Important point..there are just over 4000 speaker companies' worldwide. Only 20% of those companies' manufacture their speaker's in house. Out of those 20 percent there is a small percentage of those that don't just manufacture loudspeaker's, they go beyond conventional thinking and design their speaker's as musical instruments. This applies to the Ascend Acoustics Sierra Tower which is true musical instrument treasure which is Dave Fabrikants' intended purpose. The same philosophy applies to electronics. Dave Belles amplifiers are designed as musical instruments as well.
Belles Greatest Integrated ever! The Virtuoso
Just before the Holiday's, I noticed on several authorized Belles websites, that certain separates went out of production which is a pattern that would indicate new products are forthcoming, and sure enough a new Integrated popped up on the Belles website last week, which appears to be his greatest integrated amp to date. The Virtuoso,
putting out over 200 watts per channel into 8 ohms, HT bypass, Processor loop, MM & MC phono stage, and power meters on the front panel. The unit will be released in March at a price tag of $6495. Given David Belles reputation during the past 30 years, who has always been at the top of his game as perhaps the best solid state engineer designer ever in the states, since musicality has always been his first order of business, it wouldn't surprise me at all that the Virtuoso will fly out the door and winds up on the back order list. Its a real looker.
Very handsome unit. Well done David! Its what we've been waiting for.
putting out over 200 watts per channel into 8 ohms, HT bypass, Processor loop, MM & MC phono stage, and power meters on the front panel. The unit will be released in March at a price tag of $6495. Given David Belles reputation during the past 30 years, who has always been at the top of his game as perhaps the best solid state engineer designer ever in the states, since musicality has always been his first order of business, it wouldn't surprise me at all that the Virtuoso will fly out the door and winds up on the back order list. Its a real looker.
Very handsome unit. Well done David! Its what we've been waiting for.
117 responses Add your response
Audiozen come on, only Belles makes musical electronics? If Belles products were so remarkable why are there next to no dealers. Yes the Aria does sound like a terrific integrated with a phono, but is it better than an Electrocompaniet or a Unison Research primo which is a hybrid with a tube line stage and a solid state amp? Or a dozen other well respected companies. When someone makes ridiculous claims speaks volumes about intention. We love T plus A electronics never in our posts have we stated that the brand is better then other products that we dont sell or havent compaired it to. We have reported that when we compared T plus A directly to other brands that we were also testing it was better on these speakers. Remember Peter Actzel all else is boat anchors quote? There are many outstanding afforadable and musical amps. Belles may be one of them they are not the only one. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
Audiozen come on, only Belles makes musical electronics? If Belles products were so remarkable why are there next to no dealers. When someone makes ridiculous claims speaks volumes about intention. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ Dave your quote above. Please state your comments more gracefully. You have a lot to offer, and I appreciate your information at times, please be more helpful and less controversial. I know your a big boy. Can audiozen enjoy his sharing his enthusiasm for his products? You do all over the place. This is his thread. I don't agree about his view of early production Vandersteens. The early ones do sound different then the newer ones to some extent but they still sounded very very good in their own way. I have always liked Thiel speakers better. But I like to hear about audiozens enthusiasm about his system. Just like audiozen words are not end all statements neither are yours. Thanks for sharing your views also. |
audiotroy..Boy, you have missed the boat. You need to eat some brain food. " If Belles products were so remarkable why are there next to no dealers?" WHAT A LOAD OF HOOEY!!! More than any other company, Belles has alway been the biggest threat to the retail industry, always clobbering mass mega-bucks electronics sold at the audio establishment retail stores. Belles does not need to be hooked up to a long string of retailers'. Their products sell constantly all year around since they have the strongest word of mouth reputation in the country amongst Musicphiles. All the other companies can only survive with their ongoing magazine ads, and constant audio establishment reviews or they would die on the vine. Not Dave Belles. I could care less about a retailer here in Seattle carrying the Belles product line. I just pick up the phone, call the Belles dealer in California, and have gear shipped by blue label. And no tax!! Easy Peasy! JohnnyR at AudioConnection in New Jersey appears to be a solid decent retailer that caters to both Musicphiles and Audiophiles and operates from a high ethical standard. I know exactly what game your playing, trying to convey a false misleading perception that a high end product is only good if its available everywhere at the top high end retailers in every major city. For those younger, newer Audiophiles/Musicphiles ignore this bunk from audiotroy. And if you happen live in the New Jersey, central east coast area, give JohnnyR a call at AudioConnection if your in buying mode, JohnnyR can give the run down on the magnificence of Belles, the Rolls Royce of solid state. |
