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marco1

Responses from marco1

New Innuos Pulse, need assistance.
Give it more time.  Some things take longer than others.  I recently purchased a Pulsar and went through the same break in blues you’re experiencing.  Mine took more than 500 hrs. before things leveled out completely. Despite going through this pr... 
Amp suggestion for Merlin TSM speakers
Joule-Electra is amazing with Merlin’s. I only heard the combo once but it was memorable.  Unfortunately they are no longer manufactured and very difficult to come by should you be interested in trying one out.  Rich Brkich of Signature Sound (inf... 
Amp suggestion for Merlin TSM speakers
Good move hanging on to those speakers.  You’ll have to spend a lot more to do better.  I had two pairs of TSM’s, sold one, and had to replace them with $7k monitors for a marked improvement.  But still have my Black Magic version, so I’ve tried s... 
Mullard EL34 that sounds best
Yes and yes although I’m not familiar with VAC.  I’d check with them. Matched pairs may be sufficient.  But XF3 & 4 can be very good and cheaper. Still hard to find at a decent price though.  If Mullards are something you can’t live without, I... 
Preamp with separate volume control for each channel?
Fix it right.  The RM9 is worth the effort.  
Best Used Tube Based Preamp $2k Or Under?
If your budget is as high as $3k I’d look for a Conrad Johnson ET3.  Only takes one tube so you can roll til your hearts content to get the exact flavor you’re looking for.  
A not sarcastic question for the power conditioner/upgraded power cord folks
I played the best place for the best power cord game for a long time.  Not that long ago I upgraded all my power cords to the same one, a Cardas Clear Beyond.  Up until then I had a combination of Clear M, Clear and Clear Beyond cords.  Immediatel... 
Mullard EL34 that sounds best
Matched NOS quads would be very, very difficult to find.  But check with Brent Jesse.  He sometimes has slightly used Mullards XF1 and XF2 pairs advertised for around or even less than $100 per tube.  Who knows he might be able to come up with a q... 
PSVANE Mfg Co replaced my older 6SN7 CV-181 TII tubes
@decooney thanks for the tip.  i’ll plan to let them play for now to see if they do change for the better.  Which Psvane 6sn7 do you have, Horizon or Art?  If I did continue trying other Psvane tubes I was thinking about trying 6sn7 next as both m... 
PSVANE Mfg Co replaced my older 6SN7 CV-181 TII tubes
My Psvane ART 12AU7’s have been playing for about 4 days so they should be pretty much “there” now as far as break in goes. They sound ok for the price but don’t come close to any of my old stock, which really doesn’t surprise me. What I thought m... 
A Review of the Denafrips Pontus Gen 15 DAC
I had an original Terminator in my system for a few weeks prior to purchasing my T+ 12th to try to get a feel for what improvements I might expect.  I also had the original T+ for a few days to compare.  All this while I was still running my Pontu... 
Mullard EL34 that sounds best
Have you thought about trying Rays tubes?  I have not but if you believe the reviewers they sound very good.  Around $850 per quad for their reserve quality and $300 for the select quality and they’re warranted for 12 mo.  
Mullard EL34 that sounds best
I remember reading here where someone liked the Sofia Electric EL34 more than original Mullards.  Can’t remember the thread or who said it though 🤔  
Mullard EL34 that sounds best
I just tried some New Sensor Mullards in a headphone amp. Maybe it was the circuit but I couldn’t wait to take them out. Nothing like I remember when I ran them in some mono-blocks several years ago. I’d stick with SED’s if you can still find them... 
Has anyone upgraded from Merlin TSMs?
As just mentioned, all tubes seem to work best with Merlin’s.  I haven’t heard the Billie but on paper appears to be something that could scale up with the Merlins.  Have you tried rolling the tubes?  Some nice NOS 12au7’s might make a BIG differe...