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Post by Deleted on Apr 14, 2018 0:20:40 GMT
Congratulations Paul; sounds like a great outcome for you. I experienced a similar demo (only with the cables) with Tony and it was... educational lol.
Do you find the amp has the power to drive your Focals as loud as you want without strain?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 14, 2018 14:27:01 GMT
Yes, the Belles grips hold of the speakers like no tomorrow now, and shows quite easily how well the Exposure amps are outclassed.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2018 13:45:54 GMT
Up until yesterday, I hadn't had a real chance to sit down and listen to the system since I have begun running in the cables. Tony said they'd need around 50 hours, so I left the system running continually for a few days via headphones (so as to not disturb wifey and Leo).
The transformation is not at all subtle. I have to say when I first put the Coherent cables in cold, I was a little disappointed, after remembering how good the ones I had heard that Tony brought round. The bedding in process is amazing, there is a smoothness to the sound now that is stunning. I am hearing things that I knew were there before, but only very faintly. Now they are jumping out of the sound stage in an unsubtle but not at all fatiguing way.
Stunning, simply stunning!
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Post by MikeMusic on Apr 16, 2018 14:27:28 GMT
Wonderful when a system comes up like that.
Enjoy the music Paul
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Post by MartinT on Apr 16, 2018 14:44:18 GMT
Really pleased that it's all delivering, Paul.
I remember my Belles power amp needing a few tens of hours on it, and again when I changed the fuse.
Nothing will ever compare with my previous SACD player, the Sony SCD-1. I had been warned that it needed hundreds of hours to reach its maximum performance and did it ever. It settled down somewhere around the 300 hour mark (and explains some of the 'meh' reviews where they just had not given it enough settling time).
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Post by John on Apr 16, 2018 18:16:20 GMT
The Hawthrones took over a full year to fully bed in. Probably a year and half.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2018 14:11:10 GMT
Just realised I missed a couple of recent updates.
Firstly up came the cables. I was so impressed with the Coherent 5D interconnect, that I tried out some Coherent 5D speaker cable. I can honestly say, that the difference they made to my system was astounding and a bigger difference than any other speaker cable I had previously tried, and I have previous tried a few from the likes of Chord, Naim, TQ etc. and they don't come even close to what the Coherent cables were doing. So as you've probably guessed. I bought a set.
Next was the foray back into streaming. After selling my Naim NDX, and buying a Cambridge Audio CXC and Beresford Caiman SEG which improved on the Naim significantly. I still had some funds available so throught I would give the Pi a go. I don't know what it was, but I just couldn't get it to sound good in my system. The only description I can think of is that it sounded like a badly recorded Cassette tape over a pre-recorded one. It was dull, lifeless and just didn't work for me. Although to its credit, it was incredibly musical. I primarily used it to stream files from my Mac upstairs, so that possibly wasn't helping. But it just could never match the CXC in detail resolution or overall enjoyment, so I sold it.
That led me to think of other options. I gave Tony a ring and he suggested a few options. I decided to try out a modified NovaFidelity X40 having heard some of their streamers elsewhere. Playing CD's it equaled the CXC/Beresford SEG combo, but once you imported the onto the internal HDD, it was like a revelation, it was seriously at a different level, so I bought it. I am hearing detail that I didn't know was possible and to top it off, it has Spotify connect, so I resubscribed to that service too. Now I have access to the music on the HDD, my Mac upstairs or Spotify, so win, win from my perspective.
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Post by MikeMusic on Oct 16, 2018 14:53:30 GMT
The file repro of the X40 takes hearing to believe. Took me by surprise. A good addition to a great system
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2019 14:57:38 GMT
I collected my NovaFidelity X40 streamer from @tonyc at the weekend after he breathed on it for me.
To say I am happy would be an understatement. Straight cold out of the box it was instantly improved, as if a vail had been removed from the speakers. Everything has tightened up, vocals seem crisper and the slight hint of harshness that was there before has gone. Very worthwile upgrade I must say.
