Every time I enter into a discussion or start one on this forum, I feel like I've made friends that I'll probably never meet face to face. Your opinions/comments and well wishes never cease to put a smile on my face. You're quality people and I hope you serve the rest of the audiophile as well as you've served me.Keep up the never ending work of dignity and decency.
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jafant,If you don't have to mortgage your home or sell a kidney to afford it, I'd say buy it. I can't find any negatives with the amp and a 20 year warranty means cost free trouble insurance that's longer than either one of my marriages. One thing I was told about before I bought the amp that I really didn't understand is that Bryston sound is a little on the "warm" side. I get it now, but I'd characterize the sound as "smooth". The 4B Cubed may not be the best for head banger music, but for everything else I'm happy. The smoothness is natural reflection of how instruments and vocals really sound . Also, Bryston critics have claimed that past generations of amps have been dry and a little bit clinical sounding. This amp is far from that, it's very musical. I don't know how many hours I have on it now, but it's pleasant to listen to for hours on end. I finally have something that sounds great and scares the bears away from my bird feeder at the same time.
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I bought the amp brand spanking new from Audio Advisor. If you've never dealt with that retailer, they are a class act and I strongly recommend them. A few years back, I purchased my preamp, a Parasound JC 2 BP. I ordered the wrong color by mistake. When it showed up silver instead of black, I called "A A" to let them know the mistake I had made. They sent out the correct unit that day before the wrong unit was on it's way back. There was no shipping charge for either the return or the second unit. That's the way to do business!With respect to a break in period, Bryston burns in their amps for 100 hours before they're sold. If this amp gets any better than it already is, I may end up wetting myself. =)
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Silver Resolution Reference Power Cord by Signal Cable. Over the past few years, I've swapped out all of my cables in favor of Silver Resolution. I'm happy with the quality and the prices aren't too insane.
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Well here I go, I'll do my best to include everything.Focal Electra 1028 BE speakers (Great sound, but not durable. Two voice coil wires detached on two separate drivers)
Avid Diva II SP turntable with SME 309 tonearm. It sits atop a 3" thick maple block with sorbothane feet which in turn sits atop a Solid Tech Solo 4 rack. I'm also using an Audio Technica AT ART9 MC cartridge. I'm very fond of that part of my system. Vinyl lives!
Simaudio Moon Neo 310LP phonostage. I've tried other phono preamps in the $2K to $4K range and this was the best I've used. If I ever replace it and stay solid state, I'd probably consider their Evolution 610 ($7500, ugh!)
Bryston BCD-3 CD player. It sounds great and is better sounding than the Marantz 8005 SACD player that it replaced. When I first bought it, on occasion it would skip portions of songs. It happened at random for no rhyme or reason. I made Bryston aware of the problem and before I sent it back, it stopped messing up. Something sticking? I don't know.
Parasound JC 2 BP preamp. Nobody should ever complain about Parasound for what it costs. Unless it blows up, the JC 2 BP is staying in my system.
DIRECTV and my computer are both run into my preamp for sound and both share a 32" monitor on my desk.
That's about it. Oh, a little more. Cardas grade copper electric outlets and Silver Resolution everywhere!
Thanks for asking, jafant. Hope I didn't bore you with too much.
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When I got back into seriously listening to music about 7 or 8 years ago I was completely overwhelmed by the shear quantity of audio equipment available. I knew that I would go dizzy and most certainly broke trying to indulge in countless combinations of equipment to suit my taste. I took a different approach and listened to what people had to say about value, reliability, and of course sound quality. I did more homework than I probably should have and excluded some brands that I shouldn't have, but came up with three names that folks were always pleased with: Parasound, Bryston, and Pass Labs. Great solid state equipment (I'm too cheap to keep replacing tubes) and all within a particular price range. There were a few outliers in my rack (i.e. the Marantz 8005 SACD player) and they've all disappeared except for my Simaudio phono stage. I started at the bottom of the price range (Parasound) and as the stock market has increased my net worth (thank you NVIDIA), I've "stepped up" to see if I can make improvements. Bryston has been a pleasant improvement, but Parasound is still a steal. I really don't think I can improve on the JC 2 BP for anywhere near it's cost. Someday, I may be in a position to afford Pass Labs equipment and drool over what I've been missing.
For what it's worth, I did the same kind of reasoning with a turntable purchase (the Avid Diva II SP rocks!), tonearm (the SME 309 tonearm replaced a Rega RB303 and was one of the most dramatic improvements in my system), and cartridge. The AT-ART9 replaced an Ortofon 2M Black. The 2M Black may be a better all around cartridge for any recording, but when the AT-ART9 strikes a groove that it likes, I'm listening to a live performance. It can be that good.With respect to speakers, same old story on how I came to Focal. I love the way they sound, but couldn't be more disappointed on reliability. A broken voice coil wire on a woofer followed by the same problem on a tweeter on the opposite speaker before the pair was a year old. Warranty took care of the problems, but I was informed I was at the end of being covered. Any further issues would be viewed as abuse of the speakers and I'd have to pay repairs. If I move on to different (better?) speakers, Focal will be scratched from my list of 3 companies.
