I got to audition 2 nice systems over the weekend at 2 drastically different price points

Hyfi

Addicted Member
I really wanted to demo some PASS gear, but the local shop has sold off all their stock and not keeping anything stocked due to other internet sellers drastically undercutting prices.

So what was offered to demo is a nice pc of Italian Gear, the Viva Audio Solistino SET Integrated amp. One of these, in Red.
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The picture makes the unit look miniature, but it is pretty large. This was coupled with a pair of Tannoy Canturbury speakers and he dropped in a newer McIntosh CDP for the demo. This Viva runs about 20wpc, but the MFG posts no specs for wattage. I took lots of music that I regularly listen to, and disks I thought sounded good. I found much of the playback a little bright in the upper mids. May have been the recordings or the CDP or my ears. The owner put a disk on of some ripped tracks, one was SRV Tin Pan Alley, which is usually a goto demo track but i didn't bring it with me. The setup sure woke up for this track as well as MJs Man in the Mirror. The amp has plenty of headroom and can make your ears bleed with the right speakers, but can also drive ones at 87db. It also sounded nice at lower levels. I had never heard Tannoy speakers before and getting used to a huge dual concentric driver set took a little adjustment. All in all it sounded very sweet and would be a nice addition to anyone's home lacking a heater. This guy throws some serious heat from the large set of tubes. Then he tells me there was just a price increase which took this out of the running for what I want to spend on new gear.

Before leaving, I asked if I could listen to the "other" room, which we did. This system consisted of all Burmester electronics. The Burmester-Wilson Alexia room was setup with an 061 CDP, 035 Pre, and 911mk3 amp. Wow, what a nice system and now I want to sell my house
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Burmester is just gorgeous gear. Oh, and all the CDs that sounded bright in the other room.....not with all Burmester. The Wilson's are so friggin ugly but put the Tannoys to shame. The grip that the Burmester amp had on all tracks was amazing. The machining and build, look and feel was all as good as it gets. Being a Toolmaker and Machine Designer in my past career, I was amazed at the work in all this gear. The top loading CDP was about the nicest CDP I ever touched.

So then I went back home and played the same music again. My conclusion is that I will have to spend way more than what my gear cost when new to even equal the performance of the first setup. The second system will blow most others away in the right room. I now am rethinking buying anything besides room treatments and some power cords at the moment.

It sure is nice to get an opportunity to hear fabulous gear in person and also getting some reassurance about my current setup and just how good it really is. You never realize what you have until you listen to other systems......or sell it :)

I wish everyone that enjoys music and gear could get to a real showroom or show and have a listen to gear that is out of their reach, if only for a reference point.
 
I finally made it to RMAF last autumn, wanting to know if the bar had been raised, and it was worth the trip. A lot more rooms and systems met my expectations of high-fidelity sound than I had anticipated.
 
It is always good to hear a truly high end system. Alas, I'm not sure I've ever heard even one. At a dealer in Charlotte I heard some Wilson's, not sure what the associated gear was. It was really good! And at a buddy's house I had his Legacy Focus speakers, with Sonic Frontiers gear...also very good! That's all I've really heard beyond my own gear. I need to get out more! I think I've gotten close to "maxing" out my systems...at least as far as what I'm willing to spend on my current budget. I still would like a few things...DAC for my office system, amp upgrade in my "main" system (and possibly DAC upgrade too), cable upgrades. Beyond that, I think I'm done for awhile. I think I'd have to spend considerably more to make a jump to another level...so I'll hang out here for awhile. But it's still super-fun to hear the high end stuff, and yes it sure does shine a light on our current home systems, both the good and the bad!
 
I have been looking at various integrateds because I want to downsize in the near future. I have too much gear for a smaller house and also figured I could consolidate my main rig a bit. My main rig was basically SOTA back in the early 90s and I paid next to nothing for it and then paid for repairs to bring things back to life. I don't know why I keep thinking that New would equal Better. But in the same price range today as what the gear cost in the 90s, I don't think I can do any better than what I already have. That is a good thing really because at worst case, I do nothing but keep enjoying this setup for years to come.

