Considering the New Tekton Design Encores? AND Owners Group - Experiences/Questions

@teajay Couldn't agree with you more! 

Fair enough. It's all personal choice. :-)

Mr_m,
If a reviewer Has listened to the Paradigm and in his opinion found them inferior, that simply an honest personal opinion. It doesn’t mean you or anyone else has to necessarily agree with that.

There are so many brands of audio components available to the consumer these days. It is impossible to find one brand that everyone will love or everyone will strongly dislike. It’s pure common sense and the  reality, nothing will please everyone universally.

The simplest and most truthful advice to anyone , if you have an opportunity to hear a speaker do so and judge based on your own preference and criteria.

This is why for example you have the constant Wilson compared to the Magico line of speakers debates. Different speakers for different ears.
Charles

I love my DI SE but I still want to know how they sound vs the new Encores. Anyone heard both.

I've only heard the upgrades DIs and the Encores.  The Encores have everything I've ever wanted in a speaker.  The 15 tweeter MTM array is incredibly detailed, coherant, and effortless with a electrostatic-like presentation with the dynamics of horns.
 The bass from dual 11" long-throw woofers produces prodigious, accurate, and gutteral bass that surpasses the DIs entirely.

@jcarcopo Any updates? DAC3? etc.

@david_ten Benchmark HPA4 and AHB2 are going back. The HPA4 was very good, but I've been running source direct out of a Benchmark DAC for 20 years and for me I feel like putting a preamp in between the dac and amp just robs me of resolution that I end up missing.  The HPA4 has immaculate specifications that should make it virtually transparent which is what is what I wanted, but instead the music sounds homogenous with slightly less transient response and this while using both the Benchmark DAC2 HGC or the Dangerous convert 2 pro audio dac I auditioned.

Once they were both gain adjusted to the same volume, both DACs sounded identical to my ears and I was able to switch between them effortlessly using roon feeding them both simultaneously and switching instaneously with the HPA4.  I'm starting to get the impression that all competent DACs sound pretty much alike.  I refuse to spend a lot more money for some uber DAC that only adds a tone control of flavoring and ridiculous price tag. 

I've heard esoteric and dcs in the past and I wasn't impressed at all. Sounded thin and airy to me. I couldn't afford it anyway so the point is moot. 

I'm kind of stuck at the moment and just listening through the DAC2.  I may get the DAC3, but I doubt it would be audibly better at all, or I may consider something fron Auralic, maybe a Vega Dac/Streamer.  Honestly though, I've heard the Vega in my system already and it sounded the same as the Benchmark to my ears. I returned it to the ebay seller because it had a broken toslink jack.  My dac2 hgc is getting old so I'd like to replace it soon, but I doubt I'll gain much improvement even if I do.

I'm not much for using tubes on top of tubes on top of tubes....tube dac, tube preamp, tube amp.  Too much of good thing (tubes) again seems to just rob me of resolution and dynamics. I love what set amps do, but I don't ascribe to using tubes everywhere else in a system because you're stacking a lot of 2nd/3rd order distortion to the point of losing purity you'd gain from using a simple direct path from source to amplifier.  I'm not saying people who do this are wrong, it's just not my cup of tea, sonically speaking. 

All that being said, (and just to contradict myself) I'm still mildly curious of the Lampizator tube DAC, but its a bit out of my league price wise and I have no easy way to audition it.

@jcarcopo

Agree with your comments. Dangerous Convert 2 is a great DAC too.

Out of curiosity - are you using XLR out of the Benchmark DAC and in to the HPA4?

Also did you set the Benchmark close to full volume (no resistor pad attenuation and about 2 to 3PM or HT mode) when passing the signal to the HPA4.

You would need to do this to maintain the full SNR performance of the products (maximize headroom).

I am considering the same combination but a loss of dynamics is definitely not a good thing.

@gregb63 Can you share more about your Encores? Thanks.

Tom Vu from TriangleART and I were talking a few days ago and I told him how much I love my [Encore] speakers.

@jcarcopo  Thank you! Looking forward to your take on the DAC3, if you get it. 

If you are looking for other non-tube DACs with a preamp function (within budget), also consider the Metrum Adagio.

The new Auralic series are certainly worth exploring also.

