davemitchell

Responses from davemitchell

Pros and Cons of built-in amps?
Shadorne said:However the idea that the Best or most Prestigious Studios in the World with extremely wealthy clients would use something "just good enough to get the job done" is surely laughable.You misquoted me and completely misunderstood my po... 
Audio Research Ref 110 vs. ARC HD220
I sell both and have spent quite a bit of time listening to them side by side with Quatros. My preference is for the REF110, especially on the Quatros where I like to run the REF on the 16 ohm taps. It has plenty of power for very loud listening i... 
Pros and Cons of built-in amps?
03-23-08: Bob_reynoldsI'm always impressed with the way Dave presents his opinions as absolute truths. Readers can look at our comments and decide for themselves. It's also not just my opinion. While there can never be consensus about what the bes... 
Audio Research Ref210 vs Ref300 vs VTM200
Smoffatt,What I am describing as balanced bridged operation does not require a biwireable or biampable speaker. It actually has nothing to do with that. It means bridging an amplifier without the need for any switches or modifications. You simply ... 
Pros and Cons of built-in amps?
Audiophiles just will not give an active speaker system a chance. Could it be that it is not about the music, as they are fond of saying, but the new equipment of the month that they are so passionate about?I think there are certainly audiophiles ... 
Experts: Why is preamp important?
Others have covered what a preamp does so let's turn to what you might do with your system.In higher end systems the preamp becomes a more dominant component in determining the ultimate sound quality. Recievers and surround processors are not very... 
Audio Research Ref210 vs Ref300 vs VTM200
Dave b and I seem to have similar feelings about the sound characteristics of some ARC amps, although I actually like the VTM200 amps quite a bit so long as they are partnered with the right system and speakers to balance their less tubey sound. I... 
Audio Research Ref210 vs Ref300 vs VTM200
The three amps you ask about are all very good, but there are some noticeable differences in character. VTM200- these were a breakthrough for ARC. They had a combination of the best control and extension at the frequency extremes of any ARC amp un... 
Any info on the new Audio Research VS115 tube amp?
For the benefit of others (b/c Ebe and I communicated via email on this question) everything in the system still matters, and although I wouldn't pick a digital preamp as the perfect mate to an ARC VS115, that doesn't mean that the amp won't push ... 
Fuzzy Sound in my Audio Research SP16 Phonostage
Sounds like a static discharge might have zapped one of the microprocessors in your unit. My normal recommendation would be to disconnect and unplug the unit for a few minutes to reset everything and then plug it back in. It sounds like yours is a... 
Vandersteen 2ce Signatures vs 2ce Signature II
The 2mkII is big improvement in the most critical areas. It has the identical tweeter and patented midrange driver that the 3A Signature has along with all of the required crossover upgrades. The sound is more open/less boxy- especially in the mid... 
ARC Ref 110 vs. Ref 210
There is another great option which unfortunately doesn't work with your 4 ohm Dali speakers, but might be helpful to others with 8 ohm speaker systems. We have set up two of the REF110's in balanced bridged mode (also sometimes called push-pull).... 
Balanced Cables
Sympatico,The LS15 is a truly balanced circuit which, when used with other balanced gear, can give you common mode noise rejection benefits. Do you have a CD player with a balanced XLR output, or amplifier with XLR in? If so, than you might consid... 
REL Subwoofer Cable Upgrade?
Because the input impedance is so high (~100K ohms) the cable is really just responsible for a voltage reference. That along with the fact that it is only used down deep in the bass (below 80hz) will help to minimize the sonic contribution of the ... 
Why do amps sound different?
Danlib hit the nail on the head. Two amplifiers can measure nearly identically in all of the usual tests and yet sound significantly different. Why? Because amps are filled with passive parts like resistors and capacitors and wire that all sound d...