Hey Morgan, is the Torii still available?

Quote:


I couldn’t resist and went straight to that song on Qobuz… wow.  What a great piece of music..very fluid and engaging.  It was streamed in the work vehicle, so I have to give it a second listen at home.  Great recommendation.   Now switching to an audiobook on Crypto…so I’ll revisit some classical music later on this morning.  

Thank you, I was asking for the particular SE84UFO unit that is on sale here.

I found this today. I thought some of you might like if I shared it:

Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything.  - Plato
     

Brian

I don't have much more to offer—I am a UFO listener—but I am interested to know more about your thoughts on the 45 amp. I have been interested in those for a long time and they seem to fly a bit under the radar.

Here's the link to David Denyer's review of Vadym Kholodenko's recordings of Beethoven's Last 3 Piano Sonatas.
https://thereeltoreelrambler.com/2024/05/23/woah-on-being-blown-away-by-beethove...
ns-final-three-piano-sonatas-from-ultraanalogue-recordings/

Enjoy
Ed

Duke Ellington and his Orchestra “The Centennial Edition: Complete RCA Victor Recordings” disc 12 of 24

Just an FYI: I may be out of action until the weekend. . . my laptop charger died this morning and I'm nearly out of juice. I won't have one in until Friday. I'll try to stay sane til then.

Personally I think the two amps are going to sound different, they use different output tubes at the least, are designed differently. I don't think you'll get the same sound with more power, you will get more power (the difference may not be quite as large as you think with the wattage) and you'll get the Decware sound, not the Had sound. You'll probably LOVE it, but it won't be exactly the same.

I’ll probably be stoned after this, here goes. I own way too many amps. My two favorite are my Decware Torii MkV and my Dennis Had Type 45. The 45 has a wider soundstage. Like how is it possible to be that wide. As you said though, the power is the limiting factor. In a small room with efficient speakers it is great. Expand the room or lower the efficiency and you feel jilted.

I would gladly trade my Sarah for another 45 to run a pair in mono. This is an unfair statement though as my Sarah has an inexplicable hum I cannot get rid of. Eventually I’ll send it back to the mothership and hope it comes back and I get what everyone else has with it.

I like being able to go between both the Torii and the Type 45. Each has benefits. The 45 is a dream though. When I put it in my smaller room with the HRv2’s it is amazing.

Never hurts to have both of what you want.

I'm sorry, I didn't see your reply post.
I asked people to email me if interested. If you're interested in future events, please email me. ultraanaloguerecordings@gmail.com
It's just outside of Toronto in Canada.

It was amazing & I will post a video soon of the concert. I think it was likely the best concert yet, such moving music performed with great verve & emotion.
I've been editing the video with the videographer & can say the Triple Concerto is amazing beyond words. 4K cameras & for once, the sun cooperated & we had gorgeous natural lighting.

Ed

The 45 SET is very open and transparent with great top and bottom extension and tight, defined bass. It throws a huge soundstage and has very precise and weighty imaging.  For small scale music/vocals it's the best I've had. It's downfall is power - a little less than 2W.  Also, it only has an 8 Ohm tap, so my 4-6 Ohm XRS may not be completely showing their true colors.  

If the Sarah can do all of what the 45s can do, while being able to turn things up a bit more, I'm really looking forward to hearing it.

As far as tubes go, I had ordered the full set of Cryotone tubes a few months back as I was coming up on page one.  They've just been sitting here.

I've been on page one for quite some time.  Back in early October Sarah had said that she would be sending out invoices final payments for November 2022 deposits "soon."  I still haven't received my invoice, so I'm wondering if there are issues with getting parts right now.

Plugged into a Roland JC120  
Have goofed around again a bit since I lost much of my left side.

On the very short list of my favorite pieces by Dvorak, or anyone, is the piano trio no. 4, aka the Dumky. FWIW/FWI dumky is the plural of dumka which is a Slavic ballad, typically a mediation on, shall we say the frailty of the human condition. Regardless, Dvorak's trio is one of the pinnacles of romantic chamber music.



16/44 FLAC download

My inspiration early this morning.

