So, this is is sort of a listening review followed by a couple questions because I’m new to mid-fi gear. If you can help out with the questions I’d appreciate it.
I recently picked up a GFA-535ii off the Bay and did some critical listening for about 4 hours last night. Until last night, I was planning to complete it with a GFP-565 or maybe a GFP-710 but now I don’t think so.
My setup is what for most of you is likely a 2nd or 3rd system. Its in an apartment I live in during the week due to a long-term work assignment away from home. It consists of a Onkyo A-9010 integrated amp, a vintage Sansui TU-717 tuner and a pair of Revel M105 speakers that I’ve been running for about 4 months, so I’m sure they are broken in. Music source is provided by an iPhone and the little Apple D/A converter dongle running on a long RCA patch cord to the RCA inputs on the 9010. Music is all stuff you can listen to in an apartment! Current favorite is vocals and piano stuff.
The Revels are set at ear level and I have found they make a really good sound stage. They sound the best pulled out from the back wall about 2-3 feet and seem to open up more the further out they are. I have a mini DSP that I wanted to incorporate into this setup, so the plan was to take advantage of the processor loops on the vintage Adcom stuff and go that way.
I’ve read all the usual stuff about preamplifiers and how important they are, and the “straight wire with gain”. Well I thought I had that beat to no end, because I just ran the RCA feeds from my iPhone right into the back of the Adcom. No preamplifier at all, literally just a wire. I was expecting something at least as nice as my Onkyo A-9010 but no.
I ran my listening tests with the tone controls bypassed on the 9010. Don’t get me wrong the 535 was dead quiet to my ears and powerful. Sounded good for a stereo. But compared to the 9010, the 535 sound was soft with a much flatter sound stage. There was a sort of radio sound to vocals and piano that removed some of the enchantment. It tended to make most music sound similar and in recordings with a lot of texture, the fine details that bring amazement with ‘how did they think this up or mix this’ impressions were not there. Not a lot of magic happening. Here is some of what I listened to and the differences:
At Last by Etta James. On the 535 it just sounded like an old song on the 9010 you could really get an idea of what made her great like you could listen through and past the age of the recording. Not fun on the 535.
Someone to watch over by Linda Ronstadt. The 535 impressed me as sort of smooth in that details were not pushed hard, but this softness and lack of detail removed the delight in really getting into these vocals. Sexy on the 9010 if not stunning thinking this is a female vocalist from the “old days”
Crazy by Daniela Andrade. This song is magic on the 9010 between the strumming guitar, and when she starts to sing its so close miked and the sounds are so well defined and separated the impression is she’s maybe performing in the room and these are the monitors, like a live performance at a bar. No magic on the 535 just sounds great.
Time to say goodbye by Bocelli. On the 535 it sounds like a cliché on the 9010 all the texture is there and can give you goosebumps.
Wave by Beck. This is the perfect song to shows the loss of texture, space and fine detail on the 535. On the 9010 you can just get lost in this song and wonder how it was put together and what decisions were made and there is none of this fascination with the 535, just good sound.
I hate you, I love you (featuring Olivia Obrien) explicit: Sounds great on the 535, but on the 9010 everything is so distinct and separated it sounds like there are different speakers for the piano, the vocals, and the percussion.
Don’t know why by Norah Jones. Sounds great on the 535 but on the 9010 there’s complete separation of everything and the piano just glows.
Caribbean Blue by Enya. Like Wave by Beck another recording that shows how the 535 just obscures the fine texture that for me on the 9010 captures my attention and makes me look for the source and just wonder how it was put together.
Stay with me by Miki Kuroki. On the 9010 this showcases a production of extremely high quality and you find yourself listening harder to pick up details and delighting when you find them, on the 535 just sounds fine.
I read through the specifications for both amplifiers and don’t see what would drive the great texture and open sound of the 9010 over the 535. I’m mildly amused to find I’ve turned into one of the people that can hear differences between amplifiers. Until I experienced it firsthand it’s just something I read about and wondered if its real or just conceit.
I think the 535 sounds good and that’s it. I have to agree with the Stereophile review by Corey Greenberg, the 535 is a no. Its disappointing because Adcom stuff is something I’ve wanted to try for some time.
So I know this was long but I’ve got 2 questions that hopefully you guys and gals can help me out with:
Bacon
I recently picked up a GFA-535ii off the Bay and did some critical listening for about 4 hours last night. Until last night, I was planning to complete it with a GFP-565 or maybe a GFP-710 but now I don’t think so.
