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Jeffrey Fiori
(Before the Indra: dedicated ground added)
Let me begin by
saying I honestly did not expect much from a dedicated ground. My intuition told me this
can't make that much of a difference. I began by playing a Cal
Collins cd, 'Interplay', Concord 4137-2. A cd I am very familiar
with. My reaction was "jaw dropping". I was stunned.
------Warmer, more base, a lot warmer, fuller. I had to listen to 3
songs before I could even write a note on what I was hearing. By
song #3" People Will Say", the cymbals on Jake Hannas'
drums were clean and clear. I could hear the pick hit the strings on
Herb Ellis' guitar. The notes are separated, not blended together.
On the guitar duel on song 4 "That's Your Head", You can
pick out the 2 guys. They have a separate position on stage. WAY more
analog sounding. Warm, smooth. Never heard the voice in intro to
song 6-"I Got It Bad" sound so natural and smooth. Very
easy to listen to. No fatigue. I have the urge to turn up the
volume, and I never listen loud. Played Coleman Hawkins
"Soul" , Prestige 096-2 The soundstage depth is so real.
Hawkins sax on song 1, "Soul Blues" is clean with no edge.
The high notes here will make you cringe. Not now. Just smooth and
clear. Kenny Burrell's pick hits the guitar strings. After one hour,
I think it has gotten better. after 2 better yet.
Day 2: Played The LA 4, 'Zaca', Concord, 4130.
Song 1, "Zaca", You can heard the hollow body of Laurindo
Almeida's accoustic guitar. The clapping is real. The music is
taking place in front of me. More detail. Even the cat has
positioned herself in front of the speakers in the middle! Again, I
swear it's better than day 1. Song 2-"You Can't Go Home
Again". Bud Shank, alto sax, starts, very real. Drum hits are
real, you can hear the heads as Hamilton hits. Song 3 "A
Child is Born", Base and guitar start out together, base is
tight, mids from Almeida's guitar are incredible. Song 4----I can
not take the time to write. must listen, too much detail.
Played Inya, "A Day Without Rain" Repise. 47426. song 10
'one by one'. I always go to this one when I make a change because
it's very hard to resolve the background violins. Not now. They are
very clear. Great. I have played a lot more this past week, and the
results have been the same, HUGE stage, detail, and depth. The space
seems to be the biggest improvement. I don't know the right words,
'reflections, ambiance, what ever, It's all good because I want to
listen more. I must say, this seems to be one of the biggest single
improvements to my system yet. Who'd thought...
(Hybrid MLTs and Cloude Nine cords
added)
Hooked up the Mlt's, plugged in the cloud 9,
must write! Played Cal Collins, Herb Elllis, 'Interplay' CD.
Concord 4137, track 4, That's your Head. Huge sound stage-----It
fills the whole front of my room, and deep. I am amazed at the
"size" of the performance. It's as if I am in the bar
room in front of the stage. It fills the space in front of me. THE
BASE. A lot more base, and it's tight. Ray Brown plays base on
this CD so you know it's the best, and it's the best I have heard
Brown. When Cal Collins and Herb Ellis break into a guitar dual, I
started to laugh out loud. The highs are much better too as Jake
Hanna's cymbals are crisp and clear with less edge. This rocks.
The improvement is on a level with Indra interconnects. Now I wish
I didn't have to work tomorrow, I would like to stay up late and
listen...
(Indra, two pairs)
I listen mostly to classic jazz from the 50's 60's and some
newer. I listen at low levels. It has required some effort to put a
system together that produces all the dynamics of this music at
lower levels. My criteria is simple, if I'm listening longer and
louder, I'm headed in the right direction. The results that follow
are in the right direction. I've listened now to the Indra on 3
systems. In each case I compared the Audio Magic illusion, Stealth
PGS-3D, and the Indra. The systems and results are as follows.
System 1
- Denon 1520 CDP
- Harmon Kardon hk580i receiver
- Dynaudio C-4 speakers
- Mapleshade Samson rack, triple point cones under all
- Shunyata Hydra power conditioner.