Duke Ellington and his Orchestra "The Centennial Edition: Complete RCA Victor Recordings" disc 5 of 24



It's time for some Duke. 1930 to 1931 recordings on this disc. Sonically rich and great music.

The SE84UFO does not come with any upgrades unless you order one with them at additional cost.

I am unsure of the cost for voltage conversion, and I think you may not find an answer here--in your shoes I'd contact Sarah@zenamps.com or give the Decware office a call.

I agree with James that most of us had not heard a Decware amp before we ordered one--I have done that numerous times, my first leap of faith paid off so well I repeated and repeated and repeated. . . .

And like James I have never heard a 45 amp, and so can't make a comparison though I have lived with a SEWE300B for over two years now. I have heard two other 300B amps before buying the SEWE300B though, and can say this: in comparison the SEWE300B is less "romantic," but more dynamic and transparent. I don't find a pronounced midrange, but a clear and open one--though a lot can depend on the tube complement in use.

So I can't say much more than "I think you'll not be disappointed." And if you are, you can take advantage of the return policy, or I think you'll find you can sell the amp easily on the second hand market.

FWIW, I think a lot of us ordered our first Decware amp without ever hearing one. I know I did.

Not knowing what a 45 amp sounds like I can only speak in the most general of generalities. The Decware SET sound tends toward the linear, transparent and detailed with liquidity more than warmth. Other SET amps might be relatively warmer and rolled off at the frequency extremes and lose some detail and dynamics in the SET yumminess. Regardless, I'm a big fan of Omega speakers and you should be getting outstand sound. Since it looks like you have plenty of tube amp experience you're familiar with "break in" and understand your amp will sound better after 100+ hours than it does out of the box.

Congratulations and keep us posted on you journey.

Does the SE84UFO come with any upgrades or it's the base model?

Also - does anybody know if it is possible to convert a 120V model to 230V and how much does it cost if done by Decware on warranty transfer?

I'm finally on page one for my Sarah, which I ordered without ever hearing one.  I used to have a pair of Wavelength Cardinal X-1s, so I'm somewhat familiar with the sound of the 300B, but keep reading that the Sarah has all the midrange with the fidelity of the Zen.  

I've never heard the Zen either, but I own a pair of Alan Eaton 45s with National Union Globe 245 tubes.  I'm running them with a custom pair of Omega Super Alnico High Output XRS with integrated deep hemp subs.

What can I expect from the Sarah vs the 45 monoblocks that I'm using now.  I know it will have more power, but sonically what am I gaining/losing?

Revisiting disc 3 of this excellent new reissue of two Bill Evans albums and many alternates/outtakes.

Bill Evans "Haunted Heart" Riverside/Craft 3 cd set, disc 3

A little snow last night. Looks like it may be one of THOSE winters. I'll layer up and put the shovel to use later.

Starting a session with
Wes Montgomery "The Complete Full House Recordings" Riverside/Craft 2 cd set, disc 2

I've always loved these recordings, and this was a welcome re-issue offering alternate material in great sound.

I'm reliving 1978 all over again.
There is an Uncontrollable Urge in me.
Weird music for Weirdos!  

This LP sounded fantastic through my SS rig but it really is impressive through the new analogue system I’m building around the UFO25.  The ZSTYX are slowly settling in and adding to the width, height and depth of the soundstage which is assisted by the quality of the recording, mixing and production of the 45 rpm vinyl.

Near the end of his life Dvorak wrote 4 "Symphonic Poems" based on Czech fairy tales that were the last symphonic music he composed. And they are a bit different than anything else he wrote. They still have plenty of obviously Czech influence, but the overall effect is more, I guess I'd say international. They are very atmospheric, and at times outright spooky. And they should be played and recorded as often as the Slavonic Dances.



16/44 FLAC download.

Pretty much everything Czech related Charles Mackerras touches turns to gold, and this collection with the Czech Philharmonic is no exception.

Thanks - that is what I thought.  I will probably take the plunge with the graphene sluggo once my LNBH arrives.

