Matt these Graham Audio "BBC" speakers come highly recommended! €8K I think and the feedback is EXCELLENT!
Muniuch 2015 showroom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1wx_Uzm-WQ |
Matt one more to broaden your horizons. I think its front ported:
http://www.foersteraudiotechnik.de/prod_fa73_en.htm |
The PL Mk2 is $70K with mech grounding stands.
They are NOT clinical according to my pal and the 6moons reviews...more on the Musical side. Based on my demo of the Anatta with the claimed PLogos sound signature backs up that claim. The Anattas are a big OUCH at $250K a pair.
Remember, the Wireless all in ones wont sound the same as separates and my pal said that wireless also thrashed the wired setup with the same speaker.
Wired as in Preamp to speakers as opposed to only just wifi.
The point is not for Matt to buy them, but more to get a reference point for that kind of sound possibility. Plus he will have fun on that small adventure. |
Good stuff Matt.
It may ony be YOUR opinion, but its still very valuable to the rest of us. This demo expedition presents us with useful reference points.
The crowning glory will be if I am ever in your neck of the woods to hear your system and so hone in more closely to your auditory tastes. |
Gear, I agree. Not a fan of Goldmund spinner or TT tech, but I guess they were pushed to have a complete line for their very exclusive clientele and back then, a Spinner was mandatory and with less than 40 people in total, they had to outsource mechanical stuff like this and still keep the fancy pricing.
To me they are a Speaker and Amp company (they even made a tube amp and its displayed in the lobby of their HQ). they are very competent in digital as well. Nowadays, their software is top notch as they cherry pick the best acoustical Phds and combine that with university an corporate collaborations and hence their leadership position in Wireless. However, like all small companies they will have their vulnarabilities and perhaps 4D sound in Home Cinema is such an area?
Before I actually did a couple demos there, I thought they were all bling and little audiophile substance. Now I know better, they are ALL substance and the bling is only about their target market. Hopefully, one day Job will make their version of the Prologos wireless for real world prices. I am sure you will get 90% of the SQ for 20% of the price. By then, the Goldmund label will have new fancy cosmetic styling and Job will get the boxy look without the mechanical grounding stands. LoL |
No, he has not used his Lampi in ages since he went Emerald Physics then Goldmund DSP electronics.
He still keeps his old Lampi for sentiment. LoL |
Guys, the Wireless are completely different to separates. |
I said the ProLogos, not the Plus! |
OK, they will be in Zurich!!!
From the website.
HIGH END SWISS 2015 - 16. - 18. October - Mövenpick Hotel - Zürich-Regensdorf - Switzerland |
Matt,
PL is BOTTOM ported. 6moons review sept 2014 has pictures. That was the Mk1. Mk2 is like 4 months old.
Stay away from the plus.
Gear,
The magic is NOT the wireless per se. The PL wireless is by definition active with DSP and DRC capabilities with wireless receiver built in. Awards? What about best in show at Newport by AVS showrooms. Go see their video with BobV at their site and KNOW that its the PL tower, MUCH inferior to the real PL which has the mech grounding frame. BTW, my EP pal has the upgraded Beyma drivers and used Clayton Shaw Spatial DRC setup (in person setup) with Orpheus Titan Pro Dac/X-over, etc. He previously used Shindo/Einstein mono blocs, Acapella violins, Modded alters and a host of other quality gear over decades.
He is an expert TT setup guy and has R2R sources too.
TBG, don't confuse Goldmund traditional separates with these all-in-one DSP/DRC monsters. Ultra wide band amps built in with digital X-over, so no line loss. Drivers DSPed to perfection BY DESIGN, by the Proteus software to have perfect control by the amps. Alize 7 Dac integrated in and all with robust wireless protocol.
My pal heard the passive version, then the active version with digital wire and then wireless. He has NOT yet implemented Proteus DRC.
