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New Torii Mk III - love it! (Read 14192 times)
DougK
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New Torii Mk III - love it!
05/21/11 at 15:45:15
 
Hello everyone,

This is my first post on the site, but I've recently purchased and received the Torii MkIII with Vcaps and stepped attenuator upgrades, and a cherry base.  It is an unbelievable amp and I love it!

Some people have stated that it takes a long time to run in the vcaps, and I'm sure that's the case.  I've only had the amp for about 3 weeks now, and I used an Esoteric CD - Full System Enhancer & Rejuvenation Disc to break it in.  I put this CD on repeat for almost two days straight while at work, and it does a great job of breaking in the amp.

I also purchased the ERRs a month and a half ago, and was really disappointed at how weak the bass was at first.  I knew they needed breaking in as well, and playing the Esoteric CD once completely improved the bass (this was before the Torii arrived).  This CD is worth the price to break in gear, in my opinion.

Back to the amp - it is unbelievably good!!!  I switched the EL34s that came with the amp for New Tung Sols, and am using Telefunken CCa 6922s for the input tubes.  I kept the OA3s, but switched the OC2s for OB2s, and I think the sound is just where I like it.

I purchased the ERRs to go with this system because I live in an apartment and dont' want to go the room treatment route just yet, so I thought the ERRs would sound great and minimize the room problems.  I think I made the best decision because they sound awesome together, big lush soundstage, wide, deep, you name it.  I also have a Counterpoint SA-5 preamp which has tube regulation, which I thought would be perfect with the Torii.  Boy was I wrong!

The midrange seemed pretty thin, and was really disappointing me because everything else was so good.  I use the preamp for both the CD player and my turntable.  One night I remembered the instruction manual saying to try the Torii at least once without any preamp, so I did just that.  Hooking up my CD player directly to the Torii, and guess what?   The thin midrange was gone!  In its place was the best sound I've ever heard from a CD, and I definitely prefer vinyl.  The CDs sounded great, so much better than through the preamp.

Moral of the story -- I'm now looking at getting the ZP3 for my turntable, and will continue hooking up the CD player directly to the Torii.  Having two inputs on the Torii is perfect, and I can't emphasize enough how beautiful the figured cherry custom base is on the amp.  Well done Zygi, it's a masterpiece.  When I order the ZP3 I'll be sure to get a cherry base as well, because it's just a perfect finish in my mind.

Ok, been rambling a bunch, but the Torii and ERRs are unbelievable, and this will totally put an end to my habit of wanting to upgrade my system constantly.  After I pull the trigger on the ZP3, maybe the Decware interconnects, I'm done for life.  It's just that good.  I can't emphasize it enough, this system rocks, and Steve and company know what they're doing and do it well.  No excessive bragging on their part, they just stand behind their work and produce excellent products while letting the buyer decide just how good it is.  I like that kind of humility and pride in their work, and I'll be recommending Decware to everyone seriously interested in amps or speakers.

Doug
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Lon
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #1 - 05/21/11 at 16:03:27
 
Doug,

WELCOME!

I'm so happy to read your experience with the Torii and ERRs.  Like you I believe that the Torii is the perfect amp for my IT Radials, and I feel as if I'm set for life with this combo.

I've no experience with the ZP3 but I can only imagine it will transform your vinyl listening in the way that running the cd player directly into the Torii had transformed your cd sound.

And it's only going to get better as the system seasons in. Congratulations!
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HR-1,ZTPRE,ZBIT,ZROCK2,SEWE300B,CSP3-25mod,Taboo MkIV;Rega RP3 all GrooveTracer mods;PSAudio:PST+DSD,P15,NPC,PowerBases,AC-12 pwr cbls,Reference spkrcbls;Mapleshade SamsonV3;VooDoo:Cremona+Amati interconnects, IsoPods; headphones:Sennheiser HD800S,ZMF Ori,Oppo PM1
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mac5u
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #2 - 05/22/11 at 19:33:05
 
Doug

Welcome.  Glad to hear your new gear is sounding so good.  
[smiley=beer.gif]

Would you post pics of your Torii MK III and ERRs?
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will
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #3 - 05/22/11 at 23:01:15
 
Doug, Nice report and thanks for the tip on the Esoteric CD. Sounds like the stuff! Please keep us informed as your system shifts. That is, if the initial breakin is not already done!!!!

