Accuphase is home

[dinyaar]

Hi
Well I had a large capacity bike (relative!!!!) most of my adult life. When in college the RD 350 was my big bike and later I got a super Black Bird which I flogged of in 2007. Since that time have had nothing big and so bought the Ninja in 2012 as it seems too VFM to pass off. I like it as its a torquey parallel which is fun in and around town. Am on TBPH but dont ride with them. Have a local bbay group of buddies and I prefer to ride with old friends

IMO it does not sound compressed or small scale. In fact the diablo has enough slam for me or my room to handle. Plays complex material beautifully and layers impressively for me. Ticks most of the regular boxes like air , dimentiality, staging....... at least for me. Its the best sound I have managed to get at my home which means I have stopped my HIFI tweaking a while ago and simply just power up and listen everyday.

Am sure there are many other contenders too but I would like you to audition a focal before U bring home a speaker. U are naturally welcome to listen to my set up when in Mumbai
Rgds

 

[malvai]

Hey rajeetrain! Any news on your speaker hunt?

 

[ranjeetrain]

Bro, a lot of progress on that. I hunted down some really cool speakers. The bottleneck was my availability in India. It would not be wise to have the speakers shipped once here and then again to India. It's not just the shipping but the customs that's back breaking.

I finalized a great deal but the opportunity slipped out of my hands as I couldn't get back to the seller fast enough with shipping arrangements. Now, I am looking for someone who can receive the shipment on my behalf in India. That way I wouldn't need to be in India waiting on the shipment, that's simply not feasible.

 

[bhagwan]

Bro, a lot of progress on that.
I hunted down some really cool speakers.
I finalized a great deal
that's simply not feasible.

Excellent;
50 % work was done.
What did you short list ?
Accuphase + ??
All the Best ! Hope you get the speaker you desire..

 

[ranjeetrain]

Excellent;
50 % work was done.
What did you short list ?
Accuphase + ??
All the Best ! Hope you get the speaker you desire..

Thank you sir. I have shortlisted two-three speakers. One of them is a proven partner with Accuphase (have been to shows together many a times).

Others are based on my gut feel and budget. I am trying not to blow too much. Though it is hard to do when you are out shopping and see so many good stuff around. Very hard to overcome the temptation.

 

[square_wave]

The names please

 

[ranjeetrain]

The names please

At the front of my search are YG Acoustics and Kharma. Next are Focal, MBL and Rockport. Fingers crossed. We'll never know what it will be until it lands in India

 

[Staxxx]

At the front of my search are YG Acoustics and Kharma. Next are Focal, MBL and Rockport. Fingers crossed. We'll never know what it will be until it lands in India

Nice Ranjeetrain, what fun to be on such a quest. Love Rockport! With Kharma, I only liked the very high end models. The Accutone drivers (like what Marten use) are quite laid back actually and the sound gets more relaxed as you go up the line. MBL radialstrahlers would be most interesting to have - something I covet. YG can be very hifi, detailed and incredible soundstaging when I heard it last. But I can see the profile of sound you prefer with YG and Kharma at the top of the list. Personally, not a fan of Focal. Another brand that sounds superb and is excellent value for money is the Canadian Focus Audio...see if you can audition these. Also, if you like Rockports see if you can find Eggleston Works too...you may be pleasantly surprised!

 

[ranjeetrain]

Nice Ranjeetrain, what fun to be on such a quest. Love Rockport! With Kharma, I only liked the very high end models. The Accutone drivers (like what Marten use) are quite laid back actually and the sound gets more relaxed as you go up the line. MBL radialstrahlers would be most interesting to have - something I covet. YG can be very hifi, detailed and incredible soundstaging when I heard it last. But I can see the profile of sound you prefer with YG and Kharma at the top of the list. Personally, not a fan of Focal. Another brand that sounds superb and is excellent value for money is the Canadian Focus Audio...see if you can audition these. Also, if you like Rockports see if you can find Eggleston Works too...you may be pleasantly surprised!