All the comments based on the old stuff is NOT valid for what I am saying, even my pal said the same. Its the tight integration with breakthru software thatseems to have taken things to another level. As he said, the future is HERE...this is why I as Matt for his opinion, since Manhatten is not too difficult for him. |
Josh,
The new wireless tuff is a complete system, just add computer or hub.
Way better than the sum of the parts, which already are very high quality.
I heard the Anatta wireless myself playing RBCD and its the best demo I ever heard.
I am hearing similar gasps about the Kii 3 too at much lower price point... 10K euros, due out in November. N-core amps, DSP up the wazoo, freq response down to 19hz, LIVE sounding! German mag going gaga.
DSP is the future, and the future is now! Just a lot less fun to tinker with. LoL |
Gear!
Of course not. That would mean big $$$ and a commitment to a full ecosystem. Even the Kii at MUCH less money is not on the table for me at present.Who knows what the future will bring?
Regarding Lifestyle as you say, I have SEEN the Kaiser Kawero there for the Proteus treatment and I know other well known brands which will remain nameless who seek Proteus collaboration with them for their speakers. Think of Proteus as Devialet SAM on steroids! So this is more than lifestyle/convenience.
This is about Matt getting a frame of refernbce for an all in one vs the path he is on. This way we can vicariously get a qualified opinion on the lay of the land. This happens to be convenient as he is close to manhatten and his venture to Bob V will be fun! Wish I could join him there...loL.
This is NOT about Matt spending huge $$$, especially as he MAY not think the tradeoff of the all-in one is worth it. He for sure will let us know though, that is certain. matt is very kind in that regard. Thanks Matt.
My pal raving about the Goldmund is a very experienced audiophile and a dynamics junkie. He was also until 18 months ago a SET guy.
I am well aware that Goldmund stuff is pricey and I am not telling anyone to go run and buy anything. i would never preseume to speak for anyone's pocket. I merely suggested to matt to have a listen since its convenient and compare it to the many other great stuff he is auditioning. It will be fun and very informative.
Finally, based on my unique experience with Goldmund wireless, ie Mimesis 32HD hub feeding the Anatta, I can honestly say its the MOST impressive demo I have ever heard and you Andrew know that I have been lucky to hear some killer systems. Of course the Anatta is ridiculously expensive at a quarter mil and that does not include the price of the hub, likely another 50 large. My pal and I heard the guitarists muttering during Rosanna and both thought it was us talking to the other.."what did you say John?" LoL |
Matt, I forgot to say I like Dynaudio as well, though I dont know that model.
I will post the Kii german mag review translation later. |
Me too Matt!! Very curious. You can also contrast against the PL speaker too. you are in the right place to hear them all. LoL. Hopefully the Kii will be in Zurich or Warsaw this year. I will try to attend both, if possible.
Woould LOVE to hear your take on them. AVSshowroom was gaga as well. HUGE sound from the small format with stunning bass, they say.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1Nebe3ULcY
"Small footprint, big sound with extended bass. The game changer is that they are not room dependant for set up, in other words they go not excite bass room nodes.. Bruno explains this." |
Gear, Goldmund IS a pioneer of Electrical (acoustical) and mechanical grounding. Did you not see the thick cenbtral rod in the PL frame?
The software to do all this stuff started development in 2007 and took 6 years to be ready for Prime Time, so why compare 2002 stuff?
Power conditioning is external and would be retrofitted to any such gear, but if my experience with the Joob circuit applies here, Goldmund sounds WORSE with Power conditioning, based on hos the circuit interacts with the power line...Sort of uses the power grid as a huge capacitor...hence the extreme dynamics.
The little ProLogos box is capable of 120db max spl, 120!!!
I dont know much about the Alize Dac tech, but I understand that the Alize 7 is darn good. What I do know is that Goldmund has lots of $$$ to fund research and make collaborations with Universities and defense contractors, so its not inconceivable that that are dense packed with tech.
I have not heard the PL, so cant go out on a limb, but am gratified that Matt will be able to hear it and the Kii in the context of high end separate systems abd can give an overview and his overall impression. That should be fun and enlightening.