My setup is what for most of you is likely a 2nd or 3rd system. Its in an apartment I live in during the week due to a long-term work assignment away from home. It consists of a Onkyo A-9010 integrated amp, a vintage Sansui TU-717 tuner and a pair of Revel M105 speakers that I’ve been running for about 4 months, so I’m sure they are broken in. Music source is provided by an iPhone and the little Apple D/A converter dongle running on a long RCA patch cord to the RCA inputs on the 9010. Music is all stuff you can listen to in an apartment! Current favorite is vocals and piano stuff.
The Revels are set at ear level and I have found they make a really good sound stage. They sound the best pulled out from the back wall about 2-3 feet and seem to open up more the further out they are. I have a mini DSP that I wanted to incorporate into this setup, so the plan was to take advantage of the processor loops on the vintage Adcom stuff and go that way.
I’ve read all the usual stuff about preamplifiers and how important they are, and the “straight wire with gain”. Well I thought I had that beat to no end, because I just ran the RCA feeds from my iPhone right into the back of the Adcom. No preamplifier at all, literally just a wire. I was expecting something at least as nice as my Onkyo A-9010 but no.
I ran my listening tests with the tone controls bypassed on the 9010. Don’t get me wrong the 535 was dead quiet to my ears and powerful. Sounded good for a stereo. But compared to the 9010, the 535 sound was soft with a much flatter sound stage. There was a sort of radio sound to vocals and piano that removed some of the enchantment. It tended to make most music sound similar and in recordings with a lot of texture, the fine details that bring amazement with ‘how did they think this up or mix this’ impressions were not there. Not a lot of magic happening. Here is some of what I listened to and the differences:
At Last by Etta James. On the 535 it just sounded like an old song on the 9010 you could really get an idea of what made her great like you could listen through and past the age of the recording. Not fun on the 535.
Someone to watch over by Linda Ronstadt. The 535 impressed me as sort of smooth in that details were not pushed hard, but this softness and lack of detail removed the delight in really getting into these vocals. Sexy on the 9010 if not stunning thinking this is a female vocalist from the “old days”
Crazy by Daniela Andrade. This song is magic on the 9010 between the strumming guitar, and when she starts to sing its so close miked and the sounds are so well defined and separated the impression is she’s maybe performing in the room and these are the monitors, like a live performance at a bar. No magic on the 535 just sounds great.
Time to say goodbye by Bocelli. On the 535 it sounds like a cliché on the 9010 all the texture is there and can give you goosebumps.
Wave by Beck. This is the perfect song to shows the loss of texture, space and fine detail on the 535. On the 9010 you can just get lost in this song and wonder how it was put together and what decisions were made and there is none of this fascination with the 535, just good sound.
I hate you, I love you (featuring Olivia Obrien) explicit: Sounds great on the 535, but on the 9010 everything is so distinct and separated it sounds like there are different speakers for the piano, the vocals, and the percussion.
Don’t know why by Norah Jones. Sounds great on the 535 but on the 9010 there’s complete separation of everything and the piano just glows.
Caribbean Blue by Enya. Like Wave by Beck another recording that shows how the 535 just obscures the fine texture that for me on the 9010 captures my attention and makes me look for the source and just wonder how it was put together.
Stay with me by Miki Kuroki. On the 9010 this showcases a production of extremely high quality and you find yourself listening harder to pick up details and delighting when you find them, on the 535 just sounds fine.
I read through the specifications for both amplifiers and don’t see what would drive the great texture and open sound of the 9010 over the 535. I’m mildly amused to find I’ve turned into one of the people that can hear differences between amplifiers. Until I experienced it firsthand it’s just something I read about and wondered if its real or just conceit.
I think the 535 sounds good and that’s it. I have to agree with the Stereophile review by Corey Greenberg, the 535 is a no. Its disappointing because Adcom stuff is something I’ve wanted to try for some time.
So I know this was long but I’ve got 2 questions that hopefully you guys and gals can help me out with:
- Do you think that me running my RCA feed directly into the back of the 535 with NO preamplifier, somehow degraded the sound? And that it would somehow sound better with a matching Adcom preamplifier due to some reason involving impedances or what the amp was expecting at its inputs? But I can’t imagine how adding a preamp to the 535 would be electronically cleaner than literally a straight wire with no electronics in the path whatsoever.
- What’s the step up from the Onkyo A-9010, a Marantz? I’d still like to find something with a processor loop so I can play with my MiniDSP, but I’m having second thoughts on that plus no modern amps come with processor loops. Also I’m aware of tubes, tube rolling, tube sound don’t want to get into that yet.
Bacon
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