Buck's (audioguy3107) Room/System. Updated pics.
 

Well I haven't done a proper system thread for a really long time. My room and system have undergone a bunch of changes, some small some not so small. I felt my old pictures didn't really do justice to the time and effort I spent on the room so I wanted to post a "final" (yeah, right) thread that better shows off some of the things I did when we designed and set up the room. I know we all like pics, so I tried my best to take some good photos using the iPhone X. Even tried a few panoramic photos, so we'll see how those turn out here! I wish I had some decent before/afters, but I'll try and explain some of the things that went into the design. I'll have several posts with pics......so I don't lose my train of thought as I'm typing!

I come from the religion of "the room is one of if not the most important part of your system". I've seen and heard many megabuck systems that could really use a proper room. Marc (2fastdriving), Steve and Ed (For the love of music) were probably tired of listening to me harp on it last year at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest. :D

So first, we have some general room pics, the room is roughly 16 X 24 with a very high ceiling. Flooring is custom 5" hardwoods stained with 50/50 Minwax Jacobean and Mahogany color:

**pics edited on 8/8/19 with newer equipment and Avalon Acoustics Isis**

Panoramic view:

https://i.imgur.com/1cQQZ7t.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/xHMTzzO.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/JZsRgF8.jpg

View from the french doors:

https://i.imgur.com/dllUs5S.jpg



So some things about the room, it started out as a pretty dark man cave, I used a very dark reddish clay paint on the wall. It was difficult to do anything in the evening with it being so dark, so we wanted to lighten it up a bit and went with a lighter tan/beige color. We had stain grade plantation shutters installed on the bay windows and decided to do window coverings. My wife and I chose some tan dark sand colored cotton drapes from Restoration Hardware to diffuse some light coming in from the bay windows, not to mention I can pull them shut when listening so tame the front wall reflections. The couch and ottoman we thought would work well in the room since we didn't want to go with solitary seating. We were really pleased with the quality of the Comfortable Couch Company, a custom furniture maker in North Carolina, https://www.cococohome.com/about-us/. It has held up almost as brand new and looks nice, I can also pull the ottoman forward if I really want to stretch out. The rug that covers most of the floor is a Persian style offering from Pottery Barn: https://www.potterybarn.com/shop/rug.../?cm_type=gnav It wasn't centered in the room until I moved everything around getting ready for my new rack, I ended up pulling it about 2 feet closer to the bay window which provided me with about 240 sq. feet of floor coverage. I wanted a really nice floor lamp to read by but that would also add something to the decor, I really liked the look of the lamp in the above photo, I also found it at Pottery Barn as well. Next, Pt. 2.


https://i.imgur.com/NIZuajb.jpg?2

OMG! Loved everything about the room and the equipment, congrats on great choices and great taste mate.

The back wall composed of books is fantastic too (for absorption/diffusion) even if you haven't read any :D

VERY nice.

I really like the traditional furniture/decorating scheme and I am a sucker for medium to darker woods.

Next we have some wall pics, we had custom bookshelves made for books/LPs along with a dedicated shallow bookcase to CD and media. Before the room update, I had half the books with the LPs on both walls and it just looked disjointed so I pulled everything off and moved the books to the back wall bookcases and the LPs on either side of the equipment rack. It just made more sense and looks much better as well. I've got plenty of room for further expansion as media keeps flowing in from Music Direct and Acoustic Sounds!

https://i.imgur.com/fkfcyU1.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/3GCu47g.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/DVQ5KBO.jpg?1

Now fun stuff! I don't think I've uploaded any pics since we first moved, so the only thing that's still constant is the Ayre C-5xeMP SACD player, everything else has changed. The VPI Classic 2 was replaced a couple of years ago with a Classic Signature/SDS. I also obtained a Symposium Segue ISO which works wonders under the turntable, just quiet as quiet can be, one of the best things I've ever purchased for the rig. I upgraded from a Manley Chinook phone pre which was no slouch mind you to an ARC ref phono 2 SE, just a fantastic piece top to bottom. I had a trusty McIntosh C220 tube pre which was swapped out for a C2300 and as Dan says elsewhere, just one of the best one box preamps they've ever made. Notice Stillpoints ultra minis under the C2300 and ARC phone pre....thanks to Ivan for making that happen, very pleased with the results.

https://i.imgur.com/uUnmHIv.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/uW9U4qL.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/Fv9qphG.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/ATNlcWn.jpg

Buck...….This is a beautiful room in every way. It looks so comfortable, and I am certain it is. Thanks for the great photos. Lots to be proud of with the job you have done.

