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AUDIO FORUMS >> General Discussion and Support >> How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
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Message started by RY on 08/15/26 at 21:48:41

Title: How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
Post by RY on 08/15/26 at 21:48:41

Hello dear musical mystics,

I have spent some time with my system over the past few years…. I am looking to make final tweaks in order to obtain what I perceive to be last little bit of tonal soul, texture, glow, while retaining the expansive soundstage and presence which seems present in my current setup…

How to get the last bit of tone, texture, glow, and instrumental essence?

System:
Nagra Streamer —> Cardas Clear Coaxial —> Soulnote D1 DAC —> Silversmith fidium —> ZBit 2—> Silversmith Fidium —> Zrock 3 w/ telefunkten tube —> Silversmith Fidum —> Decware 300B w/ Telefunkten 12au7, Mullard NOS Voltage, Amperex E88cc D-getter power tubes, WE 300B —> Anticables Flex 4.2 Speaker Cables —> Mundorf SGO Cap —> Anticables Flex 4.2 to 15” Woofer and Horn.

I feel I have really maximized the soundstage and speed and extension… in my pursuit of texture and tone I’ve tried the following:

1: Duelund 16ga between my crossover and horn: Promising, but the soundstage and presence collapsed a bit

2: Duelund Tinned Copper Foil Cap in parallel with my main cap in the crossover … effect TBD as it is burning in…

3: VCap in place of Mundorf SGO Cap: I enjoyed the VCap with the Duelund wire to my horn, and have been going back and forth… the Mundorf begins to feel too soft at times, even though its sensuous and glorious

I and considering the following, please tell me what you all think of these strategies:

-Snake River Audio speaker and crossover-driver Wires: From what I gather this may be a lovely solution to keep the best of both worlds: texture and tone with space and soundstage and speed… what do you think of this? I am beginning to suspect the anti cables throughout is too lean and dry for my tastes / system

-Tube rolling… I have other gain tubes available, which I will roll…. Radio technique, RCA, Bugle Boy, Mullard NOS…. Any suggestions?

Thank you all for your advice!
r.

Title: Re: How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
Post by GroovySauce on 08/15/26 at 22:18:47

What rectifier are you running? The Stradi 5u4g fits the texture and tone spot for me.

I don't have experience with the Dynagrid Jr. I do have a Space Tech Labs STR running 845s so competing options. I love what the STR brings and my guess from others reports in the Dynagrid Jr. will bring you great texture and tone while keeping the expansive sound stage.

What does your power situation look like? Adding a RS Audio CF-1 and MF-1 might also get you there. I was shocked at the difference they made in my system. They are addictive and I've added more, up to 4 CF-1 and 3 MF-1.

I'm a big fan of Snake River Audio Cables. Once and awhile I've tried other cables even ones 2x or more money and stayed with the SRA cables.

Title: Re: How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
Post by RY on 08/15/26 at 22:30:42

Yes, I am on the list now for a hopefully soon to manifest Dynagrid Jr. Glad to hear it adds tone ontop of the soundstage....

The power cable on the amp is the Decware v3 (for some reason now presently sold?). The amp is also running a graphene slugo on a swiss fuse box, and running through an Angela Gilbert young XF 300 conditioner, hooked up through a Shunyata CX Helic cord, through furutech rhodium outlets, on a dedicated curcuit. (writing out this sentence proves I've lost a few marbles...!)

The rectifier is a SOPHIA ELECTRIC 5U4XL Mesh Plate. Its a new version from them as my older Sophia Electric rectifiers arced...

What is the RS Audio CF-1 and MF-1?

thank you all for your brilliant insights!

Also, taking note of the +1 on Snake River Audio speaker cables.... do you think this is the right direction, and will be a big difference???

r.

Title: Re: How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
Post by Donnie on 08/16/26 at 02:08:21

I'd recommend a R2R DAC.

Title: Re: How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
Post by MM on 08/16/26 at 04:09:28

Forget your strategy. Make your signal path as simple as possible and replace your amp’s caps with Miflex KPCU, source from Sonicraft and go for level 3 matching.

Much of this is pretty subjective. For example, I haven’t found any meaningful upgrade from SRA cables over basic Decware cables. I always think it’s best to focus on your goals and what you think you’re missing rather than someone else’s selection.

The complication of having a crossover in your speaker may be having a larger impact on what you are hearing than cable and tube choices.

Title: Re: How to unlock the last bit of soul and tone....?
Post by Hearafter on 08/16/26 at 04:20:51

Be careful what you ask for ;). You have a very nice system and have made some excellent choices of upgrade changes. “Not much more to improve” are famous words that never seem to resonate. My experience is clean power and the source are what made the biggest impact on getting the full sounding tone that pulls you into the music. In your case, I would look into doing optical isolation between your router and streamer. I have a Sonore set up but an easy one to setup that is returnable. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D7ZWLW2G?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback I would also look into upgrading your DAC as Donnie suggested to a R2R. I absolutely love my Mojo Mystique X NC. Gustard R30 I have as well can’t be beat for its price. Rectifier would be next. I have a Dynagrid Jr. with an upgraded Shuguang Treasure series 845, a GEC U52 family rectifier and Stradi 5U4G. All made a big improvements for me. I do like your idea of Snake River Speaker cables. Everyone raves about them. I have settled on the Decware ZSTYX speaker cables after trying Duelund 10ga tinned copper, Goertz ribbon and Veritas Aperta SE most recently. Veritas just came out with a new flagship Ultima series with 30 day free trial and happy customers. Ok that’s probably more than you wanted … These are just recommendations that worked for me, on my system, in my rooms with my ears. Good luck in your journey!