Modest? I think not.

tpreaves March 16, 2012 12:24

System edited: I'll have the new top cables of Synergistic Element soon to try in my system and replace the Tesla Apex cables, has any one used and how do they sound?

sonrock March 16, 2012 04:45

thanks mate, I have replaced all the original Philips Jan 6922 18 tubes and 1 Tesla ECC82 supplied by Einstein manufaturer by 8 NOS Mullard CV2493 + 1 NOS Telefunken ECC82 for the gain, and added several pairs of NOS for the inputs like Mullard CV2492, RT E188CC; Telefunken CCa, Siemens E288CC. Now The Tube mk2 sounds at its very best. The brightness, harshness and edgy have gone and been replaced by the warmth, smoothness, dynamic, and musical presentation. Details are superb with true 3D holographic.

I am thinking about new power amps but I doubt they could beat my current Leema Altair monoblocks. The short list is Boulder 2060, Gryphon Colosseum, Soulution 710, Vitus SS101mk2, and Karan KAM1200 monoblocks.

Any idea or suggestion please?

sonrock March 11, 2012 03:08

Einstein-a great company/products. Good to hear after reading your story.

talk2me February 18, 2012 23:36

I have just received my Einstein The Tube mk2 nearly 2 weeks ago, awesome!

sonrock January 19, 2012 23:14

Thanks Kevinzoe, to be honest I see my system is truly modest compared to very many others :), but I am happy now. I am using what I can afford and happy with that.

Regarding the room treatment, as I said I am renting an old house and we do not live here for long, so I ignore every acoustic treatment etc. I will make my own listening room in the future when I move house. Now my listening distance from the sweet pot to speakers is around 2.25m - enough for me and perfect matched for a small room like this. I have moved the speakers further a bit and everything seems very nice now.

Re the amps, yes they weigh > 45kg each, really hard every time I move them around, haha.

In the future if my friend changes his speakers, I might get his MBL 101e MK2, or I try to go for Magico Q3 or small YG which is in the same price to the Q3's. Maybe in the next 5 - 10 years, LOL

sonrock December 06, 2011 15:29

So rock - there is absolutely nothing modest about your gear so your system name is a misnomer at best. The only thing that might be modest are the acoustical room treatments or absence thereof. Those amps look as large as boat anchors, and likely as heavy, ya? Do you listen near field as the speakers look to be relatively close to each other? Fabulous gear - enjoy!

kevinzoe December 06, 2011 00:44

I am using SR Tesla Apex cables - both sc and ic. Really love the dynamic, punch, smooth, organic and natural sounds of the cables. However, last week I had another pair of MIT Oracle V2.2 speaker cables and compared them one to another.

Well, in the UK, SR Tesla Apex is listed nearly 7k british pounds for 10ft whilst the MIT Oracle V2.2 is listed for nearly 13.5k gbp for the same length @_@. At this price point, many people expect the MIT cables should bring much more benefits to the system than the SR. However, my experience is very interesting; I also asked some audiophile friends come to my place and listen to both cables, results are same to mine.

Everybody agreed that in my system, the SR Tesla Apex sounds better than the MIT Oracle V2.2 regardless of their retail prices. No doubt the MIT cables sound superb with extremely wide bandwidth, bass goes deeper and sound-stage is wider than the SR. But the MIT has too much trebles which interfere to the overall performance and puss the midrange back a bit. In addition, although the V2.2 has deeper bass but to my ears and friends', it lacks definition and punch in the bass where the SR is doing extremely well.

From the very first notes, everyone can notice the differences between the cables and prefer the SR over the MIT. The SR sounds more organic, smoother, more punch and dynamic, more involving and natural, and it is more neutral than the MIT in my system. Both MIT and SR are very very clean, cannot judge which one is better.

The above is just my experience with 2 pair of speaker cables, one is in the ultra high-end league compared to the other. I am still using my SR Tesla Apex and very happy with the cables :). I was looking for the MIT before but could not find a pair in the s/h ex-demo market then I went for the SR cables. But now, when I have a chance to bring the MIT home and compare directly to my current SR cables, so no regret when I stick with the SR. The MIT cables are boxed and ready to ship to my friend's place tomorrow, might get them back again one day in the future when I change house, speakers and my system.

