This system is the result of a successful long term effort to build a balanced, no compromise two channel system for audio and also home theater.

While it would be nice to think that the system was put together per some grand plan, I think how I finally got here is a vastly more interesting story.

I           The Beginning (The age of discovery)

This all started in school when I was fortunate enough to be able to be wildly irresponsible and blow all of my summer earnings on my first audio system which consisted of a bunch of used components that I really got lucky mixing and matching at a dealer to put together a system that blew me away - Wadia 850 CDP, Levinson 38 Pre, Ayre V-3 Amp, B&W 804 Speakers and MIT Cabling.  It was a really dumb use of funds given my financial situation at the time but man did I love that system.  The feeling of joy listening late into the night in my studio apartment to that system is still to this day etched into my mind.  

II          The Devolution (Give me my MP3)

Fast forward five years and that system was a distant memory – sold it all when times got a little tough.  The subsequent period featured some lean audio years - the best setup I had was an iPod and Sony MDR V-6 headphones.  MP3s were what I was listening to thanks to the internet.

III         A Rebirth (Nostalgia is a hell of a drug)

Then I moved half way around the world for work and got the audio bug again.  I dipped my toes in with some entry level stuff - Ayre CX-7 CDP (horrible), Ayre AX-7 Integrated (decent for the price but underpowered), B&W 804S Speakers (sounded mostly like I remember) and some Bettercables (ugh).  That was more disappointment than fun and almost a complete waste of money. 

I figured at that point that I had two options - pack it in or commit.  Having that old system from school dancing in my head kept me from giving up.  I decided that I would go big and create a system that would give me the joy of that old system but with a minimum of coloration and state of the art dynamics and resolution.  

IV         The Descent Into Madness (Wait, why did I think this was a good idea?)

I figured that the new system would take a couple of years to put together and allocated a maximum budget in the range of a well optioned Audi A6 sedan.  But like a government contract, costs kept ballooning and the end date kept getting pushed back.  It wasn't until ten years later, after visiting many dealers all over the globe, taking financial hits on multiple component changes and a lot of learning and most painful of all, spending considerably in excess of my original max budget, that I arrived at a system that I found to be really enjoyable - EMM Labs XDS1 V2 CDP, Ayre KX-R Twenty Preamp, Ayre MX-R Amps, Focal Scala Utopia Speakers and MIT Oracle MA Cabling.  

I thought that’s where I would end up; a very expensive fun system.

V          Sober Living (An audiophile stops tinkering and learns to enjoy the music?)

Nothing changed for a couple of years until my problematic Ayre MX-R acted up again (Ayre had some type of issue with a particular component on their MX-R boards that only shows up after 1.5 years that they couldn’t fully sort out – they always replaced the board but this was the third time for that particular mono and I had had enough).  I was assured by Ayre that the MX-R Twenty used different components and did not have a similar issue. I figured better performance and no issues was worth it so I upgraded.

While waiting for my upgraded amps (it ended up being a mess with Ayre continually missing delivery dates on the upgrade.  I spent almost four months without amps as a result), I figured I would just take a peek and see what was happening in audio news.  

VI         Relapse (Did I really not learn my lesson the first couple of times?)

Of course, I first checked in on developments at the companies that I knew the best – the makers of the components of my system.  The most intriguing new development was EMM Labs’ release of a new statement digital system comprised of the TX2 transport plus DA2 DAC and also a V3 upgrade for my XDS1 CDP.  While I enjoyed my XDS1 V2 it always left me wanting on the bottom end, never sounded quite right on the top end and was too recessed in the midrange for my liking.  I gave a call to EMM Labs where I learned that the TX2 was a limited edition and since Esoteric was no longer supplying drives to third parties, this would likely be EMM Labs’ last disc spinner.

It was a tough call; the TX2/DA2 combo would be a considerable expense and I’d need to sell my XDS1 V2 since I had no dealer – I had purchased the XDS1 direct from EMM. I toyed with upgrading the XDS1 to V3 status but was strongly dissuaded from that option by EMM Labs who insisted that the V3 wouldn’t approach the performance of the TX2/DA2. I’m not big on regrets or financial restraint when it comes to audio, so I busted open the piggy bank.  After a lot of struggle I was finally able to sell the XDS1 at what I consider a giveaway price for what was effectively still state of the art  digital for a one piece CDP (less than 50% of retail – the secondhand market for digital is brutal) and placed the order with EMM Labs.

