It passed 100 hours a day ago . I do not run tubes in 24-7 to achieve break in . I will do 10 on 4 off and so on till 300 plus hours is reached. With both the Acts I didn't notice a magical change at 100 hours . {This is the theoretical number of hours needed to begin breaking in the Teflon caps}. With the ART 3, I did. There was and is a interplay between sound and source that is at once rock solid and assuring. You feel from the very first listen that you are in the presence of something powerful and wise. With so many other products you audition , you struggle to find its strengths, character and motive. Its place in the hierarchy in audio of what you have experienced.
I mentioned that it starts deeper in the yin region . It clearly does but that is not to present it without attributes in the upper frequencies. Quite to the contrary. It in fact reminds me of my first experience with Kubala Sosna Emotion cables. A refinement and sophistication is evident throughout the bandwidth. Slightly recessed into the soundfield , you are luxuriously drawn into its spiderweb of Sonics and trapped. Cymbals float in space and seem to hang forever as subsequent notes pass and fade past it while you still are able to hang on to that last faint trail of golden shimmer of the cymbal as it vanishes. The ART 3 is like this in many ways . Compared to the ACT preamps, the ART 3 has a deeper presentation , a greater sense of space all throughout the field, better presentation of the midrange and better focus . Let me digress a bit.
Dimensionality , presence and midrange density are the three blindingly obvious improvements I hear. This was hinted at from the start but at 100 plus , the window cleared and what I heard was not in debate .
Dimensionality : Patricia Barber , Live from France has been in rotation in this study. Track 5 is nice and clean, a recording with punch , space and balance. It is as if someone rearranged the players in my room by spreading them out an extra 4 feet . It was a touch disconcerting at first. I had to gather my wits to appreciate its effect. It separated so much that I almost felt disoriented. As I re experienced the album again , I took notice of the myriad of instruments at play within this group and the tapestry of sounds that effortlessly flowed thought the sonic spectrum laid bare before me. Its something you have to hear to appreciate.
Presence : I have heard this magic twice . First at the Nugget in Vegas with the Avalon Spectral Mit set up and another time with Wilson 7 s at an audiophiles home in NY when I was buying a pair of ESP Concert Grands {which I loved btw.} When you nail it , its startling . The whole image lifts and suspends itself in the air as it becomes a whole holographic entity into itself. You clearly hear the boundaries of the recording and the positions of the players within the field. The voice has an eerie "presence " that fools you into thinking its real. That is where you separate the great audio systems from the very best IMO. I always assumed it was a magical combination of acoustics and system synergy. Hell, I thought it may have been a touch of luck... I see now , it might originate in the preamp. Its trite to say " my speakers disappeared" and I have struggled in how NOT to say this but as redundant as it is to say , they were gone last night.
Midrange density is the one characteristic that this preamp has that will enamor the old guard of loyal Conrad Johnson followers. Bow strings being pulled fill the air with a weight that is captivating to those that favor a richness and complexity to their instrumental palette. The afterglow of percussive resonance's that fill the air with distinctive character give you a clear view of the size of the tom tom . Try Dean Peers " Its All Good " for a tasty dish of unique percussion sounds on the many creative tracks on this brilliant album.
I love movies. If I really like one , I will go as many as 15 times to the Theatre , There is a brilliant albeit polarizing film out now called The Fountain. I find it the most unique, visionary science fiction film since 2001 . Heads up.... Spoilers to the movie coming ...... Its the story of a brilliant surgeon that desperately loves his wife and is violently working new drugs and technologies in an attempt to cure her cancer. His radical method of uncovering new drugs accidentally leads to the cure for aging. He plants a tree over her corpse so she will live within the tree when it grows .He takes the tree into outer space in a bubble to reach a place in the cosmos that the Mayan culture believed prolongs life forever. Together they can reach immortality . The movie never fully explains this and jumps hundreds of years into the future and past but you can follow it by assuming his discoveries cure death thus his ability to achieve his goals. He carries the Tree-Wife with him and eats her flesh-bark as a way to prolong his own life . There is an analogy here in case you are wondering. I have had a fruitful life in audio and have been so lucky to have been able to experience so many wonderful audio components and to share my observations with so many. Audio is my Tree .
See you at 200.