BTW, the Metis and PL Tower are more lifestyle. The Prologos and the + are more audiophile aimed and the Anatta is the reference product.
PL Mk1 was $50K with Grounding frame and the Mk2 is $70K.Apart from software optimization, not sure what else is different.
If I get to hear em, I will report back here. |
Asia IS Goldmund's biggest market, so not sure what you are talking about Andrew.
And money no object guys will for for the 2 Box Logos or the 3 Box Anatta.
In any case, I myself have only heard the Anatta and cold/sterile is the opposite of what I heard. However, that is a Qtr mill, no not "real world" in my book. |
Sounds like things are going your way Matt. |
Sweeet! Great news about the Isis.
Bill of GTT is convinced the Kii will shake up the speaker market! A pal down south just confirmedd the enthusiasm to me.
My kid went back to school over 2 weeks ago. |
Yes…. that is my understanding. |
Abedirov, have you seen the latest Lite& reviews?
http://www.audiostream.com/content/lampizator-lite-7-dsd-dac#5QSAiHOiLrQYrGwi.97
(Favourite greatest bits)
and
http://www.inearspace.com/#!LampizatOr-Lite-7-The-BIG-DAC/c112t/55f190580cf20cc524a5442d |
You guys dont even allow for equipment break-in time before you mob Matt for updates.
Let the wine breathe...he just opened the bottle! |
Based on how Matt describes the Isis, I suggest that CH precision amps would be a great match. Lots of speed.
T&F shows with Rowland gear at the Zurich show... |
Gear,
I knew you were jesting and so was I! LoL
Isolationist perhaps, but I do intend to pay Matt a viit next tiime I am in his neck of the woods. It will be great to meet him in person and see his setup after reading so much about its genesis.
Again my vote would go for CH amps or Goldmund Telos amps. Speed kills! Heheh. |
Berk ref Dac? Is he buying used? I have a pal who has been waiting for 9 months now. In the meantime, he moved from a Balanced B7 to a Bal GG.
Bruce Brown just got his Bal GG and will be taking to to RMAF and playing thru Cavalli Liquid Gold Headphone amp and Abyss Headphones! Room 8000.
Should be good for all who can make it. |
They are showing Perfect Storm (White ones, I think) with the BALANCED Lampi GG Dac and the Balanced 211 Lampi Monobloc amps. Antipodes Server and VeraStarcables. Rm 22024 and room treatment by Resolution Acoustics.
Ryan of vapor said that these Perfect Storm speakers are the finest speakers he has ever heard, and he admits to blowing his own trumpet, but says he does not care... |
Matt, now that you have done a crash course in speakology...I look fwd to your feedback of the Kii at GTT and the ProLogos at Rhapsody. You are now in a great position to give your qualified opinion on the different design philosophies.
BTW, Jeff Rowland loved the sound of the Vapor/Lampi/Verastarr/Resolution/Rowland room. He lent them his amp and stayed there a very long time listening, I am told. I could see him working with Vapor... |
Paul, its a matter of taste. We all will never agree.
I know of someone who sold a TD12 stack for something one third the price... |
Paul, that is my point!
When budgets are very high and options are not restricted, it comes down to the sound that most pleases the purchaser.
This is why what Matt is doing is so great. He is taking his time to sample all the wares and will select what he likes best. It wont be the same choice we would all make, but in his journey that he documents, we get to have an inkling of his tatstes and idiosyncracies and so get a flavour of what some of these components are like. This can help us to screen for the charactereistecs we like and narrow our own search.
At this level...all the components are excellent, but some will suit us more than others.
And to answer your question...yes..its was a Golden Gate. |
Paul, you are always OK with me man. I was away for 4 days and so couldn't respond.
Keep your suggestions coming. Sorry if I made it seem like they are not welcome...they are! |
TBG, DoP is DSD and latency can be adjusted by A+, for example.
DoP is DSD in a PCM shell, as you most likely know.
Direct DSD is not necessarily NATIVE. It may indeed be converted to PCM for playback in the Dac.