The TX2/DA2 were a revelation – it was a very good move on my part as my system took a significant jump in performance across the board.  But in audio, with the good often comes the bad.  In my case, the top flight front end significantly pushed the ceiling of the system, which in turn exposed glaringly one of the shortcomings of my Focal Scala speakers.  The top end of the Scala had always been rough/raggedy with the XDS1 but with the further extension provided by the new digital front end it became a real issue which required that I use the jumper on the speaker to shelve down the tweeter which alleviated the issue but robbed the air from the system. I played around with the speakers for a month but couldn’t resolve the issue. This was obviously now going to get ugly; I was going to have to make as big an investment upgrading the speakers as I did the front end.  Had I made a very costly mistake?  The system was already much more expensive than I imagined but now I was looking at purchases that would push it into the stratosphere – a total investment that would be enough to buy an apartment.

VII      Spiraling Out of Control (This is a completely sensible course of action, right?)

The mind is an amazing thing; you can convince yourself that a reckless decision is perfectly logical if you give it enough time and effort.  Over the next month, I researched speaker options taking into account the dimensions of my listening room and a budget in the ballpark of 50k. For whatever reason, whether design, aesthetics, size and/or price, my short list ended up being very short and was comprised of Focal (Maestro Utopia) and Avalon (Isis or Time).  I had not heard the Focal speaker except very briefly in a Burmester/Transparent showroom system but had extensively heard the Isis and to a more limited extent, the Time.  I wouldn’t be able to hear any of the contenders in my home so I conducted further research, reached out to dealers and the internet, but the final decision was mine.

I agonized for a few weeks and eventual settled on the Focal Maestro. I put down a deposit with my dealer and waited. The wait time would be three months.  In that time, I learned a very important lesson – don’t order anything the month before the Munich Show.  Why?  Because unlike every other civilized business, audio manufacturers love to keep quiet about new products on the way and then surprise! what you ordered and haven't even received is now a previous model.  Sure enough, Focal decides to introduce their new Focal Maestro Utopia EVO – essentially a Focal Maestro MkII.  At first, I was livid that my dealer who I felt should have known it was coming didn’t warn me.  When I spoke to him, he claimed that dealers  get no heads up before new model introductions. I didn’t believe him and refused to take delivery of the speakers unless he promised to allow me to upgrade to EVO with near full credit of what I paid for the Utopia III.  I wasn’t sure I would do it, but I wanted the option.  I was still pretty pissed and so made him take my old Focal Scala Utopia speakers in trade (for not much but he had refused to do so earlier and I did not want to deal with storing or selling and shipping them).  Having gotten my pound of flesh for the betrayal, I went back to waiting for my speakers.

Finally, the day came.  The speakers were installed and once the dealer’s crew left my apartment, it was time to get a taste of what I was in for.  Right off the bat, it was clear that this speaker was on a whole other level than the Scala. The midrange was so clear it really surprised me – my wife was similarly impressed.  To me however, the best part of the Maestro and the part I didn’t expect was that the drivers were so well integrated that the speakers sounded like a single point source.  No longer was I able to clearly discern the tweeter and the woofer as on my Scalas. Having been satisfied that the upgrade was a good move, I set about breaking in the speakers.

As the weeks went by, I was becoming less enthralled with the Maestros – they sounded closed in and lethargic with anything fast paced.  I was confused.  The setup had been spry and kicking with the Scalas.  What happened? I realized that something was off but what.  I went and read over reviews of the Maestro but more carefully this time – I got lucky.  Stereophile had reviewed the speakers and had a full spread of measurements.  I started to conduct research to understand what those measurements meant.  After a few days of learning, I could now decipher the graphs Stereophile had so nicely prepared. It was not great news.  The Maestros, unlike the Scalas, are shelved down in the brilliance region of the audio spectrum (what is heard as sparkle and air) and are a very nasty amplifier load compared to the relatively benign load of the Scalas.

The Focal Utopia III series has jumpers to adjust for room effects.  I decided to try the treble jumper in the high position – sure enough, there was now air and sparkle but it was too steely to tolerate for long so I put the jumper back in the normal position.  I could live with the closed in top end for now I thought and moved my attention to the more serious issue – the lack of explosiveness.  I knew that my Ayre monos doubled from 8 ohms to 4 ohms and I thought they doubled down again into 2 ohms.  I checked again.  Strangely, the official specs only show 8 ohms and 4 ohms.   Hmmmm…  I started scouring reviews of the Ayre MX-Rs to see if anyone had conducted tests and included measurements – I got lucky again, Stereophile had (again – what lifesavers) and it showed something shocking (to me), the MX-Rs double into 4ohms and then pretty much fall on their face – offering limited additional power after 4 ohms.  So that was why the Maestros sounded lethargic – there simply wasn’t enough power coming from the Ayre amps.  Glad that I had found the issue, I was still pretty dejected to learn that my $30k amps weren’t good enough – something that until that moment had never crossed my mind as a possibility.  Exhausted from all the homework and plot twists, I decided to take a break and just listen to the system for a couple of months while I contemplated my options.

