The secondary reference system is housed in a room 20' x 28' x 10' and situated diagonally before the Kiva fireplace. The ceiling again is herringbone slats above wooden latilla beams every two feet. The floor is a 9' x 12' throw rug over Italian tile.

The resident speakers are Triangle Ventis 222, a French 6-driver 3-way with rear-firing ambiance tweeter and triple paralleled 5.5-inch woofers. The Ventis is 93.5dB efficient. Shown here are 97dB Coincident Technology Victories on review loan.


The speakers are spaced 8 foot center to center and 3 feet from the front wall (measured from front baffle straight back across center line of top). The listening seats place the listeners' ears about 10 feet away.


Behind the central rack is the opening of the fire place. It's covered up by a thick brocade curtain. The adobe detailing above the kiva features an unusual tiered ledge and a customary nichos, a small domed niche for statues or other displays. The open door to right leads into my reference room.

The rack, from top to bottom, holds an Art Audio PX-25 6wpc SET amp with integral passive attenuator; a remote-controlled Art Audio VPS-DM tube preamp below; a Denon DCD-1560 20-bit ladder-type CD player run into a Bel Canto Design DAC-2, a Kenwood KX-5420 three-head tape deck and a Bel Canto Design eVo 200.4.


The sand amp is normally run bridged for 360wpc but can easily be converted to 120wpc standard operation. Having a micro-power tube amp and mid- to high-power solid state amp in the same system allows for flexibility with review assignments. Amps and preamp are fed from an Audio Magic Stealth Power Purifier, the CD player and DAC are plugged into a Digital Stealth. All cabling is by Acoustic Zen except for the power cords feeding the conditioners. Those are Audio Magic Clairvoyant. The equipment stand itself is a pARTicular contemporary design product called the Novus and hand-painted in purple and turquoise green.

The main entry to left, right listening chair on left edge of photo.

A close-up of the Art Audio PX-25 in all its chromilicious glory.

The double door into the yard and the bookshelf reading area with life indoor bourgainvilla.

Same general perspective but with right speaker in foreground, also showing Pilates machine below CD shelves and the Vigas ceiling.

One more view of the system as seen from the archway leading into the kitchen (another 13' x 19' x 10' room that is acoustically part of this space).

Bum's landing with archway to 2nd wing of house (bedroom, my wife's office, master bathroom).

The cozy reading corner which doubles up as Ivette's late-night laptop station.