Tekton Double Impacts

The textures from the DI's are incredible to me. I have been an avid music listener all of my life. My first system was an Onkyo A-10, Gale speakers and a Technics turntable with an Ortofon MM. I got a loan which my father cosigned and that was it! I make fine hand made furniture for a living and I have always had a passion for music and sound. I don't have the big budget that some do so I have resigned myself to collecting one piece at a time. I liked what I was reading about BAT gear and found some good used stuff here on Agon. Then these speakers and I'll be damned if they really aren't the greatest things I have ever heard. I liked the Gallo's but they are a far cry from my non descript black boxes made by a guy who has been working just as hard at what he does as I do. I purchased art from another craftsman and that thrills me to no end and they are very very good speakers. So, thank you Victor Khomenko, Eric Alexander, Kenny Carpenter and the boys at AGON for your instructive comments that lead me down this path. I am forever grateful to have the wherewithal to listen to music as if I were front and center in Weil Hall with Yo Yo Ma, as I have been! 

Congrats Greg.....always good to hear that someone is enjoying their music so passionately. Products made with passion tend to be instilled with and emote that same passion. Tell Yo Yo Ma I said hello :) 🔉

@mac48025  Congratulations on moving forward with Aric's KT120 amp. Looking forward to leaning how your CF DAC works out for you!!!

@rockytophigh  Congratulations on your BMW Marina Blue Double Impacts. The BMW B 40 Liquid Blue Metallic was my second choice....a Mercedes color took the flag.... oops. : )

@greg22lz   Great to hear your 'loving them' commentary!!! 

Nice to hear how those new to the DIs have been literally impacted by them.

We've been discussing other stuff on the thread of late so it's really great to have discussion about the speakers.

@rockytophigh  I look forward to reading your reports about the DI's as they break-in.

greg22lz,

It's just wonderful to read your post that is just oozing with excitement over enjoying your new speakers.

rockytophigh,

Congrats on your new speakers also and I hope you really enjoy them.

mac48025,

What can I say I think you need to go see a doctor and If you find a good one that helps you be sure and let me have their #,because I probably need it too.

You have bought some fabulous gear and I hope you get many yrs of musical bliss with them.

Kenny.

evolvist -  30-100Hz is going to be the tough nut. The rest looks straight forward although I should pick up that "Get Better Sound" book just to be safe. From the reading I've done, conventional air velocity traps aren't nearly as effective as diaphragmatic absorbers.

MSR Dimension 4 Spring Trap is looking promising. What the pair of MSR Spring Traps miss may be cleaned up with GIK tuned membrane traps.The stereophile review with decay results is impressive.

 I see some folks recommending Hedback Acoustics for consulting/design, but these folks need to get paid to do their modeling and consulting and I'm guessing the result is outside my budget. He uses foam bass traps in the corner, go figure. Wish there was some room mode witch doctors that weren't selling their own wares offering an unbiased opinion on treatment efficacy.

Dennis from Acoustic fields has an interesing diaphram/activated charcoal design but I can't make sense of the measurement results.

Any suggestions for low bass room mode absorption?

Thanks David, I hope to hear FedEx drive up any minute so I can share my impressions of the CF DAC. 

LOL Kenny, I don't think there's any help to be had for any of us here......thankfully! It was a tough choice between the 2A3 you ordered and the KT 120 I ended up ordering. The KT 120 gives me output options from 9-22 watts that ended up being the difference. Who knows, I might end up getting the 2A3 down the road to have both. Yep, I need more than a doctors help!

If I were to get a tube amp, I would have to look real hard at this:

http://www.dsachsconsulting.com/custom%20kt88%20tube%20amp.html

Snagged an AURALIC Vega DAC on ebay for $2k.  Figure for that price it would be worth trying.  

@mac48025 - What is a CF DAC.  I couldn't find it online.  Hope you enjoy it and post on your impressions.  I'll be waiting on FedEx friday on my DAC.  Waiting sucks. 

Jcarcopo,
It’s the Japanese Concert Fidelity DAC and exceptionally good sounding. It’s a non over sampling design and ln my opinion is "very" natural in sonic character.
Charles

Thanks Charles, I get lazy and abbreviate names too often. 

