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RE: Help me pick SET monoblocks

1) it's as good a reason as any for many guys who change gear constantly.

Fred doesn't change gear constantly. Could it be because the AN preamp sounds a lot better forcing him to change...that's the reason he wrote. So are you saying he his a liar? He must be if you put in YOUR reason as a way to slam AN and support your favorites.

2) you don't like to hear that AN was outperformed so you have been going through contortions to claim our listening session was somehow invalid.

No you are welcome to your OPINIONS but for some reason your massive ego can't allow that other people are allowed theirs. Your reply to the OP wasn't even REMOTELY on topic. He owns the AN J/Spe speaker (he likes it and you don't so your ears and the OPs ears are completely different. This is why I don't comment anymore when a Magnapan owner asks for amplifier or source advice. My ears and the OPs ears DO NOT HEAR IT THE SAME. If we did I too would own a Magnepan.

""And? Is business size a function of quality now? Then Sony, Yamaha, B&W etc. make far better products than Audio Note. Really stupid...sorry it is such a stupid thing to say."""

No your retort is. Once again appeal to the mid-fi to make a point about the pinnacle of audiophile companies. Sorry your reply is stupid. Sony and Yamaha are big midfi/lowfi makers of a vast array of equipment. Perhaps you have not heard but Yamaha makes motorcycles and pianos, and Sony makes a thing called a Playstation and things called Smart Phones. These are major companies are major not just because of stereo equipment.

When one is speaking of JUST small business companies catering ONLY to audiophiles (not selling dishwashers, and bikes and video games) and are not selling lifestyle components (Bose and B&O) then you compare APPLES to APPLES. So you can compare an audiophile audio company catering to audiophiles to an audiophile company catering to audiophiles. Odeon caters to audiophiles - they are NOT selling home theater in a box - they are selling to wealthy audiophiles. Audio Note is catering to wealthy audiophiles. 2003 is baseline. Odeon has 7 dealers now zero - AN has grown four to five fold. Both cater to the EXACT same market to the EXACT same potential customer base. Holy Batsales Batman! This is so basic. Nice Strawman though.


"" My JJ322 HAS massive Hib double C Core output transformers for a retail price of 6K euro. They are a good 10Kg. Bass is tight, controlled and well defined...as one would expect with good iron. Midrange is holographic as one would expect from a good 300B design and highs are extended but delicate. Not a world beater but very good for that money. The only AN amp for 6K or less with Double C cores is the Oto Signature. ""

This is all fine - maybe I would like the JJ more as well since I like parallel 300b. But there is a thing called system synergy - I have liked one amp better in one system and liked another amp better in another system. Do you hold out ANY possibility that the JJ322 sounds better than an OTO with a horn like Odeon and that the OTO could sound better with an AN J speaker? Not even possible ever that one amp is better in certain systems and not in another? Because I certainly have come across that many times. Just auditioned Marten Speakers - really didn't care for them with Audio Note or Cary but I quite enjoyed them with Zesto. But Zesto with AN not so much - they bully the speakers.

""Clearly to do that means they are not shuttered or struggling. Your lack of knowledge is stunning.""

They went out of business in the United States. I was referring to not just Odeon but other companies you always support like Apogee. Soundhounds carried Reference 3a - people compared - they dropped Reference 3a. Two dealers here in HK carried them (including King when he was a dealer) both dealers dropped them. Reference 3a when they were called 3a also went bankrupt. I see a common theme. And I was a huge Reference 3a fan until they went to Berrylium - big downgrade - not surprised they disappeared in this market where people are born into a 9 tone language and a lot of classical music die-hards.


As for other amps - I'll try anything that is available for audition. HK is a huge audiophile market - point me to a dealer and a product that you insist beats an AN amp for around the same money. $30k Versus $15k is not a fair comparison. Should be in the ballpark.

Lastly it is not the size of the power transformer but the quality of the transformer that acts on sound quality - you can have a 70lb transformer silver wired, high C-Core whatever that sounds worse than a small EI that is designed by actual competent people. When you go into auditions and see that amp A is 250lbs and has huuuuge transformers and the next amp is 30lbs and assume the former is better - you are in a biased state.

Not everything is about massive loud dynamic impact and scale. I can buy far beefier equipment in terms of amplifier weight and transformer weight from all sorts of companies. Those attributes do not make something sound better - they may make them sound better with harder to drive speakers. They don't struggle on AN speakers - depending which AN speakers.


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