Yesterday I received my long awaited Taboo MK IV with 25th mods and Type II signal caps, after receiving a ZRock2 with 25th mods and Type II caps, and ZBIT [including several DHC-1 cords, 3 sets of DSR-II ic's, ZStyx cables]..........and purchasing a very wide variety of rectifiers, power tubes, input tubes......as well as isolation feet, and some other items like a pin straightener, pin cleaning dope, etc.

The 4+ month wait was...........far beyond worth it!! Right out of their boxes, this system is NOTHING EVEN REMOTELY close to anything I've ever heard. I say with 100% confidence it is FAR SUPERIOR.

My first real system I purchased 2 years ago, which included a Rogue Chronus Magnum integrated 90w push-pull tube amp and a pair of Martin Logan Theos speakers.....I did enjoy them, they were certainly head and shoulders above any of the comparative junk I ever owned in my life, for example Paradigm Studio 100's  [never seemed to have the cash to go high end], however compared to now there is no comparison.

All mated with a brand new pair of single ALNICO driver Omega Jr. 8XRS speakers [veneered very finely in Sapele], my very 1st hour of listening only confirmed what Lon told me when I joined this forum: "You got the epitome of Steve's work, be prepared to be blown away."

Well, I was blown away.....to say the very least. In the first minute, I was simply shockef......over several minutes thereafter I had goose pimples......then a tear in my eye. After 58 yrs of living, I've literally found nirvana when it comes to sound reproduction. And to know this will get even better just stuns me.

What, 10, 20, 30, 40% better over time? I can't even imagine.....And this is with the stock Chinese 5U4G :-O  I have much better rectifiers in waiting, including Mullard GZ34 smooth plate fat base and GZ34 metal base, Brimar 5R4GY, Sophia 274B Aqua, the ultra rare Telefunken GZ34, Mazda 5Y3G, Mullard GZ32, Everready-Raytheon ER 80/280, and many others. I will spend alot of time whittling these down to a few favorites, sell the rest to recoup the initial investment. Im the kind who likes to gather everything up front, then divest the unwanted.

My initial impressions with the Omegas: Absolutely wonderfu, delicious l instrument separation [previous Rogue amp allowed a bit of congestion], incredibly striking and NATURAL mids [THIS is just astounding!!], lovely clear and seemingly floating highs, the mid lows & lows are quite present but I know they'll be better defined once all this new stuff is broken in. Female vocals are very PRESENT AND REAL. Actually, it scared me they were so resolute!

So after that hour last evening, I've begun the break-in process: 8 hour cycles on-off with a wide variety of 24-96 flac files: classical solo instrumental to full nlown symphonies, jazz, jazz rock, blues acoustic, blues rock, female jazz vocals, complex prog rock.......all run into my Audeze headphones, for the next week or so, 24-7. The off cycles also include the ZRock2 unplugged.

The speakers will have to go thru a slower break-in process, real time actual listening, to loosen the drivers for even better bass that awaits.

So, after a lifetime, paydirt has finally arrived. Decware/Omega is my end game. I already lnow ITS THAT GOOD. IN FACT, ITS GREAT.

So a huge kudos goes to you, Steve......you are nothing less than a genius who passes your passion for fine, sophisticated musical reproduction to we very lucky folks who have found you. God bless you!

Brad

Congrats man!  I had to put together my Decware components over the course of about 3 years - so my change in sound was a gradual thing. It was pretty cool to hear the changes along the way.

I cannot imagine getting everything you just got at one time! You'd better take it slow or you may die from sensory overload!

Similar story to mine when - about 4 years ago - I went all in with Decware gear: Torii Jr., ZBIT, ERRx speakers. And loved everything from minute one.

Congrats!

Thanks to everyone!

One other thing I noticed during that hour of preview: The noise floor was surprisingly low. I expected different.

When I had a solid state Bryston 4B-SST amp & BP-25 pre-amp, that combo was absolutely dead quiet with volume knob turned up all the way. Bryston was noted for and exceedingly low noise floor.

But in a tube amp/combo? That's quite an accomplishment, IMO.

I  don't get it. Why agonize over "break in" and lose all that time enjoying the music? Everything will break in on it's own time frame.

i can offer a kind of analogy......there are many folks out there who use cookers [frybaby, etc.] to speed up burn-in on components and subcomponents. it seems to me what i'm doing is along the same lines......since my normal listening habits are such that i only clock in about 8 hours a week, it would take many months for a proper break-in, even as fantastic as it sounded that first hour, which totally flattened me, i would much rather "launch off" at a place where the sound is more defined and refined, and then go from there.

thanks for your input, lazb.......it's a very fair point.

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Which one(s) did you keep?

Brad,
Have you tried the Lucid Mode of your Taboo?  What do you think of it?

Brian

Steve, thank you for that additional insight. And I forgot about transformers.........so much to keep looking forward to! You are a genius.

I wouldn't describe my system as liquid yet, of course, certainly iaw what youre saying and what many others have posted about their systems after many hours of listening.

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That's a nice stash. And given that they should each last at least 10 years or so I'd say you have plenty for both this lifetime and the next. If it were me I'd be buried with those rectifiers like a pharaoh.

piezoman said of Lucid Mode:

"There is an amazing effect on some recordings. A sort of additional holographic effect that gives one a really cool sense of space in the room. I love what I've heard so far with this unique sonic characteristic, and wouldn't want to do without it!"

That is wonderful. I have ever been fascinated by all that I read of the Lucid Mode.

"The Taboo MK IV deserves a lot more love here, WHAT AN AMP!"

I too think we hear less of the Taboo than seems right. Mini Torii seems to be in the same category. If someone is going to pay more than the cost of the single end triode EL84-Svetlana 83 series of amps, then they want to get more power for their extra expense; so they buy from the push-pull group. And the single end Pentode amps are left behind.

To me, I would want the extra money spent to go to superior sound instead of to power.

James, not yet. I haven't tried any input or power tubes other than stock that Steve provides.

I do have a significant stash to go through and whittle down.

On the rectifiers, I also posted the RCA 5Y3G's, all 4 of them on ebay, along with about 25 others.............IMO, the Mazda 5Y3G is a bit more focused with better separation that the RCA and definitely worth keeping for the long term.

Thank you James.

I too opt for the old Euro and American tubes by far,  like 95% of the time, something I learned when I had my first tube amp, a Rogue Chronus Magnum.

The older stuff allows for more depth and dimension to the sound, along with much better detail. I also agree with getting what you can, now, before prices necessarily continue rising.......there will be no end to higher prices as demand continues while scarcity increases.

This should go to yet another level upon levels when I get a CSP3 with 25th mods, possibly in the next 12 months......and its getting ridiculously good right now.

Steve is a genious! My hat tips to you, sir!

Thanks Tommy!

Congratulations Piezoman on all the new goodies. The Decware Ωmega combo is definitely a winner as far as my ears are concerned too. If you have time please write up some of your thoughts on the different tube combinations you enjoy most please, it is great reference for those of us with less experience in tube rolling and VERY much appreciated!
Happy Listening always and long good health to you.