Quicksilver

Wharfedale Linton Heritage Speakers
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prem

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The last 15 days, I have been considering a number of amps which I thought would be a good match with my JBL 4343. Airtight, Aries Cerat, Zanden, Wavac, Kronzilla, Dartzeel, Jadis, Conrad Johnson, Vitus, First Watt, Pass Labs, vintage Pioneer M22, class A Denon 850ii. After exchange of several mails and chats, I have kind of decided on the simple 20 watt class AB1, ultralinear Quicksilver integrated.

The big bonus, it’s by far the cheapest of all the options I was considering:)

I would like to thank Dr Bass, arj, audiopro and Bhagwan for all their inputs.
 
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Not heard this one but I owned quicksilver mid mono, Kt 88 mono, mini mono and a full pre in the past. Excellent VFM products IMO. Congrats. And Mike Sanders is a great guy, both to deal with and a huge repository of knowledge as well.
Cheers,
Sid
 
prem said:
The last 15 days, I have been considering a number of amps which I thought would be a good match with my JBL 4343. Airtight, Aries Cerat, Zanden, Wavac, Kronzilla, Dartzeel, Jadis, Conrad Johnson, Vitus, First Watt, Pass Labs, vintage Pioneer M22, class A Denon 850ii. After exchange of several mails and chats, I have kind of decided on the simple 20 watt class AB1, ultralinear Quicksilver integrated.

The big bonus, it’s by far the cheapest of all the options I was considering:)

I would like to thank Dr Bass, arj, audiopro and Bhagwan for all their inputs.
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:DI always enjoy Prems expeditions since I end up learning so much about so many different aspects of music right from different kinds of wood and how to use them to equipment itself :) So I should be thanking you
 
To put things in perspective, almost all the amps in my consideration list will definitely be more resolving and more extended than the Quicksilver. But I was in search of a very natural sound with full tonal range and depth. Hence Quicksilver. It’s not an amp that will score high on hifi attributes like staging, imaging:)

I agree Sidvee. They are VFM products. But I am not sure they will work well with modern speakers. I think Mike himself uses Klipschhorn and JBL horns for his personal listening. Also Greg Timber, the man behind all the legendary JBL designs, uses Quicksilver for his personal listening.
 
prem said:
To put things in perspective, almost all the amps in my consideration list will definitely be more resolving and more extended than the Quicksilver. But I was in search of a very natural sound with full tonal range and depth. Hence Quicksilver. It’s not an amp that will score high on hifi attributes like staging, imaging:)
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Could be a candidate for me as well.
 
You don’t have to wait for my reviews. It will work well in my system. I have done my homework. The fact that I have chosen a USD 2000 amp over USD 25000 amps should tell you something :) And the decision had nothing to do with trying to save money
 
prem said:
You don’t have to wait for my reviews. It will work well in my system. I have done my homework. The fact that I have chosen a USD 2000 amp over USD 25000 amps should tell you something :)
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You are pairing it with what kinda speakers?
 
prem said:
I agree Sidvee. They are VFM products. But I am not sure they will work well with modern speakers. I think Mike himself uses Klipschhorn and JBL horns for his personal listening. Also Greg Timber, the man behind all the legendary JBL designs, uses Quicksilver for his personal listening.
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AFAIK their amplifiers worked real well with modern speakers. I drove a B&W 805 N with a mid mono. The combination was so good that I was not tempted by any other options for well over half a decade. Yes they are not the most resolving, or transparent, but they did create music.
Cheers,
Sid
 
Nice to hear they work well with modern speakers. But I would still not use it with modern speakers. I think they work best with high efficiency speakers and ones using paper drivers. Their resolution and transparency will go a notch up. I feel it’s too simple a design to pair it with complex crossovers. It also has a very low damping factor to control modern woofers.
 
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prem said:
Nice to hear they work well with modern speakers. But I would still not use it with modern speakers. I think they work best with high efficiency speakers and ones using paper drivers. Their resolution and transparency will go a notch up. I feel it’s too simple a design to pair it with complex crossovers. It also has a very low damping factor to control modern woofers.
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I think damping factor is a very controversial/misunderstood topic, I have heard low power tube amps with low damping factor, control complex crossover systems and vice versa, but anyways I do not purport to be an expert in these things (for instance my Lyric 20 watt single ended integrated controlled 85 db (into 4 ohms) ATC SCM 19v2/Ascendo C8 R (88 db into 4 ohms with 4 drivers) in bass, better than a 400 watt (into 4 ohms) Symphonic line kraft 250 amp. with huge damping factor 800 -1000), so go figure. Anyways, regardless the Quicksilver is a great purchase, it should work superbly.
Cheers,
Sid
 
There are always exceptions to the rule. But generally I prefer high damping for modern speakers. I have had B&W 801 in the past. I needed very high damping to control the bass and allow the mids to shine. But that’s a topic for another day :)

Sidvee, its reassuring to know the Quicksilver worked well for you
 
prem said:
Nice to hear they work well with modern speakers. But I would still not use it with modern speakers. I think they work best with high efficiency speakers and ones using paper drivers. Their resolution and transparency will go a notch up. I feel it’s too simple a design to pair it with complex crossovers. It also has a very low damping factor to control modern woofers.
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Think the Mid monoblocks I currently own are the ones from Sid. I am driving Cadence avitas with them and it just sounds beautiful. Haven't heard the VA 1 pairing with Avitas so this is the best so far for me
 
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