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.
I'm planning on getting the 111's soon; and plan on powering them with the MBL 8011's; which is all I can afford. Any thoughts on that and it's power level? what can you suggest for cables? I enjoyed them at my listening sessions; but at times thought they were not 'warm' enough; and caused slight listening fatigue from the metal tweeters(too bright). Their sound staging however was so amazing....liked them much better than the 116's. Happy listening to your great system.
Thanks for the info. Jzach much appreciated, Exlibris another member who has a thread showing his system with the 101E's actually lives close to me so hopefully we will be able to hook-up so I can hear.
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.
Jzach thanks for the info. How far apart are they from the inside of the speakers.
How low do these go bass wise, do they need subs? I noticed another member who has the 111's has two subs set-up with them. When I listen too music that has low bass impact I like to feel it, to me bass is important as I feel it is the foundation of music.
So I should not be concerned about set-up, they are not that hard to set-up.
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.
Jzach nice looking set-up. I was in the past looking at getting a pair of 111E's to compare with my current set-up but after info I had received from others and reading some reviews that seem to be similar referring to the speakers being very difficult to set-up and if not set-up precisely then they sound awful along with being very sensitive to associated gear being used, needing to be in a room that is treated well and hard to drive I put them on a back burner. I don't go by what reviews say and the others feeding me their thoughts don't actually own them and you do so I have a few questions for you if you don't mind.
I noticed in your picture the right speaker is fairly close to a wall but can't tell from the pic regarding your left speaker, noticed they are quiet toed-in also.
What is your room layout and speakers set-up within? How hard are they to actually set-up and to get amazing sound out of them? How low do these go, bottom end?
My current set-up, this set-up is not my main designated room but a living room space which is fairly large with different height ceilings from 9ft to over 28ft.
Eggleston Andra 2's (replaced my W/P7's) Pass X-600.5 mono blocks Audio Research Ref3 pre Accustic Arts Tube Dac Oracle 2000 transport
I will say that I'm getting amazing sound right now but have always wondered what the MBL's would sound like and unfortunately there are no dealers around to be able to get a pair to listen to in my place never mind even being able to listen period.
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.
Nice system you have put together there. When I went to Audio Connection I saw the MBL's but did not ask for a listen. Maybe I should have! Maybe when I next travel to Sydney. (I'm from Melbourne).
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.
the 1521/1511 duo is very fine indeed. They get fairly close to the 1621/1611 duo I think, although the big brothers are a bit more airy and slightly more detailed. Unless you compare them directly, I think most people would live happily with the 1521/1511 duo.
Also note that this duo was hailed as Digital Product of the Year in TAS.
I haven't played around much with powerchords yet, but I'm about to begin soon. I'll add a note to my virtual system whenever I get to it!
The main difference between the four models of radialstrahlers (121, 116, 111, 101) is bass and room ambience. The mid- and upper range are identical (same drivers). The 101 has a omnidirectional bass driver which is very special indeed. The 111 and 116 are the same apart from the 111 using larger woofers (and consequently a larger enclosure). If your room can handle it, this is the model to pick. In ordinary rooms the 116 is the model that'll work best. My room isn't that big (5.80x4m, 2.40m high) and in here the 116 really shines, with no lack of bass I feel. :) The power amps you have are suited for both 116 and 111, so you've hit the right model there. The 101's really want the larger amps, 9008 or 9011.
If you can borrow the 111's to try them in your room, I strongly suggest you do! You'll forget all about the Wilsons, I'm sure, hehe.
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.
Very nice system. I just sold all my Burmester and purchase all MbL. 6010D,9007 mono amp. Wilson 7 speakers with Tara lab cables.I am looking at the 1511DAC and 1521 Transport. How do they compare to 1611 and 1621? Any suggestion on power cord (Elrod or ?? ) Thanks Hic
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).
We share some components and I can only agree with what you're saying. I've never heard anything like this, it is very special indeed.
Your vinyl gear interests me too. I haven't yet ventured into the analog domain, it's been too costly already, hehe! One of these days I will though...
