A blast from the past came last Sunday. I'd already decided to buy the Leema and the chap who bought my RS6s and A65+ a few months ago has oddly developed into a friendship - we've been out a couple of times for drink. He has become a hi-fi crank (in the nicest possible way), and he could talk the hind legs off a Lama...so Sunday I decided to cheekily phone him and ask whether I could borrow my old RS6s - he agreed
Firstly, the Pulse weighs a ton. It looks absolutely gorgeous, modern and with the inputs and built-in phono stage, it's everything I've been looking for and some... but would the sound reflect its five star rating? The simple answer is YES.
As most of you know, when I heard it back last Septemberish and again earlier this year, I was bowled over by the sound. I was, however, concerned how that would translate in my medium-sized living room. As soon as the blue facia lights started flashing and I placed the first CD in, all my concerns evaporated: The sound is immensely controlled; the bass is very punchy without the heavy handedness of the Arcam. The most striking thing about the overall sound is how dynamic the Leema is. Spinning some Hendrix (Voodoo Doll) and the ebb and flow of the bass and the instruments is jaw dropping.
To appease the OH (that's another story) I put on her Norah Jones album "Don't know Why", and the title track, and the detail expelled was brilliant; she has a breathy voice, alongside the subtle details of the piano and bass guitar was a complete revelation.
Over a six hour period, I tried every concievable style of music in my library to catch the Leema out - I failed miserably.
However, with so much control over the bass has posed another, fairly significant problem: I'm (or was) determined to buy stand mounted, but listening to the Pulse has made me rethink. On the basis of what I've heard I'm thinking PMC GB1is, Spendor A5... however, for the timebeing, I'm just going to enjoy my new amp (RS6s have gone back to their rightful owner so I'm using my old Wharfedales
).