Our reference hifisystem is FINALLY finished! And it's Awesome :-).
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- Опубліковано 27 вер 2024
- YES! We have finally finished our new reference hifi systemen. With the arrivial of the TAD Evolution Two speakers, we can now say the system is complete. We discuss our choices, our mistakes and our future plans in this video. Enjoy!
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The new, main, system consists of:
Pass Labs XP-12 pre-amp
Pass Labs X150.8 power amp
TAD Evolution Two speakers
Sonnet Pasithea DAC
Grimm UC1 DAC
Alpha Audio PC with Mutec MC3+ USB and Jcat pci-e cards
Isotek Titan V5 and Aquarius V5 filters
YETI Power cables
Grimm TPM interlinks
Driade interlinks and speaker cables
Yep, I would agree this level of gear for a reference system. Targeting TAD at the loudspeaker is foundation. Congrats.
Thanks man!
Great video. Yes this hobbie/ Journey never ends. I started a small system with Buchardt s400mk2 speakers. Now I’m looking at TAD Me1 upgrade. Thanks for your review!
Awesome system! 👍🏻
Thank you
Might have chosen Luxman amp to better the PassLabs. And smoothen the details not lose them still retrieve them all, yet present them much more sweetly. Yes it’s all about synergy… I’ve just sold my Luxman M900u and kept the Audio Research SS D240 power amp. Large enough! Powering either PMC MB2SE or L’Instrument large horn speakers. I sold my XA25 and am selling my XP20 in favor of Audio Research signature sound too. Synergy…all the way and preferences.
Nice ..as I’ve downsized from the days of Apogee Scintillas, Krell, Classe’, Koetsu..ect.
Now it’s my smartphone, IFI Go Blue ( DAC/amp) and various IEM’s from my stable.
Sometimes..bigger isn’t always better.
😋
There is a system for everyone!
Well, you should try chord Hugo 2 and shure KSE1500
Wow, most non-pro audiophiles start with speakers and work back with matching amp then dac, that is usually tough enougj. You guys did the process in reverse, sounds like a lot of hard work but you got there!
It was hard. But not because of the reverse process. I think you can either work with a very nice amp and match the speakers or the other way around. Just as long as your acoustics are good, because a speaker must match the room. The source is of course also very important, but not as crucial as the amp / speaker / room.
in our case the Sonnet DAC triggered us to upgrade. It is just a 'next level' device. Especially in its price range.
@@TheAlphaAudio Thanks for your explanation.
@TheAlphaAudio
Jaap, congrats. You have assembled a very fine reference system for your reviews and "Live Tests". :-)
Yes, I will miss the Sopra's...such a great little, fun speaker. But I think the TAD should be more neutral for your purposes.
I'm definitely looking forward to future "Live Test" comparisons. :) Until then, enjoy your time with the new setup!
And thank you for continuing to invest in the best possible audio playback gear, as well as both the video and audio recording equipment and techniques for our benefit.
Yea its a not easy to build/get your own personal reference system. In my Home Studio my reference is the Sennheiser HD800s with HDV820 pre-amp and Antelope Orion 32+ gen3 DAC. I made my Room and Genelec full range system sounds 90% the same as the HD800S, took me 4 years to cancel out the hardest standing waves with diffusors and reduces it down to only having a 2,8db boost at 132hz. The rest falls within speaker specs so thats my reference point altho only possible with my whole Studio Hooked up with “Mogami” XLR cables and acoustically treated. Funny as it doesn’t sounds nice lots of times as you hear everything like on the HD800S, So also harsness and resonances. Sometimes its just in the source, building a system that covers it up is nice for the end user but it also not tells the truth for people actually mixing and Mastering. Thats why i am happy because i can hear and trust what i am mixing and Mastering. High end systems usually tends to sounds better as the source itself hahahaha. Thats why my Studio is called “Perception Studio” I can have a better sounding “perception” in my living room Giving me goosebumps, only to going back to the Studio realizing the source is not that great after all. Nice vid and happy You found a new reference system! Cheers
You are obviously a pro. :-). Loads of people forget the room. Nice to see someone treating the acoustics as an important component.
@@TheAlphaAudio Thanks, but i am not a pro at all, just a very passionated audio and sound lover. Its awesome to see people building their reference system and believe in it as i do too. 60/70% of what you hear is the actual room and/or its behavior. Huge Boosting and cancelation of frequencies due to phasing/timing issues. Sadly Not many people invest their budget in those ratings but rather 100% in Gear. That makes me a bit sad knowing they dont experience and hear how good their gear actually is. If you divide your budget yes you cant get expensive gear but if you do acoustics right which is extremely tricky and difficult you get the most out of your gear and you will be happily surprised! So glad to see diffusors and acoustic treatment in your environment! For sure it sound pretty pretty awesome! All the best…….
