Anyone have experience with the SPL Performer s800?

[Serenade]

Indeed SPL sound way better than what their looks, price would suggest. However, their potential is not realised when just plonked down on a table and any power cord plugged in.

They need to be carefully tweaked with proper supports, isolated from vibration, fed with good power cords, and protected from RF (in my case as I live in an area that is very hostile with strong RF from broadcasters and military radar). Maybe it is due to the basic feet that the gear comes with, and the thin folded metal casing. Neither of these are good at keeping vibrations and interference out so you have to do it.

Of course, if the chassis is better made with CNC cut thick aircraft grade aluminium panels, and then anodised, these boxes will cost 3X more. So I am not complain about the looks.

 

[rossb]

I agree, I found these amps benefits signficantly from Shunyata power cables, the power amp particularly so.

 

[rossb]

In my audition at home of SPL gear, the SPL Director was quickly eliminated, being not good enough. The built-in DAC added a layer of noise, grain and robbed some of the dynamics. Compared to the simpler Elector pre.

Sorry, one further question. In your comparison of the Elector and Director, was that using an external DAC on both occasions? Or using an external DAC with the Elector compared with the internal DAC of the Director?

 

[Serenade]

It was a straight pre-amp to pre-amp shootout between Director and Elector. The location was at my home. The local dealer brought both pre-amps and the S1200 for a home audition.

No external DAC nor internal DAC involved in the audition. I used my CDP and TT/phono to feed each pre in turn, with the same music. The sole purpose of the audition was to see which pre is better. And then the better pre, in combination with the S1200, up against my incumbent pre and power.

In my case, a built-in DAC of Director would have been a nice to have feature for the little bit more money. It was not a requirement since my CDP is just for background music. I did not evaluate the DAC function of the Director at all. I would have, had the Director been closer to the Elector in sound quality as the sole criteria.

 

[rossb]

Thanks, I appreciate the additional information.

 

[rossb]

I've just ordered the S1200, so it will be interesting to compare it with the S800. The local dealer is no longer carrying the SPL line so they had one unit they were able to clear out at an excellent price. Unfortunately, they did not have the Elector, so I will need to continue using my Director Mk II preamp, which still sounds very good to me.

 

[Serenade]

My Elector/Performer became listenable at 30 hrs. Stated sounding good at 50 hrs. Only at 100 hrs that they really bloomed. Be patient during the run-in an you will be finally rewarded.

 

[rossb]

The S1200 arrived yesterday. My unit was a demo so already had some hours on it, and was immediately sounding very good.

Initial impressions compared with the S800 - similar sound, but a bit more neutral, a shade leaner, but more grip and control, with tighter bass. This was evident even with my small Penaudio Cenya Signature speakers. The S800 has a slight softness and a slightly warm colouration compared with the S1200. The S1200 sounds more accurate, instruments and voices sound more natural. It sounds a bit faster and more dynamic. But most importantly, music through the S1200 sounds more lifelike, and has more presence, and is also more engaging. So far I think this has been a worthwhile upgrade.

 

[Serenade]

Congratulations on your new acquisition. Glad that you like what you hearing. In my system with bass that goes deeper (TAD Evo1TX speakers) and very extended HF, the 1200 has good grip, speed, control and definition. The highs are refined although not the sweetest I have heard. I have a similar finding that music is lifelike with presence. I am loving my live recordings and marvel at the added details from the audience and venue acoustics. Compared to my previous electronics which were not at all shabby (Audio Research Ref pre and Karan power) the sound is coming at me from way beyond the speaker boundaries. I can "see" the audience to my left and right.

If you are finding that the highs are a tad unrefined with the extra transparency, it is coming from the pre-amp. You are well placed to go bigger on the Penaudio scale to Serenades or Sonatas with the 300W you now have. 1200 monos I think if you are reaching for the Sinfonias!

BTW I do like the Penaudio sound. I have not heard the Signature series but certainly the original Cenya, Sara and Serenades did appeal to me. The Sinfonias were and still are out of my reach. Size and price wise .

 

[rossb]

Thanks, I wouldn't mind the bigger Penaudios, but my room is quite small and I listen in nearfield, so the Cenyas suit it perfectly.

I am not having an issue with unrefined highs with the preamp. I wonder whether the difference you heard between the Elector and Director was more to do with the specific samples than being inherent in the design of the Director ...? As I mentioned, my Director replaced an EAR 868, which is a highly rated preamp, and I regard the Director as superior. I also tried running my Bricasti M3 DAC directly into the power amp instead of going through the preamp, and found I preferred it with the preamp in place, and there was no loss of transparency or lack of refinement.

 

[Serenade]

Listening on its own, the Director is a great little pre-amp. It is only with an immediate apple to apple A/B with the Elector that shows the Director is inferior to the Elector only when it comes to sound. The Director is superior function wise. Since you are happy with Director, stick with it.

With my kind of music (large scale, wide frequency spectrum, big dynamic swings) and speakers, I do hear a distinct difference in the areas that are important to me. My main medium is vinyl. The Elector just plays the strengths of vinyl better.

 

[Adco]

REL subs with fully balanced amps can cause some issues due to common ground. Heard about this with my Ampzillas. It’s just not compatible.

I have two Rel G1’s hooked into custom Clayton Audio M200 mono’s. These amps are fully balanced front to back. All you have to do is lift the ground on the Rel cable . I have zero issues with signal or noise etc.

I used the same setup with some balanced Class D amps I was using while waiting for the Clayton’s to show up…and had no issues there either

the Rel do not need the ground to pick up the signal voltages