Title: Re: ZRock 2 EQ Options
Post by will on 04/16/21 at 02:24:35
Nice Lon. I think "fascinating and inspiring" is a really good way to describe the ZRock2.
For me, part of its mystery and magic is that its lively "personality" breaks "rules," "coloring," the sound with its distinctive "voicing," while seeming quite supportive of the feel of complex and beautiful music. And it does what it does with so much flexibility, amazingly adjustable with tubes, gain, A-B switch changes, cables.... it seems almost like a living thing.
Using it within its more "transparent" settings window, wanting to retain fine detail complexity with relatively tight bass but enhanced throughout, to me it generally has a dynamic sweetening/smoothing/warming flavor, altering the sound, but with realistic feeling revelation. And being able to adjust for more or less bass-warmth/dynamics/clarity depending on our choices, I think it is a notable triumph in Steve's development work.
So I really appreciate its character and potential. My only reservation is that I had amazing musical clarity and balance before, and was getting really good adjustability with the CSP3 and ZBIT for tuning weight, warmth, dynamics, and clarity, and all that within a transparent, resolving, fast, and relatively uncolored musicality. So, at this point, the question would be, which do I prefer, captivating sweetening from the ZRock2, or the possibly more amazing transparent musicality without... "possibly more amazing," because it is so rare to get this level of resolution and musically balanced beauty without unmusical "side effects," and it is seductive.
But I am not done playing with the ZRock2, and have not been compelled to take it out, so I am guessing I will end up feeling like I don't want to be without.
Relative to caps, I think Steve is so good at his "voicing" across his designs, I feel like any cap he chooses is going to do whatever it does extra well. And though I no longer prefer them, I really liked Jupiter Coppers (Type 2), and know they can be special caps. Changing to Type 2s from Jupiter HT (Type 1) coupling caps was one of my first modifications on the Torii IV, amazingly to me, about 4.5 years ago. I recall finding Type 2s a little heavily weighted toward full bass, so darkish/warmish/thickish, but adjusting with tubes, I really enjoyed their complexity, compelling liquidity and solidity. I thought Steve's calling them "organic" a realistic descriptor.
I am still modifying now, though looking at the photos, both Torii and CSP3 are relatively close to 9 months ago, so I guess the mod cycle is still open, but not nearly as active as it was for several years. I think this context might be important though for my story, because over several years+ I methodically and progressively changed most of the parts and wires in the Torii and CSP3, often with daily experiments, if not a few times a week... And the only parts that stayed created improvements in most or all areas of concern before I moved to the next. Where I am going though, this extended process shaped the way I listen, but also, past modification choices influenced decisions for new ones… so preferences were similar, but the parts choices were interrelated, collectively creating their own direction in a sense.
Researching a fair bit at the same time, parts and wires I really appreciated showed up. And experimenting being a regular and big part of my life, listening abilities refined, seeming able to fluidly shift from a mode of musical immersion, into a mode of discerning the subtle qualities and balances of the whole, to perceiving and discerning with a sort of articulate microscopic focus...kind of interchangeable and integrated depending on need or focus.
This process led to finding Miflex caps, but only after about a year of being quite content using Jupiter Copper coupling caps while working on other areas. But this may be important too in this story.... Miflex paper/oil caps are still an overall favorite, having held up over several years of refinements, where many well-liked caps came and went in that time. As the system became more resolving and transparent, often problems showed up with parts that were good at first, but later, context caused them to be unable to rise to the level the rest had created.
So as my experiments progressed, and with more exposure to other options, I moved away from Jupiter Coppers, going for what sounded to me like a less flavored, but still natural quality. And Miflex Copper/Oils remained favorites along with a few others that worked really nicely balancing each other...combining the best traits of each to "create" exceptional caps with synergistic combinations.
I started using Miflex poly/coppers late enough in this modification cycle, that the baseline was so good, I was making quicker decisions. Everything sounding good, improving additions that fit without issues, just fit. So unfortunately, I have not listened carefully enough to these caps to confidently articulate their subtler nature.
This makes me think your observations could easily be more relevant than mine, your having changed recently from Type 2 Jupiters you know so well, to these Miflex in the same component. And like Steve, you are an explorer, but more with components, tubes, cables, vibration mitigation, power, etc as your palette. So I can easily imagine how well Type 2s have worked for you as upgrades, and how introducing something else can be tricky, Jupiter Coppers being a foundational influence in your system sound and tuning.
I was having a less-than stellar ZRock2 day, likely the last caps I put in being in an unfriendly second day phase, something that usually passes with pre-burned in caps on the third day.... so holding tight. But I may have a relevant observation about tube choices and setting choices.
With the Torii and CSP3, modifications happening over a long time, it took me a while to notice that as I increased resolution and speed, my tube choices leaned toward milder and more refined/complex tubes. Now, with the ZRock2 modifications happening fast, I am thinking I am more clearly noticing the same phenomena.
When we think of "fast," and "resolving," and "transparent," and "neutral," though they all describe relatively natural balances and clarity in their own ways, seems the words finally tend to become their own entities, and lose power as descriptors. But in looking at what causes the sonic changes these descriptors initially attempt to describe, the real sonic events are very much from the removal of smearing, subtle distortions, and slowness and veils caused from less than ideal energy flow. By removing these impediments, we can create more easy and complete musical flow, in a component by upgrading and tuning parts and wires, or system wide by adjusting power, cables, vibration mitigation, room tuning, component upgrades, etc.
Yesterday, listening to the darker Raytheon 12AT7, I ended up with some listening fatigue, another part of why today was not a great ZRock2 day...my hearing was off until the last several hours. This led to my thought that the above phenomena may explain part of why I was preferring 12AT7s and the more punchy/open B setting early on, but having potential challenges with this combination now.
At first, to get closer to the resolution and clarity I was used to, from bass impact and definition on up, the nicely voiced stock ZRock2 did better here with more powerful and articulate tubes and settings... they created definition and space I craved. But after having sped things up, and having done some refinements in the signal path, with easier flow, 12AT7s are still seductive at first, but they are tending now to being too much without adjustments elsewhere. At the same time, many 12AU7 types are acting closer to how 12AT7s were at first. They have better definition and space throughout, but with a milder push....more relaxed, and I like that. 12BH7s and E80CC/6085s, in between, I like too. And with all of them, I am tending to preferring the A setting, one I found good mids up before, but soft on the bottom. So with some modifications in place, and probably in part by matching my system better, this softness has been mitigated. Now 12AU7s are not as defined as 12AT7s, but well balanced, defined and spacious bottom to top, and with the A setting.
Anyway, the theory is that with increasing resolution and easier, more clarified flow, the same tubes become more revealing of their nature, while becoming more powerful in their presentation. So the baseline musical landscape changes.
Just now a '56 RCA 5814A with triple micas, T shaped black plates, and an angled horseshoe getter is sounding pretty sweet.
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