DoP may be limited to DSD128 only though...
Melba, DXD is high rate PCM not DSD... |
Calvin, You are getting your wish! Lots of replies.
MusikMike (JazzPesh) of StereoMojo fame tipped me off to Bright Missippi years ago and I have all the Alain TOussaint CDs. LoL
I have also been pushing the idea of SD card as the perfect transport for years and this is technical info from an idustry insider who has been waiting for 1TB cards to be reasonably priced for years. That way he can carry his entire library in his top pocket!
SD cards are not as noisy as USB sticks and dont constatnatly rewrite data for optimization like HDDs and SSDs. Finally, they are used for high speed digital, so audio reporduction is trivial.
My problem with the Invicta Dac is that it is totally Sabre based and I dont think Sabre will ever be SoTA...very, very good, but not SoTA. My opinion only, and no offense. |
Jeff Rowland lent the Vapor/Lampi/Resolution/Verastarr guys an amp at RMAF and spent a LOT of time in that room. Must have liked what he heard with that combo... |
Bill, I heard different reports.
I was told that the 211amps had tube damage and was taken out as they had no spares on hand.
I read great room feedback using BOTH amps.
See some feedback below at Audio circle:
My friend entered the room so I followed not overly interested as it wasn't on my "list".
In all honesty best sound.
This was the setup I heard (211 amps pictured).
Stereophile:
Stereophile kicks off our feedback with some nice observations from JVS.
Backed by mood lighting that continually changed color, albeit not in synch with musical content, LampizatOr North America partnered with a number of other companies to present a most imposing system. Thanks to room treatment from Resolution Acoustics, whose proprietor, Bart Andeer, specializes in custom-made acoustic panels tailored to unique listening environments, the system graced recordings by Frank Sinatra, Gillian Welch, and Beck with a beautifully even gorgeous midrange and lovely warmth.
Doing the honors were, when I listened, were Vapor Audio's Perfect Storm White loudspeakers ($45,000/pair), which were debuting in final form after shipping snafus at AXPONA), and Vapor Audio's Forge Aluminum rack ($5999); LampizatOr's Golden Gate Balanced DAC ($19,800), which made its world premiere, and LampizatOr's 211 Balanced mono tube amplifiers ($11,000/pair); a complete complement of Verastarr Grand Illusion cabling plus their Nemesis USB; VH Audio Plasmatron 3-tube power conditioner ($3999); Zen Wave Audio SurgeX SEQ power conditioner ($1999); and Resolution Acoustics room treatment (approx. $43,000 total). Note that Andeer is poised to relaunch Resolution Acoustics with exceedingly lower cost treatment that will make his services far more available to audiophiles who find the best of equipment and intentions sabotaged by nasty nodes of one sort or another.
Later in the show, the LamizatOr tube monoblocks were replaced by a big Jeff Rowland solid-state stereo amp. Alas, there were too many rooms I had to cover to allow a return visit.
Tyson (Acircle and AVShowrroms raved about the Rowland setup:
This room blew my mind. Quite simply put This was the best overall room again for me. I make special mention of the room treatments by Resolution Acoustics because this room had the best bass control, image focus, and dynamics I have heard at RMAF and I know a big part of that is the detailed work Resolution put into the treatment of the room. Other rooms like JTR did a great job of bass management, but didn't quite hit the mark on imaging or other factors. The Vapor system just did everything right. And scale was TREMENDOUS. I really feel like Vapor is the only 'top of the heap' price point company actually doing it right. All the mags are doing their readership a disservice for not touting these for the last 4-5 years.
and : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0h4aMjm03hk&t=1626 |
Of course, these are ROOM reviews and with a mixed bag of components from several manufacturers, plus room treatment experts, you cant read too much into it.