And yes, it's VERY natural sounding. I thought my Perfectwave sounded pretty good but it doesn't compare to the Concert Fidelity ( which is understandable with the price difference). Timbre, tone and texture is greatly improved. It's very analog sounding. Imaging and soundstage are improved also. Basically it sounds more like real music. Mike at Audio Archon included NOS tubes with it.....Sylvania Gold Brand 12AU7's and Mullard rectifier. BTW, Mike is great to deal with. Very knowledgeable, honest and prompt. 

Once again the DI's revealed the many improvements from the DAC upstream and I couldn't be happier. 

@mac48025  Did you try a DirectStream DAC too?  I had one a few firmwares (& years) ago and ended up just going back to the Perfectwave... I periodically get curious about whether the firmware upgrades have addressed some of my issues.

Lo and behold my white DIs have shipped! Wow!

Of course these are transitional while I await the mini-Ulfs. Moreover, I can burn them in every day, but my serious listening will be limited because my room is gutted at the moment as we remodel.

I just wanted to say, I never thought I was badmouthing Tekton (perhaps playing a little devil's advocate), when I threw out some of my concerns; nevertheless, Eric has taken care of me. The customer service ended up being superb!

In the end (at least this "ending"), I am glad that Eric didn't try to rush these mini-Ulfs. He didn't like the way they sounded, so he went back to the drawing board, so to speak, to make the best product he can.

The question is, will I fall in love with these DIs and not want to part with them? I've never heard them in a treated room, so perhaps in my room they might be resolving enough. We'll see. :-) 

Cal3713,
I did not try the Directstream. I wasn’t really looking to replace the Perfectwave until a good deal on a demo Concert Fidelity presented itself. I was fortunate to pick it up for much less than a new Directstream would have cost. After reading all the reviews on the Concert Fidelity DAC and hearing teajay’s and Mikes appraisal of it I just had to give it a try. I like the concept of it using a NOS Phillips DAC 16 bit chip that Concert Fidelity chose for its very musical nature over it’s specs and of course I love the idea of having more tubes! The battery power feature is interesting also. I never thought of my Perfectwave as harsh sounding but in comparison to the Concert Fidelity it comes off as having a harsh edge.

Congrats evolvist, you’ve waited a long time and have shown great patience as far as I’m concerned. Good luck in getting your room finished so you can relax to some good music.

Hi Tom,
The distinction you hear between the two DACs is what I would expect. The Perfect Wave is quite a  good sounding source, no doubt. The Concert Fidelity DAC does elevate you to a higher tier, more life like and organic. A more emotional listening experience IMO. It seems you got it for a really nice deal, Congratulations this is a genuine long term type of purchase.
Charles

For the past few weeks, I've been comparing a Directstream dac to an Yggdrasil dac. As good as the Directstream is, the Yggy just sounds better. The Directstream is very detailed but has a harsh digital "glare" to it that is fatiguing over time. The Yggy is also detailed, but has a warm and organic sound that is pleasing to listen to. I will be selling the Directstream in the near future.

I'll trade you my Yggdrasil for your Directstream...

The DS has a harsh digital "glare"? That is strange. I have just the opposite experience in my system. It’s the finest most refined DAC I’ve owned. The latest firmware update is incredible.

Maybe the word "harsh" is not the right way to put it but I get it, every delta sigma DAC that I’ve heard playing PCM file had a glare compared to a R2R DAC like the Yggy (I only realized this after listening to a R2R DAC for the first time, before then I didn’t know and I didn’t care) I’m recently switch to a reference level discrete ladder R2R DAC and I understand what people mean by a digital glare and a veil being lifted. Btw, in my view a DAC can be very refined and detailed but still have a glare.  Good luck!

I have a DS and a DS junior which I find to be much better sounding then my Yggdrasil was,I tried one just to see what all the fuss was about.

I ran the yggy in my 2nd system for more than 500 hrs so I did give it a honest shot.

Kenny.

I have a DS and a DS junior which I find to be much better sounding then my Yggdrasil was,I tried one just to see what all the fuss was about.

I ran the yggy in my 2nd system for more than 500 hrs so I did give it a honest shot.

Kenny.

The Yggy and the DS are both good sounding DAC’s; however, the topology is different for both. With different rooms, different systems and different EARS, people will assess the sound differently. We all hear differently, and even if both are compared in the same system, some will prefer one over the other.

Musikmann,
Agree with your comment and for certain Kenny knows that as well. Emphasis on the chip type or R2R ladder architecture can be overstated. I/V conversion, analog stage design and power supply quality are as important (if not perhaps even more so ). I’ve heard very good multi chip/R2R and also Delta Sigma topologies.
Charles

+1 @muzikmann

A shout out of thanks to @nycjlee  who helped me with a decision to add another DAC to the stable. 

