Rethm coming out with bookshelf speakers - Aarka

[Sivasathya]

Do you feel like you may need to add a sub? not now, but later.

For my bedroom - I did not feel any need to add sub.
I had connected to Marantz avr- 8012 preout to aarkas and watched few movies - even for movies it was good enough. Except when my son comes - he wants real deep bass-he switches on the sub only for movies
and not for songs .

I think a schit Sys should do

Schiit Audio: Audio Products Designed and Built in Texas and California

www.schiit.com

Looks good. Quite economical also. Have you tried it ?

 

[cooltoad]

Looks good. Quite economical also. Have you tried it ?

No, i think Sachin has stated in a previous post that he has the Sys. May be ,he can share his opinion on the product.

 

[Deleted member 15865]

No, i think Sachin has stated in a previous post that he has the Sys. May be ,he can share his opinion on the product.

The Sys is a nice little inexpensive product that works pretty unobtrusively, acoustically speaking. It doesn’t add anything of its own colour to the sound (unlike active preamps, which, depending on your taste, could be a pro or con) and takes very little away from it. The volume control is smooth, but needs you to get up from your seat, which is a pain if you are listening to assorted playlists.

 

[hydra]

I had gone over to the Rethm Studio to listen to the Aarkas again. This time, I was able to listen to the final production version. There were quite a few changes from the last time I had listened to them: The tube in the preamp section was different, and the bass section was different.

The studio is a rather large pentagonal room (stretched lengthwise). The speaker was about 9 feet away from the wall behind it, and the listening position was about 9 feet away from the speaker. The final Steel stands were not yet ready, and the speaker was set up on the older version wood stands.

The source chain was an Innuos Server playing Tidal via Roon, connected via IIS to a Singxer USBridge, outputting signal to a Holo Audio Spring DAC via Coaxial. The Aarkas were connected via RCA interconnects from the DAC.

As before, the typical Rethm traits were all there: natural and open tone, very wide and deep soundstage, and pin-point imaging. This time however, the improvement in the midrange and and bass section was very noticeable. In comparison to my Trishnas, the top end is ever so slightly rolled off, and the Aarkas run circles around the Trishna when it comes to bass response! In fact, the Aarkas sound dangerously close to how I have my Trishnas set up with a REL T5/i! The bass is fast and quite palpable. The mids have that perfect balance between feeling liquidly flowing and biting hard when necessary. Because of the expansive soundstage, they sound like big speakers. It's actually hard to believe that speakers of this size can put out a wall of sound that's this big!

There was plenty of bass for my taste in that large room, but I'd wager that these speakers would sound somewhat better in a smaller room.

The Aarkas have a bass level control, and a crossover control in the back, with the RCA inputs, the external amplification switch, and banana plus inputs for when that switch is used. The bass level and crossover controls should help us set us the Aarkas in any room, and also compensate for a wall being close to their rear.

The speakers are priced at 1.5L plus GST (@18% currently), without the stands. (The stands are priced and sold as separate items, and I'm not sure how much the stands come to, since they're still to finish production of the stands).

As someone who owns virtually a full Rethm setup (speakers/amp/speakers cables), and as someone who's listened (multiple times and in multiple rooms in some cases, over the last 8 years or so) to two generations of Bhaavas, Maargas, and Saadhanas, IMHO, these are great value for that price.

I've attached a few photos to this post. Trust me, photos do no justice to these works of art! The design and the proportions of these speakers make it hard to take our eyes off them.

 

[shyamv]

I had gone over to the Rethm Studio to listen to the Aarkas again. This time, I was able to listen to the final production version. There were quite a few changes from the last time I had listened to them: The tube in the preamp section was different, and the bass section was different.

The studio is a rather large pentagonal room (stretched lengthwise). The speaker was about 9 feet away from the wall behind it, and the listening position was about 9 feet away from the speaker. The final Steel stands were not yet ready, and the speaker was set up on the older version wood stands.

The source chain was an Innuos Server playing Tidal via Roon, connected via IIS to a Singxer USBridge, outputting signal to a Holo Audio Spring DAC via Coaxial. The Aarkas were connected via RCA interconnects from the DAC.

As before, the typical Rethm traits were all there: natural and open tone, very wide and deep soundstage, and pin-point imaging. This time however, the improvement in the midrange and and bass section was very noticeable. In comparison to my Trishnas, the top end is ever so slightly rolled off, and the Aarkas run circles around the Trishna when it comes to bass response! In fact, the Aarkas sound dangerously close to how I have my Trishnas set up with a REL T5/i! The bass is fast and quite palpable. The mids have that perfect balance between feeling liquidly flowing and biting hard when necessary. Because of the expansive soundstage, they sound like big speakers. It's actually hard to believe that speakers of this size can put out a wall of sound that's this big!

