My new Cambridge Audio CXA81 mkII lacks bass. Now what?

[Steinwaytune]

@gasolin In the studio I turned the volume considerably lower, to the volume I would listen at home (like @Noddy I never really turn the volume up, except once or twice for classical pieces).
@nopiano You did reassure me. I merely tried to add this reassurence... 🙂

 

[gasolin]

Was just curious but i see many speakers when i look at reviews go down to under 4 ohm and also 3 ohm

Q Acoustics 5050 down to 3 ohm, Sonus Faber Sonetto V G2, 2.78 ohm, SVS Ultra Evolution Pinnacle 2.35 ohm

As long as you don't use a small under powered amp you will be fine

 

[Steinwaytune]

Yes, my new Sonus Faber Lumina V Amator loudspeakers have arrived!
And with them, an EverSolo DMP-A6 streamer to complete my system with the Arcam A15 integrated amplifier. Here is a first impression-review.

I already had an AudioQuest Yukon interface between my CD-player and amp, and I connected that to the streamer. To complete all this, I now have Qobuz HiRes for streaming and see that I have never used my CD-player since anymore...

After 2 weeks and the first 100 hours of listening to this new audio system I can say that I am overwhelmed by the quality of sound. Somewhere above I sighed that on my audio system I would never get near the sound of my Steinway grand piano. But... it really comes very close now!

Writing this, I listen to Schuberts Moments Musicaux and Imromptus, played by Maria Joao Pires (in HiRes). I can easily compare my (A180 - room sized) Steinway with that of the album (which surely will be the Steinway D - tallest concert grand), because I play the easier half of those pieces myself.

What I hear is that the highs, mids and lows are very well balanced, having a really open, never tiring sound.
The highest 2 octaves of the piano sound nearly the same as in real on my piano (should be even more clear and powerful being played on a concert grand, but hey, it is remarkable, that they sound so much like the real one).
The mids are very much enjoyable, maybe a tiny bit more away from my real grand, but still so close that it is never disturbing at all. The basses (long ago the reason I started this thread) are very good and satisfying full and clear. Like the mids, not so close to the true sound as the highs. But to conclude my review on this system for piano music: it is far better than I thought I would ever hear in my living room.

But there is a lot more to listen to than piano alone. To find new music, I feeded ChatGTP some 25 singers and bands that I liked in my younger days and asked for comparable singers/acts, but with a new album released in 2015 or later. That worked wonderfully!
I'm ashamed I had never heard of Ben Folds, Damien Jurado, Dawes, Fleet Foxes, Brandi Carlile or The Lone Bellow. But now their music flows vibrantly from my speakers. Clear, full, with elastic basses - a real joy to listen to.

I was fully blown away by the clear appearance of Ravel's Bolero (Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bernard Haitink). This piece of music is very soft at the beginning and loudly swirling and swaying at the end. But for testing your audio, the interesting thing is that the melody is played in turns by I think every instrument in the orchestra, later combining them untill the whole orchestra play it loud. I must say, I had to turn up the volume first and lower it later, but I can only say I was blown away by the clearness of every instrument. All differences in warmth, sharpness, clearness, whatever you would name it, was very well rendered by the Luminar V Amators.

Overall, the most striking impression I have of this audio system is that music, because of the open sound, never becomes tiring. For me, that was certainly different in the past. Now, a peaceful calm prevails, regardless of the rhythm or volume level.

So this is what it is. I started this thread blaming Cambridge Audio CXA81 mkII for producing far less basses on my Dali Oberon 5's than my old Arcam A80 did. I must confess (already did before) that this was only half fair to the Cambridge, as the Oberons might have been the weaker part. Maybe the Cambridge even was a class too high for the Oberons. And my older Arcam A80 had sound control with which I had the basses turned on +1, and now and then on +2.

You witnessed me turning over my whole audio system. I have tried not to conceal my lack of knowledge, or to erase the wrong decisions I made on my journey. The one question that lightly burns in my brain is if the Cambridge Audio CXA81 mkII had been an even better choice instead of the Arcam A15 with the rest of my new system. Well, I’ll never know, and perhaps it’s better that way.

For me the journey ends well here. Thank you for accompanying me and, above all, for guiding me on the right course!

 

[nopiano]

All differences in warmth, sharpness, clearness, whatever you would name it, was very well rendered by the Luminar V Amators.

Great write up, thanks. Your description reminds me very much of my first Sonus fabers in 1998. They were called the Concerto Grand Piano, believe it or not, and were some of the first speakers finished in gloss black. That later became widespread, but was rare at the time.

I’m delighted for you!

 

[Steinwaytune]

Thank you, @nopiano !

