DCS Vivaldi stacks vs Esoteric Grandioso G1, D1, P1 stacks

hello caphill,

first off, congrats on owning the dCS Vivaldi stack, it is wonderful sounding digital. certainly considered by most to be among the best sounding digtial choices, and obviously at a high price point too.

and you have a system that can fully take advantage of top level digital, congrats on such a top flight system.

i have no opinion about the newest Esoteric Grandioso gear, i heard the newest Esoteric gear at the L.A. Show but it was the level below the Grandioso.....which was good but it’s a show situation so hard to know what is doing what.

since you already own top level digital, but for whatever reason seem to not be fully satisfied, i would like to mention a different product that I think sets the standard for digtial performance, the MSB Select II dac.

http://www.msbtechnology.com/dacs/select-features/

i own a Select II with a single power supply and the Femto 33 clock upgrade. there will be a matching transport coming out soon.

I think that the Select II would sound great in your system.

my system is focused on ultimate analog vinyl and tape, and I can tell you that the MSB Select II looks analog straight in the eye. it has astonishing performance and goes places I’ve never heard digital go. I heard the Select II 2 years ago at a show and then tried to find a more reasonably priced alternative, but could not and so gave in to my desires.

best wishes on your quest, and hopefully someone can help you about the Grandioso question better, but in the price range you are playing, you might as well think about the best possible digital.

I don’t know where you live, but if you get to the Seattle area you would be most welcome to visit me and listen to the MSB Select II for yourself.

cheers,

Mike

Hello Mike,

Thanks for the response. I am fully satisfied with my current DCS Vivaldi stacks and IMO sounded and performed really well in my system. I am just curious how my DCS Vivaldi stacks would stack up against the Esoteric Grandioso stacks and if the Esoteric Grandioso stacks turned out to better than the DCS Vivaldi stacks I will make a switch to the Esoteric Grandioso stacks. But I have no way for me to demo the Esoteric as we don't have a single Esoteric dealer in our area.

I also do have a turntable. I have the Linn LP12 Klimax version with all Klimax upgrades and accessories : Linn Ekos SE tonearm, Linn Kandid mc cartridge, Linn Urika phonostage fitted internally, Linn Radikal power supply unit, Keel sub-chassis, Trampolin suspended aluminium base board.

Mike, you mentioned that you still own a tape deck player. Which cassette deck player do you have? The Nakamichi Dragon or the 1000 II? My dad used to own the Nakamichi 1000 II and the Dragon tape deck player back in the day. Phenomenal sounding decks.

Caphill,

i respect that for whatever reason the Grandioso stacks have your attention to try, but not others at this time. best wishes with that and i hope you get the feedback you are seeking.

back in 70’s and 80’s i did own a Nakamichi cassette deck, but it was not the esteemed Dragon. :(

however; even the Dragon was not close to the performance my current RTR tape decks. i own 2 Studer A-820 master recorders (from the same era as the Nak Dragon, but these were what the recordings were made and mastered on), one 1/4" and one 1/2". here is a link to my system.

https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/615

unfortunately the pictures and descriptions are now 2 years old so my new MSB Select II that i mentioned is not yet listed.

I will add that when I say that the MSB Select II looks analog in the eye, it's analog in my system including my tape decks.

1. Upgraded the power cords and installed a power conditioning solution
2. Upgraded all interconnects including clocks to Transparent Ref XL or above level
3. Installed all pieces individually on a (ideally) ball/floating rack system, potentially going so far as exploring using Herzan platforms under each piece
4. Explored footers under each piece (I use Marigo F8)
5. Explored damping on the top plates (I have Shakti stones over each transformer and 2 on the transport, the second over the disc mechanism)
6. Installed a grounding solution on each piece
7. Capped every unused outlet (Telos caps are good)
8. Considered using a CD mat (again I use Marigo)

folkfreak, thanks for the response.

That's exactly what I'm trying to find out to see if I like the Esoteric Grandioso stacks better in my system or will have better synergy with my own system. However, the DCS Vivaldi stacks have great synergy with the rest of my equipments in my system. But unfortunately we don't have an Esoteric dealer in our area and my dealer does not carry Esoteric otherwise I would have asked my dealer to loan me a set to try it out at home in my own system.

All my interconnects, speaker cables and power cables are Transparent Opus. I'm not using some mediocore ones. I'm also using all Audioquest Niagara 7000 power line conditioners for all my setups and systems. I installed some isolation feet/pads.

It isn't that my system doesn't perform optimally, it does. I'm fully satisfied with the sonic fidelity and the performance of my system as a whole.    I've optimized all the cables, interconnects, power cables, PLC and other associated accessories that go with my system. However, I was just curious if the Esoteric Grandioso stacks would have better synergy in my system. That's all I need to find out to see if any of you guys happen to have same or similar setup as the one I have. I disclosed the rest of my equipments in the very beginning of the thread. Because we don't have any Esoteric dealer in my area so there's no way for me to have a loan to try it in my own system at home.