My home audio system

Note that when I say 'Home Audio System' I do not mean today's surround sound type systems often sold to go with an expensive domestic plasma TV set, nor do I mean the multi-unit Music Centre's as sold by many domestic electrical retail outlets. What we are talking about here is the world of good quality audio separates and their use in the crossover from home hi-fi into that non-domestic world of 'Studio Audio', which is at the lower end of the professional audio systems as used in recording studios, radio and TV studios, and the like. These Studio systems need to bring together a wide variety of sound sources, to have full control over them (including monitoring individual sound levels and tone), mix or separate them, switch quickly or fade between them, and possibly add voice commentary as well.

I've had a fascination for this professional approach to audio for many years, and it was a heavy influence on me in the building and upgrading of the various mobile disco systems I used back in my Disco/DJ years.

The lounge in my flat is only 20 feet by 10 feet, so obviously I don't need the big loudspeaker stacks I had back then (even though the last system used a pair of HH 15" bass/midrange reflex cabs and HH radial tweeter horns, mounted on stands - very compact, very loud, and very clear!). So these days the speakers are a pair of Cerwin Vega LS/8's (one pictured above) which are just as comfortable being used for playing background classical music at home as they are for blasting out the latest Disco trends inside your local HMV record/CD Megastore.

The heart of my system is a 'Dynacord MP-7' professional audio mixer with built in 200W stereo amplifier, which gives me full studio level mixing and monitoring facilities, and provides more than enough power into the Cerwin Vega's to upset the neighbours in the next block of flats! This unit is shown to the left in the photo below:

To the right of it is a Technics SL1200 turntable fitted with a Stanton 680EL pickup cartridge. It's Industry Standard! It will play any vinyl record you care to throw onto it, and with the highest possible quality sound output. Anything less and you're missing out on a lot, anything better and you'll end up listening to the dust that's accumulated in your old record collection. The headphones there are Beyer Dynamic DT931 open backed studio monitor 'phones. The shelves in the unit contain the rest of the audio (and video) equipment, note that it's mainly Technics gear.

In there are two VCR's, a FreeView box (recently replaced with an upgraded model), a DVD player, an FM stereo tuner, two cassette decks, a KAM 30 chanell graphic equaliser, a Behringer four channel stereo headphone amplifier, and a filtered mains supply to feed the lot. Alternative headphones are Sennheiser 2270 or Beyer Dynamic DT250, though personally I prefer the sound that the open-backed Beyer DT931's produce.

The one thing I like about the cassette decks (Technics RS-B705) is their auto-cue facility. In play mode you can forward to the next track, and again if needed, and when it's the track you want you just press the back button and it automatically recues back to the start in pause mode. When you're ready to play just hit Play! If only cueing vinyl records was that easy! (Though back cueing on the SL1200 with a Stanton 680 cart is probably the only time you won't bend the stylus backwards!).

Oh, and nearly forgot. I can also run a lead across from the Dynacord MP7 audio mixer into the computer at this end of the room. This enables me to add/edit customised audio tracks into video clips taken on my digital camera.