2. amps-preamps
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VAC Ren II, VAC Phi, or ARC Ref 3?

Finally, the two cold solder joints in one of my Rowland 7M amplifiers have been fixed. Just a simple 2 minutes soldering job at home, thanks to a kind live phone consult by Jeff himself. Now the system is back purring like a kitten.
Great say you, but. . . the problem is that now I have fallen totally prey to Upgraditis Furiosa, the most pernicious and 'wife threatening' form of Audiophilia Nervosa.
I listen mostly to classical--lots of chamber, vocal, Early Music, Baroque, Romantic, some large orchestra, lots of cello and other strings--on a system that I have lovingly put together over the last 20 years: EAD T1000, AT&T glass C-core glass wire, EAD D7000 Mk. 3, AudioQuest Quartz RCA, Audio Research LS2B, Gutwire XLR, Jeff Rowland 7M monoblocks, Cardas Golden Ref PCs on 7M, Cardas Golden Ref speakerwires, MagnePan 3A speakers.
The sound is sweet, lush, with a large if slightly unfocused soundstage, sometimes slightly veiled, somewhat soft at the bottom, can sound glorious in the midrange, good if not spectacular at the top. Much better at small ensembles than at full orchestra, where the sound stage can collapse and full strings and brass often display signs of brittleness and two-dimensionality. But, so much for self-criticism. Now what to do?
I intend to migrate towards a fully balanced system, with redbook and SACD capability and a tube linestage. I will start upgrading at the source and linestage points. The source will be an Esoteric X-01 or an upcoming APL NWO-1. But in this thread I'd like to discuss options for a new linestage. My requirements are an open and detailed, sweet sound, accurate with minimal coloration, with very good but not necessarily overwhelming macro-dynamics, an excellent three-dimensional and accurate soundstage, superior microdynamics and subtle nuance. The linestage must sound great out of the box--after breakin of course: not only after going through many cycles of NOS tubes musical chairs. All of this from a company with a stellar track record and reputation in quality, dependability and pre/post sale support. I listened to the VTL 7.5 and found it to be too soft. The BAT VK51SE sounded too dark. Then I listened at length to the VAC Ren II, which seems to embody all of my requirements. I have not heard the VAC Phi as yet, but it is in the running by inference. Nor I have listened to the ARC Ref 3, although I intend to: Ref 3 is in the running by reputation.
Suggestions? Opinions? It's your turn guys and girls!
guidocorona
Post removed 
pscialli
80 posts
 
Just to weigh in with my 2 cents or less, I recently had an opportunity to spend about two hours at a high-end dealer in Milwaukee while on a business trip. Ultrafidelis, I beleive was the place. Very nice guys and very accomodating. I heard, at length, a system consisting of the ARC Ref-3, The new M300 monoblocks, the Vandersteen 5As and a Linn Unidisc 1.1 at the front end. Here's the grain of salt, while slightly familiar with the sound of the Linn front end, I had no previous experience with the other parts of the system.
My tastes run toward the warm, tube side of neutral. I found the above system to be extremely detailed. It was incredibly precise, dynamic and tonally balanced. What was missing for me was a sense of involvement, an emersion, if you will, in the liquid harmonies of which some gear is capable. I was actually sort of struck by a lack of depth and blending of harmonies. I could clearly hear every note, every transiant, every detail of the performance, but it did not draw me in.
In contrast, I very recently obtained a Primaluna Prologue 1 integrated for a secondary system. While not the final word in detail by any stretch, the warmth and liquidity are there in a way I couldn't experience with the ARC equipment. IMHO, the newer tube gear from ARC comes a bit too close to the sound of very neutral solid state gear. I know this doesn't make sense and is totally subjective, but I guess I just like thermal noise!

Peter
guidocorona OP
4,298 posts
 
Thank you all for your comments. Most enlightening! Hifimaniac, I have just sent you a PM.
deshapiro
177 posts
 
Hi All,
I am the very happy owner of an ARC Ref3. My amp is a Boulder 2060, running Dynaudio Temptations , with Valhaal cabling. Prio to this pre, I had an EMM Switchman, and the CTC Blowtorch. Each pre has it's advantages and disadvantages. The Blowtorch has superb imaging and soundstaging. It's also somewhat hard-edged, but at the time I had different speakers. The Switchman is very detailed, but has a "digital" sound, bright, edgy and difficult to listen to. The ARC has been a revelation. Imaging, staging, excellent bass and midrange. So musical! My phono is an Aesthetix Io, which mixes very well with the other pieces.
As aleays, synergy, room interaction, blah, blah, but I am now extremely happy with my setup. I'm NOT happy to hear that there's already an upgrade. I will check that out with my dealer.

David Sha[piro
guidocorona OP
4,298 posts
 
Thank you Deshapiro, your input is very welcome. Considering your findings on Switchman and Blowtorch and my own musical taste, I consider myself fully forewarned! Here are some further questions for you:
a. What is the input impedance of the Boulder 2060? Ref 3's outputs 600 Ohms which -- as I understand -- needs to be matched with amps with upwards of 20K Ohms input impedance. But the proof remains always only in the pudding!
b. Have you had the opportunity of auditioning/comparing any of the other linestages discussed here (VAC Ren II, VAC Phi, Aesthetix Callisto)? What were the sonic differences with Ref 3?

By the way, it looks like the upgrade to Ref 3 is not terribly extensive: just several tubes and the addition of bypass capacitors. Perhaps OneObGin can tell us how much ARC charges for the upgrade?
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