sorry for late answer. I just had no time to deal with audio related things. Matterfact I shutdowned the setup for 6 months. I see now new Boulder 2000 series has just released. Must give a try for sure.
Melbyguy, First question: It was the 2000's I had to deal with Boulder 810 and 1010. If my memory is correct, I had problems in mid frequency, particularly, human voice. I could cure this only with Elrod power Cords. I can't say anything about Jorma cables since never heard in action. If you only ask my final opinion about 1010, I would say that combining with 1060 will only yield typical Boulder sound that is not my first choice and can't say that is''correct'' in my opinion ofcourse. Don't know the tweaks that you applied. I have finite Element pagode something like masters reference or signiture but never asked myself what I gained by investing on that.
Lastly, I don't leave my amp on. It will sound better one hour later after actual use. I hope this helps. If not, please go ahead and ask particularly. Regards
Melbyguy, Let me answer your last question first: If You are looking for a descent S.State preamp for any of Boulder 1050,1060, 2050,2060...2010 will be the first and last stop.If I could find one today, I 100% buy.( I regret not to buy 2010 in late 2000's. Honestly, I don't believe synergy, relation whatever audiophile terms. If a preamp is built indeed good based on its simple purpose which is preamplifying the signal, it will match any amp. 2010 is made idealy for this purpose without cost concern. Need I say more?
System edited: Running Springs Duke Condt. PAD Aqueous Aureus praesto rev. powercord and RS Mongosse powercord put in circulation in order to feed Boulder 1060. (In reality, I am trying sound Boulder 1060 different than as usual and understand how reactive it is to changing variables)
Hessec, I do have DIY skills, and modify always after market cords if necessary. I have a few feets of Oyaide Tunami left from past projects. I know particularly old Acrolink bulk cables(6n) and Mexcel series powercords(pc-7100) In my opinion, neither Acrolink nor Oyaide would be a perfect match. I know limitations of those bulk cables. I am looking something a little bit special. I already modified the stock cord of Boulder 1060 with Furutech FI-50R M plug.(carol 12 AWG by general cable) thanks anyway...
Rhyno In past, I have tried boulder 2010 together with 1050 monos and quite pleased. However I never liked 1010 together with 1060. Recently I had chance to mate 1060 with audio research ref 5. It sounded fine, acceptable,interesting, engaging... but mind you it is not "a correct sound" . When you replace ref 3-5 with a good solid state preamp like esoteric C-03 you immediately find out that bass drivers start working effectively. As far as boulder 1060 concerned, it is a test grade poweramp, absolutely enables you to test limitations entire setup except power. That's why I bought it in order to double check cables,front end,pre,filters.... There is no need to say that mates perfectly with focal new utopia range. Plus it is more lifelike, organic, liquid, 3d, torque than krell evo 402. A safe bet indeed. I hope this helps, otherwise ask I can be more specific. Regards and enjoy.
Thanks mike, I bought the scalas last year, they were beyond my expectations indeed. I don't think I go bigger speaker than this since setup in livingroom and my family needs space matterfact. In addition, stealth dream speaker cable plus Indra interconnect matched and blended perfectly with my PAD cables.
System edited: Stealth Dream and Indra have just arrived! I guess they are nicely settling there and I go for fishing now!!! pictures and comments will follow....
Dustinbiz I regret to say that I don't use jl's with 2 channel.It is used only for HT setup. However, I can answer your questions: Best way to integrate is buying an active crossover as it is stated in users manual.It can be either Bryston as expensive way to go or Behringer as cheapish way to go. If I were you, I wouldn't integrate altos with JLs since I see you have a mchintosh 275 for altos which is a pure tube amp, different than jl's internal class d amplification. But this is me, my guess....yours or others might have different opinions.
I totaly agree. I always tried to get most under less than ideal conditions. My room may be less than optimum, the outcome is more than satisfactory since there is no weak link in the chain I guess....
