First impressions of the new gear so far are all extremely positive. The LS 300 is a significantly better preamp than the LS 36.5 it replaced, especially from a transparency, detail, imaging, and soundstage perspective. It just makes everything sound more natural, realistic and "right". I'm thrilled that I own it, and based on what I've heard so far, I couldn't recommend it more highly!
The PH 9.0 is a tremendous phono stage and a quantum leap better than the relatively inexpensive Musical Surroundings Phonomena II+ it replaced. It has brought records up to if not better than the digital sound from my system on well mastered LPs, and I consider it a tremendous value in terms of price/performance.
The modified Oppo 205 is also a leap forward in terms of sound quality in my system. I was able to compare my previous player, the MW Oppo 105, to the stock 205 before I sent it in for mods. The stock 205 had more detail and a bit more open high frequencies, but the MW Oppo 105 sounds much less like a digital source with much better soundstage depth, imaging, and decay. The stock 205 sounds almost two dimensional in comparison. The modified 205 maintains the positive characteristics of the stock 205, and adds back the missing soundstage depth, realism, imaging, and decay. It improves on the modified 105 significantly with regard to detail, extension, and openness. I feel like the investment in the modifications was well worth it for me since I have a very large SACD collection that I still like to listen to.
I'll post some more detailed impressions later as the units continue to break in, along with some updated system pics. I've attached a few pictures of the LS 300 that Dan took before he sent the unit to me so everyone can see what it looks like in more detail.
