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So the Master Bam is pretty good? |
I started a separate thread on the subject so as not to hijack a Merlin specific thread.
http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?fcabl&1301063837&openmine&zzPubul57&4&5#Pubul57 |
Nothing like a well sorted product with incremental refinement over the long run - think 3ASigs, VSMs, M60s, HL5s SL1s - you know the type of product I'm talking about. No major changes, but constant improvements over the original (good) idea. I do understand the frustration you might feel with the "upgrade" path, but for the most part you can follow it, rather than be thrown the brick wall of a completely different model replacing an older one. In the case of the Master Bam evolution, nothing could have been easier to make my VSMs "better". |
17 years! It's true, walking is a real blessing. Have a colleague with high blood pressure, high sugar, high cholesterol. Walks 10,000 steps a day - lost 60 lbs, and all numbers "normal" - no medicines, just walking and watching his diet. |
Stereophile Shown in NYC 2002 or so. Walked in and I knew they were going to be my next speaker. Joule gear, Louis Armstrong recording, found it hard to leave the room. I liked the idea that my ultimate speaker did not need 8 drivers and tower over me to feel I had what I wanted and as good as it gets. |
Crowded? Hilton? That's the one:) Or was it the Grand Hyatt?
No, that's when I heard the Ars Sonum - it's a blur. |
Yup, it took several months. And yes, well worth it. In the nature of handmade things - both ARS and Dueland. |
Bhoage, good strategy - if you can do it:) |
Then the speakers would be more expensive:( |
You can get Bose pretty fast. |
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I agree, but I also think that owners of the original Vandersteen 3, or Atma-sphere M60, or Merlin VSM from years ago still have first-rate gear with no real need to upgrade, unless they have the desire to take the original up to the nth degree, but they were all well thought out and engineered from the start, why the launched products destined to be classics - oh, the CAT SL1 is also like that. No drastic changes needed when the designer knew what they were doing from the start. Don't want to "upgrade" one of these classics, you don't need to, but you won't regret it if you do. |
And can it ever be as coherent as a two-way with bass augmentation to make up for the "missing" third driver? |
Dueland should proabably do a better job of giving Bobby accurate timelines for production so he can pass that on to his customers. I don't mind waiting 9 months if I am told 9 months, but I do mind if I am told 4 months. Why in the Restaurant business they are trained to tell you wait will be 30 minutes when they think it will be 15, but if they told you 5....same wait, different feeling. By the way, the Duelands are well waiting for, don't fret. |
I did not try the Hibachi, though it was recommended that I do, as I was looking for an SS amp that I might throw into the mix. I did have the Fila and it is super with the Merlins, and proabably with other speakers that can be driven by 30 watts. If I were sane, I would proabably just have kept the Fila, sold off all my seperates and just enjoyed the music. Not that it was the best (I prefer the Atma combo), but a nice "simple" integrated that makes the Merlins sing is not a bad way to calm the audiophile compulsion and get off the equipment merry-go-round -- it is a great pairing; I think of it as a great end-game amp when you are done "playing". |
Ditto on Master BAM. Speaking of tweaking for that last 5%, has anyone had their Cardas cables (assuming you went that route)cold-forged making for a solid connection between cable and connector. Sounds good in theory.... |
Was listening to Gillian Welch tonight, and it dawned on me
how damn good these speakers are, then I noticed that the
VSMs were "removed" from the the Stereophile
Recommend List, probably not listened to recently or some
such idiocy or other nonsense. I really lost a lot of
respect and interest in the list, though I'm sure it is of
interest to novices. For one of the finest speakers in the
world not be on the list does a lot more damage to the
credibility and usefulness of the list than it can ever do
to the speaker. It is simply ridiculous to
"remove" a speaker that has been on there for so
long, that has only gotten better, unless they are reviewing
the new iteration to place it where it properly belongs next
to a whole bunch of other speakers that cannot hold a candle
to it. If this is the sort of activity that leads a
manufacturer to come out with version 3.1 to get reviewed or
"reconsidered" by the press, then it speaks badly of the
press that is suppose to be serving the interest of the
audiophile looking for the best gear. |
It does not get me down one bit:) It simply questions the sanity and value of "the list". But if the Master VSM is coming soon! then all the better. |
Vandersteen and Atma-sphere also take a very similar approach to product development, their products are sorted out and refined from an original good idea that stands the test of time. And for the most part, users can move with the changes by upgrading what they already have - no need to throw out the "old" to keep up with imrpovements. I think this is how a world class product comes to be and what it means to own such a product. |
We look forward to your VVSM! |
Don't know the Ayon too well, heard it RMAF, but the Ars is voiced with the Merlins in mind, and given how important the amp/speaker interface is,hard to imagine why they Ayon would be any better matched to the Merlins. The Ayon uses KT-88s? If so, also important to know the Merlins seem to play particularly well with EL-34s. Would be interesting to hear what Bobby thinks of the Ayon, if he has ever heard them (with his speakers). |
Bobby has usually steered me away from SET, but I'm sure he will pipe in:) |
Great SETs, but I would discuss with Bobby before goinf for an SET with his speakers, not that they won't sound very good, but he does seem to have the opinion that it is not an optimal choice for his speakers - one man's opinion, but a pretty good one coming from him..... |
Not that you should not trust your own ears and taste:) |
Thuan98, I am sure the CAD805C is a wonderful amplifier. The Fila looking like a toy? That I'm not so sure about, a small jewel perhaps:) As Daniel Webster said about Dartmouth College, "it is small, but there are those that love it." Glad you like your new amp, I'm sure your Fila will sell quickly. |
"and feel no need to spend another 10K for OTL's, which is probably what it would cost to get to a significantly new level."
Totally agree. You would need to go the OTL route to really get better, but I do think you could do so for a bit less than 10K for an MP3/M60 used.
For the "sane", the Fila should keep you smiling a long time. |
