Tekton Double Impacts
Charles1dad, I have the original model also, not the MK11. So mine is the same as yours. I do have the V-Cap mod as per (Salvatore)sp? When I first fired up the speakers they sounded very dis-jointed. Like two different speakers in one box competing against each other. As they are starting to break in the drivers are beginning to gel with each other. Only have about 25 hrs on them. Plus, my dedicated basement room is acoustically cursed. I have been working on it for years. It keeps getting better. I was almost ready to call in a Shaman or have an exorcism or something but instead I ripped out the drop ceiling, exposing the floor joist and this has partially appeased the acoustical gods for the time being. |
Hi jadedavid, Does your Frankenstein MK II have 4 and 8 ohm speaker taps? If so which are you using? My Frankenstein MK II is an earlier model which had 8 and 16 ohm taps. As Mac wrote they were exceptionally good with his DIs using the amplifier 8 ohm tap. If you do have a 4 ohm tap how does it compare to the 8 ohm tap? Lak, I can't imagine that you would have any issues at all using your Allnic 300b SET with the Double Impacts. In fact I strongly suspect that this pairing will sing as this is an easy speaker load. This has been confirmed numerous times on this lengthy thread. Your Allnic SET isa very high quality amplifier. Charles |
The Plinius SA103 arrived today and happy to say I was able to get the behometh down stairs without a slipped disc. After a good while of warm up getting to the toasty class A temps it sounds absolutely incredible. A tube like warmth but with speed and bass slam that makes you realize what the DI's can do on the bottom end. If you can find this 10K amp at a reasonable used price like I did it's well worth pairing with the DI's. At 125 watts per channel it has way more power than I need and draws 500 watts continuously in class A. It does however have a switch to change to class AB which I will use when in HT mode. im sticking with this setup at least until the next new LTA amp comes out. Lance |
Jadedavid, Charles brought over his Frankenstein 300B monoblocks and we both thought they sounded amazing driving my DI's. The DI's are very transparent and will translate whatever is put upstream of them so keep experimenting with different cables and hopefully you'll find the sound you're looking for. Good luck. |
@porcheracer A great SS preamp for reasonable money used, under $1000, is the Bel Canto Pre 3. Absolutely wonderful. Neutral in the best way and so smooth! ! For more money the Rowland Capri in it’s various versions is very good indeed. About $1800 - $2100 used. For or even more money, one of the best preamps available tube or SS at any price, is the Tom Evans Vibe with Pulse power supply. Stunning preamp that defies labels of tube or SS sound. Dead quiet and so musical. Sheer absence of noise is a revelation. |
Received my DI's last week. Hooked them up and was not impressed. However, I just plopped them down where my previous stand mount speakers were. Thought I made a big mistake but decided to work with them to see what I could coax out of them. My previous speakers were a little dark and needed some lift so I chose various silver combination cables to lighten the mix. These did not go well with the DI's. Went thru one by one to get the best balance with other cables I have. This helped. The first amps used were SS CLAYTON Audio M70's. Nice class A amps and generally have a warmer presentation but somehow didn't seem to be a good match. So I pulled out the COINCIDENT Frankenstein 300B amps. MUCH better. Now we're starting to get somewhere. The 300B's have no problem driving them. I am in the process of moving them around to find the best placement / integration with my room. It's a work in progress but making improvements The speakers seem to be starting to break in and loosen up. The 60 day trial period should be more than enough time to break them in and tweak my system. Will keep you posted on the progress. |
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Yes we have several very good choices. The deHavilland UltraVerve 3 Preamplifier is a great 6sn7 choice. The First Sound Presence Deluxe Mk III Tube preamp for sale here is another 6sn7 great choice. It will sound better than the UltraVerve, but is now over 10 years old. A used Audio Valve Eklipse Preamplifier would be the best choice sonically. Check and see if it is still available on US Audio Mart. This is not a 6sn7 preamp, but sounds remarkable. I love 6sn7s also, but the design is far more important than the tube employed. |
QUESTION? Will my Allnic T-1500 300B Integrated amp be a good match for the Tekton Double Impacts? Some information about the Integrated amp: This 300B Integrated amplifier delivers 12.5 WPC in Pure Class A single ended style! Ruggedly built weighing in at 50 pounds, this 35dB gain powerhouse will drive most speakers of 90dB + efficiency to very comfortable sound pressure levels. |
brotw, The advice I would give is simple--trust your ears! While I'm sure there are some valid points made in this guide, I for one would never listen to my DI's up against the front wall. Yes, you will have gains in low end extension at the cost of worse imaging, less depth and air. About 1-2 mo ago several members placed there DI's up against the front wall just to see what affect it had on their performance. But in the end trust your ears and go with what sounds best overall to you. And remember, there is no perfect and there are always compromises on every decision we make in our hobby |
