Amplifier Advice Sought - Wilson Benesch Curves

lbr said:
Only caveat I could possibly note is that I've run these passive preamps in a system with high sensitivity speakers, where gain is definitely not a requirement. I'm not saying that a passive pre would be unsuited to a low/mid sensitivity speaker, just that I don't know from personal experience. Others here may have better insight.
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I use one with 83dB speakers and 100watt amps. It has plenty of volume even without the +6dB setting.
 
There is an Audio Consulting Silver Rock TVC on hififorsale.com. That was probably the first one on the market and possibly could be the best. I don't know but a couple of people have said thats the one they would go for. I havn't heard one but it may be worth a try. It's swiss made. (I think without checking)
 
I wouldn't get too hung up on sensitivity figures , valve amps seem to drive most things as long as they have a steady impedance .

My 87dB 4 ohm SF Signums ( on paper a tricky load ) are driven very nicely by 30 watts of EL34 Push pull ( WAD KaT34 ) .
 
This is going to sound harsh but...I've never heard Chord electronics sounding anything but painfully electronic, emotionless and downwright awful - irespective of the speakers used.
 
I had wadia direct into arcs, via avi monoblocks. They were awesome on some music , but screechy on others. Arcs are different I know - you need something good ion bass (as mentioned) and something witjh less top end screech, id guess.
 
Thanks for your thoughts.

That TVC on hififorsale is a bit out of budget. The Django one is in budget and looks like it could be worth a try.

I dont have a record player just a CD player but quite fancy getting a DAB radio seperate at some point. Maybe a DAC pre would be an option.

banpe2006 what was the Wadia that you used into the Arc's?

The only thing with the passive TVC's is from what I have read (oodles of threads on passive versus active) it is easy for it to sound great in one setup and terrible and lifeless in another.

From what I gleamed from the discussions the impedence matching needs to be right & cable lengths reasonably short. Alot of what I read was honestly over my head though so I am sure there other factors. Any further advice on this would be good. Or is it a case of ensure the basic elements to use one are there and give it a try?




On another matter I am wondering about the Sheng Ya Vincent mono's that are on their way to me have two sets of speaker terminals on them and can apparently drive two sets at once (They have buttons on the front for activating speakers A & B. Does this mean that there would be an advantage to using two runs of wire from each mono from speaker terminals A & B in a bi-amping configuration?
 
Benn looking at the benchmark DAC but it looks as though that would be unsuitable for me in a similar way that the DAC 64 probably is.

Have come across the Lavry Engineering - DA10


Is it worth looking into?
 
In case you decide on buying a new unit just have a look at the Pioneer SC-LX90. It really is a versatile gadget with some outstanding features.
 
Hi Woodnut

Just been scanning this thread and may have a couple of things to offer from my experience.

First a lot of the comments about Chord kit refer mainly to the amps, and may well be right. On the other hand I used a DAC64 with a Bent TVC and a Bryston amp into a pair of W-B Orators (which sound fairly similar to the Curves) and it sounded very good to me. W-B speakers do need a lot of current, and I'm not sure I'd go down the valve route with them - at least try to have a listen first. If it were me I'd go for something beefy and solid state like a Bryston or Parasound A23 (there was one on e-bay recently but I think its gone) and if you want the valve sound in there get it from a pre-amp or a dac.

I've ended up with a Monarchy dac, which frankly outclassed the DAC64 (much smoother, warmer and more musical), and their latest M24 has a tube output stage and a volume control, and won't break the bank even new. I think it even has an aux input and so can function as a dac/pre. My take on TVC's for what its worth is that you don't need to worry too much about impedance matching etc. as the trannies sort that out. It's more of an issue with resistor based passives. But have a serious look at the M24, it may be exactly what you need. http://www.monarchyaudio.com/ (I've dealt direct with CC Poon in the past and he's a really nice guy.)
 
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Hello Hamilton,

Already taken delivery today of the Shengya (Vincent) Mono blocks. They are hybrid valve-solid state 100 W p/c. They were a very good price so I went for them on the premise that it wouldnt be a total disaster if they didnt work out cos the resale value would be similar.


I dont yet have the curves but am committed to buy. I will be using the Vincents with my very humble NAD / Wharfedale setup for the next few weeks until I get the Curves and then I will be looking at the source component, pre amp and cables.


Thanks for the DAC suggestion. I shall investigate....
 
What transport do you use with the Monarchy DAC?


Does anyone else have any experience of Monarchy DACs?


The price seems very reasonable compared to the DAC64. The review does suggest it is very dependant on the quality of the transport.

Transport wise I was thinking of a second hand Cyrus XT or XT SE if I could find one. Don't know if this would be up to the job or not.
 
I use an old but highly modified Pioneer PDS703 and it sounds great. I think the Cyrus would be fine, but you might also look out for something like a Meridian 500 or one of the Teac VRDS machines. You can pick up Pioneer stable platters for next to nothing these days so it's not a disaster if they don't last too long - mine's had a new clock/power supply, some mods to the digital output, lots of Dynamat, and a decent mains lead and I ended up with a very good sounding transport for peanuts. At some point I'd like to replace it with a CEC belt drive, but...:rolleyes:
 
Yes, but considering one or 2 other posts by this poster where he did not advertise this website I thought we'd give him the benefit of doubt (for the time being;).
 

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