Just curious to finally hear from women (not just the old men around here) what they are interested in, considering music and really good gear.
Warning: All of the UK dCS dealers have a Vivaldi on site AFAIK. However they are also unlikely to force you to listen .
Ah, Walrus of fond memory. Pete and Les were lovely guys but the shop looked like a set from Steptoe and Son ( ah, you are too young to remember that).
I don’t want to specifically recommend a dealer.I would just mention that the one I use has an address in London W1 if that’s in your locality 
.
1 Like
Hi
I suspect I’m very unusual in my buying habits and expectations. I grew up with my grandparents where the hifi was a key part of the daily routine. I learnt to play the piano at school and progressed through the grades etc. My early diet was classical and then moving into rock and pop, dance / electronics at university and then jazz etc. Pre lockdown if I was in London I’d go to at least one gig / concert a week.
In terms of expectations, I expect it to work to be painless to be consistent and to have a nice user experience / interface. I don’t want faff I don’t want tweaks I just want simple and good I do t have time to faff. I also believe in buying once buy right. I like to buy quality form a company that stands behind its products, services them updates them etc… I hate disposable culture and so few elements of this hobby have really lived in 20 years (digital excluded) as such I expect an amp to be serviceable etc. My other expectation is stylish design. Not penis substitute design but proper style. So few loudspeakers are aesthetically interesting or pleasing. I think this is a major hurdle in wanting to change at times
I think for many women they have so little time to themselves that this is not an area of interest loud music is quite antisocial. If you have had a day of running round as bread winner, mother, cook, teacher etc spending time listening to music is possibly not the peaceful end to your day. I also suspect many women cannot justify the prices, particularly these days where really good kit costs as much as a good 2nd hand car.
My multiroom gets FAR more use than my “big” system which primarily gets used in the winter when I use my living room the most. Summer time I’m in the kitchen or outside enjoying th W garden and fresh air. The current interest in DCS is to put a simple setup with active speakers in that space so I get the best of both worlds albeit minus vinyl but I don’t want another mountain of vinyl paraphernalia.
Dealers…. Well sadly the industry has gone two ways hard sell, or geeky old blokes. Neither of which can communicate with women or leave you feeling respected when you walk in. I have actually been asked if I want to bring my husband in for the dem… (I’m not married) and even if I was so surely I can make my own decision if I am the primary customer? I had dealings with a well known naim dealer about 18 months ago who couldn’t look me in the eye but stared intently at my backside and legs when I was walking round the shop, zero sale.
1 Like
Thanks Jenny for sharing your thoughts.
Just to get an idea of what is looking pleasing to you: would these speakers match your taste?
And/ or these?
Erno,
thank you for the pics. My comment was more generic rather than specific need. Speakers are so personal visually and sonically. I think one of the challenges is not just design but fit and finish. One of the things i like about my current Avantgarde’s is the quality of finish and the quite striking visual, but they reside in a very modern space.
I think B&O are the winners on design and dare i say it when fed with a non B&O source represent huge sonic value, beolab, 5,9,20,50 specifically. I personally like active speakers to cut down on the box and cable clutter. but we all have difference views. In an ideal world i’d have all the electronics hidden away with ipad control, although IR volume still wins for finesse. But heat and cable costs make this prohibitive in many situations.
for me the hifi is means to an end, it’s a device that hopefully transports me to recording studios and concert halls and reconnects me with good times.
Well, dCS excells in exactly doing that.
You are not alone on this site with Avantgarde’s and Audio Note:
He has a matching dCS Rossini DAC + Clock.
I have an Audio note Jinro and Dac4 the Jinro being an all copper version of the Ongaku.
Thank you for sharing the system pics. when my renovations are finished i will have to take some new pics.
I remember the shop well. Aladdins cave meets Steptoe and Son, going downstairs was like stepping back another 20 years…
I know the W1 dealer. Very shiny shop.
