My Long List of Amplifiers and My Personal Review of Each!
ron17 and Jay, Yes, I have mild HF hearing loss typical of my age at 68. No, I have carefully limited loud SPL exposure. Young guys who insist on listening loud will pay the price before they are my age. I have met 30 year olds who lament their hearing loss due to playing in rock bands as a teenager. Even if you use euphonic electronics/cables that roll off HF and let you tolerate loud SPL's, any lengthy exposure over 85 dB has been scientifically shown to accelerate hearing loss. My hearing is good enough that I enjoy songs at 70 dB that are played here at 82 dB. But even considering my hearing loss, I still note the vast difference between naturally sharp/crisp common everyday sounds and many musical instruments, and their DULL reproduced qualities in most audio systems. Although people vary in their objective hearing responses, any honest listener would agree about these objective differences, unless they have minimal experience. If someone really prefers a dull, smoothed over sound, they are entitled to that preference, but this is an admission that they don't value the concept of high fidelity, and are missing a lot of excitement. From my early musical training as a child 60 years ago to the present, I have always listened to music with full concentration like I was reading a technical article. Great music, like great writing, is about careful communication. Respecting the composer and performers of the music means listening carefully and attempting to glean all the information it has to offer. It is like paying full attention to someone who is speaking to you. It is disrespectful to even slightly ignore the other person and do something else. Maximum enjoyment is obtained by maximum information/detail retrieval regardless of your hearing acuity. The key is to avoid pain from loud SPL's. The alternative is abusive overload from high SPL's which actually decreases perception of subtleties. All the interesting A/B tests here are best appreciated at modest SPL's, and cannot be heard with mere casual listening. I really enjoy the videos Jay presents. Even if I don't care for some of the music, I treat them as hearing exercises to challenge myself to still hear the differences and describe them intelligently. In 1978, when I was young, I noted the raucous distortion of a Pioneer receiver on my Maggie Tympani 1D. I couldn't afford anything better than the Pioneer at the time. One day, I got stoned on some MJ, and the sound was smoothed over so I couldn't hear the distortion of the Pioneer as I was missing much of the musical details. I then resolved never to listen to music again unless I was in good condition with full concentration. |
inna, For a cheap but excellent amp which delivers accuracy with high power, a top bet is the PS Audio M1200 for $6K. Even better would be to spend $600 for Ric's (ricevs) modification which eliminates the euphonic tube input stage. Of course, then it has much less resale value, but I assume your mission is not buying and selling like Jay. Ric implies that the stock Rouge Audio dual mono amp using the same IceEdge class D module is comparable to the M1200, and with his $500 mod the total cost is $2100. This will be my next move, but even before that, a higher priority would be cleaning up the AC power. The PS Audio Power Plant 15 and 20 are AC regenerators that cured the disastrous distortion from Mike Fremer's generator switch when the AQ Niagara 7000 couldn't do it. Ric is glowing about the Goal Zero Yeti battery + inverter which reviews state is as good as the $20K and $30K Stromtank units that Dan D'Agostino sells. The Yeti 1500X at $2K probably will make many amps compete with anything without AC regeneration. Look at Ric's site--tweakaudio.com. |
I think, Jay did a great negative advertising for Pass Labs. All of them. viber6, thank you for the advice. I am not going to upgrade for a few years. When I do I will probably go for either Gryphon Diablo 120 or Accuphase class A integrated. Both used. Or, if I am lucky for Accuphase separates. Different sound but I like both of those sounds. I don't spend too much on stereo, there are more important expenses. |
Final round: Pass x600.8 and Essence monoblocks https://youtu.be/Kv-UULF_UIc This concludes my time with the Essence monoblocks and Pass Labs X600.8. As many of you know, i can't keep everything i buy because "the show must go on" so the Antileon EVO will continue to be my go to amplifier as well as the Essence Stereo until a new king is crowned. |
