My system currently comprises the following components:
MBL 111E Speakers
MBL 6010D Preamp
MBL 1621 Transport
MBL 1611 DA Converter
MBL 9008 Power Amplifiers
Rockport Capella 2 Air Bearing/Vacuum T.Table
Rockport 7000 Air Bearing Arm
Clearaudio Insider Reference Wood Cartridge
Kondo M7 KSL Phono Stage
Kondo ANScz Step Up
Kondo LPz Interconnects
Kondo SPz Speaker Cables
Shunyata Power Conditioner
Finite Element Pagoda Master Reference Stands
Kondo, Nordost,Gryphon & NBS Power Cords.
Numerous tweaks eg Shakti Hollographs, Black Diamond Racing
footers, Aurios, Finite Element Cerapucs.
I have been involved in this Hobby and the pursuit of the Ultimate Sound for over 25 years and feel I have come round full circle. I started with powerful solid state amps (Krells, Gryphons, Classe, VTL, etc ) and Dynamic speakers ( Duntechs, Infinitys, Sonus Fabers as well as Apogees and Martin Logan electrostatics, Audio Notes etc ) I've owned over 30 pairs of high end speakers over the years.
I then got the Single Ended High Efficiency bug and worked my way up to a Kondo( Shinri 300B, M7 Silver preamp, M7 KSL Phono etc as well as an Audio Note DAC 5 and CEC TLO Transport ), with Avantgarde Duo Speakers.
I was very content for a while until one day I went to my Audio Dealer The Audio Connection here in Sydney Australia. Josef Riediger the owner who I've known for many years was setting up an MBL Reference System for another customer and asked if I would like to have a listen. Up to that time I had heard many good quality high end systems but none had tempted me from my Kondo and Avantgarde set up.
Unfortunately this fateful day was to be different. What I heard was so natural and musical it shocked me, particularly coming from powerful solid state amps and inefficient speakers. It was treading that fine line combining the best of valves and solid state. I couldn't sleep that night and realised I had to have that sound. As you can guess I ended up buying the complete MBL Reference system which had a synergy I couldn't get by mixing my beloved Kondo gear.
So here I am going full circle, as I never thought I would be going back to poerful transistor amps and inefficient speakers. However the MBL gear is unique and shows you can never generalise or have preconceived ideas.
The other amazing component I was lucky to purchase was the Rockport Capella air bearing T.Table and arm. Andy Payor does not know what compromise is. It absolutely embarassed my earlier T.Table which was not cheap. I would love to one day get a Sirius 3 which is the bigger brother to mine but I'm more than happy with the Capella.
As always there is a never ending search for perfection. Looking forward to your feedback.
MBL was very nice but have since changed direction and gone back to valves having purchased an Ongaku. This hobby is full of surprises and you just never know where it leads next,
Yes the MBL 1621 is an amazing transport. Interestingly I owned a CEC TLO Mk2 before I purchased the 1621, and I can tell you with confidence that there is no contest.
The 1621 destroys the CEC which as you say is in itself a very nice transport. However the MBL is better engineered and built, more reliable ( I had to change the laser on the CEC twice in 2 years, and the belts, and I didn't put too many hours on it), plays discs the CEC couldn't play and sounds better.
On the whole the MBL gear is the most reliable and best sounding equipment I have owned in the last 25 years in this hobby.
The metal grilles do have a negative effect on the sound, particularly in the highs which sound smoother when the grilles are removed.
Even though I prefer the look of the speakers with the grilles on, I do all my listening with the grilles off as the improvement in sound is quite noticeable.
A review by John Atkinson of the 111 in the Aug 2002 Stereophile also mentions the improvement in sound without the grilles.
Good question about the Shakti's. You are right in that the benefits aren't as prominent as they were with Horns and conventional speakers.
However the improvement the Shakti's make in the areas of bass control, soundstaging, detail retrieval and clarity is still noticeable and hence they have stayed in the setup.
Thanks for the feedback, I will try out the TL power cord suggestion. BTW love your room and system, agree with all you say about the listenability and purity of the MBLs.
It is interesting to hear from someone who has had similar experience. The MBL gear does have a certain magic which is hard to go pass once you are exposed to it.
As much as I tried to capture the same quality with my previous system by changing cables and other tweaks it just wasn't the same.
Like you I recently purchased some acoustic treatment which added icing to the cake. If you get a chance you should also try Shakti Hallographs. I'm certainly envy your generous room dimensions, the 101s must sound great in that space.
Thanks for sharing your listening experience at Exlibris's place. It sounds like you enjoyed his system and got a reasonable handle on the MBL sound.
I heard good reports on the Stealth Indra cables so I'm not surprised at the improvement it brought. Also I think that you are correct in your assessment on the impact the location has on soundstaging and imaging particularly with the "football" driver on the 101s which does need room to breathe.
In this area I feel the 111Es could be easier to locate in your room based on what you say. It's good to see that Audio comradre is not dead with Exlibris kindly sharing his system with a fellow enthusiast.
Hopefully you will get a chance to hear a pair of 111Es to be able to compare the sound and room interactions. I wish I could assist however I think it is a long way to come "down under" to hear a pair, so hopefully you will find some one closer that could assist.
The 8011 is a fine amp and depending on the size of your room and listening levels they should provide adequate power, particularly as the 111s are not as hard to drive as the 101s.
Marshall Nack did a very positive review of the 8011s on positive feedback which would be worth reading.
As far as cables I use a combination of Cardas Neutral reference interconnects with Kondo Anspz speaker cables. I've also heard that Cardas golden reference goes well with MBL gear. Hope this helps.
