the NHB-458's are here

[Gregadd]

Who says they're not , frankly and sound aside , Mike's pursuit , effort and determination is off the charts and very inspirational and not just in an audio kind of way ....

Mike's been on the hot seat. His invitation for his critics to come listen for themselves has frequently been ignored. Why listen when you already know it can't be so. So in answer to your question:I do.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

How did you play the DSD128 at Mike's? Did you avoid the Korg's DAC/analog section

hi Sam,

Rich brought a USB stick with the files that i plugged into my server (upstairs in my rec room) and (my son with 'log me in' remotely) copied them onto my hard drive. my Playback Designs plays dsd x2 over USB from that server. i had no problem playing those files.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Thanks for the video. I can get a sense of the sound. The dynamics were excellent.

I still can't imagine why audiophiles skeptics are not begging for a chance to audition your system. You have addressed every issue I can think of regarding audio playback. If nothing else they could enjoy some good music and company.

i did have 4 different visitors this weekend.

and i have a few somewhat tentatively scheduled for this next week.

and some are waiting for my tt to return. without getting into the digital-tape-vinyl debate, the tt is the star of the show and i'm most connected to my Lps. my tt is gone due to user error. i screwed up. a week ago while tidying up i moved the power supply box. i unplugged the 2 RJ-45 cables (to re-route them) which connect the power supply (which are color coded) and stupidly reversed them when i plugged it back in. i could not see their orientation clearly and was simply careless. it fried something.....which required that the NVS be sent back to California for repair. i've been beating myself up since but i do have new toys to hold me over until return maybe as soon as tomorrow night. i've have listened to maybe 30 tapes this weekend, some i'd not listened to for a few years and that has been fun.

but i miss my tt! i have not yet listened to my tt with the 458's.....so something to really look forward to.

i know that being honest about screwups can sometimes come back to bite me (as those who want to dig on me will do what they do), but thought it would be good to come clean.

 

[Gregadd]

We could start a thread called audiophile bloopers. Maybe I could tell how I hit myself in the head with a dumbell.

Mike my point is your setup is like an audiophile lab. You can put your theories to a real world test.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Thanks for the cable input , you have really covered all your bases , as for the Uncle Mike stuff , just a show of respect for one ahead and on his game , plus Jordan already has dibs on the "just wanting to be like Mike " ....

Uncle Mike was available ..

 

[microstrip]

(...) my tt is gone due to user error. i screwed up. a week ago while tidying up i moved the power supply box. i unplugged the 2 RJ-45 cables (to re-route them) which connect the power supply (which are color coded) and stupidly reversed them when i plugged it back in. i could not see their orientation clearly and was simply careless. it fried something.....which required that the NVS be sent back to California for repair. i've been beating myself up since (...)

Mike,

You should not beat yourself, such things can happen. But while the turntable is at the factory you should ask them to replace one of the connectors with a non compatible one - such a mistake is very easily made and should not be possible in such an high quality item. Even with similar connectors there should be a mechanical way of preventing wrong insertion.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Mike,

You should not beat yourself, such things can happen. But while the turntable is at the factory you should ask them to replace one of the connectors with a non compatible one - such a mistake is very easily made and should not be possible in such an high quality item. Even with similar connectors there should be a mechanical way of preventing wrong insertion.

thanks. those thoughts did run thru my mind afterward. they should have made it idiot proof for guys like me.

when you use products on the edge there is a higher level of attention required. my system is pretty involved and has lots of moving parts. i'm not a techie and so i accept that from time to time i will 'fat-finger' something and it will bite me.

it comes with the territory....yet your comments are right on too.

 

[jasbirnandra]

mike
congrats on the new equipment, boy do they look beautiful.i dont want to be rude but how much do they cost someone day i am sure to buy a pair congrats once again

 

[Mike Lavigne]

mike
congrats on the new equipment, boy do they look beautiful.i dont want to be rude but how much do they cost someone day i am sure to buy a pair congrats once again

thanks, pictures do not do justice to the true beauty of these amps. i admit to loving just to touch the switch to put them in and out of standby. i will walk up and stare at them. i suppose i'm under their spell at this point....or maybe i am still not convinced that they are really actually sitting in my room just yet.

i'd rather not get into price here as a discussion subject (not that it's a big deal), but the price is listed in this review by Michael Fremer toward the bottom of the first page if you are curious.

http://www.stereophile.com/content/dartzeel-nhb-458-monoblock-amplifier

 

[Mike Lavigne]

i was kinda tired tonight so i just loaded up some mellow stuff off the server and allowed the music to wash over me. wonderful.

i noticed simply how engaging the system is at low listening levels. the bass is still there with excellent dynamics and tonality, even at low levels. there is 'life' and micro-dynamics, the soundstage does not shrink and get small, and everything is holgraphic and fills the room with music. i imagine the live-ness and diffusion of my room has something to do with this, but i also think that the refinement of the 458's and MM7's really helps to keep things involving. and then there is the very low noise floor which does not mask the delicacy and nuance of the music at low levels.

right now i'm listening to YoYo Ma's 'Appalichian Journey' on streaming dsd thru the server. really beautiful.

one reason i brought this up was that i had a visitor on Saturday night that liked to listen at very low levels. he had hearing issues and loud music caused him discomfort. so we listened at low levels for 3 hours. he commented that he was amazed at how involving the system was at those low levels and commented how rare it was to find a system that could do that.

