Graham Audio LS8/1 Signature Edition & a New System

[tmallin]

A note on the transparency of my system using the Watkins Generation 4 speakers:

For at least the past 20 years I've been using the Absolute Power Cord Mk II, once imported and sold by Bill Parish of GTT Audio. These power cords are bright blue in color, eight feet long, of three-wire 14 gauge construction, and are hospital grade. They don't look like anything special, other than for the color and the clear-ish round plug end. These were manufactured in China by Ching Cheng, one of the largest OEM specialty power cord manufactures in the world at the time. They originally sold for about $50 each. Since I've used them I've always felt that they were quite neutral in terms of tonal balance and detail retrieval.

Many years ago I went through a long period of experimenting with high-dollar interconnects, speaker cables, digital links, etc. In the end, I found that the fairly low priced Blue Jeans and Benchmark cables were at least as good if not better sounding. They seem uncolored tonally with no faults to speak of, whereas most of the high-dollar stuff was obviously tonally colored.

I did replace my power cords at one point with Triode Wire Labs versions, upon recommendation from Dave at P.I. Audio, the maker of my UberBuss power conditioners. But, despite my initial very enthusiastic reactions to those cords, in the end, I found them a bit too rolled off/soft at the top end. They probably work great with the Klipsch/Volti and other horn speakers favored by Dave and Pete the guy who runs TWL. And I did find the USB link jointly developed by those two guys to be my long-term favorite USB connector to get rid of digital harshness.

In recent years Bill Parish of GTT Audio regularly has one of the best sounding rooms at AXPONA. Indeed, this year's exhibit was probably one of the top five sounding audio systems I've ever heard.

Bill had a few more of the Absolute Power Cord Mk IIs in storage a few years back when I contacted him about them, so I bought most of what he had left and now have plenty for my current systems. Besides the audio room, I use them for my desktop computer audio system and my Farad power supply which powers my Poor Man's Roon Nucleus Plus in a downstairs room.

Recently, well after my Watkins speakers had fully broken in, I had replaced all seven of my power cords in the main system with very inexpensive 14-gauge hospital grade versions from Cable Leader. I did this since that company offered short length, 3 and 6 foot cords which seemed to fit my compact system's needs much better than the 8-foot Absolute Power Cord Mk II. Other than color, they also looked very similar to the old cords, right down to the clear-ish round plug end.

While I have been using the Absolutes for the last 20 years, since I moved to my current audio room in 2015 it has always been a hassle to hide those long cords and get them behind the foam pads which stand on the floor near my equipment rack without creating a rat's nest behind that rack. With the Cable Leader cords (three 3-footers for the Lumin equipment and ethernet switch's power supply, and four 6-footers for the UberBuss power filters and the amps), everything looked very neat and tidy.

But since I substituted the Cable Leader power cords, I'd noticed a reduction in bass amount, punch, heft, definition, etc. I'd also noticed less startling macro-dynamic swings and less amazing soundstage envelopment. There also seemed to be a narrow region in the upper mids/lower highs which brightly "stuck out" a bit tonally on certain music. Further, the stick sound on struck cymbals seemed more buried and less distinctly preceding the shimmer in time, more like most speakers had portrayed it before the Watkins. It seemed the timing of cymbal strikes was messed up, in other words.

In short, the speakers seemed less involving and fun to listen to than they had been at first. Initially I thought I was imagining all these changes. Then I thought perhaps I was just getting over the honeymoon phase with the Watkins speakers and hearing things more as they really were. But I eventually decided that I had to find out.

So after thinking for days about how best to organize the older longer Absolute Power Cord Mk IIs behind the rack, I undertook the project of removing the Cable Leader cords and putting the old cords back. I had to power down everything, reapply Deoxit Gold to all cable ends, and work in extremely close quarters to do it, replacing each cord in the order I'd determined would best organize the longer cords. The project took a few hours of work to complete. Things don't look as neat and tidy as they did with the Cable Leader cords, but they do look considerably better now than they did before--no visible rat's nest. I also reinserted the Absolute Power Cord Mk IIs in a way which did not involve moving any of the equipment, so I was mostly working in the narrow confines behind the equipment on the rack and between the equipment and the wall just behind the rack.

I knew from the first few moments of listening that I hadn't been imagining the changes that I'd heard from the Cable Leader cords. Even though I know from experience with such changes that the equipment and connections need days of time to warm up and "settle in" to get the full effect, I knew from the first few moments of listening that the Watkins' sonic magic was back in full force--and at no cost other than the toll on my body from the physical contortions involved.

Given my limited experience with power cord substitutions, I have little idea where the Absolute Power Cord MkIIs stand in the sonic pantheon of currently available after-market power cords. All I know is that throughout all the sonic changes in my systems over the last two decades, these seemingly have gotten out of the way and let the equipment and the music shine through. And I think it's a tribute to the Watkins Generation 4 speakers that they so clearly reveal the sonic changes wrought by a power cord swap, even where the power cords involved are, as here, from all appearances, quite similar in construction and both quite reasonably priced--well, the Cable Leaders are inexpensive while the Absolute Power Cord Mk IIs are at this late date basically Unobtainium.

