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Thread: Jimbo visits Firebottle

  1. #1
    Join Date: Jan 2013

    Location: Birmingham

    Posts: 6,772
    I'm James.

    Default Jimbo visits Firebottle

    So after last weeks jolly good Bake Off in Stoke I popped over to hear Alans system in situ as it were at Firebottle Towers. I would like to say a big thank you to Alan and Shirley for their hospitality and a viewing of Alans UK residence which after some alterations is now a great home with a very nice music room!

    I did not take any pics but I am sure most of what we looked at and heard has already been posted by Alan. I am sure Alan would not mind popping a few in later in the post.

    We started by listening to Alans Quad ESL speakers driven by the new Firebottle mono blocks and the KIN preamp. Hooked on the front end was Alans GL75 Lenco with an Ortofon Salsa MC cartridge. Alan mentioned he has not touched the Lenco yet so it probably needs a bit of servicing although it ran very smooth and quiet, however on investigation the V blocks appeared to be shot but this did not seem to affect the SQ. I am sure when Alan gets to pop in some Desmo blocks he is in for a surprise as this is one of the biggest improvements that can be made to the stock Lenco.

    We kicked off with a bit of Yello (The Race ) from the Flag album. Dynamics and pace was handled superbly by the Quad speakers which hitched up their skirts and delivered a full, rich, controlled and transparent sound. There was plenty of oomph from the ESL's and effortless controlled power. Alan has them hung from the ceiling which I found a very good set up to listen too although the bass was a tiny bit fruity which Alan is going to address. They sounded better than any ESL I have ever heard especially with Alans own amps. The Monoblocks really are a step up from the AIR with an effortless open sound, very transparent and dynamic with the Quads.

    Next up was a track from Duke Ellington with Ray Brown playing double bass ( This Ones's for Blanton) Sound was perfection and showed amazing detail and layering of information in the sound. Electrostatic really are fabulous for acoustic airy detail and don't seem to suffer the distortion and blurring of some of the recorded information like conventional speakers. We then swapped the Ortofon MC cartridge for the M55e with Jico SAS and played Yello again, in fact we left this cartridge on the Lenco for the remainder of the session as it did such a good job. I think like myself Alan was amazed at the size of the stylus JICO have created. The Boron cantilever is the thickness of a hair! I must admit everything sounded wonderful with this on the Lenco and better than I have heard it in my own system. The KIN really does have a superb MM phono stage.

    More Jazz from Basie and Glenn Millar and a very very good Lightening Hopkins Mono album which was superb.

    Just remembered we did listen to Alans Magnepan speakers for a short while which sounded very airy and much lighter than the Quads but had a magic of their own. These are detailed speakers with a less dynamic presentation than the Quads but never the less very easy to listen too and very musical and LARGE! We soon switched back to the Quad ESl's and had a listen to a small prototype preamp Alan is working on which i am sure he will reveal sometime in the future. It was very good for what it was but I will let Alan write about this when he has it sorted.

    Back to Alans KIN / Monoblocks / Quads / lento and a few more albums including Crossroads by Tracey Chapman. Vocals and dynamics again stunning.

    I am very impressed with what Alan has achieved driving the Quads with his own amps, they really do make them sing and it is hard to imagine anything sound much better even with the humble Lenco on the front. We discussed this and the conclusion was all the equipment including the TT simply got out of the way and imposed no noticeable sonic signature on the system but simply left you with the music which is after all is the ultimate goal with a HIFI system! Extremely transparent and informative system with great detail, dynamics and huge listening pleasure.
    Last edited by Jimbo; 13-11-2016 at 07:32.
    Main system : VPI Scout 1.1 / JMW 9T / 2M Black / Croft 25R+ / Croft 7 / Heco Celan GT 702

    Second System : Goldring Lenco GL75 / AT95EX / Pioneer SX590 / Spendor SP2

  2. #2
    Join Date: Oct 2012

    Location: The Black Country

    Posts: 6,089
    I'm Alan.

    Default

    A couple of pics:





    Playing with planar speakers.

    Good to have you round James

  3. #3
    Bigman80 Guest

    Default

    They are nice. I was very impressed with those. Haven't heard the quads yet.

    Sent from my EVA-L09 using Tapatalk

  4. #4
    Join Date: Jun 2014

    Location: Sheffield

    Posts: 151
    I'm Scott.

    Default

    I'd be interested to hear the sound coming from the roof. Very interesting way of having your speakers Alan


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  5. #5
    Join Date: May 2011

    Location: Glasgow

    Posts: 7,718
    I'm Brian.

    Default

    Yes , unusual set up indeed , obviously works though . Looks like you had a great time chaps
    Regards
    Brian

    Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment . (Rumi )


    Korus Computer Audio music server
    JustBoom DAC . HRT Musicstreamer 2
    Amplifier : Sony TA FB740R
    Speakers : Tannoy 637
    Interconnects : MS Audio / Klotz MC5000 .
    Speaker cables : Western Electric 16AG

  6. #6
    Join Date: Feb 2013

    Location: W Lothian

    Posts: 99,005
    I'm Grant.

    Default

    Ok all off topic posts deleted for now. May end up in critics corner later. Can we keep to subject please..thanks. In future if anyone thinks a thread or post is wrong then report it. Dont take it on yourself..thanks
    Regards,
    Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work
    .... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
    FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -

    Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?

    “Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".

    “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”

    "You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”

    “There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”


    ***SMILE, BE HAPPY***

  7. #7
    Bigman80 Guest

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by struth View Post
    Ok all off topic posts deleted for now. May end up in critics corner later. Can we keep to subject please..thanks. In future if anyone thinks a thread or post is wrong then report it. Dont take it on yourself..thanks
    Very good Grant.

    Sent from my EVA-L09 using Tapatalk

  8. #8
    Join Date: Feb 2013

    Location: W Lothian

    Posts: 99,005
    I'm Grant.

    Default

    Love the shelving unit Alan . Could do with one of those. Lol
    Regards,
    Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse

    I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work
    .... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
    FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -

    Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?

    “Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".

    “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”

    "You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”

    “There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”


    ***SMILE, BE HAPPY***

  9. #9
    Join Date: May 2012

    Location: Toulouse, France

    Posts: 6,562
    I'm Kevin.

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Jimbo View Post

    We kicked off with a bit of Yello (The Race ) from the Flag album. Dynamics and pace was handled superbly by the Quad speakers which hitched up their skirts and delivered a full, rich, controlled and transparent sound...... Back to Alans KIN / Monoblocks / Quads / lenco and a few more albums including Crossroads by Tracey Chapman. Vocals and dynamics again stunning.
    A good choice of tunes. I am glad to see it is just not me who thinks that the monoblocks just give that little bit extra.
    If I get the opportunity, I would like to swap my Air for a pair of monoblocks (when Alan has tucked the valve out of harms way).
    Kevin

    Too busy enjoying the music....

    European loan coordinator for Graham Slee HiFi system components..

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