...Played Zoot Sims/Jimmy Rowles, " Warm Tenor", Pablo
2310. Audio Magic Illusion: Not much music coming through. What did
come through become fatiguing after about 15 min. The highs were
rolled off. Had an edge. PGS-3D: ' Liquid' is introduced for the
first time. Highs now present. The midrange is pleasing, no grit.
Took this low-fi system from unlistenable to rather pleasing. The
low end improved a little bit but is weak. Sound stage got wider but
is not very deep. Drum sticks are present for the first time. The
piano now sounds like music. Indra: Cymbals are here! Breath from
sax is present. Piano resonates! Some base is coming through. I'm
hearing instruments for the first time. Less digital edge. Drum
sticks are hitting the drum head. Music for the first time with this
system. I get the feeling the cable ' fixed' some problems with the
electronics, and left me with their limitations, but presented them
in a way that made the system listenable and somewhat enjoyable.
Saying a lot considering what we started with.
System 2:
- Pioneer PD-S95 transport
- Stealth Varidig RCA cryo
- Bremen #1/Shunyata Anaconda
- VAC Signature Mark II pre/Stealth Cloude Nine
- Audio Magic Illusion
interconnects
- B&K 220M mono blocks/Electraglide Fatman
- Stealth Hybrid MLT
- Dynaudio C-4/mapleshade cones
- Shunyada Hydra
- Mapleshade Samson rack
Played Sergio Salvatore/John Patitucci, "Always a
Beginning", Concord Jazz 4704 Cables compared were between dac
and pre-amp Of course I am now listening to way more of everything.
This made switching cables more interesting, especially as noted for
Indra below. Audio Magic Illusion: Highs rolled off, what is present
made me want to do something else after about 10 min. had an edge.
This system put the base back in although it is boomy, not tight.
PGS-3D: Highs coming though now. Piano makes me smile. Quite
pleasing. Biggest difference seems to be the mids to highs. I listen
the entire CD without wanting to turn it off. Indra: 2 things have
arrived. The music, and the room the music was made in. For the
first time I am presented with a music hall (room) in addition to
the music. I can more easily forget about my listening room. The
piano has volume. The base is now tight. Highs are crisp, clean and
powerful but not harsh. The drum head is felt with each hit of the
stick. I am excited! Downside: Music sounds a little like
reverberation units we had in our cars as teenagers----which delayed
the sound to the rear speaker and gave you a sense of a big space.
It quickly became fatiguing back then. This did not fatigue, but was
not something I would say was good either.
System 3 Same as above but the B&K's were removed for VAC
Signature mono blocks. (Note: The difference in amps is staggering.
More of everything with way less edge. More separation between
instruments. More base. Soundstage is deep and wide. Music seems
slower (not a bad thing, as in wrong timing, but good in that I'm
enjoying it more.)---this seems odd. Once again I switch between the
3 cables. Cindy is present for a comparison session and her comments
are included.) Played Sergio Salvatore "Always a
Beginning". Concord Jazz 4704 Audio Magic Illusion: Music is
dry. The piano sounds muffled. I am aware I am listening to HiFi.
Base is somewhat boomy. Highs are rolled off. Not much space between
instruments, after only 4 minutes it became irritating, causing me
to lower the volume. At the lower volume, it lacked dynamics. I did
not make me want to listen to more than one song. {I don't want to
sound completely negative about these cables, I liked them with my
old Conrad Johnson electronics, but they're not working for me now}
Cindy: Lacks vibrancy, pizzazz. PGS-3D: Warm, more liquid, midrange
(piano) is no longer muffled. Base is tighter. Midrange is
glorious. Drum head i presented as a head, (skin) Music has a
volume, way more detail. Still sounds HiFi.(note: I may be spoiled,
I have heard the Indra already) Cindy: Wider sound stage, distinct
instruments, more crispness of sound, especially the piano.
Indra: More base, way more. The room is brought in for the first
time. (as in system 2 only more so) The effect is "you're
there" (no
longer HiFi): greater cymbals, and snare drum. The two are noticed as
distinct for the first time. The subtle scat voice in the background
on one song came out with the PGS, is now awesome with the Indra.