Hoping to get some guidance on speaker placement from our DI owners here. I've been reading tutorials on speaker placement and acoustic treatments from Argen. They seem focused on studio monitor implementations with critical listening and accuracy the primary goal but also mention home theater and music. What I'm concerned with is the "Speaker Boundary Interference Response". The only way to mitiigate this with full range speakers is to smash them up against the front wall avoiding any nulls in the bass response. (see null frequency vs. speaker from front wall equations). All these tips fly in the face of DI's "needing room to breathe". Furthermore, the listening position needs to be atleast 10 feet or more from the back wall in their view. This leaves little wiggle room from the 38% from front wall listening position model. Why does this speaker placement guidance run contrary to the idea of giving these speakers space? Maximum accuracy is good, right? http://arqen.com/acoustics-101/speaker-placement-boundary-interference/ |
@grey9hound I don't need the preamp to have a DAC, either. I want a 2 channel preamp that is only a 2 channel preamp. I've been listening to my Pioneer M-22 amp all night. I have been playing different renditions of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade" and some classic rock. I have to say that the M-22 and the speakers work extremely well together. I can't imagine an amp that would sound better. The depth and fullness of the sound is so musical yet there is great clarity and detail. The soundstage extends beyond the speakers. Today proved to me that the DI's are fantastic speakers. I've never heard anything like what I am hearing in my listening room. |
@david_ten @evovist Any updates on your Mini being shipped? I haven’t a friggin’ clue, man. This week marks the 6th week since I ordered, the 4th week after I was told they would be ready, and also 4 weeks after it was said that the mini-Ulfs would be on the Tekton website. So, what’s the over/under that these will take a total of 3 months to get to me? Haha! |
I understand that completely , but my (MX151) doubles for 2 channel and Home Theater. Please don’t think that because it is a Pre/pro it is lacking as to compared to a 2 channel pre-amp ,because it is not. At a cost of 12,500 when new , it had better be good , and... it is. I had just talked to Chuck @ McIntosh Labs Friday. I had a called him to see which of the 2 channel pres might have a better DAC than the MX151, and out of all of them , he said that there was only one , and I cannot remember if it was the C2600 or the C52. That was only 1 out of all of them that Chuck Hinton ,thought was better, plus you get Lyngdorf room correction . Grannyring can tell you all about Lyngdorf and how well it works. |
So, just to confirm ,I live in Knoxville, TN I own the DIs and the Rogue Audio St-100 and I invite anyone who wants to come by,to stop and have a listen. Come on over Grannyring @ porscheracer I am using a McIntosh MX151 Pre-amp.It comes with the Lyndorg Room Correction software.McIntosh calls it "RoomPerfect". It is Fantastic. Cables used are Mostly Purist Audio design. I am using a pc with JRiver Media Center. I was using a usb to spdif converter It was USB (Purist AudioUltimate USB cable )out of the PC to the Musical Fidelity V-link2 (usb to spdif converter).Then the (Purist Dominus Digital) from there to the input on the MX151. I am now using HDMI out of the PC to the input of the Mx151. here is where i have a cheap hdmi ,and i am looking to get a new HDMI. Possibly the Purist Audio HDMI, The VooDoo Silverstream High-Speed HDMI 1.4e ,or the Wireworld Silver Starlight HDMI. Out of the MX151 to the St-100 amp is a Pair of Purist Audio Dominus Fluid XLR Interconnects.I have one each of the purist Audio Design Fluid Power Cable on the Mx151 and on the Rogue Audio St-100. I was using the Purist Dominus Fluid Speaker cables, but i sold them for $3000 and bought the Tekton Double Impacts with the upgraded cap and coil, and cardas binding posts . Right now i am using the Voodoo Audio Reference speaker cables ,but I also have a pair of Sonoran Desert Plateau speaker cables . these are made by Star Sound technologies. They also make the Sistrum Apprentice stands you guys have been talking about. A friend of mine uses the real big ones under his 12 inch Tannoys driven by a pair of MC30 Mac amps. The purist cables for sale is the Purist Audio Design Dominus Luminist Revision Digital RCA 1.5 meter Also the Purist Audio Design Ultimate USB Luminist revison 1 meter |
Hi Grey9hound, obviously you have a fantastic speaker and amplifier match for your needs, congratulations. An amplifier shoot-out I would love to hear driving the Double Impacts based on feedback on this thread. Rogue Audio ST 100. Line Magnetic 508ia. Aric Audio KT 88. Coincident Frankenstein MK II (based on my recent listening encounter) . This would be quite the listening experience in my opinion. Charles |
I am in Knoxville,TN . If there is anyone out there , who would like to hear the Double Impacts with the upgrade LMK,The upgrade consists of : Cardas inputs, Mil-Spec internal wiring, ClarityCap within the tweeter section. Includes an oversized Jantzen or Erse Sledgehammer inductor (depending upon real-time availability) within the woofer section). I am also using the Excellent Rogue Audio ST-100 amp. It is the best amp that i have ever heard. It is perfect for the Double Impacts. I honestly do not know how it could get any better. It is Jaw-Dropping . |