VIII       Off the Reservation (The amps cost how much?)

Having taken time to clear my head, I came to accept that one of two things had to happen, the speakers needed to go or the amps did.  The speakers would be an issue – there was no going back to the Scalas and the Maestro EVO, while being an easier load than my speakers, had some points against it.  First, I couldn’t be sure that my amps could drive the Maestro EVO to my satisfaction and thus, if I upgraded to them, it would be a hefty cost without any guarantee that my amps would not need to be replaced as well.  Second, unlike the Utopia, which is a 3 ½ way setup with a sealed upper bass enclosure, the EVO had gone back to a traditional 3 way setup.  From a sales perspective it was a smart move on the part of Focal, since by going back to a 3 way setup, the speakers would be easier to drive and there would thus be more potential customers as more amps could drive the speakers.  But for me, 3 way was a real step back.  That left me with the only option being a new amp.

The new amp would have to be a monster – a hefty power rating  doubling down all the way down to 2 ohms.  It would be a nice bonus if the amp also had controlled non steely highs so that I could use the high setting on the speakers’ treble jumper. Living in an apartment is all about efficient space utilization.  I had already squeezed in all I could into my apartment and there was no room for the 3ft high traditional monster amps from most manufacturers.  I kept looking but ultimately came back to the amps I didn’t want to audition – the D’Agostino Audio Momentum M400 – the price was obscene for amps and I wasn’t in love with the aesthetics (but they had grown on me over time).  They were a similar form factor to the MX-Rs, and so would be an easy swap in replacement (I would need new feet for my HRS amp stands but that was a minor expense – they are swappable).

I forgot about it and said to myself I would move on.  But the more I thought about what I had spent in all on my system until that point and how unhappy I currently was with the system, the more I came around to considering the M400s.  It was either that, or just shut it down and liquidate it – it was bothering me that much.  I remembered that my Ayre dealer carried D’Agostino – he had raved about the amps and how they were amazing; something he never did when we discussed the MX-Rs (even the Twenties). I had dismissed it at the time given the price and the fact that I was happy with my Ayres.  How times had changed.

So I called the dealer (who is in Singapore) and told him I would be visiting in a few months.  I then told my wife we were going to Singapore for a week’s vacation (and some audio stuff). She was excited about the vacation and is smart enough not to ask questions she doesn’t want to hear the answer to so didn’t do too much digging about what else I had planned.

IX         Relief (I think it’s actually over)

Singapore in the spring is a beautiful place – great weather, fantastic food and some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.  But that was the sideshow and I had a 60 thousand dollar question that needed answering.  I had brought my favorite test music along and my dealer had reserved two afternoons for me.  The first surprise was how shrill the MX-Rs sounded with the Avalon Isis which has what is typically a smooth diamond tweeter.  The Ayres controlled the easy to drive Isis well in a setup that I was comfortable with from earlier auditions – it sounded great except for the top end.  My wife said it made her ears hurt – both of us are very sensitive to high frequencies.

Out came the M400s.  Despite the impression in the literature that they’re similar in size to the Ayre monos, seeing them in the flesh revealed that they are about twice the size, which was comforting in that I was confused as to how Dan could get such power from monos the size of the MX-Rs – now it was clear that that wasn’t the case.

There was no drama.  Like Mike Tyson in his prime, the M400s were on a different plane entirely than its competitor.  Buttery smooth top end without any roll off that I could hear had the wife in its corner from the first cut.  Add to that the amazingly cohesive presentation and the vice grip on the woofers and the M400s had done what I thought would be impossible – justify their price and then some.  I was very wrong about these amps – it was a case of being happy to have a mouth full of crow.  After so many disappointing hyped products I finally heard one that was as good as all the reports.  While I couldn’t be sure how they would sound in my setup, the quality couldn’t be ignored – it was probably not only the solution to my speaker woes but a component that was so accomplished it would let its system mates shine and push the system to being exceptional.

My dealer gave a fair trade in deal but held firm on any substantial discount knowing that even if he charged full retail it would still be a good buy.  I gritted my teeth and shook hands – it was done. Delivery was a couple of months later.  The M400s shone even brighter in my system than in the demo. Apparently an amp the price of a loaded Euro sedan is all it took to reach the performance peak I had visualized in my mind those many years ago. High end is a completely out of control hobby when you’re pushing the envelope.

X          The Aftermath (Am I finally out?)

Since the M400 miracle (that’s really what it feels like), I finally have a system that has no compromises and makes me smile every time I use it – what a 15 year rollercoaster ride of discovery, learning, mysticism, disappointment, desperation, delusion, exhaustion and ultimately, satisfaction and relief. As happy as I am now with the system, knowing what I now know, I can’t see me ever doing this again but time does funny things to statements which include the word never…