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System Plateau - Ideas?

The last time I plateau’d was
Rega RP6 (Ortofon Black) > Musical Surroundings Nova II > Line Magnetic 518ia > DeVore O/93 

2 changes, more recently:
1. Switched amplification to
DeHavilland Ultraverve III (Dueland Special) > FirstWatt Aleph J
2. Also replaced Ortofon Black with a Hana ML.

Overall very nice, but I feel I’m missing a bit of “edge”.
One direction I’ve been leaning is single driver (researching Omega). Another direction would be rethinking amplification. Has anyone plateau’d here? What did you try?

Of course, everything sounds perfectly fine as is :)

Cheers,
John
dotchaos
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Overall very nice, but I feel I’m missing a bit of “edge”.

When listening to someone standing right in front of you talking, do you feel you are missing a bit of an "edge"? Just how much of "a bit of an edge" do you hear in real live music? My bet is, whatever that is, you're already hearing about a hundred times as much.
dotchaos OP
7 posts
 
 @millercarbon thanks for the push around "edge". That wasn't the right word at all. I think what I'm missing is the fullness/roundness of the Line Magnetic. The slightly "thinner" sound of the current set up leaves me wanting a bit. What I've gained is a more even overall presentation and better sense of control. As @decooney put it well, this is likely a lot to do with the trade-offs between tubes and SS. Agree that I'm not missing "an edge" :)
dotchaos OP
7 posts
 
@decooney I won't let go of the FirstWatt, also won't let go of the Line Magnetic (at least until I can afford the 845 premium). I did take the LM as far as I could with tube selection, but didn't get to playing around with caps at all.
audition__audio
1,304 posts
 
I really dislike Rega tables and it is quite possible that you are not getting nearly the performance out of your cartridge as is possible. A friend recently switched from a Regar 6 to the entry level Kuzma setup and the increase in detail was startling. He uses a Benz Wood cartride. Never heard a First Watt amp that sounded overly lively. In fact none of your components would be on the bright side. Better cables is a good idea if you are using stock.  
dotchaos OP
7 posts
 
@audition__audio do you have a preferred brand you'd recommend, for cables? I'm using ICs from an Etsy outfit called Amplifier Surgery, Blue Jean speaker cables. All very low-budget. Forgot to mention that I've been looking to upgrade the turntable, as well. Haven't seen a clear next choice, there (many options). 
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