Any comment or same experience?

sonrock November 28, 2011 23:39

Today I have listened to the Music First Audio pre-amps, the Baby Reference and the flagship Reference preamp. Jonathan at MFA came to my house and demonstrated his amps for 4 hours, truly great. Please check here for my short words about MFA pre: http://www.hifiwigwam.com/showthread.php?61983-a-little-help-please-with-my-new-valve-pre!/page3. Sorry as I cannot post everything here due to length of words restriction!

sonrock November 17, 2011 00:44

thank you for your comments and suggestions. I checked the system, wadia is 100% perfect, the leema has very small noises when keeping my ears very close but deadly quiet from 15-20cm, so no problem at all from my listening position. The pre when I turn on, zzzzzz sound comes immediately and clearly, so 100% the pre got problem. I changed also positions, interconnect but nothing changes. I have moved the pre out of the cdp, etc etc but noise is staying still. the shop will take the pre-amp back this Wednesday for checking and testing. Alson on Wednesday afternoon, Music First Audio will come to my place and demonstrate their products directly with my system: Music First Reference Preamp and Music First Baby Reference Preamp. I will keep you posted.

sonrock November 15, 2011 01:47

YEs, good point. Keep distance between components especially between line or lower leve devices like pre-amps and digital units and/or those with power transformers (as well as away from any other nearby power transformers in applciances or other household devices).

mapman November 14, 2011 20:14

I'd first move the pre-amp off the top of your CDP (ime, stacking a pre (tube especially) directly atop digital unit is an absolute no no). If noise persists, check your groundings. Good luck!

bvdiman November 14, 2011 19:44

I have received my new valve pre-amp and not sure who had the same situation like mine now. The amp sound absolutely fantastic, however there is small noises zzzzzzzzz come from my speakers every time I turn the system on. The more volume I increase, the more noise it becomes.

To be fair, when running the system, the noises go away and hardly to notice even at high volume level. But when I hit the stop button, the noises are still there, not annoying and affecting much on the performance, but I prefer it completely quiet.

I have checked all the interconnect etc and I believe there is nothing wrong with those. Could you please let me know what's going on and is there any thing wrong with the pre? It is totally brand new and I have full 2 years warranty on this. The shop told me valve pre-amps normally have noises but for me, well cannot accept at this price point and level.

sonrock November 14, 2011 00:06

Hi map, I thought we are talking about the v2's! My mbl's were collected yesterday and sadly seeing they go for some space in my tiny house :(. The Magico V2's are truly superb until now, I think I probably get the best position for them in my room now. I moved them around and around all the time until I'm really satisfied. In the future I might come back to mbl's when my budget and house allow me to bring the 101e mk2 home!

sonrock November 11, 2011 07:18

Most all speakers do, but mbls and omnis in general benefit the most from lots of room to breathe/ distance to walls. This is the thing that probably more than anything else makes them hard to match.

I bet things will sound very good, but if not, the impedance match from pre to amp is one of the first things I would check.

mapman November 10, 2011 19:26

Hi Mapman

Thanks you, yes I moved the speakers forward - 1.2-1.5m from the rear wall - and about 1.0m from the side walls. The sound stage is deeper and more precise :), quite amazing for me as I always move the speakers around their position and try to get the best set up for them in my tiny room.

Regarding the Allnic, tube pre correct, you can check specs and reviews from here: http://hammertoneaudio.com/reviews.aspx?reviewId=25 and here: http://www.allnicaudio.com/eng/products/view.htm?brandcode=0010030000000004

According to Allnic, the output impedance of L3000 is 150ohm, while the input impedance of my Leema Altair monoblocks is - unknown :D. Sorry I am too busy to get the manual out of the box which is under many other boxes :P. even cannot find from the official website: http://www.leema-acoustics.com/shop/component/amplifiers/altair#2

I received the L3000 today, very beautiful and world class design, rigid, solid and ready to rock. My valhalla xlr will arrive tomorrow then I can listen to the amp. I am using the Wadia S7i connecting directly to the Leema Altair 4 so no pre, the Allnic replaces nothing.

I used to use Chord CPA3000 pre-amp before matching with my Chord SPM1200C, very very nice system but lacked something which I cannot describe when this combo drove my MBL 121's. So they were up for sale :)

sonrock November 10, 2011 19:14

I would expect good things from teh Allnic. Tube pre-amp, right?

What is the input impedance of your amps (SS I believe, correct)?

What is it replacing again?

Higher input impedance for a SS amp will generally produce better results with a higher output impedance (than SS) tube preamp int terms of detail, dynamics and distortion, but you really have to listen to know for sure.

Did Getting more distance to the walls have a positive effect?

mapman November 10, 2011 17:33

I would expect good things from teh Allnic.

What is it replacing again?

