Hello fellow WBF'ers
This is my first post on WBF, so here goes...
I just wanted to share that I feel very privileged and fortunate shortly to be taking delivery of Aries Cerat Concero LE monos, Impera LE preamp and Symphonia LE speakers. This has been a lengthy process in deciding my new mega-system and I have been very well supported and serviced by the Australian Aries Cerat distributor, Rob at Purasound.
I did not intend to go right down the hi-fi rabbit hole, although around the middle of last year I was looking to upgrade my amplifier. I was very close to pulling the trigger on a pair of Ayon Vulcan Evo monos and stumbled across this rather esoteric and extravagant looking brand, Aries Cerat. I did quite a bit of reading about the brand (including numerous contributions on this forum) and narrowed in on the Concero monos, so I contacted the Australian distributor to find out some info and arrange a demo. Long story short, around that time a second-hand pair of Concero LE monos and matching Impera LE preamp became available. Of course, this was waaaay beyond my intended purchase, but these opportunities don't come along very often so I bit the bullet, as they say.
In the meantime I had the opportunity to demo the AC Kassandra Ref DAC. Again, I had no real intention of buying a hulking new DAC as I thought my AN 2.1 Sig was doing a fine job (which it was). However, I had the Kass on loan at home for a few weeks and the decision made itself. OK, DAC sorted, easy!
By this time I realized that my Dynaudio Contour 60s (which, in fairness are not at all shabby and of which I am very fond) were likely going to be way outclassed by this incredible AC gear (understatement!), so I spent quite a bit of time researching and demo'ing speakers that would do it justice. I knew Rob had a pair of Symphonia LE speakers that he cherished and of which he spoke very highly. I did hear them in his system late last year, but I wasn't seriously considering them and had a head cold at the time, so I didn't really give them a proper audition. Anyway, after much consideration - and knowing that speakers like these don't pop up very often - I decided to go back and give them a proper audition. Of course, the outcome was pretty much predestined... I listened to several other very high-end speakers prior to, and in the same session, and then finally the Symphonias. Well, after testing a pretty wide variety of music: from Marcin (Kashmir), Manu Katche (Number One), Nicholas Parent Trio (Tori), Brad Mehldau Trio (Since I Fell for You), Sara Bareilles (Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay), Patricia Barber (A Taste of Honey), Cecilia Bartoli (Casta Diva), Evgeny Kissin (Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20), Patricia Kopathchinskaja (Beethoven Violin Sonata No. 7) - and some other random stuff I can't remember - and ending by absolutely belting out the Fleetwood Mac live at Wembley Arena version of Rhiannon, where the song starts of almost half-heartedly but in the second half the band goes absolutely apeshit; I was literally, utterly speechless! My listening session with the Symphonias was a mixture of suspended disbelief - the brain is struggling to process in real-time something that it knows should not be possible - mixed with raw emotion and a visceral sense of real music that sounds and feels just so right. Everything else I had heard up to that point paled into a mere facsimile of music; the Symphonias are music! So I told Rob I simply had to have those speakers (if he would be so kind as to dispose of them into my grateful and loving custody (gulp); that is, afterall, why he acquires this amazing stuff in the first place
) - and the rest is history.
BTW, I have also told Rob that I do intend to relieve him of his recently-acquired Kassandra LE DAC, but it will need to wait a little bit as I have a number of other pressing business investments that will need to take priority, plus I need to find a way to convince my wife of the need to replace the DAC that I just purchased with an upgraded version (she has been utterly supportive, albeit even more utterly bemused at this journey so far, so I think I'm pretty close to the line at this point. Although, if the number of massive black and silver boxes magically goes from seven to eight, who would even notice?).
Finally, I would like to acknowledge Stavros' supreme graciousness (he agreed to a Zoom call to discuss the LE gear and various options, and has given various pieces of advice along the way) along with his many other-worldly talents. I like to research as much information as I can find about a topic in which I am interested (especially when it involves a not insignificant investment of time and funds) and I am truly in awe of how this creative genius has managed to acquire, possess and bring together all of the necessary elements to develop such amazing music-making creations: intellectual brilliance (physics, mathematics, electrical engineering, computing), artistic skill and appreciation in the extreme, huge financial investment and the courage to be true to his own values and passion. These are things that most companies (especially large ones) can rarely collate, let alone manage, due to shareholder demands and multiple conflicting wills, but Stavros has managed to do just that. Bravo!
So, my new AC LE gear is due to arrive in Oz very shortly. I have been waiting very patiently so far, but now that it is so close I seriously can't wait to see and hear it! I will post pics and give updates once the system is installed and has settled in.
Cheers, Matt.
