Considering Zu Dirty Weekend over my current B&w 702s2
I’ve felt for a long time (since I got them) that my 702s2 floorstanders have excellent “analytical” sound but are just missing the “life” that I want from my system. I swapped my Parasound P6 preamp for a Schiit Freya+ with some nice tubes that improved things significantly, but still feel a long way from the sound I want. I’m strongly considering the Zu Dirty Weekend 6 to replace the B&Ws, but I realize that’s a pretty big step down in “level”. So I’m wondering…am I going to regret it? Anyone have experience with both speakers they can share?
ps running Bluesound Node 2 as the main source and Parasound A21 amp.
Happy DW owner going on 4 years now. Also have the Omen Bookshelf speakers in a second system. These speakers just sound so alive to me. I use the DW's with a Prima Luna tube amp and the Omen's with a Rogue Sphinx integrated. The Zu speakers do well with tubes. CD players & turntables in both systems. Rich |
Another thing to consider if you’re using the DAC in the Node would be to upgrade your DAC and digital cable. The newer R2R DACs tend to have a more natural and organic sound that may yield the improvements you’re looking for. Here’s a nice review of the Musician Pegasus ( $1100 that I own) just to give you an idea of the sound characteristics… https://soundnews.net/sources/dacs/musician-audio-pegasus-r2r-dac-review/ If you can spend a bit more the new Gustard R26 is likely a nice step up in sound (you can read the review on the same site as above). Either way, I’d recommend springing for a used Acoustic Zen MC2 digital cable ($660 new, $275 used) that I just got and it’s an excellent cable with a great sense of naturalness while maintaining great detail and was a huge improvement over my budget cable… https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649951192-acoustic-zen-mc2-digital-coax-cable-1m/ I also don’t think the Zu option is bad either, especially if you can demo them at home, but just wanted to throw out another option for you to ponder. Hope this helps, and best of luck! |
This is an excellent recommendation. No doubt that going from the B and W to Zu speakers is a pretty different direction. However, I strongly suspect that the Node DAC is a weak link bottleneck hindering the current sound quality. Certainly worthy of consideration. I also agree that a high quality digital cable makes a notable difference. Charles |
