2. amps-preamps
  3. 168820-2546

Stock Voyager GaN amp (350/600) Contrasted with my EVS1200 (600/1200)

The Voyager (V) I received is well broken in, and as the title says, it is stock. An upgraded version will come later.


I let the V warm up for ~ 24 hours while I listened to my beloved EVS 1200 (~$2300) playing a wide variety of Redbook CDs; The Judds, Chris Issak Heart Shaped World, Leonard Cohen remastered collection, Willie Nelson Across the Borderline, the Eagles Hell Freezes Over, and Jennifer Nettles Playing with Fire (love the music, but the mastering has a few ear bleed cuts- or does it???). I capped the session off with Roger Waters Amused to Death SACD, a huge, occasionally very dynamic, and intentionally phasey recording. While I enjoyed the hell out this listening session, but afixed in my mind was reading others reporting on their not fully broken in V amps frequently mentioning detail/clarity, the music via the EVS 1200 wasn't as focused as I felt it should, but have accepted for 2 years, as it easily outperformed my PS Audio M700s (MSRP $4000), FYI, their M1200s are based on the same IceEdge AS1200 modules as my EVS 1200, but untouched. They simply added their own tube input stage (MSRP $7000), and Audio Alchemys DPA-1 ($2000), wish I could have tried the monos ($4000), but...


Could  the lack of focus be elsewhere, like the Wire World Electra 7 Power Conditioning cord ($240), connected to my Audio Alchemy DDP-1 + PS 5, which is IMO, my weakest PC, all the others are $700+, or my $150 Pangea XL coax cable? How would the V stack up?  Im thinking it can't be THAT much better, and what about the huge power disparity in my ~ 26 x 38 X 12 lively room with lots of glass and open beam ceilings, which adds up to brightness?


I connected the V, but didn't want to start with any of the same discs, just in case the V needed to see some signal before being ready for the comparison, so I chose Getz/Gilberto Jobim and Astrud Gilberto SACD as a nice way to ease into the Voyager. I haven't listened to this disc in months, so no recent memory to taint hearing it now. Did I say 'ease'. Silly me.


I'll cut to the chase hear/here, from the first note, it was obvious that this is a special amp, but at $3500 MSRP? OMG: What a steal!!! The focus reminds me of how much sharper and with greater depth of field pictures taken with Leica camera lens are, compared to all other cameras and lenses. GaNs magic is the equivalent of Tesla EV motor speed- immediate: The V grabbed me from the first note.


More  to come after I go through the Redbook CDs that I started with, but I already know it's a moot point. And wilder, still, LSA has already made a few tweaks, like the internal wiring for an additional $175.


Ric Schultz was right when he said expensive amps will be boat anchors
tweak1
viber6
2,448 posts
 
grannyring,
Just listen carefully to natural live unamped music and nonmusical sounds of nature. The "tight" body of the live piano is like an anvil being hit with a hammer/mallet.  The tightness of the bouncing basketball, the scary body of thunder all make audio system bass/midrange sound like a wet loose noodle.  Have you heard a French horn or tuba up close?  Their "body" is tight, focused, with quite a bit of HF overtones which contribute to the focus.  By contrast, and by COMPARISON, the dynamic drivers and euphonic electronics of certain audio systems contribute mush and fuzz.  

This is not a debatable observation for armchair discussion.  You either hear it or you don't, depending on your familiarity with live unamped sounds.
viber6
2,448 posts
 
Ricevs,
The reviewer, Anthony Cordesman is an old, seasoned listener who I have read for 40 years.  He assumes the reader knows the extensive comments he has made over the years.  Still, you are right that taken as an isolated review, it is not as detailed as we would like. 
grannyring's avatar
grannyring
6,466 posts
 
I’ll stick with my simple and accurate comment.  No need to complicate it or argue with tangled up semantics.  
ricevs
1,543 posts
 
Viber6,
How do you know what he assumes?  Are you a mind reader?  The review is poor....plain and simple.  No comparisons.....no real listening information.  Just another money making review to please the advertisers.  I am not cynical.....I just see what is at various levels.  At the level of mammon....it is not pretty.  At the level of spirit it is forever beautiful.
viber6
2,448 posts
 
Ricevs,
Yes, the review contained no comparisons, which we all wanted.  He is an old man, so may not want to bother.  Still, his few words are informative, like the amp being uncolored.  This is much more informative than a typical young reviewer going off on his emotional tangents saying how a component gives him peace and improves his relationship with his friend, etc.  That one word, "uncolored" is enough for the interested listener to go hear the amp somewhere, and better yet, try it himself.  All too often, audiophiles hang on the every word of the reviewer as though he were a mystical guru.  All these reviewers are full of BS.  The best source of info is threads like this, where the owner doesn't have a business interest in the product which would bias his statements.  In particular, yyz and tweak1 have done great jobs telling us honestly what they hear, comparing AHB2 and EVS1200 to Voyager/Peachtree.  When they tell us the effects of your mods, the advertising bias and increasing uselessness of the mags will be further exposed.
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