There was plenty of bass for my taste in that large room, but I'd wager that these speakers would sound somewhat better in a smaller room.

The Aarkas have a bass level control, and a crossover control in the back, with the RCA inputs, the external amplification switch, and banana plus inputs for when that switch is used. The bass level and crossover controls should help us set us the Aarkas in any room, and also compensate for a wall being close to their rear.

The speakers are priced at 1.5L plus GST (@18% currently), without the stands. (The stands are priced and sold as separate items, and I'm not sure how much the stands come to, since they're still to finish production of the stands).

As someone who owns virtually a full Rethm setup (speakers/amp/speakers cables), and as someone who's listened (multiple times and in multiple rooms in some cases, over the last 8 years or so) to two generations of Bhaavas, Maargas, and Saadhanas, IMHO, these are great value for that price.

I've attached a few photos to this post. Trust me, photos do no justice to these works of art! The design and the proportions of these speakers make it hard to take our eyes off them.

Wonderful write-up. I wonder how these would sound in more typical listening/living rooms with price-matched partnering equipment.

 

[Deleted member 15865]

As before, the typical Rethm traits were all there: natural and open tone, very wide and deep soundstage, and pin-point imaging. This time however, the improvement in the midrange and and bass section was very noticeable. In comparison to my Trishnas, the top end is ever so slightly rolled off, and the Aarkas run circles around the Trishna when it comes to bass response! In fact, the Aarkas sound dangerously close to how I have my Trishnas set up with a REL T5/i! The bass is fast and quite palpable. The mids have that perfect balance between feeling liquidly flowing and biting hard when necessary. Because of the expansive soundstage, they sound like big speakers. It's actually hard to believe that speakers of this size can put out a wall of sound that's this big!

Well-articulated. Helps get a good idea of the sound.

What was driving the speakers? Were both the internal amps in use, without an external sub? And what was the preamp and source/DAC used? What pre would you recommend to be paired with them?

 

[hydra]

Wonderful write-up. I wonder how these would sound in more typical listening/living rooms with price-matched partnering equipment.

Thank you! Going by my experience with using a Matrix mini-i Pro 3 in my setup (Rethm Trishnas + Rethm Gaanam), I think something along those lines would work really well with the Aarkas.

A good single box Streamer+DAC+Preamp (such as the unit I use, though I don't use its preamp) in the 50K to 80K range should be partner really well with the Aarkas, IMHO. And make a really elegant and KISS solution that sounds great!

NOTE: That price range I mentioned for the source is a somewhat arbitrary figure based on current price levels, and is based on what I personally would spend, were I looking for a source for the Aarka. I've not listened to the DAC/Preamps from Topping in the 30kish range, such as the D30 Pro (34K), and perhaps partnered with a PC/Roon endpoint, these might also make a good option. I have a very soft spot for a single box solution, though.

Well-articulated. Helps get a good idea of the sound.

What was driving the speakers? Were both the internal amps in use, without an external sub? And what was the preamp and source/DAC used? What pre would you recommend to be paired with them?

Thank you!

The source chain was:
Innuos Roon Server --- IIS/LVDS ---> Singxer USBridge --- Coaxial Digital ---> Holo Audio Spring DAC --- RCA ---> Aarkas.

The Aarkas were powered by their internal amps. No external subwoofers were in use. Only the Aarkas were playing.

The Holo Audio Spring was also being used as a Preamp (I assume so, because Jacob George was using a remote to control volume), and there were no other pre-amps there.

I personally would use a Matrix Audio mini-i pro 3 (a Roon ready streamer+DAC+preamp) with the Aarkas. I use one of these in my Rethm Trishna + Rethm Gaanam setup, and I know it partners well with a Rethm system. The mini-i pro 3 is a fairly transparent unit, and doesn't seem to add or take away anything from the sound. And so it should really work with any setup, to bring out the sound of the amp+speaker combo itself. I might also use a Matrix Audio Element i (also a streamer+DAC+preamp, but one that doesn't need Roon for streaming).

Alternatively, I would venture using a Topping D30 Pro with a PC, or with an RPi4 set up with Moode or with DietPi as a Roon endpoint.

I saw that you had mentioned the the Schiit Sys as an option earlier on in the thread. It looks to be a good solution for people who already have a source chain setup, and would like to keep it as is. I've not listened to a system with one of those in the chain yet.

 

[vineetrad]

I personally like the wooden stands a lot more

The Aarkas do look like a very promising bang for the buck quality audiophile product and a relatively painless way to get into trying high sensitivity speakers for all of us in the high power SS camp.

