How to Convince Your wife to let you buy Expensive Gear (MBL 116 Review).

[KiranPS]

-----Edited to reduce the size. Will post the entire thing in a blog.


When I heard the MBL 116, they Blew me away instantly, I had previously heard the MBL 101 but they were boomy and the bass was overwhelming the detail in the music. I later learnt that this was because of the small room I heard them in. MBL 101s need a large room with good acoustic treatments.

The MBL 116 were a different story, these literally became the best speakers I have heard so far, I have also heard the Focal Grand Utopia and the Vivid Gaya but this was in a different league. The Clarity and Imaging was
un-believable, the Radialstrahlers were amazing the sound filled the room beautifully. Vocals were spot on and the imaging is in the center and above like in a real performance. I could hear each and every pluck of the guitar string , even the fingers moving on the strings.

When I first heard them were with all MBL gear (CDP, Pre and Monoblock amps).To be sure if the MBL 116 would be good with my gear, I took my A21 amp to the showroom and the dealer gave me his MF A5 Pre. When we hooked them all up , Fortunately they matched and it sounded really good,
almost as good as the all MBL chain. The A21s put out 400 WPC into a 4 Ohm load , which was more than enough to drive the power hungry MBLs (4 Ohm).

I now needed to Justify the cost.

The justifications that I came up with were
(Others might also find it useful to convince their significant other ),

1) Its better to get speakers now when my hearing is still good instead of later when I retire, by then my hearing might not be as good.
I heard something similar,
"Waiting for doing what you really want to do in life, is like, saving up S*X for old age."

2) Since my daughter is at least 10 years away from college and 20 years away from marriage, If I can splurge on something that I want, it has to be now.

3) Its actually an Investment , so if I sell it a few years, if you adjust for inflation , there would almost be no loss. Since these are easy to sell
and get a decent price when sold, they are a good Liquid Investment.

4) Since I am a teetotaler I have saved at least Rs 100 every day for the last 20 years , So I can buy this from that saving .

After a lot of mental anguish, I planned for a loan , broke a few long term investments and, I finally took the plunge and got them.

When they arrived home and I hooked them up, they sounded a little off, I traced it to the Amps settings. It was in Bridged Mono mode instead of Stereo. After a few hours of listening , I was not getting enough bass, this was soon fixed by moving the speakers closer to the walls.

The MBLs have very good imaging, but come alive only at higher volumes. Since they are omni-directional, I am yet to figure out the correct direction to point them , may be I don't have to.They also need either an MBL preamp or a preamp that is a little bright to get the details out of the Radialstrahlers.

I have done a quite a bit experimenting so far with some extra loaned gear.
I found Only adding the MF Preamp brings the extra zing to the music.
Direct connection between the streamer (Marantz and Naim DAC)
and the amp without the preamp is lacking in highs and details.

The chains I found great were,

Marantz NA7004 -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> MBL 116
Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> MBL 116

Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> SF Luito
Marantz NA7004 -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> SF Luito

The chains I found that are good were,

Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> MBL 116 (Lacks in Detail)

Marantz NA7004 -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> SF Luito (Little Bright).
Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> SF Luito (Little Bright).

The chains I found that are not that good were,

Marantz NA7004 -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> MBL 116 (Little Dull)

The above experiments made it abundantly clear that to get the best out of
the system its all about pairing and system synergy.

I had always assumed the most passive and transparent component in the
HiFi Chain is the preamp. I learned that its actually very important and easy
to get wrong. I would have never gone for the MBL 116 if it weren't for the Used MF Pre that I got and had to fix up. This is what made the Music Light up on the MBLs. I could never afford the Full MBL Chain.

I am still doing a few more experiments so will keep you posted.

-Kiranps

 

[hfvuser]

Pardon me but i only read the 4 points. So your wife was convinced on those four points?

 

[KiranPS]

Actually she was convinced on the first point, because now I cannot say anything when she gets some thing expensive . :sad:

 

[ranjeetrain]

Nice review, Kiran. Thanks for posting impressions.

 

[longshanks]

I have heard MBL 116,101 and 121 but none impressed me and i wouldn't compare it with anywhere close the the focal grande utopia EM, they are completely in a different price bracket (focal costs much more) so the product logic of both the companies are totally different, while the grande utopia is used in mastering studio's MBL finds rich wealthy homes, from what i have heard until now now i have not heard any speaker better than the focal grande utopia EM.

