I might actually be done. I find that this is the system sound I have been looking for. It can be played from very low volume levels to very high volume and gives me what I am looking for. The mid range defines the system and it is all there. The low end is present but not overwhelming and the system can be listened to for hours without being fatiguing. I have it tweeked with my room. My concentration has been on buying music. . Thats it for now. Stephen
Golden Reference Speaker cable, Interconnects: Golden Reference amp to pre am, Golden Reference CD to Pre Amp, 300B Microtwin DVD to Pre Amp, Power Cords: All Golden Reference except Twinlink on DVD Player
Running Springs Audio Haley & Duke Power Conditioners
Power Conditioners Haley for pre-amp, cd player, and dvd player Duke for amps
Day after Christmas 2011, awaiting the arrival later in the week of the Pass XA100.5 Monoblocks and will do an A/B with the new amps and my current Pass XA60.5 Monoblocks. Will update when i get a chance to get the new amps burned i n a bit.
Well, another year almost done and a time to reflect about our lives in the Audio world and out. As I looked through my threads during 2011, I realized I made many more changes than I remembered.
Lets start with what has remained constant . I still have the Jeff Rowland Capri Preamp. Some years ago, I had one, sold it, then bought another one. I am a big fan of the contribution of the Capri to my system and have thought about another Rowland but the Corus is out of my price range. I think that the Rowland Capri is one of the really good audio buys out there. I have all Cardas Golden Reference as my cable source which includes power cords, interconnects, and speaker cables. I know many people seem to bash Cardas but I don't care what they say. It is still the best cable i have ever owned and i have tried quite a few. It is musical and I enjoy its contribution to my system.
I really like Tyler Acoustic Loudspeakers. I have owned three pair and this past year I went from the Decade D1's to the Woodmeres which have the SEAS EXCEL drivers. Very smooth, very musical, and I think another very good buy in audio.
My amplification has changed. I originally got the Pass XA30.5 for the Tyler Decades but needed more power in my room with the Woodmeres. I currently own the Pass XA60.5 Monoblocks and will be upgrading to the Pass XA100.5 Monoblocks and will share my reactions when I get the Pass XA100.5 in my system. What can I say about the Pass XA line. I have owned many amps by many companies, I am addicted to the Pass XA line , that class A power is just so fine. Yes, they get a bit warm and use a bit of electricity but the midrange is what I live for in audio and these are wonderful through the middle. So realistic, the voices and instruments feel like they are in the room.
I changed my CD/SACD source. I tried a number of player which all had their strengths and weaknesses and worked my way through 3 player by Ayon Audio over the last few years. By the way, the last one I owned was the Ayon CD2-S. I also tried the Meridian(can't remember the number but not the highest level in the Meridian line), the Ayre C5xeMP, the McIntosh MCD-500, and eventually purchased the Luxman D-06. For me, in my room, it was the most natural sounding player and et the other components do what they do best. Very easy to listen to and I am very pleased with it.
So where do I go from here. Well, unless I move, this is the room I will be dealing with and I have done my best to work with it. As I mentioned, just added a rug and that has been an improvement. I will report about the Pass Monoblock upgrade. The only other area is the preamp as I would have to know it was a big step from the Capri but /i am happy for now. Some of you might say, what about a music system with files so I can get rid of compact disks (I own about 1000). I have no interest in a conversion to files. That is for others of you. I like owning a disk and looking at it and having a physical product. If they stop making disks at some point , that is ok as I will buy your disks with happiness as you go to files. No thanks on the files for me.
Anyway, on a more important note, it is a time to be thankful if you and your family have physical and emotional health. The rest of this stuff (and it is stuff) is much less important. I am so grateful that I have been blessed with some decent health as I approach 58 in a few days as well as the health of my family. Take care of yourselves, enjoy the holidays, and remember, lets that each other well on these forums. I cant tell you how many threads I read where someone does not show tolerance for other thoughts, other opinions, different levels of knowledge, and just a lack of respect for each other. Lets be decent to one another. Its great that others have a different view of my system or anything I or others have done. Thats what makes life so much fun. We all try different things in Audio and the most important difference is that we all have different rooms. Enough of me. Thank you all for responding to buy threads this year and I with you all well. Take Care. Stephen
Made another change to my system and thankfully this one did not cost anything. I moved a patterned rug into the room on top of the existing carpet which is on wood and I have noticed a difference in the sound . More damping and I like the effect on the sound. Sometimes the little things can make a nice difference.