 

[A.wayne]

Your observation is spot on when listening to a balanced system , it should sound the same at low or high listenings , raising or lowering the volume should only change the SPL , not it's balance ...

What are your db levels when listening normally ....?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Your observation is spot on when listening to a balanced system , it should sound the same at low or high listenings , raising or lowering the volume should only change the SPL , not it's balance ...

i still feel that each recording has an ideal level where it fully comes alive, but this system retains more engagment at lower levels than i have heard before. some music works better at modest levels than others.

What are your db levels when listening normally ....?

i never measure, but i'll say normal is around 66db-68db as a mean level, with peaks higher.

relatively; last night and Saturday night was 7-8db lower. however normally with visitors the level is raised slightly, say 2-3db higher than my mean. this has much to do with the fact that i'm not in the sweet spot with visitors, so i must ask what visitors might prefer. and the system stays comfortable at high SPL's so sometimes it's easy to get it up there without realizing it.

my numbers are relatively accurate, but probably not spot on.

 

[A.wayne]

66-68 db is very low mike , you may have meant 76/78db which is a reasonable level and typical for me with no visitors or late at night, with one particular visitor db Peaks are in the 90-92db range with avg din around 82 -83db ...

He's a front row kind of guy .....

 

[mep]

66-68 db is very low mike , you may have meant 76/78db which is a reasonable level and typical for me with no visitors or late at night ....

I was thinking the same thing because 66dB-68dB would be the inherent interior noise level of many cars driving down the road at 50+ mph. I for one would be asking you to turn up the volume.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

66-68 db is very low mike , you may have meant 76/78db which is a reasonable level and typical for me with no visitors or late at night, with one particular visitor db Peaks are in the 90-92db range with avg din around 82 -83db ...

He's a front row kind of guy .....

I was thinking the same thing because 66dB-68dB would be the inherent interior noise level of many cars driving down the road at 50+ mph. I for one would be asking you to turn up the volume.

as i said, my numbers were relative. likely you are both correct that i'm mid-70's not mid 60's. makes sense.

i do try to keep things at reasonable levels for regular listening.

 

[mep]

as i said, my numbers were relative. likely you are both correct that i'm mid-70's not mid 60's. makes sense.

i do try to keep things at reasonable levels for regular listening.

I guess “reasonable” is the operative word here. I like the statement you made that every recording has a “correct” level it needs to be played back at in order to sound realistic. I agree with that 100% Just like mechanical rules such as “righty tighty and lefty loosey” or my favorite-“tight is tight and too tight is broke,” there is an optimum level to play back any given recording. I like it when I have turned my system on for two hours before my listening session with the music server pumping out the tunes and I walk downstairs to my room and I open the door and I feel like I’m walking in on a live performance.

 

[Gregadd]

Mike i hope you don't mind i took this for Audiogon.the Equi=tech provides whole system power isolation and regeneration. it lowers noise, increases dynamics and improves the power supply linearity of all electronics in your system. this power grid is completely separate from my 'dirty' panel for my barn which runs lights, HVAC and other 'non-audio' needs.

S tand alone power conditioning boxes are like toys in comparison. i respect that stand alone power conditioners can improve things in systems, and not everyone can logistically install a whole system isolation transformer. but many times stand alone power conditioners can end up being trade-offs reducing dynamics while lowering noise particularly on amplifiers since they can't store enough energy. i have no particular experience with the PS Audio so i cannot say how it works exactly. the other thing is that if you have multiple stand alone power conditioners (and some are very expensive) it might not be that much more to install an Equi=tech and be at an 'end point' and forget about those separate boxes forever. an Equi-tech wall panel system, depending on which one you get, will run you $10k-$15k installed all in. when you do it every piece of gear you own gets an upgrade. it is a very cost effective way to get a whole system improvement. you just need a qualified commercial electrician.

i also have 10 gauge Romex home runs to Furutech GTX-D Rhodium duplex outlets, with Oyaide WPC-Z outlet covers, for every component. for power cords i use 2 Evolution Acoustics (TRPC) triple run power cords for my dart 458 mono blocks, and 10 Absolute Fidelity (by Genesis Technology loudspeakers) power cords for all my other gear.

i take power grid management very seriously and the very best sounding systems i have heard use the Equi=tech.

 

[MarinJim]

Man, you have to get a bigger kitchen with a sink.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Man, you have to get a bigger kitchen with a sink.

it's the hallway outside my listening room in my barn. maybe you could call it my vinyl kitchen as now i have 2 record cleaners, my Lp demag unit, the Lp flatener, and record shelves everywhere. the door to the listening room is opposite the wall with the Equi=tech on it.

there is a good sized room at the other end of the hallway which is part 3/4 bath, with a utility sink and long countertop in it where i may add an undercounter refridgerator and ice maker at some point. got to get my wife over the amps and speakers first.

 

[AudioExplorations]

Mike, did Herve manage to retain the "magic" sound of the 108 in the mono's? Are they just a ballsier version of the 108 or sonically different in any way?