@shadorne Yes the Dangerous Convert 2 was extremely competant and yes I did connect both dacs to the HPA4 via balanced and used HT BYPASS on the input and ensured the internal dac2 jumpers were set to zero db.  I spent 2 days swapping from source direct to the HPA4.  I kept hearing a dropoff of sparkle and transients on guitars. It was a tad veiled and homogenous sounding, like a coating on everything I played.  This phenomenon happened in equally to both dacs.

@david_ten i will check out that dac you mentioned. 

I placed my order for the Encores yesterday morning. A big thanks to jcarcopo for generating this plan and for his trailblazing commentary on this speaker. Based on my experiences with the Double Impacts and Double Impact SEs, I have no doubt that the Encores are very special. I can't wait to hear them in my system!

@waltersalas Congratulations on getting the Encores! I'm sure you will love them as much as I love mine.  Let us know your impressions when you get them setup.

Jonathan

Hi Walter,
Congratulations!
I predict that the Tekton Encores and your Line Magnetic 508ia will be a beautiful pairing in your system. 
Charles 

Thanks, gentlemen. I’ve been excited about these since Eric first developed them. Kudos to jcarcopo for taking the plunge right away and confirming that these are as special as they appear to be.

Has anyone else received their Encores yet? Eric told me he thinks he can get them to be by the first week in September. Not bad!

@waltersalas I only know of one other person, (John Jonczyk) who pulled the trigger on the Encores via fb after having owned the Double Impacts SE. He probably will get them before you and will definitely post about them hopefully here or on the fb worldwide group for Tekton.  

Thanks, jcarcopo. I'll look forward to his posts, especially since he also had the SE's. I will keep an eye on the FB page as well. Much obliged!

Yes, that's correct.  I (John J.) ordered the Encores about a month ago and hope to get them sometime next week.  I followed the same path as Walter, i.e.,  DI to SE to Encore.  Jonathan was hugely influential in my decision to go for the Encores.  In my case I also decided to replace my amp ( Pass XA25 ) as I think the speakers might need more power to really thrive.  Sound unheard I ordered the Lyngdorf TDAI-3400 which should arrive shortly.

Thanks for chiming in, John. I would bet that the Encores will sound incredible with the Lyngdorf, which seems to get nearly universal acclaim from everyone who has heard it, including some audiophiles whose ears I trust. I look forward to your impressions, of course. I'll be driving mine with a Line Magnetic 508--48 watts of SET bliss--but one of these days I will try to bring in the little brother of your new Lyngdorf to see what all of the fuss is about :)

I'm so excited to get John on this thread!  I'm totally stoked you're getting the TDAI -3400! I can't wait to hear your listening impressions! 

Everyone loves what they own and then dumps it.  The audiophile way

...but always in the pursuit of better things out there.  That's what makes this hobby so exciting.  Let's not forget that whatever we have it's only a vehicle to deliver music to us in the most pleasant and realistic way.

@olesno Very well said! 

Olesno, 
That was a thoughtful and wise rebuttal.
Charles

Thanks guys.  It's all about music.

I wish all it was allways an upgrade when we dump gear and get newer "better" gear. We all have the experience of it being a downward, or merely lateral, move in musical enjoyment.

You are such an inflammatory dickhead @fetguy! If I didn't know and love you, I would hate you! 

One case comes to mind of Jcarcopo. He ditched a cheap two way speaker , and his first SET amp,  and bought a pair of Anylsis Omega planar/ribbon loud speakers.
It took him 11 years to get back to the enjoyment he HAD with the cheaper setup, and two more years to get where he is now.

It takes hard work to keep him from overshooting his goal, and ending up going backwards.....

...or selling his birthright for a cable....

@fetguy  you are mean, cold, and correct with your assertions! 

@fetguy And it was a 2 1/2 way! Get your facts straight. 

@waltersalas   and @olesno   Congratulations to both of you on your Tekton Design Encores.

Looking forward to hearing how they work out for each of you, especially the specific differences between the DIs, the SEs and the Encores.

To the best of my knowledge my speakers will be shipping tomorrow.  I can't wait.

@olesno That's great to hear! 

@david_ten thanks so much, David. It will be great fun to see how they sound in a few different systems, now that olesno and I will soon be getting them.

@olesno You must be thrilled! Please keep us posted on any developments.

