Audioblazer; if i have not responded to your previous posts here i apologize.

the Opus is very very special. there are aspects of the Opus performance that are unique in my listening experience. the Opus controls resonance and impedence issues in the bass thru it's network boxes that results in superior bass detail and coherence. i have not heard any other cable do that. the high frequencies are life-like and without etch; yet are not restricted or closed in.

in total; the Opus just sounds more like music to me and is more listenable. other cables which have some of these attributes all seem to add color or somehow have a noticable sonic signature which to my ears is ultimately distracting if also beautiful. with Opus things sound more unique and the magic of every cut seems to shine thru. any cable which adds a sameness to music (even if that sameness is a wonderfull golden glow) is not for me.

regarding bi-wireing with Opus.....if you can afford it then it is the ultimate. using the Transparent Ref MM would also work bi-wiring.

mikelavigne February 19, 2007 10:11

Hi Mike. This is my 4th attempt to get into the thread. Reason for asking abt the Transparent Opus is I have the opportunity to buy it a a very good price and I want to make sure its the right decision. However I wonder whether it make sense cos I will be pairing it with VR4sr which is design for biwire. Some audiogoners will think I m crazy to use a speaker cable which is much more expensive than the speaker itself. What do you think? You certainly have a fabulous room, something I hope to be able duplicate sometime in the future. Great to have passionate pple like you who share unselfishly for the love of the music/gears. Wish we have dealer for MM3 in Malaysia. Just by looking at it give me a feeling that I have a long way to go in reaching music nirvana. Happy listening

audioblazer February 19, 2007 06:53

hi Paul, there is no adjustment for the mid-range driver; just tweeter gain and 5 bass woofer/subwoofer adjustments.

during early development (when crossover bits were sitting spread out all over the floor) i'm sure they played around with voicing the mid drivers....but i never heard that varible.

in any case; whatever choice they made sounds 'just right' to me. i would guess they went for 'most transparent' as well as 'perfectly natural', and even 'f#&*ing amazing'.

as previously discussed; there is a crossover adjustment for the woofer/subwoofer that certainly affects the mid bass and lower mid range; but it does not affect the mid-range driver per se (it is not connected to the middle section of the speaker where that driver is).

if there is some sort of 'changable resistor' for mid-range voicing i'm not aware of it.

mikelavigne February 18, 2007 09:23

Hey Mike - another question on the MM3's.....back when I looked at the protos, there was a switch-selectable cap in the crossover that changed the midrange sound a little bit, I think it was "most transparent", or a little more "lush". This was going to be a back-panel switch.

Did that adjustment make it into the final product?

Just curious, and if it did, wondering what you hear in the choices.....

thanks,

paul

paul99 February 18, 2007 00:35

Mike; my recollection is that the dart is Class A for the first 10 or 11 watts; then A/B.....but i could not find the confirmation in a quick look at the darTZeel website.

it runs quite 'luke-warm'....not hot.....even with an air-tight case. those heat fins must really work.

my opinion is that your JM Labs speakers would love the dart.....particulary the Be tweeters will love the extention and smoothness in the treble.

mikelavigne February 16, 2007 23:10

Does the Dart operate in Class A at all? Or does it operate in something completely different.
Thanks

[email protected] February 16, 2007 07:52

Thanks for the reply Frank. I will take all the feedback I can get :). Your system of course looks fantastic as well. This would by first really really high end purchase. I have never even considered a piece of equipment at this price level. But I think that it would be worth it. Herve has been great. I only came around recently to the thought of getting this amp. But through my emails with him, I decided that this is what I want, no matter how long it takes to get it. I have a feeling that it will be simply fantastic with my JM Labs 1027Be's. Not MM3's but pretty good none the less.
Thanks again.
Mike

[email protected] February 15, 2007 15:06

mdoukas- FWIW, I've had my Dart amp for close to two years now and have never blown a fuse. It has been the most "set it and forget it" piece in my system. I leave it powered on all the time and I only know it's there once the "eyes" come alive and I start hearing all that great music. It is dead quiet with no clicks, pops, or other noises. The versatile ground pin configurations allow you to eliminate any hum issues very easily. So long as you adhere to the very simple instructions Mike mentioned above, I can't think of more satisfying and bullet-proof component. I cannot say enough good things about Herve either- a true gem.

