My system feels and sounds "done" to me, 14 yrs after I started. 2 channel and movies are better than I ever dreamed possible - the synergy is just remarkable. I have very fortunately been able to assemble a system that I will never grow tired of listening to. This is not in a dedicated listening room, but in my living room, complete with dogs, TV, open doorways, etc., etc. It really shouldn't sound any good, but it sounds GREAT!! Go figure... It has definitely been a learning experience and I've made my share of missteps along the way, as I expected to do.
My original goal was to be able to close my eyes and have the performers in the room with me. I have finally gotten there and actually beyond, to the point where the speakers disappear in the room. A pretty big deal considering the size of the speakers (BIG!) and the size of the room (19' x 20') I now just listen to the music and smile.
The latest additions - VAC Statement linestage, Focal Grande Utopia EM speakers and Critical Mass Systems Maxxum rackage made a huge impact to my system, both aurally and visually (as well as to what USED to be my savings.) :-). I finally have my DREAM system and couldn't be happier, as it sounds as good as it looks (some say even better). (edited 12/2014)
Valve Amplification Company STATEMENT 450 IQ Monoblocks
Great amps. IQ Continuous Automatic Bias System and Auto-Sentry System added on recent trip to VAC. Very good sound became off-the-charts sound. Literally best tube amps I've heard anywhere, at any price. With addition of the FOCALS, I can really appreciate the amps.
Valve Amplification Company STATEMENT Linestage
Added Seimens 7308s for break-in; will be installing CCA Telefunkens in several weeks. :-)
Esoteric P-02 Transport/D-02 DAC
SOTA digital. Phenomenal combination.
FOCAL Grande Utopia EM
WOW!
High Fidelity Ultimate Reference Rhodium and HelixPowrCds
Each run from wall to a P-10 power regenerator, which supply my system. They are "game-changers" for my system - the detail, imaging, separation and musicality are great. Helix goes to transport.
Critical Mass Systems Maxxum Rack and Amp Stands
Merlot 9-position filtered rack, with 2 Merlot filtered amp stands. Installed by Joe L. and my local dealer. All are movable for cable access, etc., a Maxxum first. System got even quieter, imaging improved and sound stage got both wider and deeper. They also make my living room look much better. :-)
High Fidelity Ultimate Reference Power Cable
Ridiculously excellent power transmission. Powers Esoteric P-02 transport from PS Audio P-10 power regenerator. Best I've ever heard.
Master Set Speaker system Tuning
Performed by Rod Thompson of Soundings (here in Denver). Took speakers to a much higher level than I thought possible in my room. Well worth the money for this system to perform to the level he got it to.
High Fidelity Ultimate Reference Speaker cables
SOTA for speakers
High Fidelity Ultimate IC's betw preamp and amps
Final piece of the puzzle. Entire system opened up tremendously.
High Fidelity CT-1Ultimate ICs from D-2 to preamp
New design with magnetic influence. Amazing low level detail with excellent musicality. Best cable yet between Esoteric D-02 DAC and Vac preamp.
Purist Audio Custom DC umbilical cords 4 Focals
Connects DC woofer external control modules to the Focal speakers. Custom made for this application (thanks to Albert Porter).
PS Audio P-10 Power Regenerator(2)
System protection as well as clean, steady power to all gear. Silver.
HighFidelity Ultimate Reference Helix Digital
Great digital cable clocking the p-02 and D-02 together using internal clock.
Hi Diamond P-4(4) and P-3(2) power cords
P-4s from wall to 2 P-10s, and from P10s to each amp. Also from P-10 to CD player and wall to sub. P-3 from P-10 to preamp and from Oppo to P-10. Extremely quiet, resolving and organic cables that get out of the way of the music. Macro and micro details in abundance, without any harshness or loss of musicality. Best PCs I've heard, at any price.
Pro ELITE 70 inch LCD w/full Local Dimming
Motorized wall mount allows TV to come forward and down for viewing. Retract to wall for critical listening.
Integra DHC-80.2 HD Processor
All the latest codecs for movies.
Legacy Audio Focus 20/20 rear speakers
Full range and great for movies
Oppo BDP-105
Video processing to 3D plus all latest Audio Codecs
Digital Systems Ultrabit Platinum Disc Treatment
The best I've found to help my CDs sound their best and remove scratches.
Looks like VSA VR-9SE Mk2's will be replacing my 7's sometime in the first quarter of 2014. They seems to be the most practical "upgrade" since I already like the VSA sound. I also have the opportunity to pick the color, as these are being custom built. I chose a metallic champagne color from an auto line, which should be a nice change from the Steinway black lacquer of my VR-7 SE Mk2's. (They will be available for sale sometime in January, unless they get pre-sold this month.)