@david_ten , Thanks man. I hope you enjoy it as much I'm enjoying mine :).  Let me know. 

@evolvist  Great to hear that your DIs have shipped!!!  You have been EXTREMELY patient. Also great that you kept on it vs backing down and going with another choice. Not easy when one is without speakers for such a long time.

evolvist,

Congrat's on bringing in some DI's to use till the mini's are perfected and be sure and give us your thoughts about them.

Best of luck to you in your journey,

Kenny.

Charles,
I don't disagree with you.  I know implementation is they key.  Personally, I have a preference for R2R DAC's.  One DAC I am dying to hear is the DENAFRIPS Terminator DAC. It is R2R architecture and looks like it's very well made. So far, I have read nothing but positive on DENAFRIPS DAC's.

I owned the Yggy before getting the Perfectwave and I will echo what many have stated.....they are both excellent DAC's. I can only imagine that the DS DAC takes things to another level. I would have been very happy sticking with my Perfectwave DAC but after listening to the Concert Fidelity there's no going back for me. Only after experiencing the Concert Fidelity would I consider the Perfectwave to have a slight harsh edge. I didn't even know it was there until I heard music without it. If there's one thing my audio journey has taught me is to follow my ears and only through acually listening to my music through different gear will I obtain the musical bliss I desire. Thankfully there are many here that have the same listening preferences as I that have been very helpful in steering me towards products that have worked wonders for me. 

When I tried the Directstream, it sounded brighter and less natural than the Perfectwave.  More detail to be sure, but I wasn't sure I liked it.  Perhaps I was just hearing more of the problems in my upstream (computer) source, but regardless, it was an easy decision to go back to the Perfectwave. 

It's interesting to read about people having a different experience, especially since this thread is relatively biased towards Charles' "natural, organic" perspective. I kind of thought the "pro" Directstream crowd would be detail focused.  Anyway, as said above, different systems (mine is Coincident speakers & Franks driven directly by the DAC with music served over ethernet) and different ears...

I wish it were easier to sample others' gear.    

[And that mine wasn't all locked up in a storage shed in Colorado]

Hi all - I hate to always be the contrarian but we are talking like either you have "natural, organic" sound or you have "detailed" sound. Personally, I don't want one without the other and I don't think I have to. If you are not hearing all the "details" of the music then by definition it's not "natural or organic". This discussion on NOS DACs (especially the CF DAC) has really got me re-thinking my digital. But if we are saying "natural and organic" is rolled-off highs or a lack of transparency then we've opened the wrong playbook.

The rest of you guys got a playbook?

Maybe yours got lost in the mail? I just looked in my playboy and it clearly states on page 69 that orgasmic and natural sound must not lack any detail.

RIP Hugh Hefner
I need a tissue.

Note: SwiftKey, on my phone,  autocorrected playbook to playboy.  So I went with it. 

I think you can have detailed,  organic,  and natural sound. One shouldn't have to compromise on anything. 

I know you can have detailed,organic natural sound because I'm listening too it right now.

Yes RIP Hugh.

I hope I'm still listening to music at 91.


Kenny.

I don’t sense that anyone is suggesting that "natural/organic " and detail are incompatible or an either/or proposition. I agree with Sbayne, by definition if it’s truly natural then detail is present, alive and well.

I do accept the premise that tipped up, bright and analytical leaner character can be misidentified as superior detailed information. Also people may use the same terms but apply different meaning to them. The audio vocabulary isn’t strictly established, so interpretation will vary. I by no means equate rolled off, soft or gratuitous warmth with organic.
Charles

I need some help...the vocals seem to be coming from the floor centered.  No stands yet but they're literally dead center on the groumd.  I've reversed polarity at the speakers and no change

@sbayne   I don't find your posts and thoughts contrarian. If anything, they are very helpful. I believe it's good to have takes that may be different from the groove that this thread tends to naturally follow. It's when I tend to learn the most.

We've discussed photos of systems to give us more insight about where someone is, but it really comes down to what @cal3713  is saying about sampling other's gear. That would give each of us true perspective. Words can only go so far and they are easily mis-interpreted, especially in fora/forums.

