Can you let us know how L10 compared against L1?
Two other design differences between the L10 and L1 that I forgot to mention above. First, the chassis of the L10 and its power supply, while they look almost identical and are the same physical dimensions as the L1 and X1 are quite a bit stiffer and denser than the L1/X1 chassis. A lot less vibration when you rap your hands on the case itself - a significantly stiffer case. And second, with the L1 and its optional X1 power supply you had to use 2 power cords - one for the L1 itself and one for the X1. With the L10 (using the 2 supplied umbilical cords from the power supply to the L10 head unit) only one power cord is required in total and that is for the L10 power supply.
I will try my best to describe how the L10 compares to the L1.
My initial comparison was with the L10 stereo with minimal break in (approximately 50 hours) compared to my 4 box L1 true dual mono setup. There were three things that struck me right away about the sonic differences. First, the L10 has a noticeably lower noise floor than the L1 - it just sounds quieter and you notice this right away. Second, the L10 portrays music with a very noticeable increased sense of ease and and effortless flow to the music that the L1 does not match (even though the 4 box L1 is very good). And third, across the frequency spectrum, the music is presented in a very easy to hear harmonically richer manner (the old term of "more meat on the bones" ).
Around this time, the second L10 arrived (actually the L10 head unit without the left and right channel boards) and the second L10 power supply. I then removed one of the channel boards from the first L10 stereo and inserted it into the newly arrived L10 head unit and setup the 4 box version of the L10 and commenced burn in again - this time for another 125 hours before I did any critical listening.
With the 4 box version of the L10 and the additional break in, I heard the three items above but I would say for sure that the sense of ease and flow to the music as well as the harmonic richness across the frequency spectrum were further improved along with a clarity to the music that I had not heard before. I would also say that with the 4 box version the musical performance is more expansive without any feeling of constraint to the music. Finally, the other improvements that I heard with the 4 box version is that the performer images are even better defined in their own space within the soundstage in my listening room and it provides an even better sense that the performers are projected more into the room with you.
The bottom line to me was that the L10 (and my main focus was the 4 box version of the L10 compared the 4 box version of the L1) provides me with an significantly more realistic and immersive listening experience that I have ever heard in my room. And for me, that says alot.