@gryphongryph Thank you! At low volumes they sound clear, but lose bass power. Moderate listening volume is ideal to get full-range fullness to the sound. Granted, these are giant things - the drivers are 18" in diameter - so they're really begging to get cranked up a bit.
I'd probably recommend going down the 15 or 12 model if a smaller room or to play at lower volumes (or just look for something else entirely). I have experienced with the concentric/co-axial type speakers like Tannoys and these that this tends to be their weak point. My previous Tannoys had the same problem and needed moderate volume to really come alive.
Once these get the right volume, they come alive though!
Added 4x Herbies Tenderfeet under my Allnic DAC. Not as drastic of a change vs my pre-amp and amplifier, but a little more focused. Most noticeable on lower frequencies this time.
Swapped the Cat 8 Ethernet for Cat 6 (had both already) to see if I noticed any difference. If there is any change, it is not detected by my ears. Apparently the shielding in cat 8 can sometimes cause some issues, but it did not for me. It might also just be dependent on your home and quality of in-wall wiring and such too. Was no cost to test though, so why not.
@jond Thank you! I appreciate the comment! The Allnic DAC is really nice, especially at the price I got it at. I am not sure it would have been a pick at the retail pricing originally, but at the used market prices of them these days, they way overperform. I basically got it for cheaper than the Denafrips pontus + iris I bought new previously, and it blows that out of the water. Was considering moving up to a Terminator but instead got offered this and after demoing, really liked it! The only other DACs I've really *loved* after hearing were some of the higher end Lampizator models, but they are quite expensive (and very large) so not really a good option for me.
The speakers sure are beautiful! It took a while to decide on a finish, but very happy with the choice I landed on.
@david_ten Thanks for checking it out! It's been an eventful past year - not a single piece of equipment remains from pre-May 2023 when I upgraded my turntable and started this cascade of upgrades!
Added Herbie's Tenderfoot vibration isolation feet under my linestage, amplifier and amp power supply as an experiment. Noticed immediately more defined and less sibilant vocals, of all things. Low cost tweak overall, so keeping them.
Got a pair of KR 2A3 tubes and compared with my EML mesh plates. In my system with the rest of my gear and tube choices, the KR 2A3 tubes are a bit more musical and liquid sounding. The EML mesh plates have a wider soundstage (almost unnaturally so, at times), and the sound is a bit more 'hot' - clean and somewhat mid/high end biased. Don't get me wrong though, these are MINOR differences that are being highlighted. Both are excellent options and around the same price point. The EML was the best I heard prior, even compared to some NOS options. However, the KR tubes just provide a more relaxed and musical presentation that I can listen to for many hours and are staying in my system for the foreseeable future.
I also got another pair of the Linlai E6SN7 and replaced the 6SN7 in my power amplifier with one. Not as large of a change in the sound as in my preamplifier (naturally), but will see how it sounds once it breaks in.
@silverfoxvtx1800 Thanks for the comment! I responded to your DM just now regarding the Coherents. As far as the DAC goes, I ended up replacing my Denafrips Pontus II / Iris combo with the Allnic D-5000 DHT Dac and very much enjoy it. I picked it up from a good friend for an absolute steal of a deal, so I would be extremely hard pressed to find something better at that price point - would likely need to be ~$15-20k!
Replaced Furman Elite 15PFI with Saturn Audio 103c mkII power filter. As skeptical as I am about power filters and such, I noticed an immediate improvement, especially with handling vocal sibilance. It also improved background 'blackness' for me. This includes having my amplifier plugged into it directly versus to the wall.
@milpai Interesting. Just any outlet on a conditioner works? That's a bit strange. I've heard great things about it, but I have to admit I am skeptical with how it is doing anything. I suppose it's just something you have to try and see if you hear any difference or not!
@milpai Thanks - I've seen mentions of that before and found it interesting. Does it "waste" an outlet, or can something be plugged into it? Just curious because I have two outlets - one for my conditioner and one for my amp directly - and that is it, so I don't really have spare outlets to stick it in!