Viber 6, My mod to the PS Audio 1200 mono blocks does not eliminate the tube input stage....what I do is purify the IceEdge module, the AC power, and the output connector/wiring. The website is now changed to clarify this point. It does not make sense for someone to mod the PS Audio and not use the tube buffer. If you want zero buffer then just get the Rouge Audio Design amp and have me mod it.......way cheaper. You can buy pure sine wave inverters and separate batteries for way cheaper than buying a Yeti or any other all in one. Just make sure the inverter has fans that don’t start till it is using half power.....noisy fans are not much fun. If you buy a 3000 watt inverter the fans should never come on unless you are drawing 1500 watts or more. Most stereos do not idle at anything close to 1500 watts. Class D amps idle at low current, so you can run all day on inverters without needing super monster batteries. Still, you would want at least 200ah of batteries. By the way, Yeti's and most other all in ones are noisy.....fans run all the time. |
kren0006, It is smart that you listen mainly at 70 dB. I'll also mention that lower resolution speakers sound dead at 70 dB so people naturally crank them much higher to hear more of the music. My electrostatic main and tweeter speakers have the best of any speaker in resolution so I can be satisfied at 70 dB. I can get 100 dB out of them, but they strain and the clarity is compromised. On the nice Christina Aguilera "Say something" I would try playing the soft opening voice in a range of 50 to 70 dB, and see what gives the most natural and intimate presentation. Suppose for me the ideal is 60 dB. At 63 dB, there would be more visceral impact, but the price to pay is a slightly bloated/fuzzy image which sacrifices her sensitive longing. At 57 dB there might not be enough presence, so 60 dB might give the ideal combination of attributes. This is a very pleasant recording, so some comments on the YT channel are ridiculous, such as the Essence is too clinical, forward, bright, aggressive, etc. Come on, there is nothing of that in this recording, and the goal is to try to appreciate the singer's feelings, which is best done by revealing as much detail/nuance as possible, at the most natural SPL. |
ricevs, Thanks for your update. Do you find that the Rouge with your mods or stock is more transparent than the PS Audio under the same conditions, since there is no added euphonic tube input buffer stage? As you say, the 27 dB gain of the IceEdge is plenty, so who needs the additional 3.5 dB gain of the added PS Audio input stage. |
I have not listened to a stock PS Audio or the Rouge. I am offering mods on these units based on my 6 months of mods to the IceEdge module and selling a dozen dual mono amps with the modded modules. The modded Rouge will sound almost identical to my amps....the PS Audio will have its tube input flavor added. They will both benefit the same from the mods. Whether you want/like the tube buffer is all subjective. You know what you lean to. |
Hey Inna, First learn how to spell. 2nd NOBODY cares if you LOSE interest...in fact I will bet that everybody on this thread wishes you would LOSE interest entirely and refrain from posting your constant gripes and criticism. Go somewhere where people are playing with your LEVEL of gear...which I dont think exists on Audiogon. Perhaps AUDIOKHARMA or the Steve Hoffman forums would serve you better. Thats where the bottom feeders are in this hobby. |
inna, Sure, the Essence monos sound better than the stereo. But the price is steep, and Jay prudently wants to financially stay alive in his pursuits. Since your funds for audio are limited at present, I really suggest the Rouge Audio + mods that ricevs offers. I have it on the trusted word of tweak1 who owns ricevs’ EVS1200 for $2200, that this amp is perhaps one of the best amps at any price, for neutrality, speed and power. Even my Mytek Brooklyn AMP at $2K was more neutral and focused matched against the $15K Merrill Element 114. Jay ranked the flagship Merrill 118 high. Even if many followers of this thread won’t consider these cheap items I know are great from my experience, there is no need to be downbeat. I enjoy and learn from the shootouts which show the relative sonic character of each item. Frankly, even though I agree with you that the Essence monos are more revealing than the Pass X600 monos, the difference isn’t all that great. Read Mike Fremer’s Stereophile Jan 2021 glowing review of the PS Audio M1200. At $6K, I bet it beats most amps discussed here, but I am going for the Rouge modded by ricevs for $2100, which probably beats the PS Audio in ways I’ve discussed. |