Accuton drivers are what are my primary objective to get. They are some of the best there is (without getting into electrostat territory). My next objective is ease of drive. I realize I should have bought a slightly more powerful Accuphase. Mine may not be able to drive full-range speakers authoritatively. A lot of speakers need to be ruled out due to that.

I have realized, some of the most acclaimed speakers (Kharma Midi, Rockport Antares, Wilson Sasha) are always driven with monoblocks. Not sure if that's a requirement, or do they do it just because they can. I need to have some first hand experience of that, in order to be able to make an informed decision.

Rockport is very very high on my wishlist. Unfortunately, TOTL Rockport are very expensive. So, I may buy something from their lower range, such as Mira monitor or Mira.

Some one I don't have a reason to trust told me Eggleston were not even as good as similarly priced DynAudios. (Oh, btw, I love almost the entire DynAudio range. They are love at first audition speakers in my books). But, I am not dismissing Eggleston, as I really don't trust the person who said that.

I have an Eggleston dealer within 20 kms from me. But his showroom is under renovation. He stocks some high end stuff (entire product lines of Eggleston, Triangle etc). As soon as his showroom is back open, I would definitely fix an appointment for extensive audition of Eggleston. Specifically The Nine and the Andra. Andra is a tad too high for me as of now, but The Nine should fit in my budget.

I also talked to India distributor of Triangle. Good thing is, he welcomed me for an audition anytime, and the best thing is he has almost the entire Triangle range. Triangle speakers are making me very curious too.

I was keeping an eye on Focus Audio. I found them online but no dealers nearby. So tough luck with that.

Some audition is mandatory at this level. Even with different electronics and in different room, some idea can be had about "the signature" of the speakers. So one decisive factor would be what speakers I would be able to audition prior to buying.

 

[Staxxx]

Honestly Ranjeet, I have found NO difference in driving my bigger speakers with monoblocks, integrated or a pre-power combination. I used to have Wilson Watt/Puppys, Marten Coltranes, big Talons, Acapellas among several other large speakers and have had them with monos as well as stereo amps. I heard the Andras extensively with with a nice pre-power Mark Levinson set up. It certainly has been the amp's design and matching that has matter more than the configuration and power ratings. I strongly suggest, from personal experience, not to get hung up on that aspect. Most well-designed solid state amps nowadays can drive almost everything well enough.

As you say, auditioning them together and enjoying the sound signature is most essential when it comes to your final choice.

One more speaker that I can recommend you try if possible (since I am so pleased with mine) is the smaller brother, newly introduced, of the Marten Design Django XL speakers. I believe this model is the Django L. Here is the link (and I love them in grey!):

Marten - Django L

These look reasonably priced for the components. But again, the house sound is a little cool and neutral so may not be to everyone's taste. However, they are very revealing of the chain and detailed, with a great soundstage. Of course, they have a ceramic driver from Accutone, although the tweeter is not the famous diamond one. i am not sure if they have been extensively reviewed as yet, but you can find several reviews of its bigger brother.

 

[square_wave]

Thanks Ranjeet you are looking at some well-reviewed brands. I have heard only the Marten speakers from the list. Great brand. It matches perfectly with what Staax has mentioned.

If you like horn based speakers, you should check out the higher models from Blumenhofer too.

 

[bhagwan]

Honestly Ranjeet, I have found NO difference in driving my bigger speakers with monoblocks, integrated or a pre-power combination.

I may not agree with the above statement;
a]
I tried to use my E-550 [Accuphase Pure Class A] with the TAD [Tidal Amea Diacera]
b]
I much prefer the Cadence Canasya + Allnic combination to the E-550.
Therefore the E-550 is for sale @ 50 % mark down - 200 hours of use.

In my case the Pre + Mono Amplifier combination sounds 'better' to my ears viz-a-viz the Top Line Integrated Amplifier.
Just my 2 cents;;;;

I also feel that a Mira Speaker from RT paired with a mid level Accuphase Integrated Amplifier may be a mis match...The Speaker is too good for the Amplifier...Same goes for Kharma & Marten Design etc.