Not out of place, just distinct. Able to play this cable at low
volumes with no loss of anything. Don't want to turn it off. Cindy:
Everything is up a level. The scat voice that was not identifiable
before as a voice, is now distinguished as a voice. vibrancy all the
way though. Back to PGS-3D: Depth of soundstage shrinks, dryer,
flatter, HiFi again, Base is not as tight. Cindy: less pizzazz, umth---You
could turn it off and that would be fine as opposed to Indra--Now
you want to hear the end of it (the CD) Back to Indra: Everything is
up a notch. Liquid less edge, A triangle is struck and sounds real.
I want to keep listening. Base has a resonating volume, it's coming
from a wood instrument. The subtle scat voice in the background has
a position in the soundstage. Cindy: It's right here. Vibrancy,
wider notes.
I think the best thing about the Indra is it's ability to get me
to forget I'm in my listening room. I'm there!
(after Srajan's first review) The "three-dimensional space exploded" is
probably Indra's most poignant quality. "also removed electronic tension and effort"
is also true.-----that said, the lack tension and effort was truer for
the cryoed cable vs. the non cryoed pair I had. I suspect Indra responds
well to the process. As for the "reported lack of advantages when inserting a
second Indra", ????? where did this come from. Not me. My second pair made about
as much of an improvement as the first. I can't remember if it was a
little more or a little less improvement, --I did not make a note---but
the point is moot. It was big. I will try removing a pair again, when
I get the time, just to see. But the fact that I have not had ANY inclination
to do so, proves my point. Last Saturday a non- audiophile friend stopped by for a chat and
asked to hear something. We played side one of Boston Symphony Orchestra,
Jean Sibelius, symphony No. 5, E flat. Gary's face went blank when the
music started. He sat right down and did not move until the side was
done.---Let me tell you that Gary considers his ears to be
damaged from 25 years of flying airplanes. He is a captain for American
Airlines. But the music gave him goosebumps. He played trombone in
orchestra in high school. He kept locating the different positions of each
section in the orchestra. Maybe his ears are not that bad. Or maybe Indra is
that good. The non-audiophiles are the best judges.
(production Indra versus beta:
first pair with STEALTH
connectors) I must say, I was quite surprised at the improvement the new
connectors make. I wrote the following notes the first day. Day 1
-no break-in. Played Ray Brown Trio, 'Soular Energy', Concord 4268.
MORE detail, noticed immediately. song 1 Exactly like you---Strings
on Brown's base have more detail. They are vibrant. You can hear the
wood. The piano starts with a better tone. The notes are more
alive. The brushes on King's drum are more there. All this increased
detail, with, most important, less edge, it's smoother. Harris'
piano on #2 'Cry Me a River', is more of the same. The notes last
longer in space. They fill the room better, the sounds seems to fade
behind me, like it does live. At this point I switched back to the
pair of Indra with the Cardas connectors.------Not as smooth, less
detail. Less involving. This is NOT a subtle difference.
I switch back to new connectors...I won't be going back.
Played Louie Belson's 'Big Band Explosion', "The Art of The
Chart", on Concord 4800-2 Song #2, The intimacy of the Blues.
The horns here are my usual test for 'edge'----NONE here, gone, a
big difference Sense that first day I have played many cd's that I
am familiar with. They all sound new, fresh. I now hear things for
the first time. Similar to hearing the Indra in the system for the
first time. This is clearly the next level. I have also switched
back to the Cardas connectors with the same result as above. As you
know, this is between the Bremen DAC, and the Vac preamp.
Congratulations, this is a hit. Once again I am amazed at what is
locked up in this system. I had a few non-audiophile friends over to
listen the other day (actually all my friends are non-audiophiles)
and they said it sounded better than live. I was thrilled at the
comment.
(second pair upgraded) ...I was so excited that I changed my afternoon to install
them and give a listen. I must say my expectations were sky high. I
started with everything cold. I was a bit disappointed at first.