Thank you Bryon. In past I had 1027 be and Pass amplifier sa well. I wish I had a modest setup, and could stop but as you know once you cross logical point, there is no way to return to normal state. Regards (I will comment on your system as well...)
Upgrade Season has just came! I have changed the speaker and replaced Sophia 2 by Focal Utopia 3 Scala . Soon will change the preamp and maybe power amp. However, dCS will stay. There is a possibility chage in cables. I don't know what tomarrow brings but I am sure new 3D format in movies will shape our home entertainment habits. I plan a major change in my HT setup as well in order to cath up this coming 3D trend. Pics will be posted in a few days.
Elberoth-Yes I did. I got best outcome with my Pass X250.5 amp. However, it didn't match with my cdp's as I was expecting. As you know I eliminated Shunyata Anaconda, Nordost Valhalla, and Elrods. I had keep this cord since it is over 3k usd. Today, it is plugged to dCS Puccini Clock where it has least effect or in other words I don't want to hear this cable together with power-pre amps and cdp. You may sell this cable on behalf of me or offer another cable in return?
William, If you check my system pictures, you will see that there is no place left for a addional power amp. Technicaly, I need to change the house before making any radical upgrade.(Krell Evolution one, Wilson Audio Alexandria or Max3)
I heard the sasha in dealers demo-room together with dcs puccini and Pass Labs xa-30.5. I didn't want to hear any preamp effect and decided to without a preamp. Soon after having heard I discovered Pass was not a good match since it doesn't go below 4 ohm load. However, dealer had no high powered amp in that time so I had to cut the demo short. Being honestly I was not totaly impressed with its performance. In other words, I didn' see a magical potential of very good speaker. Today I am happy with my Sophia 2. I do not regret that I haven't bought the new Sashas. Simply because, it will not make a miracle as far as my setup concerned. As many say '' best wilson speaker is the one you actualy own'' I do own Sophia 2, 10K less than Sasha, but what makes it sound very special is the rest of the system which multiply sasha by 5 in usd. I am not in mood of correcting somebody's design faults by interconnects, powercords, speaker cables, tweaks, poweramps, preamps, cd players, power filtering....as I did in past 3 years. Nothing left non-upgraded at home..even AC fuses in main electricity distribution box are upgraded to Audiophile grade, german made Klang Modul gold plated 32 amp fuses. (I didn't mention in my setup list but I do own 10 kw line level AC/DC voltage regulator. Yes it is Audiophile grade!) Sasha? No Thanks:) I gave my 3 years out of my life in order to sound Sophia 2 ''faultless''. Sasha is somebody elses turn!
Joelz, I am glad to see a fellow happy Sophia owner. As you may noticed, I changed everthing within two years but not the Sophias. This tells the story......
Audiophiles don't do this simply because an active crossover is mostly used in Pro Audio, Sound Enforcement systems in order to combine multiple sub-sattelite speakers.( it enables subs work effectively and lets sattelites work in desired frequency range)So each amplifier drives its dedicated sub or satt. free from distortion. In my case, I do not need a crossover for setup since my JL Audio sub works only in my HT setup. I think Krell Evo 402 is quite enough for Sophias. Plus I don't have enough space for an additional amplifier.
However, I do have a behringer crossover for my pro setup and know how to use it effectively. regards
Diofan sacd/cd player and its dedicated clock! Named dCS , Made in UK, can be your physical design object if you are willing to pay around 25K in US dollars.(suggested retail price)
As long as I have wilson speakers,(wilson Audio Sacha maybe my next upgrade) I prefer Krell Evo over Pass Labs. If I had a different speaker (any 8 ohm 10k-20k price range) I would have kept Pass Labs X250.5 or upgraded to new XA.5 serie. I never said bad about Pass Labs and still like it!
This setup is tuned to perform its best under my casual living condition.(ordinary living room for 3 people, kitchen-living room together, dining table, sofas, armchairs around plus one kid and wife) As you can see I have natural set of room accoustics installed:)
Joeyboynj I have already traded T3 UHC for Pranawire Kensho. However, I am still waiting for it since Joe Cohen of Pranawire is a busy guy:) Regarding Top of the SR Tesla Series, I may guess their performance since I know weaknesses of its lower range!