I am tired of no remote for volume tho, and I have to adjust 2 volume knobs on my dual mono pre. I also have 3 gain settings which I am learning to use more and more. Buffered Passive for late night listening, Normal Gain for most of the time, and High Gain for rockin' out and rattling the windows.

I am considering playing with some power cords and bass traps as opposed to completely new gear.

On the other hand, if I came into a fortune, I think I would have no problems replicating the Burmester-Wilson system I listened to, even if it's not worth the total cost as far as gains in performance.

It's a shame so many B&M stores are gone, but more folks need to get out and hear what is available and enjoy a few properly setup systems as a reference point. I don't care how many Advents you want to stack, it won't come close to the Wilsons or other HE speakers driven with SOTA gear.

I am open to letting any fellow enthusiast listen to what I have if anyone is close enough to stop by.
 
One question I'd be asking is which system the shop is pushing. A lot of what you're hearing depends on how the room is set up and matched to the system. You may be in for a surprise when you get the stuff home.

Sounds like you already knew that anyway ... I'd do room treatments first and see what improvements you can realize with what ya got now. I'd also invest a bit into room analysis to find out exactly what you're dealing with and eliminate the guesswork. A laptop computer, a copy of REW (Room EQ Wizard - free!), and a calibrated mike to sample the room real time. If you've already got a laptop, you can get away with around $100 for a USB mike - the Dayton UMM-6 is the sh!t for that sort of thing. A mini mike stand is real handy for placing the mike exactly where it needs to go in the "sweet spot".

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PS ... you should also have an SPL meter to calibrate the software, but hey ... there's an app for that!
 
One question I'd be asking is which system the shop is pushing. A lot of what you're hearing depends on how the room is set up and matched to the system. You may be in for a surprise when you get the stuff home.

Sounds like you already knew that anyway ...

Actually, they were not really pushing anything. My original intent was to demo a Pass Labs INT-60 and this place in my neighborhood ended up being the closest Pass dealer within hundreds of miles. When I called to make an appointment, he informed me he had no Pass gear in stock, but had a Tube Integrated I may be interested in since he knew I currently have tubes and I am not opposed. At the other forum I spend my time, Audio Shark, there has been lots of discussion about Viva Audio and the Solista and Solistino Integrateds as well as the forum owner bringing this gear into his shop, Suncoast Audio in Fla. So just for the hell of it, and not really intending on going that route, I decided to go have a listen anyway. I also had never had the chance to hear Tannoy speakers.

The first room had nothing in it besides a Formula One rack with the Solistino, a new McIntosh CDP, the Canterburys and a chair. The room was treated with lots of traps. He also offered to bring the unit to my house and set it up since we were a mile apart. I did not want to waste his time but thanked him for the offer and left it as if I plan to seriously consider it, I would ask then. I don't want to jerk anyone's chain.

The second room was much larger and the Wilsons were spaced more like 15 feet as opposed to maybe 10 for the Tannoys. Again the room was heavily treated and had a nice couch. I could have stayed there all day but felt I took up enough of the guys time already.

The 3rd system I got to hear breifly, as he was breaking in a new Esoteric CDP was that, the biggest Burmester Integrated, and the Wilson Sabrinas. Also very nice but not in a treated dedicated room.

When I got home, I flipped my pre to High Gain and played all the same tracks again only to realize but for room treatment, my gear sounded just as good as the Viva-Tannoy setup. So treatment can only make it better, but I may not be able to do much as it doubles as my main living room.

Anyway, it makes me a happy camper that my early 90s gear kicks ass along with newer gear costing double.
 
Wilson will come out and setup the speakers by doing room measurements, etc. Yes, that includes using computer measurements. Many of the high end brands do that.
Yep, the calibration settings on the Alexias were hard core. There was plenty of machine work to adjust each driver individually. But I am short about $40K for a pair of those :)
 
No kidding. I work at the corner of James Way and Jaymore.
Guess I won't swing by on my lunch break then!
Ah, thats right, we chatted about that a while back. Years ago there was also a nice shop at the end of Industrial Highway, other side of 2nd street pike, but I can't remember the name. I bought all my Tara Labs cables there.

Louis said he will be there for any appointment, but nobody sits there 9-5 anymore.
 
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