One thing to continue to keep in perspective - what sounds best to viber6 might not be best to other folks. The same for me - what I think is best would not be best to some other folks. I would not be surprised if viber6 ended up liking the PS Audio amps better than many of the amps that WC has had in house, especially if they're not euphonic sounding. It would definitely be interesting though to hear the amp(s) that viber6 is talking about and see how well they do. I'm sure they're good sounding amps, and they might show how much value they bring. I like the open mind WC. Dave |
The funny thing is I don’t think Viber would like the PSA m1200. They are a hybrid class D amp with a tube input stage. They are not known to be clinical, which is not surprising given the tubes. Not even really necessarily completely neutral, maybe with a bit of warmth if you follow the conversations of actual owners over on the PSA forums, as I do. But sure, would be great if Viber would acquire those and loan them to WC since Viber states they’d be better than the amps WC has |
145 votes on the poll and here are the results so far: Pass Labs X600.8 --- 37% Gryphon Essence --- 47% Either one --- 17% Is anyone here surprised that the Gryphon Essence is once again victorious? If you voted for Pass Labs, how do you feel about knowing that the minority chose the same as you? Is it shocking to know that most people prefer the 55 watts Class A of the Gryphon monos as opposed to the 600 watts Class AB of the Pass Labs? i would really like to know what you all think. |
I had a pair of the Ice Power 1200AS2 that I ran as mono blocks on a pair of Wilson Audio Watt3/Puppy2 speakers. These are $300 modules, that sounded mid-fi at best - do not get sucked into comments claiming anything better. The hardware to support the module costs more than the module itself (case/connections/wire). Easily, the most sterile mid-range sound I’ve ever heard in an amplifier. Just check HiFiShark to see how many of these amps have been put up for sale. These are great modules for the price, but shouldn’t be compared to anything high end. |
golfnutz, It is music to my ears to hear that you think Ice Power (now IceEdge) 1200 AS2 sounds sterile in the midrange. If you are in the euphonic camp, you don't like raw accuracy. Tweak1 owned the PS Audio Stellar 700 and Audio Alchemy DPA-1, and found them euphonic and reasonably detailed, but his EVS1200 which uses IceEdge modules is far more detailed, accurate and dynamic than those other amps. For your taste, you would prefer the PS and AA. Thanks for your post which is informative. Even if your taste is opposite to mine, your objectivity is valuable and useful to me. The trouble with most reviews is that they are politically correct in terms of the manufacturer who is generous in loaning equipment and advertisers who support the magazines. Mike Fremer is a reasonable exception--he describes what he hears in great detail, and after a while the reader knows his tastes and extrapolates what he does with this assessment. |
I also believe that Fremer is not spot on with regards to some speakers he has had in his room. For example, he claims the Alexx (former Alexx) is better than the XLFs yet if you look at the measurements of both speakers IN HIS ROOM, you will easily see the XLF measured much better than the Alexx. I actually spoke to Wilson Audio about this and they said they were not exactly "aligned" with that assessment. I basically asked Wilson Audio: "HOW can you build a flagship speaker for $200k in 2012 and in 4 short years (2016) you release a product (Alexx) for nearly half the money ($109k) that beats what was your flagship speaker? " "Does this mean that in about 3 years we should all be prepared to see the XVX killer which should be around $170k msrp? Then that is when they pretty much said "we aren’t exactly in alignment" with what was said about the Alexx outperforming the XLF". They went on to say the Alexx won’t play as big, won’t throw the immense presentation, the scale, the muscle, etc, etc. The laws of physics are in full effect when you look at the physicality of the XLF". HOWEVER, according to Fremer, the Alexx murders the XLF and if you look at the reviews from "HIFINEWS", you will see the Alexx got 88% out of 100% and the XLF 94% out of 100%. So who the hell do we believe? To me it kinda looks like an effort from the reviewer to push new product instead of old. I will be the first one to tell ya, when i had the Alexia 1 in here (which was built in 2012 just like the XLF), I can't really say it was veiled, muddy or horrible sounding. As a matter of fact, when i set it up with the pass xs300 and momentum monos, it sounded amazing. I can't say i would miss a Sasha DAW if i owned an Alexia 1. This is often times an illusion presented to us that new is always more refined, much better, more this n that. I think we simply get tired as hell from owning the same gear which is why we find reasons to buy the new model. hmm |
