Lost the 'Magic' and had to fight to get the sound back...

[Synaxis]

Saturday night brought one of those deep, immersive listening sessions — the kind where you chase the elusive magic for hours until it finally clicks in the final moments.

I had a full setup in play again, and it felt great to be back with the entire Aries-Cerat stack:

-Aries-Cerat Helene DAC;
-Aries-Cerat Incito Preamp (I do think I'm going to need to upgrade this at some point);
-Aries-Cerat Concero 25 Monoblocks resting proudly on Deep Lake Audio amp stands;
-All fed by my trusty Pink Faun Scion server (replaced my Antipodes) and anchored by the ever-glorious Tobian 12FH speakers (still my favorite, after all this time and all the speakers that have come and gone).

I spent over 5 hours listening, tweaking, and trying to figure out why things sounded off — not right. Bass felt a way soft, vocals were glassy and closed in, and the magic just wasn’t fully there and it was a cold analytical listen.

Challenge accepted - I dove in.

First, I adjusted the many bias settings on the Aries-Cerat gear. I could hear the shifts, but they weren’t solving the issue.

Then I swapped out cables in which order they were in my system. I own both the STEALTH Audio Indura and STEALTH Sakra RCA cables (both absolute top tier cables).

Let me say this:

The Indura is excellent. The Sakra? On another level. When you hear the Sakra, you realize it’s simply “more” of the Indura’s goodness — more air, more detail, more emotion.
Having only one Sakra in the chain (DAC to preamp) and the Indura from preamp to monoblocks might have been one of the issues. When using an integrated, it’s Sakra-only — and it’s stunning. But in this full stack? Mixing may matter more.

Then I remembered… I had changed the GZ34 rectifier in the Helene DAC to a late 1950s vintage, but left the preamp with a new production. Rookie move.

Time for a decision:

1950s Holland Amperex or Made in England Mullard? I went with the Amperex. And ahhhhh — instant improvement.

Still, something was missing.

I pondered over another adult beverage… and then it hit me (not the drink): I had also changed the vibration isolation platforms!
Could that really be it?

Out again came the Graphite Audio footers (my favorite high-end fitters currently), and back they went under the DAC and preamp (they were still under the streamer). And holy crap — the magic was BACK.

Tight, full bass.

Huge, open, effortless vocals.

A soundstage that finally breathed.

This wasn’t just "good sound" — this was music again.

And that, my friends, is why I call it Audiophile Adventures. For me this hobby isn’t just about gear — it’s about the journey, the discoveries, and the occasional small tweak that brings everything to life.

 

[Kingrex]

Why did you tare it down and need to put it back together?

 

[Synaxis]

Why did you tare it down and need to put it back together?

I have a lot of gear come and go for me to create content on.

 

[Synaxis]

Here is a link to the sound BEFORE I got it fixed.

Taken on a simple iPhone with no special mic nor any sound editing of any kind.

 

[hopkins]

Here is a link to the sound BEFORE I got it fixed.

Taken on a simple iPhone with no special mic nor any sound editing of any kind.

Sounds good. I was curious to try that track on my modest system:

(had to make it into a short for copyright reasons)

I would be curious to compare my amp with the Aries Cerat on your speakers!

The album is well recorded, it sounds incredibly “live”….

 

[Another Johnson]

Don’t forget

 

[Synaxis]

Sounds good. I was curious to try that track on my modest system:

(had to make it into a short for copyright reasons)

I would be curious to compare my amp with the Aries Cerat on your speakers!

The album is well recorded, it sounds incredibly “live”….

Thanks for sharing! It's a great album for sure.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Tobian speakers.

 

[MarkusBarkus]

...Greek Tobian Geek.

 

[Synaxis]

...Greek Tobian Geek.

For sure! LOL

 

[Grateful]

Don’t forget

Awesome, there’s nothing funnier than the truth!

 

[hopkins]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Tobian speakers.

The price tag is high and I get a kick out of going « low cost » so they are not for me. I am sure they sound great. When watching your videos, however, I can’t help thinking that you are wasting some real estate by having your speakers so close together in that room and I do find, paradoxicalky, that you can hear the room a lot in your recording. You may want to take another shot at testing différent placements, maybe things that you have not tried before ?

 

[Synaxis]

The price tag is high and I get a kick out of going « low cost » so they are not for me. I am sure they sound great. When watching your videos, however, I can’t help thinking that you are wasting some real estate by having your speakers so close together in that room and I do find, paradoxicalky, that you can hear the room a lot in your recording. You may want to take another shot at testing différent placements, maybe things that you have not tried before ?

