gasolin
Well-known member
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
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
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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!
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!
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nopiano
Well-known member
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!
manicm
Well-known member
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.
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