Guido, at least that's what I'm hoping. Hopefully I can make a direct comparison in the next month or two. I'll drag my C-500 over to Soundings and listen vs. their Capri/312 combo.
Dave
Dave
Review: Jeff Rowland Continuum 500 Amplifier
Category: Amplifiers
Preliminary, limited review --
I haven't even taken delivery of my Continuum 500 integrated amplifier yet, but I got to listen for 3-hours this afternoon to help with the decision to put down $8,800 to take it home.
My dealer is Soundings, South of Denver, Colorado, owned and operated by Rod Tomson with the very able assistance of this very knowledgeable crew. See the Soundings site at http://www.soinc1021.qwestoffice.net/
When I arrived at Soundings the Continuum 500 was driving the very nice DALI Helicon 400 Mk.2 speakers. This are very nice speakers that received a positive review from Michael Fremer in Stereophile recently.
I listened to several cuts from the following CDs:
"Strike A Deep Chord" on Justice Records
"Cannon Reloaded" on Concord
"Breakfast on the Morning Tram" by Stacey Kent on Concord
"Famous Blue Raincoat" by Jennifer Warnes on Shout
"Don't Take Your Time" by Erin Bode on MaxJazz
I started off really worried when I played "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" from the Cannonball Adderley tribute album, Cannon Reloaded. The bass was indistinct, with few overtones and just showing a one-note quality. The bass on this cut is Marcus Miller playing some really tasty electric bass, with lots of energy and pop. It was lacking all those.
After that I pulled out the Jennifer Warnes CD and played the "If It Be Your Will" cut which has extensive, low, bass synthesizer. On the DALIs it lacked definition and detail. I just sounded like a low sine wave being switched on and off, with no character.
Listening to the DALIs with several vocals, with more typical, higher bass and things were pretty good, with great imaging, rich midrange and high-end details.
When I expressed my concerns to Soundings' Mark Krekeler he suggested that we put the Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Baby Grands into the system. There was immediate nirvana. Now Marcus Miller's bass was rich with overtones and details. The synth on the Warnes CD now had texture and detail, not just sine waves.
Now I could really listen the amp and not be drawn to focusing on what I wasn't hearing in the particular speakers attached.
Several cuts on the "Strike a Deep Chord" were very revealing. The richness of Odetta's voice has absolutely powerful. The chest and head were clearly revealed. Most striking was Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown's which features extreme dynamics, from almost silent to huge sections of bass, guitar, vocal, horns and drums. The quiet was almost totally black.
The highs had no extra edge. I was really surprised by this, given the low hours on the amp. Clarence plays with a piercing tone on "The Drifter". (We guitar players call this tone, "icepick-in-the-eye" bright). Well it was all there, but not ugly. I didn't detect any of the usual "new equipment needs burn-in syndrome" so if this things gets better with time I'll be VERY, VERY pleased.
That's all for now. I need to get it into my own system, in my own room, burn it in for a few hundred more hours, then spend three or four several hour sessions to get more conclusive. I'll hang onto the Conrad Johnson CA200 long enough to do some meaningful comparisons. (Watch for a great deal on A'gon in the not too distant future).
Here's the bottom line, I loved the Continuum 500 enough that I'll be taking a $8800 or so check to Soundings this Friday.
Dave
Associated gear
Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Baby Grand speakers
Analysis Solo Crystal Oval 8 speaker cable
Pro-ject RM10 turntable
Sumiko Blackbird cartridge
Pioneer Dv-58AV universal player modified by Ric Schultz
Similar products
Conrad Johnson CA200
Bryston 2/2B amp/preamplifier
Jeff Rowland 501 mono blocks
Jeff Rowland 102 stereo amp
Preliminary, limited review --
I haven't even taken delivery of my Continuum 500 integrated amplifier yet, but I got to listen for 3-hours this afternoon to help with the decision to put down $8,800 to take it home.
My dealer is Soundings, South of Denver, Colorado, owned and operated by Rod Tomson with the very able assistance of this very knowledgeable crew. See the Soundings site at http://www.soinc1021.qwestoffice.net/
When I arrived at Soundings the Continuum 500 was driving the very nice DALI Helicon 400 Mk.2 speakers. This are very nice speakers that received a positive review from Michael Fremer in Stereophile recently.
I listened to several cuts from the following CDs:
"Strike A Deep Chord" on Justice Records
"Cannon Reloaded" on Concord
"Breakfast on the Morning Tram" by Stacey Kent on Concord
"Famous Blue Raincoat" by Jennifer Warnes on Shout
"Don't Take Your Time" by Erin Bode on MaxJazz
I started off really worried when I played "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" from the Cannonball Adderley tribute album, Cannon Reloaded. The bass was indistinct, with few overtones and just showing a one-note quality. The bass on this cut is Marcus Miller playing some really tasty electric bass, with lots of energy and pop. It was lacking all those.
After that I pulled out the Jennifer Warnes CD and played the "If It Be Your Will" cut which has extensive, low, bass synthesizer. On the DALIs it lacked definition and detail. I just sounded like a low sine wave being switched on and off, with no character.
Listening to the DALIs with several vocals, with more typical, higher bass and things were pretty good, with great imaging, rich midrange and high-end details.