 

[SwaroopKS]

I personally like the wooden stands a lot more

+1

These stands look very aesthetic and even colour matched to perfectly go with the speakers than the steel ones.

 

[hydra]

I personally like the wooden stands a lot more

The Aarkas do look like a very promising bang for the buck quality audiophile product and a relatively painless way to get into trying high sensitivity speakers for all of us in the high power SS camp.

Frankly, I'm conflicted too. I did like the way the steel stands looked in the render that Sivasathya posted earlier in the thread. But I think I personally prefer the wood stands, having seen them in person.

Maybe the steel stands will look as good when they're done. They would probably work really well with a more modern style of home decor. There is the advantage that the steel stands continue the lines that the steel exoskeleton has drawn.

 

[rajeshv]

I had gone over to the Rethm Studio to listen to the Aarkas again. This time, I was able to listen to the final production version. There were quite a few changes from the last time I had listened to them: The tube in the preamp section was different, and the bass section was different.

The studio is a rather large pentagonal room (stretched lengthwise). The speaker was about 9 feet away from the wall behind it, and the listening position was about 9 feet away from the speaker. The final Steel stands were not yet ready, and the speaker was set up on the older version wood stands.

The source chain was an Innuos Server playing Tidal via Roon, connected via IIS to a Singxer USBridge, outputting signal to a Holo Audio Spring DAC via Coaxial. The Aarkas were connected via RCA interconnects from the DAC.

As before, the typical Rethm traits were all there: natural and open tone, very wide and deep soundstage, and pin-point imaging. This time however, the improvement in the midrange and and bass section was very noticeable. In comparison to my Trishnas, the top end is ever so slightly rolled off, and the Aarkas run circles around the Trishna when it comes to bass response! In fact, the Aarkas sound dangerously close to how I have my Trishnas set up with a REL T5/i! The bass is fast and quite palpable. The mids have that perfect balance between feeling liquidly flowing and biting hard when necessary. Because of the expansive soundstage, they sound like big speakers. It's actually hard to believe that speakers of this size can put out a wall of sound that's this big!

There was plenty of bass for my taste in that large room, but I'd wager that these speakers would sound somewhat better in a smaller room.

The Aarkas have a bass level control, and a crossover control in the back, with the RCA inputs, the external amplification switch, and banana plus inputs for when that switch is used. The bass level and crossover controls should help us set us the Aarkas in any room, and also compensate for a wall being close to their rear.

The speakers are priced at 1.5L plus GST (@18% currently), without the stands. (The stands are priced and sold as separate items, and I'm not sure how much the stands come to, since they're still to finish production of the stands).

As someone who owns virtually a full Rethm setup (speakers/amp/speakers cables), and as someone who's listened (multiple times and in multiple rooms in some cases, over the last 8 years or so) to two generations of Bhaavas, Maargas, and Saadhanas, IMHO, these are great value for that price.

I've attached a few photos to this post. Trust me, photos do no justice to these works of art! The design and the proportions of these speakers make it hard to take our eyes off them.

I had visited last week rethm office at Cochin.These speakers sound exceptional with the holo audio r2r dac.

 

[jai1611]

I got some specs on the Aarkas from the manufacturer. Attached

Mine have settled in well now. I'll post some listening impressions in the coming days. For now, have also attached a couple of photos. I asked for the older stand style so mine are a hybrid of the old and new design. Dont know if this stand style is available as a standard option. The other speakers in the photo are my Harbeths. Both are part of the main setup now.

 

[Naturelover]

I got some specs on the Aarkas from the manufacturer. Attached

Mine have settled in well now. I'll post some listening impressions in the coming days. For now, have also attached a couple of photos. I asked for the older stand style so mine are a hybrid of the old and new design. Dont know if this stand style is available as a standard option. The other speakers in the photo are my Harbeths. Both are part of the main setup now.

View attachment 62989View attachment 62990

Initial impressions?
How do you intend to use two pairs of speakers?

 

[Nikhil]

Did not realize how deep those speakers sit on that stand.
Not that it means anything but would prefer to have the stand with the same length as the speaker.

 

[jai1611]

Initial impressions?
How do you intend to use two pairs of speakers?

They have been with me for well over a month now. Fully burnt in and settled so impressions are no longer initial. Will need some time to write them up so waiting till I have some time free

They are effectively two setups in a single place. I change the speaker in use based on the music and mood. Noth use the same DAC. One output goes to the accuphase and the Harbeths. The other goes to a Decware Zen Stage (buffer) and then the Aarkas (internal amp used).

Did not realize how deep those speakers sit on that stand.
Not that it means anything but would prefer to have the stand with the same length as the speaker.