@david_ten Those are all excellent suggestions. Now I remember writing off the Sistrum platforms due to potential instability near kids. I'm giving the Gaia feet a serious look, thanks for the lead. Just like mountain bike frames, a carbon fiber platform would provide significant high frequency absorption. Funny how this topic has many similarities to plane wave antenna mode scattering with impedance matching (spiked feet) and ringing currents (cabinet vibrations). Unfortunately loss is rarely an antenna designers friend, but i digress. |
@brotw The shelf is a synthetic composite. Was a one-off isolation rack made by a Japanese company. The only reason I'm using them is because I have them and I may as well put them to use. I also have another one-off carbon-fiber with honeycombed-center shelves, but I don't believe they would support the weight. I'm sure any isolation shelf / material that you find has been helpful in the past would work. I've been in touch with Star Sound Technologies (they make the Sistrum and other platforms) to come up with a stable solution for my needs. Their platforms and isolation for speakers are well regarded and they have been a real pleasure to work with. The holdup has been getting a blue-print of the speaker base from Tekton which I hope to have soon. Another option I'm considering, as a direct comparison to what the Herbie footers have delivered, is IsoAcoustics, specifically their Gaia speaker isolation devices/footers. They are slightly more expensive than my Herbie's solution (16 Gliders) vs 8 IsoAcoustics footers. I'll likely continue using the base shelf + Herbie Gliders with the IsoAcoustics threaded into the speaker base standing on the platform/footers. This will give me another inch of elevation over the current setup. Other DI owners are happy with Soundocity outriggers, in case you want to explore this option. |
Thanks Charles. I'm hoping to make a number of system upgrades in the next couple of months so there will be plenty of reasons for you to stop by to listen. No need to invite yourself as you have an open invitation! evolvist, I believe teajay is using the Sistrum speaker stands. Charles uses them also. They are sweet looking. |
@david_ten I was thinking taller feet as well as I had similiar results with some large Jamo Cornet 100's back in the 90s. There were no feet, so used brackets and JB weld with threaded rod and caps, a college upgrade. Bass tightened up nicely. Your comment on doubling up the isolation with shelves and additional gliders had me recall the Townshend isolation speaker platforms. The price has me looking for other tweeks. Is your isolation shelf basic mdf or something fancy? |
@brotw Thanks for the added perspective. It's very helpful. Always good to know and hear more about takeaways based on what we are communicating and reading in these posts. As all of us are different our interpretations will be different as well. In this case, I can see myself coming to the same conclusion as you did. As @vitop mentions, you'll have a really good feel for these aspects of the speaker for yourself, apparently in short order! : ) Like mac48025, I'm also using Herbie's Gliders. I went with the 1 inch length for the threaded Giant Gliders since I didn't need to adjust height or tilt and wanted stability...the Gliders are flush with the speaker base. If you want the flexibility for tilt and height, the 1.5 inch that Mac is using would be the way to go. I also find that raising the speakers off the floor improves bass. I'm using a set of the non-threaded Giant Gliders under an isolation shelf. The speakers with the threaded Giant Gliders sit on this shelf/Glider combo. |
Vitop - Ribbon tweeters sound great and when integrated with cones, seem to provide wonderful air with dynamics, so going with the Tekton DI's as opposed to hybrid ribbon/cone speakers like the Salk HT2-TL or Legacy Signature for a bit more $ has been a tough pill to swallow. The Seas drivers used by Salk with RAAL ribbons are great and the "get what you pay for" feeling is ever present. Perhaps the sum of expensive parts in one speaker doesn't always have the synergy a well designed speaker has with cheaper components. Listening to DI's has not materialized, unless someone in the L.A. area chimes in. My "case closed" comment was coming from a position of having read the entire thread full of rave reviews and feeling like I may be overshopping this. Your right though, I shouldn't just take your word for it. These forums have been fun but they really can take time. Valuable during upgrade season. |
I agree totally with vitop. The DI's are extremely detailed and very electrostatic like in the upper end. I ended up selling my Focus SE's even though they were extremely good because the DI's did everything they did at least as well and were more dynamic and live sounding to me. Musical is an appropriate description....they sound like real live music. Some might prefer a more clinical sound but I'm really enjoying their musicality. A crisp, clear, detailed musicality with beau coup dynamics and deep, controlled bass. I really believe their biggest drawback is their price as many can't believe such an affordable speaker could possibly sound as good as they do..Let me tell you, they do! The DI SE's might end being more refined sounding than the DI's but I can't imagine they'll be significantly more detailed. If they are I'll have a very hard time not ordering them immediately! |
