Equipment Recommendations - The Home For New System and Upgrade Advice

ngower said:
Yeah I see now.

It would be a total luxury move, but also would probably follow me for the rest of my life. I’m gonna see if a local furniture store has any on display (it’s near where I’m going anyway) to see if I think the quality matches the marketing/price.
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That’s a good way to go. Always best to see it in person. You might also check and see if there are any custom furniture shops in your area. Might be able to get something custom made for not much more money.

And there is always IKEA Kallax.
 
mindhead1 said:
That’s a good way to go. Always best to see it in person. You might also check and see if there are any custom furniture shops in your area. Might be able to get something custom made for not much more money.

And there is always IKEA Kallax.
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I currently have ikea shit everywhere. That’s part of why I’m looking: my tv unit sounds like it’s going to fall apart every time I walk by it (bouncy floors)
 
ngower said:
Yeah I see now.

It would be a total luxury move, but also would probably follow me for the rest of my life. I’m gonna see if a local furniture store has any on display (it’s near where I’m going anyway) to see if I think the quality matches the marketing/price.
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Well made racks can last a loooooonnnggg time. I’m still using a 20 year old Salamander, which is just going to move to a different location when it’s replaced. It has a couple scuffs, but that’s it. The inexpensive racks and stands I’ve had before tended to fall apart.
 
ngower said:
I currently have ikea shit everywhere. That’s part of why I’m looking: my tv unit sounds like it’s going to fall apart every time I walk by it (bouncy floors)
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VTI makes a great line of stands, I configured my set up with the BL Series, decent price, well built, color options for the wood and hardware, along with the flexibility to configure the perfect rack was nice. 051324-System.jpg
 
SnowmaNick said:
You should check out a variety. BDI is well known, but there are several smaller high quality domestic manufacturers (What We Make, MonkeHaus, Butcher Block Acoustics, Timbre Nation, Tactile Audio Furniture, and so many more).
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Big appeal to the BDI is how you can hide everything so easily. Like an acoustically transparent screen for my center channel, removable back panels for wire clearance or ventilation if needed…it could basically hide everything inside. And they have a model I like on sale. Time will tell; maybe I’ll come to my senses eventually. But I’ve already bought three different ones from ikea over the years so the costs have added up on the replacement cycle
 
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AnthonyI said:
VTI makes a great line of stands, I configured my set up with the BL Series, decent price, well built, color options for the wood and hardware, along with the flexibility to configure the perfect rack was nice. View attachment 211937
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I had a VTI hi-fi rack before and I liked it! Very sturdy and it's modular. I now have a Norstone Stäbbl HiFi and it's equally as great 👍 Also modular. They have a great lineup of hi-fi and av furniture. I'd be interested in getting that 🆕 modular vinyl storage vinyl LP case Norstone - Furniture and accessories Hi-fi, audio-video, cables, TV stands...
 
Hollywood said:
I had a VTI hi-fi rack before and I liked it! Very sturdy and it's modular. I now have a Norstone Stäbbl HiFi and it's equally as great 👍 Also modular. They have a great lineup of hi-fi and av furniture. I'd be interested in getting that 🆕 modular vinyl storage vinyl LP case Norstone - Furniture and accessories Hi-fi, audio-video, cables, TV stands...
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Ooh these look great. Nicer looking than mine… I got a salamander rack from amazon for my office.

IMG_4468.jpeg


Got the black one since it was significantly cheaper. Figure i could probably swap the shelves later and make my own if i wanted wood ones. A bit annoying to put it together as you manually screw nuts down the long rods and have to make sure everything is level on every shelf. But on the plus side, was able to add a shelf of record storage on bottom
 
ngower said:
Curious if anyone here has experience with the Bose Quietcomfort (or Ultra) headphones? I want a pair of ANC headphones for travelling on choo choos and buses, so I'm not looking for audiophile grade headphones per se. I've tried the Sony headphones in the past and my ears are too fat for their cups (and I though thtey sounded like shit). Is the Ultra worth getting over the normal QC?
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Sorry for the 2 week late chime-in, as is my MO!
I just picked up a pair of the QC45’s for a song during Bose’s last sale. Got them for flights, been doing a ton of work travel this year, and for that and late night hotel listens, they do exactly what I want them to do. Without the active EQ in the app, they’d honestly sound pretty dreadful, but with the 3-band EQ, I get them to a place I’m totally content with. Most importantly, I forget I have them on half the time. The ANC is excellent and really natural feeling - virtually no “ear suck” even on a plane, and they’re very light for closed back over-the-ears.