Did Getting more distance to the walls have a positive effect?

mapman November 10, 2011 17:30

before I get an answer from Hessec I have decided to bring home the Allnic L3000 pre amp, totally brand new and I'm the first owner :)

I have read some reviews and looking for information about this pre from internet and everything seems very very good. many dealers - both importer and none - and audiophiles told me I will not regret if I give the Allnic L3000 a shot then I did :D

the amp will arrives tomorrow and the Valhalla interconnect will follow by Friday, I will make some short reviews how the pre sounds in my system.

has anyone listened to this pre and how do you think?

sonrock November 10, 2011 00:38

Thank you very much Hessec for clarifying and explaining these for me. To be honest, I am renting a house and I dont think I am living here for long. so a bit lazy to do room treatment etc...

Regarding the placement of equipment behind my speakers, it is very difficult as I said I do not have enough space for everything as my tiny room with stupid design doesnt let me though. the mbl's have been packed and boxed now, so I'm using only one pair Magico V2's.

I am still setting up the V2's to get the best position and I think I have it now.

What's your system Hessec? Do you have any suggestion for my future valve pre? I am looking for ARC REF5 and AN M6

sonrock October 31, 2011 00:50

Sonrock, regarding the rug... I am talking about taming side reflections off the walls not the floor which is something I believe would help the MBL's as well and probably every other speaker in the world. You can buy expensive room treatments or experiment with something you might have around the house- like a couple cheap rugs... Your equipment in front of your speakers (let alone a fireplace right next to them) will seriously mess up your imaging along with every other audio superlative you can come up with.... I have a room with a similar issue in my house. It is larger than my current listening room (11 x 13) vs about 17x 14 with 11' ceilings. In this larger room I move them out about 5 ft from the front wall (back wall however you look at it...) Even having components between your speakers can have ill effects. You can read old threads or just use plain common sense on speaker placement. The magicos will actually have better bass and imaging when placed further into the room. you can see my previous comments for more clarification. In my experience, they sound terrible when placed against a wall. Use your ears to decide where they should be. But placing anything in front of a speaker is obviously far from ideal. Ultimately, it is you that has to be happy, not anyone else. In my small room, my v2's are about 6' apart tweeter to tweeter, 3' from the back wall measured to the tweeter and about 7' from my ears with very little toe in. These measurements are not exact so don't take them as gospel. In a non-recatangular or square room you will have to offset each side differently to compensate for balance issues the same holds true to square rooms which is why I say my measurements are not exact. I have experimented endlessly...... this sounds best to me.

euphoriahifi October 29, 2011 15:51

@Hessec: Could you pls explain why I should put the speakers forward and equipment behind?

sonrock October 29, 2011 04:07

Hi Mapman and Hessec

Thanks for your inputs and advices. Today I have moved my speakers to be far enough from the side and rear wall, also closer to the seat position. However due to my tiny place and it is extremely difficult to move the equipment behind the speakers as spaces limitation.

I am renting a very old house which was built in 19th century, and the room is not a perfect rectangular. It is bias on the left and go deeper on that side than the right one. In addition, as an old house, British owner built chimney in the middle of the room, therefore there are 2 spaces beside the chimney, then they blocked the ground by stone and concrete - 2 platforms as you can see from the pics.

There is nothing I can do with that, and even I can forge the amps go behind the speakers but the distance will be too close to the listening position.

The house is carpeted every where, so I am wondering I need to buy another rug because the carpet is very thick indeed.

To be honest, I am very tempted a valve pre but I am also very interested in Turntable + phono and Vinyl; as I have never listened to Vinyl and TT before as well as try them in my system. Many audiophiles say TT + Vinyl sound absolutely better than CDs no matter how expensive the CDP is and well recorded files in CDs. So I am wondering a bit between a valve pre and TT + phono.

In fact, Wadia suggest not to add any pre between the CDP and Amps as the cdp itself can do fantastic job in music playback and tone control. But many says a decent pre would lift performance to a new level!!!

I am going insane, haha.

sonrock October 26, 2011 22:46

Thats a bigger room than I have my V2's in currently. At a minimum, put your components behind them. It is harder for the drivers to integrate the closer you sit to them but when they are pressed against a wall there is no depth, no focus and, no low end which causes them to become bright. You have some very nice gear there. In order to maximize your $$$ spent, you're going to have to move some things around. In my experience, the V2 sounds awesome in a smaller room as they become very fast and punchy with no bloat or overhang in the mid range or lower end. Side reflections do however need tamed. On the cheap, a 3' x 5' rug works wonders but you can spend to your hearts delight. Have fun.

euphoriahifi October 26, 2011 11:29

Yes, you are limiting sound stage depth, focus and imaging which are major components of a high end sound with those speakers so close to the rear and side walls due to early reflections. If it has to be that way (not uncommon) so be it but you will be limited in this regard likely no matter what so I would not swap speakers and take a financial hit trying to do better in that regard unless you can get the placement better.

mapman October 26, 2011 00:36