Viber, Sorry, there's not a single word you wrote that I would agree with. Like I said, do not believe the hype written by these guys. Tweaks system is mid-fi at best, there's not a single piece in his system that's considered a Class A component. He has nothing to compare to a good sounding system (ie. no point of reference). What do you expect for a stereo module (1200AS2) that costs $300. Maybe you forgot what the word sterile means (unable to reproduce). This has nothing to do with a preferred sound. After 10 minutes of listening, I had to switch amps because the sound was so flat, boring, and lacked real dynamics. It was like a big round hole in the soundstage between the speakers - there was just too much information missing. |
Viber, why don’t you order the PSA m1200 and see for yourself? PSA have a generous return policy to get your $ back if you don’t like them, which I suspect you wouldn’t, but you seem pretty convinced that they are amazing for your tastes, I guess based only on the Fremer review since I doubt you’ve heard the m1200 as they are not in dealers showrooms. Pretty much the only way to hear them is to know somebody who has them or order them yourself for the test trial (or at a show, but shows haven't happened since pandemic). I believe purchasing on a trial period with guaranteed return if unsatisfied is what you advised WC to do many times previously for various components, until finally he told you dozens of times that he wouldn’t buy and return, not his style. |
A few topics. First, obviously, the Wilson people say that, "the Alexx won’t play as big, won’t throw the immense presentation, the scale, the muscle, etc, etc. The laws of physics are in full effect when you look at the physicality of the XLF." I wouldn't dispute that the XLF is bigger in sound as it is bigger physically, but if someone values accuracy/precision/focus, that is another matter. As I recall Fremer's review, he found the bass on the Alexx tighter, with the Alexx overall a more accurate speaker than the XLF. Fremer has a tiny room so the Alexx may be a better match. Next, the PS Audio M1200. I was fascinated with Fremer's review, but I am held back because I don't like any euphonic aspect which could be from the tube input stage. Like kren0006, I read some user reviews that said it is somewhat warm and nonclinical. PS Audio does have a reputation for good accuracy with some euphonic character. Paul MacGowan states his reference is the 7th row center concert hall seat. I have spent lots of time in many seats in many halls, and will say that the 7th row is a very laid back sound compared to closer. Note that microphones are usually positioned at a distance corresponding to the 1st row, so someone who sits there can go home after the concert and listen to a recording and then get an idea of accuracy to the recording. I only like the 1st row, and even the 2nd row is quite rolled off in HF compared to that. BTW, when someone says something is sterile and clinical, they are probably in the euphonic camp, since "clinical" and especially "sterile" has a negative connotation to them. But if we hear the same things, I would call it "accurate" and look favorably upon it. Their "sterile" is my "accurate." Too many audiophiles spend lots of time at shows and dealers, and not enough time with natural unamped live sound. They don't realize that live sound is quite raw at times, but all speakers and components add varying degrees of fuzzy warmth/veil/dullness. I appreciate the time and investment that Jay puts into his pursuits and putting on a great show for us here, so I respect his decision not to buy stuff we are interested in, and compare to his gear. He has integrity not to engage in 30 or 60 day trials and then return the items. He has a reputation to protect. Even the more neutral stuff he likes, I would probably find somewhat euphonic. This happened with current Merrill GaN amps which we both heard at home, although he heard the flagship 118 and I heard the 114 which is of similar character, according to Merrill. At first, he found the Gryphon Mephisto to be ultra neutral, but then found that the latest Boulder was even more neutral. Then Mike at Suncoast Audio implied that the Boulder amps are smooth and maybe even tubelike compared to Soulution, which he described as more raw in character. This correlates with Jay's finding of the latest Boulder tonality as not sterile, unlike the prior series. All in all, my assessment of Jay's overall taste is middle of the road between detailed/accurate and tubelike/euphonic, perhaps slightly skewed toward detailed/accurate. My stand is at the furthest end of the spectrum at detailed/accurate. I have long experience listening and judging for myself, so