The Spectron Musician III Mark 2 is the most neutral yet musical amp I have ever owned (or heard). It has changed my approach to amplifier listening...I think John, Simon and gang have stumbled upon something that all but eliminates distortion anywhere close to an order of magnitude away from the hearing spectrum. Add to that an almost tube-like ease with which music flows. It's really something very special. And although it sounds glorious to me now, I've ordered a second amp to go monoblock and experience the nth degree of this phenomenon.
I'll report back on the monoblock upgrade value prop (prolly in a month or so).
My 2 channel system consists of tube-modded (Modwright) Transporter, Rega P5 vinyl, Modwright Denon 3910 tube -modded universal, Modwright LS 36.5 dual mono 2-box preamp, and it all drives a pair of very custom Mundorf-external-crossover'd SP Tech Revelation MR1 Mark III's. Cables are Syn Research tesla Accelrator SC's, Soundstring and SR XLR IC's and Stealth Nanofiber source IC's. |
My $.02 I would run monoblock config on the tweet/mid towers, with good biwired speaker cables. I demo'd the Remote Sensing cables and they are very nice, but my wonderful Synergistic Research Tesla Accelerator biwires beat them in almost every category....at 3x the price of course.
Then I would start with a stereo MK 2 on the bass towers and see how that goes. A stereo Spectron is no slouch, especially when all it has to do is one thing. |
I can't even imagine what dual monoblocks powering a biamped set of Statements would sound like. Holy S! Please, please report back, if your sensory capabilities are still in tact!
Ted |
Great review. I still stand by my recommendation that you could save the cost one one full stereo amp by monoblocking only the mid towers, not the bass tower. A stereo Mk2 will be enough there, really (as stated in the review, he uses 3 as well, for his 81 db inefficient Apogee Stages). |
For those that went from a well broken-in stereo Spectron to monoblock config, how did you manage the break-in process of the new (say left channel) amp? Did you run it as a stereo amp on another system? If so, did you run it loud or soft, does that even matter?
I'd normally run a new piece of euqipment softly and for a long time, when not actually listening, but to "integrate" or "introduce" a brand new amp into a monoblock situation is a different story; I don't want my left channel way out of whack to my right. So I will likely need to put it on a different signal source (easy for me to do; I have a second pre, my surround Continuums, a separate SB3 that i can run in a 24/7 loop, etc.) and wondered what other monoblock converts have done. Thx
Ted |
I use the 2 box LS 36.5 dual mono pre with my Spectrons and they are great togther! They are not the PRemeir 7's but I'd imagine the synergy is still there. But, as a Modwright beta tester and public advocate I need to ask: what exactly is a "modified Modwright LS 36.5"? His pre is built from the ground up...what is being modified in yours?
Ted |
My second Mark II amp (for monoblock)showed up and I'm beginning the 250-400 hr process of breaking it in. It's on a separate system running 24/7 with mono out of phase XLO break-in tracks running continuously via Squeezebox and a set of speakers facing each other, with thick comforter over them....works darn well, with little in-phase noise leaking out, even at decent gain levels.
I'll report back when I officially go monoblock. I'm geeked. |
Well, tonight I hit the 100 hr mark of break-in for my 2nd Mark 2 amp. The y-adapters that showed up were too short anyway, so i have to be patient and let the amp break in and wait for the right length XLR y-adapters to be shipped. Any monoblock users out there hazard a guess as to when it would be proper to move the 2nd amp into monoblock mode? I guess I'm being overly cautious cuz it's not like when a biamped amp moves in; that amp can integrate in as the bass amp or whatever and likely not show its differences..unlike the monoblocks where one is distinctly left channel, and one right channel. Am I being too picky? thanks
Ted |
My y-adapters from Synergistic Research arrived earlier than expected so I set up my 2nd amp (now with 200+ hrs of burn-in disc signal) next to my first, flipped the switches, rewired the speaker cables as per instructions, and voila, the monoblocks live! In a word, stunning!!
I have been knocked out by the sound of the stereo Musician III Mark 2, but I was not prepared for the increase in clarity, dynamics, resolution, soundstage depth and just an overall ease to the presentation. It's quite a combo when you use dynamics and ease in the same sentence. I told a buddy that the analogy is a pickup basketball game where one team is basically standing around in their dress shoes, suits and ties, yet still beating a group of youngsters 40-0. Total control, not a drop of sweat.
I did uncover an interesting anomaly. although I read on the Spectron site that the conventional wisdom was to use each amp's right channel as the red/positive side, I paid little attention, thinking it was a coin flip decision. Hwoever, there was a definite phase issue when set up the other way (left channel of each amp positive and normal phase). Why? Simon reminded me that it had to do with AC polarity, and that the majority of installations would have AC polarity set up correctly for right/pos, left/neg and not the other way around. And he was right (pun not intended).
The Spectron monoblocks are truly state of the art IMO. Combined with the rest of my system, I now have a Hubbell telescope that is beaming back warm rich colors of the universe, and I'm able now to tweak the rest of the system to discover subtle cosmic nuances heretofore unknown. It's very very cool...and musical as heck. |
Lube3,
Ah yes, he actually did that to my 1 box but then I went to the 2 box during the upgrade so never heard it. I have a buddy ,David (rydenfan), who has that PS tweek, I think (kind of a dual mono ss power supply that fits in the one box). Dan is going to do that to my Modwright Denon 3910 during the tube rectification update he owes me.