Ordered a Lyngdorf TDAI 3400 today!  Hope it lives up to the hype. 

@jcarcopo  I didn't get a chance to play much with the 3400 yet and didn't do any "room perfect" experimenting but I have to tell you that right after I put it in my system and replaced my Pass XA25 I already heard some really good things happening.  I will be putting my Pass up for sale... Great amp as it is it's not a match for the 3400 (in my system and in my room).

@waltersalas  My Encores should be arriving soon and I will share my impressions after a while.  The problem for me will be getting the speakers and the new amp more or less at the same time.  

@jcarcopo Congrats on jumping on the Lyngdorf. Since I am a few weeks behind you and olesno in getting my Encores, I will be paying rapt attention to your impressions of the Lyngdorf/Encore pairing. 

@olesno I hear you regarding the introduction of more than one more change in your system at once. It makes it more challenging to figure out what is doing what. Of course, as long as you love the difference in the sound in your room, who really cares?

One more question: are you running any sources through the 3400, or using it exclusively? I posted a separate discussion thread attempting to get feedback on which phono stages play nicely with the Lyngdorf, but I don't think anyone has responded yet.

Do either of you guys have analog rigs?

I ordered the 3400 loaded with both the hdmi and the premium analog input option just in case I go down that road.  Currently I'll be using the USB, NETWORK, and HDMI connections for Roon, nvidia shield, and my media server.  I do not currently use vinyl. 

@waltersalas Since I sold my Mytek Manhattan II that was fully loaded I also had to replace the phono stage.  I did some research and some were saying that there might be some impedance issues with matching phono stages to Lyngdorf.  I decided to order the PS Audio NuWave which provides a lot of flexibility and is generally regarded as a very good phono stage.  It should be arriving this Wednesday.  One more thing to play with...

The other sources I am running through the 3400 are OPPO UDP 205 and also through USB input I am streaming Tidal/Roon/Nucleus+

BTW, my Lyngdorf is fully loaded with additional high quality analog inputs and HDMI ports (not sure if I ever use them).

@jcarcopo Congratulations on the Lyngdorf purchase!!!

@david_ten @waltersalas Thanks!  I'm excited to hear what all hype is about.  The potential for simplifying my system to potentially just one simple component is very tempting indeed.

@jcarcopo It's tempting for me, too. My only hesitation is that I tried this same route a few years ago with a Devialet, only to discover that I really missed having tubes in my system. Then again, Bill (grannyring) and others who have heard the Devialet are adamant that the Lyngdorf is a completely different animal, and I believe them. I'm certainly ready to give it a try.

My concern now is vinyl playback, which is why I will be following olesno's experiences with a great deal of interest. If I ran digital only, I would be less skittish.

@waltersalas I own a pair of Nord One Up Class D Monoblock amps that I love as well as my Art Audio Diavolo SET 300b Tube Amplifier that I switch between using a LUXMAN AS-55 high end amp switcher.  It allows me the best of both worlds and saves my tubes from unnecessary wear when I'm not critically listening or watching a movie or tv show. My thought is that I'll eliminate my Benchmark DAC2 HGC as a DAC and preamplifier altogether and use the tdai-3400 as a dac/preamplifier/room correction to feed my Diavolo SET Tube Amplifier and using the Luxman AS-55 amp switcher I can redirect the tdai-3400 amplifier's output to my Encores for the times I'm in the mood for tubes.  It's this versatility and simplification that appeals to me the most.

The best case scenario is that I love the tdai-3400 so much that I'll sell the Nords, Benchmark DAC2 HGC, and the Diavolo SET Tube Amplifier altogether, but if not I'll just sell the Nord monoblocks and my Benchmark DAC2 HGC and keep the Diavolo in the chain for the times I critically listen to particular genres of music that benefit the most from it glorious mid-range. 

@jcarcopo That plan makes perfect sense to me. I can't wait to get your impressions, not only on the sound of the Lyngdorf 3400 on its own, but the differences between that and the presentation with your tube amp in the chain. That may prove to be very instructive.

@waltersalas Sure, I'll share my impressions hopefully in about 2 weeks or less once I receive my TDAI 3400 from Denmark.  He said 5-10 business days

Pertinent update: my Encores are shipping today. Let the good times roll!

@waltersalas Excellent news!