I wouldn't learn much if I sent Jay anything. I only mentioned the PS Audio lately to inna and perhaps others who would be interested in a reasonably accurate sound with a little warmth, at a very cheap price. Most people here are on a reasonable budget, don't buy/sell like Jay, so are free to do those 30/60 day trial offers. BTW, Fremer appears to have tastes much like Jay. His reference is a DartZeel amp, which he admits is warmer than the PS Audio. He loves Wilson speakers, but not electrostatics. He is an analog guy who likes detailed cartridges like Lyra, but finds ultra revealing cartridges like the Rega Apheta too raw for him. Those are his assessments, not mine, since I never heard any of those cartridges in my system. Finally, Jay, I again think that you ought to at least try zip (lamp) cord, no. 16 or 18. Only a dollar or so, nothing to worry about. Steve of GTA confirmed that my zip cord was more lean/immediate/forward sounding and detailed than his speaker cables. I was there, and it took seconds for him to say so. In his system, he likes his cables, and he caters to his customers, most of whom like the same. I can envision a scenario where a client comes to you and says, "my system sounds dull, bass heavy/fat and rolled off in HF." You can delight him by recommending zip cord for speaker cable, which will make his system more lively. But of course, try it yourself to hear what it does. Yes, I know zip uses poor quality materials, and I don't know why it sounds so good in the ways I describe, but I just want practical results. You seem to have more of an open mind these days, which may be due to your developing consulting business and YT presence. Of course, if your client wants to show off expensive prestigious components and doesn't prioritize high performance which may be found at cheap prices, you know what to recommend. |
Viber: The problem is you claimed with zero evidence that PSA m1200 is better than most of the amps WC has shown on YT. That is most likely a ridiculous statement (but I invite you to prove me wrong by putting your money where your mouth is) and now you are going word salad again to hope we forget your outrageous claim that you are unwilling to back up (shocker) |
kren0006, I apologize for the length of my last post, but I wanted to express in detail my insights. Trying to be more succinct, I'll say that Jay likes some degree of both accuracy and warmth, so chooses his favored amps accordingly. This happens to align with the tastes of most of his followers and clients. The clincher for me was our assessments of the Merrill Element amps. I found the Merrill 114 quite warm/euphonic. Careful reading between the lines of many reviews of Merrill 116 or 118 shows good detail with nonclinical sound, consistent with my findings of the 114. Merrill himself told me that the 118 is more accurate, but they have similar character. Jay still found the 118 to be more accurate/neutral than Constellation, D'Ag, Luxman, Rowland, Pass, Audio Research. So I am confident that I would not like those amps. Gryphon appears to be more accurate than any of the other amps. At one point I posted that the Mephisto was the only amp Jay tried that I might like. Then Jay revealed that the new Boulder was more accurate/neutral, but Mike at Suncoast revealed that Boulder is a little tubelike compared to Soulution. I was considering the Boulder 1161 at $22K, but both Jay and Mike did me a big favor in helping me decide not to bother considering it. It's only a guess, but I believe that the PS Audio M1200 is roughly comparable to the best amps discussed here, like Boulder, Mephisto, Essence. It would definitely be worthwhile for someone who might be considering the M1200 for himself to put up the modest $6K for it. The problem is that class D such as the M1200 might not reveal its true character for several months of break in, which may not be learned within the 30 day trial. If he lives within easy driving distance from Jay, they could both do the assessment together. The M1200 could then be returned for refund, but the real assessment of a fully broken in M1200 could not be done in time. Alternatively, a well broken in used amp could be purchased for a better assessment, but if the purchaser didn't like it, they would have to assume the risks of selling it and would probably lose significant money. Only Jay has the contacts to do this without losing money. Therefore, I still think it would be worthwhile for him to get a used M1200 at maybe $3-4K. The risk is minimal. Certainly Jay has bought many amps much more expensive without hearing them first. The M1200 may not be the absolute best, but it represents great value that many would appreciate. One additional risk is the tubes. The sound changes markedly with the age of the tube, as well as different tubes, complicating the assessment of a used M1200. The ideal is a used unit with new tubes, although only a few hundred hours of break in might show comparable performance to new tubes. As for me, I am not interested in buying/selling to do R&D like Jay, since I am not doing a consulting audio business. And what I like is not the "best" for someone who prefers warm/euphonic sound. The nice thing about Jay is that he tries to be truthful and demonstrate the objective qualities of each item. The "best" is determined by each listener for himself. |
