Dan - Run for President...
True craftsmanship has returned to audio equipment and at a price I can finally afford. Let me give you my thoughts on the Modwright SWL 9.0 Linestage:
I’m going to back up a bit so please bear with me, but I want to go through the whole story of how I ended up here writing this review. For the record I don’t know Dan personally, never talked to him and three weeks ago didn’t even know he or Modwright existed.
First of all, I don’t consider myself an audiophile (yet) or any kind of expert in the science of sound. That being said I have been a music lover since I was old enough to walk and I truly appreciate true high fidelity sound. I spent about fifteen years working in high tech manufacturing for Kyocera Corporation building surface mount devices … mainly capacitors. I spent almost 6 years in Engineering and probably know way too much about capacitors and in particularly how a quality capacitor can be a darn elusive thing. Component selection for true audio manufacturing must be something like horse breeding … being able to pick a winner out of a pile of losers that all look exactly alike. I have a special respect for the kind of mod work Dan does. I can tell you the big manufacturers don’t really care much … they give you, the component supplier, a value range and if you can hit it about 90% of the time you stay out of hot water with them. Trust me when I tell you they are more concerned about price per thousand than quality. There are still a few companies that defy this practice and when I emailed one of the head application engineers for AVX he had some good things to say about the parts that Dan has selected for the Modwright SWL 9.0. I’ll leave it at that.
I have been building my current system for about three years and I don’t make “Huge” money so when I buy a piece ... it usually hurts for a while. I’m pretty stubborn and like to do things my own way, advice up until lately, has been largely ignored. This has allowed me to extend the cost of my current system far beyond the investment at hand. I have bought and sold my fair share of stuff that just didn’t work with what I had. I think we can all relate … you take what should be a great piece of gear and put it in your system and it just doesn’t work. You sell it at a loss and try something else … well about a month ago I sat home on a Friday night and bought a six pack of micro brews and went through my CD collection. From Tchaikovsky to The Allman Brothers Band, Miles Davis, Dianna Krall, AC/DC, Phish, Steely Dan, The Meat Puppets … CD, SACD, DVD Didn’t matter – SOMETHING WAS NOT QUITE THERE. I threw my hands up somewhere between the third and fourth beer. I had bought silver balanced interconnects, 10 gauge speaker cables … I tried optical, coax and lets not forget the new Levinson ML-27 that sounded so good to me so many times before, then I heard that simple little tubed system that changed everything. Clarity, detail; smooth and simple, I was knocked back.
I stewed on it and monday sent an email to Kurt at Echo Audio in Portland. I had solicited the help of Kurt before and since he sold me the Levinson I figured he owed me.
Kurt didn’t hesitate for a second … Modwright SWL 9.0. WHAT? What happened to Levinson? What about Parasound HALO? Audio Research, Cary? Ok, I guess I could take a listen at the very least but I was skeptical. Then I did something even less like me – I posted here for advice. Thank you all for your input by the way.
Kurt offered to let me try the SWL 9.0 out with no obligation, so I set a date for Friday to pick it up. You have to appreciate audio shops that let you audition equipment just for your enjoyment… hats off to Kurt at Echo. He is a guy more interested in me the customer, than in a quick buck and he seems to know a lot without sounding like a human encyclopedia. I am slowly learning to ask him for help.
The Test …
Equipment:
Front Speakers – Paradigm Signature S4’s
Center – Paradigm Signature C3
Rear Speakers – Paradigm Signature – S2’s
Sub – Paradigm Seismic 12
Front Amp – Mark Levinson ML-27
Center Amp – Nakamichi PA-7 *
Rear Amp – Nakamichi PA-7 *
HT Processor – Sunfire Theater Grand II
DVD – Denon DVD-2200 (With 6 channel setup for SACD) **
CD – Rotel RCD-1070
Power Conditioning – Monster Signature HTS-5100
Power Cables – Signal Cable Magic (10 gauge)
Interconnects – Signal Cable Silver Resolution balanced and single ended
Speaker Cable – Cobalt Cable, 10 Gauge all three sets
* Soon to be replaced with a Levinson ML-23.5 & 27
** I’m leaving it up to Dan, probably a Denon 3919 mod
I pulled the Linestage out of the box last Saturday morning and I don’t thing it’s been turned off yet.
