First Watt SIT-4 unbelievable!!!

[silverfoxvtx1800]

I just can’t believe how good this amp is I just had to share, hopefully I can get the words out so you understand how special sounding this amp is..
I guess I should start at the beginning of my Pass Labs adventure. I have always been a Klipsch man with my first Forte in 1988, so for a couple years I have been using the Klipsch Forte IV with the Primaluna tube amp, just couldn’t get the sound I wanted right, to lean or to bright, experiment after experiment with dacs and streamers old stock tubes you name it. Nothing really worked don’t get me wrong it was ok but not there you know what I mean? So after a year with the Primaluna I started having major problems, tubes shorting out blow fuses so I sold all my tube stuff…really got angry I mean really angry…
In the back of head I always wondered about Pass Labs seeing Nelson Pass as a true American not putting on airs…a real down to earth guy..so after tons of research I bought the Pass Labs XP-12 pre and the XA-25 amp and that sounded so good with the Forte IVs a huge improvement, I was close to getting nirvana very close…so I stumbled on the Volti Audio speakers and upgrade to the Fortes in sound and cabinets…a huge upgrade…I bought the Razz from Greg at Volti Audio…they arrived a couple weeks ago…friggin beautiful…night and day better then the Forte IVs…with the Pass gear..not the end of the story….
When I sold my Primaluna I was left with no amp a local guy bought all,the tube stuff to my surprise,at that time I wanted the First Watt SIT-4 but the production was set back a couple months oh no..talking with Nelson he suggested the XA-25 amp this is a great amp and sounded good with the Fortes and even better with the Volti Razz…but I always wanted the SIT-4. Well I was 71 on July1st and hell with it I wanted the SIT-4…so it’s here with the Volti Razz..for the last 4 days…this amp sounds so good there is no words good enough to describe it…the bass and mids sing so smoothly and satisfying with this combination….Sit-4 plus the Volti Razz is the best sound of my audiophile life for all these years….if you have the means to get this amp with these Volti or efficient speakers do it…the SIT-4 is the best of the First Watt amps..

 

[Ron Resnick]

Welcome to WBF silverfoxvtx1880!

I know I like JeffreyT's SIT-3. Why do you prefer the SIT-4 to the SIT-3?

 

[silverfoxvtx1800]

It is hard to describe the difference, I would say more tube like in a good way. Definitely more musical but it will surprise you with the highs and lows and the bass with my speakers and the SIT-4 feels like I am sitting in the drum kit banging on the drums. This day five the honeymoon has gone and still this amp blows me away with my Electronic Playlist making all the music smooth and not harsh in anyway. The vocals with the Volti Audio speakers and this SIT-4 make me teary eyed with some songs…at 71 this is the best combo I have ever had…it’s never to late I guess…
Thanks Ron for the welcoming….this Sit-4 is the best of Nelson Pass…

 

[Kingrex]

Congratulations on dialing the system the way you like it. No easy task.

 

[silverfoxvtx1800]

Thanks a lot it has been very stressful getting here ….everything is mellow now should add a couple years to my life ..

 

[tedwoods]

Someone else was very impressed with it too: https://hifiknights.com/reviews/amplifiers/firstwatt-sit4/

 

[Audiohertz2]

So less power into 4 ohm than 8 ohms, requires a speaker with8 ohm min Z , simple xovers and drive units ..

 

[tedwoods]

My beloved Cube Audio speakers should be an ideal match with the sit-4.
However, it appears there are drawbacks too: the power consumption is quite high (200 watts at idle), there is no choice over the colour of the faceplate (it's "take it or leave it" black), there is no provision for a volume control (a lot of potential users, including me, seem to prefer or even have minimalist systems these days, where the preamp/power amp combination has been substituted by an "integrated" with frugal inputs but sophisticated volume control circuits) and most importantly, as this is beyond esoteric -especially in Europe, where I currently reside- it would be particularly tricky to actually audition one before committing.

 

[mtemur]

My beloved Cube Audio speakers should be an ideal match with the sit-4.

Is it nenuphar 10” or 8” and what amp are you using to drive them?

 

[tedwoods]

Is it nenuphar 10” or 8” and what amp are you using to drive them?

I have (as per my signature) the Nenuphar minis v2 with the 8" drivers (my room is on the smaller side) and currently drive them with the Enleum AMP 23R. No complaints whatsoever but would love to see how the First Watt fares with them...

 

[Rob181]

My beloved Cube Audio speakers should be an ideal match with the sit-4.
However, it appears there are drawbacks too: the power consumption is quite high (200 watts at idle), there is no choice over the colour of the faceplate (it's "take it or leave it" black), there is no provision for a volume control (a lot of potential users, including me, seem to prefer or even have minimalist systems these days, where the preamp/power amp combination has been substituted by an "integrated" with frugal inputs but sophisticated volume control circuits) and most importantly, as this is beyond esoteric -especially in Europe, where I currently reside- it would be particularly tricky to actually audition one before committing.

I am at a loss to understand this post.
It is obvious you are not a HiFi "newbie". You know what First Watt make & sell. Never has there been the option of "face plate colour - "volume control" - or "an integrated amp".
You quote Sempre Hi Fi in your signature - you don't disclose any relationship with Sempre Hi Fi & Enleum AMP 23R - the integrated amp in your signature - yet both are AUS based. AUS is an absolute outlier for Hi Fi innovation.
Perhaps you would like to clarify exactly what you are trying to achieve with your post.