 

[Staxxx]

I think perhaps my comment has been mis-understood. I feel that it is important to match the speaker with the right amp (whether it is a great integrated amp, pre-power or monoblocks). Just because it is a very good high-end speaker does not necessarily mean that the speakers require monoblocks only (which I think is what the earlier post seemed to imply). The wrong monoblocks may end up sounding worse than the right integrated. That's all I was trying to get across. ::

I have not heard the mid-level Accuphase with these speakers, but I did hear the large integrated Accuphase with B&W 802s and they were making magic music. A little too laid-back for me, although I do prefer such a profile for long term listening some times.

 

[bhagwan]

I think perhaps my comment has been mis-understood.
The wrong monoblocks may end up sounding worse than the right integrated. That's all I was trying to get across. ::

I have not heard the mid-level Accuphase with these speakers, but I did hear the large integrated Accuphase with B&W 802s and they were making magic music. A little too laid-back for me, although I do prefer such a profile for long term listening some times.

Point noted;
Correct 'System Matching' is imperative;

 

[Staxxx]

i wonder about one thing...are many high end integrated amplifiers (and power amps) really monoblocks within one enclosure? They all seem to have individual transformers for each channel and the circuitry for each seems to be designed to be quite separate.

 

[asliarun]

You might want to check out the Odyssey Kismet Reference monitor. Scanspeaks all the way (and a Beryllium tweeter), and it was voted one of the best sounding systems in RMAF.

I recently listened to Tyler Acoustics with all scanspeak drivers in Axpona and was blown away at how smooth and effortless the speaker sounded. But then, the speaker was a large floorstander.

If nothing else, the price is a steal considering how much the drivers themselves cost.

 

[Staxxx]

Nice to hear about new high-end brands (to me). The Tyler Acoustics floorstander speakers look particularly interesting! Unfortunately, such we miss out on listening to such boutique brands in India.

 

[asliarun]

Nice to hear about new high-end brands (to me). The Tyler Acoustics floorstander speakers look particularly interesting! Unfortunately, such we miss out on listening to such boutique brands in India.

Hi Staxxx, there are some really good speakers - I haven't had the chance to hear all of them as many of the boutique brands are difficult to audition unless an audio show happens.

The Selah Tempesta would be another good example I guess. RAAL ribbon, Accuton mid, and a Scanspeak woofer! And available at very very good prices - in the $3k-$5k range. It also helps that most of the boutique manufacturers are very approachable and down to earth people - and are very flexible in terms of custom requirements (such as custom finishes etc.) That's a true pleasure, in my humble opinion, at least compared to the big brands.

Or the Salk Silk, also with a RAAL ribbon and Scanspeak woofer. I've heard the Salk Songtowers and its big brother, Soundscape; and they are both very very good as well. BUT, I don't know how to listen analytically, just what sounded so good to me that I would buy it when I upgrade in the future and have enough budget.

 

[Staxxx]

It also helps that most of the boutique manufacturers are very approachable and down to earth people - and are very flexible in terms of custom requirements (such as custom finishes etc.) That's a true pleasure, in my humble opinion, at least compared to the big brands.

Very true..I remember how responsive and excited even Leif of Marten Design was when I started buying his speakers over 10 years ago. Always just a couple of days to get an email reply. I am still and big fan and been quite loyal (only a couple inbetween) :lol:
...but now they are a busy and big company with great worldwide success with the new Django line....

 

[bhagwan]

Very true..I remember how responsive and excited even Leif of Marten Design was when I started buying his speakers over 10 years ago.

So, we have something in common.
Leif is known to me - freind actually.
I met him in 2003 in Frankfurt for the 1st time.
We interact on regular basis.
I was to buy the Coltrane - but we never came to a financial arrangement.
I still like that speaker a lot.
Way back in 2009 - the Momento played its best with The Lars [Sweden] @ Munich [2nd Show] - one of the best sounds I ever heard...

This is from a different year - 2011 - I think...



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