Frank

fsarc February 15, 2007 13:34

Thanks Mike. I have yet to hear the Dart. But there is PA dealer that I am in contact with. He sells Dart, Evolution Acoustics, and emm labs. So it is possible that I could hear a "similar" system like yours. I read the user manual and the audiophile manual. Both were very good in conveying information. Plus I in contact with Herve. He has been fantastic in answering all of my questions. I was just interested in some real end user thoughts on it. That is what I want. For me, once everything is connected, it will stay connected so that is an easy rule to follow. Once I turn it off, it will most likely stay off. And I can get into the habit of turning on the pre and then the amp. So I guess it doesn't seem that bad.

I don't need to "warm" any thing up. I just want to hear the music. My speakers are good enough to be put to that test. Not to mention that I saw a system with JM Labs 927Be's with this amp. I had those speakers before my 1027's. That gives me hope that it would be a very good match.
Thanks again for your feedback. It has been very helpful.
Mike

[email protected] February 15, 2007 07:45

Glenn; thanks for the kind words.....you have captured the essence of my intent.

mikelavigne February 15, 2007 01:38

Paul, i'm with you....i enjoy having speakers out into the room. they need to breathe. and while the visual has its effect....the reality of the setup is much more the issue.

when i was at RMAF where you are listening to 25 to 30 systems in a day in relatively small rooms....you quickly hear the differences in setup partiularly speakers that are away from room boundaries. the sound is waay different....whatever the visual.

mikelavigne February 15, 2007 01:04

Imdoc; i'm sorry if my response gave you the impression that i was in any way offended by your points.....they were reasonable and i appreciate the feedback. thanks for the kind words.
listening culture is sooo personal and the mind and our senses are sooo interesting.

i would have liked to hear your Quad experiment. last summer when i recieved the loaner VR7's i set them up at 14' 6" apart.....the VR9's had been at 10' 6" apart. i moved my listening position back 4 feet at the same time. the visual of this setup was dramatically different as was the presentation.

so wide, so deep, and so big.

it was 'off-putting' for awhile until i got use to it. i had to listen with the lights dim all the time until my 'culture' adapted. this setup was with 9' 6" from the front of the speakers to the wall behind. not 25' like the Quads....but out in the room none-the-less.

thanks for your thoughts.

mikelavigne February 15, 2007 00:57

Mike, if you have not read the "Audiophile's technical manual' on the darTZeel website.....it will do a much better job than i could regarding some logistical issues with the amp. to answer your question; while in no way is the darTZeel 'delicate'.....it does require following a few rules to use. you should only turn it on with speakers connected.....preamps should be powered up first, then the dart amp.....difficult speaker loads may require DC offset to be used......when turned off, you need to wait 5 minutes for the amp to fully discharge prior to restart. all these rules are the result of the extremely pure circut design; and result in 'never before heard' (NHB) performance.

OTOH failure to observe these rules will likely cause the 'crowbar' protection circut to engage....in other words....a fuse will blow. nothing too dramatic.....but you will need to remove the glass top and put a new fuse in. really not a big deal. if that is delicate then i guess it is delicate. i have owned 5 different dart amps and the only issue has been blowing fuses when i violated a rule.

specifically; you can change a fuse with the speakers connected.....but the power must be off for at least 5 minutes.....actually.....you should not actually touch anything until you unplug the amp and maybe 10 minutes is safer for the power supply to completely drain.

BTW; that would be the proper method for changing fuses in any amp. touching a fuse to a live power grid is a big no-no.

i assume you have heard the dart....if not; i then assume you are looking for a very neutral, natural sounding amp without a ss or tube character. it will not warm up anything.....but it is sweet and very detailed.....it sounds to me like music.

mikelavigne February 15, 2007 00:46

I think you have the rare room that is optiized acoustically and pyschoacoustically. Immersion in the music is what this hobby is all about and it looks like your system is about as immersive as it gets. Your thread has been a source of education and inspiration for many of us just starting out in the hobby.

Regards,

-Glenn

sdatch February 14, 2007 09:08

Just a thought on your Opus speaker cables, unless you have pulled the plug on your VR11's wouldn't you want both sets to connect to them for your setup?

kss22558 February 14, 2007 02:16

Mike,

Why sell the Opus?? You have VR11s coming and those are probably going to be biamped, no?

Joey

joey_v February 13, 2007 23:42

Imdoc -I think you may be partly right that our brains have a hard time visualizing depth when we "see" a solid wall right behind the speakers.

But there is also a very real acoustic effect, caused by reflections from a close wall. In my old house I had a hard brick wall behind the speakers. I hung an oriental rug from that wall (between the speakers) as a kind of tapestry, to provide a soft, absorbent surface. That allowed my soundstage depth to increase. Nevertheless, moving the speakers out further from the wall (from about 3 ft to about 5 ft, gave more depth.

