Ayre K1xe vs First Sound Presence Deluxe Mk II

I agree with you I don't see what people see in the Dartzeel. I much would rather have Lamm. I personally own Vac Phi 300 Monos.

Mtdking,

Thanks for the tip on the Boulder and Goldmund amps. I will make an effort to try to audition them. I agree that the CAT amps are indeed amazing, but like you, they have too many tubes and run too hot for my use. (My Lamms already run a bit too warm for my non-airconditioned room. But a few degrees warmer I can put up with, several degrees I can not.)

(And I don't use "really" long cables for my K-1xe preamp to amp run, as they are "only" about 4 meters long, which for balanced runs is not that long.)

Jwm and Mtdking,

I think that one of the reasons that the DarTZeel amp did not make a favorable impression on any of us, (I somewhat include myself in your opinion), is that its design while quite good for the most part, (IMHO anyway), is a somewhat flawed design, in as that as its not very powerful, especially in the bass region. IMHO, one of the strengths of solid state is that one can make them very powerful and with lots of power reserves, so that it has great bass response. The DarTZeel's bass response is merely adequate, at best, and especially so for a solid state design. In fact, if I did not know going in that it was a solid state design, I would have thought that it was a tubed unit, because of the somewhat weak bass response, and because I thought that the mid-range was very, very good (especially so for a solid state design, (i.e. no grain, and fairly liquid), and its treble response was pretty good. (But not as good as either the Lamm M2.2 or especially your VAC Phi 300 monos, which has the best treble response I have ever heard to be honest!). I do think that Mike Lavigne uses it in the perfect way, in as that as his speakers have an active woofer, so that all the power goes to the mid-range and treble. (This might even help the treble response, but I never had the opportunity to listen to them in this manner.) My two cents worth anyway.

Chjo100,

No, I'm not using any computer peripherals into my amps - I think you are referring to the Ayre QB-9? Yes, I have tried this and it is excellent but I'm more inclined to invest money in the analogue arena.

I'm close to getting a used Kimber KS-1130 for the balanced connection between the Ayre amps. I'm expecting a darker quieter background and transparency while maintaining the same level of musicality.

If this does not happen, then I'll switch back to the First Sound, sell off the Pass Xono and get myself a Audia Flight Phono.... and maybe sell off the Ayre.

BTW, the phono in the Ayre K1-xe is really really good.

Kurt_tank are you going to CES this year?

Jwm,

I wish!
I went a few years ago, when I had a bit more disposable income. I went with a fellow audiogon member, and we had a great time. Between listening to all the music, checking out all the equipment, and going to all the great restaurants, it was probably the best time I have ever spent in Las Vegas. (If I could have not lost $300 at blackjack, it definitely would have been the best time.)

Shsohis,

Have you considered using balanced Nordost cables? I use the Quattro Fil cable for my preamp to amp connection, and Valhalla bi-wired speaker cables, and they work great. (When I get some spare cash, I will probably upgrade the Quattro Fil cables to Valhallas.) The Valhallas are definitely some of the most transparent cables I or my friend have ever tried. I did try some Jena Labs Pathfinder cables, but unfortunately, they had just a hint of darkness to them. and combined with the hint of darkness that the Lamm M2.1s have, produced a clearly audible dark sound. (But, the Pathfinders were wonderful in the mid-range. My friend uses these cables, and they sound great with his Lamm M2.2 amps.)

And I absolutely agree with you that the phono stage in the Ayre K-1xe is an incredible bargain. Sonically it is very close to your Pass Xono, and almost, but not quite up to the sonics of the ASR Basis Exclusive phono stage. (And all for just a fraction of the price of either of them.)

Good Luck with the next phase of your trial.
(And of course keep us updated on your results. This has been very illuminating so far! Thanks for doing this!)