However, the chain is only as strong as the weakest link and it seems there were no weak link here? |
TBG,
Variety is the spice of life! |
GrannyR,
Except for L7, the Lamp Dacs run the tubes at only 20-25% of rated capacity, so they should last 10+ years. Tube aging is NOT an issue. Indeed at about 20w output, you can leave them on indefinitely without a big energy bill and they will always be "ready". I often do that, except when away on a trip or something, so really no different from SS. In my L4, I have found great Tungrsam NOS tubes for as little as $10 locally and $25 on Ebay with shipping included.
Lukasz told me he made arrangements in case of his untimely demise to immediately release all his schematics publicly online, as he would never leave his loyal customers in a lurch.
In terms of the global economy, small boutique places will likely survive BETTER than larger entities with BIG fixed overheads, etc.
Interms of Transport, that is a different discussuion. DallasJustice had the Empirical Dac with all the trimmings and abandoned it for a TotalDac with Legato 16/44 transport and I think moved on to TotalDac Server and USB converter. I have heard the TotalDac and its very good, but didnt induce me to want to change from lamp.
Many claim the Lampi SB Transport is the best they have for RBCD, especially when fed by Ethernet. I cant say as I never had this experience. I can saw that Lampi DSD is sublime and if any solution is not doing DSD well, I am not interested. |
JoeCasey,
"losing a shootout??" Hahahah. Too funny. That is the thinking of gear of the month and it has happened to Aesthetix as well.
Big7 is NOT the same Dac as Big6. Big7 is the ONLY true DHT Dac on the market. To write it off without a listen is very foolish in my opinion...especially if you want to hear Hirez and DSD in all their glory. CDPs cant handle that.
Just to let you know, this is what 2 owners posted recenly posted:
"Yeah.. Agree with Al and Philip. I have not for a second considered giving up mine - there are so many things this DAC does amazingly right that I'd never do that! Lukasz and Fred have been exceedingly helpful the whole way. Contact them and see what they can do. The Big 7 is an insane value in the rarefied world of audio, IMHO."
"Why is up for sale? If its because of not wanting to use a preamp I think that is insane . No DAC should drive an amp straight, it's just not what the intention is. If you can make it work all the better but for me I like a dedicated pre amp. As for the sound of the B7, I feel it's above my MSB stack in both pcm and dsd . It has qualities of the MSB but surpasses it in overall sound, being you are there and analog sound. As much as love the MSB its clear to me it is beat. In fact the B7 is better than any DAC I have heard to date.
Not saying I have them all but enough to know its tops for me to stop looking. Now if lampi comes out with B7 plus well then I am in. But why is the DAC up for. Sale anyway. ??? As for service there is no other DAC maker who caters to users as lukasz does . To make custom changes for people is way beyond anyone I know of.
Al" |
Big7 is more like $11K retail, not $22K.
My L4 is still burning in after 20Khours…LoL, that is it keeps getting better with age.
Seriously, Lampis sound great after just 3 days burn in and keep getting better long after that.
I have heard the Big7 3 weeks ago in NYC and am officially jealous. AGear you da man. |
I have a buddy in London with an L5 that is trading up to a Big7 very soon. He has a BMC PureDac as his backup Dac (my recommedation to him as an inexpensive backup for when he sent his L5 back for modding caps) and he says "it sounds good, but it aint no Lampi).
I spoent 6 hours at AL place this July listing to his 4 Dacs, one of which was a Big7. It sounded so stunningly real to me that I am going to trade up to.
To each his own ears
Jafox, I am on the hunt for Vintage tubes to roll in The B7. I will get Psavane 101ds, but will try Cunningham 345s/RCA 245 globes and also will roll the recti with 5U4gs and maybe try the WE replica 274Bs from China. |
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Matched-Pair-RFT-NOS-NIB-12au7-ECC82-tubes-Test-NOS-/171018893946?pt=Vintage_Electronics_R2&hash=item27d1853a7a
The secret is getting out... |
Paul79,
I have just received some confirmatory feedback to what you say from a trusted industry participant in the high end of the market:
"I am not a fan of the ecc83 and 12x type tubes as i consider all double triodes flawed by design (two amplification elements are never properly
aligned when used in parallel and crosscouple into each other when used for different channels or amplification stages).