Wink
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All Modified: Balanced Transformer-DIY Strip/Shunyata Defender-RevolutionMacMini/Amarra-KTE Singxer/Gustardx20pro-ZBIT-CSP3-OldChen 300B/845, Torii IV, Simple Wave 300B-HR1/SVS Micro3000sub-Pi PCs-DIY PCs, ICs, USB, I2S, Speaker-SR and aluminum w ball bearing feet
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DougK
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #4 - 05/23/11 at 00:43:01
 
I'd love to post pics, just haven't found a site I can upload to, but I'll get there...

The main question I still have is about the bass control.  What have you guys found to be a good setting for this?  I started with it fully counter-clockwise, and it sounded good (tight, not too much bass).  Then I fully opened it up and I get lots of bass, but it sounds like it might be exaggerated.  Not sure where I'm gonna settle with it yet.  Any suggestions?

I'm sure the amp isn't fully run in yet, since I do have the V-caps.  But I did go ahead and pull the trigger on the ZP3 today.  My wallet is angry and off limits for a little while, but it'll be worth it Smiley
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will
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #5 - 05/23/11 at 01:29:08
 
Doug, I play with the bass knobs a lot and it sounds like your amp/speaker "conversation" is the same as mine....counter clockwise tighter (not just the bass) and full clockwise open (also not just the bass). I can't recall exactly my conversation with Steve about this, but here is the rough story. Apparently which way is tight sounding and which is more open might be opposite to ours depending on the speakers. I think it has to do with the driver impedance. Regardless of the speaker though, the amp follows the speaker impedance adjusting the power in microseconds and this bass pot allows an adjustment within a good range within that. The result is that full one way, the drivers have less cone movement, and full the other, they have greater cone movement. So your observations make sense.

Anyway, it is all taste from there as far as I can tell. I find both ends seductive, but in my system (right now anyway with these tubes, cable arrangements etc) I like the openness, especially in the mid-range of the full right setting but like you, the bass can get a bit much there. I find it a little flabby and wandering on some stuff. On the other hand, at times I really like the focus of the full left setting. But all and all, I am most of the time tending to prefer somewhere in the middle....sometimes clockwise of center and sometimes counter clockwise of center.

I am always messing around anyway, but since I am exploring different Mac music players, and they all have different sounds, I find my bass and treble settings to be moving more than usual these days. Pesky devils.

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All Modified: Balanced Transformer-DIY Strip/Shunyata Defender-RevolutionMacMini/Amarra-KTE Singxer/Gustardx20pro-ZBIT-CSP3-OldChen 300B/845, Torii IV, Simple Wave 300B-HR1/SVS Micro3000sub-Pi PCs-DIY PCs, ICs, USB, I2S, Speaker-SR and aluminum w ball bearing feet
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will
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #6 - 05/23/11 at 23:36:27
 
Intrigued by Doug's report on his V-Cap Torii and great sound with relatively low hours, I checked out the Esoteric CD a little more, the one he used for burnin  and just ordered one.

The following review is an interesting story about the Isotek CD, which is apparently the precursor to the Esoteric one. It is used by Esoteric and Genesis on their own gear and reported to cut massive amounts of burnin time. I am all for that!

http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/isotek/cd.html
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All Modified: Balanced Transformer-DIY Strip/Shunyata Defender-RevolutionMacMini/Amarra-KTE Singxer/Gustardx20pro-ZBIT-CSP3-OldChen 300B/845, Torii IV, Simple Wave 300B-HR1/SVS Micro3000sub-Pi PCs-DIY PCs, ICs, USB, I2S, Speaker-SR and aluminum w ball bearing feet
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DougK
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #7 - 05/24/11 at 01:43:09
 
Here's a picture of my Torii, with cherry base:

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Lon
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"Love without
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #8 - 05/24/11 at 11:51:24
 
Very pretty. Nice cabling as well!
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HR-1,ZTPRE,ZBIT,ZROCK2,SEWE300B,CSP3-25mod,Taboo MkIV;Rega RP3 all GrooveTracer mods;PSAudio:PST+DSD,P15,NPC,PowerBases,AC-12 pwr cbls,Reference spkrcbls;Mapleshade SamsonV3;VooDoo:Cremona+Amati interconnects, IsoPods; headphones:Sennheiser HD800S,ZMF Ori,Oppo PM1
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mac5u
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #9 - 05/25/11 at 00:41:42
 
Thanks for posting the pic, Doug. Very nice looking.  Now.....how about a nice long exposure in a dark room.....Ah, tubes....

Cool
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Pale Rider
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Re: New Torii Mk III - love it!
Reply #10 - 05/25/11 at 00:59:41
 
Nice pic. Thanks Doug. I second mac5u's request!
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