Upcoming Italian extravaganza on Zero distortion

[PeterA]

Ok guys, that was one exhaustive write-up, and don't think I have done justice to it. Anyway view this as the first part. Not only do I expect to update this after reflection, but future trips will clarify a few things further

http://zero-distortion.org/the-italian-over-the-top-road-trip/

Most of the stuff was written on the same day and at the airports, to be honest to memories and impressions. It is the pics loading, and sectioning that takes more time.

Great report, Bonzo. There is such a variety of equipment and rooms, you did well just to document what you saw and report on some of the sonics. Your conclusion section is excellent. I understand why you want to go back for more detailed direct comparisons between amps and so forth. I really appreciate your comments about the B&W 805 and the importance of speaker placement within the room. To be able to identify this quality both in such a small speaker and in MikeL's large speakers means that you have learned a lot during your travels and have become a very observant listener.

I noticed many references to Magico speakers: M5, M6, M Pro, Mini, (no Q or S). Perhaps at another time, I would be curious to know what you think of the brand overall, and in particular how it compares to panels for speed, resolution and transparency and to horns in terms of dynamics. It was great to see photos of the Basis W of A turntable which immediately made me think of Ron and AJ, whom I was fortunate to meet once. I have heard a Tenor OTL and Magico Mini2 combination once, but alas, placement was not optimal to hear the full potential of this combination.

I chuckled at the mention of me and Al M regarding small speakers. Our respective systems seem to modest compared to the ones you have encountered. Al and I first came into contact during a thread discussion about small speakers and room size. It turned out that we live 10 minutes apart, and have been fast friends ever since. Every time I hear larger speakers, I have an immediate appreciation for the added extension, impact and full range that they can provide, especially on music like solo cello and large scale classical and Deep Purple. However, the speaker must be appropriate for the room first, and properly positioned, or that added extension simply detracts from the overall quality of the presentation. Size can really mess things up. I have always thought it is better to have believable sound down to 35-40Hz than compromised sound down to 20Hz.

Keep up the travels and reports. You must be learning a lot, and we benefit from your sharing the experiences. Much appreciated.

 

[marslo]

Haha - tough to choose between two of my favorite evils

Ked , If I may , you are always welcome in Poland to listen to Duo Mezzo XD driven by a SET amp.
It would be a pleasure to know you in person and have some nice Polish meal together one day.
BTW, very interesting thread, congrats.

 

[bonzo75]

Thanks Peter, the fact that Dmitri would produce something good on a low budget was already known to Gian. And yes, that room thing, as I mentioned, was shared by Gian and Marco.

I am not saying the Tenor + Mini was ideal, it just did a lot of things better than both Spectral and Airtight, and Spectral is a greta amp. It had a Soulution preamp going in

Magico has higher resolution compared to Apogees, I haven't found anything as dynamic and slammy as an apogee and as seamless through the crossovers (other than Mike's and Marty's systems), some horns do the dynamics excellent as well, and do the microdynamics better. Horns can have high resolution as well. I haven't heard the M Pro and the M6. I find realism much higher on Apogees and horns

Apogees are just too large, so when properly placed, they through the whole plane at you, side to side and front to back. And I prefer the ribbon tone much more, I also prefer different horn timbres (all of them are different- some are excruciatingly painful too). Horns it is difficult to integrate the bass unless it's large.

But realistically, Magicos are consistent, serviceable, and distributable, and a real company. How many good restored Apogees are there that can be bought? Hardly any. In most Horns, sure, I think one should listen to most of them as while not all of them are complete, there are attributes in many which would make you understand how they bring realism closer than cones. Unfortunately Apogee owners are not awareness creators. - when the Grands were launched, then the costliest speaker at 85k, with inflation today 350k, the first 10 pairs were bought by 5 people, two each...That is how special they were. There is a guy in the US who owns each Apogee model with Boulder amps, most of Henk's clients are private, and Henk and Rich are hoobbyists without the desire or marketing power to build a company.

When Gian and I sat with Pietro listening to his Yamamura, we just sat there like in front of a great shaolin master who knows all and has the powers we cannot achieve.

 

[microstrip]

Ok guys, that was one exhaustive write-up, and don't think I have done justice to it. Anyway view this as the first part. Not only do I expect to update this after reflection, but future trips will clarify a few things further

http://zero-distortion.org/the-italian-over-the-top-road-trip/

Most of the stuff was written on the same day and at the airports, to be honest to memories and impressions. It is the pics loading, and sectioning that takes more time.

Great writing Ked. Italians are passionate about high-end and have great systems - I remember looking at articles describing their fine audio magazines in the 90's.

It was nice to read about your findings about the B&W 805 - I wrote the same about the B&W Silver Signature in a similar positioning in WBF. But it was one of the speakers that made me understand how good digital was. IMHO it sounds better with digital than analog ...

