Back to tubes

[sidvee]

I recently got a pair of Tungsol Kt150's for my Lyric Ti100MkII. Though I did not notice a major difference from the Tung Sol Kt120, I did perceive improved dynamics perhaps due to the available additional headroom. All in all it is an excellent tube and is providing 20 watts of glorious single ended power to my Ascendo's.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[essrand]

Hi Sidvee,

You have an amazing system.
Where did you buy the Bricasti M1 SE? (its on my shortlist)

Was it a local dealer or from the USA? I might pick up one myself sometime soon esp with the the built-in network player.

Cheers,
Bhaskar

 

[sidvee]

Hi Sidvee,

You have an amazing system.
Where did you buy the Bricasti M1 SE? (its on my shortlist)

Was it a local dealer or from the USA? I might pick up one myself sometime soon esp with the the built-in network player.

Cheers,
Bhaskar

Thanks Bhaskar,
I picked it up on a recent visit to US (I don't think there is an Indian dealer for Bricasti). Yes do consider the Network player option. In my communication with Brian Zolner, CEO of Bricasti, he indicated that it really adds to the SQ if you are considering streaming option. It does add about $1.5k to the total but it has been highly recommended by independent listeners. I recently got an Aurender N100H hence I didn't go for this option.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[sidvee]

About 4 years ago, I picked up a Sine Audio S30a power conditioner on a visit to Singapore. This unit has consistently performed superbly in my setup, helping combat noise, creating blacker backgrounds, increasing dynamics etc. Indeed if one considers proper acoustics of a room to be a basic building block of a decent hi-fi system, then I would say that proper power supply to the equipment is equally important. Recently when I had the opportunity I got the TOTL model from Sine, The Gateway 2. The build quality of this is on an another level entirely, built from a chunk of aluminum weighing in at 25kg. Of-course this is not just about a pretty face. When I hooked it up, the overall improvement in the sound was remarkable. I was hearing things in familiar tunes that I had missed before, plus the blackness in the background was astonishing. All in all a superb audio component. Shown here with my S30A for comparison.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[sidvee]

Deployed in my system.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[sidvee]

And the s30a moved to my 2nd system.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[cha_indian]

@sidvee You are going higher and higher! I think the time is ripe for another HIFI Meetup in Hyderabad. It been a while . isn't it ?

 

[sidvee]

@sidvee You are going higher and higher! I think the time is ripe for another HIFI Meetup in Hyderabad. It been a while . isn't it ?

Yes it certainly has been a while since our last meet. I think there is already a thread on Hyderabad members and perhaps a Whatsapp group as well. Perhaps a new meet can result from the activities of this group. I will definitely participate should there be another meet.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[drkrack]

Yes it certainly has been a while since our last meet. I think there is already a thread on Hyderabad members and perhaps a Whatsapp group as well. Perhaps a new meet can result from the activities of this group. I will definitely participate should there be another meet.
Cheers,
Sid

Its nice to see the purest power, the least commonly emphasized component of audio chain is getting its due importance in your thread. If you could share the approx pricing of the components, it'd be great as well. You had mentioned about Murthy Power Box in a previous post few years ago, how do they compare with these components in terms of both functionality and performance wise?

The Hyderabad WhatsApp group members had a meeting yesterday, basically aimed at comparing the performance of budget speakers and amplification, and display of DIY full range speakers by members. It was a great experience, which went on for 6hrs+ as against the original plan of 3hrs. Needless to say everyone enjoyed a lot, and survived on water and music mostly (lunch wasn't in the original plan). We'll update the post with pics and details. Anyone from hyderabad can join the WA group and next meetings will be duly intimated.

 

[sidvee]

Its nice to see the purest power, the least commonly emphasized component of audio chain is getting its due importance in your thread. If you could share the approx pricing of the components, it'd be great as well. You had mentioned about Murthy Power Box in a previous post few years ago, how do they compare with these components in terms of both functionality and performance wise?