No. It is not. It is made for specialy SR Powercell device. SR claims particularly this unit that it will not limit even extremely high powered amps. I have krell Evo 402 which consumes almost 600 watts even in standby mode. If SR Tesla T3 UHC will not work with this amp, what else then? BTW, I bought T3 UHC for my Isotek conditioner but never used more than 2 days when I plug:) In other words I couldn't suffer:) I prefered Isotek's own cheapish cord over SR T3 UHC. Afterwards, I made a DIY Oyaide Tunami with best Furutech plug money can buy.(Furutechs Pure Transmission FI-50 Piezo Ceramic series) In addition, it retails for 1200usd, this is quite expensive compared to its overall performance!
Stockcords are back!!! I don't have any idea how new cx sounds like but I can tell that I have taken my 20 amp Shunyata Anaconda out(Audio Research Ref 3) and put its black stock cord back. What happened? Nothing! Still sounding perfect! Anybody who is up to buy clearance Shunyata cords has to think twice!
Synergistic Research Tesla challenge? No Thank you! I have SR Tesla 3 UHC 20 amp. I sometimes use it with Krell Evo 402. You may think both Krell and SR would work well together in theory, in practice Not. I have never seen such a limiting cable like SR Tesla 3 UHC. It is funny because this cable sold and marketed for UHC capabilities. In reality, even my PAD Ann. 20 amp cord works at least 2.5 times better than SR.
I use modified stock cords together with Krell and ARC gear during these days and it seems they work more than adequate!
I know some folks want to know my opinion about ARC REF 3 and new dedicated dCS Puccini U clock. Let me first begin with Puccini U clock: I can't state exactly which particular areas clocked version(mine) bettered the one box Puccini one. However, I had feeling that the clocked Puccini worked more refined, accurate, detailed and musical from very beginning. It is very funny from my side that I got good result with Stereovox XV2(borrowed from my HT setup only 200$) BNC cable. By the way I have used Acrolink Mexcel 7N-Pc7100 Pcord for Puccini U clock not because of it is very superior copper based cable but I couldn't employ this cable anywhere else. Those of you who is up to buy a dCS or any other manufact. dedicated clock, can make a simple DIY cord and forget the rest of the issue. One more point for current and potential buyers: make sure you pressed dither on button. dCS doesn't go details in user's handbook but it makes differance. I will continue commenting on ARC REF 3 tomarrow...
First of all, I will not use JL 112 Fathom for main 2 channel setup. It will serve for H.T setup, plus, I try to build up a secondary 2 channel system by using my cute Sonus Faber Elipsa Auditor speakers, DCS Puccini's spare RCA outputs and Classe Cap-2100 integtated amplifier. Don't ask me how and why I combine so many equipment together. This another story... As far as Transparent Cable concerned, reference series has best price-value ratio. What I heard from a fellow audiogoner about ultra MM2 is it is good as old reference MM.
Without any reservation , Transparent is good cable indeed.
System edited: dCS U Clock in action together with ARC REF 3. JL Audio F 112 is still on waiting list for placement together with Classe Cap-2100. I will summarize what I have done untill now and got matterfact. Comming soon!
I already knew ARC was an exceptional preamp.(or guessed based on reviews from different sources) I had a chance to hear it briefly with Krell 400 Evo monos, YG Anat Ref, Esoteric X-01 se. Than, I have decided to experiment with it due my setup with Boulder 810 became insensitive to cable changes, maybe reached its potential. Maybe by going with ARC, I have got closer to ''ULTIMATE'' Sophia based system.
