Halgorythme strikes again

[antipop]

Yesterday I had the pleasure to receive Jean-Marc and Jérôme for some catching-up and listening to my system.

They both came before but they never really spent time with my system and they haven't visited since I put the Halgorythme in place.

They both found the change to be dramatic compared to the Manley. Jean-Marc was impressed as he wasn't expecting that type of dynamic from a tube. A mere 24W on top of that. He is now interested to try them at home and maybe have a dual setup depending on the mood.

Jérôme brought the new high-end feet from PAB. We put it under the Halgorythme and it has a significant and immediate impact on the sound. The bass gained resolution. We tested it on You Look Good to Me by Oscar Peterson Trio (We get requests). The timber on the bass was just exceptional, you could feel the dimension of the instrument. I'm definitively going to look into that.

We also demo'd the Nagra that Jérôme has recently bought. Let me say that this is an impressive unit. When you see it, you believe it's a lightweight but this is an heavy beast and it can rock. I can understand why Jérôme is happy with his choice. I found it to be a bit more clinical than the Halogrythme and missing a bit of foly. Of course, at this level, the change are minor and it all comes down to personal preferences. We also barely gave it time to warm up as it was getting better toward the end of the demo.

This was a very enjoyable moment among friends.

[Yamaki]

It's always nice to read how members here at AA take the opportunity to gather.

Sounds like you had a good time, Georges!

[Jerome W]

Hi Georges,

I was about to write a little post when I saw yours.
We had a great time !
Once again I was impressed by the fabulous Halgorythme amplifiers. You really have now a very high definition system. The Halgo brought to the table their spontanity, realism, supreme dynamics and a very exciting presentation.
As you know I will not live with your system. The SF Ellipsa are really very different from the Harbeth sound and I am addicted to Harbeth. But it is easy to hear how terrific your system performs now.
I hope that you will have a nice listening room in London !
Cheers,
J.

[Jean-Marc jmajma]

Oh yes, I was very very impressed by your system!!!

It had the sound I love to listen to.

From the first track we plaid ( Diana Krall's/Fly Me To The Moon), I was saying to myself : wwoaaww! Are you dreaming? Are you sure you listen to what's playing right now?

There was magic in the air yesterday night, and this was not the champagne effect, it was a wonderful listening session.

Is it the Halgo? Or the new PS AUDIO DAC? Or the Fabulous Sonus Faber? Or the wonderful pre accuphase?

I don't know, but what I know for sure is that it was fantastic: Ray Brown's bass and singing, Hugh Masekela' s Stimela, Jacques Brel,s Ne Me Quitte Pas, Eric Bibb, Imany, Ayo, Nils Lofgren, Neil Young etc etc....they all were in front of us, playing their best music at their best level. We didn't want to leave, until it was late in the evening....
One thing I can claim, you have a fantastic system , Georges, and I could live with, second or primary system.

PS : the demo of the LP cleaning with the KL AUDIO was incredible, and I say incredible because I don't know how to express how much I was impressed....bravo!

PS2: the Nagra is an excellent amp, but clearly, yesterday, it was the Halgo the winner by KO in the first round. Like I told Jérôme, I think the Halgo would be able to "wake up" the little dark sound of his HARBETH.I have to admit the Nagra became better when warmer....but for me, I would vote Halgo.

Once again, congrats on a fabulous system, well done my friend.

[bart]

Bonsoir Jean-Marc.
Beware, if you try these amps in your system, your wonderful Mac amps might be for sale soon...
Or go to a second system.
By the way, I think the 48W version Halgorythme amps would be ideal for the Alexias.

[Jerome W]

Originally Posted by bart

Bonsoir Jean-Marc. Beware, if you try these amps in your system, your wonderful Mac amps might be for sale soon... Or go to a second system. By the way, I think the 48W version Halgorythme amps would be ideal for the Alexias.

Bart...
Jean Marc will never sell his 1.2K unless for other Mcs. He is addicted to huge blue vu-meters !

