Novemeber 2016-Added 4 x LAMM m2.2 for biamping the TADS, driven by the LAMM LL1.1 preamp.A match made in heaven!( or in Brooklyn NY......) The LAMM amps will be set on 4 S
Also upgraded the siltech double cown i/cs to the newly developed TRIPLE CROWNS- a significant upgrade on its own.
April 2021—
Replaced my Lamm gear with the soulution 701s, and 725 preamp.
HARMONIC RESOLUTION SYSTEMS MXR STANDS W/ M3X ISOLATION BASES
2X4 SHELVES STANDS IN BURLWOOD FINISH.with 19x21 m3x shelves. adding these racks and shelves have been one of the most profound upgrades i have made to my system, period!
TRANSPARENT ACOUSTIC CLOUDS
10 CLOUDS TO TAME THE CEILING REFLECTIONS. BEAUTIFUL AND VERY EFFECTIVE!
AURALEX QUAD DIFFUSERS
SEVERAL DIFFUSERS IN THRUOUT THE ROOM.
YTER Flexum acoustical panels
a gorgeous maple diffuser/absorbtion from the kitchen of franco sorbin. extremely effective and also beautifully made to boot!
Wilson Audio Alexandria XLF
True State of the art.
HRS Vxr amp stands
Lowest noise floor .
Esoteric Grandioso C1x preamp
ESOTERIC Grandioso K1X
Esoteric Grandioso G1x
Esoteric Grandioso C1x ps
Esoteric Grandioso PS1
ESOTERIC M1X GRANDIOSO MONOS
ESPRIT CABLES Eureka interconnects, speakercables and all power cords
Fplanner2000-- fire? where's the fire? no fire sale at all. just moving onward and forward....nothing i can pinpoint as to a reason other then wanting something different.
Gregadd----- makes two of us. i like the new focal generation alot. be more then happy post my system on wbf once the dust settles ,so to speak.appreciate the invite!
Ozzy I am a big fan of Focal. it get;s the music across without shouting at me. We have these speakers at www.whatsbestforum.com. Care to come over and post your system? We get a little bored with Wilson, Magico, Rockport, and Evolution Acoustics.
azjake-- top of the morning to you! 1. the 450s do run rather hot and heavy, but not as hot(surprisingly!) as my former gryphons. all in all ,hot but bearable. the vac preamp is realy unique in its sound itiration. open, tonally accurate ,dynamic and musical to boot. can't tell you much about its phono stage but i'm sure it's at par. our esteem member "dev" has a lot more expereince with the phono stage and maybe he can chime in on this. i repalced the 2 driver tubes with a pair of siemens 6992s to a very good effect. 2. the stellas combine high resolution with dynamics and accurate tonality that were missing from my previous speakers, and mate very well with the power and drive of the vac 450s.the stellas can be biamped, or bi wired. 3. the accuphase 900/901 combo just sounds right , out of the box,with out the artifacts/ hisses that accomany the esoteric gear. i find it to be equally revealing and pallable on both cd and sacds. 4.like anything new, there's some learing curve when it comes to tubes. i'm certainly no tube- expert , but the vac gear is extrodinarly easy to work with, and kevin hayes is a gentelman and a scholar! 5. no, an incremental and judicious step by step until synergy is locked.... hope this helps jake- let me know if i can add to it.
Some questions for you if you would be so kind sir. 1.How hot do the 450's run for a summer in Hotlanta??How does your Vac preamp stand out and does it have a world class phono section?
Do you feel that the combination of resolution and ease of musicality made these stella the perfect fit for you?
Are the speakers bi amped per side?
What made you feel the Accuphase 900/901 were superior to the Esoteric 4 box solution? Can it equal on regular cd's the likes of Esoteric? Has the switch to tubes been tough or would it be for a "newbie"
Finally, did you buy this whole system at one location?
podeschi--- no worries at all. your input is always welcome. as for the yter flexum- with 6 panels in palce the sound has a greater sense of space and vivdness that was somehow missing prior. the room feels larger, and "airy".
Hey, most of the folks on this thread are people who I have read and trusted past posts, including decision to get into VAC a year ago...don't want to hijack Ozy's system thread, so I just posted a new thread on Audiogon about cables...if you get a chance would love to get your opinions...
Ozy, I have an aversion to bright or etchy frequencies and can say the ar12tss isnt bright. Interesting observation on earlier models tho because when i inserted the tss in place of older stock unit I wondered if I had lost a little high frequency sizzle - thought i had messed with cabling and they needed to settle down. As i spent more time listening I realized what i was hearing wasnt loss of treble clarity but a newfound energy and articulation in the lower registers. I was hearing delineations in bass guitar that wasnt there before. So i wouldnt say the new TSS is tilted to lower registers in comparison to older model, but the most immediate impact i heard was a greater level of information retrieval and energy and 3d impact in midbass down.
podeschi-- interesting input re:the audience. had one of their conditioners years back and found it to be good ,yet a bit tilted to the bright side in its frequency. what has changed/improved over time with this new incarnation?