Audiozen, Horse hockey. Just for the facts we had auditioned Belles last series of electronics, we broke them in for a week and listened to them. They were okay at best no magic, no giant killing anything. We read the Aria review and maybe that piece is really good, we haven't heard the new Aria so no judgement and maybe it is radically better than his older stuff, but if the man is such a genius as you proclaim why was his last series of stuff now being replaced by a newer design? In terms of how giant killing or how musical, listen to a Unison Research Primo a 75 watt tube hybrid and their larger Unico 50 now the 90. We had a one time the $5k Luxman 20 Watt pure class A, and the Hegel H200 and the Unison was far better sounding because it was a hybrid. When you add tubes into a circuit you can combine the musicality of what tubes do with the power and drive and bass control of solid state. The point is there are many good sounding products. What the issue is your headline and your follow up which is basically saying Belles stuff is better than everyone. The point is yes the new Aria may be really good, Belles track record has been up and down and he is a tiny, tiny, manufacturer. We had reservations also due to the esteemed Mr. Belle's age, I think he is in his 70's does he even have a transition plan in place if he crooks? Does he have a partner or children ready to step in and continue to support his products, you might make the same argument with many other high end audio companies, then again maybe not. Not trying to be down, but when you have an older gentleman building electronics which can break this can be a concern to some people. The reality Audiozen, is this is a small community, if Belles products killed everything, these would be a lot more people chiming in about their stuff. As per Mr. M, please grow up, this is not about trolling. When someone makes a ridiculous statement that product X is the only speaker or amp or whatever is good or is the best, that triggers our agenda radar and Mr. M I am sure it must trigger yours as you would not have come up with your trolling comment. Mr. M. we sell four reference grade loudspeakers and five if you count the Polymer Audio Research speakers. On display Kef Blades, Paradigm Persona 9H, Legacy Aeris, Dali Epicon 8, and the Polymers. These speakers all range in price from $25k to $68k. Which one is the best? Answer they are all great and all different. If you look at the reviews all of these speakers have been top rated. My point is beauty and musicality are in the ear of the beholder as well as the solidity of the setup. Some people love Wilson, some don't some love B&W, some don't and there are of course the Vandy fans and the Vandy non fans. We would never say that any of our reference speakers are better than any of the others, we prefer them that doesn't mean a particular listener is going to. So Audiozen, which is better a Mercedes, a BMW, an Audi, a Lexus etc. Not based on resale, trunk size, repair history, which one is better? Answer all of them are great it is a matter of the particular buyer figuring out for themselves which one they like better and for what reason. So to recap, Belles may be wonderful, is it better than anything else up to the listener to determine. Good luck to you Mr. M. and Audiozen, just remember there are many good products, nobody builds the best of anything, it is a matter of taste. Please tell me we are wrong. Or are you better than us? Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
Better than anyone else? Nope. Just that Belles sounds better. Truth can be painful. No, Belles won't have the high profit margins as the big mega buck amps costing $20K to $50K. The core reason why many high end retailers don't carry the Belles line, is that these retailer's do not want Belles in their stores, since their amps would embarrass the big boys and jeopardize their high profit margins. And these retailers will always lie and mislead you, trying to convince you that Belles is just another average high end brand on the same level as everyone else, while Belles in the meantime sits quietly on top of Mount Everest. |
audiozen- I was vaguely familiar with Ascend, came across their site years ago before they offered a tower speaker. I read the EnjoyThe Music review and they certainly gave it a big thumbs up. I checked out the Ascend website, read everything on there and came away impressed. Based on your recommendation, and what I read including customer feedback and Mr. Fabrikants philosophy, single minded goal and dedication, it's a speaker that I would most definitely want to hear, whether I were to make a change or not. He sounds like he really cares, and the prices are beyond competitive. Thanks for letting me know about this speaker; my goal has always been to seek out world beater gear that is priced sensibly and that competes with the very best. If - applying the law of diminishing returns - I can achieve audio quality equal to 90% of what the supposed "state of the art" delivers, and for a fraction of the price, then I am very satisfied. The Belles Aria, Vandersteen 1Ci's and Rotels best CD player, with some "sweet spot" AQ speaker cables and Siltech IC are clicking all the right boxes for me, and have been for awhile. I'm listening