by Michael

More: Experimenting with the current systems a little

Well, moving the equipment back about 3 or 4 inches away from in front of the speakers solved most of the sibilance problem [note to Mike: do not put equipment in front of speakers] … could probably move it back further… but too impatient and went on to the next experiment and put the Audio Note M10 3 box linestage in the system replacing the 2 box Lamm L2.


Oops, the CDSA is back in front of the speakers again. Well, what can I do? In the short term I mean. Eventually we could put up high rises (racks), overpasses (elevators), bypasses (longer runs of cables, especially power cords in this case), etc. But for now, we just listen.


Emm Labs CDSA CD/SACD player in front, Audio Note M10 line stage (center) and its power supplies (flanking) in the second row, Marten crossover and bass tower amp with Edge Signature One amps flanking.


Neli wants me to remind people that she is not inn favor of the CDSA player being in front of the left channel bass tower that way.


The system sounds bigger, stronger, more forceful with the M10 linestage. This is more of a ‘room pressurizing’ big overwhelming sound than the more measured stately sound of the Lamm L2 linestage.


The Marten Coltrane Supremes at morning


The Marten Coltrane Supremes at morning. The redishness is the sun reflecting off of our bright red leather couch.

in Audio Note / Emm Labs / High-end Audio HiFi and Stereo / Marten Design / Showroom 1 0 comments
 by Michael

Experimenting with the current systems a little

Teck, from Singapore, played a female vocals CD in our room, and likely a few lucky other rooms as well, at RMAF, and kindly and generously sent us a copy of it:

And, uh, it is surprisingly difficult to render well. The second track, specially, the singer has lotssssssss of sssssss’s in her ssssssinging that can caussssssse ssssssibliance when played back [i.e. sharp S sounds instead of delicate, sweet s sounds]. Luckily, the completely optimized system we took to the show played everything perfect, but some of our experimental systems, that otherwise play flawlessly [more or less] have difficulty here, and truth to tell, the playback in general on this CD could be better.

I think the answer will turn out to be a combination of the fact that we are playing it LOUD [what? L-O-U-D!!! Anybody else have these strange conversations when the music is loud? That usually end in “Forget it. I’ll Tell!… You!… Later!…”. “WHAAAAT!?”], the equipment is sitting very nearly right in front of the speakers, and the bass needs adjusting because the room is so large – we got used to using an integrated, and I do not think we have used solid-state on the main towers for over a year.

So we struggle, changing power cords, cleaning the CD, changing cables etc. to try and figure out what thing[s] are responsible. Everything to avoid having to move things or put a rack between the speakers [on the other hand, Neli is happy as a clam to have Mike move things, including racks, to and fro, fro and to].


System 1


Lamm L2 linestage’s power supply


Lamm L2 linestage. Just about everything is on HRS M3 Isolation Bases.


Emm Labs CDSA CD / SACD Player.

Anyway, that is what’s happening here. The Vidar has not yet arrived so we are not burning in anything that needs to be burned in. So, we are circling the field waiting to land.


System 2


Audio Note Ongaku integrated amplifier


Audio Note DAC 4.1x Balanced


Audio Note CDT Three transport

And, yes, Teck, your other CD arrived to [Thanks SO much!]. But, uh, I accidentally left it in the Emm Labs CDSD SE which, uh, is unplugged and at the moment away from an outlet, and I need to find a power cord for it somewhere [can I use a stock $2 Belden power cord? Of Course Not :-)] and plug it back in so I can eject the CD [See, I TOLD you all that I do this ALL THE TIME. Don’t know what it is… some kind of curse because I ‘let’ Neli clean all the CDs (and records, too) or something… :-)]

We like the CDs. We are certainly playing them a lot. The soundtrack is a little like the Gladiator soundtrack… I mean, doesn’t it seem like soundtracks have their own genre -they’re not classical and they’re not pop. Cool depth of field though, and amazing drums.

in Audio Note / High-end Audio HiFi and Stereo / Lamm / Showroom 1 / Showroom 2 0 comments
 by Michael

Nordost ODIN – Cold Out Of The Box: Addendum

A few notes…

First, the bass on the Kharma Mini Exquisite speakers is much improved with the Odin, especially with music that has a lot of bass at frequencies that the speaker is tuned for, i.e. around the port frequency. But, as we all know, the bass between the port frequency and about 35 Hz, say is not as strong and will never be as strong as that of a larger speaker.

Second, there is some relationship between dynamic compression and (multi-dimensional: frequency, imaging, dynamics, etc.) congestion. These cables, removing these, makes one wonder how they got there in the first place. One possibility is that, because problems often can be heard even on very well recorded, yet not very complex music, near or at loud notes, that it is the red-lining during the recording processes, maxing out the dynamics of the media, that most cables find hard to deal with. They can’t disambiguate the signal very well at all when there is not a lot of dynamic headroom – but that the Odin, being more sensitive, and consistent, can.

We put the Odin on as a digital cable between the transport and DAC. It did indeed improve the sound in the same character as when we inserted it between the DAC and integrated – but not to the same degree. But don’t take this as the final word on where that all important first / best cable should be inserted into a system. Although it makes sense that having more cable that the signal goes through the more of the character of that cable the sound will have, the opposite makes sense too – that the smaller signal needs the most help. Anyway, there is some interaction between the Valhalla and Audio Note SOOTTO (much more musical) as compared to the ODIN and SOOTTO (much more competent), that throws the test results askew.

The system was then outfitted with 100% ODIN. Very intense, and quite enjoyable, and they only have a few hours on them now.

Speaking of competent, Neli came up with it first, but these cables are the first really competent cables, like the Coltrane Supremes being the first, real competent speakers. They just do the job – plain and simple, but unlike anything that came before them, nothing else has been able to just do the darned job of carrying a signal without mucking with it.

And once you hear them, once you try them in a decent system that you are familiar with, you are… ruined.

Next, putting a cable or two in the Marten Coltrane Supreme system.

in High-end Audio HiFi and Stereo / Nordost 0 comments