Listening to some new gear at home...

Last night I placed into my system for review a Nagra PL-L linestage and a Nagra MSA (Mosfet Stereo Amplifier) 60wpc amplifier. This combo is stable into just about any speaker load imaginable, as the amp power supply “incorprates an active power correction system known as PFC – Power Factor Correction. At first, I was hesitant to put a 60 watt solid state amp into my system, especially a 60 watt transistor amp! My previous experience has always been that subjectively, with the same wattage tube amp versus transistor amp, the tube amp always seemed more powerful. I had an EAR 70wpc amp in the system previously and felt a little more power would be nice. Not so with the Nagra. I am amazed at how it takes control of my speakers. I pushed them to very, very loud sound levels and there were none of the usual culprits displayed, such as tonal aberrations, subjective amp strain, or compression of the soundstage that typically let me know that the power is insufficient. As for the sound, I have always been pretty much a “tube guy” in that I've always experienced that tubes seem to put more “meat on the bones” so to speak with the music. If a sax or a voice has sounded thin to me, it has always been with a transistor amp, not a tube amp. While I've always enjoyed transistor amps because the ones I've listened to seem to do better at the extreme lows and highs than the tube amps I've heard, I've always preferred the richness of a tube amp's midrange. Well, I have to say that my preconceptions have been changed. This Nagra combo is so detailed, while being so musical, that I am somewhat nonplussed. How can this 60wpc amp sound like a 200wpc tube amp in the midrange, yet have all the detail that transistor amps have? They (the audio press) say that amplifier and preamplifier progress in both camps, transistor and tube are converging at the high end to sound more like real life. Color me impressed.

Next on the agenda is to audition the Audio Research Ref5SE and Ref150 within the next week or so. I might also be able to audition the AR LS27 preamp, after all, it is much cheaper than the Ref5SE! After that will be some conrad johnson, I hope, if I can find the components I'm interested in available. But, the AR and the CJ gear are going to have to be spectacular to beat that Nagra combo.

Very Cool! Oh the joys of traveling the audio highway. Each turn a new adventure in sound and as I always say, "There are many roads to audio nirvana. While the ultimate goal may be the destination, don't forget to enjoy the ride."

Great write-up Steve. Thanks for sharing your impressions... especially when your audio expectations get judo-flipped like that. Can't wait to hear your impressions wrt comparison between Nagra and CJ - should be very interesting indeed.

Things are changing in my setup as well, and in fact a very special pre-amp may well be on the horizon - I hope.... but wearing my "hurry up and wait" hat for the time being.

Cheers

My dealer came by yesterday and retrieved the Nagra gear. I'm estimating I listened to that gear for 20 - 25 hours, so I got a pretty good handle on its sonic picture. It excels on clarity and has great dynamic swings, as well as a great soundstage as far as image size and width. It really brings out those little musical queues, such as being able to detect which cymbal is struck and even which part of a cymbal is struck. All those things that seem hidden in the recording with my other gear are very clearly heard with the Nagra amp and preamp. So far, I haven't heard any other amp/preamp combo in my system sound so clear.

The negatives are few. My psychological predisposition to thinking that 60wpc is not enough power! I think at very high loudness levels, I started to detect a little hardening of the sound, or was it just so loud that it hurt my ears? It's kind of a moot point, as those sound levels were so high I would never listen, as I don't want hearing loss! There was enough power to feel the bass in the floors and my stomach, so that should be sufficient! I also believe there is more to be had in soundstage depth, though I must admit that my Adona racks are currently situated between the speakers and that may be affecting that aspect of the soundstage. Once I select which amp and preamp to purchase, I will buy the correct/corresponding cabling so that I can move the rack along a side wall, away from the speakers. I also wonder if there is more to be had in the imaging, as can the images have more of a 3-D effect? That is one aspect I am anticipating with the AR combo.

I installed my Krell KAV 400xi integrated after the Nagra was gone and noticed immediately the extreme clarity was missing. It's almost as if I placed some cotton in my ears. Before listening to the Nagra gear, I had thought the Krell was very clear, boy was I wrong! This single revelation has made it worthwhile to have an in home audition. The soundstage also seemed more closed in with the Krell, but to be fair, this was straight out of storage and turned on, with no time really to warm up for any length of time. The Krell may open up some after a while.

Next, will be the Audio Research gear. I'll report my reactions after listening to it for a while.

slowGEEZR said:

Next, will be the Audio Research gear. I'll report my reactions after listening to it for a while.

Click to expand...

Steve.........so much for Nagra and ARC........I understand you moved into the fast lane and made the 'PASS'..........XP-20 and XA 100.5.

So.......fill us in !

no more 'got tubes'..........'got silicone' !!

Yeah, I went ahead and ordered the Pass gear. I started thinking about tube costs and such and decided that the Pass Labs stuff might be the best for me, right now. Right now, I have a tube making some noise in my phono amp, so I've got to find out which one and replace it before it goes out completely. I'm sure that headache also influenced me somewhat.

As for Pass Labs, I've always liked the appearance of this gear and love the sound of every Pass Labs amp I've ever heard. The real clincher was that I got a great deal on this gear, so it was much cheaper than going with the Audio Research or Nagra gear. I don't feel like I will suffer too much in the sound quality department with this Pass combo. I think there are plenty of Pass lovers on this site that will attest to that! Also, reading many descriptions about the magic of the Pass Labs XA series amps with Wilson Watt Puppies may have had a little influence.

As far as reporting my purchase on this site, I was just going to update my system with photos after the new gear arrived, as I know how everyone likes photos on this site! I didn't want any of those "This thread is nothing without pictures" comments. :ROFL: Anyway, the amp and preamp are supposed to ship tomorrow. I will take some photos after they get here and post them.

Still have tubes in my phono amp!! I also still have the Jolida integrated, but something tells me I won't be using it after these new toys arrive. I might have to change my signature line to "Got good sound?".

I got a chance to visit with Steve this past weekend and enjoy his system. Although his Wilson's were being driven by the "lowly" Krell integrated, they still sounded great. I imagine it will sound superb with the Pass Labs gear. Congrats on the purchase, Steve. Once you get it all dialed in, I'll have to come back for another visit.

I'll post another thread later tonight or tomorrow on my visit with Steve and include a couple of pictures.