to some female jazz vocals with a small ensemble right now and I feel like I'm right there, can hear the singer take a breath, the piano sounds real, the bass clear and tight, the Aria and speakers resolving more detail than I ever thought I would hear in my home. Piano is supposed to be a true test of a systems capabilities, and what I'm hearing sounds like the real deal. The guitar sounds like it's being played right in the room. Very balanced, no listener fatigue whatsoever do I hear. John Rutan steered me in the right direction, and I trust his opinion and his ability to system match. I personally like the guy, and he isn't an audiophile prima donna looking to rape and pillage people like some of these arrogant shysters out there. That doesn't mean I would never try some other brand, or consult with another dealer, but I like to return loyalty to those who have been good to me, and he's a straight shooter who has earned the following that he has built up over the years. I'm a big fan, pure and simple. Thanks again for the Ascend recommendation. Like I told you before, I absolutely can relate to your enthusiasm for Belles! I was a Rotel fan for many years, but wanted to take it up a few notches and get my foot in the Hi End door and Belles turned out to be a home run. I like people who go against the grain, who don't adhere to the status quo. Those with old school empathy for their customers. These are the companies I want to support. You seem to be cut from the same cloth, and what's fun about this crazy audio fixation is, to me and obviously to you, also: the pursuit and discovery of the very few brands that perform as well as the best, but are priced affordably and within reach of a lot of people, not just a select few. |
Yes Audiozen, Belles is better than Gryphon, Vitus, T+A, D'agastino, Audio Research, Dartzeel, Conrad Johnson, sure. Sure at all the shows all those mega speaker companies aren't showing with Belles because of a retail conspiracy. Sure David Belles has tons of patents in audio engineering and circuit design compared to Thomas Holman, David Hafler, Nelson Pass and many others. My shop is open, please bring in your best Belles rig we can compare to T+A, Conrad Johnson, Naim, Unison Research, Micromega and a ton of other great companies. I am willing to eat my hat would you be? As per sweet spot system try a set of Dali Opticons with a Nuprime IDA 8 killer system $3,500.00 or the new Rega Brio. Point is there a ton of good and musical systems you just have to find one that you like. Dave and Troy Audio Doctor NJ |
2chfreak..The one thing I like about the Sierra Towers is that they weigh only 44 pounds! The lightness of bamboo. Since bamboo is 500% stronger than MDF, it can take on much higher levels of distortion, resonance, and internal turbulence from low frequencies resulting in much better bass performance. |
audiozen- Makes you wonder why more speaker aren't made from bamboo? More cost prohibitive... not in Ascends case though; their business model a lot more efficient allows for alternatives to MDF, I assume. That 44 lbs is pretty light - mine are a couple pounds lighter but the low profile Anchor stands aren't exactly light, have then filled with sand, so actually a bit heavier. The first time I picked up a bamboo cutting board, I was impressed with the solidity and density of it, thinking "they can do this with bamboo? Next time I'm eating bamboo shoots in a stir fry, I'll think off the Ascends. I know there are some other companies using Bamboo for their speakers, can't think of them off the top of my head. Something else to do a search on! Gotta hear the Tower one of these days. |
2chfreak..Check this out. A review you will thoroughly enjoy of the same speaker I just sold in November. The Ascend Acoustics CBM-170 SE. Click on The Sound Apprentice link. On the home page to the right, there is a list of "topics and brands" in individual boxes. Click on the one that says Ascend Acoustics, it will open up the review of the CBM-170 SE which concludes the speaker sets the standard against any other in its price range. Mind you that this is their budget small bookshelf much below the Sierra Tower, and the review is outstanding. Theres a method I use from time to time to check out gear in person during the past twenty years thats not available in my area. I'll call the manufacturer of the gear of interest, tell them I want to purchase, and ask if they have customer's in my home area that have purchased, and ask if they could call the customer, give them my contact info, to see if they wouldn't mind coming over for a listen. The results have always been positive and you wind up making a new Audio friend. Call Dave Fabrikant to set it up. www.thesoundapprentice.com |
audiozen "I could care less about a retailer here in Seattle carrying the Belles product line. I just pick up the phone, call the Belles dealer in California, and have gear shipped by blue label. And no tax!! Easy Peasy! " Earlier you responded to question about what Belles amp you owned with this statement " I was turned on to Belles four years ago by a local audiophile friend who I've known for twenty years who I met at the Washington Audio society monthly meetings years ago. On several occasions, I had the pleasure of listening to his Belles Hot Rod amp hooked up to his Spectral DMC-10 preamp. " So what Belles amp do you own? |