I think those changes were real, and were just based on acoustics. I believe your Quads in the doorway was the same thing (maybe even more so since the Quads are dipoles, and radiate from the rear).

While I agree that "eyes closed" removes a layer of distraction, and let's you listen better, it sure didn't have the same improvement as moving the speakers.

paul

paul99 February 13, 2007 23:22

Audioblazer; my reason for selling was that i had 2 sets of Opus (i bi-amped the VR9's) and only need one set for the MM3's. having one set of $33k Opus just 'sit around' isn't too smart.

2 weeks ago i pulled the ad.....and am thinking about whether i want to sell or not.

whatever i do i will keep one set.....it's my (so far unapproached) reference.

mikelavigne February 13, 2007 22:57

Hi Mike I noticed from audiogon listing that you are putting up Transparent Opus speaker cable for sales . Cant remember what was the reason for the sales which you have stated in the advertisemt. I wonder what you are replacing it. After all Transparent Opus cable is a great cable. You have a great system. Happy listening

audioblazer February 13, 2007 21:51

Imdoc: I listen with my eyes closed when I am doing serious listening. My feeling is that light and visual distractions causes the brain to work on other things while you are listening. With my eyes closed, I am only focused on the music and it generally sounds better.

jtinn February 13, 2007 21:30

No, no. No critiquing here as I think you have a world class set up with regard to room, eqpt and attention to detail. I was looking for your thoughts, experience and opinions.

I am of the belief that our brains have difficulty with "seeing" performers with the wall close to the speaker - that our eye- brain has difficulty "suspending the disbelief" that palpable full sized figures are "there in the room". I have found that the more space behind my speakers gives me more stereo ("solidness"). As an experiment, I once placed a set of stacked Quads in a hallway between 2 open rooms with a total front wall to back wall of about 50 feet. The speakers were about mid point and the image seemed to go on for ever from the speakers to the back wall, about 25 feet. It was spooky. Others could "hear it" also.

When folks dim the lights or close their eyes, the speaker-wall distance may become a non issue ("out of sight out of mind"?). At least that's what I think.

Just looking for other's opinions.

imdoc February 13, 2007 13:22

Imdoc; how one's hearing perceptions are affected by the view may vary from person to person. as i read your post you seem to think that since there is a wall there that somehow that keeps me from hearing depth...as opposed to having some other visual picture might allow me to percieve the stage better.

personally; i have windows in my room with trees and mountains to see. in my previous room i had larger windows with a garden to look out to. the current room has the large diffuser between the windows and in my previous room i had a window shade that i had down much of the time in the middle window.

no matter which scene i saw with my eyes open and the lights fully on.....diming the lights and closing my eyes allowed me to percieve the soundstage and the music more vividly.

whether a wall or an ocean is not the issue. it's the minds ability to percieve.....based on my personal observations it's better with low light and eyes closed.

i percieve the soundstage and depth with my eyes open....but it's better with them closed.

if i mis-interpreted your post please forgive me.

mikelavigne February 13, 2007 11:21

Thanks Mike. It has been a long time since I played any records. I am %100 digital. But that is due to space constraints. Like I said, eventually I would love to get a nice TT for my system. But now I am going to work on upgrading my 2ch amp.

I am seriously thinking about throwing caution to the wind and getting the dart amp. I have a question though. Is it a sensitive amp? What I mean is, is it delicate. I have read the manual and it can be scary. All those items it says you can't do. For example, can you change a fuse with the speakers still connected? Basically I would like to know if it is hard to live with. If I get this, I am going to have blame you :). Thanks for the reply

[email protected] February 13, 2007 10:50

Mike; in my experience none of my records have shown any 'wear' per se. some i have played 500 times or more. i'm sure on a molecular level there is wear happening to some degree. a few have shown just a bit of additional surface noise over time.....but no diminishment of musical energy.

i am careful and keep things clean.....but i shy away from cleaners and such. "first, do no wrong".

i have backups (maybe more than one.....many still sealed) for most of my favorite Lps (lifetime supply i call it) but as of yet i've not needed to use one.

a good tt system can be very satisfying if the culture of it appeals to you. i would also say that digital is also satisfying.....it's all good.

mikelavigne February 13, 2007 10:01

Carl, thanks. i will also look forward to your impressions when your MM3's arrive.

i'm simply enjoying non-critical listening.....maybe the drivers have finally broken in fully.....i don't know.....there is just a sense of harmony in what i am hearing. no strain, unflappable.......tasty.

mikelavigne February 13, 2007 09:51