This is my first post on WBF, so here goes...
I just wanted to share that I feel very privileged and fortunate shortly to be taking delivery of Aries Cerat Concero LE monos, Impera LE preamp and Symphonia LE speakers. This has been a lengthy process in deciding my new mega-system and I have been very well supported and serviced by the Australian Aries Cerat distributor, Rob at Purasound.
I did not intend to go right down the hi-fi rabbit hole, although around the middle of last year I was looking to upgrade my amplifier. I was very close to pulling the trigger on a pair of Ayon Vulcan Evo monos and stumbled across this rather esoteric and extravagant looking brand, Aries Cerat. I did quite a bit of reading about the brand (including numerous contributions on this forum) and narrowed in on the Concero monos, so I contacted the Australian distributor to find out some info and arrange a demo. Long story short, around that time a second-hand pair of Concero LE monos and matching Impera LE preamp became available. Of course, this was waaaay beyond my intended purchase, but these opportunities don't come along very often so I bit the bullet, as they say.
In the meantime I had the opportunity to demo the AC Kassandra Ref DAC. Again, I had no real intention of buying a hulking new DAC as I thought my AN 2.1 Sig was doing a fine job (which it was). However, I had the Kass on loan at home for a few weeks and the decision made itself. OK, DAC sorted, easy!
By this time I realized that my Dynaudio Contour 60s (which, in fairness are not at all shabby and of which I am very fond) were likely going to be way outclassed by this incredible AC gear (understatement!), so I spent quite a bit of time researching and demo'ing speakers that would do it justice. I knew Rob had a pair of Symphonia LE speakers that he cherished and of which he spoke very highly. I did hear them in his system late last year, but I wasn't seriously considering them and had a head cold at the time, so I didn't really give them a proper audition. Anyway, after much consideration - and knowing that speakers like these don't pop up very often - I decided to go back and give them a proper audition. Of course, the outcome was pretty much predestined... I listened to several other very high-end speakers prior to, and in the same session, and then finally the Symphonias. Well, after testing a pretty wide variety of music: from Marcin (Kashmir), Manu Katche (Number One), Nicholas Parent Trio (Tori), Brad Mehldau Trio (Since I Fell for You), Sara Bareilles (Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay), Patricia Barber (A Taste of Honey), Cecilia Bartoli (Casta Diva), Evgeny Kissin (Mozart Piano Concerto No. 20), Patricia Kopathchinskaja (Beethoven Violin Sonata No. 7) - and some other random stuff I can't remember - and ending by absolutely belting out the Fleetwood Mac live at Wembley Arena version of Rhiannon, where the song starts of almost half-heartedly but in the second half the band goes absolutely apeshit; I was literally, utterly speechless! My listening session with the Symphonias was a mixture of suspended disbelief - the brain is struggling to process in real-time something that it knows should not be possible - mixed with raw emotion and a visceral sense of real music that sounds and feels just so right. Everything else I had heard up to that point paled into a mere facsimile of music; the Symphonias are music! So I told Rob I simply had to have those speakers (if he would be so kind as to dispose of them into my grateful and loving custody (gulp); that is, afterall, why he acquires this amazing stuff in the first place
) - and the rest is history.BTW, I have also told Rob that I do intend to relieve him of his recently-acquired Kassandra LE DAC, but it will need to wait a little bit as I have a number of other pressing business investments that will need to take priority, plus I need to find a way to convince my wife of the need to replace the DAC that I just purchased with an upgraded version
(she has been utterly supportive, albeit even more utterly bemused at this journey so far, so I think I'm pretty close to the line at this point. Although, if the number of massive black and silver boxes magically goes from seven to eight, who would even notice?).Finally, I would like to acknowledge Stavros' supreme graciousness (he agreed to a Zoom call to discuss the LE gear and various options, and has given various pieces of advice along the way) along with his many other-worldly talents. I like to research as much information as I can find about a topic in which I am interested (especially when it involves a not insignificant investment of time and funds) and I am truly in awe of how this creative genius has managed to acquire, possess and bring together all of the necessary elements to develop such amazing music-making creations: intellectual brilliance (physics, mathematics, electrical engineering, computing), artistic skill and appreciation in the extreme, huge financial investment and the courage to be true to his own values and passion. These are things that most companies (especially large ones) can rarely collate, let alone manage, due to shareholder demands and multiple conflicting wills, but Stavros has managed to do just that. Bravo!
So, my new AC LE gear is due to arrive in Oz very shortly. I have been waiting very patiently so far, but now that it is so close I seriously can't wait to see and hear it! I will post pics and give updates once the system is installed and has settled in.
Cheers, Matt.
