My Current HiFi System 2025
Audio has been in my life since I was a kid. I started listening to my mom’s records at age 9 on a portable all in one crappy turntable. I bought my first “system” at 15-16 and every week I would buy a new album. I would listen to that album all week until it was time for the next purchase or sometimes wear out the grooves! I still own some of those original albums today though they do not get played anymore. These days I am 100% into streaming as this brings millions of tracks right to our fingertips and the sound can be unreal with the right setup.
I get emails from time to time asking me what the state of my system is. It has changed often, usually every few months in the past as I get new pieces in that I fall for. I am a HiFi addict after all, lol. Just because I change a piece doesn’t mean what I had before is bad or no longer loved, I just like to keep things fresh for the videos and to experience as much as I can. I do this to learn, to compare and to understand what makes some gear cost as much as it does.
When and if anything changes here, I will update the page but I will state now that the Icon 12’s will not be sold and we even tossed the boxes for them. Yea, they are that good if you like full body, detail, slam, attack along with a beautiful 3D image.
Lucky for me my wife is into this as well. While I listen daily, she sits with me on the weekends and we both enjoy it. Here we are on our weekend “date” at a local brewery. After this we went home to listen to some music. Fun Fact, my wife and I met in kindergarten and went to grade school together. Now in our mid 50’s we enjoy the simple things in life above all else.
This is my current system:
Speakers
Icon 12 Speakers from O Audio.
IN SYSTEM NOW
From the moment I heard the Icon 12 and saw them in the flesh I knew that they would be right up my alley. These are majestic. End game for those who love a bit of warmth, big body, big bass and a sweet wide open treble that is a bit airy and holographic. No sub needed or desired in my 13X18 space and I feel these could fill a fairly large space but for those with huge rooms, O Audio offers this model. These are amazing with any music and can do rock like I never heard, which is tricky with most high end speakers. They do Jazz as if you are sitting in a club listening live. Ambient stuff is insanely room filling and the soundstage has an ethereal vibe going on. Compared to previous faves, there is no comparison for me as these offer the whole package.
The Icon 12 are on the warmer side with the Nagra setup but also have thunderous impact and a larger than life sound with stunning details being brought out from the depths of the recordings. They also sound super with a Modwright LS99 and KWA 99 amps as well as the Luxman 509Z I tested recently.
What I love most is that they sound great with just about all kinds of music and magical with well done recordings. Not bright, not dark, just right. Bass down into the upper 20’s. These are also easy to drive so no big power needed but they do love quality power. When I listen to the Icon 12’s I never feel as if anything is missing and that, for me, is as good as it gets. These have a heart touching soulful vibe about them as well.
Amplification
After much thought my wife and I decided we really do have to sell the Nagra gear. When it does sell I will get her the car she needs and pay the big old property tax bill I talked about in my recent Nagra video.
I now have the ModWright LS99 Tube Pre and KWA99 Amplifiers in the system. This is way more in line with not only what I can afford, but in reality, also my sound preferences for music I love. These are AMAZING for Rock, Metal, EDM, Ambient, etc. The Nagra is better for Jazz, Vocals and Classical among others and is much more refined and with gorgeous design and build, yes, I will miss it but that’s how life goes. I am thrilled with this ModWright stack as well, and it keeps with the Tube pre and Solid State amp sound. Made in the USA.
LS99 Tube Preamp – This is a 3 tube preamp and offers balanced or single ended inputs and outs. A truly balanced design this has sounded great with all amps I have paired with it. I love the retro big knobs and the tube sound it injects. A kick but preamp that is quiet and also comes with a separate power supply that stays away from the preamp itself. Reminds me of a much much better Cary SLP98 from back in the day.
KWA 99 Mono Amps – I love the design of these. Simple but retro with the amber VU meters which are large and beautiful. The sound has punch, density and drive. It has energy and an electric kind of power that seems endless. These are 100 WPC into 8 ohms and 200 WPC into 4 ohms and is a mosfet amp, made in the USA. The sound is so good and have driven all speakers with the same kind of kick and energy. Drums are amazing with this setup.
You can see more about these at the ModWright Website HERE.
See my full video review of this stack!
Streamer
Nagra Streamer. This is the lowest cost item Nagra makes and while at $5k it is not “cheap” for just a streamer but again you are getting what you pay for in performance. This streamer has beaten everything I have tested it against for my preferences (maybe not yours) and I love it for its simplicity but not everyone will.
There is no app needed, it is ROON ready, does Spotify connect very well along with Tidal connect and now with the easy firmware update it works with Qobuz connect as well. Only two outputs which is an N Link and COAX. I use the COAX and the sound is again, full bodied with smooth details and depth. Layers, texture, and yes streamers make a difference at this level. This will bring streaming with the finest quality to whatever DAC you hook up to it but there are others that are very close or just as good sounding. The Lumin U2, Hifi Rose RS130. All of these are in the same price bracket and sound lovely.
