ML 390s vs. ML39

Just got my 390s back. I know it's not broken in yet, and I've been without it for almost a month, but it sounds significantly more liquid than the 39 did. Prior to sending the 39 out for the upgrade I had been listening to 39 direct through a HeadRoom Max headphone amp driving a pair of Sennheiser 600 cans (we moved, and our new place wasn't done yet). This gave me an opportunity to listen very carefully to some familiar discs and try to discern where the improvements might appear (if at all).

Everything about the 390s seems smoother, more open and dynamic. The depth of detail with the 39 was good, really good - but this is a quantum step up. Still building my listening room, so I won't be able to really judge it for awhile yet - by then it should be nicely broken in.

You can pick up a clean 39 for $3500 and then the upgrade will cost you another $1800 ($2300 if you have them swap out the faceplate). So for under 6k you end up with a player that sounds as good or better than systems (one or two-piece) costing twice as much (or more). As far as finding a 390s used? I don't know - I'll be keeping mine for a long, long time :)

I'd like to chime back in here - Since I've gotten my 390S back (and it's finally broken in), I'm amazed at the improvement over the past few weeks. Don't even question the decision to upgrade (other than the $$$). Worth every penny.

BTW, I've been comparing the sound of the 390S direct to a 332 vs. the 390S to a 380 to a 332. All ic's are balanced.

I find that while the direct setup sounds REALLY good, I don't think it sounds as good as the 390>380>332 with respect to imaging, depth of soundfield, tonal balance, and bass detail (from my notes). I need to continue the evaluation, as I only spent a few hours listening that night, but my initial notes on the direct setup was "not even close".

This came as a surprise to me, as I had read a great deal of discussion (here and elsewhere) on the sonic benefits of driving an amp direct from a variable source, and was even contemplating the possibility of being able to sell the pre-amp after I had proven to myself that this was the case. I can only assume that this speaks to the quality of the 380 in its own right, but I was under the impression that the 390 had a good deal of the 380 "under the hood".

Curious what others have found on this front.