System upgrade - Aavik U-380 + Esoteric P03 Transport + Ansuz Cabling
Posted: Sat Dec 21, 2019 12:41 am
In terms of my hi-fi journey, this has been an interesting year. I began the year with the Jadis I-88 integrated amp and Esoteric K-01Xs and I end it with the Aavik U-380 integrated amp and Esoteric P-03 Universal CD transport.
What prompted this change? Well, the first electricity bill I received a few months after the initial purchase of the Jadis amp triggered a few alarm bells. And then there was the matter of the rising temperatures in my listening room as summer approached. This was by no means a warm summer but it was beginning to get a little uncomfortable so I reluctantly decided - in the interests of practicality - to investigate my options for a cooler-running amp that consumed less electricity.
I considered options such as the Pass Labs INT-250 and Gryphon Diablo 300 and then I happened to hear the Aavik U-150 in the Cloney Audio showroom. What impressed me most was its inherently natural musicality which appeared to my ears utterly unforced. There was a refinement about the sound that was also very appealing but - crucially - this was a refinement that was also engaging and which gripped me emotionally. I had had experiences with refined sounding components before such as the Constellation Audio Inspiration Integrated amp and the Meridian 808v5 CD player which, over time, proved to be overly soporific and laid-back and which just did not engage me emotionally over the long term. The Aavik, however, was different and truly satisfying. Perhaps the clincher was the quality of the DAC. At the time of my audition of the Aavik, Ivan Cloney happened to have a Chord DAVE DAC and we compared the sound of the two DACs. The Chord DAC was more detailed and individual notes were delineated with clarity and precision whereas the Aavik DAC was more engagingly natural and unerringly musical in its presentation. I remember one review by Roy Gregory where he compared the sound of the Audio Research Reference CD8 CD player to the Esoteric K-01. To his ears, the Esoteric was more concerned with conveying the music on a word-by-word basic whereas the Audio Research conveyed the music on a paragraph-by-paragraph basis. In other words, the Audio Research expressed the musical “sense” of the performance in a way that was more emotionally fulfilling than the clarity and precision of the Esoteric. And that is exactly how I felt about the Aavik DAC - calm, unhurried and unassumingly musical to its core.
After giving this a lot of thought, I decided to place an order for the U-150’s big brother, the U-300. As it turned out, the U-300 was refreshed as the U-380 in September this year and, although I was able to cancel my original order for the U-300, it did mean that I would have to wait a little longer for the U-380. In the meantime, Ivan Cloney graciously consented to an extended loan of the U-150.
Part of committing to the Aavik U-380 meant that I would be using the integrated DAC rather than a dedicated CD player so I researched my options for a quality CD transport. I had already been spoiled by the Rolls-Royce fit and finish of the transport in the Esoteric K-01Xs, so it would be difficult settling for a lesser quality transport. As chance and good fortune would have it, a customer of Ivan’s was trading in his Esoteric CD transport, DAC and master clock separates to upgrade to the state of the art Esoteric Grandioso separates, so I asked him to put aside the P-03 Universal Transport for me to use with the Aavik.
I should also mention that an important part of the U-150 demo in the Cloney Audio showroom was the use of Ansuz cables which, like the amp, were designed by Michael Borresen. For the past few years, I have enjoyed a complete Nordost Valhalla Mk.1 cable loom with no real intention of changing simply because, whilst I do believe that cables can make a difference, I would prefer to spend my money on the electronic components or the speakers. In this case, whilst the sonic signature of the Ansuz was just as detailed as the Nordost cables, they were also much smoother and more relaxed without any of the metallic edge that the Nordost would sometimes exhibit. It is worth noting that Michael Borresen, prior to developing speakers at Raidho, worked at Nordost and designed the Valhalla Mk.1 and Odin Mk.1 cables so he knew just how to improve on these industry benchmarks. I researched the Ansuz catalogue and decided to order a complete loom of their mid-level C2 cables as well as their C2 level mains distribution.
So, while waiting for the U-380 to arrive, I was enjoying my music with my beloved Kharma Exquisite Mini speakers driven by the U-150 amp and partnered with the Esoteric transport and Ansuz cable loom. What an extraordinary sound this was! Emotionally engaging yet never overbearing or fatiguing. There was a lightness of touch here which was utterly beguiling and a musical presentation that was incredibly natural. How much better could the U-380 be?
As it happens, quite a bit. The big brother retains all of the qualities of its younger sibling but extended listening reveals more air in the treble, more body in the bass and more physical presence in the midrange. The more I hear my favourite recordings through the U-380, the more respect I have for its capabilities. It is genre agnostic and does not favour one genre over another. There is a maturity about the presentation that should not be confused with a clinical rinsing of the music where you respect the sound but do not feel emotionally connected to it. This is a more sympathetic and organic presentation where the total emotional weight of the music is communicated to the listener in a very direct way.
Prior to the U-380, the greatest amplifier that I heard was the Jadis I-88 with its easygoing nature, engaging warmth and bottomless sense of drive, but the U-380 surpasses it in my opinion. It is more balanced, more finessed and more nuanced. It is more musically informative and brings me closer to the music which has profoundly enriched my life. I feel so very fortunate sitting here tonight listening to my music - utterly transported, enraptured and hearing it all anew.