Thanks Podeschi...i've been fortunate to find everything second-hand...took a long time and a lot of discipline. In any event, will try to listen to Audience next time i get the chance...have heard excellent things about their PLCs.
Lloydelee21, Looks like you have an amazing setup where everything works together (e.g., Zanden + Wilson). I would love to hear those Gryphon amps one day...
I demoed a bunch of different power cables and conditioners in my home. All of them lowered the noise floor and grunge, but the only cables and PLC that didn't take away dynamics and air were the Audience. I stepped up from the AR12 to the AR12TSS and it was like all power and information to the speakers was completely unleashed. Same way my ears like VAC, my ears like Audience. Same attributes.
podeschi-- your description of vac's sound as "lit from within " is spot on.vac's rich harmonics and accurate tonality makes them great pieces of audio gear.
lloyd-- i'm intirgued by the trippoint ,but really think it is insanley priced. maybe when prices come down to earth......
Interesting and good to know...I run my GAT thru Transparent Audio Ref Power conditioner...personally, i am not sure it is the best power conditioner for the money out there...but it is very good, and i know the dealer here extremely well and got a very good deal. I very much like Transp Audio cables and run mainly their XL series cables, and just got XL MM2 speaker cables that were calibrated to my current equipment.
AS for the rest of my system (Wilson X1/Grand Slamms, Gryphon Colosseum and Zanden digital)...it is very very lower noise floor, exceptional detail but voiced with what (i think) is an emphasis on purity of tonality rather than an emphasis on that last bit of detail. Thanks to Zanden, it is also quite 'nuanced' relative to some more forward digital presentations which are also more detailed (DCS Scarlatti). just my own personal preference.
As for power conditioners, if you get a chance, try Tripoint...absurdly expensive, but exceptionally good. I also quite like the Nordost Qx4 which i also have in my system.
Thanks, Lloydelee21, For my ears, I think the GAT is especially perfect in a system that leans to the bright or analytical side -- I wish I could have heard it with my last pair of speakers that had a "beaming" effect -- the GAT would have been perfect with those!
Also, interestingly, I have a Audience AR12-TSS conditioner. All my gear including VAC amp and CJ Amp sounds much better through it. I never would have thought preamps and power line conditioners could make such a difference!
Wow...thanks for taking the time to write that one...a good read. I have been enjoying my GAT and have no desire to actively look...but it is always good to know what is worth listening to when i get the chance. I drive mine with a Gryphon Colosseum amp (which Ozy will know well)...I will keep my eye out for VAC when i am traveling and can pop into a high end store. Enjoy! Sounds like a winner!
Lloydeele21, VAC 450S is a Stereo tube amp, not a traditional integrated amp. I had both the CJ GAT and the VAC Renaissance Mk III in my system, with multiple sources and amps, with same cables and did extensive A-B testing. As great as the GAT is (truly awesome preamp), to my ears, for my preferences, in my system, I preferred the VAC Renaissance Mk III by a considerable margin on things that matter to me. The VAC gear has that vibrant "lit from within" quality that I haven't heard in any other gear. The VAC preamp also is the most harmonically tonally right piece of equipment I own. When I hear a guitar, my mind immediately sees the guitar and knows I am hearing a guitar. Same for cymbals, sax, voices, etc. Disbelief is suspended, and I don't have the "electronic representation" of reality that hear in other gear. There is also a transient agility and dynamic reality that I hear through the VAC amp that is best in class for my ears. The GAT's strengths are an orderly coherent presentation of instruments and voices across a very deep big soundstage. The soundstage depth is amazing on the GAT, to the degree everything takes 5-7 steps back from the speakers at times. There is also a pleasant sweetness the GAT introduces that smooths out some bad recordings, and the GAT seemed to have a little bit of a midbass bump that gave a little more low end presence (although VAC offers a tighter, more articulate low end to my ears). Again, comments not meant to take anything away from the GAT -- it is amazing. Sorry to take up Ozy's awesome space with comparison stuff, but for me, with VAC, my musical ship has arrived. Search is over. Even over time, the 300.1a amp I just sold musically beat out the CJ 350 I still have on same vectors just discussed. Kevin Hayes is a magician.
Ozy, Thanks...I opted for 450Stereo (not monos) since wallet, room size, space for equipment, heat from tubes, etc dictated I stay with one tube amp versus monos. I will be using the VAC Renaissance MkIII preamp that I bought last year. I could step up to the sig.mk2a but I've heard the Ren Mk III gets close, and I don't want to mess with a good thing...it is perfect in my book
ozy on All Out Assault