thanks for the inputs.
in my 15+ years of audiophile life, I did have to send some pre & power amps to be serviced and one as far as Canada. the experience is painful and expensive, I would rather not have to deal with it again. but life is full of changes and I am sure I will move again, so owning a gear made in the local neighborhood is not the gating factor though a bonus.
I never heard the DartZeel, but I did hear Ayre combo in dealer with not too optimized setup. Ayre combo sounded good, but given I was not familiar with rest of components and room acoustic, I wasn't ready to give up my BAT 150SE & SF Line 3SE+ for the Ayre combo + lots and lots of cash yet. I know many many solid state amps claim "tube like" midrange and transparency, but I haven't heard one in my life. I don't need absolute neutrality when listen at home, I am not looking for that. instead, I am looking for music that can lift my soul and carry me away after a long day at work. somehow I had the impression DartZeel would be the better of the two to do that, maybe it's the gold face that's glowing softly under dim light that creates the warm feeling.
still searching. |
Pinkus, what tube gears and speakers were you using before you made the switch? I am surprised to hear even that tiny AX-7 can change your mind from tube bliss to solid state coldness.
I am willing to give up some tube magic for solid state convenience, but how much I am willing to give up is another question.
as for DartZeel integrated and mono block, both are out of the question now. integrated most likely will not be powerful enough. mono block will be too expensive even used. |
There are a record numbers of super high end pre amps out there. Ayre KX-R, BAT REX, Conrad Johnson ACT 3, VTL 7.5 II, etc. among all, Ayre probably has the most plain look and smallest physical size.
Since I already own BAT 150SE (& 75SE, still debating which one to keep due to heat), will I be better off getting a BAT pre amp? I can't afford REX, but I can get a 52SE now. However, BAT pre seems to generate polarized opinions and many prefer ARC Ref 3 over 52SE. |
Henryhk, I know DartZeel is very very good and super musical for a solid state. but I am a tube addict and I don't think DartZeel can match an all tube system, or am I wrong? I know someone sold off his BAT 75SE to get DartZeel to drive his Evolution Acoustic; I don't know his reason for doing so, maybe for sound, for convenience, or Jonathan talked him into using DartZeel to drive EA since he imports both? what ever the reason, I am just not 100% convinced DartZeel combo can sound as musical as an all tube system and I need someone who moved to DartZeel after owning tubes to hit me on the head and tell me to forget about tubes.
Teddy bear, I know Ayre can sound sterile and cold at times if not fully warm up. I heard the combo in dealer as I mentioned. though very clean and transparent, it sure does not have the last bit of air, organic midrange, and delicacy of tube setup.
seems like I am convincing myself to stay with tubes. yes and no. I know something take tubes to create but solid state has closed the gap in recent years. just wondering if the gap is small enough and time is now to pull the trigger. |
Bar81, the reason I haven't borrowed the Ayre home is I am on oversea assignment and I did not bring my main system with me. Therefore even if my local dealer loan me the power amp, I won't be able to appreciate all of its strength in my current system.
That being said, I did visit my local dealer today hoping to hear both KX-R and MX-R. I wasn't that lucky, KX-R was out on loan and won't be back till 4 weeks later. I did hear MX-R in two different systems and one of them was very high resolution which consisted of Ayre CDP, Spectral 30, and Avalon ISIS. All I can say is the system sounded totally hi-fi to my ears. It did have great dynamic, great extension, great transparency, and great details, but it did not capture my soul, far from it.
Not sure if it was the Spectral or Avalon, but I suspected it was the Spectral more as I did hear Avalon ISIS driven by Hovland before with great emotion. I will return in a few weeks to hear the KX-R, but at this point I am not expecting miracle. |
Teddy_bear, I think the reason you heard Guarneri Memento sounded close in and syrupy was the speakers were not broken in. I bought my GM new and the sound transformed after 10 hours of play and continue to improve.
Bar81, I never implied I made my decision from that short audition in dealer showroom. Yes, I am in Singapore now and I had the benefit to audition many brands within a few steps from each other. I will return to the dealer once the KX-R is back and hopefully it will create enough positive impression on me to the point I want to borrow them home. But if the sound remained hi-fi sounding, I will turn to Dartzeel instead.
I have no doubt Dartzeel is one of the most musical solid state right now, but I am still concern about the power rating. I know 100wpc is not created equally, but 100wpc is simply not enough for big speakers in a big room.
Search continues, hope the KX-R and Dartzeel will return to the dealers soon. |
Well, I made up my mind and went to a completely different direction.
I heard the Ayre combo a few times in dealer, I was not impressed. I don't expect to hear all the qualities in a dealer show room, but I also don't expect them to sound flat or even bad. I am sure they will sound better at my house, but everything sounds better at my house and I don't have time to bring home every piece to try.
I am sure Dartzeel is great too, but Dartzeel is slightly out of my reach financially even in used market.
So instead I went with another great pre amp from Germany to match my phono stage. It shares the same shunt volume control design as Ayre, in fact I believe this manufacture invented this design. It's tube base, so it has more bloom and air. Time will tell if the sound really fits my taste, but I know Ayre is not for me at this point. |
Cost about the same as Ayre KX-R, but quite a bit cheaper than Dartzeel. I ordered an Einstein pre which has tremendous dynamic, transparency, and extension, but the most important thing is it sounds like music especially with the right tube. Einstein also employs the volume control outside of audio signal to maintain signal integrity, I believe they invented and implemented the concept first.
To Bar81, this is a forum to exchange idea and share your experience. I believe your last post did nothing positive to the forum. I have no issue when people don't like the gears I own, I know everyone has his/her preferences. Yes, I am glad I found something I liked and glad to know you also found something you like, and yes please move on and stop wasting bandwidth of this thread so people can actually learn something from this thread. |
