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Re: Opus, Valhalla, Siltech G5 Shootout....!

Posted by mikel (A) on July 24, 2002 at 20:41:05

In Reply to: Opus, Valhalla, Siltech G5 Shootout....! posted by Bud on July 24, 2002 at 09:22:50:

unlike when we compared these cables last week in my system (link below), i only heard the Transparent Opus cables in Bud's system. so i have no reference point of what the Compass Lake or Valhalla sounded like in Bud's system. i have listened to Bud's system in the past, but not since he got his Compass Lake. with Bud's resident cable and gear setup it was not practical to quickly compare the whole signal path with all-Opus and all-Siltech.....in any case as Bud mentions above he uses G3 speaker cable (30+ feet of it), so you would not be comparing G5 Siltech anyway.

Bud has a good, personal feel for the "normal" sound in his system so i totally defer to his take on the comparison of the performance of the 3 different brands of cable in his system. i must say that Bud's system has a very different sonic signature than my system. i used to have the same Levinson preamp and amps and had the Wilson WP6 speakers so i am familiar with the basic sound and presentation of his system.

so with all those considerations here is what i heard; when i first started my listening Bud played 6 or 7 cd cuts. i was hearing lots of detail and dynamics but was trying to get my bearings on exactly what i was hearing. it was so different than what i am used to hearing i was attempting to discover what was doing what. big soundstage, fast, open, detailed but maybe slightly sterile.....although not terribly so....and after my tubed based system probably a typical response. Bud asked me what i thought and i said it sounded pretty good but i hadn't really got a total feel for it yet. then he mentioned that he percieved it as good on an intellectual level but it was cold and uninvolving to him compared to what he hears with the Siltech cables.

so i suggested we maybe try the Passive Placette RVC that i had brought. my guess was that the ultra-open Opus was affected by the Levinson #32 preamp. we swaped it out and.......dramatic change......here Bud's and my take on what we heard are quite different, and i think the differences in our interpretations relect our different references. also, Bud knows his system much better than i do. in any case, what i now hear from the Placette/Opus combination was much more similar to what i hear in my room. i heard much more detail, openness, tonal color, depth and see-around transparency in the soundstage, better micro and macro dynamics.....waaay more envolving and satisfying.....night and day to my ears.

my opinion is that the Opus is the clearest possible window.....and it will expose any gear that is not quite neutral and transparent. having owned the #32 for 2 years, compared it to the passive volume pots in my Tenor amps, and put it up for sale the next week.....i think that the clarity in Bud's system is limited by the #32. i think the G5 Compass Lake has a beautiful lushness that is a clear asset in Bud's current system but is not an asset in my system.

i want to qualify my comments somewhat since i only listened to the Placette/Opus for 5 or 6 cuts.....so my perceptions might be different if i had taken more time. also, another consideration is that Bud listens to quite a bit of live classical music and may be a more perceptive listener than myself.

this has been a facinating process.....the Opus is a product that will make some systems much better......but it is not for every system.

context, context, context

mikel

• my opinions from last week's session in my room   (Open in New Window)

This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:

Kimber Kable

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