Air Tight ATM2 Direct Driven by CDP?

Bblilikoi: I have tried running my Ayre Universal player C-5xe to the Manley Steelhead's line-level input and the Steelhead's variable output drove a pair of BAT VK-150SE directly (as Manley's suggestion to avoid another electronic layer - preamp). I also tried running the Ayre through the Steelhead then Steelhead's fix output to an Air Tight ATC-3 to drive the BAT amps (i know..i can omit the Manley between the Ayre and Air Tight..but i just wanted to findout what effects the Air Tight had on this chain). To my surprise, with the Air-Tight in..the sound had more punch, more authority without sacrificing any of the transparency and I didnt notice any increase in noise floor.
With a side note: Ayre C-5xe's output is relatively low (1 and 2VRMS for DSD on unbalanced and balanced output, 2.05 and 4.10VRMS for PCM , respectively. Here are my points (after a long interlude):
1. If your source's output is low, it might not be a good idea to drive the amp directly using just an attenuator (in your case, ATM-2's; my case, Steelhead's)
2. Having an extra electronic layer might not always be a bad thing, especially if it is really transparent, and it can provide extra gain without adding too much noise.
3. Try and hear for yourself all the configurations, eventhough at first it might seem nonsense (as long as you dont do any damage to your system)
This is why i had to add the Air tight ATC-3 pre in my system and run everything (phonostage, CDP) into it instead of just using the Manley. The sound now is so much more satisfying
Best regards.

Mahalo Jaytea,

I'm running the Cary 303/300 through a Thor TA-1000 Mk.2 preamp I'm trying now with good results. Running it direct into the ATM-2 Air Tight made the music sound like amplifed MP-3 files--rough, etched, not great. The Thor seems to me transparent, adds gain, and has a kind of big stage and good imaging in small combo acoustic music. But I listen mainly to choral, opera, and orchestral music, really, and it's pretty good for that too. With small choirs, it's magic.

Bblilikoi: Are your Air Tight ATM-2's transformers quiet? As posted in the other thread, my new ATM-2 's power transformer hums and can be heard from 3, 4ft away...I'm exchanging it for another one (but will take 4-6 weeks for delivery though) but still curious to know if Air Tight usually have this problem.

Aloha Jaytea,

Yes, my ATM-2 transformers are quiet. I'm sorry yours aren't, but glad Air Tight is getting you a new unit. That's very good to hear about Axiss Distributing. I haven't heard of this problem with the amp before.

At Toms suggestion, I've tried running the Air Tight direct from the Cary 303/300 CDP once again--this time with more interesting results. It's not as brittle and hashy sounding as when I tried it before--perhaps the contribution of all my tube-rolling (in both amp and CDP)--and there is more clarity and less distortion of some kind, but there is also a definite tip up within a certain treble range. The information comes through much cleaner and, thus, I can hear what's tipped up. I'm sure it's that impedance drop in my Sonus Faber Grand Piano Home speakers below 4 ohms in the 4kHz-20kHz range.

At the suggestion of another member from another thread, I lowered the bias-settings on the Air Tight by two measure markers. He suggested lowering the bias to improve sound, particularly relating to the Air Tight's leanness and tone of being "tipped-up," as that's been his experience with his Air Tight ATM-2. He reported that, when he tube-rolled his pre, a Wavelength, the character of the ATM-2 would change, brighten in tone, and sound "tipped up and leaner." This has been my experience whatever the tubes in either pre or amp, actually, though some are better than others.

Well, I lowered the bias-setting by about two measures and the choral music I was playing was immediately slightly better--more resolving. As I listened further, I could tell there was more inner detail in the soundstage and that the voices themselves were more easily separable, creating different polyphonic lines (as they should), and coming together more cleanly in coherent harmonies (again, as they should).

Overall, judging by a handful of CDs played with the bias lowered and the CDP running direct in to the Air Tight, this results in a cleaner choral sound. And a very sweet, clear, and fast orchestral sound too.