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SUT's -Looking for one with some meat on the bones

I have Spendor D-7 speakers, with all tubes in my system.  The Spendor's are a little threadbare in the upper mids thru the lower highs in my listening room and I was trying to find a SUT with a little meat on the bones.  My wife runs from the room when I try to spin any LP's.  

  I am using a VPI Classic 3 Signature with a HANA SL cartridge.  I bought the Spendor's solely based on internet reviews, but am beginning to wish I had not.  I have never really cottoned to digital music and these speakers seem to go after that type of sound.   I am a lover of British speakers since the 70's, but these have zero relationship to what made me a fan of the UK sound.  

  Not trying to find a fat bloated sound, but very much miss the sweetness of acoustic instrument, string and vocals.  I may be suffering from oldtimers disease.  Analytical modern sound is not my idea of musical enjoyment I am afraid.
  
mckinneymike
agrippa
160 posts
 
@mckinneymike: given the corroborating evidence from twoleftears I have no choice but to retract my tentative conclusion. I have to it makes me want to hunt down a set of D7s, just so I can later say that I once heard an anaemic-sounding pair of Spendors. Something I really didn’t think existed.

On the Hana SL, I have to say that it sounded very nice indeed in my system when loaded @ 278Ohm with my Allnic H-1202/AUT-2000.
salectric
768 posts
 
Sell the D7’s and buy a pair of Spendor Classic speakers.  I used SP100’s for over 15 years and they are very satisfying.  SP 1/2e or 2/3e have some similar qualities.  Avoid the R series because they mark the move away from the Classic sound and towards the modern analytical sound.
chakster's avatar
chakster
6,144 posts
 
I’m not sure the SUT is the right component in the chain to tweak the issues you have described, but a cartridge is the most important in analog chain (imo). Maybe Hanna is not your type of sound?

Read more about Miyajima Shilabe or Kansui cartridges, and US importer will give you a free trial !!! So you can test it on your wife :))
hagtech
176 posts
 
You could try an active head-amp like the PICCOLO2, which would make things a bit more punchy.  It's very neutral tonally though, so you don't get the organics that come from a good SUT.  On the other hand, it makes dialing in loading super easy. 
br3098
1,012 posts
 
I agree with chakster.  An SUT is not going to overcome the sound of your speakers.  No other components in your system will directly affect the sound as much as your speakers.  If you don't like 'em, change 'em.

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