Roksan Power Amps – among other questions.

[admin_exported]

Hey there

Just spent the day demoing with a friend who was buying some new speakers. While I was in the shop I was made an offer for the Roksan Kandy 1 power amp which we were using to demo the Dali speakers. I was very impressed with the sound of the amp and was offered it for £300.

Couple of questions through. Firstly am I right in assuming that I could use the 7520 as a pre-amp for the Kandy?

Secondly the Kandy only had one set of speaker-out puts but I currently use two, one for the Dali’s and the other to run the xls sub ,is there any way round this? Could I for example use a product like this http://www.beresford.me/products/TC-7220.html to route the amps output to both the speakers and the sub?

Thirdly as I said I was really impressed with the sound of the Kandy but I didn’t have any faster sort of dancey, DnB CD’s with me, any thoughs on how the amp will cope when things get faster?

The amp will be used with the Lektors for a while then with the acoustic energy Neo 3’s then possible some B&W 684’s when I move house.

Many Thanks

 

[basshound]

Stevie_Blaze:the Kandy only had one set of speaker-out puts but I currently use two, one for the Dali's and the other to run the xls sub ,is there any way round this?

Did you get a Neutrik cable with your sub? If so you can use it to connect the sub to the same binding posts as the speakers,in fact BK recommend this in a stereo set up.Have a look at the subs manual for more info and connection instructions.

 

[Anonymous]

Yup i got the cable, i currently use it too connect the xls to the second set of speaker out puts on the Marantz. So i could connect it to the same speaker outputs as main speakers if i got the Kandy? Many Thanks

 

[basshound]

Stevie_Blaze:Yup i got the cable, i currently use it too connect the xls to the second set of speaker out puts on the Marantz. So i could connect it to the same speaker outputs as main speakers if i got the Kandy? Many Thanks

Yes,that`s right.In fact you could connect it to the Marantz in the same way following the instructions in the manual.Be interesting to see if you hear any difference as this is the prefered connection for a stereo set up (AFAIK)

EDIT just had look at the manual and it does say "Using the optional
Neutik lead, connect the XLS200 to the output of your amplifier via your existing speaker
plug or to a spare set of speaker terminals if available." so probably won`t make any difference after all!

 

[Anonymous]

I currently have the manual in front of me. I have the Lektors plugging via banana plugs,could i insert the xls into the same banana plugs as the Lektors? The manual makes no mention of if this is possible.

I also noticed you have the Kandy 2. How do you find it with the Dali's? Do you find it can get too bright at times? I listened to that set up today and though it was great, plenty and detail and weight. I did find it just a little too bright, but this could have been the less than ideal listing room (lots of reflective surfaces).

 

[basshound]

Stevie_Blaze:
I currently have the manual in front of me. I have the Lektors plugging via banana plugs,could i insert the xls into the same banana plugs as the Lektors? The manual makes no mention of if this is possible.

I also noticed you have the Kandy 2. How do you find it with the Dali's? Do you find it can get too bright at times? I listened to that set up today and though it was great, plenty and detail and weight. I did find it just a little too bright, but this could have been the less than ideal listing room (lots of reflective surfaces).

See my edit above re. connection.If you still want to try it just insert the bare wires into/around the binding posts and tighten.
I used to have a Kandy Mk3 amp before getting the K2 and I did find it bright at times.The K2 is also a bit bright with the Dali`s but I recently changed speaker cable from QED XT 400 to Chord Odyssey and this has toned it down a bit,assuming I`m not imagining the change but that is a whole other can of worms!

 

[Anonymous]

basshound:Stevie_Blaze:
I currently have the manual in front of me. I have the Lektors plugging via banana plugs,could i insert the xls into the same banana plugs as the Lektors? The manual makes no mention of if this is possible.

I also noticed you have the Kandy 2. How do you find it with the Dali's? Do you find it can get too bright at times? I listened to that set up today and though it was great, plenty and detail and weight. I did find it just a little too bright, but this could have been the less than ideal listing room (lots of reflective surfaces).

See my edit above re. connection.If you still want to try it just insert the bare wires into/around the binding posts and tighten.
I used to have a Kandy Mk3 amp before getting the K2 and I did find it bright at times.The K2 is also a bit bright with the Dali`s but I recently changed speaker cable from QED XT 400 to Chord Odyssey and this has toned it down a bit,assuming I`m not imagining the change but that is a whole other can of worms!

Lol don't get me started on speaker cable. Spent alot of the day switching between Silverscreen and some Nordost cable, (I'm sure the Nordost is better). I think the only way i'll be able to tell if the Roksan is going to be too birght is to ask for a home demo, if i can use the Beresford as a pre amp for it that is.

