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Simaudio I-5 and Dynaudio Contour S 1.4

My current system is a Simaudio I-3 driving a pair of Dynaudio Contour S 1.4s. I'm extremely happy with the sound so far, but am wondering if the upgrade to the I-5 may eke out some more detail. Both the Sims and the Dyns seem to complement each other nicely.

My concern is that the Dynaudio's tend to be a touch inefficient. While the 100W/Ch I-3 seems to drive them quite nicely, the I-5 shaves off a few Watts per channel in favor of a more refined sound (at least according to Sim's marketing).

I've also heard that the I-5 tends to sound a bit more subtle, whereas the I-3 has a more forward, energetic sound.

My question(s):
1) Does the I-5 really sound that much better than the I-3?
2) Does the I-5 still have enough juice to power the Dyn's?
3) Would (in your opinion) the I-3 or the I-5 pair better with the Contour S 1.4s?

I'm listening to the system in a relatively small room and pretty moderate volume. And, I have a separate subwoofer, so bass "slam" is less of an issue.

I'd appreciate any thoughts...

/* Jonah */
jonahsfo

Showing 2 responses by jonahsfo

jonahsfo OP
4 posts
 
Goat: I'm using a Sunfire Solitaire 10 subwoofer. I've been very impressed with its transparency. It does a good job of extending the sub-bass without adding any sonic artifacts (at least not that I can hear).

But, since you asked -- do you know if there is any type of hi-pass filter in the crossover of the S 1.4s? Since I've plugged the sub into the preamp-out of the amp (instead of threading the pre-out through the sub's high-pass filter) I'm wondering if the speakers are smart enough to not try to reproduce < 40Hz signals or if it really makes sense to route a preamp signal through the sub and use separates.
jonahsfo OP
4 posts
 
Just to complete the thread, I took the plunge and upgraded. Luckily, I was able to get a great deal on an I-5 LE, so it ended up being a bigger step up than I originally thought. Like all Sim gear, it will definitely take a while before it's fully broken in, but here a few initial impressions:

1) the power level appears to be fine. It doesn't seem to be that different from the I-3.

2) definitely a more refined sound than the I-3. While the previous I-3 delivers a clear "up-front" sound, the I-5 imparts a touch more smoothness to the speakers. there is now a lot more apparent detail to each instrument.

3) a huge improvement in soundstage. With the I-5 LE the sound is no longer coming from the speakers -- you can clearly hear instruments and voices in specific locations.

I'm very glad I shelled out for the upgrade -- I had no idea it would be this much better. The I-3 is an amazing little amp, but the I-5 LE is noticeably more refined.
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