Malvai's TT Setup

[ajay124]

Dinyaar

I tend to believe that (usually) there is not much qualitative difference between two series of products. Manufacturers/distributors/dealers need a reason for jacking up prices by 20-30% every couple of years. They justify the increase by pouring their old wine into a new bottle.

Between the Bryston 4B SST and the 4B SST 'squared', or the Accuphase E450 and E460, I would always choose the older model. Simply my vfm philosophy

 

[dinyaar]

Dinyaar

I tend to believe that (usually) there is not much qualitative difference between two series of products. Manufacturers/distributors/dealers need a reason for jacking up prices by 20-30% every couple of years. They justify the increase by pouring their old wine into a new bottle.

Between the Bryston 4B SST and the 4B SST 'squared', or the Accuphase E450 and E460, I would always choose the older model. Simply my vfm philosophy

True Ajay. In most cases I would do the same. Newer launches are not always better as we have all learnt.

The 460 though has many changes. Its not just cosmetic. It actually looks almost the same but for that stupid digital meter. Sounds very different. We have heard both amps one after another in the same rig/room and they sound very different. Having said that someone may prefer the 450!!!!!

Do u have the SST 2 or the SST? Have u had the good fortune to hear them side by side? I owned both and the differences were negligible. I in fact had asked for a clarification (which i got) from Bryston as my SST 2 only had it marked on the rear and not on the power up switch.

Rgds

 

[santhosh]

Didn't you say somewhere that the Rondo Red is too much on the warmer side? Did I misunderstand something? A little warm is okay, but anything more than that is not good for me. You certainly know better, because you have used it, so has Santosh.

Asitda, what a coincidence!! My TT is singing again:clapping:. The stylus on my Rondo Red broke accidentally while cleaning my TT and I received it last week after retipping from Soundsmith. Today, Jochen very kindly came to my house with all his tools and meticulously set it up.

I have been listening to music for last 6 hrs now. I remembered quite a few people from the forum and remembered you and Prem when I played some NOS Hindi LPs which I picked up from Chennai on my recent visit.

About the cart, the Ortofon Rondo Red is not really a very warm cartridge. It is detailed, with fantastic mids and yes it brings a bit of warmth to the equation. Ofcourse, the only other similar Project I have heard is Stevieboy's RPM 9 with a MM cartridge which as a system is very nice and warm.

Manav should be able to add as he was the previous owner of my TT.

BTW, after the retip the cart is sounding a tad sharp and seems to have lost a bit of warmth and body around the vocals. I am not able to recognize the sound myself. Hope couple of hours burn-in will bring back that lovely sound I was used to. Jochen is confident it will and read on Asit's thread about break-in, so will wait patiently.

Going too OT on Manav's thread. Will start a thread on the topic.

 

[malvai]

Nice set up Manav, i want to have audtion some day if you permit.

Thanks & Regards.
sanj.

you are most welcome to come over sanj... sorryy i missed your little post earlier...

 

[Rajiv]

Hi,

BTW, after the retip the cart is sounding a tad sharp and seems to have lost a bit of warmth and body around the vocals.

Santosh,give the cartridge a few weeks to break in.Soundsmiths "rebuilds" the cartridge i.e. replaces the entire cantilever and stylus assembly. The suspension will take a few days to settle in.

Try setting the tracking weight at the higher end of the recomended tracking weight for the Ortofon,you will get more body to the sound at the expense of slightly reduced HF .

Regards
Rajiv

 

[malvai]

I have an Accuphase E-450, plus Linn Sondek LP12, and use the Accuphase AD-20 Option board. I also use the DAC-30, the source for which is a Squeezebox Touch. There is just too much of great music i got in FLAC format, and this set-up was the quickest way to exploit, rather than potter around with CD players, which i dispensed with altogether. There are no interconnects in this system, except the optical cable. LP12 comes with its own interconnects.

I am working something like this put at the moment! i might just do way with the CDP altogether!

but why a dark black color background for it surely does not reflect the acoustics performance produced in front of it,

i used black because i was experimenting with varying layers/thickness of cloth.... as i was using sheets from various sources, the colours were becoming a problem.... so i decided to dye all of the curtains/sheets black and then made the curtain outta it...

since i now have a good idea about the room modes with these experimental curtains... i can go ahead and make a more informed purchase (in colours that are more cheerful).

Hi
Congratulations Manav. Am glad u are happy as both Grattan & me were a bit apprehensive of the end result! Very good amplifier. Am glad u went for 460 & not a 450. If there was a simpler, lesser demanding speaker then even the 350 would have worked well.