Alan, I have heard several times that the Infinity fuse provides same performance but has the adjustable amp levels for convenience and flexibility. I prefer the size and case of the SDFB but the dip switches are a really nice feature.  If I was to buy again I would get the Infinity.  I do change gear a bit and have had to get one of my SDFB sent in to reprogram which is a bit of a hassle.

Does anyone have the infinity fuse box?  Trying to figure out if there are any known differences between it and the SDFB other than that the infinity fuse is user programmable.  Thanks!

-- Alan

Tony, Glad to hear that is where mine will go due to space limitations👍👍

OK, got it. In front of the SDFB.

Tony, I was wondering where the AC tuning is located? 2 choices one in front of SDFB or 2 After SDFB.  Thanks

I'm going LNBH > SSZ > SDFB >UFO25. I did not think that there was another option.

Bunny Berigan And His Orchestra "1938-1942" Chronogical Classics

Glad it finally arrived! I love mine.

ZROCK 3 with all the upgrades in house.  Wow!…darn if this device doesn’t add body, weight, clarity and additional bass to my Taboo driving my Fritz monitors.  No sub needed.  SDFB gold Sluggo gave an additional SQ improvement as well.  Really nice add but $’s.

Tony, Thanks again for the update/answers.  Curious…Do you have it installed between the SSZ and SDFB or between SDFB and your UFO 25?
I may be limited to between SSZ and SDFB in my setup since my gear is in a cabinet with limited space behind my Amp and Pre.

I have had nothing but very positive experience with Mark.  I am sure some of you have received this email as customers but I wanted to share.  PS, Lon, you have been very influential in this forum.  So much so, I placed orders on his LBNH, SSZ and AC tuning X.

Dear Vera-Fi Audio Family,
I want to reach out personally and wish everyone a wonderful Holiday Season. As well, I want to thank all of you for your patience during the recent shipping delays. I know some of you were disappointed or frustrated with the extra wait, and I completely understand — when you’re excited about new gear, every day feels long.

What many people didn’t see behind the scenes was just how serious the situation truly was. We were facing the possibility of tariffs that could have gone as high as 175% on products coming from China. For a company dedicated to honest value and fair pricing, that level of increase would have been impossible to absorb (post orders in-house) — and it would have forced price changes I never want to impose on our customers.

Some asked why we didn’t simply air-freight everything. Unfortunately, that wasn’t a viable option either. Just to air-freight a single subwoofer would have cost well over $100, and doing that across our full product range would have destroyed our pricing structure entirely.

It would have accomplished the very thing I was trying so hard to prevent: passing unnecessary cost increases on to you.

That is why I made the difficult decision to hold inventory in China until the final tariff decision became clear. If I had shipped early and those extreme tariffs were suddenly imposed, the burden would have fallen directly on our customers for future orders — something I simply could not allow. Our lovely Caldera 10 would have easily gone to $399, or even a smidge more.

Once the final tariff levels were confirmed, we released everything immediately and moved as quickly as possible to get every order on its way.

I know the delay tested some of your patience, but please know this: every decision was made to protect you — your investment, your trust, and the value you expect from Vera-Fi Audio.

The good news is that this challenge has put us in a stronger position going forward. We are now increasing production and ordering a much larger volume of goods so we can maintain steady inventory and avoid the kind of delays we all endured over the past few months.

Thank you for standing with us, for believing in our mission, and for being part of the Vera-Fi Audio family. Your support means more to me — and to all of us — than you can imagine.

­
With sincere gratitude,

Mark Schifter

Lon, thanks.

Tom, I have not had time enough to explore all of your questions, but I'll add more impressions as I do.

First, from the wall I am LNBH > SSZ > UFO25. I am waiting on a second unit from Verafiaudio that will go SSZ > Lumin U2 Mini.

I started with the gold and will move on to graphene Sluggo next. So, my overall positive first impression was using the gold.

Space for my rig is a challenge, so once I get the second AC Tuning X connected to the Lumin, I'll keep it there until I find a reason to change. I am however, open to suggestions.

 
Ben Pollack "Volume 5 Recorded in New York 1931"

Some sweet and hot music and some features for Jack Teagarden. Hitting the spot this morning.