Playing the track 'Junior B' by Yello from the album 'The Eye', there is so much more of everything. Loving this upgrade!
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Post by julesd68 on Apr 15, 2019 16:03:36 GMT
Always satisfying when some tweaking works out - so what mods did you get done Paul?
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Post by MartinT on Apr 15, 2019 16:52:05 GMT
Nice one, Paul. That Yello track is superb.
P.S. it's from The Eye.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2019 20:16:08 GMT
You’re right, brilliant track. I have updated my post.
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Post by Eduardo Wobblechops on Apr 17, 2019 7:51:18 GMT
The Hawthrones took over a full year to fully bed in. Probably a year and half. Often the case with highly sensitive drivers I think. I've read a few comments on Lowthers taking years to bed in.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 7, 2019 20:29:13 GMT
Bit of change at PaulD towers. I had been struggling with my Focal speakers for a while, finding them great for short bursts but fatiguing to listen to over extended periods. Then a couple of months ago my 2 year old son decided it would be a good idea to put his finger through one of the Beryllium tweeters. I got in touch with Coherent Systems who quickly got in touch with Focal’s UK partner, Naim and ordered two new tweeters on my behalf. Naim’s service has gone downhill recently. It took them the entire two months to source the tweeters from Focal in France. Whilst waiting for the replacement tweeters, and whilst bored one evening, I thought I’d have a look at the used section on Coherent Systems website and saw they had a pair of similar sized Quadral floorstanders for sale so enquired about them. On Thursday last week, Tony came over to replace the Focal tweeters and kindly brought over the Quadral’s for me to try. I plugged the Focal’s in and they sounded as I’d remembered them, great for short bursts, but quite fatiguing. With Tony’s help we swapped over to the Quadral’s and I could tell within the first 2 minutes that I had to buy them. They are excellent. Much, much easier to listen to, but with the same level of detail. They just don’t throw that detail to you in a overly bright manner. The Quadral’s have even more bass than the Focal’s and have a punchy detailed sound. I spent some time over the weekend listening, and didn’t find I needed to turn off the system in the way I used to do with the Focal’s, I just spent the time enjoying my music again. Thanks to @tonyc for his help in repairing the Focal’s and helping me find such great replacement speakers.
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Post by MartinT on Oct 7, 2019 21:26:16 GMT
Really glad you've found speakers you can live with, Paul.
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Post by John on Oct 7, 2019 22:23:08 GMT
Sometimes misfortune forces you to make changes Glad the new speakers are working for you
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Post by puffin on Oct 8, 2019 6:26:43 GMT
Hi Paul, long time since I read this thread and I can see you have been on quite a journey since I visited you. Great to hear that you may now (finally?) have found audio nirvana. I must give that Yello track a listen. I seem to remember that Toy was very popular at the ASBO I attended. The Habanera - Yello is a good one too IMO. I had the vinyl album with this track on and it was one of the best recorded vinyl tracks I have ever heard.
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Post by jandl100 on Oct 8, 2019 6:42:24 GMT
Congrats, Paul - my own experience and opinion is that Quadral speakers are way more musical than Focal -- unless you spend your mortgage on some high end Focal Utopias with beryllium tweeters, now some of those were very special. Remembering to put aside additional funds required for the forklift truck needed to move them. But down-to-earth Focals have always been about "impressive" rather than "music" for me. I couldn't bear to listen to most Focals for more than a few minutes. Quadrals, I've heard a few at shows and reviewed one model in depth - all have impressed me. Nice one.
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Post by MikeMusic on Oct 8, 2019 10:31:41 GMT
Good news Paul
All about the enjoyment
Leo could be said to have done you a favour !
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Post by Deleted on Oct 8, 2019 10:49:07 GMT
Leo could be said to have done you a favour ! I am not entirely sure about that, but it is a good point
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