It was a great trip and a unique opportunity. I live around 600 miles from Boulder and my local dealer had just become an Avalon dealer. They wanted to tour the factory and invited me along. It was a really fun trip and Avalon Acoustics is a top notch company.

I actually got to watch part of the manufacturing process of what eventually became my own speakers.

philb7777 October 15, 2011 00:21

Makes sense to me.

Touring the Avalon factory. Brilliant.

lapierre October 12, 2011 17:29

Thanks for the comments Glen and Dan.

Lapierre - I tried a few amps before I settled on the Rowland matching with the Avalons well. Classe' CA-400, Levinson 336, and BAT VK-150's. I liked the Classe' but it was just not refined enough and felt I wasn't getting everything I could out of the Avalons. The Levinson 336 did all the audiophile things right but was just too sterile and analytical for my taste mating with the Avalons.

Then after selling some Eidolons and going up to the Avalon factory to hear some Eidolon Diamonds in their voicing room, it was all over. I realize their voicing room was 'tricked out', but the mating of Rowland gear and Avalon is something truly special. I think its like getting the best of solid state and the best of tubes without compromising much in either direction.

philb7777 October 10, 2011 19:01

Well done Phil.

Besides Rowland what other power amps did you consider?

lapierre October 08, 2011 22:57

Phil, you have a great system, one I would love to hear. I envy you your table and cartridge, I'm hoping one of these days, I'll be able to enjoy a similar analog front end. Congratulations on a wonderfully put together system!

Best regards,
Dan

islandmandan October 08, 2011 19:58

What a signally beautiful system. Great care in room construction. Top notch, well done.

glenfihi October 07, 2011 23:02

System edited: Just added a REL G1 Gibrltor sub to my system. My room is upstairs and to get the 20-28Hz that I wanted a sub was needed. Adding the REL was a great choice. Attached via Hi-Level Neutrik connection to my amp, it mates seamlessly. Frankly I was surprised, as fast as the drivers in the Eidolons are, but the sub disappears. The remote on the G1 allows for quick changes in dB levels and crossover adjustments. A worthwhile investment for anyone with large floorstsnding speakers in a room that just won't allow for the lowest octaves.

philb7777 September 22, 2011 19:32

Nicely done. Never met a Avalon I did not like

vernneal June 21, 2010 03:18

Nice system , avalon also a favorite of mine , and the aries 3 is also very nice i often regret i didnt take that one,but i was a vinyl newbie at that time.

andromedaaudio June 20, 2010 18:43

As far as the Cadence goes, I think it is one of the quietest phono stages made.
I am very pleased with it. I also have a BPS battery supply with it. It does
make some difference in liquidity and blacker background, but all in all, not
sure worth the investment. I have two setting I use on the Cadence with the
XV-1s. I will go over sonic benefits of each:

Lo-Gain/Hi-Load: setting 1 in the manual (pdf available on jeffrowland.com):
This setting gives me the blackest background, lowest noise floor and the most
musical sound. If your ear leans towards tubes, this is the setting; my volume
setting on the Synergy IIi runs between 40-48 depending on the recording

Hi-Gain/Hi-Load setting 3 in the manual: This setting gives me the most
dynamics and precision imaging, faster bass and more extended highs, sounds more
like solid state to me and less musical. Volume setting on the Synergy IIi runs
between 32-40 depending upon the recording.

I personally don't like the other two settings on the Cadence but your 'mileage
may vary.' I tend to use setting 1 about 80% of the time and setting 3 about
20% of the time.

As far as my XV-1s goes here is how I have it set up:

tracking force: 2.174 grams
Used for overhang: Mint protractor
VTA - set with magnifying glass to make sure stylus is perpendicular to a 180
gram record. Since the cartridge body is quite large, I have VTA a little
higher in the back than used too
Anti-skate - I use a little more than I am used to using with this cart
Azimuth - adjusted by eye, but the new Fozgometer I read about in Stereophile is
intriguing.

How do you have your XV-1s set up? I love the XV-1s, it is a fantastic cart.
Congrats on your system. Let me know your thoughts.

philb7777 April 19, 2010 03:16

I also just upgraded to the DV XV-1s, and also have the Rowland Cadence Phonostage. I'd like your advice and suggestion on which Phono Stage Gain/Load option (1-4) you are using. THere is no straight forward "mapping" to the guideline in the Rowland manual. As I interpret this from the Dynavector spec, the cartridge output .3 mV, and has a load impedence of 6 ohms.

