Rega Elicit R - worthwhile upgrade?

josh05

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Hey guys, I love the sound of my current setup but after reading a fair chunk of stevebrock's thread I'm curious. Would anyone know if this amp would be a worthwhile upgrade for me? is it a similar sound to the brio r but with more power for a better soundstage, imaging etc? I know the amp is worth twice the price of my speakers so that alone tells me maybe my speakers won't be able to show off enough of the amps potential to make it a worthwhile upgrade? With a bit of luck I should be able to demo it in a few months as I have a dealer in town here that stocks Rega, until then though it would be great if anyone could help out. Thanks
 

stevebrock

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Your speakers will be fine!

If anything expect the Elicit R to control them better!

I heard the Elicit R with Rega speakers costing half the price of the amp and it sounded fantastic!

I have already decided I am buying one after selling my bike which I dont use anymore!
 
josh05 said:
Hey guys, I love the sound of my current setup but after reading a fair chunk of stevebrock's thread I'm curious. Would anyone know if this amp would be a worthwhile upgrade for me? is it a similar sound to the brio r but with more power for a better soundstage, imaging etc? I know the amp is worth twice the price of my speakers so that alone tells me maybe my speakers won't be able to show off enough of the amps potential to make it a worthwhile upgrade? With a bit of luck I should be able to demo it in a few months as I have a dealer in town here that stocks Rega, until then though it would be great if anyone could help out. Thanks

The best thing to do is to audition the Elicit with your RX6s. On something that seems, according to the review, to be more agile and open than the Brio-R I'd certainly recommend dem dem dem...

I wouldn't be concerned about the MAs quality, the caveat for me would there tonal balance.
 

josh05

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awesome! now I can't wait even more to hear it! hopefully my dealer will have one in soon so I can bring one home for a listen. I have a feeling though they won't have one in for a while being a small shop in a small town. it will be interesting to see how good the DAC in the Saturn R is compared to the Rega DAC as well :)
 

BigH

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stevebrock said:
how good the DAC in the Saturn R is compared to the Rega DAC as well

cant see it being much different

Probably the same. Just looked it up and this is what Rega say about the Saturn R cdp: " The CD player section will benefit from the use of the dual Wolfson WM8742 DAC’s used in the digital to analogue conversion stage found in the hugely successful Rega DAC."
 

Frank Harvey

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The Elicit-R is certainly a fair step up over the Brio-R, and will do a much better job with your speakers. I would audition though, as the Elicit is a little more forward sounding, which along with the RX6's relatively bright top end might be a little too much for some. I would also try the Arcam A38, which I feel would suit the RX6's much better, but try them both and see how you get on.
 

stevebrock

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I demoed the Elicit R with an RP6/Exact - it was beautiful - god knows how it sounds with the Aria phono stage!

An Elicit R, RP6 and Aria would be a kick ass set up - then choose an MC Cart of your choice!
 
stevebrock said:
An Elicit R, RP6 and Aria would be a kick ass set up - then choose an MC Cart of your choice!

Hi stevebrock

It is a kick ass set up 8) An Apheta cartridge is the icing on an exceedingly good cake
smiley-smile.gif


All the best

Rick @ Musicraft
 

empacher

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David@FrankHarvey said:
....the Elicit is a little more forward sounding, which along with the RX6's relatively bright top end might be a little too much for some.

Interesting. That may be a challenge for me. I'm thinking that I need to focus my search on slightly warmer, laid back amps, but I guess only a demo will help me know for sure. Looking forward to a bit of a comparison to the XS2.
 

stevebrock

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empacher said:
David@FrankHarvey said:
....the Elicit is a little more forward sounding, which along with the RX6's relatively bright top end might be a little too much for some.

Interesting. That may be a challenge for me. I'm thinking that I need to focus my search on slightly warmer, laid back amps, but I guess only a demo will help me know for sure. Looking forward to a bit of a comparison to the XS2.

Though Naim are quite forward too!

Your Totems are lovely, reckon the Elicit will grip them with some authority!
 

stevebrock

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Apheta on an RP6 - now there is a thought!

Over on VinylEngine some US peeps have been demoing that combo with good results - a lot citing that maybe an RP6 with Apheta is nearly as good as an RP8
 
empacher said:
David@FrankHarvey said:
....the Elicit is a little more forward sounding, which along with the RX6's relatively bright top end might be a little too much for some.

Interesting. That may be a challenge for me. I'm thinking that I need to focus my search on slightly warmer, laid back amps, but I guess only a demo will help me know for sure. Looking forward to a bit of a comparison to the XS2.

WHFI paired the Elicit-R with Totem Rainmakers. Should be fine IMO.
 

stevebrock

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Use the mags as a guide, the only sure way is to demo, demo & demo!

I loved the Elicit R, but when the time comes I will have to listen to an XS2 as well £1600 is a lot of dollar!
 

stevebrock

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Use the mags as a guide, the only sure way is to demo, demo & demo!

I loved the Elicit R, but when the time comes I will have to listen to an XS2 as well £1600 is a lot of dollar!
 

Frank Harvey

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empacher said:
David@FrankHarvey said:
....the Elicit is a little more forward sounding, which along with the RX6's relatively bright top end might be a little too much for some.

Interesting. That may be a challenge for me. I'm thinking that I need to focus my search on slightly warmer, laid back amps, but I guess only a demo will help me know for sure. Looking forward to a bit of a comparison to the XS2.

I'm not saying the Elicit is bright per se. Obviously the presentation of the whole system is a sum of its parts. I've found the system sounding mroe forward with the Spendor D7's and smoother and more laid back with the ProAc D30R's.

Just for clarification purposes...
 

josh05

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I'm in Tasmania, Australia Rick, not many places sell HiFi unfortunately. All of the bigger stores only stock av receiver's.

David, thanks for letting me know about the Elicits more forward sound, I only find my current setup a tad bright with certain recordings so I'll make sure I have a good listen to those albums when I get a demo of it. As for the Arcam, I most likely wouldn't be able to demo it unfortunately. Last time I was in there he had an Icon Audio tube amp connected up to some icon speakers, it sounded nice, big bass and soundstage but not detailed enough for me. maybe it would also be worth having a listen to the icon with my RX6s now I think of it if he still has one in there.
 

stevebrock

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Josh

if you find some recordings bright then it is the recording not your amp!

If you love your Brio R then you will love the Elicit R - think of it as a meatier Brio R with bigger ambitions, greater control & timing
 

josh05

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Thanks Steve, I do really love my Brio R. I had a nad 355bee before the brio which was nice but when i got the brio the first thing i noticed was how much better the Rega's stereo image was, much more 3D. Everything was better overall to my ears, im hoping the Elicit will give me a similar upgrade :) Sounds like I'll really like the Elicit. Did you find it a little more forward sounding than the Brio R like David did?
 

stevebrock

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josh05 said:
Thanks Steve, I do really love my Brio R. I had a nad 355bee before the brio which was nice but when i got the brio the first thing i noticed was how much better the Rega's stereo image was, much more 3D. Everything was better overall to my ears, im hoping the Elicit will give me a similar upgrade :) Sounds like I'll really like the Elicit. Did you find it a little more forward sounding than the Brio R like David did?

As i said previously, i have had my Brio R for a year now, it really is a lovely amp - The Elicit R is in a different league altogether - can't wait to get one! (after demoing a Nait XS2 first of course)
 

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