Dr Bass why do u say the 2XXX & 3XXX sound average? When u say average do u mean it sounds like any other amplifier from the usual suspects? I thought the 350 sounds very good and even the 250 is a decent performer.

Yes the 460 is the better amp if u are putting it alongside the 250,350 but thats a bit like saying that the S Class is better when compared to the C or the E class Mercedes. But that does not make the C or the E any less of a car. The 460 is more than double the cost of the 250! If anyone is looking for a top class power amp please hear the 6100. Its not yet reached our shores though.

I know a couple of guys using the 250 & the 350 and these blokes chose the accuphase after auditioning a hell of a lot of amps. I think apart from the symphonic line which is a rare commodity in Bbay most other so called biggies were compared.

Manav the E 460 at my uncle s home will soon be driving the new B&W 804 diamonds which will replace the Thiels..Went & heard all the new B&Ws and some wilsons a while ago & I think the 804 is the star in the range not the highly regarded 805 and definately not the 803. The 800/802 is always great provided its adequately powered & placed.

Rgds

+1 to that Dinyaar! I am with your views word for word!

Dinyaar

Between the Bryston 4B SST and the 4B SST 'squared', or the Accuphase E450 and E460, I would always choose the older model. Simply my vfm philosophy

I agree with you ajay if you limit the statement to the 4BSST and 4 BSST 2.

But when it comes to the 450 vs 460... there IS an actual improvement!

 

[ajay124]

Manav

Next step should be an SB Touch connected through the digital out, to the (optional) DAC of the E460. I am very confident that the sound would be sensational.

I have moved the SB Touch to my (10x12) computer room. Planning to build a smaller system for casual listening. Currently the set up is : WD Ext.HDD-SB Touch-Cyrus 6VS2-Onkyo book shelf speakers. SQ is quite good. I need to buy a decent pair of book shelf speakers, interconnect and speaker cables to take the SQ to 'audiophile' levels.

 

[malvai]

Asitda, what a coincidence!! My TT is singing again:clapping:. The stylus on my Rondo Red broke accidentally while cleaning my TT and I received it last week after retipping from Soundsmith. Today, Jochen very kindly came to my house with all his tools and meticulously set it up.

I have been listening to music for last 6 hrs now. I remembered quite a few people from the forum and remembered you and Prem when I played some NOS Hindi LPs which I picked up from Chennai on my recent visit.

About the cart, the Ortofon Rondo Red is not really a very warm cartridge. It is detailed, with fantastic mids and yes it brings a bit of warmth to the equation. Ofcourse, the only other similar Project I have heard is Stevieboy's RPM 9 with a MM cartridge which as a system is very nice and warm.

Manav should be able to add as he was the previous owner of my TT.

BTW, after the retip the cart is sounding a tad sharp and seems to have lost a bit of warmth and body around the vocals. I am not able to recognize the sound myself. Hope couple of hours burn-in will bring back that lovely sound I was used to. Jochen is confident it will and read on Asit's thread about break-in, so will wait patiently.

Going too OT on Manav's thread. Will start a thread on the topic.

Santosh, the Rondo Red is not an overtly warm cart for sure... but it does lean towards warm.... in a very nice sort of way...

you will certainly hear a day/night difference once your cart breaks in... in remember how shocking the difference was when I broke the rondo in when i had it!

In fact, in a few weeks I will going through the cart break-in blues for my own Clearaudio Concerto!

 

[sanj]

you are most welcome to come over sanj... sorryy i missed your little post earlier...[/Q


Thanks Manav for your kind permission,pl P.M me your contact number,i want to know if i buy Accuphase products in Japan will it be cheaper than in India?.

Thanks & Regards
sanj.

 

[malvai]

you are most welcome to come over sanj... sorryy i missed your little post earlier...[/Q


Thanks Manav for your kind permission,pl P.M me your contact number,i want to know if i buy Accuphase products in Japan will it be cheaper than in India?.

Thanks & Regards
sanj.

Buying from Japan does not really work out cheaper... IMHO, after comparing prices in the UK, Germany etc, the India pricing is LOWER than these countries....

Japan pricing is for the 110V that is used there... if you buy in Japan, you'll pay 2.8L. Plus you'll need the accuphase transformer, the price for which is another 80K... this takes your price to 3.6. then add duty to this at 30% beleieve me, its a HUGE amp and you can't hide it in a suitcase, to avoid customs ). So that's another 1.2 L, taking it straight to 4.8. Now add the cost of a return ticket and hotel stay!