audiozen " Their products sell constantly all year around since they have the strongest word of mouth reputation in the country amongst Musicphiles. All the other companies can only survive with their ongoing magazine ads, and constant audio establishment reviews or they would die on the vine. Not Dave Belles " What possible basis in fact can you make these statements? |
facten..Well aren't you the cynic. I never once said I own a Belles amp or a Belles component. Basis in fact? THATS EASY....Belles has been in business for thirty years always under the radar as his products constantly sell without all the marketing hyperbole BS with no need to advertise. Word of mouth reputation. I employ you to name one other high end component American company making solid state gear that has been in business for thirty years that has stayed off the radar and has survived solely from word of mouth reputation. Dave has a very strong cult following in England. The Brits love his gear. I made it very clear that I'm buying the Virtuoso when its released in March. You need to hit yourself in the head with a brick and re-read this thread to discover that I never owned a Belles, only that I've listened to one. |
audiozen I'm not a cynic about Belles, I can't be as I've never heard his stuff. Likewise, I knew you didn't own a Belles amp from your prior response; however, you however that you pick up the phone call a dealer in California and have Belles gear shipped to you. that wording implies that you own Belles gear; guess maybe you need to watch what you write. Additionally, you have a proclivity for making nonsensical statements such as " All the other companies can only survive with their ongoing magazine ads, and constant audio establishment reviews or they would die on the vine." . Any time you have an interest in a product (Belles, Ascend Acoustics, Tekton) you go off on these rants and act like you are the "all knowing one". Not quite!. Enjoy your new amp if you get it. |
It does not imply that at all. Any one with common sense knows what I wrote was an "example". You are right though about my rant with Tekton which I've decided not to buy and have deleted all those threads after hitting myself in the head with a brick. Why in Gods' name is Eric Alexander making the Pendragon SE at $20K a pair when he strongly claims on his site that his speakers at $3K a pair are the best in the world regardless of price. Somethings wrong with that picture. Eric also claims that during the past 20 years he has designed speakers for other companies but refuses to mention on his site who those companies are and what models he designed. He is not a well educated engineer as Dave Fabrikant is at Ascend Acoustics who is also a speaker/driver designer. Eric Alexander got his training from Ray Kimber. Big deal. Kimber Kable does not build or sell speakers. Ascend Acoustics are much better quality speakers than Tekton. His Sierra Towers with their bamboo cabinet structure and their state of the art custom drivers are the best speakers I have ever heard at their price point during the past thirty years. |
For those in Great Britain reading this thread discovering Belles for the first time, here is the address of the Belles Distributor in England, Nu Nu Distribution LTD. Here ya go mates... www.nunudistribution.co.uk |
audiozen - I checked out the review>soundapprentice>CBM-170SE. Sounds like a real wolf in sheeps clothing speaker. I'm not about exotic finishes and 12 coats of paint and gloss - more about sound quality than cosmetics. If I get a chance to hear any Ascends, I will give a listen. The manufacturer contacting a purchaser and setting up a listening session is a great idea. That's two for two impressive reviews that don't sound like hyperbole. Thanks for the link, and for the advice. |
2chfreak - Heres another gem I'll throw atcha. One of the very best tube buffers under $1K on the planet. Hand made in London. Its a portable box unit you can hold in your hand with inputs and outputs with a single NOS GE 5670 tube that has a life of !00,000 hours. Put it between your CD player and Preamp, or between your Preamp and amplifier. It has three different sonic signature settings. Classic, Push-Pull and SET. It will transform the sound quality of your current system to a higher level. It is the ifi-iTube2. Retails for $ 375.00 on Amazon. Heres the link. www.ifi-audio.com |
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“A percentage of Gon member's are in the same camp. Buy just for show. I just don't get it. They would be better off investing in a car collection or coin collection.” Was this comment really necessary? I have not heard any of the Belles products and have no reason to believe they are not as excellent as they’re being described. That been said, comparing its sound to a tube sound may or may not be a great selling point. There are a lot of folks who prefer a more balanced sound and the so called tube midrange bloom is not always a preference. Many if not most of the all tube - amp and preamp, systems I’ve heard put the vocal singers ahead of the other musicians on the soundstage even when the singer is physically standing behind some of the other mucisians on the platform. But I digressed... Unfortunately this is yet another great piece of gear that I can not afford, at least at the moment. |
I like Audiozen’s passion for Belles products. He has found a product line that he loves that is somewhat affordable. Yes Audiozen is a huge Belles fanboy but certainly not the first to proclaim over the top praise for a particular brand. If he feels Belles is the best good for him. Certainly I don’t agree that one brand is the best but we all have our reasons on how we spend our money. |
