In my small dedicated listening room with vault ceilings this is the best system so far. Sonus Faber Guarneri Homage's which were some of the last pair to be brought into the US along with new Jadis JA 30 Mk2 Mono Blocks utilizing KT150's and Smooth Plate Telefunken tubes, a CAT SL1 Renaissance Black Path BPX with phono. The Linn LP12 Radikal D, Karousel/Kore is the front-end with a Lyra Kleos. Esoteric DV60 SACD player, Esoteric D-05 DAC, Alternate ss amp: Jeff Rowland model 8T modded by Jeff. Room tuning devices include the Real Traps Mondo Traps, Mini Traps and Shakti Hallograph's. Grand Prix Monaco amp stands. Audio Art SE-1 power cords with Furutech connectors.Zenwave power cord PL1 with Furutech NCF 50, Zenwave D2 Ultra ic's, Graceline 1.5 meter ic and Black Cat PC-1 Silverstar power cord for Rowland. Two REL T5i subs...running high level off the amp outputs and with Signal subwoofer cables and Supra pc's. Nessie Vinylcleaner.
Hi Pradeep, I am considering a second T5. However, I'm pretty happy with the set up right now and I'm not sure if a 2nd sub would overload the room a little. I'm also considering an upgrade to the TT...not sure what, but I'm leaning towards a Lingo 2 or 3.
Hi Dave Congrats on a really impressive system. How is the T5 coming along? Have you considered a 2 nd T5? I know that you mentioned your room size as that reason you opted for a T5 instead of a larger REL. I had a REL 505 for a year and then added a 2nd sub. There is something magical about a pair of subs in a 2 channel system. It's not that the bass gets louder but more coherence and solidity in LFE. It's something to ponder. Cheers Pradeep
Thanks, LLoyd. It is a real pleasure when everything works just so. Can't always count on that with tubes....BUT when tubes are singing, it makes up for all the hassles, at least IMHO.
The tube problem is resolved and now the NOS Mullards are sounding great. Better highs, more robust lows and more precise imaging are some of the benefits to these tubes. Again, tube rolling is IMHO a great way to go.
Hi Lloyd, I am still getting the Mullards to break in so I'm not sure of the sound yet. I think that the Mullards are very strong in the bass and are also quite able to open up the soundstage vs . my older tubes. However, a couple of days ago, i had one of the new tubes begin to go a little noisy on me with what seemed like a water bubbling sound and I am now watching this as it seems to be very intermittent. So far, that noise hasn't reoccurred so I am not sure if it has vanished or will rear its ugly head again. I love tubes, but you sure are always on the edge with them, never 100% sure of their reliability, LOL. Luckily, I bought mine from Kevin Deal and he gave me a warranty, so that's a BIG plus.
Nice, Davey! I just rolled out a pair of Mullard 6DJ8s which i use as spares, having just received a replacement set of Amperex 6922s from Brent Jessee. For the first time, i actually found i did not mind waiting for the replacements to arrive...thanks to the EAT tube damper i put on the Mullards! At 19 bucks each, definitely worth a try!
Meanwhile, the Amperexs are more detailed, lithe and controlled thru the spectrum than the Mullards...the one thing i am trying to figure out is if the Mullards were stronger in the upper bass (making the sound seem fuller)...or whether that was an extraneous reverb and given the Amperex's performance everywhere else, whether they are 'correct'. very subtle but other than this point, the Amperexes are staying. (Its just that i am a bass freak and enjoy listening at low volumes and still feeling the slam.)
Enjoy your Mullards! Pls post update over earlier tubes when you get some time!
Lloyd, thank you for your thoughts. I had heard SF with Nordost on a few other occasions, but not with my GH's. Last year I tried Nordost Red Dawn 11 with my ARC and the GH's; I liked the combo so much that when the opportunity arose to go with the Frey's for the Rowland and GH's, I jumped. The Frey's are still breaking in,however, I am VERY impressed so far and would highly recommend them to anyone looking for new speaker cables, particularly if you own SF G's.
System edited: Added Nordost Frey bi-wire speaker cables. Superbly fast and detailed. Opens the soundstage and increased depth reproduction... a great speaker cable.
Jlind325is take a look at this thread: http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?cspkr&1262216844&openflup&7&4#7
It fairly well sums up my opinions and a few others on the differences between GM and GH. Today, like many others, i am even more of the opinion that GM's are not even in the same league as GH's. GH's are just far superior.
If you have an opportunity to hear GH's, I think you may well like them a LOT better than the GM's. Many people, including myself do. I haven't heard the new GE's, BUT they had better be awfully darn good to better the GH's.
Thanks, Jlind325is, I am pretty sure what you are saying in regards to the price bracket is correct. I know that the B and G series subs are better, as they should be for the money. Only problem is I have tried a larger sub in my room and it simply overdrives the room. I suspect that the B or G would do the same thing, which is why I opted for the T5, which IMO, is phenomenal for the money and a great match for the size of my room and speed of the GH's. In a larger room, the choice would have been easier. BTW, which Guarneri's did you hear?
I know what your getting it, I too feel resonance with my T2. I believe it is a matter of the price bracket. I don't feel my B2 resonate like my T2 does. It can be hard to determine if the sub is rattling or just vibrating because it isn't heavy enough to lock itself to the floor. With the B2 at around 80lbs it is heavy enough to mitigate the effect of sitting on carpet has. The Sub Dude helped the T2 "talking" in this regard. It by no means made it close to the B2 but it helped.
About a year ago I auditioned Sonus fabers Cremona Auditor and Guarneri's with a B1 and a Mc2102. It still stands as one of the best systems I've heard. If at some point you can audition a B or G series I hope you do so. They are great pieces if one an afford it. I'm quite sure that Cremona Auditors will be my next upgrade, if only the Guarneri's were cheaper......
Jlind325is, I am fairly certain I am not overdriving the sub. When I say that the cabinet is fairly resonant, what I mean is that while the sub is playing, I can feel the cabinet resonate, this is at all volumes! Unlike my speakers, which when playing one cannot feel the cabinet moving at all. Like JA from Stereophile does in his tests, If one were to put an accelerometer on the cabinet, the REL would be showing to vibrate. Perhaps this is not impacting the sound of the REL, but I have my doubts. Another suggestion, that Lloydlee had come up with, is to place the Auralex Sub Dude under the sub. I see that you do that also, would seem to be a good idea and I will be ordering one. My T5 isn't rattling, but I do think some mass loading from the top will be VERY beneficial. That's my next project after I have rolled in new tubes into my tube gear.....as I said, NEVER ending and you're right it is FUN.
When you say the cabinet is very resonant, are you sure you aren't over driving the sub and hearing the driver break up? In addition to my B2 I also have a T2, during some movies when the sub was receiving a significant LFE signal, the sub would sound like it was rattling. After further analysis I determined that mass loading it from the top (with bags of beans etc) reduced the rattle but in reality I was overdriving the sub. I was just asking too much from the T2. When I substituted the B2 during these passages it just sailed right through.
I also have an Aurolex Sub Dude isolation platform for the T2. It also tightened up the T2's response and depth. I have not tried it under the B2. I'm curious to see how it differs between downward and forward firing designs. Maybe something too look into....
I agree with you, there is always something in the chain to tweak and analyze. It is fun to do but can really take away from the enjoyment. Have fun.