I have replaced Boulder 810 with Audio Research REF 3. Boulder 810 will work fine either with Krell and Pass. If you don't listen loud, Pass will be a fine match. If you like your music loud, go with Krell. Sophia is not an easy load. Its impedance drops below 4 ohm .(3.26 exactly) It is useful to drive the Sophia with an amp which can double its output when impedance is 4 ohm. Pass X250.5 will leave Class A after 30 Watts. Therefore it won't be sounding good as it was still within Class A. However Krell will be still sounding very accurate and good under extreme conditions.(eg if somehow speaker impedance drops below 2 ohm, lets say Apogee Scintella , Krell will be driving it but not the Pass Labs X250.5. I recommend Transparent Cables between Boulder and Pass, plus from Pass to Sophia. All the gear I have mentioned are powercord sensitive. So you have to be careful while selecting the right match. I hope this helps...
Note: I will be updating the pictures soon. Waiting for new dCS clock. Its arrival will be a bit late due funeral of Mr. Stevens(RIP), director and founder of dCS.
Puccini U-clock will be in house in a few weeks. However, Krell Evolution 402 is out of order for almost one week. Still we don't know what happened and how happened:) In addition, I bought a Classe Cap-2100 integrated for my Sonus speakers. It will be used together with Meridian G 95 and dCS Puccini. I have some new DIY cables for Isotek Nova and Classe. Details and new pictures will be soon here.
Thank you Kops. You have a good amp indeed. I have tried using directly DCS as well together with Krell 402.(interconnect was PAD Anniversary XLR) Result was too good to believe but sometimes less is more and I switched to my preamp back.:)
the folks who have asked about Krell Evo 402 here is my indirect answer how it sounds: 1) Exact Power EP-15A gone, Krell connected directly to a dedicated wall outlet. 2) Isotek Nova took duty of delivering juice for pre and cdp.(made in england and retails 3500-4000 usd in US, expert on 240V market and known with Nordost Thor) 3) Nordost Valhalla IC replaced by JPS Aluminata for neutral presentation. 4) Elrod EPS-2 signiture is removed from Boulder to DCS Puccini. 5) Acrolink 7N-PC7100 removed from DCS to Boulder 810. 6)Lastly Shunyata Anaconda replaced by Purist Audio Anniversary cord.( mids opened , overall sound improved , made maybe most major positive impact.
System is in balance again. There is no need for preamp change. Check and mate!
Thank you for nice comps! PAD Anniversary powercord is in action for Krell 402 !!! Shunyata Anaconda went on holiday !!! Nordost Valhalla powered Meridan G95 receiver, Vishnu powered Sony Bravia Full hd LCD. Finite elemente master reference stand set finally arrived and my gear happily settled!!!
A speaker which weighs 77kg/200lb is not supposed to be moved easily. I have a terribly made ceramic floor tiles. They are not leveled IMO. With the help of symposium roller blocks I could manage a bit. However, they still move around! :) I don't know how and who does.:) My son is only three years old and don't mess with sophias. My wife hates my gear even doesn't get closer less than 6 feets. I had to mark with red tapes in the end. Strange isn't it? :)
Jeff, Has Nelson Pass ever built a marginaly better stereo amp than x250.5-350.5 during these days? If yes, I would have bought it. No, because he didn't buid one and I decided to go with Krell.
System edited: Nordost Valhalla replaced by JPS Aluminata. Stockcord of the Isotek Nova replaced by Synergistic Research T3 UHC cable.The overall sound marginaly changed to better after Valhalla.Bass became tight and tuneful, mids came to acceptible point. When I had Pass Labs, Valhalla IC and Cord was necessity. Sonicaly speaking Krell is totaly different than Pass. I had to also give up Exact Power since it is useless without a poweramp. Anybody who considers any new Krell amps must be avoided by Nordost Valhalla range. Because Valhalla works on high and low frequency spectrum very well in expense of loss on mids. IMO, Krell is very strong as long as bass control and quality plus highs concerned. But in return or matterfact you end up with a little dry sound if you use a solid state preamp such as Boulder. A good tube or hybrid preamp would also work for me but I need to experiment first with cables. My new interest area is JPS labs.
