Jensen G610Bs in Jake’s Music Room

Earlier this summer, Tish and I drove to New England to visit friends and relatives. One of the highlights of our trip was a sumptuous dinner hosted by Jake and his wife, Edie. Other guests included Angela, Andrea, and Charles - all music lovers. After dinner, we retreated to Jake’s music room to enjoy music and sample fine bourbon whiskey courtesy of Angela. The room was filled with over a thousand LPs. It was also the first time I ever heard Jensen G610B speakers and was quite impressed!👍

After I took pictures, I asked Jake if he was willing to provide a virtual tour for this blog on how his personally curated Hi-Fi setup evolved. Thankfully, he obliged!🙏

OJAS @ Cooper Hewitt NYC

Last weekend, I visited Devon Turnbull's HiFi Pursuit Listening Room Dream No. 3 at the Cooper Hewitt, which opened on December 12, 2025.

Classic JE Labs HiFi in Manila

This was how the attic looked when we left in early 2017. Our first visit since then was in March this year. 

SETUP 2024

Single Ended Triode Users of the Philippines 2024

At the dawn of the 21st century, I uploaded hifi systems owned by audio buddies who had been inspired by the Sound Practices ethos. These were the guys who originally coined SETUP. After a couple of decades, the number of Filipinos who indulge in this hobby has increased exponentially.

Here's what I saw and heard during my recent visit.😊

Harana Audio Workshop

Altec 311-60 horns + 288 drivers with Fostex super tweets on top of a pair of Harana V-Vent bass bins with partial horn loading

JE Labs Man Cave 2024

This is the side of the man cave where I spend a lot of time listening and evaluating new projects.

In the coming months, I will be talking about phono preamps, autoformer volume control, revisit the transformer coupled line stage topology, SE amps, etc. I will also continue my classic Japanese idler-driven turntable series, feature a couple of SE-DHT amp-friendly drivers + more.

Most of the audio components listed below are hyperlinked if you mouse over the text. Those that are not will be linked once the article is uploaded.

I like to taste new sonic flavors that are within the DIY realm😊

JEL man cave tour

OJAS Listening Room @ USM in SoHo NYC

I never imagined 30 years after the late Don Garber closed his Fi audio gallery at 30 Watts Street, that there would be a similar gallery in SoHo NYC again.

In the summer of 2022, I visited Devon Turnbull's OJAS exhibit at the NYC Lisson gallery. Click here to read about it. This past summer, a similar exhibit was presented at the London Lisson gallery. 

As soon as the London exhibit concluded, Ken Micallef, whom I follow on YouTube, uploaded this video featuring OJAS hifi systems inside a posh SoHo boutique. This was the main motivation to add it to my list of must-see places on my next NYC trip! 

Without further ado, here's what Tish and I experienced when we visited in mid November 2023.

A Cousin's Listening Room

 

This is a hifi system I built for a cousin who loves music!

The speakers, which I dubbed Altec 753C, is the culmination of my Altec 2-way horn system project.

Western Electric 753 inspired cabinets meticulously handcrafted by John Piro of Hommage Audio

Garrard 301 turntable + Ortofon RMG309i tonearm + Ortofon SPU Synergy for stereo LPs and Alfred Bokrand AB309 + SPU Mono for mono LPs 

Turntable plinth by Hommage Audio

The JE Labs preamp line stage is a plate choke loaded 76 while the SE300B mono block amps feature a Komuro-inspired circuit using type 37 input tubes + Intact Audio nickel plate choke loaded 6V6s or 6F6Gs (connected in triode) and Hashimoto H-30-3.5S output transformers. 

Preamp and amp woodwork by Hommage Audio.

Hifi cabinet by George Nakashima Woodworkers.

Projects like this keep me busy during the pandemic.😊

man cave 2021

 

From mid September until mid November, the man cave was out of commission so I set up a temporary system in our living room. 

Flooding in the lower level had been a major issue since we moved to this house. Tish and I finally bit the bullet and had a French drain + sump pump system installed.

Knowing that jackhammers would create a big mess, we packed up all of our books, LPs, CDs, etc.

I had to repaint/reseal the floor because it was badly scratched by contractor traffic.

Listening lounge chair

At least 12 square feet of floor space was gained from the removal of a built-in bench. We reclaimed a small window that had been blocked off, which most likely had an a/c in the past. 

Monaural hifi view

Stereo + Monaural Hi-Fi

Still working on the main hifi system and filing my LPs...😉

I'm really liking the less cluttered look, which means I have to reduce my audio collection. So keep your eyes peeled for goodies at the JE Labs Flea Market after the New Year. 😄 

Looking Back to the Past for a Better-Sounding Future

'80s Nostalgia

 

Early to mid '90s

I was based in the DC metro area in the early to mid 90s. 

When I wasn't playing gigs or teaching, I serviced classic audio equipment and Audio Note, UK Kits for Angela instruments.

