Compact Audio System To Drive Wilson Sabrina Speakers?

[Doodski]

Dangit you beat me to it @Blumlein 88

 

[Blumlein 88]

Uh oh, bad juju. That would red flag it for me.

You could get a pair of these if it is a problem (it isn't always).
https://www.amazon.com/Harrison-Labs-Inline-Subsonic-Crossover/dp/B00S8XXWAG
Less than $30.

 

[watchnerd]

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Sucks

 

[Doodski]

Sucks

Yes, with 300w/ch on tap I would be scared to crank it up w/o the subsonic/rumble filter.

 

[restorer-john]

Yes, with 300w/ch on tap I would be scared to crank it up w/o the subsonic/rumble filter.

It's generally not a big problem unless you have a really rotten turntable or a shocking arm/cart resonance.

 

[CDMC]

Can you you help me understand this recommendation a bit more. There is much I don't understand about amp specs, but comparing the power(380W@8, 480W@6, 4 and 2 Ohms not listed) with (for example) the March Audio P701(400@8, 700@4, 1200@2), the P701 seems to be a much better amp for $1,700 less. Even the P502 seems to outdo the Benchmark a bit at 1/3 the price. Of course, I'm making a few assumptions:

1. SINAD Difference (135dB vs 128dB) will be inaudible
2. Frequency Response difference(0.1Hz vs 10Hz) will be inaudible

Not sure if all of those are 100% true(especially #2), but going based off those for now, I would assume that they will sound equal at low to moderately high volumes, but the P701 will sound better at high volumes. I'd guess that the extra performance from the March amp will only be noticeable at high volumes, but it's still an audible advantage, and in this case it's also cheaper. I don't read many amp reviews around here(read 1 I think?), so apologies if this has been covered in one of those threads. I mostly just read the speaker reviews and general discussions.

You pretty much hit the nail on the head in all respects.

 

[whazzup]

Those are a bit of a difficult load:

"My estimate of the Sabrina's voltage sensitivity on the tweeter axis was 88.2dB/2.83V/m, slightly higher than the specified 87dB. Wilson specifies the Sabrina's electrical impedance as 4 ohms, with a minimum magnitude of 2.53 ohms at 139Hz. My measurement of the impedance is shown in fig.1: the value (solid trace) varies between 4 and 6 ohms between 250Hz and 4kHz, and the minimum magnitude is 2.44 ohms at 135Hz. However, there is also a combination of 4.44 ohms and a capacitive phase angle of –58° at 72Hz, a frequency where music can have considerable energy; this will place a significant demand for current on the partnering amplifier."

https://www.stereophile.com/content/wilson-audio-specialties-sabrina-loudspeaker-measurements

The speakers are not a "difficult" load in my opinion.

Yamaha has an AS-1200 on the way and a nice Technics SL-1500C should get you in under $3K in the US. No messing around with pre/power/phono stages, there is one in the amplifier. Your re-sale on these two products down the track will always be very good should you decide to move to something else.

Differing views on whether the Sabrina is a 'difficult load'. I'm curious how this can be further contextualized. Based on the stereophile measurements, would the Sabrina be a difficult load for, say amplifiers under $1000 and less of a issue for amps above $1000? Or amps of a certain (published) wattage?

 

[Doodski]

It's generally not a big problem unless you have a really rotten turntable or a shocking arm/cart resonance.

After cranking up a Carver M1.5T with Cornwalls and having the phono feedback nearly shred the woofer when I was across the room from the pre I've been very careful since. It gave me a healthy respect for how tough a Cornwall is. It was pretty loud.

 

[restorer-john]

No wonder the OP hasn't returned to the thread. He asked for an amplifier and turntable recommendation totaling between $2-3k to power his Wilsons. Now there are people telling him to sell the Wilsons, buy some Revels or buy a pair of monoblocks (with no preamp or turntable) that cost more than his entire budget.

You guys.

 

[watchnerd]

Now there are people telling him to sell the Wilsons, buy some Revels

ASR is becoming fundamentalist.