That’s awesome 👍🏼👍🏼
Thanks man!
You "need" subs on your main channels. Those new speakers will go lower then the previous speakers (obviously), but still will not give you full deep bass. those 30Hz are just specs... 😉 add a few Rels and you'll know full range music 😁
Very good! PMC Fact 12 , Comparison? Have you guys heard the "JBL 4367" ? Cheaper version of the JBL K2 99000 .I like your comparison videos , monitor shoot outs ... Keep up the good work.
Haven't heard the Fact 12. Must be very nice as well! Thanks for the compliment!
Fact 12 Signature are fantastic loudspeakers. The 84db sensitivity needs serious amplification though. My choice of amplification would be an entire rack by AVM Audio Ovation series.
VERY NICE
Good video and please review grounding boxes for audiophile?
I'm going to really really miss the Sopra 1
Sorry!
It is a shame : ( I liked so much the Sopra no.1... In fact, I liked so much it that I bought one pair for myself : ) . Was able to find an excellent deal, bought it mint for 1/3 of the price. And matched it with Luxman integrated L590 AXII. Loving so far... Was thinking in trying also the Pass Labs int 25...
The Sopra is beautiful! You can be proud... the combination with the INT25 is just magical (my opinion).
@@TheAlphaAudio Have you listened to Luxman 590 AXII? Do you think it would be an upgrade going from Luxman 590 AXII to INT25? Man, just love your videos.
@@Ricardo-fs1xe Nope... I know Luxman, but not that one. I think you should just try. I can't say anything about it.
You left one thing out... cable management. 🤣
We change a LOT during tests... So it will always be a mess :-)
First of all, I am a fan. Please keep doing what you do, even though I am far, your product evaluation style is differentiated and always interesting. By the way, what software do you use for playing music? I need to ask you another question.
I see you have several Grim products, but not the MU1 server, even though it's known for being very good and extremely transparent. Is it because of the cost, or is it because you believe that a more basic computer with some tweaks and a DDC (you are using the Mutec to improve USB and provide other clean ports) is close enough?
I have nothing but admiration for Grim, Taiko, Antipodes, etc, but a server is quite expensive and it can be too old after 5 years. Speakers, cables, and amps can last much longer and remain competitive. You may say that DACs are expensive and after 5 years they may be too inferior, but even though cheap DACs are better than ever, they are not close enough to higher-end DACs, so we cannot get away from investing in good DACs. Computers on the other hand.... can be tweaked with external power supplies, DDC, and external clocking. That makes the cost of replacing the PC itself much lower. Is this the reason you are not using a higher-end server? What is your opinion on servers?
Thanks!
I just can't afford the MU1 right now. This has been an expensive journey. ;-). But I know you can get pretty far by building a high-end computer. SOtM has a very interesting 'audio motherboard'. Reviewing it right now. It's awesome. You can even clock it with their special clocking board.
Thank you for sharing your new reference system with us. I was curious, since you like the SF Lumnas in your second system, did you audition any of the upper range of Sonus Faber speakers (Olympica, Heritage, Tradition) before you decided on TED Evolutions. If so, please share you experience with us. Thank you
Sonus produces a colorful speakers. Not like B&W, but they still "enhance" a sound.
Sonus Faber is not neutral enough. The do sound nice. But not very neutral.. :-).
@@sc0or B&W are even more colored. Check out measurements...
@@TheAlphaAudio This was what I meant, Sir.
@@sc0or the Lumina 2 has a crazy 6db peak just from 7.5khz - 10khz. Thats drastic, maybe its nice to some ears but hardly reference levels. The Aida is a different story, it still has small peak around that area but manages to perfectly flatten out in the LW and PIR due to dispersion characteristics of the tweeter.
How do you think the michi S5 would fair in that setup? I’m also looking for a baseline amp I can put in and start to think about other parts of the system and not wonder if my amp is a weak link… i just subscribed. Cool channel. Thanks
S5 is a great amp. Know that it just needs to match with the speakers. You have to like it. The s5 is very transparent and fast. If you like that, it will work with most speakers.
no pmc? used a lot in audiostudios
True. But in this setting i preferred the TAD. Also used in studios by the way.
Thanks! What didnt you like with the ATC speakers you reviewed?
Good but hard to drive.
