How much do you like your system? Pics of mine.

[Feanor]

Feanor mi man: You system looks grreat as well. Looks like you may have done a little tweaking as well? And that Pass Labs looks tasty. If it sounds any thing like Peabody's then I know you have a fine sound over there! Are you running hybrids with the Pass and ARC?

I don't have any hybrid or tube components in the chain. I would like to hear Raven's BAT preamp though.

Nor I have I much in the way of tweaks. If you look carefully at my pic you might notice Sorbothane feet under the preamp but I removed those and haven't notice any different; my shelving system as whole is a good vibration absorber. I'm now using Transparent Plus cables between the DAC and preamp; this makes a very small improvement over the BJC Belden 1505F-based cables I was using previouly.

[JohnMichael]

frenchmon since you are so pleased with your Ortofon I had to mount my OM20 today. It had been too long a time. I have to say I am glad seeing you using the Black inspired me to mount it. I was missing some detail that budget MC cartridges cannot equal.

[blackraven]

Frenchmon, the BAT is not what I would call warm. It leans a little to the warm and dark side and I wish it was a little warmer as the Pass amp is neutral as is my DAC with the new Sparko Op amps that I rolled in it. The BAT despite using 8 tubes is described by pro reviewers as being almost solid state like in some respects but with a hint of tube sound and the midrange of a tube amp.

I use to be a big fan of detail, resolution and neutral sound but my tastes have evolved and I prefer a warmer more romantic sound, hence my interest in Box Speakers like PSB and Dyn's. Although I have not ruled out the newer Magnepans.

I might even buy the Dyn's or PSB and keep my 1.6's hooked up and use a speaker selector so that I can switch back and forth depending upon the music or my preference at the time. This would be the most ideal situation but the wife may take some convincing.

Feanor, you would love the BAT. Its fast, dynamic with explosive bass with excellent control and more detail than my Pass X1 preamp. It has a lush and liquid midrange and slightly softer highs. The sound stage is huge as is the front to back depth and height of the music.

I would love to hear the BAT with a Pass X250.5 or 0.8 amp. I may eventually upgrade to the X250.5 as used prices come down. I would have no problem selling the X250. When I called Pass with some questions about the amp they said the X250.5 much better than the X250.

I hate tinkering with my system but I love it at the same time. I probably would not even be considering any of this if I were not planning on selling my boat next spring. My daughter will also be done with Nursing school and I will have an extra $1500 a month that I was sending her.

[frenchmon]

Frenchmon, the BAT is not what I would call warm. It leans a little to the warm and dark side and I wish it was a little warmer as the Pass amp is neutral as is my DAC with the new Sparko Op amps that I rolled in it. The BAT despite using 8 tubes is described by pro reviewers as being almost solid state like in some respects but with a hint of tube sound and the midrange of a tube amp.

I use to be a big fan of detail, resolution and neutral sound but my tastes have evolved and I prefer a warmer more romantic sound, hence my interest in Box Speakers like PSB and Dyn's. Although I have not ruled out the newer Magnepans.

I might even buy the Dyn's or PSB and keep my 1.6's hooked up and use a speaker selector so that I can switch back and forth depending upon the music or my preference at the time. This would be the most ideal situation but the wife may take some convincing.

Feanor, you would love the BAT. Its fast, dynamic with explosive bass with excellent control and more detail than my Pass X1 preamp. It has a lush and liquid midrange and slightly softer highs. The sound stage is huge as is the front to back depth and height of the music.

I would love to hear the BAT with a Pass X250.5 or 0.8 amp. I may eventually upgrade to the X250.5 as used prices come down. I would have no problem selling the X250. When I called Pass with some questions about the amp they said the X250.5 much better than the X250.

I hate tinkering with my system but I love it at the same time. I probably would not even be considering any of this if I were not planning on selling my boat next spring. My daughter will also be done with Nursing school and I will have an extra $1500 a month that I was sending her.

First time I've heard the BAT described in that way.

[blackraven]

First time I've heard the BAT described in that way.

Don't get me wrong. The BAT has a tube sound, but it is not as tubey and warm as most tube preamps that I have heard. And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

[Glen B]

I'm running three systems, 2-channel, HT, and party, already listed here with pictures: https://www.avforums.com/threads/wha...668694/page-11

[Jack in Wilmington]

Don't get me wrong. The BAT has a tube sound, but it is not as tubey and warm as most tube preamps that I have heard. And that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Could that be attributed to your running a SS amp vs a tube amp?

I've swapped in different amps into my system since I added the Cary preamp, so that I could listen for the nuances in sound. I've had the following.


ARC Reference 150 (warmer but not overly so)

Ayre V-5xe ( a little more analytical.)

Krell Duo 125 ( not as much bass slam as the Pass)

Bryston 4B-SST ( a lot like the Ayre)

These were all on a weekend or two and my dealer wanted to see how his gear compared to the Pass gear as much as comparing his gear to each other.

[blackraven]

Could that be attributed to your running a SS amp vs a tube amp?

I've swapped in different amps into my system since I added the Cary preamp, so that I could listen for the nuances in sound. I've had the following.


ARC Reference 150 (warmer but not overly so)

Ayre V-5xe ( a little more analytical.)

Krell Duo 125 ( not as much bass slam as the Pass)

Bryston 4B-SST ( a lot like the Ayre)

These were all on a weekend or two and my dealer wanted to see how his gear compared to the Pass gear as much as comparing his gear to each other.

I think some of it has to do with my DAC, Maggies and my room acoustics (wood floors, lots of big windows and French doors on 1 wall). The Pass seems to be neutral. But reviews of the VK-51se have stated that it is not an overly tubey preamp. That is one of the things that reviewers liked about it. It has just enough warmth and darkness. My tastes have changed and I like a slightly warmer sound. I think having a Pass X250.5 would help the sound.

When I bought the BAT, I was really hoping to find a BAT VK-32se as it is a little more tubey. It's a lower model but newer and has different electronic's. I spoke with Victor at BAT and he stated this and prefers the sound of the VK-32se. He stated that it does not necessarily have better or worse sound, it is just different.

With that being said, I am still very happy with the BAT and it will be the preamp that I use for many years to come. (I am just being nit-picky and overly critical of my system)

Glen B. You have a very nice system. I love the look of your Denon TT. How do you like the PSB speakers?

[frenchmon]

frenchmon since you are so pleased with your Ortofon I had to mount my OM20 today. It had been too long a time. I have to say I am glad seeing you using the Black inspired me to mount it. I was missing some detail that budget MC cartridges cannot equal.

Well we know the Ortofon Carts have plenty of detail. I love the 2M Black.

[frenchmon]

I don't have any hybrid or tube components in the chain. I would like to hear Raven's BAT preamp though.

Nor I have I much in the way of tweaks. If you look carefully at my pic you might notice Sorbothane feet under the preamp but I removed those and haven't notice any different; my shelving system as whole is a good vibration absorber. I'm now using Transparent Plus cables between the DAC and preamp; this makes a very small improvement over the BJC Belden 1505F-based cables I was using previouly.

For some reason I thought your ARC had tubes?