To Add to original review:
I haven’t had the opportunity to hear for myself other JE products which have received only the best comments, particularly the LE-300ME which has fascinated its owners.
How much better is the LA-450ME? I can’t say, but I do know the difference between RCA and XLR and at least for me - it is huge, with a balanced system sound it becomes more ‘balanced’ not only as type of construction.
After more than one month in the system, the overall sound with the LE-450ME has changed and has become really unique and hard to compare to anything, so firm, detailed, energetic, correct, real… That is no any doubt that we are talking about a state of the art product.
Low frequencies are very powerful, firm, detailed, with real sound vibrations which are transferred from speakers to the listener’s body. When a bas guitar string is plucked you can hear that most deep string vibration – which gives me the shivers! A piano playing in lower registers is strong, naturally big and at the same time soft when recorded from a distance. All instruments which are ‘working’ in lower registers can be clearly separated from each other, and most of all, every instrument is playing with its own size, timbre, details and dynamics. These powerful low tones give us a real live picture of the concert as there is no mixing of low, mid or upper frequencies - everything is clean and well separated.
Mid frequencies have such clear natural details and tones that you can hear every single instrument detail without any effort. For example, the saxophone sound vibrates as it should and you will clearly hear when the player presses the valves and when the valves hit the pad cups but again in such a natural way that it is hard to distinguish from live sound. Drums membranes are there, sticks hitting them are there and the sound!! The violin, yes, your hair will be up-streamed. I must comment also the voices, chorus. Opera voices are like explosions with such great dynamics, reach timbre and clarity.
High frequencies are not as we know them from other sound systems’ hi-end gear. There is absolutely no ‘screaming’ at all. They are always fluid and natural. There is no instrument or orchestra attack at any level to disturb the high frequency pleasures - phenomenal.
When listening to classical music pieces where everything comes together and loud, when you already begin to expect that something will go wrong – nothing happens to the sound, the music just goes on and on, without a single limitation in their performance.
And for the end, the natural melodical sound brings everything to the level of live sound where everything has its body and soul.
There indeed is a lot more that can be said about sound but it is hard to find more superlatives to describe the extraordinary Joule Electra LA-450ME.
I’m sure that you will go on listening for on and on, as you will not believe yourself that you are actually hearing what you are - so good everything is! You will ask yourself - is this possible?
Altogether, this is something to make you a proud owner, not only for the Joule Electra LA-450ME, but also of your whole audio system - period.
System:
Grado – The Statement
ESE Lab – Nibiru phono
Custom turntable and arm (to be upgraded to ESE Lab DD turntable)
Joule Electra – LA-450ME
Spectron – Musician III Mk II, fully upgraded monoblocks (two more to come to have 4 monoblocks in total good for bi-amping)
Magnepan – MG 20.1 with Mye stands, Magnepan designed active XLR crossover is available
Combak – Remyo CDP-777
Elrod – 5 pcs old Statement and one Signature Gold (from wall socked) (target is to add more new Elrods)
Acoustic Zen – Absolute PC, XLR IC and speaker cables (bi-wiring)
Spectron - Remote Sense RS Signature Loudspeaker cables are on the way to replace AZ Absolute
Quantum – QX4 and QB8
PS Audio – PS300
Yeil M&C – Magnetic levitation devices