Very nice system indeed and I really enjoy your testing and transparency with your evaluations. I currently own a Sonnet Morpheus and use a DDC (Singxer SU-6) with it for I2S and was looking at the Pasithea as an upgrade. I listened carefully to your comparison video with the Pavane, Morpheus and the Weiss Dac-501 and am REALLY curious as to how you decided on the Pasithea over the Weiss? It seemed that you preferred the Weiss over the "Cees sound" (generally)? Hopefully, you will have a video that compares the DAC function of the Weiss and Pasithea both going through the pre-amp as well as maybe the DDC just to keep the playing field even.
Sonnet pasithea lacks dimension. customer service is very poor. they're winging it.
@@jonjones9323 The audio world is in consensus on the superior imaging and spatial dimensional strengths of the Pasithea. You plough a lonely furrow in that regard.
Is your reference Dac more musical , detailed and organic sounding then then the Weiss Dac?
It is mainly different
I am wondering. I saw you active speaker comparison where the Buchard A500 was very well appreciated by you. This is a complete system. Now we are looking at this system set up with a ‘thousand’ separate components. How do they compare (from a sound perspective, not so much measure wise on different components)?
It's not really comparable. The reference system will set you back around 60K. The Buchardt 3500 Euro for the pair (without source). With the Primare it will cost you 5000 Euro. That's a lovely system that many people will love. But it's not comparable in terms of scale, resolution and bandwith.
@@TheAlphaAudio Understand the price difference. But if you pay thousands of Euro’s on cables for instance that in the Buchard system you do not have…. I have a 30k system with different separate components and I am considering downsizing to the Buchards and I wonder what I will loose from sound perspective (and yes I understand I need to listen and find out the differences….)
I will be curious to see how you like the TAD long term. I had Model 1 years ago and still have a pair of old TAD Monitors. The tweeter can be fatiguing in the older models, but they sound good with Pass. I would love to hear how you enjoy them in six months. Thanks for information.
I have had them for more than six months now... I am addicted.
@@TheAlphaAudio I am glad. I will try to audition them.
@@joelnorris4064 only if you have the money.
@@TheAlphaAudio I am lucky that is not a problem.
@@joelnorris4064 lucky you! I love the TADs. Pair them well and you are in audio heaven.
should of gone coda amp and pre :) pass is 20 percent inflated
If u like TAD, better buy Pioneer speakers. It's almost the same! Pioneer design TAD!
New subscriber here. Thanks for showing your reference gear. Can you recommend a best for the dollar/ euro power and speaker cable alternatives with the same priorities as your reference system? Links if possible. Thanks
That is very difficult. I would say Supra and QED do very well in the price/performance area. Art Speak (Dutch) as well.
@@TheAlphaAudio Thank you, sir.
What is the difference in sound between Dynaudio Emit 10 and Sonus Faber Lumina?
Dynaudio is more round and a bit more 'dry'. Sonus Faber is more airy / lighter in sound.
TheAlphaAudio For this video I preferred the Dynaudio EMit 10. I tested the Emit 30, Evoke 30 and Lumina 3 and preferred the Evoke 30 and Emit 30. All using the Marantz Model 30 as an amplifier and the DAC was an IFI Zen DAc Signature.
@@TheAlphaAudio ua-cam.com/video/IDmJuu1O93I/v-deo.html
Trust me, it needs two Rel subs...
Or Six....
Great system none the less. Congratulations
Haha... Never enough bassss.... :-)
I ran two carbon specials when I had TAD ME-1.
@@TheAlphaAudio The fun thing is that the most effect is in the midrange and highs...
I have a hard time with the word Reference system
Meaning the use of a source of information in order to ascertain something.
So a reference hifi system covers a very very broad brush in my opinion every hifi manufacturer uses this terminology far too much... Reference this Reference that.. after a while the word becomes meaningless..
A reference is simpy a baseline. This system is our reference to 'measure' review equipment.
Reference system and no JBL speakers? :> Buuuuuuu
Too much talking
Magnepan 20.7s, Coda 16.0, end game
That is indeed very nice!
lol... "much deeper bass with a power conditioner" :D :D :D :D :D give me the number of your dealer, please! and no, i don't mean your audio dealer, lol
Als 1 component in de audioketen wordt vervangen , dan volgt in de regel de rest ook zoals jullie inmiddels hebben mogen ervaren 😂😂
Indeed!
@@TheAlphaAudio jammer dat Engelse gekwek .
Which usb cable you use?
We use QED and Audioquest (Carbon)
Mooie setup zeg ! Mag ik vragen waarom jullie uiteindelijk niet voor de Yeti power conditioner zijn gegaan ?
Is de Isotek beter voor jullie toepassing? Heb zelf ook een Isotek unit waar ik overigens blij mee ben.
Bedankt !
De Isotek hadden we al voordat we de Yeti leerden kennen. Dat is de reden. :-)
@@TheAlphaAudio Ja begrijpelijk. Thanks.