rbach, Since I found that zip reveals more HF than any other speaker cable I've tried, the soundstage is more upfront. I hear more detail both front and back, although the entire stage is more forward than it would be from warmer and more bass dominant cables, just as with electronics. In other words, the zip stage is 1 to 30 feet deep; a warmer cable's stage is 10 to 100 feet deep. So the range for zip is a factor of 30; for the other the factor is only 10. This is all highly variable, dependent on the recording and the room/speakers, of course. I don't analyze soundstage much, but mainly listen for tonal quality and detailed musical information content. Try zip for a dollar, and report what you hear. |
Are Mágico speakers really inert cabinets? https://youtu.be/NW2kH-e1R2A Stay tuned for the full video.... With 95db of volume... |
zip cord? All brands of zip cord will sound different. All gauges will sound different. The directionality of the wire makes a difference....and of course, you want the cables off the floor. If you listen to zip cord with bare ends the you have a serious advantage. All speaker connectors suck. Use bare wires and binding post bypass system (my invention). Zip cord is not serious wire for audio.....ordinary wire, ordinary insulation....makes for ordinary sound. PVC sucks as a dialetric. IceEdge: The stock IceEdge is OK. If you put a tube in front of it....like PS Audio does....and upgrade the tube to NOS then you get good sound. If you modifiy the IceEdge module then you get really good sound without a tube needed. However, no matter what you do to it.....it will never be state of the art......just fantastic for the money. The writing on the wall is clear. The class D amps of the future will be what we will all be using. The AGD amps are getting raves ($7500 5 lb. mono blocks....20 day home trial).....Mytek is releasing 500 watt mono GaN based amps in two months for $20K and right after that a dual mono stereo 200 watt GaN based amp for $7K. These may compete with the big boys.....and even the 500 watters weigh only 30lbs each. More tweaky class D is in progress including $5K Gan based amp from Atmasphere. Would love to see Jay make an open baffle speaker using the top of the line 10 inch Cube full range driver. Have you guys read the reviews of the $16K Nenuphar?.....that uses these drivers. The stock Nenuphar is limited by its construction. The speaker box is veiling the sound, the binding posts on the back are veiling the sound and the tip jacks on the speaker and the bananas that they must be using there are really veiling the sound. So, if you mounted the drivers ($8500 a pair delivered to your door) on a four foot high by 2 foot wide baffle and used one foot by 4 foot wings directly pointing back on the sides.....you would get a flat response to around 40 hz. You buy some great $15 a foot speaker wire without connectors and you connect to your mono blocks right behind the speaker and hard wire the speaker wire directly to the voice coil wire. This would be way more transparent than the Nenuphar......probably would blow you mind. I would make the baffles out of 3 pieces of three quarter inch material (2.25 inches thick total).....all different types to kill the resonances. I would use bamboo plywood, highly refined particle board and 13 ply baltic birch. You could use a solid piece of Oak or Maple as the front as well..... no binding posts, no crossover, no veiling box.....just pure open sound. If I had the money, this is what I would do......for $10K it would probably beat most $100K speakers except for power, bass and dynamics. However, you would be amazed at the purity of sound......the phase perfect imaging, time aligned by God. I am drooling at the possibilities. Lots of cool stuff out there for way less money.........Of course, you could run open baffle woofs next to them and limit the low end response of the Cube speakers by inserting a small super transparent cap in line with the main amp to limit the response to say 100 hz and then bring in a pair of big bad 15 incher’s driven by their own class D modded IceEdge for bass that