I had been thinking about whether to make the upgrade to a higher level preamp or amp and decided to go with the amp for these reasons. In my room, when i get to the higher volume levels (and I do play the system loud at times), it does tend to go out of class A depending on the type of music. But , more important than that, the Woodmeres are 4 OHM and can take a good amount of power and it does make a difference with them. They are 91 sensitivity but have large drivers. I think and am hoping that the biggest difference between the Pass XA60.5 and the Pass XA100.5 amps will be at the lower listening levels with more headroom. I will makes notes in this system coverage once they have had a chance to burn in.
Making the move to the Pass XA100.5 Monoblocks and should be able to give a comparison to the Pass XA60.5 monoblocks which I currently own in two to three weeks.
Pass XA Monoblock Amps I know there have been many threads on these amps and the different levels of power with each set. To those who owned the Pass XA60.5 and went to the Pass XA100.5 monoblocks, did you feel that the change made a big difference in your system or was it not that noticeable whether played at low to mid level volume levels or high volume. I currently own the Pass 60.5 and am contemplating the Pass 100.5. Some people have suggested that it would take a move to the Pass XA160.5 for it to really make a difference but that would unfortunately be out of my price range. The room is 12 by 24 and the speaker load is 2 ten inch seas woofers, 2 seven inch mids, and the tweeter. They are 4 ohm with a sensitivity of 91 but a big speaker. Any thoughts from Pass owners of these amps would be appreciated. The other direction i can go would be to upgrade my Pre-amp from the Rowland Capri but my initial thought was that the Pass amp change would be more of an upgrade. Thanks for your thoughts.
Hi Steve, I am not sure when the new Accuphase DP-700 will drop, however it has been in production for 4 years. My guess is that Accuphase will wait for the DP-900/DC-901 stack to gain market penetration before releasing it...probably in mid-late next year. I finally connected my new system up the other day & have had my CD-5s running on my Isotek cd for the last few days & am sitting down to do some critical listening this weekend. I'll be posting mini-reviews of my Boulder & Ayon this weekend. Who knows, it might blow me away? In which case the next Accu better be a killer machine!! Cheers, MG. ps: I've seen & heard the Corus pre & it is definitely superior to the Capri. Looks awesome too. If I were you, I wouldn't hesitate. Who knows, your next upgrade after that might be a 625? ;)
I am a current owner of the Jeff Rowland Capri pre amp. Are there any folks who have owned or heard the Capri and have owned or heard the new Corus pre amp. I am wondering how high level a system would need to be to recognize the differences between the 2 Rowland pre-amps and what those differences are. Thanks Stephen
Do you have any idea when it will be available. Would you be able to hear it prior to purchasing. What type of music do you primarily listen to. Most of my collection is Rock but I also listen to classical. Take care. Stephen
I took a look online and it looks like Accuphase recently came out with a new SACD player. It is two pieces with a separate transport. Here is the link I found to it: http://www.accuphase.com/pdf/dp-900&dc-901_ea3.pdf
Yep, that's what tipped me off a new DP-700 isn't far away ;)
I took a look online and it looks like Accuphase recently came out with a new SACD player. It is two pieces with a separate transport. Here is the link I found to it: http://www.accuphase.com/pdf/dp-900&dc-901_ea3.pdf
Hi PF, yes I think of the Boulder as the perfect engine driving the perfect piston (Marten). I am not aware of plans by Accuphase to release an upgraded version of the DP-700, but that model is nearly 4 years old & historically is due for an update in the next 12 months. Digital never stands still (nor does Accuphase), so the next model should be a cracker :)
Those are really nice speakers. It sounds like you found the right amp to drive them. Is Accuphase coming out with a new SACD player soon that you know about? A tubed pre-amp can really help a system. Do you have the opportunity to hear the Accuphase or have you already heard some of their line.
