Like Jafox, I received my Aria WV5 XL on April 14th. I have used the break in procedure Mike Elliott described in the user's manual on the Aria website. Mr. Elliott advises users to unplug the Aria WV5 from the power amps and then to plug the owner's CD player into the moving magnet input of the phono section. This all works just fine unless and until you forget and connect to your amps again. Could be a big noise. Anyway, this method seems to be working. I have about 80 hours on the unit and it seems to be coming along, getting fuller and richer than it was when first arriving, though it sounded pretty good at first, then sounded just a little less so just a few hours later.
Mr. Elliott's online user's manual is extremely useful. When I first got my WV5, I had no instructions for the remote control. I called Mike, he went onto the website and had something for all owners within a half hour. (Simple stuff: the remote only operates the volume control, the rest is useless ornamentation.) Other manufacturers should consider using online manuals. As a very small company, Aria is running way ahead of some much larger competitors with this innovation.
The 71 pound crate in which I received the WV5 was a brute to carry home but fully protected the preamp. Sure, you don't listen to the shipping crate but companies' packaging often speaks to the care they take in designing and manufacturing the product. If evaluated from the outside in, the crate speaks well of the product. Likewise, the appearance and finish of the product appear excellent.
The WBT 0210Ag connectors are somewhat large in diameter and a tight fit for my Cardas Golden Reference interconnects. I understand that these RCA jacks are the best available for sound but subject to quick wear on the plating. While these may sound great, they may penalize those inclined to compulsive A/B comparisons by exhibiting plating wear quickly.
As for the sound, it is too early for me to tell all that much. I will set the WV5 XL against my Aesthetix Io with two power supplies and Nagra PL-P to see which fits my listening priorities and system. While I hope to post some impressions here, I will give you early notice that my preferences are entirely my own and often not shared with those who listen to my rig. I do what pleases me and involves me in the music. These preferences make the "your mileage may vary" into "your mileage WILL vary." Of course, this does not stop me from bloviating on the website. It is, after all, the political season.
I leave the more exhaustive, highly valuable and more generally applicable evaluations to Jafox, who has been very helpful to all of us on Audiogon. Once he has a chance to break in and thoroughly check out some alternatives, I trust that he will share with us and we will all benefit.
Mr. Elliott's online user's manual is extremely useful. When I first got my WV5, I had no instructions for the remote control. I called Mike, he went onto the website and had something for all owners within a half hour. (Simple stuff: the remote only operates the volume control, the rest is useless ornamentation.) Other manufacturers should consider using online manuals. As a very small company, Aria is running way ahead of some much larger competitors with this innovation.
The 71 pound crate in which I received the WV5 was a brute to carry home but fully protected the preamp. Sure, you don't listen to the shipping crate but companies' packaging often speaks to the care they take in designing and manufacturing the product. If evaluated from the outside in, the crate speaks well of the product. Likewise, the appearance and finish of the product appear excellent.
The WBT 0210Ag connectors are somewhat large in diameter and a tight fit for my Cardas Golden Reference interconnects. I understand that these RCA jacks are the best available for sound but subject to quick wear on the plating. While these may sound great, they may penalize those inclined to compulsive A/B comparisons by exhibiting plating wear quickly.
As for the sound, it is too early for me to tell all that much. I will set the WV5 XL against my Aesthetix Io with two power supplies and Nagra PL-P to see which fits my listening priorities and system. While I hope to post some impressions here, I will give you early notice that my preferences are entirely my own and often not shared with those who listen to my rig. I do what pleases me and involves me in the music. These preferences make the "your mileage may vary" into "your mileage WILL vary." Of course, this does not stop me from bloviating on the website. It is, after all, the political season.
I leave the more exhaustive, highly valuable and more generally applicable evaluations to Jafox, who has been very helpful to all of us on Audiogon. Once he has a chance to break in and thoroughly check out some alternatives, I trust that he will share with us and we will all benefit.