Current system after 25-years of buying, selling and upgrading.
I am waiting for an Ars Sonum 30 Watt integrated and I may replace the separates - looking for a simpler approach to audio - but I may not be able to let go of the CAT which is one of the best amplifiers in the world. We'll see. Happy for now, and may stop searching something different - at least for a while.
still have the Pot in a box ? i have parts on order to build a dual stepped version into an RM-9. Best to you - enjoy the music, you have a lovely system
I think it is a good way to control the writes and provide plenty of outlets without degrading a direct wall connection, it does not improve anything as far as I can tell, but it seems like a very good way to "create" extra outlets.
System edited: I sold my Music Reference RM9 SE which I suspect I will regret, but with 3 amps and a fairly easy to drive speaker, I just did not need all that horsepower. It is umdoubtedly one of the best tube amps ever made.
System edited: Sold my beloved Joule LA150 Signature Edition this week, because in my system, which is single-source, passive-friendly impedances, and with no need of any gain, I think the Lightspeed Attenuator is the very best volume-control tool I have ever heard in my system with my single-ended amps. I have not yet tried it with the Atma-sphere setup, but I suspect I will keep the Atma-sphere as a pre/amp combo and use the LS with my other amps.
Ah. The Master BAM is still on order. One problem is that when I get it, I won't have the SuperBAM to compare with directly, so it is blind faith to an extent. For $1,100 to upgrade, it better be a clear improvement, for that kind of money you could buy alot of stuff, including something called music.
System edited: Sold the fantastic Accustic Arts transport/dac combo and will now be using the EMM Labs CDSA SE. Boht great, but I now prefer the one-box approach; simpler seems better for my taste.
System edited: Went back to the Bent Tap-X. Still love the Dodd, but battery maintenance was a pain. My sytem is very well suited to a passive approach and I think in my system, the Bent is pretty hard to beat and I've had some pretty good stuff from CAT,LAMM,ARC,JOULE,PLACETTE,and DODD. Bass reproduction is really outstanding with this unit. Look for the price it is pretty hard to beat.
Very different. The Ars is warmer and the bass is looser "tubier"(not saying the J is deeper). Which sound signature you would prefer is difficult to say, they are both good combos. Very hard to put a comparison into words. I will say that if I had to own one or the other I would proabably choose the Dodd/J.
Most recently I have had CAT JL2, Music Reference RM10, RM9, RM9SE, Pass XA30.5, Pass Aleph J, Quicksilver V4s amps and CAT SL1 Ultimate, Lamm LL2, ARC LS25, Placette Active and Passive, Bent TAP-X, Joule LA-150 MKII, Goldpoint Passive Attenuator, and a Dodd Battery Pre and an Ars Sonum integrated. Of all these combos my preferred combo for my ears is the Atma/Atma combo - you'll see what I mean when you get them. I'm not sure if the Atma pre is the best for the Atma amp, the amp sounded might fine with the Joule preamp as well, but felt going to a balance is what should be done. Frankly all this gear is very good, and most of my experience is that this is really hair-splitting, but the Atma amp really doesn't sound like other amps, and its sound can be addictive - the most live and real to my ears. I suspect that some of the amps would beat the Atma with certain speakers - both the CAT and Music Reference RM9SE are capapble of driving a lot of speakers very well - but the Merlins don't need a lot of power or current so to some extent they may be overkill. For a very low cost, the Dodd Battery Pre with the Pass/First Watt Aleph J is incredibly good. Merlins are usually best with tubes, but the Aleph J is very low damping, little negative feedback, Class A, single ended, and very easy load for tube preamps -- you could do a lot worse. Let me know what you think of the M-60s, I'm smitten.
Wow nice systems- alot of experience compared to myself. I am glad to hear you like the atma sphere, mine will be coming shortly! Just wondering, do you think anything stands out far above the rest? What would be the best match for merlins? And for the atma m60's?
The Amperex 6922 PQs worked well in my CAT, and Gary Dodd seems to favor Amperex in general. Mine are coming from Andy and VTS so I'm fairly confident they will measure very well and be well matched. Mullards might be interesting to try, I assume the would be warmer, with more midrange "push". The way Gary uses the triode halfs is a real benefit to tube rollers. P.S. I have not used the Dodd with the Atma-spheres yet, I'm afraid to find out I might like it better than the MP-3 - though as a linestage it seems very quiet to me and the combination seems to work very well to my ears.
Right now I'm trying out some EI Yugoslavian tubes from the 60s or 70s that a friend gave me. Early impression is not a profound improvement over the stock JJs. No cash for fancy-priced Amperex right now. In my CAT pre, (years ago) I favored the Amperex Bugle Boys over pricier Teles & Mullards. The best performance/price ratio went to the Tungsrams.
Don't know to measure that, they are quite different. Both the Dodd and Music Reference are strongly in the neutral, balanced camp - they are not as wet, and colorful as the Ars. Which is better? No idea in general, but I tend to prefere transparency, neutrality, and speed which I think the Dodd/RM9 combo has (let alone my Atma-sphere combo). I loved the Ars so I'm not sure this sort of thing can really be answered - they sound different, and as audiphiles I think we like hearing different gear and taking their measure. I will say that the 200 watts of the RM9 SE with KT88s does provide a bigger sense of space and venue than the 30 watt Ars - but you know, I think this is hair splitting. I could live with the Ars with no problem, and I think you would agree.
You were right. I've been through a lot of preamps and the Dodd is incredible. Interesting, Norm, a fella just north of me also bought a Dodd this week; he also owns Merlins -- coincidence? Have you rolled the tubes in the Dodd? I think the JJs are might good as is, but we'll see what the Amperex can do.