As far as Puccini concerned, its limiting factor is interconnect and powercord. If you have a well balanced one, than Puccini is the last step for mankind.(one box cd player)As you know I even have lived with nordost odin for 2 weeks together with puccini. All I can say is Puccini outperformed everyother machine except Scarlatti. If you go back to Valhalla, it is seriously pain than compared to Odin but still better than Stealth Indra. However I just bought something different as interconnect, I will pronounce later on. If you are happy without REF 3, please send it to me than:) In return, you get my Boulder 810 which is a better match for your Pass Gear.(seriously I am about to make change to REF 3 for Krell 402) Dartzeel is a SERİOUS amplifier despite funny looking. Nevertheless, It is a very good amp but not available in my country. Again be carefull about powercords, Shunyata Anaconda is not a good match for DCS. Try Elrod Sig 2 or Acrolink 7n-pc7100. Wellcome to DCS lovers club:)
Exact Power EP-15A replaced by Isotek Nova from England for preamp and cdp. Since Krell 402 is not Power Conditioning friendly, I had to find alternative ways for it: I bought a 5 KW online AC regulator for entire house. Secondly, I have now Isotek Titan, a dedicated Power Amp Cond.(waiting to be connected)I will see Krell with Titan after I will decide what further steps will be taken. As I mentioned before, Krell EVO 402 doesn't sound like Past Krell designs. Its sound is neither Solid State nor Tube. It is in between. From now on, my aim is see its ultimate performance with Wilson Sophias. If I need to replace Boulder 810 with Krell Evo 202, I will. If I need to replace Valhalla interconnect with ODIN, than I will.Thanks god I have plenty Powercords so don't need buy a few. Curiosity kills the cat................
Thanks for inputs concerning Krell Evo 402. Until now, I couldn't reach a final impression over Krell 402. Plus, I lost mid drivers of Sophia due a short term peak power.(Boulder 810 caused this) I can not run Krell evo 402 under same conditions as I applied to Pass. I am changing my power conditioners and cables for Krell. I believe this amplifier has a potential of driving Sophias ultimately. But I need to adjust a few things before fire it.
As long as X250.5 concerned, I don't want to make any comment and comparison due the lack of critical listening.
System edited: I have searched through Audiogon and didn't find any setup based on Krell Evolution amplifiers. So I bought Krell Evo 402 and put into action on behalf of Audio Public.
Actualy, Since last week, I run Krell Evo 402 instead of Pass Labs X250.5. I am trying to rearrange my cabling for Krell and I haven't done it yet. About my first impressions: 1) Krell needs to be connected directly to a dedicated, isolated and separated AC line. This is a disadvantage compared to Pass X250.5 which taxes its needed AC from Exact Power EP-15 A 2) Krell is not a dark sounding amplifier like Pass Labs. 3) Bottom control and bass performance is better than Pass Labs. 4) It looks like more detailed than Pass Labs. I may say more revealing.
These are my first impressions. However, I need a action plan in order to see its optimum performance. You may understand better what I feel about Krell through my plan:
1) Replace Nordost Valhalla with Odin or PAD proteus Provectus. 2) I will try Krell with is stock Cord instead of Shunyata Anaconda Alpha 20 amp. I will determine what is missing. 3) Change the order of powercords: Acrolink 7N-Pc7100 Mexcel, Nordost Valhalla, Elrod EPS-2 Sig.(elrod is out of order for a while, Mit Oracle AC-1 is used as ''joker'' cord.
so far so good puccini served as ''sacd player with 2v cd-dsd settings''. The reason is doing that is Boulder 810 is a quite good preamplifier. If I had something lesser than Boulder, I would try Puccini as preamp and Cd player together.
