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Dynaudio C4 speaker equipment matching

My first post, looking for advise.

My system includes:

Plinius CD101 CDP
Plinius Tautoro Pre Amp
Two Plinius SA-103's running in bridged mono configuration
Nordost Frey interconects(2m) and speaker cables(4m) Nordost Thor power conditioner and Brahma power cords (2m) attached to all equipment
Finite Element Signiture racks
Ceraballs and Cerabases
Dynaudio C4 speakers on spikes

The room is untreated and large, 12ft ceilings, 23ft long and 28ft wide. Speakers are 4ft from the wall rear wall. Listening is normally at moderate levels.

I listen to rock, male and female voices, acoustic guitar, a little RAP and techno. Broad taste.

I have a very large sound stage, which I love, though sound is to forward for my liking.

I am looking for more dynamic's, increased depth in the sound stage and greater bass control. I was thinking of starting with the CDP, was thinking of WADIA 861SE, Esoteric SA60/UX-01 or similar and was also thinking of going to Nordost Valhalla cables, though the pair I tried did not make a significant difference, to my suprise.

I was told that changing to a copper power cord on my preamp might help with depth of sound stage. Would appreciate any advise as to the weak links in my system and upgrade opportunities, biggest impact first. I want to keep the SA-103's amps.
jon47
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almarg
9,670 posts
 
Re improving dynamics, although opinions and experiences will obviously differ, you'll find comments in many previous threads here, by experienced audiophiles with very high quality systems, that even very expensive power conditioners limited the dynamics of their systems. I'd suggest re-assessing your system with the power conditioner removed, as a quick and easy step one.

Good advice above about pursuing room treatments. A little searching here at Audiogon using that term will give you some good food for thought.

As far as image depth is concerned, in my experience there is nothing like tubes. As a technically oriented electrical engineer, I have no idea why that should be the case, but it is certainly my experience (in my case, particularly with power amps), as well as that of many others.

Regards,
-- Al
xti16
1,525 posts
 
Missioncoonery
I won't argue your point. When I demoed the Jps and Nordost in my home I would say the Jps Superconductor 3's had a lot more life. Even compared to the Vahalla's. Where the Jps fell apart was on the very lowest of bass notes (too thumpy for me). Any how I bought the Frey's because of the extra detail but more importantly the 'air' between the instruments and vocals. My first impression was these Nordost cables have a 'Thin' sound. But after 6 weeks I heard the 'air'. That was enough for me to buy them over a more 'full/alive' sound. Personally I think the 'thiness' is the 'air'.

I also demoed the Brahama pc and compared to to both my fusion audio enchanter and impulse and found the pcs added more life while leaving the "air' alone which is what I would think jon47 is trying to get away from.

I will also admit the C1's (great speakers) are not really in the same class as the C4's.

Maybe someday I'll try different speaker cables but for now I'm a happy listener. So I can see why some will hate the Nordost and some will swear by them.
jon47 OP
33 posts
 
Thankyou all for your invaluable comments. I will take the time to read your suggestions. I have approx 60-80 hours run time on the system to date, more burn in time seems to be required. A combination of room treatment, speaker positioning, cables, AC circuit improvements are the consistant message. Good news for me is that I should not jump too quickly and start changing out components.

The Pass X350.5 Amp would have been a great choice, though significantly more expensive than the Plinius Amps.
denon1
341 posts
 
Jon47, I have a Plinius Tautoro pre-amp and plinius sb301. This is a great combo. Please do not change pre-amp. I tried several tube pre-amps (Antique Sound Labs Arc Ref 3 and CJ) none of them was giving me dynamics, air and depths of soundstage as Tautoro does. Also I had a Plinius cd-101 player. It was ok but I was missing the space and air around instruments and sound was a laid back, even so very musical. I changed it to esoteric x-03se. Much better player. Air, dynamics and musicality in spades. But you should start from room treatments first as other suggesting. Cables may help but the effect may be minor.
jon47 OP
33 posts
 
Dear Pdrehar,

Thanks for you comments.

I have followed your thread regarding your system with great interest, as we had the same speakers and amp. Shame that you did not get a chance to go with 2 x SA102's in bridged mono vs. one in stereo, the improvement was startling in my system when I added the second amp.

Interestingly, I also auditioned the Harbeth M40.1's and Spendor SP100R's, as well as a long list of other brands prior to the decision to go with the C4's. I completely understand the appeal of the Harbeth M40.1's...very musical indeed and easy to drive well.
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