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Who here uses Von Gaylord amps or other gear?

I'm curious how many 'Goners are familiar with this sleeper of a hi-fi company (formerly Legend Audio Design) that has been around for 15+ years but seldom mentioned. I have been completely enamored by their products! I recently discovered that a coworker is a fellow audiophile and he told me his system was all Von Gaylord. My first thought was, "Did you say Von GAYLORD??" But being curious, I did a search here and found a pair of Chinchilla interconnects at a reasonable price so I thought I'd give them a try. Boy was I shocked at how good the sound was! So transparent and open, airy yet rich in tone, smooth and musical but so clear and not smeared or soft at all, great bass extension and weight... I mean these cables did it all and really just blew away my Audience AU24e which I liked a lot. I found another pair of Chinchilla interconnects from a local guy and snatched them up. He happened to have some other Von Gaylord gear he was selling to upgrade and let me demo the LAD-L2 preamp. I was even more shocked than with the Chinchilla!

To make a long story short I have replaced my Conrad Johnson CT5 preamp with the LAD-L2, all of my Audience AU24e/powerChord e cabling except for speaker cables (working on that) with Chinchillas, my Luxman M-600a power amp with Nirvana monoblocks, and added the Legend speakers to my bedroom system, and they have all been substantial upgrades. I decided not to replace my Tannoy Turnberry SEs with the Legends in my main system, but that had a lot to do with the size of the room and bass extension/weight. Plus the Tannoy dual concentrics have a unique sound and timbre that I enjoy, though the Legends admittedly do most "audiophile" things better and are more detailed.

This all happened in about a month's time.

From what I have read I am certainly not the first to get sucked in by their interconnects and fully converted! I can't recall reading anything really negative about any of their products, except for a somewhat lukewarm review of the entry level Starlet integrated in Stereophile from a long time ago. Still, there is not a lot of reports about Von Gaylord out there.

Aside from being a very happy customer, I have no affiliation with the company. Also, the owner Ray Leung is a great guy and has given me white glove service in my home for all of my needs!
eugene81
weebeesdad's avatar
weebeesdad
139 posts
 
How hot do the Nirvanas run? Their website claims a cooler operating temperature for the tubes- do you find the heat from those eight 6550s to be problematic??
eugene81 OP
270 posts
 
Extremely cool! You can literally put your hands on them when they are fully warmed up (not too long though). I have a 20 month old toddler and I don't sweat it when she gets close because if she touches the tubes I know there's no chance of her getting burned and it won't be very painful but just hot enough to let her know it's a no-no.

The VTL was like a radiator; these are like warming trays.
smw30yahoocom
154 posts
 
Hi, I have owned the Von Gaylord amps (LM Triode, L2 Signature pre-amp) for many years and absolutely love it. This is a top notch system, one of the best. I have Dahlquist 20i speakers, Von Gaylord interconnects, the new Wadia 121 dac, and HiDiamond USB digital cable (very good by the way). The sound is glorious. My system is very detailed, but warm, so there is no listening fatigue whatsoever. Soundstage is excellent. I waited a long time to find the right dac and had cheap cd players for awhile and no matter what I had, the sound was very good. It's hard to put together a system that has detail, but also doesn't sound harsh or analytical, and Von Gaylord is that system. They also have excellent customer service which is extremely important to me. I have worked with Ray for years, a great guy and they are eager to help customers put together the right system for them. I am very happy with my system and sound, I have no desire to change or update anything. If anybody is in the market for an amp or pre-amp, they owe it to themselves to at least give a listen to their products. Sandra
ravicchio
9 posts
 
I agree that the Von Gaylord products are addicting.
I have gone from Thiel to Proac to Von Gaylord in my
search for a final speaker within my budget. Nothing
wrong with Thiel or Proac ( I still own some Proac
speakers ) but the "Return of the Legend" system brings
me closer to my sonic nirvana.
I am also able to listen at a lower volume and not lose " The Magic!" I found that my ProAcs, (D38s), needed power and volume to shine. I still love the sound of the ProAcs but the Legends really draw me into the music better. I have a mixture of cables and the lower end of the Von Gaylord electronics. LAD-2 Signature Pre Amp and LM Triode Monoblocks. No DAC in the system currently running from the Oppo 95 into the Pre Amp. Another benefit is that more of my music collection is tolerable. Many recordings I could not sit through are now enjoyable. I also agree that Ray offers outstanding customer service and is great to deal with.
If you are on the fence, you should set up an audition with Ray.
eugene81 OP
270 posts
 
I just upgraded most of my cables from the Chinchilla to the Legend 7000s including interconnects from DAC to pre and pre to amps + power cords on the DAC and preamp -- still running the amps with Chinchilla.

WOW, a substantial improvement where I didn't think it was possible! The same wonderful rich and vivid tone is retained but instruments have considerably more air and texture within, incredibly open and transparent. Their sounds emanate more into the room making them just more life-like than before. By comparison, the Chinchillas sound a bit compressed. I never thought I would say that!

Actually, Ray had left me a pair of the ICs for a few weeks. I put them in and immediately noticed an improvement, but decided I would be disciplined and take them out so as not to get too used to them. A couple of days before he was to pick them up I found a pair of Chinchillas for my bedroom system. While I put those in I decided to compare them to the 7000s again (that was the fatal "mistake"). They both sounded really good but the 7000s had that extra realistic magic that made me consider them for my main system. Ray gave me a great package deal for being a loyal customer so I bit the bullet and the improvement in sound was undoubtedly compounded by changing multiple cables. The upgrade definitely bruised the wallet, but listening to the system with these cables in massages the wounds. :) There are other areas in my system which could have used the money, but I feel the 7000s were a worthwhile investment. Someday when I can scrape together the extra cash I will get myself a pair of JPS Aluminata to compare them to.
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