Got to hear Rockport ALtairs this am in a solid state system. The speakers were gorgeous and the sound was a bit better than I expected. I think they would probably give my highly modified VR-7s a run for the money, but they were by no means clearly better. At $100K retail and no real discounts to speak of, its way too expensive an experiment. At some point down the line I may pick up a used pair if I can make the numbers work...
In a moment of weakness/insanity, I got set up for CES. I'm going to be interested in SOTA speakers I haven't yet heard as well as starting to learn more about music servers and computer audio. Not sure if I'll be able to get away, but at least everything is set to go if I can and want to in January.
Hi Jeff- I don't expect the Statement Line Stage for at least 4 more weeks. I heard it with the rest of the Statement pieces at the RMAF a few weeks ago, but couldn't really pick out what was doing what, since they were using unfamiliar speakers. I do know that my room at home sounded lots better, which I would expect with better cabling, cleaner power, etc.
Kevin is assuring me that the sound I currently have will get even better with the Statement Line Stage. Not sure how that will be possible, but at least I'm open-minded. I should know pretty soon. I figure worst case it will be at least as good as what I have now, which is quite good, or it could be ridiculously phenomenal, in which case I will never leave my house... :-)
As far as CES is concerned, I'm leaning against making the trip this year. It just seems to become more of a PITA every year, and it certainly never gets any LESS expensive. There is also nothing I really want to hear that I didn't already hear at RMAF. the handful of speakers I might be interested in hearing probably won't be at CES, or if they are, I would have to search them out paired with other manufacturers. I've always liked the RMAF show betteer and this continues to be the case.
Dev- Mine was WOW because I had never heard my 450's at 100% before. When combined with the auto-bias and the various other mods to my speakers, etc., as well as the break-in of my SOTA cabling, I now have WOW!!
I was curious about this soft start up and auto-bias- mainly the sonic difference you wrote of so I was in contact with a friend who also has the Statement 450's due of my recommendations - I recall he had sent his back and had the soft start up done along with auto-bias. Main reason for sending back was because his amps kept blowing a fuse upon turn on like several others that I know of, I had forgot and because he never wrote saying WOW! as you did in sonic differences upon return simply was an over sight.
Asking what differences he heard - his system is stable with nothing new within the line, he said that now upon turn on they do not blow any fuses so he's very happy - sonically speaking said there is a difference but no WOW!, nothing that is obvious.
Dev- As you undoubtedly realize, I have no control over production at VAC. :-) The Statement preamps will be ready when they are. I'm not too concerned, since I've got a Ren Sig w/phono in the meantime. You shouldn't be too concerned either.. :-) Kevin's gear has historically been well worth waiting for until he's got it perfect, as you know.
Hi Fplanner2000 - any update in relation to your acquisition of the Statement pre-amp you mentioned back in June that you should have some time in Sept - it's now late Oct.
That pre has peeked my interest - stupid list though
The new auto-biasing feature VAC has come up with is different than what has gone before. It is completely transparent. More info can be found in the blog section of VAC's website: http://vac-amps.com/vacBlog/2013/01/01/the-vac-iq-intelligent-continuous-automatic-bias-system/
As far as the sonics are concerned, it turned out I had some input tube incompatibility that was hurting the sound. Once that was fixed, everything got better. :-)
Hi Fplanner2000 - well that's GREAT that they were able to correct such and you are finally able to hear them for the first time :)
You wrote;
"I didn't think they sounded the way they should. Turned out that I was correct and that a few things that Kevin thought would clear up via break-in never came around."
Kindly provide information - maybe mine have the same issues.
I can't respond for either Ralph or Ken nor Vladimir of Lamm but I'm sure such would be debatable.
Hi Dev- One of the reasons I sent my amps back to Kevin was that I didn't think they sounded the way they should. Turned out that I was correct and that a few things that Kevin thought would clear up via break-in never came around. What I got back was 100% performance plus the auto-bias.
With all due respect, I doubt that Ralph or Ken are talking about the circuitry Kevin has come up with - it is nowhere near as simple as you try to make it out to be, nor is it for lazy people. (I am a lot of things, but lazy isn't one of them). As I understand it, the complex circuitry keeps the tubes perfectly biased at all times, within a very narrow range, so that the amps sound their very best, at all times. It does this with all the KT-88's simultaneously. Who wouldn't want that? The answer is that EVERYONE would want that, if they could get it. Well, I got it and it makes the amps sound great all the time. As far as I know, VAC is the only manufacturer to currently offer this feature, and only in its Statement amps.
So, to answer your question of WOW! - amps now running the way they are supposed to, kept perfectly biased at all times, EQUALS much better sound for me. They are now fully able to take advantage of all the various modifications to speakers, etc I made over the past 10 months seeking better sound! :-)
that's great you got your amps back and I'm sure it sounded GREAT cold because you were so excited just to have it back up and running after some 2.5 months! :)
I'm chuckling reading all your enthusiasm but heh all is good. You have so much going on and with new pces - don't you feel they need to be broken-in fully before adding the next.