Thanks Drkrack. I bought the Sine S30A 3-4 years ago. Don't remember the pricing exactly but I believe it was approx. around SGD $1200, not sure of current pricing. The Gateway 2 also picked up in Singapore is priced at SGD $4800. Mr. Murthy's box is great for what is does (provides you with additional outlets if you run out of outlets, like a power strip) but it is not a power conditioner. So really cannot compare it to the sine products as both the Sine units I have are power conditioners.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[Rajeshh]

I got an aurender N100H and have listened to it for a few hours. Compared to the sotm200 this is sounding much better. It is smoother, midrange is more lush and overall it sounds more analog than the sotm. More importantly it lets me clean up my shelf of all the associated paraphernalia required to make the stom200 sound good like the linear psu, external usb hub etc.
Cheers,
Sid

Great thread & post Sid.
I am looking to get either a streamers like the Aurender N100H/Auralic G1 or the SOTM USBulta/ISO Regen + Mac mini.
Your views on this will be greatly appreciated.

Have you listened to Streaming music like Tidal or Quboz on the Aurender? how does that compare against music stored on the Aurender's drives?
Also I believe Aurender has updated their firmware & the Ipad Apps recently, do you see any positive change with that?
how does the app compare against Roon?

 

[sidvee]

Great thread & post Sid.

Thanks Rajeshh

I am looking to get either a streamers like the Aurender N100H/Auralic G1 or the SOTM USBulta/ISO Regen + Mac mini.
Your views on this will be greatly appreciated.

I have tried the SOTM200 (with HDplex LPSU) with SOTM USB hub, but preferred the Aurender n100h. To me there was no difference with the sotm in the loop or running a dedicated windows 7 music computer running Jriver mc22, at-least that I could hear. Aurender was better. It was more transparent and resolving and sounded less digital, when related to SQ, however there was a huge convenience - to be able to control my music without a PC - with the Conductor App. Right there is a big advantage and even without the SQ increase I would opt for this.

Have you listened to Streaming music like Tidal or Quboz on the Aurender? how does that compare against music stored on the Aurender's drives?

No I have not tried streaming at all. All my music is stored on the Aurender or a 1gb HDD connected to the Aurender via usb.

Also I believe Aurender has updated their firmware & the Ipad Apps recently, do you see any positive change with that?

Not really, I upgraded my Aurender firmware to the latest version last week. I think it is more for MQA related issues and some other formatting, cover art issues and internet radio stations etc. As far the conductor app goes I am not an apple user, so I am using the android version on a phone and it is very basic, but enough for my purpose (and it has not been updated recently). Anyways the conductor app is only for controlling the Aurender, it won't really effect SQ.

how does the app compare against Roon?

No idea, have never used Roon.
Hope this helps.
Lastly one thing I have to say here, Aurender support is one of the best on the planet. They reply to all your emails in a few hours. I am so impressed with this factor alone, that I am considering upgrading to their US$10k player soon. So many so called high end audio companies and their dealers have such terrible service - especially in India, it is not worth wasting precious money or time on them (I have had a nasty experience with one such company from whom I bought 3 digital components of almost US $18k - I will never ever go back to them). Better to buy from companies who stand behind their products. And I didn't even buy this unit in India (there is no Aurender dealer in India anyways), but nevertheless their support is very prompt. Plus if anything goes haywire they will access your unit directly online and fix it if they can or suggest future options. How many companies can do that? Most won't even entertain paid service through their useless authorized dealers after warranty period (and only God can save you if they change one authorized dealer to another, both will ignore you and the company will not care - Sorry for the rant, had to get it off my chest).
Cheers,
Sid

 

[Rajeshh]

Thanks for the reply Sid. I completely agree with you on hifi support. The price point & your earlier comment on Aurender's prompt email support is what got me to look at Aurender in the 1st place.

I was not in the market for a steamer until my Wyred4sound Recovery stopped working a couple of days back. Without it in the chain, the USB audio from my Mac mini to my DAC in the integrated just sounds very bright and fatiguing.
I am quite impressed with Wyred's solid 5 year's support. After a few email exchanges, EJ from Wyred has promised to send me a replacement unit, once I ship him my non-functioning unit. Companies like these are hard to find in hifi.

