Audition for speakers to pair with Perreaux 250 i

[arunp]

Hi,

Today I have spent the better part of the day demoing speakers I had short listed for upgrading from my Monitor Audio Silver RX 6. The list and my experience is :

B & W CM 9 and the Rotel RA 1520.
Sonus Faber Toy Floorstander and NAIM Unity Player
Dynaudio Excite32 and Parasound Mono Blocks + Bel canto CD Player.

First Impression:

Found the B & W to be very smooth and refined. The kind of sound where you will not feel the fatigue. Impressive sound stage considering the low power Rotel driving it.

Sonus Faber Toy: Dimunitive but very musical. Found the bass to be a tad lacking.

Dynaudio Excite 32 : The first two tracks played were from a demo disc. Absolutely stunning with detail and good separation. Bass was in plentiful. In the second round we played the conventional recordings , but these lacked the detail of the demo disc. I had to make a note that the backing equipment was very high end and contributed a lot to the overall positive demo.

Hope to be able to conclude the buy from among the three in early July.

Thanks

Arun

 

[olly42]

HI Arunp,

How much did you pay for Perreaux 250 i? Its a extremely good amplifier from what ever reviews I have read about it and from some friends in the US

 

[arunp]

Hi Olly, I got it at a bargain for 2.35 Lacs after discount. They cost almost double .

 

[olly42]

Hi Olly, I got it at a bargain for 2.35 Lacs after discount. They cost almost double .

Wow thats a real steal Awesome its on my wish list maybe some day soon...

 

[2chFreak]

By the tone of your initial post, its apparent that you're swinging between B&W CM 9 or the Dyn X-32. Try to incl. Dyn X-36 when, it would be a head-to-head on level terms with the CM 9.

Either of them are a good match to the excellent amp you've got. Wonder if you have the optional DAC Card for your amp ? Once again, small price to pay to complete a great system within a box. All you'll need then is PC-audio or a disc transport.

Do make sure to extend the same loudspeaker cables inside that lovely amplifier all the way to your speakers. Dyns don't biwire but for B&Ws, biwire is a must.

Its a German brand. Very nice for the price too.

Good luck.

 

[serum]

I would look at the B&W 804D...if budget permits ! will be a great match for the amp. Its a long term investment when you put together a system like this.

 

[Vivek Rao]

Arun, it would be interesting to hear your comments on the Sound qual you are missing by pairing the RX6 with the Perreux. Are you biwiring currently?

 

[longshanks]

You should probably carry your amplifier when you audition speakers.

ATC SCM40 would be a good choice for this amplifier.

 

[arunp]

By the tone of your initial post, its apparent that you're swinging between B&W CM 9 or the Dyn X-32. Try to incl. Dyn X-36 when, it would be a head-to-head on level terms with the CM 9.

Either of them are a good match to the excellent amp you've got. Wonder if you have the optional DAC Card for your amp ? Once again, small price to pay to complete a great system within a box. All you'll need then is PC-audio or a disc transport.

Do make sure to extend the same loudspeaker cables inside that lovely amplifier all the way to your speakers. Dyns don't biwire but for B&Ws, biwire is a must.

Its a German brand. Very nice for the price too.

Good luck.[Thanks 2ch. You are right. After some thought and recall of the SQ at the demo. I have purchased the CM9. They pair very well with the Perreaux and I must say that I seem to have got the combo right , especially with the huge enveloping sound of the CM 9. As I prefer a bit of warmth , the CM 9 won the race over the Dyna's.I am using the MF M1 DAC through balanced connections and the entire combo sounds good. The Perreuax DAC was pricey and I decided to let it go for the time being. ]

 

[arunp]

By the tone of your initial post, its apparent that you're swinging between B&W CM 9 or the Dyn X-32. Try to incl. Dyn X-36 when, it would be a head-to-head on level terms with the CM 9.

Either of them are a good match to the excellent amp you've got. Wonder if you have the optional DAC Card for your amp ? Once again, small price to pay to complete a great system within a box. All you'll need then is PC-audio or a disc transport.

Do make sure to extend the same loudspeaker cables inside that lovely amplifier all the way to your speakers. Dyns don't biwire but for B&Ws, biwire is a must.

Its a German brand. Very nice for the price too.

Good luck.

Arun, it would be interesting to hear your comments on the Sound qual you are missing by pairing the RX6 with the Perreux. Are you biwiring currently?

[Vivek, I was very happy with the RX 6 and the 250 i. However after having purchased the 250i , I was quite aware of the fact that Perreaux deserves a better pairing. With the RX 6 , the most visible handicap was the power handling. The 250 i is a monster and I was never quite comfortable letting the 250 i go all out. Also I did notice some distortion at the high levels. To put a direct comparison between the MA and B&W , the MA has a smaller soundstage which can be achieved only with good placement. The B & W on the other has a very panaoramic soundstage and a very analog quality of sound in my opinion. I did try biwiring with the RX 6 but was not happy with the result.]

 

[arunp]

I would look at the B&W 804D...if budget permits ! will be a great match for the amp. Its a long term investment when you put together a system like this.

[Hi Serum. Thanks. I did try the 804 and was absolutely wowed with the SQ. However way beyond my budget. ]

 

[2chFreak]

Congrats on your new speaker.

But surely you can do with better placement. Plzz pull the speakers out of THaT corner more into the room (after resolving WAF ...) Those speakers need room to function properly.

Hope you're biwiring them. Your amp uses Sommer Cable internally. It would be a good idea to extend that wiring all the way to the speakers in biwire format. The cable is Sommer Cable ORBIT 240. Its fairly inexpensive for a 12 AWG.

 

[arunp]

Thanks 2ch. Will look for these cables. Appreciate it.

 

[arunp]

Congrats on your new speaker.

But surely you can do with better placement. Plzz pull the speakers out of THaT corner more into the room (after resolving WAF ...) Those speakers need room to function properly.

Hope you're biwiring them. Your amp uses Sommer Cable internally. It would be a good idea to extend that wiring all the way to the speakers in biwire format. The cable is Sommer Cable ORBIT 240. Its fairly inexpensive for a 12 AWG.

Hi 2ch. I am currently in Kerala for my vacation. Any suggestions on where I could buy these cables.

Thanks