User Details - Johnno

recommendations


Name:
  John Marchington
Details:
 
Location:
  New Zealand
HiFi:
  Denon DSD-SA1 stereo-only SACD player
Sony SCD-XB940 stereo-only SACD player (extensively modified by Vacuum State Electronics -- up to L5)
Sony XE597 multichannel SACD player (modified by Vacuum State Electronics, including Terra Firma Lite clock)
'Lewitt' pure triode (i.e. all-tube) Firefly preamplifier (no tone controls)
John Linsley Hood Class-A monoblocks (one per channel). 40-50 watt output. Home-made -- superb!
Acoustat 6600 electrostatic speakers.
Email:
  johnm@paradise.net.nz
Web:
 
Posts:
  622

 
 
Reviews
Found: 8 show all

Alfred Schnittke: Film Music Vol. 1 - Strobel      (5 of 5 found this review helpful)
  May 18, 2006

This is a truly magnificent disc -- quite awesome in fact. The first soundtrack "The Story of an Unknown Actor" has shades of Bernard Herrmann (not his sci-fi side) and lasts for about 18 minutes, while the forty seven and a half minute "Commissar" is made of somewhat sterner stuff -- often very ... more
Shostakovich: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 6 - Jurowski        (4 of 4 found this review helpful)
  April 16, 2006

Like Edvin, I approached this disc with high expectations after hearing the Tchaikovsky Suite No. 3 and Stravinsky "Fairy's Kiss" Divertimento from the same forces and ended up being somewhat disappointed. First things first. I took this disc up to a friend's place for my initial listen. He has a ... more
Jeff Wayne: The War of the Worlds      (6 of 6 found this review helpful)
  July 12, 2005

I don't have a multichannel system so these comments are based on SACD in stereo only. Having said that, I'm absolutely staggered at the change from the original RBCD I have. Not only is the sound so much cleaner than before but the increase in clarity is amazing and I've been hearing all sorts of ... more
Beethoven & Mendelssohn: Violin Concertos - Heifetz/Munch      (2 of 2 found this review helpful)
  December 9, 2004

Amazing, perhaps, I had never encountered these classic recordings before purchasing the "RCA Living Stereo" SACD set and so it was a wonderful experience for me to hear them for the first time. The Beethoven is truly exceptional and it is one of the two or three finest performances of the work I ... more
Chopin: Etudes Opp. 10, 25 - Perahia  (3 of 4 found this review helpful)
  August 1, 2004

All I can do is agree wholeheartedly with Darland. This is a truly magnificent disc, with playing of incredible virtuosity and a recording that is technically truly sublime, with as realistic piano timbre as I have heard without actually being there. The works themselves are glorious too, so this ... more

 
 
Latest Posts

Stereophile Article
Yesterday 04:55 pm
An excellent article and well worth reading. ... more
The Genesis SACD boxes
Yesterday 04:44 pm
Thanks for your comments, guys. I agree that the last box, the Gabriel period, has the best sound. I also have the Dead Can Dance SACD set and while I had reservations about the levels there too, I am now convinced that the problems I was experiencing at that time were actually system related. I was playing some of the discs recently through the ... more
The Genesis SACD boxes
March 17, 2010
Now that I've had my Sony SCD-XA5400ES VSE-modified and going splendidly, I've been dipping into the Genesis boxes and wonder whether others share my views. I believe that, in general, the DSD mastering has been poorly carried out with levels set way too high. This has tended to result in 'splashy' cymbals and a lack of real transparency. With ... more
Pink Floyd's lawsuit against EMI
March 17, 2010
It would be superb, but I'm not holding my breath! ... more
Discussion: Mahler: Symphony No. 3 - San Francisco/Michael Tilson Thomas
March 17, 2010
Whoops....sorry, I meant 'set' at the end. ... more