With the long and fascinating "Natural Sound" thread, I thought it would be interesting to me, and hopefully others, to compare (imperfectly but still revealingly), Peggy Lee's "Fever" as done on the on Peter's vintage analog Vitavox/Lamm system, David's Bionor/Lamm and my all digital Boenicke/Bakoon system.
The differences I hear between the Vintage systems and my set-up are stark.
Both the Bionors and Vitavox most notably have a profound bass with depth and weight. It's visceral and gutsy. I'm guessing this is coming not just from the speakers but the Lamm's as well. Both systems show life-like, full blooded dynamics and dimension across the frequency range.
It sounds like the Bionors would be amazing to hear in person with
their spaciousness and scale. The speakers and room size seem to be well matched. I feel like possibly the Vitavox's could use some more space. They almost seem too muscular for the somewhat petite room. I can hear the room with both systems, but much more so in the Vitavox room where I hear a pronounced echo/reverb. I know room treatment is not part of the Natural Sound ethos, but I feel the Vitavox system is demanding it. I also found the Vitavox system, outside of the bass frequencies, to sound a little stressed or rough in comparison to the very relaxed Bionors. I'm sure the Peter's nascent Vitavox system will keep evolving and improving.
Both of these remarkable vintage systems make the bass in my Boenicke/Bakoon setup sound "polite" or even anemic by comparison! The bass is less visceral and dynamic. This will improve when I get around to making a more dedicated effort at speaker placement, but don't believe will equal the dramatic bass in the Bionors and Vitavox (or my past Avantgardes).
On the plus side I do hear a clean and relaxed sound which was my intention with this system. Because I have significant room treatment (combination of absorption/diffusion) I believe I can hear deeper into the recording without the room distracting or distorting.
So, all in all, an interesting comparison for me.