What prompted this change? Well, the first electricity bill I received a few months after the initial purchase of the Jadis amp triggered a few alarm bells. And then there was the matter of the rising temperatures in my listening room as summer approached. This was by no means a warm summer but it was beginning to get a little uncomfortable so I reluctantly decided - in the interests of practicality - to investigate my options for a cooler-running amp that consumed less electricity.
I considered options such as the Pass Labs INT-250 and Gryphon Diablo 300 and then I happened to hear the Aavik U-150 in the Cloney Audio showroom. What impressed me most was its inherently natural musicality which appeared to my ears utterly unforced. There was a refinement about the sound that was also very appealing but - crucially - this was a refinement that was also engaging and which gripped me emotionally. I had had experiences with refined sounding components before such as the Constellation Audio Inspiration Integrated amp and the Meridian 808v5 CD player which, over time, proved to be overly soporific and laid-back and which just did not engage me emotionally over the long term. The Aavik, however, was different and truly satisfying. Perhaps the clincher was the quality of the DAC. At the time of my audition of the Aavik, Ivan Cloney happened to have a Chord DAVE DAC and we compared the sound of the two DACs. The Chord DAC was more detailed and individual notes were delineated with clarity and precision whereas the Aavik DAC was more engagingly natural and unerringly musical in its presentation. I remember one review by Roy Gregory where he compared the sound of the Audio Research Reference CD8 CD player to the Esoteric K-01. To his ears, the Esoteric was more concerned with conveying the music on a word-by-word basic whereas the Audio Research conveyed the music on a paragraph-by-paragraph basis. In other words, the Audio Research expressed the musical “sense” of the performance in a way that was more emotionally fulfilling than the clarity and precision of the Esoteric. And that is exactly how I felt about the Aavik DAC - calm, unhurried and unassumingly musical to its core.
After giving this a lot of thought, I decided to place an order for the U-150’s big brother, the U-300. As it turned out, the U-300 was refreshed as the U-380 in September this year and, although I was able to cancel my original order for the U-300, it did mean that I would have to wait a little longer for the U-380. In the meantime, Ivan Cloney graciously consented to an extended loan of the U-150.
Part of committing to the Aavik U-380 meant that I would be using the integrated DAC rather than a dedicated CD player so I researched my options for a quality CD transport. I had already been spoiled by the Rolls-Royce fit and finish of the transport in the Esoteric K-01Xs, so it would be difficult settling for a lesser quality transport. As chance and good fortune would have it, a customer of Ivan’s was trading in his Esoteric CD transport, DAC and master clock separates to upgrade to the state of the art Esoteric Grandioso separates, so I asked him to put aside the P-03 Universal Transport for me to use with the Aavik.
I should also mention that an important part of the U-150 demo in the Cloney Audio showroom was the use of Ansuz cables which, like the amp, were designed by Michael Borresen. For the past few years, I have enjoyed a complete Nordost Valhalla Mk.1 cable loom with no real intention of changing simply because, whilst I do believe that cables can make a difference, I would prefer to spend my money on the electronic components or the speakers. In this case, whilst the sonic signature of the Ansuz was just as detailed as the Nordost cables, they were also much smoother and more relaxed without any of the metallic edge that the Nordost would sometimes exhibit. It is worth noting that Michael Borresen, prior to developing speakers at Raidho, worked at Nordost and designed the Valhalla Mk.1 and Odin Mk.1 cables so he knew just how to improve on these industry benchmarks. I researched the Ansuz catalogue and decided to order a complete loom of their mid-level C2 cables as well as their C2 level mains distribution.
So, while waiting for the U-380 to arrive, I was enjoying my music with my beloved Kharma Exquisite Mini speakers driven by the U-150 amp and partnered with the Esoteric transport and Ansuz cable loom. What an extraordinary sound this was! Emotionally engaging yet never overbearing or fatiguing. There was a lightness of touch here which was utterly beguiling and a musical presentation that was incredibly natural. How much better could the U-380 be?
As it happens, quite a bit. The big brother retains all of the qualities of its younger sibling but extended listening reveals more air in the treble, more body in the bass and more physical presence in the midrange. The more I hear my favourite recordings through the U-380, the more respect I have for its capabilities. It is genre agnostic and does not favour one genre over another. There is a maturity about the presentation that should not be confused with a clinical rinsing of the music where you respect the sound but do not feel emotionally connected to it. This is a more sympathetic and organic presentation where the total emotional weight of the music is communicated to the listener in a very direct way.
Prior to the U-380, the greatest amplifier that I heard was the Jadis I-88 with its easygoing nature, engaging warmth and bottomless sense of drive, but the U-380 surpasses it in my opinion. It is more balanced, more finessed and more nuanced. It is more musically informative and brings me closer to the music which has profoundly enriched my life. I feel so very fortunate sitting here tonight listening to my music - utterly transported, enraptured and hearing it all anew.