I'm open for a series of home/audio room tours. : ) 

Sbayne, 
For the record I'm with David and find your comments insightful and very worthwhile.  I just expect a wide array of perspective on an open audio forum. We are each unique individuals who bring their respective experiences and biases.  
Charles 

Hi all, 'been watching this forum for awhile and can't hold back any longer. Seen quite a bit of Directstream references and wanted to share what I think is THE FIND regarding DACs.  I've been putting "MY" end game system together recently 'cause I'm retiring and honestly just unwilling to compromise any further. I've been researching DACs, preamps, amps, and speakers for the last three years. I looked at 21 DACs (sigma-delta, R2R, FPGA), 43 speaker companies, amps and preamps galore... I settled on the PS Audio Directstream because all of the rave reviews. I took advantage of the 30 day home audition. While I thought it was better than my OPPO BDP-95's internal DAC, it wasn't much better. I ended up returning it. (put over 400 hours on it and was out of time, but was still too dark sounding, perhaps not fully burned in yet?) I tried the Yggy and thought it was better, but still wasn't happy. Thought about other R2R's, but eventually came across Playback Designs and Andreas Koch (owner and designer). After much research, I bought the Merlot and never looked back. It sounded great out of the box, but did take an extremely long time to fully burn in. Fully cooked by 500 hours. This DAC presents the most "real" sounding music I've ever heard from a stereo system. It doesn't get better than "real sounding". Makes 16/44.1 digital sound unbelievably good. Pick your adjectives, transparent, detailed but natural, dynamic, correct timbre & tone(IMO), aliveness, etc... it does it all. FYI, I was/am a musician, play the trumpet. Had a band when young. At retirement age now. But I know what "real" music sounds like and that's my goal in my system. Just wanted to share about this DAC. Please do your due diligence and research Andreas. For example, he was the lead engineer that designed the DSD recording Sonoma workstation. The rest of my system is a MicroZOTL as preamp, Pass Labs XA30.8 amp, and just purchased Vaughn Barbera II speakers with the Dukane Plasma tweeters. Can't wait to get home and hook those up! Might also acquire a single ended class A amp as well. I have purchased a ZOTL40 but haven't received it yet. Anyway, just wanted to share.

P.S. I was looking at the Double Impacts, but had a bad experience with Eric, (Don't ask, I'll leave it at that) so now disregard them.

Thanks for listening.

so many are sure that what they have is the best for this or that reason.  Everyone should decide for themselves.

I agree wholeheartedly! But without an interchange of experience, those looking may not find something that would in fact interest them. Isn't that what this forum is for, an interchange of ideas and experience? One can choose to investigate for themselves or not.

Audiopitbull, 
Well said and true. These open audio forums are communication terminals and a fun and effective way to converse with what are essentially strangers who have a common interest or even passion.  

I've learned quite a lot from these threads over the years and have been exposed to new and unfamiliar products as a result. When we find something that improves our listening pleasure it's fun to spread the news.  

It seems to me that any reasonable person would realize that these are all personal impressions and not interpret them as the gospel or as absolutes. 
Charles 

Audiopitbull

How did the Vaughn speakers sound versus the Tektons?

I am celebrating nearly one year with the DI's and its given me cause to recollect my audio journey this last year. I feel fortunate to have experienced a few " ah ha" audio moments during this time.

 The first was the DI's. I need not elaborate much as this thread is full of reasons why.

 The second was the Linear Tube Audio MZ2. I'm still using it as an integrated amp and am amazed how well it's one watt drives the DI's. It's musical purity is mesmerizing.

 The third was hearing Charles' Frankensteins in my system. What an ear opening moment. As much as I was enjoying the sound the MZ2 brought to the table I now heard how much more the DI's were capable of delivering and just what so many referred to as the " SET magic" was all about. 

The he fourth was adding the Concert Fidelity DAC to my system. I had no idea how much a DAC could contribute to reproducing beautiful music. I thought my previous DAC was quite good, but the CF DAC took things to a whole new level. 

I'm hoping my next purchase, the Aric Audio SET KT 120 amp, will continue my fortuitous streak of ah ha audio moments.......and I'm quite confident it will. 

I believe the DI's were instrumental in allowing all of these system changes to bring forth all of the benefits they had to offer. Their transparency allows every upstream change, good or bad, to be fully demonstrated. Whether it's cables, tubes or components the DI's will reveal even the most subtle nuance these changes bring about. That just might make the DI's the single most important audio investment I've ever made.