Well jafant, there you have it. The very, very, very long story of how my mix and match system came together. I didn't address the Bryston BCD-3 CD player. I like it and probably won't look for anything better. The only downside has to do with no remote control. It can be purchased separately, but is too costly.
Whew! I haven't written this much since my last college history class about 25 years ago. Not complaining, this helps keep me going =)
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jafant,It appears that know and have a passion for audio equipment. At the risk of taking my own thread off on a tangent, what kind of equipment are you using?
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elizabeth
I think you entered into a discussion on Bryston that I started a few months ago,welcome back! I have maybe 50 hours on the 4B Cubed now and I like it, I like it a lot. It's a bigger improvement over the Parasound A21 than I previously stated. No more hidden detail, better sound stage, just a more pleasant listening experience. Now I'm thinking about Revel Ultima Studio2 speakers and maybe adding a tube phono preamp. Somebody help me before my credit card melts! =) I think you were trying to teach me a lesson by mentioning your Marantz SA-10 purchase, I hear you. The perfect fantasy musical sound swirling in my head has not drowned out your voice.
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jafant,
Everytime you come into the the conversation I smile. It's a real pleasure reading what you have to say and the way you say it. On a different note (pun intended), what about the ModWright upgrade on an 8005 SACD player? You mentioned this earlier and I shared the same thoughts for months before I pulled the proverbial trigger on BCD-3 player. I don't own many SACDs (they're all hybrids) and the platform seems to be dying. ModWright boasts about SACD playback improvement more than Redbook CD, so I made the choice that I did.
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elizabeth and jafant,
If you ever make your way to northern Michigan, let it be known. I'm buying dinner and drinks.
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terry9
I rarely laugh aloud, but your story got me going. I don't plan on doing any welding with my amp, I think I'll just stick to using it for listening."Built like a tank" is one of the main reasons I looked hard at Bryston. I dealt with customer service once, and they're something special too. I'm pretty sure this amp will still be kicking long after I am not and I plan on enjoying the time we spend together.
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mirolab,
The more time I spend listening to the cubed, the more I'm in awe. I keep popping in more CDs and spinning more vinyl just for the experience of "better"; better detail, better soundstage, better bass control, etc. I may even bite the bullet and purchase a Simaudio Moon 610LP phono-stage.
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I've read a great deal about how Bryston gets things right and it's almost unanimous. With my Bryston CD player and now the 4B Cubed, I'm singing in that same choir. I'm fond of the sound that my Focal speakers produce, but I'd love to hear what Bryston has to offer. My gut tells me that I wouldn't go wrong adding Bryston anywhere in my audio playback line-up. Great to hear from you slimpikins5!
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I wanted to chime back in one more time. I now have hundreds of hours of use on the 4B3 since I started this thread. All that's left to say is WOW! The amp is crazy good. I briefly went back to my Parasound A21 for a comparison now that the 4B3 is broken in. My initial thoughts on the two were that they were close in sound quality, I was so wrong. The 4B3 is in different league, which is what I'd hoped for when I purchased it. My journey has taken me through speakers, cables, turntables, tonearms, cartridges, etc. and this amp is at least equal to the best improvement I've made. My search for THE AMP has ended.Next up: Herron VTPH-2A phono preamp. The order to build has been placed and hopefully finished in the coming week.Thanks Audiogon folks for all of your insight.
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jafant,
Now I await your update on the 4B3. =)I speak for myself and hopefully elizabeth as well when I say, "try it, you'll like it."
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I just haven't gotten around to selling the A21 yet. That's the only reason I still have it.
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I purchased the 4B3 right after the JC5 was released for sale. I thought about purchasing the JC5, or at least auditioning, then I nixed the thought. It's marketed as two JC1 monoblocks under one roof for 2/3 the cost . . . . . or something like that. I'm not an engineer, but it seems as though Parasound had the mindset to market something different as opposed to something better in an effort to stay contemporary. Bryston on the other hand came up with a new input circuit in an effort to make the Cubed series quieter and more revealing than their previous models. Better? I believe that was the goal of Bryston engineers and it caught my attention along with a multitude of other selling points.
I purchased and kept the 4B3 with no regrets except for the fact that the cost is twice what I paid for my first new car (1972 Mustang). It has offered a "better" listening experience than I've ever had and will almost certainly outlive me.
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