Got another two inches plus of snow overnight so will got out and work on the deck and driveway in a bit but first I'm sneaking in a re-listen to

Gregory Groover Jr.'s latest one, "Old Knew" on Criss Cross cd

Joel Ross is a great addition here--I love hearing him as sideman or leader.

Gregory Groover Jr. with vibraphonist Joel Ross, pianist Paul Cornish, bassist Harish Raghavan, and drummer Kendrick Scott

Congrats Tony! Glad this sounds so good.

Hi Tony, Good to hear!  Thanks for your initial assessment on the AC Tuning X.  I have had 2 on order for months, paid in full and have been told several times that it was ready and  being shipped in a few days.  I received my Ups tracking notice a week ago and it still hasn’t shipped.  Still optimistically patient!  
Couple of questions if you can and you don’t mind…
- How do you have it installed?  At component end or power end?
- Have you used both gold and graphene Sluggos?  How do they compare?
- Which components have you used it on? Amp, Pre, Dac? Any of them better than another?
Thanks👍

I would say Rachmaninoff is best known for his piano concertos and symphonies, which are nice enough. But my favorite pieces are the Cello Sonata and Vespers, about which I have posted several times. And I prefer some of his tone poems, like the moody Isle of the Dead to his better known orchestral works. So if you want to hear Isle of the Dead you can't do any better than Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony, which is true of pretty much everything they recorded for RCA Living Stereo.



On CD

 
I don't know if I am the first to receive verafiaudio's AC tuning X, but if not, I'm probably close to it. I think they just started shipping out and will continue over the next week or two. I didn't see any other posts, so I might be among the first wave of folks to receive it. I had pestered Mark regularly about delivery until I got the full story on the various challenges of importing from China and backed off. It's not that I forgot about it; it had been a while, and I wasn't sure what to expect.
 
So, how does it sound? GREAT!
 
In my system, now built around the SE84UFO25, I primarily stream music from Qobuz. I have been open to trying most anything that promises to improve streaming SQ, so I was open to this option. I installed the AC tuning X three days ago and immediately noticed an improvement in audio. I spent the first evening listening to tracks I know well, and I was surprised at how often I heard instruments or very subtle parts of music that I had previously missed or underappreciated. Initially, I thought a change of tubes that I had made in the amp was contributing to this improvement in SQ, but last night I went back to my usual set of tubes, plus the AC tuning X, and the results were the same.
 
I'm not going to say I am completely over the stress and strain of the long wait, because it did take a while. I will say, however, that the AC tuning X delivered. Since returning to the UFO25, I was pleased with the sound I'm getting with it, but this takes it up another notch or two.

The graphene Sluggo arrived yesterday and is in the STR-1002 Super. There you go Lon😉.

HK

Quote:


Thanks… I made the best out of a crappy situation and enjoy some critical listening.  Thanks to yours truly…I have expanded my appreciation for Rachmaninov.

Pending

Gregory Groover Jr.'s latest one, "Old Knew" on Criss Cross cd

The title makes me think of my Dad, how I wish I could get his advice . . . he sure is missed. He knew . . . about anything I need knowledge of.

Joel Ross is a great addition here.

Gregory Groover Jr. with vibraphonist Joel Ross, pianist Paul Cornish, bassist Harish Raghavan, and drummer Kendrick Scott

Sorry about the sinuses Dom. I don't know that recording, but do know those pieces and I'm a big fan of all of them. Bach, Beethoven and Brahms (the 3 Bs) wrote the "great" cello sonatas, but Rachmaninoff's is as great as any of them. Also great is Chopin's, which IMO doesn't get nearly enough attention.



16/44 FLAC download.

Maria Joao Pires is famous for her Chopin so no surprise that her account of the cello sonata is outstanding.

Fighting a sinus infection so I was up early this morning.  Decided to run my  Grado’s this morning with my Schiit Bifrost and the Vali 3.  I was searching the Deutsche Grammaphon label,  and landed on this album with Yuja Wang whom I am a big fan of.