They are 8' apart to inside. The bass on my version of 111Es uses the same 12" MBL bass driver as the 101E and goes down to 20Hz. The latest 111E uses 2x10" drivers and does not go as low.
If you read J.Valins review of the 101 in the Absolute Sound he stresses that a key strength of the MBL is the bass power and quality. So I certainly don't think you need a subwoofer unless you use it in an AV system and want to feel earthquake special effects, for which I think a speaker of this quality is wasted.
I've heard the 101s in a larage auditorium and there was unanimous agreement that they outperformed a pair of JM Labs grande utopia's in all areas including bass quantity and quality. If anything they have been crticised for having too much bass, which I believe is a room issue not a speaker problem.
In the end don't take anybody's opinion go and listen for yourself in a decent set up, preferably with MBL electronics.
Before I got the Capella I had a Clearaudio Maximum Solution with Graham Phantom arm. The Clearaudio was a nice TT, but after hearing the Rockport it was no contest. Andy Payor knows what he's doing and I think is one of the great audio designers/engineers.
The 111Es probably give you over 95% of the quality of the 101s. I wanted to buy a pair but was advised that my room was too small for them. I am more than happy with the sound of the 111s and in conjunction with the other MBL reference components I feel this is the best sounding system I've owned, and I've tried a lot of nice gear over the years.
My room is 14'x 19' and I have the 111Es along the long wall. I also had heard that the MBLs were difficult to set up and needed plenty of room and room treatment.
I was pleasantly surprised at how good they sounded without too much effort. The right speaker is close to the wall, about 3' from the side and 4' from rear wall. I use Shakti Hallographs and recently some eigth nerve acoustic treatment which has improved the sound even more.
Bass is particularly good and they are not bass heavy as some have indicated. I use the 9008 amps which also help with bass quality and control, and I am getting much better defined and controlled bass than I was with my Avantgarde Duos and their active subs.
I suspect the 101s would need much more breathing room than I have available, but the 111Es sound amazing in my room.
It's funny you should mention room treatment. I have just added some acoustic treatment to my room in addition to the Shakti Hallographs I already had.
It certainly adds the icing on the cake and takes the sound to the next level. I would love a bigger room, and the 101s I auditioned needed more room to breathe, which is why I got the 111Es which are just right for the room.
As you say Lohan the MBL gear does something special, and after 25 years of upgrades I am finally able to concentrate on enjoying the music.
Main difference between the 111B and 111E I believe is in the x-over, resulting in further sonic refinements and improved efficiency making them easier to drive. The most recent 111Es also have slight design changes ( ie more angular lines ) and 2x10" side firing drivers in place of the single internal MBL 12" for bass ( which I'm not sure is an improvement sonically ).
There is an 111B for sale at Audiogon at the moment for $8,500 with free shipping from Asia, and another one just sold for $8,000 in USA again with free shipping. When you consider latest retail in piano black is $28k that is pretty good value as long as they are in good condition.
Amfibius,
Good to hear from other enthusiasts from down under. You have a great system from what I see. I heard the Violins at Morales driven by WAVAC HE833s which sounded very nice. It's an amazing tweeter and a great looking speaker ( much nicer visually than my previous Duos ).
Josef at the A.Connection has some great gear and is an enthusist himself. Next time your in Sydney you should get him to set something up for you to have a listen, he's always got some amazing toys like Gryphon Poseidons, Pass Labs Rushmores and Goldmunds as well as the MBL gear which I personally love.
I was going to buy the 101E but found the 111E sounded better in my room. As you know the 101E needs a reasonably large room to breathe properly. The 111E has the same quality highs and midrange as the 101 and I feel is very close in overall sound quality.
I purchased the 111E with the 12" MBL bass driver which is the same as that used in the 101E, so the bass is amazing. I haven't heard the most recent 111Es with 2 10" drivers, however I was told the 12" is a better drver if you have the right amps.
With your 6010D Pre and 9007 Amps you should get great sound. The Wilsons are very good speakers, however the MBLs do real magic particularly with other MBL components. You should try to audition a pair in your system. I have noticed some 111s on Audiogon at great prices, if you can get the later versions they sound better and are easier to drive.
I haven't compared them directly however they would not be too far behind and are built to the same high MBL standard. I believe Marshall Nack a reviewer for Positive Feedback on-line magazine is running this combination.
At the moment I'm using Nordost Brahmas for my 9008 Amps which I found very close to the Valhalla power cords. I'm using a combination of Gryphon, NBS, and Kondo power cords on the source components,
I am feeding all the components except the 9008amps through a Shunyata Hyra filter. I also believe the Cardas Reference power cords go well with MBL gear.
Osgorth I listen to Jazz, Blues, Rock and some classical mainly Chamber and smaller ensembles. I was listening to the system today and am still amazed at how it handles a broad range of music genres with equal aplomb which I'm sure you also appreciate in your very nice setup.
By the way I agree with your comments on cables, I tried the latest Harmonic Digilink (balanced)and battery pack 4 between the 1611DA and 1621 Transport and found very little difference with an unbalanced Kondo ANvz.
I did however notice a considerable difference between a pair of 2.5 mtr Tranparent XL and Cardas Neutral Reference interconnects (both balanced) from Preamp to Power Amps. Surprisingly (or maybe not)the Cardas was much better. The XL's were an early version however when you look at how much they cost it was interesting. The highs, pace, bass definition was much better using the Cardas.
I'm still playing around with cable combinations but purchased the Cardas because it was reasonably priced as I need a long run and didn't add too much to the sound (it really is neutral).