Elrod Signiture EPS-2 arrived almost one month ago and matched with Boulder 810. MIT oracle ac-1 is reserved for future applications. EPS-2 SİG. was the last cord that I had desire to have in my collection. So, testing the cords have just finished!
first thing first, Puccini is a better player than old full stack of DCS. More musical, organic. I have tested both players under equal condition, using same powercord(MIT Oracle AC1), Same interconnects(ODIN, Valhalla).... Puccini has wider stage, better high frequency extention. If you let Puccini upsample cd-DSD all the time, Accuphase is better. If you off the Puccini's upsampling function(CD-DSD), both players are good in mids and highs. I feel puccini is more suitable with my transparent mm2 cables. However, one thing for sure Odin is better than Valhalla in almost every respect. I will replace Valhalla simply because I don't need its sonic abilities anymore since Puccini does everything before I was able to get only with Valhalla-Accuphase combination. Don't think that I became a DCS fan. I believe without any listening, Accuphase DP-700 is best one box cd player ever built. Don't be suprised if you see here Accuphase Dp-700 3-4 months later. (or I will change Pass Labs to Accuphase A-60, A-45, P-7100)
Technically speaking you are correct. But Meridan has no balanced outputs and Boulder has only balanced inputs. The small speakers I hang on the wall are KEF KHT 6000 ACE series, not very bad speakers but OK. I may change them to Martin Logan Motif or Fresco series.
too Late..I bought Meridian G95 one-box receiver. I completely seperated two setups. Each has its own powerconditioning. The reason for going simple theater system is changing the decks of 2 channel setup and letting speakers breath more and produce better staging. Check the last picture of setup. I will finalize HT setup when I get my sattelite cables and Stereovox xv2 digital cable from Cable Company(Robert Stein) Btw, Meridian is a good processor indeed.However, costly.(UK retail 4500 GBP I will post the new pictures by the next weekend.
System edited: Transparent has replaced my Cables with new MM2 Reference Series: All custom calibrated for my Pre, Power,and Speakers for optimum performance. New pictures will be posted soon together with new Meridian G95 Cinema setup
One of the best cables money can buy I guess. I happily use my Transparent Reference and don't think any upgrade for a while. Keeping on mind, for its cost, you may come up with a secondry rig.
Thanks Talon4 and cipura ! BTW, Talon4 , we have some passions on common: Pass Labs. You have a descent monos. I wish I had free space for them. As you may notice from my setup, If I put 600.5 into action, I won't be able to watch tv. :)
I don't have insurance and so far so good didn't suffer any damage. Even the sliding glass of the furniture is bullet proof.(polycarbon canopy). All cables are secured( I don't use rca, only use xlr, spade to spade....) Even sophias placed on svelte platform so you can not move them easily.....
''Solid piece of furniture'' is protecting the all gear I have against my 3 years old kid! If I had no ''solid piece of furniture'', between 2 speakers, all gear could suffer severe damage from my kid. Secondly, I can't move speakers far away from corner and wall. Simply because I don't want any accidents because of the limited space for kid. I don't have a dedicated listening room. I had to locate my gear in livingroom which is most suitable part of the dublex appartment(also kitchen is in the right hand side of the picture) I am thinking to buy some second hand old vintage gear to my kid in order mislead his ambition to my setup. Than, I may get a smaller dedicated hi-end rack system like pagode...
Acrolink rules! 7N-PC7100 is best matched with Pass Labs X250.5, so Tunami went to Accuphase Dp-78, Shunyata Python to Boulder 810. BTW, Acrolink is really good cable.
Don't worry about it, you will have to toe in the speakers. This is what usually dealer does. Your dealer will worry about your room's limitations. I am sure it will work after toe in. BTW sophia's is not a critical speakers as W/P 7-8.
Dvavc, I got there really. I don't care its current position. I have a 2.3 years old kid running around my sytem. A bit further from the walls is most likely to cause accidents. If you look carefuly the picture, you will see a svelte platform (under sophia 2)which is modified in order to avoid accidents for my kid's safety. This answers your question I guess.