That said, this is the extreme purist point of view.
A well made amp using them in parallel config. can still deliver , even so a similar amp with single stage tubes of comparable design will add more performance on top.
So single element triodes or pentodes come to mind (most state of the art recording consoles of the golden age used pentodes, only later double triodes, as they were cheaper.
I would look for a pre with a minimum number of tubes in signal path and with the best tube power supply. According to my research the more tubes in the signal path, the more "fuzzy haze" .
However, if you use digital only, I would got straight out of the dac into the power amp. If the tube output stage of the dac is properly designed for direct drive, any additional preamp should not be necessary and in fact will
add haze and time- smear to the sound. |
Why NOS Tubes are better:
6moons industry features: A visit to BTB Elektronik
Okay, but you inventory much which would seem of interest to the high-end valve lover. So what’s up with the NOS trend? I mean, really, isn’t it mostly retro? Telefunken simply looks cooler than Sovtek stamped on the glass? Or are there bona fide advantages of quality and sound? Are we really to believe that valve quality and production processes have devolved over time?
The explanation is simple. In the 60s when valves enjoyed their halcyon days, the average German income was about 500 Deutsch Marks and an EL34 of the era sold for 15DM. If you transfer that relationship to 2012, an EL34 still sells for about €15 whilst the average income has come up to €3.000/month. It’s easy to see that tubes today are far more affordable. Hence the inverse is true too – price pressures on manufacturers are much higher today. Because valve production remains about 90% manual, you can’t compensate with automatization. In the past selection was much tighter and rejection ratios were far more generous. Today things make it to market which would have been trashed then. That’s why the quality of vintage valves tends to be quite high to make NOS much more than just a fascination with retro. |
CStooner,
You could the $14K Dartzeel "Danalogue" that is about to be release. Its the LHC-208 and its an Ethernet Dac (to 384PCM (DXD) and DSD128) and 200 wpc Integrated amp in one. For darTZeel, that is very "cheap".
Otherwise, just get a Sonore Signature Rendu for $3k (Streamer) and that will take Internet input and output in RCA Spdif or HDMI (i2S - PS Audio standard). What makes this special is that John Swenson consulted on this one and it has a reworked power distribution network on the input and isolates the transport from polluting the Dac, especially via i2S (I think he uses giant magneto resitives).
An extract of his burb here:
"On isolation, I have been including full isolation between digital sections and mixed signal sections for many many years. I do not use optical isolators, I do not like them at all, I prefer the GMR (Giant Magneto Resistive) isolators made by NVE. I think they work way better than opto isolators."
http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f10-music-servers/mac-mini-version-computer-audiophile-pocket-server-music-server-step-step-17666/index10.html#post370186
Finally I think Steve is planning Ethernet input in his latest Dac |
Matt, THEY are all computers and from what I recall Aurender was not even a prticularly good mobo.
Some like Antipodes are (Vortex box) Linux based, others are windows/OSX based. Not sure if any are Android or iOS based...good as they are "light" OS, but so is Linux if done right.
No one is going to write an OS from scartch unless they are a major like an HP. Even HP dropped WebOS which they bought from Palm for $2b (less than 3 years later).Too many $$$$ to maintain constant development.
The best bet is modified/stripped to the Core Linux/or Tablet OS and tweaked for audio. So light as possible general purpose OS that is cthen optimized for the limited purpose of Audio playback/basic networking infrastructure and perhaps Internet access to gather meta-data. Then on top have an optimiser mode to shut down non-essential processes during playback....this includeds even data retrieval from other than quiet/simple ram buffer!
Or so the gurus online claim....
Its an impossi |
Swenson can explain better than me, but all USB and ethernet data is transported as data packets, not continuous streams (nature of the beasts). The "pulse" of these data packets creates what is called packet noise, which messes up the PHY and PDN of the next leg in the relay (USB receiver interface), inducing them to create their own packet noise and so the relay baton is passed, even as the old noise dies at each changeover leg.
