Vivid audio - partnering gear

[Briz Vegaas]

Post of the month award nominee. Don't forget to vote for your favourite Vivid post this month. :-)

Currently auditioning a power supply for my Naim DAC. I'm looking for system balance here. I've already spent my life's savings on my B1s, so to speak. So I'm exploring the best partnering source component just to make sure I am optimising the Vivid experience.. Its the goldilocks search.

Well the nDAC with XPS2 probably is the goldilocks DAC for the B1 or is it more fitting for a K1 or G3 setup. Could it be overkill?

I've certainly been enjoying the sounds so far but I'm still running in the demo unit I think. REMs Murmur is not an audiophile recording but last night it sound more right than it ever before, listening late into the early hours The power supply makes more sense than a Valhalla power cable on my preamp. That just brought out the bass without improving detail, making the B1 sound woofy and bass dominant. The power supply adds weight and solidity while improving the bass quality rather that just creating bass prominence without improving detail.

System optimisation, it important to get the balance right.

[Raindog031]

My friend drived his K-1s with dartzeel integrated and now goldmund integrated...all with excellent sinergy...

[bart]

Originally Posted by Briz Vegaas

Well the nDAC with XPS2 probably is the goldilocks DAC for the B1 or is it more fitting for a K1 or G3 setup. Could it be overkill?

The drivers of the B1's don't differ so much from those in the Giya series.
If I'm not mistaken, the tweeter is the same, the midrange, I have to look up.
The K1 just has 2 additional woofers.
I'm sure the B1 is able to let you hear even minor improvements in your system.
As I told before, I would have been totally satisfied with the B1's, but my wife preferred the Giyas

[Vivid Audio]

We obviously get a lot of recommendation requests from prospective customers but our company policy is basically not to comment because everyone has such a different idea of what constitutes good sound. My own experiences with B1 suggests that you can have complete success from 3W SET amps all the way to 1kW monster amps. It really depends on what you're looking for. Myself, I like a bit of volume so more power suites me and tends to preclude the 3WPC SET option. Having said that, just the other day I set up a tube/solid state hybrid system and I really thought it was magnificent. All the speed and precision I love, along with absolutely delightful tonality. Stunning!

And then, just for everyone's information, Bart is correct. The drivers throughout our range, from Oval V1.5 to Giya G1 are essentially the same. The C125 driver in the ovals is different from the C125s driver in the GIYA range however. They share cone, chassis and suspension, but the motor and coils are quite different and optimised for improved efficiency in a narrower passband.

[bart]

Originally Posted by Vivid Audio

We obviously get a lot of recommendation requests from prospective customers but our company policy is basically not to comment because everyone has such a different idea of what constitutes good sound. My own experiences with B1 suggests that you can have complete success from 3W SET amps all the way to 1kW monster amps. It really depends on what you're looking for. Myself, I like a bit of volume so more power suites me and tends to preclude the 3WPC SET option. Having said that, just the other day I set up a tube/solid state hybrid system and I really thought it was magnificent. All the speed and precision I love, along with absolutely delightful tonality. Stunning!

And then, just for everyone's information, Bart is correct. The drivers throughout our range, from Oval V1.5 to Giya G1 are essentially the same. The C125 driver in the ovals is different from the C125s driver in the GIYA range however. They share cone, chassis and suspension, but the motor and coils are quite different and optimised for improved efficiency in a narrower passband.

Thanks for chiming in!

[Briz Vegaas]

Yes, but the crossovers are different K1 to B1 are they not, so you do get more than just bass with the K1, as you would hope for the extra investment. That being said, I don't think more bass would be a good thing in my room at 6.5m by 4m with standard ceiling, and the resolution on the B1 is really nice also. I can dial in more bass with different power cable choices but prefer the current balance.

My Naim power supply continues to open things up ( in the audio sense, hearing deeper into the mix etc) as it runs in. It's on the DAC, not the amp but its changing the whole experience ( more so today it seems). Been listening to some Beth Orton today and its sounding great. It will only get better I suspect when my computer/ interface gets its custom linear power supply.

[Vivid Audio]

The filter networks used in K1 are indeed different to those used in B1. The main difference is that 3 of the four C125 drivers in K1 are used for bass only, rolling off at 100Hz. Only the upper front C125 driver is used for the mid range frequency band, playing as it does to 900Hz before handing over duties to the D50 dome driver.

Subjectively the K1 obviously offers more bass than the B1, but also offers something "more". It's a speed and timing thing. They are also easier to drive than B1's, despite the extra driver compliment.

[Raindog031]

Despite being relatively eazy to drive K-1 needs more powerful amp for better control, and better sound...if you want to play it loud without fuss high current is mandatory...thats why my friend changed dartzeel to goldmund...although both amps sound great goldmund has more energy...power....control...

[Vivid Audio]

I think generally all speakers can benefit from the extra headroom that plenty of power offers - certainly I have experienced this playing with demonstrations with Devialet amps - 1 sounds great, 2 in monaural mode sounds better, 4 bridged in monaural mode sounds better still, yet the fundamentals of the amplifier don't change.

Fun, fun, fun...

[Portugal]

Originally Posted by Vivid Audio

I think generally all speakers can benefit from the extra headroom that plenty of power offers - certainly I have experienced this playing with demonstrations with Devialet amps - 1 sounds great, 2 in monaural mode sounds better, 4 bridged in monaural mode sounds better still, yet the fundamentals of the amplifier don't change.

Fun, fun, fun...

Very interesting. Thanks.