----let me clarify----it was immediately way better than the Audio
magic illusions I have been listening to for a month. More base,
much of the openness in the midrange was back, along with the highs.
This I could remember from a month ago---it's amazing how little we
forget once we have heard something. This may be why it is
impossible to go backwards in this hobby. Now of course this is
stone cold. Within 5 and then again at 10 minutes in things started
to improve. As one would expect. Gene Harris' piano on #6 Solar
Energy, the Ray Brown Trio came back with the magic I had become
used to. The base started to tighten, I was hearing all sorts of
things that had been missing for weeks.----It was a great experiment
to listen 'back' with the Audio Magic while you had the Indra. That
said, I must say, the improvement right out of the box was not as
great as with the stealth connector 1 meter Indra. The good news
is, cold, with no break-in, these new connectors sound almost as
good as the fully broken in pair with the Cardas connectors (which
took 100-150 hrs to break-in. maybe more as I broke them in on a
second system and then noticed a continued improvement as they
settled in on my main system.) I will of course, make notes as I
break them in...
I have been listening the last few days, somewhat in disbelief,
it seems too good to be true. The sound is WAY better than it was,
and i only have 20-25 hrs. in. As I listen I sometimes find myself
laughing for no particular reason. I started to notice that as a got
up from my listening chair during a song, the sound remained true.
The "sweet spot" had increased! Then as I moved about the
room, I noticed the whole room was a sweet spot. The experience was
like that of live music in that you are not limited to one
particular chair. Musicians do not play to only one chair. They play
to the whole room. Audio, it seems it plagued with the problem of a
'sweet spot'. Not now!--- I can walk around and enjoy from many
places in the room. That alone is worth it. And the sound------Way
better in all ways , laughably so. I'm amazed, and still not broken
in yet. Thank you very much for taking this system to a new level. I
am hearing things I have not heard before. It's very interesting
that this particular upgrade has upped my enjoyment so much and at
the same time (or at this time), I find the specifics do not seem as
important as before. Anyway-----enough rambling--I'll talk to you
soon. ( and provide some specifics) I imagine you can tell I like
this :-).
(after two weeks listening to two
pairs of Indra, both with the STEALTH connectors) : ...These
new stealth connectors on the long Indra have exceeded my
expectations, and my expectations were high. I now have heard
the new connectors on both the short and long Indra. I must
say the connectors have made a bigger improvement than the Indra
itself! The effect was even greater on the long Indra than the
short. (maybe this is due to the cumulative effect) As I
mentioned before, the soundstage increased. The 'sweet spot'
expanded to most of the room.
On recording after recording the
effect was the same. Increased dynamics, more low level
retrieval of information. I kept hearing things that were not
apparent before.
On Ken Peplowski Quintet, Sonny Side, concord records, 4376, song 2
the piano was more real, each note resonated, you heard the attack,
then the decay, and it lasted and filled the room.
On song 3, 'Don't take your love from me', Peplowski's sax---you can
hear the reed, valve, and horn 'air' as distinct. The endings
fade out longer.
I think I mentioned to you that Cindy and I have studied ballroom
dance for many years. Last year, at a local social dance
we finished doing a Viennese Waltz and a fellow came over to us and
said, "it seems to me that you changed the timing",
"you looked different than everyone else." I smiled and
said, "yes!, very good". Of course we were on time
and we had changed the time. Let me explain. Waltz
timing is 1 2 3.
We danced 1..........2 3. By holding the one
we had time to add movement, swing, and sway. Elements not
possible with the even timing of 1 2 3. The
whole experience of the dance was changed. And improved.
It is this experience that came to mind when I listen to the new
connectors. The timing changed. It was more real.
It had improved and was more enjoyable.
(beta testing continues: the Sextet)
Before listening to the Sextet, I started by inserting the BNC terminated Vardig in place of the RCA
termination/adapter. Played Gene Harris Quartet, 'Like a Lover' ,
Concord CCD-4526 I immediately noticed a little more on the high end,
and the low tightened up a bit. The pace seems to slow slightly, it
became a little more relaxed. This showed up on Song 2, "Misterioso".