The trick to stop the baton passing is to design a proper interface that does not create new packet noise and for this you need a few things that lead to high signal integrity (SI): low jitter reclocking, clean power distribution network (PDN), clean power/galvanic isolation, impedance matching via the cable low overall impedance of the Dac. That is what is known so far from experimentation.
There may be other ways to get to high SI and I suspect Lukasz did the same with the digi-Lampizator circuit in his SBox based Transport, where the Spdif signal was run thru a digi-Lampi tube buffer and he showed how the irregular digital incoming signal was "squared" up on an oscilloscope. He has no scientific explanation, just speculation, but the consensus was clear that SQ was significantly improved, as you would expect from perfectly square digital signals. I asked Swenson about this, but no answer. LoL |
OK, I finally heard the Regen with Corning cable on my B7 and can say that my experience mimics this post at CompAudiophile.
DSD128 was already amazing has gone up a notch. Absolutely incredible.Ridiculous!
==================
Originally Posted by EuroDriver
It took only 10 seconds for our jaws to drop. We thought the SQ was superb before putting the Regen in, but the Regen's effect was even greater than our high expectations. It's one of those cases where you have to hear it to believe it
The difference the Regen made was about 1.5 times the SQ difference of going from DSD128 to DSD 256 on the Exasound with HQP doing PCM to DSD. The Lampi b7 that Geoff received last wheel seems only to go up to DSD128, but with the Regen I am hearing details, realism, texture, and fine timbre that I simply did not believe existed on well known tracks.
IMHO, the Regen and the Corning USB compliment each other very nicely, their sonic effects being different and beneficially additive.
Next week at Munich High End we will be using the Regen ( powered by my JS-2) and seeing if anyone can catch us in sound quality ;-)
May be the hype helped, but Regen is certainly one of the biggest hardware SQ upgrades I have heard in a long long time.
Hats off to John and Alex for coming up with a USB sound quality game changer for the Lampi B7. Next week we will try Regen with the Exa E22, and with an Antelope Zodiac Platinum
downstream from the Lampi were Audiopax pre, Audiopax mono blocs, and Avantgarde Duo Omegas
|
More from the guys themselves:
Quote Originally Posted by Superdad View Post
Well Jason at Schiit does not like to make claims (I admire that among many other excellent business practices of theirs), but in his long blog/book on HeadFi he does talk about the SQ differences the Wyrd can make. But as John pointed out, the degree depends upon both the computer and the DAC. But the design of both the Wyrd and our Regen is absolutely not just about providing cleaner 5V USBVbus power. One does not need a hub chip, clocks, etc. to do that. In fact, in designing the piece, John and I discussed whether to even interrupt the USB VBus power to provide our own, but of course it made sense to do so.
So yes, both the Wyrd and the Regen will perform their primary purpose even if the DAC does not use 5V Vbus power at all. (John did some trick things to make ours work/sound extra good: 4 layer board with impedance-controlled output, ultra low-noise regulators, external DC supply--Wyrd brings low voltage AC into it, no USB output cable--I'll be proving USB A>B solid adapter so tiny box can go at the DAC and not introduce another USB cable.)
As for the advantages, it comes back to the research he has been doing on packet noise (where poor SI makes the DAC's USB PHY and processor work harder--causing internal modulation at both 8KHz packet rate and wideband), power distribution networks, etc. So Regn places creation of new and clean USB signal right at the DAC. Kind of like an external version of an audiophile USB card (SOtM, Paul Pang, etc.), but at the correct end of the cable and not powered by the computer. A boon for Mac users for whom such cards don't even exist. |
Well this guy (Mike) was a Lampi doubter till he heard one and now straight away bought a Golden Gate. If you search the site you will see we had rollicking aruguments beforehand.
http://audioshark.org/lampizator-186/lampizator-big-7-review-7213.html
His latest GG Dac feedback (only 2 weeks old - and we all know those Mundorf caps take 4-5 months to break in) is here:
http://audioshark.org/lampizator-186/lampizator-golden-gate-7223-page16.html#post128035
"I know audio memory is very fickle, but I would venture a guess that with this tube combo and the Aurender N100H providing the sweet music, the Lampi PCM now is on par with the best I've heard....and you already know about the DSD....it sounds like nothing else digital, period."
