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Replacing Wilson WattPuppy 5's

Yes, 20 years is a generous life span for these pets, but driven by the Vac Renaissance 70/70, well, they always sounded like 'home' to me. I'm considering either the Sashas or the Sophia 3's, once they're brought in from Eliot's loading dock and broken in. Should I anticipate a quantum leap in presentation from 1991 or has the Wilson 'sound' been pretty consistent over time ? Thanks. I'm a new member here.
dr_john

Showing 3 responses by dr_john

dr_john OP
66 posts
 
The VAC amp will be placed in the coffin with me. I've driven the speakers hard and they sound it. I appreciate your word 'classics'. BTW, my front end is the Wadia 27 transport/DAC duo going straight into the amp. I use a CAT preamp as a phono stage only. (PS -I didn't like the Sophia 2 sound, but don't want to say why for fear of offending others on this site. New member here.
dr_john OP
66 posts
 
The Sasha's blew me away: a huge soundstage and amazing detail. Reminded me of the saying, 'Don't buy a yacht unless you have an ocean to sail it in.'
dr_john OP
66 posts
 
Thanks, Egrady, for your thought-out response; I now have some sense of Wilson's aural evolution. The Sophia 3's are, as I write, being broken in at NYC Innovative. I was blown away by the Sasha's, but there's about a $10k
up-difference from the Sophia's. I run a tube amp (the classic VAC Renaissance 70/70 with Western Electric 300B's), and I'm hoping to audition either speaker with tubes. $10K makes a difference to my wallet, and I'm wondering if the price diffential is quantifiable in terms of sound. A tough choice even for seasoned ears, I suspect.

Can one out there attest to the qualitative difference of tubes vs boards in driving the Sasha's/Sophia's. The KEF 207.2's were also suggested to me, but apparently their highs sound bright (surprising) with tubes.
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