If at all helpful, I also have AirPod 2nd gen, Beats Fit Pro, and AirPod Pro 2’s, and my brief rundown of them is:
- AirPod 2nd gen fit my ears wonderfully. Super comfortable. Very non intrusive. Sound decent for what they are, but once you start including outside noise, forget it. I typically use them for video calls and for chilling in bed with a YouTube video or something.
- Beats Fit Pro fit my ears well, but I just don’t love buds with tips that seal. Sound profile is decent, if quite smiley. Exciting sound with that kind of EQ curve. Top end’s a little brittle. ANC works decently well. I like these for exercise, yardwork, city travel where I’m running around a bunch.
- AirPod Pro 2 sound honestly fantastic. Shocked how good they sound. They don’t fit my ears well at all. If I’m doing anything outside of sitting still, I have to readjust them pretty frequently which is annoying. They may have the best ANC of anything I’ve used, and their proprietary Adaptive mode is stellar when in public. So is the Spatial Audio algorithm with Apple Music Atmos tracks - really a great experience. These have piqued my interest in AirPod Max, but I simply am not going to pay what they’re asking. Maybe when they price drop when the next gen come out, or if the next gen of Max are out of this world…
 
HayesWeighsIn said:
Sorry for the 2 week late chime-in, as is my MO!
I just picked up a pair of the QC45’s for a song during Bose’s last sale. Got them for flights, been doing a ton of work travel this year, and for that and late night hotel listens, they do exactly what I want them to do. Without the active EQ in the app, they’d honestly sound pretty dreadful, but with the 3-band EQ, I get them to a place I’m totally content with. Most importantly, I forget I have them on half the time. The ANC is excellent and really natural feeling - virtually no “ear suck” even on a plane, and they’re very light for closed back over-the-ears.

If at all helpful, I also have AirPod 2nd gen, Beats Fit Pro, and AirPod Pro 2’s, and my brief rundown of them is:
- AirPod 2nd gen fit my ears wonderfully. Super comfortable. Very non intrusive. Sound decent for what they are, but once you start including outside noise, forget it. I typically use them for video calls and for chilling in bed with a YouTube video or something.
- Beats Fit Pro fit my ears well, but I just don’t love buds with tips that seal. Sound profile is decent, if quite smiley. Exciting sound with that kind of EQ curve. Top end’s a little brittle. ANC works decently well. I like these for exercise, yardwork, city travel where I’m running around a bunch.
- AirPod Pro 2 sound honestly fantastic. Shocked how good they sound. They don’t fit my ears well at all. If I’m doing anything outside of sitting still, I have to readjust them pretty frequently which is annoying. They may have the best ANC of anything I’ve used, and their proprietary Adaptive mode is stellar when in public. So is the Spatial Audio algorithm with Apple Music Atmos tracks - really a great experience. These have piqued my interest in AirPod Max, but I simply am not going to pay what they’re asking. Maybe when they price drop when the next gen come out, or if the next gen of Max are out of this world…
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+1 on the AirPods Pro 2. I was skeptical about them when I got them and was prepared to return them after a test run. I was perfectly content with my Soundscore Liberty 3 Pros at the time.

The Adaptive Noise Cancelling features of the AirPods, the ability to switch between devices, and the phone call quality on both ends make them a must have for iPhone users IMO.

I still use my Liberty 3 Pros when listening to music they do sound really good and have powerful EQ features. Don’t get me wrong the AirPods are good for music listening also, but everything else they are best wireless earbuds I’ve ever used and the fit me well.
 
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mindhead1 said:
+1 on the AirPods Pro 2. I was skeptical about them when I got them and was prepared to return them after a test run. I was perfectly content with my Soundscore Liberty 3 Pros at the time.

The Adaptive Noise Cancelling features of the AirPods, the ability to switch between devices, and the phone call quality on both ends make them a must have for iPhone users IMO.

I still use my Liberty 3 Pros when listening to music they do sound really good and have powerful EQ features. Don’t get me wrong the AirPods are good for music listening also, but everything else they are best wireless earbuds I’ve ever used and the fit me well.
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If the AirPod Pro 2s fit my ears better, it would be game over! Cause all your points, absolutely. They're bar none a knockout pairing with an iPhone. I've tried a couple different ear tips, hoping I can find the magic bullet.

I hear nothing but great stuff about Soundcore, particularly at their price point.
 
MikeH said:
the QCs are fine. not sure how much of an upgrade in sound they are over whatever Sonys you had. haven't tried the ultra. not sure if there's somewhere you can try them on or a place to buy with easy returns if they don't fit your noggin.
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The Sony The MX3’s I own sound awesome. I have a giant head and big elephant ears and could (and have) wear them for hours without issues. They now have MX4 and MX5 which I would assume are even better and lighter. When/if the MX3s finally need an upgrade I will likely just pick up whatever the newest model Sony available.

As I said earlier though The Beats Pro in-ears have been my “go to” head phones of late and they do everything exceptionally well even block out background noise.
 
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