brotw: I’m not trying to be funny here (and maybe you were just being sarcastic (hard to tell with just the written word), but you should not have a "case closed" just because I think there is a lot of precision. That is me, not you. You should hear them yourself, but when a speaker reveals small upstream changes (which many people have been able to hear), I just don’t know how it can do that unless it can allow you to hear the small details. I heard them heads up against that ribbon tweeter in the Focus (which I think is a spectacular tweeter btw), and thought the DI was right there if not even a little better. And this is coming from a guy that loves ribbons. I own a set of electrostats for my HT and a pair of Apogee ribbons for my speakers. So I don’t typically prefer domed tweeters to ribbons. I can’t think of the last time I did. It’s just characteristic of me. I like the openness, clarity and revealing sound of the ribbons. Yet I went with the Tektons. But again, you need to compare yourself. I don't want to put words in your mouth, but the only thing that I remember reading on the live music vs anything to do with precision, was that I believe that someone (may several people) said that the speaker is musical, revealing but not revealing in a clinical way. Maybe that was what stuck in your mind? Not sure. But heck... when you listen to them you may in fact feel that they are not precise.... It's whatever you hear that really matters. |
Let us not forget about there, their and they're :) brotw, I use the Herbies Giant Gliders with the DI's and like them a lot. I bought the 1 1/2" length due to my basement floor being uneven and therefore needing the extra length to properly level the speakers. I had the Focus SE's when I purchased the DI's and never looked at other speaker options......except for the DI SE's which I hope to order soon. The mini Ulfs are intriguing to me also. Teajay, Thanks once again for sharing your experiences with us. They've been invaluable to me in deciding what gear to use with my DI's. The MZ2 has been a joy, especially with good NOS tubes and I'll be ordering the Aric Audio SET KT 120 on Monday........I have the JJ Blue Glass and the Golden Dragon Retro's on the way already. I should be getting the Vinnie Rossi mini Pure DC-4EVR power supply for the MZ2 pretty soon also. Fun, fun, fun. |
THAN vs. THEN There’s nothing more embarrassing then correcting someone’s language only to realize that your correction contains its own error. Like maybe the one in our first sentence. Did you see it? That harmless little four-letter word then. It should have been than. People get tripped up on then and than all the time—and why not? They look and sound so similar, and both words function as linguistic workhorses—then is most often an adverb, while than is usually a conjunction—which means that we mostly use them to connect more obviously significant nouns, verbs, and adjectives. The way to keep the pair straight is to focus on this basic difference: than is used when you’re talking about comparisons; then is used when you’re talking about something relating to time. Than is the word to choose in phrases like smaller than, smoother than, and further than. And it’s the word that follows other, rather, less, and more. Then—the option to choose when time is involved—fits in the phrases just then and back then, and after words like since and until. It’s also in the phrases and then some, every now and then, and even then. |
David, somewhere in this very long thread I thought I read that these speakers were better at creating the illusion of a live music performance rather than scalpel sharp detail reproduction. The comments about the speakers being revealing of upstream components and being a perfect conduit should have clued me in to the clarity capabilities. No doubt there are better drivers waiting for the SE version. Apparently Vitop thinks there is plenty of precision, case closed for me. Sure would have been easier with a speaker demo. No doubt this thread was valuable for choosing an amp. Anyone using the Herbies threaded or giant threaded stud gliders with the DI's? What size and recommended length? Sorry if this has been covered already. |
Just wanted to share, My hunch all along was that the superlative sound I was getting with the Triode Lab SET 2A3 amplifier was based on the synergy between it and the Micro-ZOTL preamplifier. The 2A3 provided the timbres/colors, "meat on the bones" imaging and the ZOTL provided the dynamics/speed and the special spatial dimensions. I now have tried running the 2A3 with three very good tube based line-stages on the Ulf's and the "magic" was greatly reduced in the areas of PRAT/speed, overall dynamics, and a much flatter sound-stage quality. So, this validates that it's the combo's synergy that gets you the magic I kept reporting. I'm also coming to the conclusion that the AricAudio SET KT-120, with KT-88's instead of the stock 120's, is a better match for the Ulfberht's then the 2A3 amplifier. Aric's amplifier opens up the sound-staging ability of the Ulf's to a much higher degree and is very close, if not a clone, of the beautiful timbres/tonality of the 2A3 tube sound. Nothing is quiet as "wet" or colorful as the 2A3 sound, however with NOS RCA triple mica black plate 5751's as driver tubes and the JJ KT-88 blue glass tubes the AricAudio SET is not far off in these areas. The match of the Triode Lab/Micro-ZOTL is still my favorite for the DI's that seem to not struggle with this combo in the area of a total open sound-stage and disappearing in that sound-stage. |
