Equipment Matching

[Masterlu]

Originally Posted by Electricboogaloo

Charles, your matching using interconnects and tweaks sounds fascinating! So incredible to be able to hone sound in this way! I will post pics!

Please do!

[Electricboogaloo]

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[Charles]

Electric, beautiful system. You have the classic top line system that employs a different extremely high quality piece of gear for power amp/pre/digital, etc. I would comment that the weak part of your system is the Sonus Faber Amati Tradition speaker. It is an excellent 30K speaker but comparatively, it is far below the quality of the rest of your gear. The 601 that you traded was not even in the same ballpark. It is 100% predictable that the Boulder would outperform the 601 in your system. A SF Lilium at 65K would markedly improve your sound and I think would be compatible with your room.

I'm going to change subjects. Let's take my system as an example. I have a reference all Mac system so I have excellent synergy among all my gear. My gear is better than the C-1000 pre and MCD 1000 CD transport and MDA 1000 DAC which received one of the best reviews ever in Stereophile. These components laid the foundation for all Mac gear since then. The current Mac reference system will outperform these coveted components by a wide margin.

So if I removed all my Mac gear and replaced them with reference Dag or Boulder how much better would it sound through my XVX? My Wel Signature cables are superb. For a completely fair comparison, I would get to use with my Mac's my AQ Niagara 7000 for my sources and 5000's for my amps and Dragon power cords for all my gear, whereas with the Boulder and Dag they would be using there own factory supplied cords straight into the wall 20 amp line.

Or you could go with a pick and choose as you have done using ARC or Pass or Moon or dCS or Esoteric. My XVX is the absolute reference among loudspeakers. I can tell you for multiple reasons I'll just stick with my Mac reference gear. None of you have ever heard a truly high powered Mac tube amp like the 3500 paired with an XVX. Renowned audio engineer Ron Evans of McIntosh was brought in out of retirement to design the 3500. He worked over 2 years on its design. I'll just say at this point that Mac makes the best transformers by a wide margin than any other manufacturer of transformers in the world and they have the best circuit in the unity coupled circuit. Mac tube gear always greatly exceeds its published specs by a wide margin. Read the recent Stereophile review of the of the ARC I-50. It doesn't meet its published specs by a significant margin, achieving only 44 watts in 8 ohms at 1% distortion. My sound is highly detailed/resolved and neutral. It is not the sweet low resolution sound you have imagined. I can't over emphasize this fact enough. A Boulder or Dag reference system will be neutral with my XVX. The question will be one of ultimate resolution, soundstage, and bass.

I would put both the Boulder and Dag slightly ahead of my Mac reference system in terms of resolution, soundstage, and bass with an appropriate digital source like Esoteric or dCS but not by much. If I had to choose between Boulder and Dag, it would be Boulder but not by much. It means almost nothing as far as I am concerned to remove a 601 and replace it with a 36K Boulder and then deduce that Boulder is superior to Mac because the bass was tighter, the detail was much greater and the soundstage was much improved. It's like saying that I replaced my Traditions with an Alexia V and concluding that Wilson is better than Sonus Faber.

There's not an ARC amp that I would remotely trade for my 3500 under any set of circumstances that I can imagine in my system.

Best

Charles

[Electricboogaloo]

Thank you for your thoughtful and impassioned reply. Your system and the thought and care you have put into every aspect sounds fantastic! I agree with you that my Sonus Faber Amati’s WERE my weak link. This past weekend I replaced with the Magico M2s. Wow. What a difference. With all my changes, though often more expensive, I don’t really consider them upgrades….just moving to a different sound. My Mac - Sonus Faber system was wonderfully satisfying. I love my new system too. The detail, openness, bass tightness, imaging and lifelike musical feel is really enjoyable for me. But as stated, it’s just different than my past system….I also love the Mac sound….prior to the 601s I had the 275 iv biamped with an mc252 on the bottom. Loved it. And my dear friend has a pair of the hybrid 901s which are stunning. I really enjoy listening to the various interpretations of music by so many great high end manufacturers!

[Electricboogaloo]

https://photos.app.goo.gl/hU4SPHf7C9ZP1EjK8

[Electricboogaloo]

https://photos.app.goo.gl/DJZb3FYEuKJA4n5b8

[Electricboogaloo]

[George Prentice]

Charles,

You are completely enamored with the system you chose to suit your values. But you need to understand, those are your values, not mine or many other people. Glad you found your ultimate system. It is not mine… not because I am stupid or have not heard anything better.. but because I value a very different sound.

[njcardave]

Originally Posted by Electricboogaloo

When I began to invest more in my audiophile passion I was romanced by the warm and sweet sound of McIntosh. For 20 years I nurtured the warm musicality with Sonus Faber and Koetsu. As I possessed so many mediocre recordings, the forgiving nature of these brands was marvelous. Fast forward and my record collection has become largely audiophile quality. I decided to tinker with my system and add some more detailed and energetic components. This has been a wonderfully delightful exercise in matching…..I was a bit nervous as I settled on 3 different brands of amplification across phone amp, pre, amp…..and added a far more detailed cartridge. Certainly not stating that is have upgraded but more changed out components. But, for the moment, the new energy is satisfying. This was an extreme makeover. It did help me to be less conservative in equipment matching….and I do feel closer to the music.

You have managed to put all of that high end equipment in a poorly designed room. It’s something that I can not overemphasize. Treat the room.

[Masterlu]

Originally Posted by njcardave

You have managed to put all of that high end equipment in a poorly designed room. It’s something that I can not overemphasize. Treat the room.

In your opinion…

When posting on AA, please ask yourself first;

Is it kind?
Is it necessary?
Is it true?

Thank you!