My speakers are Marten Coltrane Alto's which are large 3 way standmounts. Coltrane is Marten's top series. The Altos are designed to be placed close to rear walls & are really ideal for my smallish apartment space. They are not particularly efficient and like plenty of power, so the Boulder should provide plenty of drive and authority. Here is a link fyi - http://www.audiofederation.com/dealership/marten/#alto
I love the sweetness & tube warmth of the Ayon CD-5s, and it's tube output stage throws off an amazing soundstage. Problem is, I wanted 3 things at once. I wanted a high end SACD player and have always wanted to own Accuphase, but I didn't want to lose the Ayon's tube virtues. After pulling my hair out for a good while I realized the answer was to buy Accuphase's future top line SACD player and upgrade to a separate Ayon preamp. And the new Orbis fit's the bill perfectly. I also realized that RB standard is in it's twilight, so I wanted to have maximum choice as silver discs start to dry up in future. (It's also good to have sacd and a vinyl source when you have GTG's..).
Unfortunately I wont have the opportunity to compare the Accuphase to my Ayon side by side as my Dealer doesn't normally stock that brand. As for my CD-5s, I am confident the combination of the separate Ayon preamp & Accuphase front end will eclipse the CD-5s ;) I agree the most important elements are amps, pre-amp & speakers, followed by your front end, then cables and conditioner.
Are you going to keep the Ayon CD5S along with the Accuphase or compare the two players and keep one of them. It was interesting to compare the Ayon players with the other players I tried. As I said, the tires really meet the road when you have the players in your system in your room and you are switching them out. That is when you really know what you have. I still believe the most important elements are the amps, pre-amp, and loudspeakers but the source does impact the sound also. I was surprised by how much till I auditioned all the players in my system.
Hi PF, I sold my Ayon CD-5 & bought a CD-5s which has a number of important improvements over the old model. I also upgraded the tubes & op amps which further improved the sound. I'm hoping to finally set up my new rig by Christmas! In the last year i've also upgraded to a Boulder 1060 amp, Taoc ASR series racks, Jorma Origo cables & a new vinyl rig.
Re: Accuphase, I love their house sound which is warm, sophisticated & smooth. The current top line model (DP-700) sounds amazing and looks gorgeous with it's persimmon wood chassis & gold faceplate :) I plan to upgrade however to the next model in a bit over a year (DP-710?). The combination of the Ayon Orbis & Accuphase will be kind of like the Yang to balance out my Boulder amps (Yin).
Nice to hear from you. I pretty much assumed I was writing these comments to myself as a kind of audio diary. Do you still have the Ayon CD5? I have not heard Accuphase but understand they are very good. Have you heard one?
Hi Steve, congratulations on your acquisition of the Luxman player. The D-06 looks like a fine sacd spinner which should give you fine resolution, grain free musicality and many years of trouble free use. I'm busy finishing my rig, but also plan to upgrade to a high end SACD player in the future...possibly an Accuphase. I'll keep tubes in the loop though & am casting more than a casual eye on the Ayon Orbis pre ;) Cheers, MG.
I have had the Luxman D-06 SACD/CD Player for about three weeks and have played it about 70 hours so I am beginning to get a sense of the sound of that I receive with the Luxman in my system.
One interesting aspect that I had not noticed till I got this player and also went through the exercise of trying other players is that some offer a signature sound that they add to the music and some do not. Of the players I have owned, the Ayon players have the most of that signature sound. The Ayon CD5, The Ayon CD2S both have the Ayon sound. what is that sound. Well, the best I can say is that the Ayon players add a richness and glaze that is definitely a part of what you get in your system. The tubes as well as the rest of the design give that fullness and coated body of sound. The reason I mention this is that the Luxman is very different from the Ayon sound. The Luxman give me a full sound but I feel it is more reflective of the recording than anything else. The Luxman is very musical and smooth but I do not get that feeling that it is adding sound or a feel to the recording. It is more natural and organic than the Ayon sound. The Luxman has good body and the sound has good weight but it is also more dependent on the recording that pushing through the sound of the player.
I have noticed other traits in players I have owned in the past. The players that tended to give me all the detail and more depth as to what was in the recording at times seemed to lack a musicality and flow that seemed that it should be in the music. The Meridian I tried gave me the most detail I had heard in a player but it seemed to have a bit of steriility to it. I won't say it was brittle but it had a clinical aspect to it. The Ayre C-5xemp had more personality, was more aggressive , especially in the bass, but had a feeling of some unnatural bass bumps in my room. I did not find it especially musical in my system in my room.