@scar972 Thank you! I appreciate the feedback. While my first priority isn't appearance of gear - sticking to a strict black chassis preference (or wood) has helped keep everything cohesive, which is important to me!
@milpai Thanks! I do dabble in photography a bit on the side. I'm pretty happy with how everything has come together, and now I am mostly down to tweaks.
@subterranean6 Thanks! I just got my new rack in (and posted the updated photos). Aric makes fabulous products at very accessible price points given the quality. It's no wonder he has a pretty long waiting list now!
The speakers are by Coherent Audio, which is really just one person - Frank - in Canada. He hand makes all of his speakers himself and these are the top of his line are far as single box speakers go. He recently developed a modular speaker that is considerably more expensive. What drew me to these is that they are very high efficiency (advertised at 104db @ 8 ohm) and I wanted to be able to use SET amplification, which really needs high efficiency speakers to shine. I came from Tannoy speakers, which I loved for the longest, but I wasn't too too impressed with the GR line models below the Kensington, and the Fyne audio models I like are all very pricey.
Anywho. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment!
Starting with build quality - Frank did a super job with them. They are gorgeous in person. I went with Santos Rosewood for the veneer choice after a lot of deliberation, and I am glad that I did! The 18s are large (naturally, since the driver is 18" in diameter!), but this driver is fabulous. The bass extension on them is really nice.
Paired with the SET amp from Aric, they sound fantastic. Since they are such high efficiency, I don't need to turn the volume up very high - between 30-40 on the volume setting on the pre-amp - to get quite loud sound.
Coming from using Tannoys for the last decade, the idea is similar with these coaxial drivers. Imaging and soundstage is wonderful. Midrange and vocals are fantastic. When I swapped out my speaker cables for some mapleshades, I got a lot more air around vocals and an even wider soundstage.
The fact that everything sounds this good in a less than ideal room setup has me very excited for when I get them into a more cooperative room later in the year - and then in a few years down the line I will have a dedicated room that I can add sound treatment to that will improve it even further. Don't plan on doing any more major upgrades until I get to the point of a dedicated room now.
@toro3 I did! I was out of town on business for a few weeks right after they all arrived, so I've just been able to get settled in and listen for quite a while so far to evaluate.
The coherents are stunning. The veneer choice I went with is fabulous in person and they look truly high end. Build quality is top notch. They are quite large (and heavy) speakers! The amp and pre-amp from Aric are also beautiful, well-constructed, and a bargain, in my opinion. For both pieces of equipment including tube outfits and shipping, it was under $10k!
So far, I am loving the setup! With my vinyl front end, it sounds like a dream! With the digital front end, there was a definite huge improvement versus my previous system, but I may need to re-evaluate DAC options at a later date, but unsure. Digital mastering is weird and all over the place - even on Qobuz - so some songs sound incredible, others not so great. Probably more of a file issue rather than a DAC issue though. Majority of my listening is vinyl anyway.
When I swapped to some mapleshade double helix plus cables that a friend sent me to try, it was like a veil was lifted off the sound and everything became clearer and more airy. I was shocked, frankly. I love the sound from these speaker...wires when paired with my system, but boy are they ugly and irritating to manage. It's like chicken wire, or trying to use a slinky as speaker cables. Ultimately, it's about the sound though, so I may end up going with them!
Overall, I am very pleased with the choices I made, and now it will just be tweaking with cable choices or trying different tubes. Looking forward to getting my new rack in to clean everything up as well!
@milpai Thanks! It's still a bit of a mess at the moment while I wait on my new rack to be built, so everything is a bit more spread out than it will be once it's racked. Had to use wide angle to try to get everything in the shot!
This wall is the longest uninterrupted wall in the room. The others are broken by doors and whatnot. It's not an ideal space, but it's also temporary since I'm waiting on a home build to be completed later this year. Unfortunately, I won't have a dedicated room there for the time being either, but it will be a lot more suitable versus right in front of a wall of windows.