Thank you

vinyljunkee April 17, 2010 13:51

Hey Phil,
Could you load up a picture of the single motor flywheel setup on the Aries 3? Thanks

timztunz January 25, 2010 13:02

System edited: System edited: Just added VPI single motor flywheel to the Aries 3. Nice improvement in air, lower noise floor, more rock solid imaging that was already great.

philb7777 January 24, 2010 17:42

Beautiful gear and serious thought into the room and how it is such an important part of the whole experience. I would LOVE to hear this system! Bravo!

timztunz December 23, 2009 12:03

System edited: Just added a Rowland BPS-1 AC and battery power supply for the Synergy IIi and Cadence. Interestingly, using the AC mode is a significant improvement over the standard AC power supply of the Synergy IIi. Makes blackground more silent, improved microdynamics. In battery mode, even more improvement with more detail, ambient information, and blacker background. I highly recommend all Synergy IIi and Cadence owners to consider finding a BPS-1 on the Audiogon market. It's worth the investment.

philb7777 December 02, 2009 14:44

System edited: Just added a VPI peripheral ring and center weight and changed out my cart to a Dynavector XV-1s. First of all the ring and center weight are great. I noticed a lowered noisefloor and it really takes warps out of problem LP's without a hitch. The Dynavector XV-1s is quite an upgrade. It is the best cart I have ever heard (I'm sure their are other phenomenal carts I haven't heard!). This cart does everything well without any weaknesses. First it has the blackest background of any cart I've heard. Excellent air and detail without sacrificing any lushness of an analog midrange. Bass is deep and extended yet tuneful.

philb7777 September 08, 2009 12:14

Atma-Sphere MA2 AN EXCELLENT CHOICE.

gregadd June 02, 2009 00:04

From my experience listening to components on various Avalon models, I would suspect that the Krell/Audioquest combo on Eidolons would give you faster response with more rhythm and pace, slightly tigher bass too. The Rowland/Cardas combo would give you more smooth mids and highs with more air around instruments. Midrange liquidity increased. If you listen to mostly rock, I would stick with the Krell/Audioquest, if you listen to mostly jazz, classical, female vocals then the Rowland/Cardas combo might be worth investigating....

philb7777 April 20, 2009 16:41

The reason I asked you that question is that Avalon distributor in Hong Kong told me the same thing that Rowland and Cardas are the best match for Avalon. I am living in Shanghai and had to buy Avalon through my HK distributor. I am using Krell Evo 400 monoblocks and Audioquest Everest speaker cables. I have no problem with this set up, but just don't know how different or whether they are better with Rowland/Cardas.

Yes, I love the Avalon speakers. There is really nothing like them out in the marketplace. Had B&W 801 Nautilus before and was thinking about upgrading to the Diamond series until I demoed at Avalon dealer in Hong Kong. Could not believe how sweet and musical they sounded, with an incredible transparency and sound stage. Felt like I was totally wrapped in music....

avguy April 18, 2009 15:44

It all started when I toured the Avalon facilities in Boulder. In their voicing room (this is back in 2002) they were using Rowland electronics. I also wanted something maintenance free, like solid state, but with a liquid midrange as close to tubes as I could get. Rowland electronics with the Eidolons did that for me. I find them to be very synergistic, with all types of music.

As far as Cardas, my local dealer recommended it due to Rowland using Cardas for internal wiring. I was concerned that the Cardas (even Golden Ref) would make the sound too 'dark' with the combination of Avalon and Rowland; however, I have not found this to be the case. I am becoming more interested in trying out the new Cardas Clear and even some Nordost stuff too - just for comparison.

The Eidolons are great loudspeakers, aren't they? I think the Eidolon design is a classic, and we both will keep these speakers for a very very long time.

philb7777 April 14, 2009 14:32

Hi Phil, I love your set up. I also bought recently a pair of Avalon Eidolon, not the Diamond, but Vision. I love the sound of these speakers. Just curious, what made you choose the Jeff Rowland amplifier and the Cardas Golden Reference interconnect and speaker cables?

avguy April 13, 2009 16:38