Esoteric F-05 Integrated - any opinions?

Hello Greginnh,

How is the Esoteric fairing now (with another week under it's belt)?

I've been considering going 'intergrated' (currently no genuine preamp just a two line passive switching devise .. which I had bought to fill in for a time having sold my CAT Ulimate Mk1 preamp 4 years ago and have done nothing since .. can't make up my mind!).

I've considered the Accuphase E-470, have seen details of the new Esoteric (F-05), and have even 'casually ..ie not serious sit down and listen audition' to a T+A PA 3000HV (very heavy and expensive in comparison to the other two but still cheaper than buying a new separate power and preamp).

Currently I have Evolution Acoustics Micro 1 with Shunyata Anaconda interconnect and speaker cables, Triton Mk2 and Sigma power cables into modified Oppo D105, Dynavector HX 1.2 power amp (Aussie amp) as well as the Triton. I also have an Accuphase T-1100 tuner (my last purchase 4 months ago) but have a JPS labs cable 'feeding' it with intention of putting a Sigma on it as well.

Every time I look at separates I think expense and every time I think intergrated I think compromise! ... a vicious circle of inaction!

Before the Micro 1s, I had a pair of Proac Response 2s which went 3 years ago. However I sometimes miss a certain 'something' the proacs gave me (the Evolution Acoustics are very transparent but with ceramic drivers I still perceive a certain coolness). So a further consideration could be to go back to a current Proac model (D2) or go Harbeth Super 5s.

The amp is still a priority but if I change the speakers would I find myself 'short' in amp performance and have to go and spend good money again.   

Hi donjr,

Thanks for the offer but I'm not in the US.

I've also considered the E600 as part of the mix (for ultimate sound out of an 'Integrated'), but the thought of heat (when I sold my CAT I managed to borrow a friend's BAT 52 preamp... and I almost cooked myself; ... I put it into the system, went away for an hour, came back to list and had to switch it out of the system half an hour later due to the heat... and it was also the middle of summer and the room had became uncomfortable to be in!), so I've shied away from class A ever since. 

My listening room is small to average so class AB (with maybe a low class A component) is more the go.  

Hi greginnh,

Nice to hear that the Esoteric is settling in and meeting your expectations of 'sound quality'.

I was going to give the E470 a listen (having bought the Tuner) but the local sales dealer for Accuphase, on a normal basis does not keep it in stock (usually has the E2__ or E3__ ) and another sales dealer keeps the Esoteric line. However there is a better chance of getting the F-05 into stock from that dealer than having the other dealer getting the E-470 in for a listen; so it looks more positive of having to give the Esoteric an audition...... (both dealers are in opposite directions to where I live...40+ minutes in city traffic for the Esoteric; with 60+ odd minutes including 20 minutes on the expressway for the Accuphase)!  

Oddly enough though, the Accuphase dealer stocks Proac and Tannoy speakers, while the Esoteric dealer stocks Harbeth (.... and never the twain shall meet!). 

So you think 120 watts is enough to cover 'all contingencies'? Having an few extra watts under the belt/reserve has always been in the back of my mind. It's a pity the Esoteric is not a 180/200 watt into 8 ohms for extra 'head room'!....  (I may not really need it but it would be nice to have).    

Hello greginnh,

Just to ask further on why you got the Esoteric F-05.....

You said you purchased the F-05 to replace the Accuphase E-470 and I was wondering what made you change? Did you do a direct comparison between the two? You also mentioned in your earlier response about some of the virtues/sonic qualities you noticed ... has this continued to evolve and settle down (I presume you've put a few more hours onto the F-05 since our last exchange? Can you elaborate further on the sonic differences you experienced between the two brands ie is one warmer/cleaner (read overly clean/too clean bordering on hi-fi sounding rather than musical sounding) than the other? 

Having read your initial impression plus the review from 'Positive-feedback', it has 'tickled' my interest again in Intergrated amps again and dealers unfortunately from my end I will never be able to do a side by side comparison ... (different dealers with different brands of speakers).

Hi greginnh,

Your overall summation basically describes the 'road' I wish to take my system to. Since I last posted, I decided to part company with my Evolution Acoustics MicroOne speakers and have gone back to ProAc (D2) (still a couple of weeks away due to the wood finish I ordered). Apart from the last three years with the MicroOnes, I basically had ProAc for the last 20+ years (Response 2 for about 4yrs and then the Response 2S for about 17yrs) and had always found them revealing (for their time) yet musically satisfying. Having been off work for the last few months recovering from surgery to both hands, I've had a lot of time to sit down and listen (while recovering and now drawing to a close......'Dammit'), I felt that a certain musicality was missing especially with prolonged listening; ..l wouldn't say clinical, but, a 'bit cool' in delivery (...ceramic drivers?). So I decided to change.

As for Accuphase, I did a brief listen (with some of my music) whilst at the retailer for ProAc, Accuphase et al, to a system comprising of Accuphase pre/power, Tannoy speakers, that was out of my league, although quite impressive, the manner it revealed the 'whole' reminded me of similar attributes in my system that I was trying to get away from. The retailer in question does not have an E-470 in stock so I would need to wait until he gets one in to replace one of the lower E series intergrated amps. On the other hand another retailer is expecting an Esoteric F-05 to be coming in for demo purposes so I'll get an opportunity to garner a listen there; but, will not be able to directly compare the  E-470 against the F-05,..... thus the reason for asking for a little bit more info from you.

Judging from your answer, I am looking forward to auditioning the F-05 and if I like will not worry about trying out the Accuphase at all.