I would think a more powerful PS would benefit the low end first and foremost. Let us know. |
You're right, sorry. Those monoblocks are not stock; they had Vcaps. My monos are stock, and most whom I've chatted with say going mono is a wayyyy bigger improvement than the stereo Vcap or Bybee upgrade....ymmv. For me, going from a stock Mk2 to stock mono Mk2's was huge, but I've yet to hear from anyone who commented on their stereo vcap and/or Bybee upgrade only. |
Hello David,
"I heard the Spectron in monoblock configuration today at RMAF...."
In what room??? It is extremely important as if you auditioned in room 9007 with Audio Analyses speakers then its OK (except low level Modwright preamp - 9.0).
If you listen in room 1004 (10th floor)with SP Tech speakers then even with Modwright 36.5 preamp - my understanding is that the dealer could not set up system properly and presentation was just poor or worse....sorry. Its the lesson to Spectron NOT TO TRUST UNQUALIFIED dealers. Mike Garner from TweekGeek is very, very nice guy but until he got Spectron account the best he had was NuForce and even not v2.
At any rate who cares!
iSanchez - many thanks for the link. So its not $22k speakers or $14k amp but.....Bybees made the sound. What a journal, what an observation. Thanks
All The Best
Rafael Rafael, ?? First off, were you there? Second, are you aware that this "inexperienced dealer" also produced what your counterparts are calling good Spectron sound in 9007?? TweekGeek had both rooms!!! I helped run the 1004 room for Mike (TweekGeek) and yes, we had a heck of a time, until late Saturday, getting the large Revelations to be tame enough in that little room to give folks a glimpse into what makes these speakers/pre and amp combo so special. But many, like the Stereophile blog points out, were impressed enough to want to hear them in the right environment? If you were there (especially late Sat and all day Sunday) and hated it, fine, you are welcome to your opinion. But please don't purport to know that 1004 was "poor or worse" or that Mike is unqualified, when you admit that 9007 sounded good or are not aware that Mike has received good reviews about both his rooms, both using Spectron amps. 1004 blog |
A collection of additional quotes on Room 1004 (TweekGeek's Spectron monoblock/SP Tech/Modwright/Synergistic Research RMAF 2008 room): I heard the Minis, thanks for the demo They are a great value and there is little to fault in a speaker at that price, which is an achievement for sure. Also, if you need a small speaker to fill a big space, these will fit the bill as they are capable of playing loud and clean without distorting. They were using Spectron amps, and a big huge amp seems like an appropriate pairing for them.
I was also extremely impressed by SP Technology, the speed, immediacy, and live quality of the sound was very striking. The SP Tech fans are really on to something. I felt like I had just left a concert after visiting that room. 1100 Watts of Spectron amplification had something to do with that too, I'm sure.
The SP Tech room was quite enjoyable ...the bass the Revelations put out is something else, that's a terrific speaker....nothing downright I'd find fault with, maybe some more treatment...but I have a new respect for how tough the shows and room situations can be for these guys...
SP Tech - only got to listen about 10 minutes and they were still playing with setup so it was hard to say. Based on what I heard, they have a lot of potential with the Spectron amps. It was just a lot for that room. I'd absolutely love to hear them with a little more room to breathe. I'm sure they're quite impressive.
I enjoyed the SP Tech Mini's and the Joseph Audio Pearls.
Tweekgeek/SP Tech/Spectron: I had met these guys the night before. By the time I got there, the Mini's were gone and the Revelation was just put in. BIG SOUND! Unfortunately, it was going through set up pains and I left before things were sorted out. I met the SP Tech crew in the elevator later and I was told that new speaker cables were brought in and the whole set up was much improved. Bob was in the room next to me. I went back and they certainly lived up to all the praises from AC crowd. I heard just a little hint of brittleness on top that I would like to try my big tubed Response Audio Bella Extreme/Hurricanes on them. I say this because I have tried Response Audio modded AV1s on my amps and they really sounded clean without any hint of metallic tinge. It may also have had something to do with the Exemplar (SA)CD player that they used.
SP Tech.... they deserve their growing reputation. I just heard the minis and they sounds a lot bigger than they are, and they're a good value as well.
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Dob,
No harm no foul. I was confused by something in your first post about Mike's rooms that led me to think you were speaking from second hand experience, not first hand. You are clearly knowledgeable and have every right to your first hand (ear) opinion about the sound in the room, regardless of our differences. Thanks for the comments and retraction of your initial negativity against Mike. Did I meet you while you were there? Sorry you couldn't hear the Sunday setup. Thx
Ted |
I think Don Shaulis addresses almost (no Bybees) that exact issue in his StereoTimes review. I could be mistaken but I think he surmised that stock monoblocks are a better sound than a heavily optioned stereo amp. A quote: The MK2 with V-Caps clearly bested the SE in smoothness, low and mid bass (upright bass, guitar, and piano) definition and midrange weight. Vocals were silkier and pianos had more sparkle and authenticity. Violins were less strident. I would call it a toss up with respect to dynamics and drums. The latter was a hard comparison to make since after listening to the monoblocks, the stereo amplifiers were found wanting. |