For the most part, many Audiophiles are preoccupied with whats on the radar, in the mags, and their demigod reviewer's they worship. If your an Audiophile/Musicphile with an intense passion for music, and your ongoing search in recent years has not fully satisfied your quest, Belles maybe your final choice. A real keeper. During the past several months I spent considerable time looking under the hood of many Belles components and was stunned by the very high quality parts and low noise circuit boards in their units, that are typically found in components in the $10K to $20K range. I'm not aware of any other company that has these type of high quality parts in their units in the same price range. I went to the Belles address from their website on Google images and it takes you directly to Dave's house, which is a modest middle class home. He keeps his production factory completely off the radar. His high quality parts remind me of Spectral. The quality of sound from his recent Aria line, is his best work ever. Resulting in a truly perfect balance of the richness of tube sound and the slam of solid state. Belles products are musical treasures, not designed for the commercial side of the high end industry. Products that are produced in smaller numbers, for a limited group of very passionate music lovers. Thats Daves' only purpose. |
audiozen - I was one of those people that was obsessed with the audio magazines, the reviews, scouring the internet to find that elusive hidden gem of an audio component that I just knew was out there - I just had to find it. After a good long while, I was hitting the wall, burned out from the chase, and decided the only way to cut to the real chase was to go listen to some stuff and let my ears make the decision. I enjoy reading reviews, and always have, but in retrospect I realized that I had wasted an awful lot of time that could have been better spent listening to music on a great system, and be done with it. Done for the time being; you know how this "musicphile" addiction is! The only brand that I owned for a long time was Rotel, and I really enjoyed their electronics for many years. An integrated amp, a small receiver back years ago, a very nice cd player and even an analog tuner that I still own. You get used to what you have, but you don’t know what your missing until you start surveying the audio landscape and allow your ears to take a test drive. Many of the magazines are afraid to publish a bad review, not wanting to offend the manufacturer and lose their ad dollars. You aren’t getting an honest assessment, and often the conclusion of the article is not positive or negative.... closing with the likes of " though it may not be for everybody, this amp, speaker, whatever deserves to be heard, and might be just the ticket for your audio needs." Vague and no feathers ruffled. The Belles Aria sounds amazing to me. My Vandersteen speakers sounded very nice with the Rotel amp, but the Aria brought them to life, and put me front and center in front of the orchestra. The improvement over the Rotel was not subtle. Having met and spoken with David Belles on several occasions, I can attest with certainty that he is incredibly talented, cares deeply about his customers, and as you stated, audiozen, he prioritizes musicality over all else. He emphasized this goal when I heard him speak about his products, and every time I listen to this amp I’m reminded of just how successfully he has achieved his goals. I won’t tell you that Belles is the best, but it has been great for me, a great match for my speakers, and to my ears offers a level of audio performance that is simply staggering, at a price that will put a smile on your face. |
2chfreak..Well said. I miss the old Rotel line in the late 80's with their all black components with beautiful wood side panel's. Standard Hi-Fi, Seattle's first record store that opened up in 1941, now closed, was the first Rotel dealer in Seattle. I think their products back then were much higher quality and sounded better. The record store drove their wall hanging speakers with the Rotel gear. Denon was the same way back then. Their components at that time were gorgeous. I have in storage for the past three years my Denon GL-2560 SE CD player from 1992. It was rare to find in the states and was special order only. Price was at $1100.00. My Audio friend from China, now in Seattle bought one in Hong Kong and sold it to me brand new in the box for $600.00. Its a gold unit with rosewood panel's and has pitch control and weighs 38 pounds and has eight Burr-Brown DAC's under the hood custom designed by Denon. The good old days of digital. Look forward to my purchase of the Virtuoso in March. My final retirement system this Spring will be made up of the Virtuoso integrated, the Ascend Acoustics Sierra Tower with the NrT tweeter, the Marantz SA-8005 SACD player, and the I-Fi Itube2 tube buffer which will be hooked up to the Marantz outputs to the Virtuoso inputs. Marantz quality with tube sound. A great high value recipe. |