 

[KiranPS]

That might be true , long shanks, i heard them at a dealer in a small room. I guess to get the most out of these super expensive speakers you need a dedicated acoustically treated room, With a good chain. With regular speakers you also need to sit in the sweet spot. Omnis don't seem to have this issue.

 

[isoton]

Congrats kiran,:clapping:

The 3 Dimensional sound generated from this MBL is Awesome.
You will not get this special room filling effect from normal speakers.

Enjoy........

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

If you add the savings from being a non-smoker to those of being a non-drinker, you could probably go for the rest of the MBL chain, should you wish, as well. Too late to add the savings from not having married, though

1) Its better to get speakers now when my hearing is still good instead of later when I retire, by then my hearing might not be as good.

From the other side of that fence (or the other end of the road, maybe). Yes and No. I absolutely urge you to go ahead and buy the best your ears are capable of hearing right now, while you can still take in that frequency range.

On the other hand, even with diminished high frequency hearing, you might still find that your ears get less tolerant of not-so-good ground in older age.

What would be really great is if you still have these speakers, and still think they are wonderful ...on your retirement day

 

[anm]

and also that you are not a drug addict, you have saved so much
alas, can't use the teetotaler argument for myself, but it is goof stuff.

 

[srinisundar]

Congrats Kiran on purchasing of your dream speakers which satisfied you fully. Look forward for an session to hear those.

Regards

 

[hemantwaghe]

and also that you are not a drug addict, you have saved so much
alas, can't use the teetotaler argument for myself, but it is goof stuff.

smoking is more expensive --- If you are not smoking use this logic....... least I am planning to use the logic ... to procure some single malt!!!:cheers::cheers:

also everyone think of other vices too - and sell the logic to ladies in our life ( Mothers , Wifes , Daughters & GF's) - like Gambling , Women , Gutkha, Shopping ,Religion etc...........

 

[SatMumbai]

Hi.. How much you paid for these speakers? And is this in India or else where?

I am actually in a similar boat and I might need to convince my wife on Vivid Audio and I am hoping a reference price from you can add a bit more weight!

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

I would like to convince my wife re Genelec monitors --- but it is such a selfish pleasure, that I might have a better chance with something for the hifi rather than just my personal listening.

Above all, though, I am recklessly extravagant, and it is her job to control my spending, or we might starve. I sometimes express the experience of listening to beautiful music on a beautiful system as music you can breathe ...but I am yet to encounter music you can eat, so I am ok with having given this role to Mrs G.

Kiran, all this talk about wives... Better to talk about getting a chance to hear your new speakers

 

[Rajiv]

Hi,

I spent a very enjoyable evening yesteday at Kiran's home in the company of fellow FM's Capt.Rajesh,Srinisundar,MohamedNaseer and Sashi listening to the MBL116 speakers.

Thank you for having us over Kiran.

The speakers look great,the fit and finish is superb.

Kiran played an Alan Taylor song first up and the sound filled the room effortlessly.The MBL's are very revealing speakers,they also go very low,the foot stomps in the track Grandma's Hands(Livingston Taylor) are heard very clearly and you can feel the low bass.


Kiran connected the Marantz directly to the Parasound A21 amp without the A5 pre and to me it sounded a lot better. it was not as "detailed" but the sound was easier on my ears. My ears tell me that the A5 is adding a little brightness and edge to the sound,and does not let you relax to the music.

Kiran had a Japanese(Chinese built) EL34 tube amp on hand and on our request he connected the MBL116 speakers to the tube amp . The amp drove the speakers quite well and I liked the sound of the MBL's with the tube amp the best. It is not as detailed and revealing as the Parasound/A5 combination but it sounded more musical and natural to me. Sorry folks but SS just does not sound right to me.

Even at the Chennai meet many thought that the MBL speakers sounded better with the DARED tube amp than with the MBL monoblocks.

We listened to the Naim DAC briefly,but I need to listen to it more before any meaningful conclusions are made .

One thing is certain Kiran need not worry about upgrading his speakers ever.


Regards
Rajiv

 

[Rajiv]

Hi,

The chains I found great were,

Marantz NA7004 -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> MBL 116
Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> MBL 116

Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> SF Luito
Marantz NA7004 -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> SF Luito

The chains I found that are good were,

Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> MBL 116 (Lacks in Detail)

Marantz NA7004 -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> SF Luito (Little Bright).
Marantz NA7004 -> Naim DAC -> MF A5 Pre -> A21 -> SF Luito (Little Bright).

