A HiFi newbs Elac Adante review
Bad news everyone. The Roksan amplifier I had picked up was defective (headphone jack stuck in mute mode) Tried my hardest to carefully clean it but no luck so I had to return it... While I enjoyed the combo thus far reliability is a big concern. If anybody has suggestions for a new amp I am all ears! I've been looking at the new yamaha r-n803 as a budget pick for this. It has a ton of features That matter to me like a dac, network streaming, IR remote and room eq. This would not be the end all as I know I will eventually upgrade. I appreciate the versatility of this unit because it could make its way to my living room for a more casual set up down the road. any thoughts on this amp or others that you feel would be a great fit for the Adantes? |
I'm using digital room correction (an open source version, my music is PC-based) and the difference it made in my far from ideal room is HUGE. Yes, you should also treat your room, but things like bass peaks are VERY difficult to treat with anything decor or wallet friendly. I vote for minidsp/Dirac live as your next upgrade. The difference between room correction on and off swamp anything else. And welcome to the hobby! |
Thanks for the review Chris! I have a couple of the miniDSP HD´s (2x4) that replaced the standard miniDSP model used for supertweeters and subs management (main speakers running full range).. even there, I felt the HD was a nice step forward compared to the standard version. I am thinking that with the level of detail you are describing, you may notice any additional ADDA conversions though (I think there is digital I/O available, not sure).. I would consider room treatments and speaker/listening positions tweaking good place to start dialing things in once you get your stuff into the cave... there is a lot of info available online, but I have found this a very time-efficient resource. http://getbettersound.com/index.php I am thinking with those speakers and your music preferences, you may want to audition some other flavor of a R2R or multibit DAC to compare against your iFi. A DAC that offers a NOS (non oversampling) option may be a good match, but watch so you do not lose that sound stage depth/width at the expense of tonality. Here is a somewhat-off-the-radar company making source components that seem high value, https://www.allo.com/index.html .. Good luck and will be looking forward to any additional comments you have time to share. |
Clu, I would think the Roksan would be better than the Nad, we had a Roksan Black on trial for a few days and it was good, we just felt that it wasn't better than our other integrated amps with dacs but it was very good. As per subs we had the SVS SB 13 on trial trade in, and it was a bit boomy the JL Audio was much faster. The Adante sub just arrived yesterday, so after we have a chance to play with that one we can tell you what we think of the sub. The Elac woofer may be an excellent choice due to the fact that it is designed probably with the AS 61's in mind Will post findings after we have gotten it burned in and setup. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
enjoy !!!! long before investing in subwoofers, i would improve cables and since you are building a dedicated room, some analysis tools ( Audiotools and a calibrated mic ) and some treatments...most dedicated rooms end up sterile, get some natural diffuser/ absorber in there....sounds like a great dog helps....our ancient Labrador likes listening with me... dont rule out Audioquest cables, copper is affordable, neutral and has DBS of course the Roksan is good stuff !!! |
@audiotroy thanks for all the input! My choice on the roksan came down to reviews on the web. Originally I chose the nad c388 since I had a chance to demo but felt I would get more for the money buying second hand. The roksan definitely sounds better to me. As compared to the nad it has a fuller sound. I still might pick up a c368 and a set of monitor audio silver 200s for my living room once I move the adantes to their permenant home! I loved how that combo sounded. I hate to say this because I wouldnt want to shy anybody away from these speakers thinking the design may be inadequate (they aren't) but the allure of this speakers bass cabinet bandpass design was what made pull the trigger. I think it's a really cool/unique design! Come on!? Concentric tweeter and bandpass to passive radiator....how cool is that!!?? Along with sounding great they make a stellar conversation piece and I'm truly intriguiged by the design. Now this I can really appreciate. I feel as though some people have a negative opinion on these speakers for being direct and having such a high level of detail as a near flaw. I saw this as an opportunity to purchase the rest of my system based on the other components individual sonic characteristics. I love to tinker and always need an excuse to change things as I go so this works perfect. I feel strongly that these will play true to source. |
Congrats on the purchase. I've been wanting to hear the Adantes. I'm going to my first AXPONA next month, so hopefully they'll be available for demo. Regarding your MiniDSP question, I've been using the MiniDSP DDRC-22D in my setup, and it's a nice improvement, especially when it comes to clarity and definition in the bass. I have towers with built-in subwoofers that receive their signal from the speaker-level in, so the 2-channel setup works for me. If you're going to want to add two subs to your two Adantes you'd probably want to look at the DDRC-24. |
Cotuzzi, the design is called a band pass and Kef did it many years ago. Andrew Jones worked for Kef so so that is no surprise. The idea of the bandpass or quasi band bass it to simply the crossover by allowing a more natural progression acoustically from the midrange to the woofer. If you look at some of Andrew Jones recent interviews you can hear his ideas on why he chose this kind of arrangement. Mr. Jones is known for making a lot of good speakers and has an extensive engineering background his work with TAD, KEF and Elac is well documented. In terms of not employing this kind of design, it is simple, most companiies chose to build the easist and fastest to manufacture product, this cabinet is way more complex to build at greater cost, if it wasn't for an efficient and large enough company a design like this would not be on the market. The bass of the Adantes is tight and punchy and they go low and loud so Mr. Jones must be doing something right. No loudspeaker is perfect it is all about what you are trying to accheive. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
Sticking onto the ELAC adante topic -- Dave and Troy -- do you think there is any benefit of the internal driver and external passive setup of the Adantes? Do you really think the bass is superior to the same cabinet with just an active 8" woofer and none of the trickery? What do you think about the fact that this was tried before way in the past, and no one thought to do it again after all these years? |
Congrats Chris, You will be in for a treat. Give the Adantes plenty of break in time. You will be rewarded with even better sound if you do a couple of things. 1: A set of Isoacoustics Ghia 3 feet will improve the bass deifination and improve the soundstage image specificity, as well as remove a bit of the upper octave forwardness. The set of Ghia feet aren’t expensive and you will be shocked at the level of improvments over the stock spikes. 2: Also we have a set of the stands but can’t put them out due to space limitations but if you can fill the stands then use aquarium grade sand and lead shot if possible to damp the stands. 3; Make sure you invest in a good source, and cablling. 4: When auditioning cales look for warmer cables try to audition Cardas, Wireworld, Kubala, Transparent, Mit, stay away from AQ, Nordost, Kimber, and any of the super detailed brighter types of calbing, with silver vs copper. If you go for a new source look for a warm sounding streamer like the Lumin D2. You may find that once you upgrade your cabling and upgrade your source you may not need a sub at all. In our demo room 18 by 14 with 10 feet ceilings we have crazy bass with the Adantes, once you do the above things you will find the bass will start to really be prominant and will be way deeper and tighter than what you are currently getting. Currous how you picked the above combination of components, very few people have heard the Roksan gear, Again congrats. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
180@8ohm and 220@4ohm. More than enough. I do want to test out the new arcam g class amps once they come to the US http://www.roksan.co.uk/products/k3-integrated-amplifier/ |
Congrats Chris, nice system and nice looking dog. I had a black lab/Shepard mix, loved him dearly and when the time came to put him down, he died in my arms. Mine was all black with white on the underside of his neck. He was the sweetest and most loving animal anyone could hope for. System wise, I think you are off to a great start. BTW, my dog loved hot dogs and Ramen noodles. |