I bought mine from Unveiled Audio.
DAC
LAIV Micro Harmony DAC. Yea, one would think that this DAC doesn’t fit in with the Nagra gear I have but this HiFi thing is more about synergy that what a piece cost. The Micro DAC is and will be in my products of the year for 2025 because of the insane value it offers. This DAC sounds better to me than a $5k+ DAC I recently heard and sound wise sits in that ballpark. At $994 this is a bargain. It is rich, somewhat warm, big body and with just the right amount of sparkle and details. I hate lean, harsh, bright and overdone transparency. This is not that. Instead it will get you moving to the music vs analyzing it. A STEAL! After 60 days this has seemed to open up some and now has more transparacy that allows more inner details to be heard. So it does open up more in time.
Power Conditioning
VINSHINE/KINKI Tai Hang. This has been a tough one to crack as I have not been a fan of some of the power conditioners out there today, many that seem to be cash grabs. I found the Audioquest models to brighten up the sound and didn’t keep them long as they didn’t do a thing for the DC on my line as amps still buzzed. I lived with the Puritan PSM 156 for a couple of years as it effectively fixed my DC issue but even it brightened things up a tad in the sound, which with some music was nice. The PSM 156 is fantastic.
I now use the Tai Hang and it has been a miracle maker for my bad power. It not only fixed the DC issue on my line, it doesn’t limit current so amps can and should be plugged in as well. It eliminated EMI as well but who knows if that really affects audio. My amps sound better plugged in to the Tai Hang. Also, it eliminates noise and acts as a surge protector as well. It’s like a 3 in one that does everything well.
This launched at around $1k is now $1700. Alvin of Vinshine made a video saying prices would have to be raised due to tariffs, and well, they did. Advance Paris has also raised prices kind of dramatically over the last 30 days. I have spoken with a couple of manufactures who have told me prices are going up due to tariffs, so yea, it’s a thing. Even at $1700 it is well worth it and I slightly prefer it to the Puritan and truly prefer it to the Audioquest models.. I even tested it against another brands $6k model and prefer the Tai Hang, at least within my system and room. Fit and finish is awesome as well. Another bargain.
Oh, and this one does not brighten the sound but did expand the stage and add a layer of refinement and it seemed to add some body to the sound vs taking it away like some do. Again, in my room with my gear so your results may vary. I love this thing but can’t say how it will work for you as my electric has always had issues with gear but this solved those issues better than the others I have had. If your power is good, this may not make much difference, not sure. I can only speak of my experiences.
Cables
For speaker and interconnect cables I use over a decade old Nordost Valhalla V1 for speaker and Interconnects.
Yes, cables matter. Period.
If you have invested thousands in an audio system and have skimped on cables you should reconsider as you now have a bottleneck in your system, holding it back so to speak. If you have a budget system, I would not bother with any kind of fancy cable, as decent copper will do. I see cables these days (40 years into this hobby) as a component but I also know that they will not usually dramatically alter the sound. I see cables as the “finishing touch” and go for synergy above cost or flash. Even so, I have found one cable I just keep going back to, three times now since 2003.
I have tested nearly 100 cables over the last 40 years and always go back to the Nordost Valhalla. These are in no way “bright” as some have said. Again, synergy is key here. Do not place them in a system that has lean or bright speakers or a lean and bright amp. These allow the truth to be told. In my system as shown above these offer an amazing level of bass definition, treble sweetness and midrange awesomeness, meaning these never bring a lean sound to the mids, rather they help flesh it out some while still digging deep for details. These are neutral when paired with the right amp and speakers and the lowest octaves are just fantastic. They allow all info to transmit and I have never found another cable I like better, even the V2 Valhalla.
In any case, the Valhalla is a cable you keep for life. I have no desire to change it up. These retailed for $13k back in the day just for the speakers cables alone. I bought mine used, but mint, for $3k (9 ft pair) but used prices seem to have shot up lately on these. I also use Valhalla XLR Interconnects, which can be found used on average for between $1100-$1700 for a 1M set. I own one set of XLR and use Red Dawn as my 2nd set as I can’t afford to get another Valhalla. If you want a “NEW” Valhalla V1, the closest you can get is the Nordost Tyr 2 which is almost the same cable but be prepared to pay. I could never do it, pay that much, so I stick with the oldies, used.
See my Video on the Nordost Cables.
Other Gear I have on hand and sometimes swap out for a change or use for review comparisons.
EPO SOUND Red Millennium Deimos Speakers from Poland.
ELAC DB63 Bookshelf Speakers.
PURE AUDIO Project Duet 15 with Voxactiv 1.6 and HORN 1.
Black Ice Audio FX10H tube amp.
LAIV Harmony GaNM Amps.