In the meantime I was looking at options for USB reclockers and found that the good ones + LPS goes up to almost the same price of a dedicated streamer, and I guess a dedicated streamer should be a better option.
I would have loved to get the new Naim NDX 2 (The Naim app is really really good) but the price is a bit much for now, so looking at the N100 or Auralic G1 as a stopgap for the time being.
Let me know if and when you upgrade

 

[sidvee]

Let me know if and when you upgrade

Sure will let you know, but it wont be anytime very soon.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[sidvee]

Recent changes to my 2nd system. I finally got around to pairing the 2 Nuprime components - i.e Nuprime Dac10 and the st10 to drive my ATC SCM19 v2. They sounded excellent but what made the combo better was throwing in my Ayon Skylla II as a preamplifier, the quad 6h30 tubes in the Skylla really made a huge difference to the sound quality, warmer, smoother more holographic. In fact the Ayon Skylla II as a pre and the nuprime St10 as an amplifier is a phenomenal combination.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[square_wave]

Truly enjoyed the time at your home and the setup Sid. You have fine-tuned your setup and room to such an extent that there is such a nice balance. The way the lyric amp was driving the Ascendos was amazing. It shows what a well designed tube amp can do.

There is an exquisite balance and musicality with how the system played. This only comes when you put in a lot of effort into system setup and choices with gear.

The ascendos are amazing speakers. Textured - clean bass and such a sense of openness without the highs drawing any attention to itself. Sid is a jazz aficionado and a big fan of trumpets. The system perfectly compliments the music. With music that are recorded well, you are transported to a jazz club in new orleans. Intimate, musical, textured, almost full scale sound. The lyric amp perfectly complements this focussed endeavour. Very satisfying.

Big thanks to the hospitality Sid. I also discovered some musical gems!

 

[sidvee]

Truly enjoyed the time at your home and the setup Sid. You have fine-tuned your setup and room to such an extent that there is such a nice balance. The way the lyric amp was driving the Ascendos was amazing. It shows what a well designed tube amp can do.

There is an exquisite balance and musicality with how the system played. This only comes when you put in a lot of effort into system setup and choices with gear.

The ascendos are amazing speakers. Textured - clean bass and such a sense of openness without the highs drawing any attention to itself. Sid is a jazz aficionado and a big fan of trumpets. The system perfectly compliments the music. With music that are recorded well, you are transported to a jazz club in new orleans. Intimate, musical, textured, almost full scale sound. The lyric amp perfectly complements this focussed endeavour. Very satisfying.

Big thanks to the hospitality Sid. I also discovered some musical gems!

Thanks for the kind words Vinny. Enjoyed having you over.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[essrand]

It is in my main setup Rikhav. I have been searching for a good DAC in the $10k range for the past 2-3 years. I was wary of high end companies that do not offer any customer service after the deal (having burnt my hands once or twice already), so I took my time and did my research. I heard the Bricasti M1 a few years ago before and really liked it but for some reason didn't buy it. So when I heard the M1se and communicated with Brian Zolner - who was extremely helpful - I decided to go for it. Needless to say it is sounding superb in my setup - a real step up from all the DAC's I have had so far.
Cheers,
Sid

Hi Sid,

I am seriously considering buying the M1SE or the Bricasti M12.

Would love it if you could tell me more about your Bricasti (its strengths, weakness, sound etc) and the DACs you had before that it beat.

Thanks,
Bhaskar

 

[sidvee]

Hi Sid,

I am seriously considering buying the M1SE or the Bricasti M12.

Would love it if you could tell me more about your Bricasti (its strengths, weakness, sound etc) and the DACs you had before that it beat.

Thanks,
Bhaskar

Hi Bhaskar,
The M1se has a very detailed sound without sounding cold or clinical. It can resolve the minutest details in the music, which tend to get muddled over by other DAC's. Additionally it is very neutral and most importantly very musical. Personally I didn't find any weakness in the sound, for me it is the best DAC I have heard at the $10,000 price point. Other DAC's I heard before getting this was the Chord DAVE (having owned the HUGO TT this was a logical step up), the Schiit Yggdrasil, the DCS Debussy, Berkeley Audio Design Alpha DAC Reference & the playback designs Merlot. I think the DAVE is also an excellent DAC, and I would have got that if I didn't get this.
I never owned a DAC at this price point before this but some of the DAC's I had prior to this (at various price points) are the Ayon Skylla II, Chord Hugo TT and the Cary Audio 200ts. Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Sid

 

[essrand]

Thanks. Exactly what I wanted to hear.

Wish you were living in Mumbai, so I could drop by and listen

I will keep you posted if I buy one.

Cheers,
Bhaskar