And if something should happen to it, you'll have to send it back to Japan, as the D&D in India will not even touch it!


IMHO 4.8L India price, with full service back up in India, is a sweet deal!

BTW, the UK price is 5.2L plus!

 

[prem]

Hi Sanj

If you want Accuphase, you can buy from Hong Kong. It will be cheaper. They will ship it to India by Fedex. You get it overnight. Thats what i did for my Esoteric. It works out 30% cheaper than buying from India. I see absolutely no sense in buying Esoteric and Accuphase from India. They are outrageously priced

 

[ajay124]

Hi Sanj

If you want Accuphase, you can buy from Hong Kong. It will be cheaper. They will ship it to India by Fedex. You get it overnight. Thats what i did for my Esoteric. It works out 30% cheaper than buying from India. I see absolutely no sense in buying Esoteric and Accuphase from India. They are outrageously priced

prem

I may want to buy the Esoteric AI 10 amp when I can spare the funds. Can you tell me whom I should contact in Hongkong?

 

[malvai]

Hi Sanj

If you want Accuphase, you can buy from Hong Kong. It will be cheaper. They will ship it to India by Fedex. You get it overnight. Thats what i did for my Esoteric. It works out 30% cheaper than buying from India. I see absolutely no sense in buying Esoteric and Accuphase from India. They are outrageously priced

Prem,
i spoke to atlas in singapore and their final price for the accuphase e 460 was about 3.5L plus shipping and duties! shpping works to about 30-40k! Plus 30% duty!

i didn't see much of a value in going down that road... as it neither saved me anything nor would it help me in any way should happen to the amp in the future!

 

[jls001]

I am working something like this put at the moment! i might just do way with the CDP altogether!

If you get the DAC card, this is the way to go. I had the good fortune to go and listen to Shanti's system, and I am now a believer in computer playout. I plan to slowly move to a hybrid playout mode where both CDP and computer hard disk will be joint digital sources. Only caveat - one should get a DAC that is upto the rest of the chain.
Joshua

 

[malvai]

If you get the DAC card, this is the way to go. I had the good fortune to go and listen to Shanti's system, and I am now a believer in computer playout. I plan to slowly move to a hybrid playout mode where both CDP and computer hard disk will be joint digital sources. Only caveat - one should get a DAC that is upto the rest of the chain.
Joshua

Joshua,
from the little that is written about on the international forums, both the option boards - Accuphase AD 20 for phono and the Accuphase DAC 30 are very very good performers despite the price point... the general feeling is that if they were individually boxed and sold they'd be priced 5x times!

I am now seriously looking at buying them and making life neat, clean and simple!

 

[prem]

Hi Malvai

You need to buy Accuphase or Esoteric from Hongkong, not from Singapore. Its way cheaper. Including duties, shipping, etc its at least 30% cheaper. And when you are buying an Accuphase or Esoteric, the last thing you expect is a breakdown. Its not that there is a service centre in India. Any problems and chances are you will have to ship it to Japan.

 

[panditji]

Please check out review33.com for used deals on Accuphase and Esoteric...Have seen a number of amps from Accuphase on the forum while searching for the Harbeths and take a trip to HK and carry them back to India. The amps generally are priced between $20,000 - $35000 HKD and the air ticket will not cost more than Rs 25,000....

99% of the time you will not be levied any customs duty assuming you are not carrying anything else and you can always show that the amp is old....this method actually works if you are ok buying used.... for people with money, take Prem's route but still get it yourself and try and save the customs duty...

 

[prem]

Agree with Panditji.

But Fedex is only about 350 US dollars for an Esoteric. It could save you the trouble of going and coming. They normally show it as used. Duty is nominal.

 

[sachu888]

Agree with Panditji.

But Fedex is only about 350 US dollars for an Esoteric. It could save you the trouble of going and coming. They normally show it as used. Duty is nominal.

Hi Prem,

Import of used electronics are banned by Indian customs.

Regards,
Sachin

 

[malvai]

Hi Prem,

Import of used electronics are banned by Indian customs.

Regards,
Sachin

That is absolutely correct... in fact another non HFV member whom I know found this out the hard way... he, in consultation with an erstwhile HFV FM, a known guru in these circles, imported a pair of speakers. These incidentally were sourced by the said guru as well... but when they landed in Delhi, the poor guy went through hell sorting out the mess...