt like I was actually at the Village Vanguard. (I saw Bill Frisell play there a couple of years ago, so I know what the room sounds like.) I picked this disc because the great Orrin Keepnews recording is really sympathetic to all of the players, especially bassist Scott LaFaro. Planar speakers characteristically have a “boxless” sound, and these Magnepans are the best examples of that sound. These speakers reproduced LaFaro’s bass so well you would swear that you were “in the room” in Greenwich Village. Next up was Analog Spark’s sparkling pressing of Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Cole Porter Songbook . Although this is a mono recording, it’s really well-mic’d, and the Magnepans reproduced Ella’s voice so well.
At the very well-attended event in the evening, there were smiles all around as people took turns listening to their favorite discs on the 30.7s. A fun event all around. If you ever get a chance to drop into a listening session like this with dream gear, whether it be at your local audio store or an event like Classic Album Sundays, satisfy your aural curiosity and go!
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