The cymbals rang true, the highs on the electric guitar come out more.
Again on song 4, 'Until the real thing comes along", the cymbals, and
the piano are smoother, the highs have improved.
On song 5, "Jeannnine", when Harris' piano duels with Escheie' guitar,
they are presented with more separation. I'm noticing the leading edge
of base notes as they are plucked. Cool! More of the same with Woody Herman Presents, Vol. 2, on Concord CCD-4180,
On Song 2, "Woody's Lament", the horns are smoother with no lose in the
highs. On song 4, "I wanna go home", The tenor saxes (there are 4!), the
last little bit on edge is gone. Sound is more "analog" -
as they say.
To sum: the BNC connector is clearly better than using RCA and an
adapter, the results above are not huge but worth the effort, and
I would have been happy if I didn't hear the Sextet.
With the Sextet replacing the "standard"
Varidig it gets interesting.
Played Suprano Summit, Concord CCD-4052 immediately noticed an increased
volume level. It's smoother, way smoother, the sound stage is wider
and deeper. Some instruments seem too high on the stage. This could
easily be the recording or the room's reaction to the recording. The
Sextet clearly stages the music wider and with more separation. The
description "analog" used above with the Varidig is now laughable. This
is what is meant by saying digital can sound like analog. The base, 4
alto saxes, drums/cymbals are all more separate, and by no small margin.
This not a 'golden ear' improvement. There is no edge. The information
coming out seems unchanged from the BNC Varidig, but the presentation is
better. On song 2, "Puggles", Budwig's base starts the song, I hear the
strings stretch, then separation of the base and rhythm guitar. The
saxes have the right volume and position as if real, ...with real impact.
I could listen all night. And did... for 2 weeks.
With each CD, the result was the same. For 2 weeks I
wrote no notes. Just enjoyed the music at the highest level I have ever heard. After 2 weeks I
started making notes again:
Played Walter Norris Duo, "Hues of Blues", concord, CCD-4671, song 1,
'Fontessa', Norris' piano starts very powerfully with no edge, lots of
air. When Mraz' base comes in, it is very separate from the piano. It's
almost bigger than life. Lots of wood. But again, round and full. More
"liquid". I hate to use all the audiophile speak, but I don't know how
else to say it. I see the Sextet as taking care of both ends, while
delivering a fullness to the sound. I have never described the VAC electronics as polite, yet now they head in that direction, not a bad
thing, like a coloration, just good.
On song 2, "Serenata", I switch back the BNC Varidig, after not hearing
it for 2 weeks. Imagine shrinking the middle of the stage. It is noticeably dryer, not as
relaxed, that "make you melt" feeling is gone.
Switching back again is a sign of relief. After Sextet is in the system
for couple of weeks it is not possible to go back - I've tried.
To sum: I'd say the Sextet makes it's mark in presentation of the music. I'm not hearing more music, as the Varidig does a great job of that.
I'm just hearing it the way I like to hear it. The staging, imagining,
and separation has been raised to a new level. The Sextet is to digital,
as the Indra is to analog. Together, they make beautiful music. Jeff
F.
Nov 2004 system:
- Maplenoll Signature Ariadne
- Koetsu Onyx Sapphire
- Pioneer PDS95 Transport
- Stealth Varidig (Varidig Sextet)
- Bremen 1 DAC
- Stealth Indra
- VAC Renaissance Signature Mark II Pre
(+dedicated ground)
- Stealth Indra
- VAC Renaissance Signature 70 Mark V
Monoblocks (Custom version)
- Stealth Hybrid MLT
- Dynaudio C4 (modded)
- Tannoy ST100 super tweeters
- Infinity Intermezzo 1.2s Sub
- Power cords: Stealth M21, Cloude Nine
- Plitron Isolation transformer with "dedicated
audio ground"
- Argent Rooom lens
- Thingman base traps
- Echo buster corners
- Mapleshade Samson Racks
- Mapleshade cones/platforms under all
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