@last_lemming Soundstage/ultra audio and feel the music both reviewed the SE version albeit they did not directly compare to the standard version. The only difference related to SQ was two capacitors in the coax feed. These are Clarity Cap SAs which Rob Gillum has at Coherent Source Service. I think you will find this a worthwhile upgrade. But these have now been surpassed by two generations of Clarity Caps.
This is a *really* long thread to slog thru but maybe start January 2018 when Tom Thiel started posting. Mr. Thiel is working on crossover upgrades for legacy Thiels and the CS2.4 is among the first models getting his attention. He is planning Clarity CSAs in the coax feeds, probably with 1% Multicap bypasses. Other caps are also likely to be CSAs including a custom low voltage cap in the shunt positions.
Resistors will be Mills MRA 12s. I replaced my OEM resistors with Mills. Here are my comments copied from elsewhere in this thread: “the Mills has a fuller, richer sound although my perception of this varied from song to song. I heard little, if any, difference on solo trumpet but a pronounced difference on the well-recorded 2L Mozart violin concerto. Guitars and voices were more "full-bodied" on folk-rock, blues, and bluegrass. More “tonally-rich” might be another way to describe it. On a Chesky test recording, percussions were more emotionally engaging, toe-tapping. The Mills also seems to have a bit more texture or, at least, it was easier to hear into the microdynamics. I think this is related to my initial impression of a "lower noise floor”.”
This is a *really* long thread to slog thru but maybe start January 2018 when Tom Thiel started posting. Mr. Thiel is working on crossover upgrades for legacy Thiels and the CS2.4 is among the first models getting his attention. He is planning Clarity CSAs in the coax feeds, probably with 1% Multicap bypasses. Other caps are also likely to be CSAs including a custom low voltage cap in the shunt positions.
Resistors will be Mills MRA 12s. I replaced my OEM resistors with Mills. Here are my comments copied from elsewhere in this thread: “the Mills has a fuller, richer sound although my perception of this varied from song to song. I heard little, if any, difference on solo trumpet but a pronounced difference on the well-recorded 2L Mozart violin concerto. Guitars and voices were more "full-bodied" on folk-rock, blues, and bluegrass. More “tonally-rich” might be another way to describe it. On a Chesky test recording, percussions were more emotionally engaging, toe-tapping. The Mills also seems to have a bit more texture or, at least, it was easier to hear into the microdynamics. I think this is related to my initial impression of a "lower noise floor”.”
"I hear more bass impact, a more spacious soundstage, and, especially, an ease of presentation. The MRAs even seem to have mitigated a somewhat “glassy” quality in the midrange."
If you are itching to upgrade, get the SAs from CSS and Mills resistors from Sonic Craft. Otherwise, wait a few more months and get the full kit from Tom Thiel/CSS after the upgrade is finalized.