audiozen - Thanks. It’s harder than ever to listen to even a small percentage of all that’s available, since there are way fewer hifi shops in business. The answer for people who live too far away from dealers is to take advantage of policies like Ascend has, where you can audition for a time period, and get a refund if you don’t like it. In the case of that particular brand, based on what you have conveyed to me, there aren’t too many speakers being sent back. I bought a Rotel bx-840 2 integrated back in 1988 at cost, the dealer dropping the line because "no one has ever heard of it", and he kept his better selling NAD. He admitted that the Rotel was built better, and more reliable. I had it for almost 27 years. It was a great amp, never a malfunction, and sounded as good as new to me when I sold it 3 or 4 years ago. I bought their RCD 991 cd player in 2000, their best cd player at that time for about 1K, listed for $1300, had it for 15 years and sold it... part of my gradual upgrade process. The last speakers before the Vandersteens, some B&W "V" series small stand mounts, the entry level line of B&W at that time - very early ’90’s - were $300 new, had them for 20 years and they were damn good. Vinyl clad, 12 lbs a piece, had them on Sanus steel speaker stands and I always enjoyed listening to them. So now it’s Belles, Vandersteen, and a Rotel RCD 1570 slot load cd player that I bought last year. No TT, maybe in the future. I home dock Sirius sat radio through my amp, not great fidelity because it’s so compressed, but another listening option. I have Apple internet radio that I should connect to my amp, would really provide a ton of music. I agree, that older Rotel was built like a tank, pretty bullet proof. Sounded great for the price, for sure. The Rotel dealers always told me they loved it because returns were very rare. Denon kind of faded away from the 2 channel scene, at least in the states. That got heavy into home theater, right? But yes, their components were nice. That old Denon cd player of yours sounds like a brute! 38 pounds is unheard of these days, unless you go with something really exclusive, perhaps Esoteric or similar brand perhaps. Those old Pioneer cd players were nice build quality, and were solid. If I didn’t get the Rotel cd player, I probably would have got a Marantz. They always sounded very nice anytime I happened to hear one playing at a dealer. This system you are piecing together is going to be very impressive, I have to believe. Do you already have the Marantz 8005, or is that on the to buy list? All I can tell you is that based on my time listening to the Aria, you are going to be in audio Nirvana when you fire up the Virtuoso. I love integrated amps; the good ones give up very little to separates, and I like the one box space saving, as well as fewer cables to buy. The Virtuoso will not disappoint if I know Dave Belles even remotely. I’ll be interested to hear how it sounds, once your plan comes together. I really enjoy your take on the audio world, and your enthusiasm! |
Well said ((((For the most part, many Audiophiles are preoccupied with whats on the radar, in the mags, and their demigod reviewer's they worship. If your an Audiophile/Musicphile with an intense passion for music, and your ongoing search in recent years has not fully satisfied your quest, Belles maybe your final choice. A real keeper.)))) Agree, It's always best to see with your ears then listen with your eyes? Best, JohnnyR |
Why the apparent rub Johnny to my user name and choice of moving in a different direction away from Belles Aria and Ascends. Blasting sand been used by many as a drier alternative to common play sand and compares well to Lovan's Black Gold at a much more affordable price. As much as I like the Aria, I am much happier with my new Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP. Not "pausing" ( how clever) at all ... Full steam ahead! |
menosavy..To bad you are moving on from the Sierra's. The Aria integrated does not have enough power under the hood to bring the Sierra's up to their full potential. Amplifiers rated between two and three hundred watts per channel would be a better fit. David Fabrikant of Ascend Acoustics comes from Miller & Kreisel, known for some of the very best speakers for recording studio's back in the 80's. David's designs are very similar to the best studio monitor's and can easily handle high powered amps. |
audiozen OP694 posts01-12-2018 8:43pmTone Controls?..Eek!! Tone control's as we are all aware of, are for trimming certain frequency bands to tame bright, shrill or strident sound problems resulting from poorly designed electronics. David Belles components are masterpieces, so refined and so rich sounding that you won't even think about tone controls. So the Accuphase and Luxman are..........Eek. I had opportunity to listen Aria Integrated amplifier. It's not.....Eek but very close. You dealers (and their friends) should stop lying to people. "Masterpieces".....Eeeek!!! |
carmenc..You contacted me by email asking if Belles is really that great, based on your ownership of the Soloist-1 and Aria. David Belles is in a league of his own, designing both tube and solid state components for 30 years. Hes' currently 57 years old so he still has a lot of mileage. He has a total of only 11 dealer's, both domestically and internationally and has stayed off the radar all those years. People usually find out about Belles by word of mouth. He has a very strong cult following in China and England. Really that great? You betchum. His components constantly sell every month so he has no need to advertise, due to their remarkable organic musicality. I predict that his Virtuoso integrated, which I will be purchasing next month when released, will go down as one of the greatest solid state musical treasures to date, and will be recognized as a true reference statement piece for all others to measure against. |