The chains I found that are not that good were,

Marantz NA7004 -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> MBL 116 (Little Dull)

I prefered the Marantz NA7004 -> (Direct with Gain on A21) A21 -> MBL 116


Regards
Rajiv

 

[Staxxx]

Wow! Great to hear that there are some radialstrahlers around. This is one of the speakers that I have always wanted to own in the course of my audiophile life, but there were never any dealers nearby (or one's that I knew well enough to do me a good deal) and therefore only heard in shows - perhaps not the best conditions.

I must confess, I have heard the big Focals in a domestic setting and many of their speakers in shows. I have to say they are also just not my kind of speaker (in any model). To each his own house sound....

These MBL speakers usually really need a very high-end source and certainly excellent amplification to get the best out of it. I think, now that you started down the route, there is a nice path opening up with many other expensive opportunities to savour.

 

[KiranPS]

Thanks, Rajiv,Capt.Rajesh,Srinisundar,MohamedNaseer and Sashi for coming over. It was a great revelation for me in many ways I am still learning so many things (Proper handling of tube amps, Dacs, LPs Among other things). Thanks Rajiv for pointing out that I had my left and right reversed, during one of the many interconnect swaps I had reversed them and did not even realise it. This was affecting imaging.

I had the tube amp gathering dust for over a year since got them. when I tried it initially, it did not sound as detailed in Techno and synthesised music so I assumed that they were no good and let them sit. Yesterday When we listened to vocals and instrument oriented music, the tube amp was much more real , it did lack the high frequency extension and the attack, but it did I not add any sort of coloration to vocals or instruments and was warm and very pleasant with better bass. Thanks to the team, Now I am planning to get a speaker switcher to switch between the tube and ss amp based on the music genre.

As suggested yesterday, I will also clean my LPs and give them a go. LPs are the only audiophile subject I am still not convinced that they are worth the effort for everyday listening. I guess a few lessons from an LP guru should fix that.

I really appreciate the acknowledgment from a group of audiophile experts and peers that I did not make a bad investment. I slept much better yesterday.

Thanks Team,
Ravi Kiran

 

[srinisundar]

Thanks Kiranps for giving an opportunity of hearing the MBL at an beautiful location in the background..

Ok, i started my serious stereo journey only 2 year back and follow the path of Rajiv and i agree with the comments made by Rajiv on the MBL combo.

Yes the MBL are very revealing speakers and if effortlessly reproduced the music without much harshness. It brings out the lows and mids very clearly and midrange of the MBL is so good and everybody will fell love in to it on hearing for first time. It is not an bright speaker and it is revealing the music. Thru out the 3 hours we heard we had no fatigue. Omni directional of the speakers were an added advantage and an innovative one. However the distance from the wall has to be adjusted not to get too much bass to control over.

It is very amazing to see the power of Parasound A21 and it drives the MBL so clearly. Yes without Pre it sounded very nice and natural. May be adding an tube pre amp will give additional required flavor.

Should mention it here the Kiran is using "Finolex power Cables " as speaker wire

Over and above his "Four channel " tube amp which is 40W per channel with EL34 tubes easily managed to drive the speakers effortlessely. It is of complete tube signature with thumping bass and connecting the hearts. May be the highs were rolled off for few guys who need more treble which we can get only in SS. Sharp digital sound recorded by ARR can be expected to sound good for few guys who loves to get moooooore highs.

Oh.. Yeah.. This has to be mentioned.. Kiran has done his HiFi Rack on his own which cost only Rs.22,000 which is so good and looks like an hi-end racks which cost more than $1000... I have seen the rack sold by one of our fellow member magma to our captn.Rajesh and it cost 16k and looks like an skeleton and absolutely not sturdy and threaten us like "i will fall any time"..

Kiran has done audition of various high end stuffs and zeroed in the right product which will last for years.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

Great pictures! But... err... that district of Chennai has changed a bit since I last saw it! :lol:

The speakers certainly look incredible. Hope to have actually seen and heard them in a couple of weeks time, thanks to Kiran's kind invitation. I'm going to be admiring that rack too

 

[prem]

Hi Kiran

Congrats on the MBL 116. If you like the Parasound A21, move up to the JC 1 monoblocs. They are in a different league.