Sim Audio Moon Evolution Series, - I-7

I think it's just a question of break-in, because I have heard the i-7/SuperNova combination beat out, in terms of musicality, their more expensive P-5/W-5/Eclipse. The Evolution gear sounds more organic, with a faster, more focused and revealing presentation. Of course, maybe the speakers used were also not a good match for the i-7. And the SuperNova simply "slams" any other CD Player out there I've heard at near this price. Sim gear has always been known to need a long time to break in. BTW, I heard it with Dynaudio Confidence C2's, and it sounded awesome. Funny thing is, before my dealer connected the i-7's to the Dyn's, it was connected to some expensive Levinson gear, so I asked to listen to that beforehand. The Levinson power and pre (the SuperNova was still the source) did not have the articulation and see-through quality of the i-7. I preferred the Sim integrated. Oh, it wasn't as powerful as the Levinsons (they were powerful monos), but it was tighter and better focused.

A response to Juaudio: there is no way that an importer, even a reputable one, will support a Chinese product the way you say. If, 6 years down the road, you need service and the importer is no longer the same one, you're screwed. If the factory that built the unit in China, which builds amplifiers today, and coffee makers for Cuisinart tomorrow, is out of parts, you're SOL. But this is built into the price you paid for the unit - that is, the service you'll get. Sim, for example, has a 10 year warranty, but you have to buy it new. Even if the machine is 3 months old, and you buy it used, according to Sim, you're SOL on warranty if there is a problem. Oh, sure, they'll fix it promptly and charge you, the only difference is that it won't be free, but the quality of service is still there. Unfortunately, the days of transferrable warranties are dying, because it costs companies a lot of money and does not support their retailers. I understand that. If we shop used, we pay the used price and get the used level of service. If we buy new, it's only better. The only way out is to sell new units at a higher price, to cover the misc costs of lost sales due to transferrable warranties. Many companies won't do that, out of integrity. They don't want to make you pay a premium for something that is uncertain, that may never happen. I respect that. That's why I buy new, but I will buy used if the price is very low, but with the full knowledge that if anything happens, it's out of my pocket. That's the mark of a good company, that lays all their cards on the table.

Now, onto the issue of sound - we all have to realize that our comments are born out of personal preference. If you like tubes, for example, chances are you'll hate Krell. If you like your music served up sounding like the real thing (i.e. adjectives like warm and sweet don't apply to a live performance), then chances are high you'll forget tubes - there is just too much harmonic richness in that sound, although pleasant, but sounds nothing like the real thing. This is engineering fact, not voodoo. There are a few exceptions in both cases, but I'm talking the vast majority here, not exceptions. So, if one guy likes the Moon i-7 and another hates it, it's probably because of personal preferences, not which is better. I listen to music, not measure it, just like user RKoh said, but I like to know that what I'm listening through is equipment that has taken a general step forward towards more accurate sound reproduction, not sideways towards a more euphonically pleasing, yet colored sound. The latter is an insult to technology, and IMO, should not be pursued, despite the fact that most manufacturers represent their products that way, through proclaiming these qualities and others irrelevant to real music as abundant in their products. For buyers of these products, IMO, you'll always be in the dark, and the industry is unfortunately not helping and mostly at fault.

Thanks for your comments - well said, I feel in most cases. I'm a big Sim fan, and as I mentioned, I used to sell the product a while ago, alongside Classe, which is why I know their philosophies so well. Things can change over time, as it has shown to be with Classe, for example.
On the issue of how live music sounds, it sounds...live. If you are listening through a guitar amp, you are not listening, technically, directly to the live performance. While it is true that a few instruments can have a sonic signature of their own, in particular the guitar in question and yes, the "reverb" or harmonic richness of a Boesendorfer piano, this merely makes the reference point. Meaning it sounds lifelike. If a particular piece of equipment or system makes it sound more lush or rich, it is adding euphonic coloration, as pleasant as it may be. It is nonetheless coloration.

My approach (and I say mine because it is borne of my observations and thus the opinion concluded thereafter) is that high fidelity means approaching the possibly irreproachable - a perfect reproduction of a live performance. However, it is this persuit that is what hi-fi should be all about, not how "sweet" it sounds, or how "round" or "fat" or "warm". When I listen to Rush, for example, those synthesizers and guitars can sound downright screachy, sometimes because the recording is not great (as is usually the case with Rush, unfortunately), other times because that's what the musician intended. When Neil Peart slams the snare, or hits the high-hats, the brashy sound of the cymbals is really brashy. I don't want to hear it homogenized and sweetened. That is not hi-fi, even it makes this recording more pleasant...it is not reproducing what is on the disc. I want to hear it as it was recorded. I feel that is the true mark of high fidelity, the persuit of perfect sound reproduction. Eliminate the equipment from the equation if its perfect, and concentrate on other factors - speakers, cables, recordings and room acoustics. Any deviation from this puts our persuit of technological advancement in this field into an alternate goal, one that is not defined, out of focus and deviated from reality.
So, that's why I like Sim gear. It may or may not be your cup of tea, and I'm certainly not the one to tell you which to buy. However, I believe my comments are both logical, and probably eye-opening for many. I agree about Audiogon, it is a great source of information and information exchange, as we are doing now. But at the same time, you can probably see how it does hurt many manufacturers who try to market their products to you through the many fine brick and mortar dealers out there, which are quickly diminishing in number, or changing their ways of doing business mainly (not entirely, but mostly) because of audiogon's ability to market products at greatly reduced prices...this is in part good, but also bad because we lose the (I feel) valuable asset of a good dealer with listening facilities and a cheerful smile. I'm lucky in that when I worked in audio retail it was before this website existed (also ebay, and several others etc....) so the retail end was actually better.

Audiokicks - something else, just to clarify. I said I used to work in a retail store selling several high-end brands. That does not mean I have any ties with any of them, other than the obvious fact I own Sim gear. I bought them some time ago, obviously through my dealer for whom I've worked for, and yes, I got a great deal, call it a "friend accomodation". I could just have easily have had Classe, Magnepan, and Krell at the same type of discount. I chose what I chose because I preferred it. Also keep in mind that unlike retail customers, many of who are intelligent people but people not in this industry, you know only a small part of what we know that goes on behind the scenes, so all my comments should also be viewed as potentially educational when the comments are of a factual nature, not my opinions. Opinions don't educate, they form opinions. Nobody is trying to brainwash nobody here, and your own listening will reveal what gear is best for you. The person who spent thousands of dollars at or near retail may be more biased, in fact. When many spend that kind of cash, they try to find ways to justify their purchase even if they feel deep down inside they bought the wrong thing. The best most objective viewpoint would obviously come from someone who owns nothing, but can compare everything.