Yes, Mike has heard the Berkeley Ref in his system (outstanding PCM Dac) as his pal lent him his for a few days and he has heard plentyin his system, as Mike is an unapologetic gear swapper.
So, yes, there is a lot of great gear out there, but I am telling you guys Lampi is waaaay up there.
Finally, I am getting jaw dropping feedback of the great sound by the Monaco "Sound Galleries" room in Munich, where they used a Lampi Big7 with Regen device with Uptone LPSU, a Windows10 CAPs Server (slightly OS optimised with i7 processor and top motherboard/battery powered SSDs) running HQ Playing upsampling all to DSD128, Corning Optical USB cable, Audiopax amps (3 pentodes in SE triode operation) and Avantegarde Duo speakers. They ran it in normal and Realtime priority modes and blew people away with the switch. Lots of engineers need to go scambling back to the drawing board. Details at the computeraudiophile forum and perhaps some writeup to come from Audiostream. |
Matt, contact me via PM at Audiocircle, compaudiophile or audiocircle and I can email you the pdf of the full UHF magazine review of the Kithara. (I have the print issue)
Nothing near it price will equal it, IMHO.
http://www.uhfmag.com/Issue59/Kithara.html
From a "for sale" online advert:
For sale here is a pair of the Oskar Kithara speakers, featuring the Heil AMT (Air Motion Transformer) tweeter, a completely design from ordinary dynamic tweeters. Not only does the Heil AMT have a huge frequency range - from 700 Hz to 23,000 Hz (!!), so no cross-over in the critical and easy-to-hear range - the highs are clear and non-fatiguing, unlike the many ear-bleed inducing metal tweeters in use nowadays. The up-firing 10" woofer provides all the bass you'll need
Set-up properly, these speakers image like crazy and provide full range sound, and with an efficiency rating of 94dB, you don't need a lot of power to operate them.
To quote Gerard Rejskind at UHF magazine in their review of the Kithara:
"This is a loudspeaker that any of the world's great speaker designers could point to with pride. Its highs and midrange are topped by only a few, very expensive speakers. Its bottom end is solid and more then generous. It will run with nearly any amplifier. It can work even in large rooms. It has a killer image. Is there anything on your list that I've left out? I have a feeling that if this speaker is ever produced in large numbers, its price will have to rise. At the moment it's absurdly cheap. That's what I'm telling my friends." |
Even better the White lights
premieres
the "white light anniversary" reference monitor loudspeakers at the munich high-end
show 2015 celebrating 15 years of innovation in high end audio design.
introduced in 2000, lumen white`s original "white light" reference monitors became instant legends, rated "best in class" (audio art, taiwan), "one of the best audio components of all times" (stereo sound, japan), an "ultimate, absolute reference in every category" (fedeltà del suono, italy), and as offering "sonic realism which may prove impossible to surpass" (hörerlebnis, germany).
the "white light" reference monitors featured the world`s first all-ceramic driver array, radically advanced pressure- and flow-dynamics optimized, air-damped, instrumentgrade tone-wood cabinets, purist crossover design and further advancements of the art.
5 years in the making, the latest iteration of flow- and pressure-dynamics modelling, a completely new, custom designed driver array and continuous advancements of our signatory loudspeaker technologies have prepared the stage for lumen white to introduce a new generation of our reference monitor speaker designs, the new technology plattform to be premiered in a special "anniversary" model of the iconic "white light" monitors format.
the "white light anniversary" reference monitors premiered in a mythical white macassar finish at the high end 2015 show in munich, together with the latest generation of lumen white`s acclaimed, limited edition "mystere" air bearing turntable system.
http://lumenwhite.com/news_uk.html |