Anything not on the approved gear list must be banished.

 

[CDMC]

I suppose I'm a fundamentalist in believing that the desideratum of all this is better sound quality. If the goal is to have expensive stuff to impress middle-aged men, well, many of us used to be on the forum with that focus, and we were banished.

Speak for yourself, some of us were buying expensive stuff to impress women. 30 years and I have yet to find one impressed, but there is still time.

 

[watchnerd]

I suppose I'm a fundamentalist in believing that the desideratum of all this is better sound quality. If the goal is to have expensive stuff to impress middle-aged men, well, many of us used to be on the forum with that focus, and we were banished.

Okay.

That's your journey.

Does that mandate others follow the same decision tree?

Personally, I buy stuff I like. Sometimes 'like' is more than measurements. I don't have a lot of middle age men visitors, and the few I do don't know anything about audio. So the only person I'm impressing is myself.

 

[Thomas savage]

ASR is becoming fundamentalist.

Anything not on the approved gear list must be banished.

The only fundamental at ASR is if you don't drink beer I don't/can't trust you .. unfortunately Amirm doesn't drink beer ....

I think we all know what that means .

 

[Feanor]

This has it all in one box. Very nice Sabre DAC, mm phono preamp, multiple digital inputs, headphone amp and remote control in a small package. Also available in piano ebony. 14 inches by 14.24 inches by 4.3 inches tall. About 36 cm x 36 cm by 11 cm.

Nova 300 with 300 wpc 8 ohms and 450 wpc 4 ohms for $2199. Leaves money for the TT.
https://www.peachtreeaudio.com/collections/amplifiers/products/nova300

View attachment 80806

View attachment 80805

Humm ... wood grained cabinetry -- reminds me of the '70s.

 

[Dialectic]

Does that mandate others follow the same decision tree?

I acknowledged this objection in my original post.

I know it's not what was asked, but arguing about March versus Benchmark amplifiers is picking nits when one of these very well-engineered amplifiers will be powering loudspeakers with, shall we say, suboptimal performance notwithstanding their high price.

[emphasis added]

When I'm thinking about audio gear, sound quality is paramount, and on that basis, Japanese amplifiers with 1980s technology or loudspeakers with poor audio engineering but lustrous automotive finishes don't strike me as particularly desirable.

My suggestion was my suggestion, take it or leave it. The OP was last on the forum almost 12 hours before the post that caused consternation, so it couldn't have been that post that ran him off.

I also note that ASR doesn't ban people who question, for example, the Toole/Olive conventional wisdom regarding loudspeaker performance (which, for the record, I think is reasonable but has limitations). By comparison, on a more traditional audiophile forum, I began receiving stern warnings from a gynecologist after posting a factually correct statement about the provenance of a high-end audio company's amplifiers, which were rebadged $200 Chinese desktop amps.

The only fundamental at ASR is if you don't drink beer I don't/can't trust you ..

Agreed. I've tried to stop, and I can't. The farthest I can go is nonalcoholic beer.

 

[Thomas savage]

, I began receiving stern warnings from a gynecologist

"It's just too big it's not natural, at least start slow " ..

 

[watchnerd]

Speak for yourself, some of us were buying expensive stuff to impress women. 30 years and I have yet to find one impressed, but there is still time.

I've found a few that gave some 'ooooh, that looks nice' at looking at my TT, and another visitor who caressed a speaker.

This was all visual stuff....nothing about engineering qualities.

 

[watchnerd]

I began receiving stern warnings from a gynecologist after posting a factually correct statement about the provenance of a high-end audio company's amplifiers, which were rebadged $200 Chinese desktop amps.

He just threw gynecology into the midst of an audio discussion?

 

[ahofer]

Generally I find the female reaction to audio gear is more like:

a) can I move those back into the corners, cover them with a throw rug, and put plants on them?

and when I say no,

b)

 

[Dialectic]

He just threw gynecology into the midst of an audio discussion?

No, but "OBGYN" was part of his forum handle in those days. I thought it was a very memorable and unsettling thing to have as part of one's forum handle.