-ricardojoa
First, thanks to all for the compliments and interest.
The McIntosh unit you see in my rack is in fact a MR-85 tuner. I live in Chicago where we're lucky enough to have one of the finest 24/7 classical music stations in the country: WFMT. On a good day (typically weekends when RF traffic is minimal), analog broadcast with my MR-85 approaches reference quality. That's how serious this audiophile is about broadcast FM.
A summary of my system for comparison to the mix of components you may be thinking about:
Analog:
Avid Diva SP II turntable
SME 309 tonearm
Clearaudio Maestro cartidge
McIntosh MR-85 tuner
Digital:
PS Audio PWD DAC fed by NAS storage, nearly all 96/24 or better high-resolution source files (FLAC only)
Electronics:
Aesthetix Calypso line stage
Krell S-275 power amplifier
Liberty Audio B2B-1 phono stage
Misc.:
Furman SPR-20i AC regeneration (the only 'power conditioning' I accept as beneficial for a high-end music only system)
SolidSteel racks
Sound Anchors stands for the M7s
REL-R205 subwoofer for bass reinforcement of the M7s
All audioquest interconnects (DBS) and speaker cables, I run my system mostly balanced
Audience powerChords
Jim has always said his SS series does justice to the best front end gear and electronics. Believe it!
For those thinking about veneer choices, I've attached another closeup showing what Jim was able to do with the Bubinga lot he and I chose for the project. Again forgive the horrible flash glare, but I'm pretty sure you get the idea - how eye-popping this recent Bubinga finish turned out.