Show me your TRUE HIGH END PROJECTS !!!

[JinMTVT]

without any insult intended to beginners and lesser fortunate members ..

i'd like to dedicate this thread to very HIGH END systems
that were built by members from this community

we see all sort of "tests" projects going around here,
but i do not see much of anything " grandiose"

i understand that DIY is about discovering, learning
and sharing experiences without a necessity for high $$$$$$

but i also firmly believe that once you get to a certain point in your researches, the end goal of DIY is to achieve something greater than what one can commercially afford
thus using "50 cents " drivers, as much fun as it can be,
will never made a real high end system


i will not be able to start this thread with an example,
as i have not built myself anything worthy of the "grandiose" mention ( soon to come, i hope )

but i'd like to give an opportunity for all of the , let's use
"fortunate" members, to show us their achievements.


( please no can painted mdf projects, no cardboard open baffle line arrays of death, and no 50cents fulle range single point source 3" driver on a 100" wide baffle system either )

home theater setup is also welcomed

[JinMTVT]

just a + +

i think we cannot determine a clear $$$ point where
a system reaches high end

but any system on wich the budget was not in the 2-3 main factors, would probably suit the definition ..

[gainphile]

High-end in terms of Acoustics or furniture?

For furniture, look no further on that "Black" thread. Also shin's speaker a long time ago.

For acoustics I guess we need to see measurements on and off-axis, so geddes system would be good examples.

[Andersonix]

I suppose this is also totally not acceptable?

[soundchaser001]

I suppose this is also totally not acceptable?

Bet the highs would "grate" on me after a while...

[valleyman]

This may not be really high end but it works for me:

dddac.de 12xTDA1543 USB DAC run from an HTPC with most of my fav music in FLAC. Has 1000Gb space so no problems there.
The DAC feeds a dual mono chipamp QRP02 from sjostrom audio. Really fantasic amps, sound amazing, very stable, DC servo the works.
This then feeds My Zaph ZD5s which are truly amazing speakers. Those SS 15W revelators are very special drivers.
Then theres a Peerless XLS10 with PR in a 28l box with a 250W amp from bkelec to fill in some extra bass when its needed. The sub is the weak link really, but its more than acceptable and plays pretty flat down to 20Hz which is amazing from such a small box.

When I can justify the cost, the XT25s in my ZD5s will be replaced with some Raal ribbons

[Andersonix]

Show, not tell...

[The golden mean]

There is a tendency that these brave projects never get finished....like mine. More and more thoughts went into the planning, some may or may not be possible to make commercial.

Some people like to document their work by taking photos and writing notes. Some think it´s hard enough to get things together without taking photos, only being focused on the task and problem solving that always goes into advanced constructions. You may have a drawing and a plan, but chances are that you have to modify it as it´s about prototyping.

I would never have started my advanced speaker projekt if I had known what was ahead. But I have decided to finish it although it may only be a preliminary version. So I may come back.

[terry j]

again, sound or looks? the two do not have to be the same.

that of course does apply to 'some' commercial speakers!

I second the vote for 'black' in the looks department, stunning. tho perhaps they might not fit within the rules above of no-holds-barred driver selection.

It is very easy for anyone on a diy forum to proclaim 'they sound awesome', and in a lot of cases I am sure they do.

But I always keep in the back of my mind the 'ugly child' phenomenon, or maybe in this case the beautiful child?

Have often wondered how our beautiful sounding creations would actually stack up when tested blind against other speakers, either diy or commercial.

I even started a thread on it, very few responses which I will admit surprised me.

Maybe we would rather remain in blissful ignorance?

Anyway, mine sound fantastic, easily the equal of multi multi thousand dollar commercial offerings, and when finished will look better than all of them.

so there!

[tinitus]

The term"high-end" is a special term closely linked to gear with very high prices...and nothing else...tells nothing about how it sounds really
But I suppose certain sound attributes would be demanded fore such high clss gear
But in the end its all about how a complete setup is put together, and the saying "nothings better than its weakest link" would be valid here

But ofcourse I know what YOU mean
So a picture of my amps...and they really do the last bit most other miss
Thanks to Sonny, the young man who designed the Mirand amp boards...