I felt I really needed to do something with the power situation in the room, it's about the only think I didn't address when we started. I had a mishmash of various power cables, PS Audio, Audioquest and a couple of Shunyata Venoms. I decided to treat the system this past Christmas to be Ivanized and went with the Shunyata Denali power center with a full loom of the new Shunyata Alpha power cables (can't see from the pics). The Shunyata products are the real deal, they resulted in quieter and blacker backgrounds, not to mention the simple fact that I didn't have any free outlets left in my previous Shunyata Hydra. The bottom picture is the best picture I could get of the rack I ordered last fall.....I chose a Timbernation custom rack, Chris at Timbernation took my dimensions so it would fit like a glove between the 2 bookshelves and give me about an inch of give if I needed to pull it out. I know there's been some complaints about Timbernation out there on the net, but this is the third product I've ordered from him and have never had any problems. I sent him several pics of our floor and bookshelves and he did his best to match the color using maple....I love the way it turned out compared to my last misadventure in ordering a rack (totally wrong color which was my fault)


https://i.imgur.com/y9JGslA.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/qaXmK6w.jpg?1

Here's the view looking forward, The Avalon Acoustics Isis are further into the room highlighting their strengths. The new additions in between are the 2 REL 212SEs. It took me FOREVER to get them dialed in correctly for some reason, they were much more difficult than the Brittanias but their speed and punch made it all worthwhile. They are faster and cleaner than the B2s, but to be very honest it's not as huge of a difference as you would think based on their look. I decided to try a pair of Auralex subwoofer platforms underneath (I do have an unfinished basement below). I believe it was Kal Rubinson who has gotten favorable results, my experience is the same, they seemed to tighten up the bass a bit but we're not talking a massive difference, but I think they look nice sitting on the platforms anyway.

https://i.imgur.com/0ziUwyd.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/3evpTYa.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/8P5azh7.jpg?1

The Dan D'agostino S250 stereo amplifier made it's way into the system in 2018 to replace the Mcintosh MC402....it's such a spectacular amplifier. Again, I turned to Chris at Timbernation who hooked me up with a solid 3 inch black maple platform to serve as an amplifier stand. It came with brushed nickel cones and looks nice under the S250. Power cable supplied by Ivan and Shunyata Research is an new Alpha.


https://i.imgur.com/5PUkR21.jpg

Most of my room treatment have been here since the beginning, but I tried to get a better view of them by taking some new pictures. The corner traps are from GIK Acoustics which the panels (including the corners) are home made! They are sheets of Owens Corning OC703 wrapped in a fabric found at Joanns....my wife and I both like the darker burgundy/red accents, so we thought it would work well here. The results here are just as important as the components....it's amazing what you hear when you're out in the foyer and enter the room as you talk, I didn't deaden the room totally, it's real world and just perfect for conversations, reading and of course audio. I've always been a bit proud that my local dealer and Jim Smith of Get Better Sound said it was one of the best non-professionally designed rooms they had heard. :redface:


https://i.imgur.com/JZsRgF8.jpg


https://i.imgur.com/C5jLCDE.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/dtdpSXg.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/5WG96dZ.jpg?1


Hopefully you guys enjoy the pics, I still enjoy the room immensely

wow wow wow...such a nice room! The subs look so cool. And I spotted Neko Case! :thumbsup:

I love everything about your room. Fantastic job! I may have missed it but what cables and what length are you running to the 402? are they running through the basement?

It’s a pair of Transparent reference 25 ft balanced interconnects, a couple of generations past now. I do have them run underneath the floor behind the amplifier. There is a dedicated line behind the amplifier and next to it is a small cutout with plate to accommodate the cables coming up. Interconnects for the rest of the system are Wireworld silver and gold.

Marc - thanks! That Neko Case boxset is really nice!

Buck... beautifully done in every way! Thanks for sharing.

Buck's (audioguy3107) Room/System. Updated pics.
 

Hey Buck, that’s a room that serves multiple purposes, making the most sense to me.

Good choice on dialing in your power and cabling foundation taking your sound from good to great!

Very, very nice job, to both your wife and you, there’s a lot of magnificent detail there!!!

