Rowland 625

I have heard the Corus coupled with the 312 : excellent but I couldn't make a direct comparation with the Criterion or the Capri. It seems that it's the same that the Criterion but without the battery part.

My dealer already sold two !! ... one buyer had a AR Ref 3 and replaced it with the Corus ... the other one I don't know

question about the 625 . is it making noise when switching on or of ?

yes the price in Europe are just disgusting !
Criterion in Swiss francs 27'000 .- yes it's completely crazy
Corus 16'500 .-
1 swiss franc = 1.05 $

by the way I heard dCS Puccini + Clock, Rowland Criterion + 312 on Magnepan 1,7 ... huge resolution, I have never heard the space where the recording sessions has taken place like this before ... I was shocked ...

I hope the 625 is really that good, I don't like the idea of being able to prepare my eggs & bacon on it for breakfast ;-)

Clavil, by coincidence I did try the on/off procedure on M625 for those very same reasons..... I could not hear anything what so ever from the speakers when I switch M625 to operation and then back to standby. Conversely, I always hear a very faint click from the right speaker when I turn on M312. Kawika is more qualified than I am to report on M625 powerup/down noises.... as he has an M625 at home.

Corus is much closer technologically to Criterion than it is to Capri. Did you see the used Criterion from Europe currently offered on Audiogon? Excellent price!

G.

Clavil, no clicking output to speakers when power switch is cycled on/off/on. Don't worry about the resolution of the 625. It will way outperform the 312!

There was a question re the Corus pre-amp. I have owned the Corus for two months following an upgrade from Synergy IIi.
As compared to the Synergy, the Corus is more transparent, quieter, images more precisely and has deeper cleaner bass.
I really enjoyed the Synergy IIi which was I felt was very musical despite being fairly neutral. In retrospect I think the Synergy emphasized the mid-bass a bit as compared to the Corus which simply goes deeper without undue emphasis anywhere across the frequency range.
One caveat is the long run-in time – 1000+ hours – I was concerned when I initially plugged the Corus in and it sounded a bit “off”. Fortunately Guidocorona impression’s of the Criterion break-in was helpful. Also see search the very helpful JDRG Knowledgebase for “break-in”.
If there is one word the sums up the sound of the Corus to me it is “holographic” – in terms of providing precise 3D images that surprises by revealing the normally hidden music nuances.
BTW, the design of Corus is virtually the same as the Criterion except for the absence of battery power supply (compare internal pictures of the Corus and Criterion). I bought the Corus (without opportunity to audition) because of it’s overall mix of features (dual pre-amp paths),close to state-of-art JDRG preamp design and positive reviews of Criterion (assuming that the Corus is a very similar design). Fortunately the Corus has lived up to expectations.