Audio Mirror Tubadour V / New and great sounding dac

[Rocknroll]

Received the AM Tubadour V today. I believe the first off the line. I previously was happy owner of Tubadour III and decided to upgrade. I hoped for an improvement over an already great dac. With only an hour of use, wow, a big difference already! I'm not good at descriptions but will do my best. Improved soundstage. Instruments have a distinct position on the stage. Excellent clarity with all instruments and voices. Dynamics are fantastic also, as guitars and pianos seem to come right out at you. Very enjoyable and I am playing cds as if for the first time. Hearing music I didn't hear before. Much more is improved but not sure how to put into words. Audio Mirror Tubadour V is a winner and I just wanted to share my experience.

 

[dminches]

I am sending mine to Vlad for the upgrade next week.

 

[Rocknroll]

I think you will be happy.

 

[Sablon Audio]

I once owned a pair of Vlad’s 6c33c monoblocks and they sounded excellent. He is also a great guy to deal with.

 

[Rocknroll]

You are right about that. I hear that from many. I also own the mono blocs. They have a nice sound and plenty of power.

 

[bfin3]

What's the upgrade cost from iii to v?

 

[WarpedMind]

What's the upgrade cost from iii to v?

$1800 and it is like a trade in. You get a new V as you return the III. The III is not getting just the internals upgraded. Vlad said mine should be shipped this week. I love the III SE. I can't wait to hear the improvement.

 

[Rocknroll]

Vlad has a good ear!

 

[Three quid]

I’ve been pretty happy with my IV, I guess I’ll need to send mine in for more ha-penis

 

[Rocknroll]

I haven't heard the IV. That's what I was going to upgrade to, but ended with the V. When you hear the word improvement it's hard not to go for it. Happy I did. Vlad compares the sound of the V to a Lampizator Pacific, and maybe, I believe, a lil better. If you do upgrade, give us your opinion after some burn in.

 

[WarpedMind]

I didn't even know the V existed until two weeks ago. I check Audio Mirror's site often but I was only looking at the products page. I was going to upgrade to the IV but I happened to look in the news section. That is when I saw the new V being available since June. I emailed Vlad for info, and started him working on it. The UPS tracking shows delivery is scheduled for tomorrow. I plan to get those first 50 hours of burn in out of the way this weekend so it settles in.

 

[Rocknroll]

Nice!

 

[WarpedMind]

The V arrived a little after lunch. I worked from home today so I could inspect the condition as UPS is not very good in my area. But the box was perfect with no blemishes. It is in place and turned on. I'm playing Wino - Adrift which is his acoustic album. Just out of the box I can hear a little better clarity with the guitar strings and the sound stage is a little wider. I will let it play for about 8 hours before I start playing more complex metal music to see how it handles the different layering. The III was rough sounding when it was first put in place for a couple of hours. I do not notice the same for the V. It sounds great from the start.

 

[Rocknroll]

You should hear some noticeable changes in the first 25 hours. Enjoy your new toy.

 

[Rocknroll]

I don't know if I mentioned, but I use the Tubadour to listen to cds. With the V, I would say it is like hearing my cds for the first time. Sounds and layering I hadn't noticed. Very enjoyable for me. Keep us posted when you can.

 

[WarpedMind]

I don't know if I mentioned, but I use the Tubadour to listen to cds. With the V, I would say it is like hearing my cds for the first time. Sounds and layering I hadn't noticed. Very enjoyable for me. Keep us posted when you can.

I have about 6 hours on it. The high hat cymbals are kind of tinny sounding, and some congestion sounding when you have twin guitar attacks as well as the bass line creating some complex passages. I had the same issue on the III until it had some time on it to settle itself out. So far so good. The mid range and main riff guitar really sound nice if its by itself for the simple notes to reverberate out. The break in process continues. The music I play is from cds too. I have over 8k I've been collecting since the early 80s so that is my source for music at home.

 

[Rocknroll]

That's a nice batch of cds. I probably have 300, maybe 400. Just getting back into it the last few years. I have always liked vinyl but lately the cd sound is nice. Storms took out the power in my area and I am missing the music. Enjoy

 

[WarpedMind]

That's a nice batch of cds. I probably have 300, maybe 400. Just getting back into it the last few years. I have always liked vinyl but lately the cd sound is nice. Storms took out the power in my area and I am missing the music. Enjoy

I hope the power is restored soon so you can listen to music. I can live without the phone, tv or internet. But without music I would be totally lost. By far my favorite form of entertainment.

 

[Rocknroll]

Thanks! I agree

 

[Gjo]

I once owned a pair of Vlad’s 6c33c monoblocks and they sounded excellent. He is also a great guy to deal with.

Me too. They might be the best bargain in tube amplification today if you have the appropriate speakers for them. Plus one on Vlad!