The problem I noticed with the HT setup was nothing glaring. There seemed to be a general lack of dynamics. I kept hearing my speakers just making sound. Loud sure … clean … maybe, but not the feeling you get when you step into the “big room” at a high end audio store and get blown away by some tiny magic box you will never be able to afford or that wonderful sound I heard two weeks before. The bass was right there but the midrange and high frequency needed work. Some CD’s would shine some had an almost dull sound to them. I don’t know how many reviews I have read and chuckled to myself as the authors describe this wonderful musical experience … some kind of synergy that I assumed was a culmination of too much reading and buyers remorse. Well I pulled the SWL 9.0 out of the unassuming box and was immediately taken by its weight … first thought, solid as hell. There must be 20 tiny screws holding the thing together … man, this thing is pretty cool. I doubled over a blanket and placed it on the table for a closer inspection. The face is thick machined aluminum without a bunch of busy writing or overly bright displays. Basic and solid, just like my old Sansui AU-7700 which I sold when I was 16 (big mistake). The switches, selector and volume knobs have a real quality feel and seem to be extremely durable. I felt like I was looking like a blast from the past with the exception of the logo which is classy but not overdone. The back was a bit of a contradiction to the front … the single ended connectors stood out and upon closer inspection were not the cheap stamped nickel variety but seem to be indicative of the overall solid build that seems to dominate this piece of equipment. The back is also clearly marked and there is space between the right and left inputs … kinda nice for us guys (and gals) that are always fooling around behind our systems trying to plug equipment in. I can get my hands in behind there and still see what I’m doing. Very clear –easy to read and I don’t have to wonder if it’s getting plugged in correctly. Each single ended lug sits on a colored seat red on one side and white on the other. Easy to keep balance in the system … just one of a dozen little touches I am quickly learning to appreciate.
The Sound …
Excuse my lack of adjectives but I don’t like to use terminology I’m not comfortable with. I setup my Denon DVD with the digital feed to the Sunfire and the analog feed to the Modwright SWL 9.0. I can switch back and forth with almost immediate results. My first CD was Steely Dan - Aja. I first listened to the HT setup at three different volume levels with pen and paper in hand to take a few notes down. I switched between two or three tracks and listened for a good 6 minutes before switching over to the 2 channel setup. I immediately tossed the pen and paper and started walking around the room with a big fat smile on my face. The Paradigms that I heard in the show room three years ago were back! I just new there was a reason I spent all that cash. It was as if some one pulled a sheet off the S4’s …the mids and highs that a minute ago were rather dull and a bit too far back suddenly leaped forward. The clarity was incredible. I was listening to Steely Dan and not Paradigm. I closed my eyes and the imaging that was all but gone was back in full force. Low volume … normal … loud … concert level - all the better. The sound is much more delicate and so easy on my ears now. I have been listening to it for 5 straight days and I love it more now then at the moment the truth hit me. Classical, Rock, Jazz … I’m living in the big room.
Thank you Dan … Don’t change a thing in you design, or manufacturing style. This is a throw back … 1970’s build quality, attention to every detail and mind blowing sound. It's like being able to buy a 1970 Chevelle 454 with every new modern high tech engine enhancement right off the assembly line.
It will take me a while to pay this baby off but when I do I’m signing up for a moded Denon 3910 – I’m hooked, its tubes and I like it.
Final Thoughts -
You see my equipment list… not front page stuff and yet I’m now scared to change a thing, gulp. I really love this piece of equipment; it looks great, it’s built like a tank and it made my system come alive. I suggest anyone with an HT setup that wants to run a second system to get better two channel sound try one of these out. It’s a perfect fit and will save you rack space money and the headaches of trying to keep two systems going. Unlike the Sansui AU-7900, I’ll never let it go.