 

[basshound]

I see you have the Beresford DaC. Have you considered getting it upgraded? Had mine modded at Audio Upgrades and it made a tremendous difference to sound quality and detail,so much so that I`m considering a speaker upgrade to something like the Spendor A6`s or ATC-SCM40`s to get the best out of it.

 

[Anonymous]

Indeed i have. Considered getting it upgraded by these people - http://www.tirnaelectronics.co.uk/services/Audio.shtml Not sure which op-amps to go for though, LM4562 or THS4032. They also change the dac to a wolfson one What did you have done to yours?

 

[basshound]

Stevie_Blaze:Indeed i have. Considered getting it upgraded by these people - http://www.tirnaelectronics.co.uk/services/Audio.shtml Not sure which op-amps to go for though, LM4562 or THS4032. They also change the dac to a wolfson one What did you have done to yours?

Have a look at this page http://www.audioupgrades.co.uk/beresford7520.shtml I had the level 4 upgrade done.While this is obviously quite a bit more expensive than having just the op-amps changed I think the resulting improvement is good value for money and will withstand one or two upgrades yet to other components.Think I`d have to spend well over a grand on a dac to notice an improvement on the modded Beresford.

 

[Anonymous]

wow nice upgrade. Must of sounded like a completely new dac, did you also change the dac chip to the caiman one? The only problem is i couln't live with out my 7520 for the three weeks or however long it takes! Do you by any change know if the 7520 can be used as a preamp and would it work with the roksan power amp?

 

[basshound]

I kept the original dac chip on the advice of the guy who did the upgrade as he considered it a better sounding chip than the Caiman one but suppose that is subjective but it sounds pretty good to me!
It seems the 7520 can be used as a pre-amp this from the manual "Variable Analogue Outputs
The Left and Right outputs are standard RCA/PHONO sockets. The Left and Right
Variable outputs are controlled by the Volume Control on the front panel. In this
condition the TC-7520 can be used as a preamp" so it looks like it should work with the Kandy but would get that confirmed by someone more knowledgable than me!

 

[Anonymous]

I think it's bright because you aren't used to a more forward sounding midrange

Also definitely worth modding your Beresford 7520, the op amps and the wolfson dac make the bass notes much crisper and cleaner. I had mine done with tirna, nice friendly bloke is Jimmy, they turned the dac around quickly and the total upgrade price was very good.

Not sure if this is worth bothering with if you are going to use the Beresford as a pre amp though?

 

[Anonymous]

I think the upgrade will still be worth it as the dac is still going to be used as a dac. And i'm sure your right about the midrange, i've got a home demo set up for next week so i can compare with the warmer marantz. btw where did you get your Neo 3's from? Im currently hunting around for good prices.

 

[Anonymous]

http://www.sightandsounduk.com/catalogue/p7746/101_29/Floor%20Speakers/product.aspx?id=7746

that's the cheapest place i can find, i got mine from hifi4less when they were having a sale of them, that's gone now, but above is a good price.

 

[Anonymous]

Cool thats the best price i had found too. Don't suppose you have heard any of the Roksan products, or could comment on if the 'brighter' sound would suit the Neo 3's?

Any body else have anything to say about using the 7520 as a pre for the Kandy? Is this a complete waste of time?

 

[Anonymous]

A friend of mine has the Roksan Kandy K2 amp, I haven't heard it with the Neo's he brought it round when I had the MA BR2's, I think it definitely has a brighter sound, but it's not an aggressive sound, it's just a little more upfront which conveys a more energetic rhythm to me. The Neo's aren't a bright speaker so I think there would not be an issue there.

As for whether it's a waste of time using the 7520 as a pre, I think the answer is no, but i am assuming it can't act as a pre amp and feed the signal from the digital source at the same time.

 

[Anonymous]

I am hoping it can act as pre-amp and feed the digital signal source, otherwise what signal would it have to amplify?

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah ignore me, I am being a plank of course it can lol

 

[Craig M.]

the beresford will work as a pre amp, amplifying the incoming digital signal. whether or not it will be a good pre, i've no idea.

ahhh, the plank beat me to it!

 

[Anonymous]

lol sweet. I'll post back after the demo and let people know if the 7520 is any good as a pre-amp.

 

[Anonymous]

Haha, with the risk of sounding even more of a plank, i assume i can change my NAD C352 into just a power amp? but if so how do i do that

 

[Anonymous]

hi fi newbie:Haha, with the risk of sounding even more of a plank, i assume i can change my NAD C352 into just a power amp? but if so how do i do that

Just plug the out of the 7520 into the main in on the back of the NAD, disconnecting it from the pre out section.

 

[Anonymous]

right, but i need to select an input on the main amp?

 

[Anonymous]

hmmmmmm yes i would assume so, maybe it just bypasses that part and will play no matter what input you have it on. Not sure 2bh.