integrated amp that matches well w/ Soliloquy 5.3s

I have a friend who uses a Sim Moon I-5080 in a system with Sol 5.3's to good effect. I believe that has now been replaced with the I-3. I would, however, highly recommend the Unico.

Don't know if you found the amp you want for the 5.3's, but I've been listening to SET amps all week through the 5.3's. And I am in dreamland! I listened to a number of push/pull amps through them, and while they sounded good, nothing sings as well as the SET's, IMO.
Heard great things about the Decware's. I've been listening to Audion and Audio Mirror, and both sound like they were made for the 5.3's. 7 watts, and I actually turned my subwoofer off.
Hope that helps your search.

System set up is pretty plain but here goes.

- Rotel RXC 950 receiver
- Rotel 975 CD player
- Soliloquy 5.3 speakers
- Custom speaker cables (silver plated copper cable (6 conductors per run all covered with silver-plated copper braided shield, all covered with Teflon w/ WBT connectors)
- Monster interlink 300 interconnect with RCA terminations
- Monster Power center 700

I was planning on starting the upgrade path with replacing my source but I got a great deal a year ago on the Soliloquys ($800) so I jumped at it. Now I am trying to muddle my way through as best I can with upgrading the rest of my gear. Thus the request for advice.

Hope this info helps.

CM

Chuck:

Thought I read a recap of your gear before, but now I cannot find it here @ A'Gon. Perhaps you posted this info @ AA?

Anyway, post the complete setup (for reference) if you care to.

Chuckiemon, you live in Toronto? Check out Audio Aero Prima int. amp and cdp. Call Globe Audio in Hamilton or Audio Gallery in Toronto for info. I have both with Cardas wiring and Van den hul cords and it is sweet. Give them a shot and maybe they will have a demo or something you can try out with your speakers.

Are you a jazz.fm 91.9 jazz listener. They have good tunes there. Off the subject, try 105.9 WJZR from Rochester if you want more jazz.

There is a great FM Jazz station that I love to listen so I am currently using my receiver from my college days...Rotel RXC 950. Once in a while I hear some shrillness in horns and/or precussion so I just assumed it was time for a better amp.

But before i went down that road i thought it wise to check with fellow Audiogoners for some advice. Didn't expect this kind of response so quickly...Thanks again to all.

Cheers,

I'm surprised you find the 5.3s bright. I think it may be coming from somewhere else in your system. Could you list your components so we could give better recommendations? BTW, I drive my Soliloquy 6.5s with a Rowland Model 10. Instrument tonality is superb. Zero fatigue.

Chukie, it is strange that you do not mention what amp you've been using so far?? Also, Soliloquy's overall presentation is usualy on the "warm" side, due to the plump midbass. Unless you are using mass-market receiver, i believe lively room would be most likely suspect. I would analyze your room for the reflections, and if possibly cure it, before any new purchase. Although upgrades are always fun!

Cary SLI80 integrated is the perfect match.

Thanks for all the input so far

Let me respond starting from the top.

Mrfastguy250aol, I haven't tried cabling. I was saving that as a tweak once i had completed a successful upgrade and was looking for that last little bit to get me where I want to go. Having said that, maybe cabling is all I need and my upgrade path might be a short one. Thx.

S7horton, the Unison does interest me. Guess i just got to try it and see what (if anything) I am missing. The YBAs are also of interest, just not finding a lot of local dealers (in Toronto) that carry them.

Gmood1, Thanks for the suggestion. I am not stuck on integrateds. I just like the idea of simplicity. I was entertaining going with Marsh A400 and P2000T for awhile. Might still end up on the seperate path. As for the idea of trying new cabling , I might give that a whirl before doing anything else.

Brianmgrarcom, I was looking at the Concentras as my first original pick because I decided to audition the Soliloquy's based on that exact article you reference. However I have not seen a lot of Concentras around for me to listen to. If i do find one, i'll be sure to give it a test drive. Thanks for the suggestion

Dekay, I tried to "soften" the toe in position and the soundstage lost depth and got wider but the brightness was still there. I did find that adding a power condtioner (although not a very expensive one) helped soften some of the edginess (and thus less perceived brightness). Maybe i need to go through my cables (interconnects and power) as listed above to get the desired results.

Thanks to all for your posts to date...keep'em coming.

Cheers

Have you tried adjusting toe-in? Less toe-in equals softer HF's. Not exactly earth shaking info as you would then be listening slightly off axis.

Click here to see where a company mated Soliloquy with Jeff Rowland and Audiophilia agreed it was a great match. There are other comments out there, do a Google search on Rowland Soliloquy.

A Concentra I, used, would meet your price. The link above was with the Concentra II.

If your not stuck on just integrates.I will suggest Monarchy SM-70 monoblocks with a nice tube preamp on the front.If you go used it will put you well under $2500.00.And the rest could go for wires or another CD player.Try some pure copper interconnects between your cd player and amp or preamp...If you haven't tried this already.

I think the Unison would be a great match. Perfect amount of power unless you really crank it and will smooth out that brightness you are refering to. Also, don't be afraid to give a listen to the YBA line of integrateds. They can have the warm sound of tubes.

I would suggest trying cabling 1st, I used Audioquest Pythons and Transparent Super speaker cables with great success.
Happy listening!
Greg Swoboda