 

[manicm]

So this is what it is. I started this thread blaming Cambridge Audio CXA81 mkII for producing far less basses on my Dali Oberon 5's than my old Arcam A80 did. I must

As you said it may have been the combination of the amp and the speaker. I just watched a Youtuber a few days ago suggesting the CXA81 Mk2 doesn't pair well with a bright/lean speaker. The Lumina is an ace speaker and may well have been a good match, but you've found a great system and that's what matters.

 

[Steinwaytune]

@manicm You are right, I am really glad with this system. Thank you for your support!

 

[trebor1594]

Thank you very much for your concise answers, @jetblack9090 and @Fandango Andy!

So, patience from my side could let the amplifier develop more bass. This makes sense to me, at least I know that speakers have the same habit. For amps, that is new to me. On the other side, I'm afraid the lack of bass is so large, that it might be too much to hope for.

And yes, I do like the Cambridge very much in its clearness and precision. So I understand a subwoofer wouldn't be a bad idea. But then again I'm not looking for a sub that is designed for explosions in movies. If in the end it is going to be a sub, it should be one that suits the Cambridge/Oberon5 combination for classical music as well as not too heavy rock&roll. I could surely use some advice on that.

I have chosen the Dali Oberon 5 after reading the What Hi-Fi review. Reading it again I see the implicated warning for larger rooms... Would the Arcam A15 produce really a lot more bass in the Dali Oberon5's?

Tone Control indeed can unbalance the music 'evilly', I'm very well aware of that. I just had to add a little bass on my old Arcam. But what Paul McGowen says about learning to listen again, and what to listen, makes a lot of sense. And tomorrow I will surely try repositioning the speakers.

Thank you for reading all this and for your help so far!

I had aecactly the same problem . I bought a Rel TX7 and have never looked back -it will integrate perfectly and make your system sound fuller and warmer . They need a lot of setting up but its definately worth it . They are £900 so you maybe thinking "i could get better speakers for that " but your not going to get a huge increase in performance that the sub gives -plus it will be an investment as it will enhance any speakers you buy in the future -thats my thought s -i had the Oberons 5's as well - ive now got Rubikore 2 's and the sub has improved them as well .

 

[BadGuitarist]

I swapped my bass-light Cambridge amp for a Marantz PM7000N. I’ve paired it with a pair of Wharfedale Super Dentons and haven’t looked back.
I used a sub with the Cambridge amp to try and increase the bass, but didn’t like the results, so swapped the amp out first.
I found the Cambridge amp to be so bass light and analytical that I didn’t enjoy the sound, and the sub didn’t help.
Also, I prefer twiddly knobs to button menus, so my decision was easy. Now, I have a much more enjoyable system rather than a bass-light analytical sound.

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

I had aecactly the same problem . I bought a Rel TX7 and have never looked back -it will integrate perfectly and make your system sound fuller and warmer . They need a lot of setting up but its definately worth it . They are £900 so you maybe thinking "i could get better speakers for that " but your not going to get a huge increase in performance that the sub gives -plus it will be an investment as it will enhance any speakers you buy in the future -thats my thought s -i had the Oberons 5's as well - ive now got Rubikore 2 's and the sub has improved them as well .

You can edit your content - no need to report it.

 

[PeteS]

Following What Hi-Fi for a few years, I'm new to the forum.

This week I bought a Cambridge Audio CXA81 mkII amp to match my 9 month old Dali Oberon 5 speaker set. Its incredibly precise and open character is a real pleasure.

But... I now found out that this combination lacks bass a lot in my bigger room. My just passed away 21 years old Arcam A85 had the possibility to add bass, but the Cambridge doesn't have that.

So now I have a dilemma to solve:
- add a subwoofer (but which...?)
- sell the Oberon 5 and buy another pair of speakers (but which...?)
- return the Cambridge and swap it for like a Marantz PM7000N or an Arcam A15, or... another amp (but which...?)
- or...?
My budget is £ 1.250 max.

My gut feeling says: add a subwoofer of get heavier speakers, but I have no idea what is the best option... I would really appreciate your advice!

I used to have that amp, it was a little bright, but my speakers at the time (Kef ls50 meta) combined with my small room, made a lot of bass. Maybe tweaking speaker positions might help a bit? I did use a Rel T-zero 3 for a bit with this set up, was more than enough to fill out the bottom end to neighbour annoying levels.

 

[nopiano]

I used to have that amp, it was a little bright, but my speakers at the time (Kef ls50 meta) combined with my small room, made a lot of bass. Maybe tweaking speaker positions might help a bit? I did use a Rel T-zero 3 for a bit with this set up, was more than enough to fill out the bottom end to neighbour annoying levels.

You’ll see he was sorted back in December, but that requires reading before writing. 😉

Welcome to the forum!