Week of Audio Note UK Heaven!

Dave has a neat chart that identifies the VTA for vinyl based on the record label. The concept seems to work, according to my ears. We also did some interesting experiments with different thicknesses of mats, which I guess changed the VTA without having to do any adjustments.

Very cool.

 

There was one "dog" that Dave brought, but that was great, because it showed how well the Audio Note equipment brought out everything, even the warts. Just awesome.

 

Living with the OTO's here, a few more observations:

- my classical material seems to have new life;
- bad stuff is bad stuff, no blaming the equipment - the good sounds really good;
- there is other equipment I've heard that I think sounds great, but time and time again, the Audio Notes draw me in;
- my wife says it sounds "okay" and "good", not a ringing endorsement, but instead of going into the other room to read when I put something on as she usually does, she stays in the living room.

 

Alas... the time arrived...the Oto is gone.

 

Warren needed to take the Oto to a "secret" location, but listening to it here really was great.

As mentioned earlier, I plan on trying out two step-up transformers, but it will have to happen with a non-Sig Oto. Then I need to conclude negotiations with "the Boss" on the timing. The question is no longer if, but when. When I'm ready, I hope to reclaim that demo unit, or get a demo unit without the phono pre.

I strongly encourage others to take advantage of Warren's offer to demo a unit in your home.

 

Thanks all for your encouragement and comments.

It's been a few months since I last posted here, and I've had more experience listening to various Audio Note amplifiers as well as a Music First step-up transformer.

Today though , I took the plunge to permanent Audio Note heaven, ordering an Audio Note Phono SE Oto phono Signature!

My experience showed that I don't need to spend huge sums of money to have truly outstanding sound. Sure, I could spend much more and get even more improvement, but I'm pretty happy at the thought of owning something on the lower end of Audio Note's line.

And once again this site has proved invaluable. Thinking back on my search for speakers, I had already decided on my next speakers, though I was continuing to listen. But hearing about Steve's experience with his Audio Notes, I thought I ought to have a listen when I went to T.H.E. Show in Irvine last year. The rest was history, though I ended up with a new amp instead of speakers. But clearly, without the discussion here, I probably would not have happened upon the Audio Note room.

Again, I urge folks to take advantage of Warren's loan offer. Because of it, I think I ended up with a purchase that gave me more bang for the buck, as well as confidence that I purchase a unit that matched my needs.

 

Thank you for your posts on your own experiences with Audio Note. It got me to take a listen. I had expected it to sound good, but never expected it to change my path.

 

Congrats. You may just have an amp for life there. I don't know your speakers - do you have a link to some info about them? I assume that they are fairly easily driven since you drive with SET amplification?

 

Thanks.

More info about my speakers:

BP2006TL | Definitive Technology® »

In time, I plan to replace them with Audio Note speakers, which was the original objective of my search, and Warren's loan to me. But Warren's advice that their integrated amp would have a greater impact on my sound was correct.

 

It seems to be a cinema system?

 

The speakers seem to be invisible. That's good for WAF.

 

They can be part of one, if desired. They are my two Main speakers, part of my surround sound system (I have a number of multi-channel disks), that also get's used for cinema. But the rest of my surround system is made up of different speakers (see my profile for more info).

 

Less than you might think:

Redirect Notice »

 

Sound the trumpets!

My Audio Note SE Signature phono Oto has arrived at the port. I expect delivery today or tomorrow.

I plan on not leaving my house for awhile as I run it through breakin - I'm putting people on notice to not even THINK about asking me to go anywhere unless:

A. They have some something better for me to listen to; or

B. I need to attend a meeting I can't get out of.

Mother-in-law visits get an exemption to the policy.

Ahhhh.....

 

Enjoy

 

I would love to hear what your thoughts are of the sonic improvements when using the ISIS power cable from Audio Note, if you decide to follow that route. I am thinking of trying those in my system down the road, as funds allow.

 

Don.....I have a couple of Isis power cords. They are very good. I got an immediate improvement when I hooked it to my P3 silver.

 

Have you ever tried the ISIS cables instead of the Kubala Sosna power cables? You must be impressed with the Kubala cables if you use them on everything, but it would be most enlightening to hear a comparison between the two power cables.