When I expressed my concerns to Soundings' Mark Krekeler he suggested that we put the Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Baby Grands into the system. There was immediate nirvana. Now Marcus Miller's bass was rich with overtones and details. The synth on the Warnes CD now had texture and detail, not just sine waves.
Now I could really listen the amp and not be drawn to focusing on what I wasn't hearing in the particular speakers attached.
Several cuts on the "Strike a Deep Chord" were very revealing. The richness of Odetta's voice has absolutely powerful. The chest and head were clearly revealed. Most striking was Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown's which features extreme dynamics, from almost silent to huge sections of bass, guitar, vocal, horns and drums. The quiet was almost totally black.
The highs had no extra edge. I was really surprised by this, given the low hours on the amp. Clarence plays with a piercing tone on "The Drifter". (We guitar players call this tone, "icepick-in-the-eye" bright). Well it was all there, but not ugly. I didn't detect any of the usual "new equipment needs burn-in syndrome" so if this things gets better with time I'll be VERY, VERY pleased.
That's all for now. I need to get it into my own system, in my own room, burn it in for a few hundred more hours, then spend three or four several hour sessions to get more conclusive. I'll hang onto the Conrad Johnson CA200 long enough to do some meaningful comparisons. (Watch for a great deal on A'gon in the not too distant future).
Here's the bottom line, I loved the Continuum 500 enough that I'll be taking a $8800 or so check to Soundings this Friday.
Dave
Associated gear
Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Baby Grand speakers
Analysis Solo Crystal Oval 8 speaker cable
Pro-ject RM10 turntable
Sumiko Blackbird cartridge
Pioneer Dv-58AV universal player modified by Ric Schultz
Similar products
Conrad Johnson CA200
Bryston 2/2B amp/preamplifier
Jeff Rowland 501 mono blocks
Jeff Rowland 102 stereo amp
- ...
- 55 posts total
Here's a follow-up on the little $355 phono stage now that it's got between 150 and 200-hours: My first impression still holds, it's very transparent, revealing and sweet. The quietness is incredible, no different than the line-stage with the universal player. Perhaps a not-so-great recording made it most clear how deep that I can look into the music. On the advice of a friend here on A'gon, I bought Decca's Solti/CSO performance of Beethoven's 9th. The performance is indeed amazing, with Solti milking the great orchestra for all it's worth. Unfortunately, the balance is very unnatural, with the chorus dominating the orchestra and the strings dominating the brass. In the real world this doesn't happen. I much prefer the RCA CSO recordings, mostly with Reiner. They've got a concert-like balance. With my Pro-ject Tube Box SE phono-stage the Solti performance just seemed homogenized and I couldn't really make out the brass with any clarity. With the Rowland I can "listen through" and hear everything in detail. Yeah, Bud Herseth was present blowing his brains out on first trumpet. Farkus was there on horn and Arnold was there on tuba. Of course the balance was still not right, but I could hear every detail through this very dense recording. Listening to Ella and Joe Pass on the fantastic reissue of the Pablo's "Take Love Easy". The pressings are incredibly quiet 45 rpm. Ella's late-career voice is rich and details. The details of Joe's playing on acoustic guitar (he alternates between acoustic and electric)are incredible, including his fingers on the strings, the air around the strings and the woodyness of the guitar body. On Eva Cassady's "Songbird" album, the reverb is more etherial. This is a great album, with very mixed production values. Much of it was originally recorded in Eva's home studio (her bedroom, I understand) and then production was layered on after her untimely death. You hear the piezo pickups of her guitar into her prosumer recording deck, then you hear pro-studio effects added on, with strings here, electric guitar there, etc. I heard this stuff with the Pro-ject, but it's now crystal clear, like I'm listening to the master. Maybe you're worried that something so revealing may be TOO etched and detailed. Well somehow the Continuum's phono-stage stays sweet. The highs are accurate and detailed, but not overly emphasized. BTW, so you don't have to look up my system, I'm using a Pro-ject RPM10 TT with the Speed Box II and a Sumiko Blackbird high output MC cartridge. This rig is at the point I consider to be entry level high-end, equivalent to say the VPI Scoutmaster. Dave |
Here's another follow-up. The top of my C500 is hot to the touch. You can hold your hand on it, but it gets uncomfortable after a few seconds. When we visited his shop in Colorado Springs (see JRDG Tour) I guessed that the temp was 130-degrees and asked Jeff if this was an issue. He said it's not where close to a problem. He said that the C500 runs hotter than the C250, because the PFC units in the 500 generate some heat. Today I actually measured the warmth at 120-degrees with the armoire door closed. Lots of ICEpower units are cool to the touch and I've heard stories of one or two Continuum 500 owners being concerned about the heat, so I wanted to discuss this issue here. Dave |
On a related topic, see Guido's Rowland Capri update at Guido's Capri Review |
I have had the Continuum 500 in my 2nd system for a couple of months now. It replaced an Accuphase E308. All i can say is wow! It was as I had washed the windows. Very revealing. This amp is definately better than a lot of more expensive separates out there! Very musical, dynamic and powerful, but never hard or edgy. Sounds close to the real event. Other equipment in this system: Modwright transporter, Audio Physic Virgo 5 speakers, Synergistic Research Tesla APEX interconnect and Tesla Precision Reference speaker cables. |
- 55 posts total