I agree - I am always experimenting with position and such (I even tried them 90 degrees on another wall and also 45 degrees). The room is deceiving how it looks - the speakers are almost 9 feet apart.

It's also weird (and I agree with you) in my videos my room sounds much more lively than it is in real life. It's certainly not a dead room by any means, but not as lively as my talking video mic's make it out to be.

 

[hopkins]

I agree - I am always experimenting with position and such (I even tried them 90 degrees on another wall and also 45 degrees). The room is deceiving how it looks - the speakers are almost 9 feet apart.

Ok, I did think they were much closer! How far are you sitting from the speakers?

It's also weird (and I agree with you) in my videos my room sounds much more lively than it is in real life. It's certainly not a dead room by any means, but not as lively as my talking video mic's make it out to be.

What counts is how you hear it, which is always going to be different than a recording.

 

[thedudeabides]

Do you enjoy revising your system gear, once you discovered the "magic" combination, with the result being a compromise to your previous optimum combination? Would seem frustrating from a "enjoy the music" perspective. Also, do you find the gear you review to be generally that sensitive to IC's and isolation devices to find the most satisfying musical option. Seems like alot of effort for short term enjoyment. Best.

 

[Blue58]

Lost the magic here over a few weeks with addition of Stack Audio Auva EQs to various components plus a hearing check revealed I’m down to <4Khz in my left ear possibly due to ‘swimmers ear’.
On top of that I checked when my power tubes were installed (EML45globes) and remarkably they are 10yrs old so have close to 10K hrs on them.
Wish me luck sorting this out.

 

[Synaxis]

Do you enjoy revising your system gear, once you discovered the "magic" combination, with the result being a compromise to your previous optimum combination? Would seem frustrating from a "enjoy the music" perspective. Also, do you find the gear you review to be generally that sensitive to IC's and isolation devices to find the most satisfying musical option. Seems like alot of effort for short term enjoyment. Best.

Hi - I enjoy the trial and error and trying different things.

Even when it's a step backwards, I enjoy the challenge to try and get the best sound out of it.

For me the journey is the fun part, reaching the destination can get boring after a while.

 

[Synaxis]

Lost the magic here over a few weeks with addition of Stack Audio Auva EQs to various components plus a hearing check revealed I’m down to <4Khz in my left ear possibly due to ‘swimmers ear’.
On top of that I checked when my power tubes were installed (EML45globes) and remarkably they are 10yrs old so have close to 10K hrs on them.
Wish me luck sorting this out.

Good luck!

I know Stack Audio states their footers need time to rest after travel - like a couple of weeks. Not sure if you gave them time to set?

I know some server and switch MFG's who state the same thing.

10K is a LOT of hours on the tubes for sure.

 

[Synaxis]

Saturday Night Vibes Loading…

Getting ready for another Saturday night listening session tonight, and as I prep gear and warm up tubes, I keep thinking back to last week’s setup… and man, what a night that was!

-- Bunoco 300B Integrated
-- Western Electric 300Bs
-- Aries-Cerat Helene DAC (Believe High Fidelity)
-- Pink Faun Scion server
-- Network Acoustics Tempus switch
-- All flowing through STEALTH Audio cables into my beloved Tobian 12FH speakers.

Right from the jump, I rolled in a pair of 1943 black glass National Union 6SN7s — and that set the mood:
Sweet. Musical. Rhythmic. Toe-tapping.
No thoughts of tweaking. No urge to swap tubes. Just music.
(Well… until about halfway through

)

Eric Clapton’s “Before You Accuse Me” started playing. It’s not even a great recording — but somehow, it sounded full, alive, fun.
My toe was tapping. My head was bobbing.
And yes… I may or may not have busted out a little air guitar.

Curiosity got the best of me, so I swapped in my 1951 Raytheon 6SN7s.
Result?
Still sweet. A little more clarity. Just as magical. Both equally as good just a bit different from each other.
Honestly, I could live with this system forever. The synergy was that good.

But then… the night took a turn.
The adult beverages flowed — and I decided to relive my rave days…
ON 300Bs!

Yes I'm that cray-cray.

It cranked. It rocked. It transported me back to a time when life was a little more carefree and a lot more electronic. The Tobians are truly magical speakers.

Drink of choice?
Imported Sicilian lemon soda + my favorite French vodka.
Refreshing. Dangerous. Perfect.

Stay tuned for tonight’s session - I'm thinking 807 tubes will be the tube of the night. Who knows where the music (and the tubes… and the soda) will take me.

 

[Balle Clorin]

Good to hear you got the good sound back . Changing around on tubes and things can sometimes do too much, finding back is always a relief.