Outstanding!! I want that sofa.......I would never leave that room.

:tresbon:

:thumbsup:

Jose - thanks for the kind words, the couch is really nice! To be completely honest, a really comfortable listening chair like I've seen some post on here would serve a single audiophile a bit better perhaps, but we wanted it to be a bit more functional and still look great. Check out the company, they have a few retail locations in the U.S. now.....too bad the Atlanta showroom wasn't around when we bought it!

https://www.cococohome.com/contact-us/

- Buck

Buck that is a fantastic looking room and system!!!

Beautiful room Buck! Thanks for sharing it with us.

Thanks Buck for the link :thumbsup:.....but we live in the PNW, home of Bigfoot, so shipping from EC to WC is like a million $$ :yes: :D

I have a love seat in front of my main system, as this allows my wife to join me when she see fit. A bit more comfy than one of those single music listening seaters....

Very inviting Buck, congrats, I feel relaxed just looking at it, bet the system sounds very nice and warm and non taxing to the ears. It looks like one could do a 8 hour session with a beverage or 4 and great tunes.

thanks so much for sharing! :)

Beautiful system and room.

Amazing! [emoji6]

Wow!

Looks great!

Absolutely beautiful. I'd love to listen to your system and perhaps more importantly, it seems like the sort of room you want to just hang.

I'm surprised nobody has commented on one of the coolest features of the room. A feature I've tried unsuccessfully to implement in my modest space.

NO TELEVISION!!!!!

I love it.

Bob

It’s a classy, tasteful room and setup. Just fabulous! And God bless your significant other for agreeing to it.

Bob - Thanks for noticing....that was one of the first things I decided right off the bat. No TV allowed! Even if I had wanted one in there, it would have been pretty difficult to put one somewhere that wouldn’t have been totally obtrusive. We wanted to bring a “study” feel to the room.

- Buck

Awesome. My dream. I hope one day I can have something like this.

Karl - Thanks......my wife thinks we did a good job but despises the panels. Thing is, you don’t see them unless you point your neck straight up and peer at the ceiling which of course I never do. That was one of the things that made the biggest difference in the room, the slap echo was pretty severe until we finished. There’s about an 8 inch air gap between the ceiling the acoustic panels. For some reason it drives her nuts, don’t know why.

- Buck

Makes me want to sit in there, have a bourbon, and listen to something nice. Well done.

Of all the systems I've looked at , mainly to try to get some ideas to use in mine, your room is quite the nicest integration of living space/listening area that I think I've seen.Many congratulations- looks a quite superb space to relax and listen in.

What a beautiful room and system,...amazing and Well Done!!!!

Lovely room!

Thanks for the comments, that was our primary goal, to not have the typical off limits man cave but still have it functions primarily for audio (and reading). One of my first thoughts was to design it more like an old English library, with dark paneling, older style furniture etc but we figured that may not go as well with the rest of the house even though it would look cool.

- Buck

Buck, what a gorgeous room: the rug, the wood, the panels, bookcases, furniture - it all goes together so well and looks so inviting.

Agree with this. This something great about a room designed for any combination of just these three:
-listen to music
-have a conversation
-read a book

Fantastic room, Buck. Something for the rest of us to aspire to....

Buck,
Your room and setup is first class. I love everything about it.

I congratulate you on integrating your system in a space that's not secluded and doesn't look like a recording studio wanna-be. In my opinion the low point of high end audio is the lack of an audio Pottery Barn for people that actually want to live in the room where the music lives. Most wives seem to agree that of our hobby is a total fail in the looks department.

Your room is one of the best I've seen. Well done.

Thanks for the kudos guys. So the reason this room seemed to work well for the audio system is the floorplan of the home....we have a somewhat typical suburban Atlanta 2 story brick home. It has the "usual" office that occupies the front corner of the house. Neither my wife nor I will probably ever work from home and neither one of us really needs an office space, so when we went over it with our builder, we figured we'd just expand the room since they're usually about 12 X 14 or so... and make it a library of sorts. We got lucky that in the plans there is no room behind it so since it's on the corner so we could make it as wide and deep as we wanted. We were limited on the width by the lot size, so about 16 to 18 ft was as wide as we could go and we settled on about 24 feet so it wouldn't look too weird if we made it deeper. Anyone with one of those traditional floor plans with the office or study on the corner could make it work!

- Buck