I would have to question your comments suggesting the amps sonic characteristics WOW! in comparison to prior - how could they sound much better than before - even being cold. There must have been something wrong with them or your mind is playing tricks?
1- How could the amps be improved sonically by just having onrush circuit protection installed "this is installed so fuses won't blow upon turn on" this offers no sonic improvement.
2- Auto-bias built-in, has benefits but honestly again I would question such and would have to do a side by side comparison to hear if there were any improvements "be it slight or possibly a degradation". My amps are very stable looking at the bias lights so I can't see any reason to need auto-bias and it's so easy to auto-bias
I recall having a conversation with Ralph of Atma-Sphere some time back about this and his comments about auto-bias is for convenience and for those who don't have the skills or want to auto-bias - you are adding parts so now the systems is not as clean!
I also had the same conversation with Ken Steven's of Convergent Audio Technology - better known as CAT. His comments were very similar to Ralphs and why his product is designed the way it is.
So in closing the auto-bias is very debatable and questionable - hearing sonic improvements humm?
Just got my Amps back from VAC in Florida last Thursday and managed to get them installed before the RMAF, barely.
Kevin and Brent once again performed magic, as both amps now have the onrush circuit protection as well as the auto-bias circuitry built into them, while still maintaining my ability to use fixed or variable settings, as well as individual gain controls on each amp.
So how do they sound? Much, much better than before. If there are better amps than these anywhere, I have yet to hear them. I have more bass, treble extension and even better imaging, width and depth than I ever had before. There is musicality in spades, but also more detail as Rick's Hi Fidelity cables are finally starting to really open up.
As a matter of fact, Rick and his lovely wife came over during the show and heard my system COLD. They probably would have stayed all afternoon just listening to music, but we were all hungry so had to leave for food. I'm pretty sure they both really liked what they heard - I know I DID AND THE SYSTEM WAS COLD!! BEFORE LAST THURSDAY, IT HADN'T BEEN PLAYED FOR 2.5 MONTHS!!
I'm sure it will take at least another 50 hours or so for my system to settle in again and there is still break-in happening with the Esoteric front end as well as with Rick's cables. The point is, my system now sounds much better COLD than it ever has warmed up! After warmup (40 minutes or so), you just get drawn into the music like never before. Its quite intoxicating - I find myself listening for HOURS, when I just wanted to hear a particular song. A definitely "fun" problem to have. The system is now literally getting noticeably better every time I turn it on. WOW! I probably wouldn't believe it if I wasn't hearing it. I know Rick heard it too. FINALLY!! :-)
The reason I like the PS Audio P-10 better than the Audience is because the P-10 also re-generates a perfect, steady and accurate current, regardless of the power fluctuations that might be present in my house. This is especially handy when there are other large electrical drains in my area or my house.
The Hi Diamond power are probably the best bang for the buck investment you can make to a smaller system. The P-3's are definitely worth trying and are very well-priced for the performance they give. You really can't go wrong with either of the above. Good luck.
Impressive system! Have you auditioned other high end power conditioners like the Audience 12TSS in your system? I am contemplating to upgrade my Audience power conditioner and power cords but where to focus with a limited budget? The HiDiamond cables looks seems flexible that comes handy in my setup. TIA!
I plan to put my Esoteric Rubidium clock into the system this weekend and will also be running speaker cable from each of my amps to the speaker level input of my sub, after first making sure these inputs float the ground so as not to short anything out. This is mainly for movies, but will also be useful supplementation waiting for the bass to fully break-in with my High Fidelity speaker and IC cables. Apparently the double runs of Ultimates between my preamp and amps take twice as long to break in as single runs. The amps leave in a few weeks for a tuneup and minor repair so I can again run them single-ended.
I'll be using the new Wireworld Gold Starlight 7 75 ohm cables w/BNC connectors for the clocking. I have the 110 ohm AES/EBU version between the P-02 and D-02 - they are better than anything else I've tried there, including Mexcel. Only a matter of time before people find out about these cables, which so far have been flying under the radar.
Added my Esoteric P-02/D-02 combination several days ago; clock synced the p-02 to the d-02 this morning.
The change was about as dramatic as I had expected - deeper, tighter bass, better extension and lots more detail coming through the system. I am also appreciating Rick's cables more as there is more detail that is being revealed than before.
Linking the clocking together gives the presentation more air and a bit more smoothness than without the clocking connected. Rumor has it break-in is at least 200 hrs per filter, so I can't wait to get more real time on this duo. So far, all CDs I'm playing sound more detailed, with greater extension and even more musicality. These Esoteric pieces are pretty impressive and the system synergy is great.
