Belles Greatest Integrated ever! The Virtuoso

audiozen- I was vaguely familiar with Ascend, came across their site years ago before they offered a tower speaker. I read the EnjoyThe Music review and they certainly gave it a big thumbs up. I checked out the Ascend website, read everything on there and came away impressed. Based on your recommendation, and what I read including customer feedback and Mr. Fabrikants philosophy, single minded goal and dedication, it's a speaker that I would most definitely want to hear, whether I were to make a change or not. He sounds like he really cares, and the prices are beyond competitive. Thanks for letting me know about this speaker; my goal has always been to seek out world beater gear that is priced sensibly and that competes with the very best. If - applying the law of diminishing returns - I can achieve audio quality equal to 90% of what the supposed "state of the art" delivers, and for a fraction of the price, then I am very satisfied. 
The Belles Aria, Vandersteen 1Ci's and Rotels best CD player, with some "sweet spot" AQ speaker cables and Siltech IC are clicking all the right boxes for me, and have been for awhile. I'm listening to some female jazz vocals with a small ensemble right now and I feel like I'm right there, can hear the singer take a breath, the piano sounds real, the bass clear and tight, the Aria and speakers resolving more detail than I ever thought I would hear in my home. Piano is supposed to be a true test of a systems capabilities, and what I'm hearing sounds like the real deal. The guitar sounds like it's being played right in the room. Very balanced, no listener fatigue whatsoever do I hear.
 John Rutan steered me in the right direction, and I trust his opinion and his ability to system match. I personally like the guy, and he isn't an audiophile prima donna looking to rape and pillage people like some of these arrogant shysters out there. That doesn't mean I would never try some other brand, or consult with another dealer, but I like to return loyalty to those who have been good to me, and he's a straight shooter who has earned the following that he has built up over the years. I'm a big fan, pure and simple. 
Thanks again for the Ascend recommendation. Like I told you before, I absolutely can relate to your enthusiasm for Belles! I was a Rotel fan for many years, but wanted to take it up a few notches and get my foot in the Hi End door and Belles turned out to be a home run. I like people who go against the grain, who don't adhere to the status quo. Those with old school empathy for their customers. These are the companies I want to support. You seem to be cut from the same cloth, and what's fun about this crazy audio fixation is, to me and obviously to you, also: the pursuit and discovery of the very few brands that perform as well as the best, but are priced affordably and within reach of a lot of people, not just a select few. 

2chfreak..The one thing I like about the Sierra Towers is that they weigh only 44 pounds! The lightness of bamboo. Since bamboo is 500% stronger than MDF, it can take on much higher levels of distortion, resonance, and internal turbulence from low frequencies resulting in much better bass performance.

audiozen- Makes you wonder why more speaker aren't made from bamboo? More cost prohibitive... not in Ascends case though; their business model a lot more efficient allows for alternatives to MDF, I assume. That 44 lbs is pretty light - mine are a couple pounds lighter but the low profile Anchor stands aren't exactly light, have then filled with sand, so actually a bit heavier. The first time I picked up a bamboo cutting board, I was impressed with the solidity and density of it, thinking "they can do this with bamboo? Next time I'm eating bamboo shoots in a stir fry, I'll think off the Ascends.
I know there are some other companies using Bamboo for their speakers, can't think of them off the top of my head. Something else to do a search on! Gotta hear the Tower one of these days.

2chfreak..Check this out. A review you will thoroughly enjoy of the same
speaker I just sold in November. The Ascend Acoustics CBM-170 SE.
Click on The Sound Apprentice link. On the home page to the right, there is a list of "topics and brands" in individual boxes. Click on the one that says Ascend Acoustics, it will open up the review of the CBM-170 SE which concludes the speaker sets the standard against any other in its price range. Mind you that this is their budget small bookshelf much below the Sierra Tower, and the review is outstanding. Theres a method I use from time to time to check out gear in person during the past twenty years thats not available in my area. I'll call the manufacturer of the gear of interest, tell them I want to purchase, and ask if they have customer's in my home area that have purchased, and ask if they could call the customer, give them my contact info, to see if they wouldn't mind coming over for a listen. The results have always been positive and you wind up making a new Audio friend. Call Dave Fabrikant to set it up.

          www.thesoundapprentice.com