Anyway, let me get back to the Luxman. Seventy hours is not a lot of time but the player has a very musical sound without taking over the system. It gives me the recording in a very musical way but has a nice amount of detail. It has a very smooth and refined sound and you tend to want to play the music louder as the system is very non fatiguing. I feel that I am getting the recordings in a very natural way which is the best i can say about the player. It fits in well with my system but does not own it. I listen to many genres from Rock (most of my CD's) to classical. I have mostly redbook as well as many MP3's so it is certainly not audiophile recordings. I will say that when I put on on a well recorded rebook cd, the sound is wonderful and the SACD sound with a well recorded one is stunning. There is another level of detail balanced with another level of smoothness and naturalness. The Luxman will take your system wherever the amplification ands speakers allow it to go.
So these are a few more impressions at this point. I don't know how much more the burn in process will have. I would think at this point this is pretty much of the sound and that is fine with me. I am very pleased with the player. I will continue to note the progression to about 200 hours.
On the music side, I saw Noel Gallagher lads night at the Wang Center in Boston and he was great. I really like his new CD Noel Gallagher and The Flying Birds. He did most of that CD and nine Oasis songs. It was a real rock show, not for the lightweights! I maybe 57 but I will rock till I drop. To me , there is nothing like the energy and feeling to a live rock show. To all, get out and hear music live. Its what it is all about . Then hopefully, enjoy your system as an extension of it.
Well, there has not been much to report on my new Luxman D-06 SACD/CD player. I lost power in Massachusetts saturday and it has been out since. Where I live kind of looks like a war zone with trees, and power lines down. I hope to report more when i get power back.
Picked up the Luxman D-06 from my dealer yesterday but did not get the chance to listen to it as I went from there to a concert (Blitzen Trapper, Oregon Indie Band). So you can imagine how I was caged up waiting to hear this machine. We get that way when we get a new component. By the time I hooked it up last night, it was about one in the morning and as my daughter had to work the next day, I just connected it and checked that it was functioning mechanically. With that done, I called it a night and decided tomorrow was another day.
So today, even though my ears are a bit blown out from the show last night, I have gotten the music going. I might add that it is good music weather up here in Massachusetts. We got an inch of snow a day ago and tonight where i live they are saying 6-12 inches. October, can't believe it.
Anyway, have only heard a few CD's. This is a SACD/CD player that I bought because it was recommended because of its sound qualities, not because it has every type of connection possible. Lets face it , I am a two channel guy who likes having a hard disk and do not want a music server. I know that goes against the new wave of high end audio thought. I have over 1000 cd's, mostly rebook, and I am happy with them. I am just beginning to explore SACD's and even though they are viewed as dinosaurs, I find that the high quality ones are outstanding.
So let me get to some initial thoughts about the player. I wonder if any of you have had this thought about digital sources. When you get one in your system that you really like, you start thinking about whether it is the sound or flavor of the digital source or is that source more capable of getting out of the way so you can hear the quality of your amp, pre-amp, and loudspeakers.
Ok, the Luxman D-06. It does not have a built in pre-amp. I run it through my Jeff Rowland Capri. I have had many cd players that went direct to the amp and one that had a built in pre-amp. I have always felt that the digital sources sounded better through a pre-amp. By the way, I had the Ayon CD5 at one point and went back and forth between direct and through a pre-amp and still thought it sounded better through the Rowland Capri vs direct to the amps.
So the Luxman has the capacity to connect to another digital source through coax but it is essentially straight ahead two channel SACD/CD. How does it sound out of the box? In a word, wonderful. I don't know how much burn in a player like this needs but if it does not improve from what I am hearing, I will be quite content. The sound is full with good weight. It is very clean with a good amount of detail but that detail is delivered in a very musical way. I don't know how to use the right words but it delivers that high end sound without being to analytical or annoying to listen to. I need to go out to today to do errands before the snow and I can't peel myself away from the music. Extremely easy to listen to. Again, it is working with the Pass XA60.5 Class A Monoblocks and Tyler Acoustics Woodmeres which have the Seas Excel drivers.
I hope to write a much more detailed set of impressions after more time but I will tell you I went through quite a few players to get to this point and I am glad I got to hear the others in my system because that is what you will be listening to with your equipment in your room. I had previously had the Three of the Ayon CD players. That included the Ayon CD5, Ayon CD2, and the Ayon CD2S. In addition, this time I auditioned in my system the Meridian (not the highest priced one, the other player), the Ayre C-5xeMP, and also the McIntosh MCD500. These were all quality players which would add to any system. But the Luxman is something very special in my system in my room.