System edited: Transparent reference speaker cables and interconnect added. Mains power conditioner's cable has changed to Shunyata Reseach Python Alpha Helix.
preampsection of kw500(power suply neutrik cables R-L switched off) is better than Pass x2.5.(during my tests I had boulder 1010,810, pass 2.5. Later I tested head to head boulder 1010,pass x600.5, gryphon antileon signiture, Boulder 1060, Watt puppy system 8, Gryphon poseidon,pass x0.1) http://www.ihifi.org/activity.php?id=65
M.F Kwdm25 combo is better than Accuphase Dp-67, however, it can't compete with Dp-78 which is one of the best one box cdp in europe. Accuphase e550 is nice class a integrated but not a good choice for wilson speakers.(Focal 1037 be would be strong candidate for e550)
No, spikes still there with the spike opposite. I have problem with my ground.(ceramic base) the height of the each tile is different than each other. I fed up adjusting every spike before listening music since speakers always move to right-left, forward-backward.(tiles slippery)
Any difference? Even, I don't remember what I have eaten for tonight. Matter fact I don't remember how it was sounding before sveltes.
my room is about 6*8*2.5. place where I live is already very hot during summer so Pass x250.5 makes the room uncomfortable after one hour if A/c is off.
My salt water tank is located in my hotel's lobby area. Actually, it looks better than this photo but I haven't taken new pictures for long time. You can't have both things together at home because your fuses might blow since Salt Water setups needs lots of current power: Water cooler, protein Skimmer, pumps, Metal Hallide lambs...... Yes Sophias wonderful....
I don't pull the speakers when I listen music. The thing that I have between is not a permanent stand. I may change to ground base platforms if I see no hostile actions from my kid to my gear.:) However, this system is capable of producing very promising sound. (it depends how you perceive stage, I want my stage in front of me , not between 2 speakers; I prefer holographic stage) Pass amps run very hot, around 70-80 degree cel. During summer, you require to switch on A/C. Concerning Sophia 2, I have a strong feeling that David Wilson made wrong pricing: it was the Sophia 2 which supposed to be priced as 28.000 Usd, not the W/P 8.:) Note: Pass X250.5 is quite enough for 1027 be, if budget allows try new Accuphase E-450 or 550.
Yes it did sound better than 1027 be. in every respect. I still feel pass labs is better match since it gives first 30-35 watt in pure class A mode. I have heard 850 monos, with 810 pre, I have heard boulder 1060 with 1010 pre, also Pass labs x600.5 with X-0.5 pre and boulder 1010 pre. I would buy power amplifier from Pass but not the pre. I would buy pre from boulder but not power amp. (I told the same thing to Jeff Nelson and Nelson Pass) My setup changed again: I have accuphase dp-78 instead of Musical Fidelity Kw Dm25, interconnects Acrolink A7-N 2070, powercords Oyaide Tunami GPX for Pass x250.5, Furutech Alpha3 with ''rhodium sockets'' for Accuphase, boulder and exact power ep 15a.
I have heard Boulder 1010 preamplifier first with Pass Labs X250.5, second with Boulder 1050 monos. However, I didn't make critical listening. But I did compare 810 to Pass Labs x2.5 preamplifier and ended up with Boulder 810. Now I have 810 instead of 1010 for same amplifier and don't think 1010 could improve overall sound. I hope it helps. mert
Joey_v sometimes yes. Even it is better than pass own 2.5 preamplifier.Believe or not believe. (kw500 without power supply is a preamplifier with speaker terminals if you disconnect right and left supply cable, no signal gets into kw500 since you shut down the toroidal and capacitor supply, than, you get only volume pot and switching source functions working. there is no signal interference within the kw500 main unit because all capicitors dead)
Yes I use both. But I haven't tried kw500 with sophia 2 yet. It may work good with sophias and can give me another taste. (Technically, I can use kw500 as a perfect preamplifier together with Pass/Boulder unity gain mode or find a speaker with multi terminals like Kef Reference series and Bi-amplify with kw500-Pass/Boulder combination. It must be interesting experiment for speaker and local electricity network) Sorry I didn't understand your first question.
