Atma-Sphere MA-1 amps

I was quite fascinated with what Trcnetmsncom had to say about his perception of a high end flaw in the MA-2s. Tom's likening this flaw to the high end rendering of the Martin Logan CLS 2Z made clear to me what he meant, because I auditioned those speakers a long time ago and I disliked them right from the beginning just because of that. I have the latest version of the Ma-2s, haven't rolled the 6SN7s so far and I just don't hear what Tom hears on my particular speakers, the big Sound Labs. Not that I doubt the sophistication of his hearing, nor his experience with live music. I share that with him, being a regular concert goer and intimately familiar with the sound of both violin and piano and just cannot find the flaw he mentions in my particular setup, which he obviously heard on several occasions on different rigs. This may well be a hearing impairment on my part, because I am advanced in age, however my wife, who plays the violin also cannot find anything wrong with the Sound Lab's/ MA-2 rendering of her instrument. We listened again extensively to Hilary Hahn's exceptional rendering of Bach's Sonatas and Partitas and could not find this particular shortcoming.
We then tried piano on LP: Martha Argerich's rendering of Liszt's b-minor sonata, an early DG 2530193, again the highs were clear, crisp, without a trace of harshness or brightness. So this is puzzling. The big Sound Labs are not an easy load, but obviously pair very well with Ralph's bigger amps. Possibly we have just struck it lucky with this combination and would have been equally unhappy, trying the MA-2s with the Avalons. No lack of "denseness" either, with our stators to our taste and ears.

Thank you Tom. I found your contributions both important and thought as well as "hear" provoking. Obviously we strive for the same thing, the best balance of all "sonic virtues" as you put it so well, with "no area severely lacking". Obviously your benchmark is your experience of the live event as it is mine. We may have different tastes and rigs, but it feels good not be alone in this.

Pubul57, my listening to both the MP-1 and the MP-3 have been as full function preamps playing LPs. You may have it right that my differing reactions come from differences in the respective phono stages, but I suspect that's not all that's going on. I will say that the MP-1 was a vastly more satisfying listening experience for me, getting in the ballpark of what I expect as the result living with the Aesthetix Io Signature with dual power supplies and volume controls. The MP-1 sounds like a great preamp.
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Amp-loudspeaker matching is no less important with Atma amps as with any other amps. I tried to make M-60s work with Talon Firebird Diamonds even using autoformers, but ultimately determined the match unsatisfactory to my ears. My present line arrays are a match made in heaven for the MA-1s. "Horses for courses" is no less true at the track, as any fan of the great John Henry can attest.

08-04-08: Jb0194
Amp-loudspeaker matching is no less important with Atma amps as with any other amps.

An understatement.

In fact, amp/speaker matching is more important with Atma-Sphere amplifiers than with many other amplifiers.

IMO.

Is it possible for you to characterise your experience with the Atma amps before, during (break-in) and after when the sound finally settled?

 
Thank you Tom.
 
I found the amps and preamp more similar than different across break-in. Out of the box there was plenty of resolution, but the sound was a little tight and closed-in. Relatively speaking, tonality had a wee bit of a greyish cast. During break-in, which I counted roughly at 120 hrs for the preamp, and a little more for the MA-1s, music gradually became relaxed and seemed to flow with a more natural pace. Tonal colors made something of a transformation towards the end of the break-in period - they really blossomed - all of which was rather startling. That final leap came over a few days for the preamp, and, say, over a weeks time for the MA-1.

The subsequent addition of the V-Caps to the MP-1 took things back a step before going forward two. Highs and the mid-bass got a tad edgy and a touch of the greyish tonality returned. Over roughly 6 weeks, things smoothed out and the tonal colors deepened. Sonic memory is difficult, but I'm confident that tonality eventually improved beyond where things had got to prior to the V-Cap upgrade.

Fwiw, I find both amps and preamp sound their best after being on for 1-2 hours - the hotter their tubes the better.

Tim