Spatial X5 speakers

The Coda Continuum #16 amp sounds sublime driving the Spatial X5s. 

@hilde45, right now it's a moving target.  The Don Sachs amp sounded better than the Voyager GAN, however. The Voyager was used mostly during their first one hundred hours of play.  The X5s have improved considerably while powered by the Sahs amp.  So to get a handle on your question, I need to reinsert the Voyager GAN.  I am though suspicious that these speakers my keep improving for another couple of hundred hours of play.  Next week I am going to try my newly modded PassLabs X150.5  amp and see how it does...

@jerryg123 my listening room is about 14 × 23, standard ceiling height

@tyray I had a pair of Revel F208s that were modded by Doug Jesse of ASi Teknology.  They were awesome speakers.  However, being an audiophile that is just not enough....

I do plan on inserting the Pass Labs amp just to see how it sounds.  However, it was just modded so more parts to break in. Yuk....

@decooney I now have close to 300 hours on the speakers.  They for sure are real keepers.  They just keeping better.  I agree with Don Sachs, the X5's disappear.

@ hilde45 I have collected some excess stereo equipment intentionally.  I love the Pass Lab amps.  To my ear, they do solid state right.  I actually have another Pass Lab X250.5  amp that will be returned to me after mods after the first of the year.  So, I am just throwing different amps at the Spatials in a grand natural experiment.

@ decooney, I am running a range of amps thru the Spatials because I have a range of amps to run thru them.  Hard to really predict how they will sound based on wattage.  No reason a 20 wpc tube amp should have trouble driving 97 db sensitive speakers yet some have tried some of these amps, and to their ears, they did not satisfactorily drive the Spatials.  So I am going to try a range of moderate to mid high power amps, bot tube and solid state, until my ears reconcile the winners.

@ hilde45, I do not think the Spatials need soft presentation tube amp to not sound harsh.  I am still in the breakin phase at at 335 hours now.  During this phase I have gotten some harsh reproduction with the Sachs amp.  However, as time goes by the occasional music that can sound this way is definitely lessening.  I think this is significantly, maybe not entirely, a break in issue

Great read @ hilde45.  One thing for sure, long break in time is a spatial Audio familial trait.  My X5s finally developed percussive bass at north of 350 hours.  They have about 400 hours on them and are still evolving.  I now have my third different smp driving them.  The modded Pass Labs X150.5 sounds awesome.

I am thinking of adding a Townshend (sp?) supertweeter.  Will the Quad mounts they sell work on the X5?  

@lewinskih01 I just plugged the Townshend supertweeter into my lakehouse system.  They make a very pleasing and positive difference.  

@james_edward I ordered some Blue-Tack and will give that a try!  Thanks....

I now have > 600 hours on my Spatial X5s.  They have improved to my ears even beyond 500 hours of play.  These speakers throw a beautiful, detailed sounscape that exceeds what I have gotten out of even excellent box speakers.  Their liquidity is just about perfect.  To my ears, too much liquidity is artificial and thus undesirable.  Superb speakers.

@jerryg123 right now I am using a modded PassLabs X150.5  amp.  I do plan to reinsert the Voager GAN because I started out with this amplifier but it was being used when the speakers were not nearly broken in.  The speaker breakin time with these speakers has been the longest that I have ever experienced.  

Ok, @jerryg123 got me motivated to put the Voyager GAN amp back in.  It was modded previously by one of the posters in this thread.  I was semi chastised previously for putting my 150 wpc modded PassLabs amp on thes Spatial X5s cause of their high sensitivity.   I am glad that I trust my ears and not specs.  The modded LSA Voyager GAN amp sounds sublime on these broken in Spatials.  The PassLabs sounded good but the LSA surpasses it in slam, clarity, instrument separation, spatial cues and shockingly even on the low end.   I would have never guessed that the GAN Voyager via Grover Huffman Pharoah speaker cables would sound this damn good.  As much as I like high power sweet sounding class A amplifiers, the 25 pound Voyager GAN leaves me wanting for nothing in my setup.  I think I'll skip the herniated disc from lifting 100# amplifiers..

An addendum to my above post.  You can drive the Spatial x5s with low powered amps but, in my system, the amp experimentation that I have done suggests to me that the X5s like high power.  High sensitivity be damned, they sound better driven by a high powered smp.

My Spatial X5s are stock though with an upgraded crossover.  I just got Townshend supertweeters as well.  I also use Loudspeaker purifiers that are sold on Audiogon though I had them upgraded and they are presently being shipped back to me.  

@char1 I had the SPL Elector preamp in my exercise room system.  I listened to it in stock form.  I did not unbox it for several months after it came in.  Initially, I was going to sell it but changed my mind after it did not sell.  I then hooked it ip and holy smokes, I fell in love with it.  Big soundstage, very clear/clean musical palette, plus a tubelike overall presentation.  I won't now consider letting it go.   The Sachs preamp is in a different system.  The Sachs preamp has some tube sparkle but is not tubey.  It has a very clear, spacious presentation.  The two preamps give u a different presentation but they are both excellent performers.  

The state of high end audio is in great shape.  Not the cost is no object stuff cause I don't hang out there.  However, preamps in the 2000 dollar plus ranges the Sachs tube, SPL Elector and the Black Ice hybrid are great examples.  I have all three.  And while all different in presentation, they are all strong performers.