Anyone listen to Zu Audio's Definition Mk3?

I
Cobra,

You write with

Do power cords make a difference? Well, yes, in that they tend to bring their own sound. But if an amplifier needs a specific power cord to sound musically-convincing, and without it it doesn't, then said power cord should be supplied with the amp if it is so elemental to the performance of the circuit. "Dude, you didn't have the right power cord..." doesn't cut it. I'm pretty sure even ASR wouldn't endorse that proposition.

But then I find this out about your past upgrades

My own Black Shadows are seven years old, and my Golden Dreams about ten years old. The Black Shadow have silver audio path wiring, but as far as I know, copper-wound transformers. The Golden Dream have silver wirepaths, and silver-wound transformer secondaries. These are "Level 6" Golden Dream. Two improvements have been made to both. A couple of years ago, seeking better bass discipline, I asked Bob Hovland to examine the amps' circuits, listen to them, and recommend component upgrades. He chose to leave the signal path alone but to change out the power supply electrolytics to Nichicon, specifically tall, slender Nichicons. In the Black Shadows, he found he could considerably beat the factory hum noise spec via custom shielding of the toroidal power transformer, so I had that done as well.

The recaps made the Black Shadow pair "more like themselves" without dramatic changes to overall signature. They just became better at what they were already good at: bursty, objective, expressive, toneful sound with deep, muscular bass, blissful midrange realism, spatial honesty, smooth and extended top end; convincing tonal and dynamic realism on my Zu Definition speakers. The recaps instigated a much bigger improvement to the Golden Dream pair. The GD is an ultra-resolving amplifier that's also loaded with expressive tone. But the stock GD, like most 300B amps, brings with it some bass bloat, which varies by what tubes you use, but it's there. That euphonic fatness in the bass certainly fills a room but it's sloppier than it ought to be. Above 70Hz or so, fine. Below that -- and on something like a Definition, this is obvious -- bass loses objectivity.

So you see 23 you say one thing and do another. If ASR should then Audion should. You have lost my attention 23!

I
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23,

You write

I don't think ASR makes bad amplification. I just can't listen to its truncated, desiccated tone. I don't doubt for a second that ASR sounds fine -- until you hear better, and until a listener thinks seriously about how music actually sounds. It's pretty good for SS, bested by just a few others in that topology. Build quality is *very* high. At its price and even lower, however, there are better alternatives for approaching the original sound. It really doesn't matter that we don't agree. You'll put the ASR in your rear view mirror sooner or later, too, just like every other amp you've championed in the past. It's OK! Enjoy it while you can. You're in the realm of the white hats with your speakers anyway.

the ASR in your rear view mirror sooner or later, too, just like every other amp you've championed in the past.

Sounds like you are pissed about something here 23. I went from HOT OTL amps I loved to the cool running ASR amp that was as good and if not better. Remember I live in FL 23? HOT here. I am not married to ASR and if I move on someday that doesn't mean the ASR is trash nor the OTL amps. I champion OTL amps and ASR and I am sure there are plenty more out there to champion.

23,

You write,

It's not a popularity contest. A few people or even many liking a sound isn't persuasive to me. You have to convince me first you know what real instruments sound like in unamplified circumstances for me to assign any special credibility to your view of ASR

Really Cobra? I don't think I need to convince you about anything audio. Your writings and hypocrisy has destroyed your credibility with my circle of friends and myself.

>>So you see 23 you say one thing and do another. If ASR should then Audion should. You have lost my attention 23!<<

The difference is, the Audion Black Shadows sound fully credible stock, and they are not inordinately affected by power cords. And since I took it upon myself to investigate power supply capactior upgrades, I communicated this back to Audion and they are running their own listening test to determine whether they want to incorporate same in future stock. But I didn't NEED the cap upgrades to enjoy the amps nor to render them musically convincing. Everything can be improved, but if there is an external dependency for an amp to sound convincing, then that should be supplied.

Now on the Golden Dreams, the capacitor upgrade made a bigger difference, which led me to now consider the Golden Dream a full-frequency amp, which I previously cautioned was compromised in deep bass performance. Above 100Hz, however, Audion Golden Dream monoblocks were and remain among the very best hifi amplifiers ever made, by music criteria, with or without the recap.

Phil

>>Sounds like you are pissed about something here 23.<<

Nope. I'm sorry if I gave you reason to infer that.

>>Remember I live in FL 23? HOT here.<<

I live in Los Angeles, and not on the beach. It's hot here too. I never understood the hot weather amps phenomenon. It just doesn't make that much difference, and certainly not enough to affect an amplification decision -- for me.

We disagree on the "...plenty more out there to champion..." I think there are very few exceptional hifi products in any category worth seriously considering at any given time, such being the deleterious influences of rampant groupthink.

Phil