Having read your article, I would love to compare the Tenor 75 with the Atmasphere M100 mk3.3 ...

 

[Argonaut]

Interesting reading your consideration of the CLX's bonzo, in particular regarding the base, and as you commented, a good valve Pre and or or D'Agostino amplification would have added weight to the presentation.
They do look rather fine in the dark wood finish, I have seen a pair in Bubinga, it is a shame that they now only offer Cherry in that dark wood option.

 

[Believe High Fidelity]

Thanks Ked that was an excellent journey. I am mildly disappointed there were no food/scenery pictures to go with the rest of the write up.

So if Flyer had the Tenor OTL's and went to Aries Cerat SET's wouldn't it be safe to assume that if the Aries Cerat Collatio II OTL (being a SE OTL design) would also outperform the OTL and be at the top of your list?

Just a thought....

 

[bonzo75]

Thanks Ked that was an excellent journey. I am mildly disappointed there were no food/scenery pictures to go with the rest of the write up.

So if Flyer had the Tenor OTL's and went to Aries Cerat SET's wouldn't it be safe to assume that if the Aries Cerat Collatio II OTL (being a SE OTL design) would also outperform the OTL and be at the top of your list?

Just a thought....

Flyer was using the Tenor 350. The 75 are different. And the price they are available at might be different. Also Flyer is going with a full Aries Cerat system. Either way, the compare will be interesting. And Mike went to the Dartzeel. I will update report later

 

[caliaripaolo]

Ok guys, that was one exhaustive write-up, and don't think I have done justice to it. Anyway view this as the first part. Not only do I expect to update this after reflection, but future trips will clarify a few things further

http://zero-distortion.org/the-italian-over-the-top-road-trip/

Most of the stuff was written on the same day and at the airports, to be honest to memories and impressions. It is the pics loading, and sectioning that takes more time.

Great guy Sergio.
historical figure on hifi market. He was italian distributor for Avalon for long time and if Spectral has a great reputation in Italy, It is due not only about the goodness of the brand but also for Sergio's passion and commercial strength.

 

[bonzo75]

Great guy Sergio.
historical figure on hifi market. He was italian distributor for Avalon for long time and if Spectral has a great reputation in Italy, It is due not only about the goodness of the brand but also for Sergio's passion and commercial strength.

+1. He has it all, and rates Spectral as his favorite amp

 

[caliaripaolo]

rates Spectral as his favorite amp

+1 I cannot but agree with him

 

[bonzo75]

Ked , If I may , you are always welcome in Poland to listen to Duo Mezzo XD driven by a SET amp.
It would be a pleasure to know you in person and have some nice Polish meal together one day.
BTW, very interesting thread, congrats.

Thanks Marslo, if we can do SET amp comparisons, I will be down in a flash

 

[cyclopse]

Thanks for the Italian coverage Bonzo. What this says to me is there are so many companies and options to consider when looking for that system synergy which is wonderful when you get it right.

 

[bonzo75]

Thanks for the Italian coverage Bonzo. What this says to me is there are so many companies and options to consider when looking for that system synergy which is wonderful when you get it right.

The problem is most fail to look outside the usual suspects and a lot of money is spent on the wrong things. There are a lot of sunk costs in hifi, unfortunately which keep people building down the wrong path

 

[ack]

Thanks for taking the time to write all this up! Very useful, and I wish I were in your shoes! (How do I get your job??? )

 

[bonzo75]

Thanks for taking the time to write all this up! Very useful, and I wish I were in your shoes! (How do I get your job??? )

Writing is the easy part, and I enjoy it, which, I guess, is why I do it. It's the pics and downloading, uploading that takes time.

 

[andromedaaudio]

AFAIC bonzo is the most expirienced audiophile .
But my question is what would you buy yourself ??

 

[bonzo75]

AFAIC bonzo is the most expirienced audiophile

No, not necessarily, I couldn't set up like Mike or Marty, nowhere close, and can't even clean vinyl. These are things already known to Gian, Pietro, DDk, etc

 

[andromedaaudio]

I meant it in a way of various soundimpressions in general .
I agree some people built great amps, some great sources , some great speakers , some great rooms ,,...... ( ,....some great cables ) lol .
And some know how to put everything together , its a team effort afterall

 

[andromedaaudio]

Oh i forget one thing ,?

Some make great music and movies

 

[bonzo75]

I meant it in a way of various soundimpressions in general .
I agree some people built great amps, some great sources , some great speakers , some great rooms ,,...... ( ,....some great cables ) lol .
And some know how to put everything together , its a team effort afterall

Sound impressions I hope so, I wish people pick up some different systems from the blog to listen to, then the usual ones that they do. Some speakers are more represented than others closer to us and at hifi shows, making them the standard reference. Listening to different types of sounds makes us realize there are different ways to realism, and some are better at a lower cost.