would knock your walls down.....maybe another $5k. I know Jay won’t do this.....but someone reading this might. You would be in for a serious treat. Most of us reading this thread cannot afford a single item Jay is using. This is just entertainment.....like following Supercar Blonde. However a $10K speaker is doable for many.......My friend in Pocoima, CA is using the $1200 a pair Lii Audio 10 inch silver full range driver on a baffle exactly as I described. He is adding 2 15 inch woofs right now on another open baffle for each side. He loves the Lii drivers.....once burned in and wired directly to the voice coil. He is getting flat to 40hz and the speaker is 95db sensitive......for less than $2K you can build this speaker. Best speaker he has ever had. He has added an ESS medium size AMT on top with copper foil cap for a slight improvement on top. |
ricevs, Just name one amp you have A/B'ed against your modified IceEdge that is better, and say in what ways. I just read Doug Schroeder's dagogo review of the Legacy Audio IV7 who says it is better (more resolution and smoothness at the same time) than any amp he has tried, although his standard of reference is merely a Pass. You say the Legacy IV2 is nearly identical to the Rouge Audio Studio N-10DM, both using IceEdge 1200 AS1 modules. |
If the Nenuphar’s are Veiled then the other 14 pairs of speakers I own are REALLY Veiled. They are awesome sounding with low powered tube amps or First Watt/Bakoon type amps. Open Baffle?? Sorry...have never seen any that I want to look at. Many look like Toilet Seats. Even the Spatials look awful to me. I doubt very highly you have ever had or heard a pair of Nenuphar’s in person. Im sure they sound "veiled" in a Youtube video which is probably all the real life experience you have with them. BTW If Jay brought home or built some Open Baffle Speakers he would come home from work one day to find all his Amps n Speakers out at the Curb with suitcases full of his clothes....courtesy of his Wife. |
I love what I hear from the stock Nenuphar. But I know (you do not) what binding posts, banana plugs and jacks, extra wires, cabinets and not wiring to the voice coil wire do to the sound. The fact that you do not like the looks of an open baffle speaker.....well, that is not what I am talking about. I am talking about purity of sound. I am talking about goosebumps beyond the stock Nenuphar. You could take your Nenuphar driver out and hardwire a super speaker wire to its voice coil wire and run that wire outside the back directly to your amp.....it would blow you mind how much more beauty and information you would get....and you still have your box. However, an open baffle version would probably sound better......however, you would lose a little deep bass. Most people just buy stock equipment and never realize how they could do something for less money and get better sound. To each, his own. btw, Jay's wife does not care what he does. He has had giant Maggies in there.....it is his man cave. |
Purity of sound is not what I look for in a speaker. Your sounding like somebody else in this thread. I could care less what parts do what to the sound. Im not an Audio Nerd. Not everybody wants the ultimate clarity. Not everybody listens to the music that you do. Most of what I listen to is unfortunately badly recorded to begin with. Too much Clarity just makes things sound worse. I certainly dont want Alice Cooper, Aero or Led Zep to sound "Beautiful" and give me goosebumps. Show me a Speaker with your LII Audio 10, 15 drivers that is PLEASING to the EYE and has a well made FULL body Cabinet. Ive yet to see anything that is acceptable. Best looking ones I have seen are the Crystal Audio 10's coming out of China. I even ordered a pair....until I saw what happens to the speakers after a year or so. The Cabinets start peeling/flaking and look like Hell....so I cancelled my order. If your so brilliant maybe you should develop a speaker that uses those drivers and looks as good as it sounds. |
Thank you to all of you for the love and support, the good, the bad, positive and negative criticism. It isn’t easy to do what i do especially without any prior experience. When i started this journey, i did it based on the recommendation from some of you (Riaa was one person who pushed me to do it even though he broke my b@lls a few times lol). Doing this, sitting in front of a camera, editing, talking, avoiding repetitiveness (i am working more on this) and trying to deliver a clear message is much harder than you guys might think, but this "struggle" has helped me grow. I hope you all have enjoyed Part 1 of the M6 review and now that we are at 5k subscribers i will deliver my promise of the DCS Rossini versus MSB Reference. Jay |