[Jerome W]

Originally Posted by Jean-Marc jmajma

Oh yes, I was very very impressed by your system!!! It had the sound I love to listen to. From the first track we plaid ( Diana Krall's/Fly Me To The Moon), I was saying to myself : wwoaaww! Are you dreaming? Are you sure you listen to what's playing right now? There was magic in the air yesterday night, and this was not the champagne effect, it was a wonderful listening session. Is it the Halgo? Or the new PS AUDIO DAC? Or the Fabulous Sonus Faber? Or the wonderful pre accuphase? I don't know, but what I know for sure is that it was fantastic: Ray Brown's bass and singing, Hugh Masekela' s Stimela, Jacques Brel,s Ne Me Quitte Pas, Eric Bibb, Imany, Ayo, Nils Lofgren, Neil Young etc etc....they all were in front of us, playing their best music at their best level. We didn't want to leave, until it was late in the evening.... One thing I can claim, you have a fantastic system , Georges, and I could live with, second or primary system. PS : the demo of the LP cleaning with the KL AUDIO was incredible, and I say incredible because I don't know how to express how much I was impressed....bravo! PS2: the Nagra is an excellent amp, but clearly, yesterday, it was the Halgo the winner by KO in the first round. Like I told Jérôme, I think the Halgo would be able to "wake up" the little dark sound of his HARBETH.I have to admit the Nagra became better when warmer....but for me, I would vote Halgo. Once again, congrats on a fabulous system, well done my friend.

Jean Marc,

Actually, you did not listen to the Harbeths with the Nagra. The treble is more lightened than with the Shindos and the bass is tighter. I do love the combo a lot.
But you are right : the Halgos sounded magnificent on the Harbeths. Really stunning synergy.

Now, please before reading the following, remember that there is no "true statement" in this hobby. Everything is subjective and related to our ears.

Harbeth will never sound like Wilson or SF speakers no matter the amp I could use : you and Georges will always feel unsatisfied listening to my system. I precisely chose Harbeth for what you call a " dark" sound and what I call a "natural" one and I will never, ever go back to Wilson, neither I would buy a Sonus Faber speaker.
To each ears their preference. You and Georges and many other people will call "dark" the Harbeth sound and moreover you will get bored with it, while I find SF, Wilson and others to sound "too bright" and aggressive at times. 2 complete different and "opposed" worlds of hifi.

Now Georges, please take all the following " à la légère" : those next comments are only related to my ears and my way of listening, and both may be completely "faulty" :

Actually, if I had to live with the SF of Georges, I would give up the extreme resolution and the beautiful dynamics of the Halgos to go back to the sweeter sound of an EL34 amp ! Believe it or not, I found the timbre of the voices to be more natural with the Snappers. And I found the Nagra amp to sound more right to my ears, especially again on voices. The timbre of all singers were a bit too high for me with the Halgos. Not by a large margin. But enough to prevent me from enjoying the music fully. I am quite sure that with a very neutral SS headphone amp, the Senn HD800 would have clearly shown this.
[ note again about the reason why I sold my WP8 : I never felt fully in love with the mids of Wilson speakers. That is why I chose Harbeth and will stick to them. And the Sasha 2 and Alexia did not change anything to my ears preference when it comes to consider how natural voices can sound].

Of course, Georges who is in love with the SF sound is much better with the Halgos than with the Snappers ! They are much better amps in absolute terms. While the Snappers will be way too sweet with the 40.1's, they made George's system sounding sweeter and more relaxed to my ears. And I am sure I would enjoy it much more with the Shindo amps.
Actually, the Halgorythme 1605 amps made the SF speakers sound like Wilson speakers to me. I am not surprised that you loved the sound so much.
I did not mention it last night because :
- I was shocked and did not expect this result
- My ears and personal preference do not mean anything. Especially when comparing amps of very different absolute quality. They are just my ears. While Georges's system is built for his ears.
- Third reason is that you and Georges would have probably killed me and I wanted to see my wife and children again !

[Jean-Marc jmajma]

Bart, I'm so much in love with the tubey sound of my 1.2 KW's, especially their matching with my Alexia's ( remember I had the chance to test at my place) and eventually with their blue eyes, and with the ease of use transistors ....

But I admit I would be very very curious to test those beauties Halgorythme, and eventually if they match have a system with either the Mc or the Halgo : I wonder how is it possible in an easy way to switch.

Or second system on my BW 802N....

[Jean-Marc jmajma]

:Yes, you are right, "relative and related to our own ears".

No, you are wrong, we wouldn't have killed you, we would....

But you didn't look shocked at all last night!

[Jerome W]

Originally Posted by Jean-Marc jmajma

:Yes, you are right, "relative and related to our own ears". No, you are wrong, we wouldn't have killed you, we would.... But you didn't look shocked at all last night!

I know how to hide my feelings.