Not sure if its the same with the regular stands. Balance not a worry as the speakers have spikes at the bottom that precisely fit into notches on the stand.

 

[jai1611]

Posting some listening impressions on the Aarkas.
- Setup - chain is Sonnet Morpheus DAC -> Decware Zen Stage tube buffer -> Aarkas (internal amps). Use the volume control on the DAC as the Decware doesnt have a remote.
- Comparisons are against my Accuphase E450 - Harbeth C7ES3 setup. Very different price points so keep that in mind
- Overall presentation is slightly leaner than the Harbeth end of the spectrum (those are overtly warm). Would put them midway between the PMC 25.24s I owned earlier and the Harbeths
- They do the disappearing act remarkably well. Set up about 2.5 feet from the back wall, they integrate very well. You dont hear the speakers, just the soundstage. Depth is good but not as strong as the Sadhanas I owned earlier. Better than the Harbeths / PMCs
- Leading edges are better defined than the Harbeths. Overall resolution is very good. However, midrange resolution is better on the Harbeths. Treble resolution is similar, bass seems slightly better on the Aarkas
- Treble energy is more than the Harbeths (which are fairly rolled off) but not as much as the PMCs (which were relatively bright).
- Bass is quite good (extended, resolving) with reasonable impact (higher than the speaker size would suggest). However, the bass output is a little low for the gigantic room I have them set up in (500 sft+) - even at 75% volume on the bass control
- They are more versatile than the Harbeths - do well with a wider variety of music, including stuff with synthetic bass (something the Harbeths struggle with). Much better than the Sadhanas, which were much more picky

Overall the Aarkas are ridiculously good for the money - especially given that they are active. In our house, there is a debate on whether these or the Harbeths are better. I prefer the Harbeths but my wife prefers the Aarkas. We both also listen to different music so thats also reflecting here.

I still have to experiment to see if they sound better without the Decware buffer. I'm also curious to try them out with the Accuphase. Will post updates as and when I do that.

I got some specs on the Aarkas from the manufacturer. Attached

Mine have settled in well now. I'll post some listening impressions in the coming days. For now, have also attached a couple of photos. I asked for the older stand style so mine are a hybrid of the old and new design. Dont know if this stand style is available as a standard option. The other speakers in the photo are my Harbeths. Both are part of the main setup now.

View attachment 62989View attachment 62990

 

[heliumflight]

Posting some listening impressions on the Aarkas.
- Setup - chain is Sonnet Morpheus DAC -> Decware Zen Stage tube buffer -> Aarkas (internal amps). Use the volume control on the DAC as the Decware doesnt have a remote.
- Comparisons are against my Accuphase E450 - Harbeth C7ES3 setup. Very different price points so keep that in mind
- Overall presentation is slightly leaner than the Harbeth end of the spectrum (those are overtly warm). Would put them midway between the PMC 25.24s I owned earlier and the Harbeths
- They do the disappearing act remarkably well. Set up about 2.5 feet from the back wall, they integrate very well. You dont hear the speakers, just the soundstage. Depth is good but not as strong as the Sadhanas I owned earlier. Better than the Harbeths / PMCs
- Leading edges are better defined than the Harbeths. Overall resolution is very good. However, midrange resolution is better on the Harbeths. Treble resolution is similar, bass seems slightly better on the Aarkas
- Treble energy is more than the Harbeths (which are fairly rolled off) but not as much as the PMCs (which were relatively bright).
- Bass is quite good (extended, resolving) with reasonable impact (higher than the speaker size would suggest). However, the bass output is a little low for the gigantic room I have them set up in (500 sft+) - even at 75% volume on the bass control
- They are more versatile than the Harbeths - do well with a wider variety of music, including stuff with synthetic bass (something the Harbeths struggle with). Much better than the Sadhanas, which were much more picky

Overall the Aarkas are ridiculously good for the money - especially given that they are active. In our house, there is a debate on whether these or the Harbeths are better. I prefer the Harbeths but my wife prefers the Aarkas. We both also listen to different music so thats also reflecting here.

I still have to experiment to see if they sound better without the Decware buffer. I'm also curious to try them out with the Accuphase. Will post updates as and when I do that.

Great writeup. Is the inbuilt amp a SET or PP?

 

[jai1611]

Great writeup. Is the inbuilt amp a SET or PP?

Internal amp is solid state with a tube input stage

 

[prem]

Try hearing without the buffer. You already have tubes as input in the Aarka amp

 

[Decadent_Spectre]

These look like a small full range scoop, interesting.

Edit: Reading the specsheet not too much info, still seems interesting. Certainly different than the classic designs. Never really thought of a full range scoop with bass on the back. I wonder if a pro audio based design like this exists?