new CJ sound compared to old CJ sound

I also had a similar experience to that of Tvad. I also thought the CT-5 rounded things out in direct comparison to the FS pres Dlx2. I ultimately decided to stay w/ the FS, but am now considering going to a truly balanced preamp. I have a long 26 ft. rca between amp / preamp and I have made some comparisons using shorter( 1 meter) runs of the same cable.
I feel that if I stay w/ this current setup ( amp/ speakers on short wall/ rest of components on long wall), it would be of great benefit to have that long run as an XLR. Hope I did not change the subject too much, I did own the 16 ls 1 and Art 1,and although they were on the warm side, I did not hear the CT-5 as a total departure from that.

I have heard the CT-5/LP 70 and CA 200 and have to say that my immediate reaction, aside from Wow, was how quiet and pure the sound was. I think neutral is a new reality and companies are finally learning how to get there. The new CJ sound is neutral and musical. They have not deviated from their roots, just improved upon them, maybe even come closer to perfecting them. It is not lean at all. I hear live music daily and know the difference between lean and electronically interferred with. CJ is accurate and musical. As we reach neutral we will see that many speaker companies are far from there, as are cables and digital. But, back to CJ. IMO they are on the right track and the new equipment is worth a serious listen. I for one will go with one of the new amps and keep it for a long time. CJ has allowed me to get off the amplifier merry-go-round. Cheers to Lew and Bill!

this is the great thing about hifi. everyone's taste is different. One person's neutrality is another's brightness and visa versa.

My tastes are firmly in the slightly euphonic warm personality with midrange clarity and musical drive which enables me to enjoy ALL of my music, not just audiophile recordings .
always a balancing act thou to go too fare in either direction.

Cary seems to do that more than the current cj range of neutrality.

Interesting thread - have you noticed that CJ users/owners place musicality on top of their evaluation parameters?

I am currently using no-preamp (yes - I said I had a Hovland with the Premier 8s earlier in this thread, but now it is gone) and placed an Axiom Passive (I am again in the passive preamp route) and acheiving great results in terms of transparency, speed, resoution and.. musicality.

Cheers

Fernando