I agree entirely about the higher-end B&O active speakers: I have BeoLab 90s as my front speakers and Lab 50s as my rears, as I enjoy surround sound music (and have a quadraphonic turntable and eight-track cartridge player). The Lab 90s are remarkable speakers with an astonishingly flat frequency response and cutting-edge DSP that can take the room out of the equation without the need for visually intrusive room treatments.
That sounds absolutely amazing. Dark SIde of the Moon on that must be a real experience. I have a rather special pair of Lab 5’s in my bedroom and lab 9’s in my study and full set in the cinema. Seriously considering 50 or 90 for the new extension as it will be by far the largest space and I think it will benefit from some serious DSP. They have really got back into the music game, I love active speakers and the simplicity they offer.
Given the fetish in so many sectors for “collaborations” dcs meets beolab 50/90 would be one hell of a cocktail:
2 Likes
Well,
a major step forward, I’m not just an observer, I’m now a DCS owner. a nice network bridge has arrived and is plugged in warming up. first impression is very positive, really loving the simplicity of setup, so much less tedious that a previous streamer. Very impressed so far. spdif straight into active speakers is awesome.
Jenny
Hi Jenny,
I’m a newbie on this site but your:
“The current interest in dCS NB is to put a simple setup with active speakers”
struck a chord.
I got myself a network bridge a few months ago to feed my Kii 3 active speakers and love it. It replaced my all singing all dancing ‘hi end’ NAD.
Re the Avantgarde speakers. I had Omega duo’s for about 10 years. The Kii’s just so outclassed these that there was simply no option but to replace them. I bot them on first listen and never looked back. Alas, I don’t have the possibility to have more than one system.
High quality OCXO clocks and audiophile switches moved this combination from great to sublime for me. Not meaning to do that free advice thingy, so apologies if too pushy.
One more thing. I’ve only been active on this forum for a few weeks. It’s easily the most friendly and warm forum I know.
Best wishes
Aubrey
1 Like
Just to complete an interesting Walrus circle, Les sold me a Wilson Benesch turntable when he worked at KJ in W1 and then took it back in PX for an SME after he started Walrus with Pete. Pete is now back at KJ and not only installed my Bartok but a Lyra cartridge in the original SME. Les was a lovely guy but organisation was not his forte. And welcome to a small club Jennifer.
And just to bring the story up to date(ish) I understand that Les has returned to his home country of Malaysia.
Aubrey,
Thank you for the kind words. I must admit I’ve had the Kii on my radar, but I don’t see myself replacing the audio note avantgarde system in a hurry.
My network bridge is feeding a pair of Beolab 5’s on their spoof interface in my bedroom. Absolutely fantastic really loving the sound.
I would love to hear Richards system above the Beolab 50 and 90 are phenomenal speakers. I’ve Owned quads in the past and Rhaido, but in terms of hassle free pure enjoyment I listen to more music and less hifi with my 5’s….
I now really fancy another bridge for my home office but that might be a bit of an indulgence teams had killed the luxury of music and work…
I haven’t been in KJ for a long long time either. I walk past quite often but it’s normally shut, maybe I should make an effort when I have time to kill.
So maybe I should throw another weird Aladdin’s cave into the mix, sounds of music…
Jenny
Yet a huge percentage of those who frequent home improvement stores are women.
Actually, I am an Audio Note + Avantgarde + dCS person!
Check: http://instagram.com/ongakumeansmusic
Cheers!
My Wife and I call it “date night”.
Not that I do but I presume that it’s because they prefer the Beats sound signature. Last week, I was visiting a university and met a young woman who owned a pair of Beats. I asked her how she liked them and she said that she’d had the Zbeats for six years and that she preferred them over other headphones that she’d tried.
Well, my wife is totally a co-owner of our Rossini + clock + D’Agostino S350 + Suesskind setup
And she enjoys it a lot. Now we are choosing the new speakers, in the Borresen line.
Andrea
1 Like