Mid-late 90s

Sound Practices 17 Homebrewer Article

2000-2008

Main Listening Room

Monaural Hi-Fi

Home Theatre with SET amps

The Attic 2008-2016

2017

2018

Man Cave 2020

Near-field

Monaural HiFi

Stereo

🎆 Welcome 2021! 🎆

JE Labs Man Cave 2020

CV21mm f4

The JE Labs man cave was originally planned as an annual feature. But due to a flood mitigation procedure in the fall of 2019, I blogged about the near-field system instead. 

Fortunately, a new drywall was installed and painted by the tail end of winter. I was at the final stage of arranging my library, cameras, LPs and miscellaneous items when lockdown commenced.  

Typically, I'd be on photo explorations in my spare time during spring. But due to the pandemic, I'm trying to be a responsible citizen practicing social distancing. Since I'm confined indoors, here's a virtual tour of the man cave viewed through my Leitz and Cosina-Voigtlander lenses mounted on a Sony A7II camera.

Leitz Summicron 35mm f2 V1

Main System

Turntables: Garrard 301, Garrard 401, Thorens TD124 and Mk II in DIY plinth

Tonearms: Ortofon RMG309, Alfred Bokrand AB309, SME 3012

Phono Cartridges: Ortofon SPU GME Classic, SPU #1s, Supex SD900 MkIV,  Denon DL103R, DL103CI, DL103S, DL103, "Capped" DL103, GAS "Sleeping Beauty" and Fidelity Research FR1 MKII

MC Step Up Transformers: Altec/Peerless 4722 + Tamura TKS83 

Streaming Device:  Raspberry Pi 3b+/Allo DigiOne SPdif/Anker Power Bank/Volumio 

CD Player: Magnavox CDB650 and Sony CDP505esD  

DAC: nos TDA1541 tube DAC

Line Transformer: Western Electric WE111C repeat coil

FM Tuner: Yamaha T-2

Antenna: Winegard HD6010 mounted in the garage attic

CV28mm f1.9

Preamp: JEL Octal + 76 

Amps: JEL SE2A3dx, JEL Simple 45, JEL Simple 46, JEL SE71A

Speakers: Altec 753C, an homage to the Western Electric WE753C and the definitive evolution of my Altec 2-way project

Cables:  DIY Mogami/Neglex 2534 for phono, Kimber KCAG and DIY PBJ, KS24194/Telco Flex III 14 AWG speaker cable 

CV21mm f4

LPs + audio equipment and miscellaneous

CV21mm f4

 

Cameras + Library

CV21mm f4

Workshop

Leitz Summicron 35mm f2 V1

Workbench

SE10 mono integrated amp (under construction)

Test equipment: Hitachi V650F 60 MHz dual channel scope, Kenwood AG-203 sine/square wave oscillator, Fluke 87 and Triplett 9045 True RMS DVMs, Proster LCR meter, Weller WTCPS soldering station and a General Radio W5MT3A Variac

Summicron 50mm f2 Rigid

Near-field System

Turntables: Thorens TD124 and Mk II, Sony TTS 2500, Shield MO-19 and Rek O Kut B12GH

Tonearms: SME 3012, Audio Technica AT1501 Mk II, Denon DA305, Fidelity Research FR64fx, FR24 FR54, Grace G565 and G540L, Stax UA3NL, Syntec S220

MM Phono Cartridges: Audio Technica AT110E, Nagaoka MP10, MP11, Pickering 380, V15 DAT2, V15 Phase IV and XV15, Shure M3D, M7D, M44G, SC39B 

Digital Sources: Raspberry Pi 3b+/Volumio + Musical Fidelity V-Link, JVC XL-Z411 CD transport, Magnavox CDB465

DAC: NOS'ed Arcam Delta Black Box or tube buffered NOS TDA1543 

Line Transformer: UTC A20

Preamp: JEL Loctal or Realistic 32-1100A mixer + 42-2109 phono 

Amps:  JEL SE300B mono blocks, Radiotron SE2A3,  Nobsound NS-02g/JLH 1969 Class A

Speakers: Altec 755A in Dr. Bae/Silbatone Cabs or Altec 755C in 618 Cabs

Headphones

Koss Porta-Pro, Grado SR80 or AKG K72 driven by the Darling amp, JE Labs Style

Mono Hi-Fi 

Turntable: Gates CB77 + Gray 108B + GE RPX or Neat P58H + Calrad SV16 or Velvet Touch + DL102 or GE RPX

Digital Sources: Raspberry Pi 3b/Volumio and JVC XL-Z444 CD Player

DAC: Audio GD R2R-11

Tuner: Sansui T-60 or Sherwood S-3000 II

Amp: JEL mono integrated SE2A3 + Altec 15356 stereo to mono mixer  

Speaker: Altec 756B + Altec 32B + Altec 802 

CV21mm f4

Stay Safe and Happy Listening!