 

[tedwoods]

I am at a loss to understand this post.
It is obvious you are not a HiFi "newbie". You know what First Watt make & sell. Never has there been the option of "face plate colour - "volume control" - or "an integrated amp".
You quote Sempre Hi Fi in your signature - you don't disclose any relationship with Sempre Hi Fi & Enleum AMP 23R - the integrated amp in your signature - yet both are AUS based. AUS is an absolute outlier for Hi Fi innovation.
Perhaps you would like to clarify exactly what you are trying to achieve with your post.

I feel you have misread my post, entirely!
Firstly, as a prospective buyer, I don’t see why I should not express my wish for a silver fascia option (the F7 is in silver, isn’t it?) or a volume control for that matter.
Moreover, I really don’t see how my being a “seasoned” audiophile has anything to do with that and I certainly don’t depict First Watt as the kind of company who would be unsympathetic, if anything, towards clients expressing their opinion. In fact, I would think the opposite to be true… and in any case, you cannot be assuming the position of their spokesperson.
As for the rest of your post, I am puzzled indeed, as it’s full of unwarranted insinuations and factual discrepancies: I live in Europe, not Australia and why should you have anything against Australia in the first place (too much surfing bothers you…)?
Enleum is, from what I gather, a Korean/American company, not an Australian one. I bought mine used (it’s a first-generation unit), since they are hard to come by in Europe. It’s in my signature because …duh, it’s my current amp… and “Sempre Hi-Fi is just my humoristic attempt at a Latin-based word play (a.k.a. “sempre fi / sempre hi-fi”).
If it’s also the name of a shop across the world, or a hotel on Mars, or anything else really, how can that even be remotely related to me? And why should I ever feel the need to clarify anything, like free speech does not exist and you feel inclined to act like you are a self-appointed censorship officer?
Maybe you haven’t been reading into your fellow members’ posts as carefully as you should. Next time, I suggest you do so before posting. A more mature attitude has never hurt anyone…

 

[treitz3]

@Rob181 - Good morning to you sir. I would like to remind you of the WBF's TOS #6.

6. Please do not attempt to moderate the forum on your own. If you see objectionable posts, please report them. We will deal with them. Above all, focus on the topic being discussed, rather than the person discussing it.

Tom

 

[tedwoods]

On a more positive note, 6moons have concluded their review of the SIT-4 (https://6moons.com/audioreview_articles/firstwatt-sit4/) and it looks like that this amp is a perfect match for my speakers.
In fact, it is very rare when a reviewer seems to (inadvertently of course) be addressing the exact situation you're in and basing his comparisons on the exact gear you have, but when that happens it's more or less like a sign of some kind...
As I'm in the process of upgrading my Lampi, I'll be ordering the new one with a volume control so that I can drive the SIT-4 directly.

 

[Rob181]

On a more positive note, 6moons have concluded their review of the SIT-4 (https://6moons.com/audioreview_articles/firstwatt-sit4/) and it looks like that this amp is a perfect match for my speakers.
In fact, it is very rare when a reviewer seems to (inadvertently of course) be addressing the exact situation you're in and basing his comparisons on the exact gear you have, but when that happens it's more or less like a sign of some kind...
As I'm in the process of upgrading my Lampi, I'll be ordering the new one with a volume control so that I can drive the SIT-4 directly.

Well look at that - an epiphany - based on reviews that have been out for over a month now - colour me surprised...

 

[Camus]

As I'm in the process of upgrading my Lampi, I'll be ordering the new one with a volume control so that I can drive the SIT-4 directly.

Does the Lampi provide an actual active pre-amp circuit, or simply volume control?

I ask as in my experience the First Watt amps do not match up well with passive or volume control type of devices, adding in a quality active pre-amp will yield a better performance. I have tried with several components: volume control on the totaldac, Goldpoint passive pre-preamp with 47 step attenuation, and simple sub $1k pre-amp. All of which left a lot to be desired with the First Watt.

 

[tedwoods]

Does the Lampi provide an actual active pre-amp circuit, or simply volume control?

I ask as in my experience the First Watt amps do not match up well with passive or volume control type of devices, adding in a quality active pre-amp will yield a better performance. I have tried with several components: volume control on the totaldac, Goldpoint passive pre-preamp with 47 step attenuation, and simple sub $1k pre-amp. All of which left a lot to be desired with the First Watt.

The volume control on the Lampi is a resistor ladder type and the output impedance is 200 Ohms per phase, while the SIT-4's input impedance is 100K, which seems to be O.K. according to the Lampizator manual. I quote from the manual:

The load presented by the preamp or amp or simply the next analog component that the DAC sees, should be as high as possible. It is measured in kilo-Ohms and 47 Kilohms is perfect ballpark value. More is VERY rarely seen. 20 K is the next common value, and it is great too. 20 K is kind of on the low side, but we can handle that. Lower than 10k is bad news. But our Amber DAC will handle 10 as well because we configure the DAC with additional cathode follower, low impedance buffer stage.

Of course nothing beats experience, so thanks for pointing this out to me. I guess I'll have to do my homework before I rush into something I wouldn't be able to get out of.