 

[tmallin]

A Further Simplified System: Lyngdorf TDAI 3400

Consider this a preliminary report. I have further simplified my main audio system by replacing the Lumin X1 streamer/DAC, Lumin L2 Music Library & Network Switch, and bridged pair of Benchmark AHB2 amplifiers with a Lyngdorf TDAI 3400. This reconfiguration allows me to keep all the electronics on my small rack and eliminate the amps sitting on the floor in front of the rack. It also eliminates four power cords, cleaning up the nest of cables behind the rack. Each of my PI Audio UberBusses now drives only a single component and each of these are driven by a separate dedicated circuit on the same phase of my electrical service. The TDAI 3400 is driven by one dedicated circuit/UberBuss and the GigaFOILv4 Inline ethernet filter, powered by 5V output of Farad Super3 linear power supply is driven by the other dedicated circuit/UberBuss.

The complete new current system configuration is linked to from my signature on this post.

This is the third time I've used Lyngdorf equipment. I used a TDAI 2170 to power my Stirling Broadcast LS3/6 speakers and feed my Audio Kinesis Swarm subwoofer arrays. I also at one point used a Lyngdorf SDA 2400 amp to power my Harbeth M40.1 speakers in another room. Both of those experiences were highly positive with the exception of Room Perfect in the TDAI 2170. I always found Room Perfect to create an unneeded and sonically objectionable peak in the response in the 4 kHz range.

At this point I am exceptionally pleased with my purchase of the Lyngdorf TDAI 3400. It sounds fabulous and all the functions I need seem to work in a glitch-free manner. Since it retails for $7,500, replaces Lumin and Benchmark equipment retailing for about $26,000, and sounds even better than that equipment, I'd say it is a bargain for me.

I will need to wait another week or so for my UberBuss power treatment units to warm up/settle in after being disconnected from power for an extended period as I did when I dissembled things and inserted the Lyngdorf. It also takes about that long or longer for the Deoxit Gold-treated connections to fully "cure," so I'm not yet getting the "full effect." But even at this point, I'm very pleased indeed.

Some details and observations:

I received my TDAI 3400 early last Friday. I spent the day dismantling my system, photographing and packing up the Lumin and Benchmark items, and moving them to our basement. I did manage to get the 3400 mostly set up late Friday evening and finished the job early Saturday morning. I did not employ Room Perfect until Sunday.

A comment on the packaging of the Lyngdorf: Not since some PS Audio equipment I once owed have I seen packaging this simple yet bombproof. The double-boxed container primarily uses cardboard and thick clear plastic membranes above and below the chassis to form a springy, air-surrounded environment for the electronics inside the box. Very safe and very easy to unbox.

Before I implemented Room Perfect I didn't really expect the bass to be both stronger and yet better defined. But that is what I heard right from the first few notes. There was more meat on the bone. And there was yet more dynamic contrast. Roon programming sounded yet better this way. High frequencies seemed about the same--very nice indeed with no increase in nasties or other artifacts. I had the sense of great reserve power, at least as much of the "Hoover Dam" sensation as before.

Another great way to play Qobuz streaming, through the Lyngdorf, besides using Roon, is via the Mconnect app. That way sounds at least as excellent as via Roon. You can play Qobuz and Tidal sources via Mconnect using the UPnP input function of the TDAI 3400. Tidal Connect is also a great alternative to Roon when streaming from that service with sonics at least as good as Roon. The Lyngdorf allows Tidal Connect.

[Continued in next post]

 

[tmallin]

Then I implemented Room Perfect. Whoa! Full stop.

The sonic changes from implementing Room Perfect in Focus mode were all to the good. VERY GOOD! This is a VERY significant improvement to what was already truly excellent sound except for what Room Perfect found to correct and corrected.

There is now much more meat on the bone. It apparently at least partially filled in a dip I had in the upper bass/lower midrange so that the sound is more fulsome, making the frequency balance of the Watkins Generation 4 speakers I'm currently using much more like the balance of the Graham Audio LS8/1s without Room Perfect but positioned at the same distances from the walls. Lower voices, cellos, piano left hand and most any music with significant low end benefits from presenting the "power range" (say 100 to 300 Hz) and lower midrange at proper relative levels. All music sounds fuller, more powerful, more weighty and larger. Bass definition is also further improved with the tune of note-to-note walking bass becoming yet easier to follow. All this correction was made without adding any undue midbass bloat or thump. Low bass is not much affected--the Watkins speakers still roll off below 40 Hz, in other words, but the overall impression of bass weight is greatly enhanced.

Unlike my experience with the TDAI 2170 years ago, I hear no excess high frequencies injected by Room Perfect. Besides the magic in the lower frequencies, imaging is firmed and staging is considerably more 3-D. That's going some since the Watkins presentation was already by far the most 3-D Ive heard from any speakers in this room.There's also a general sense that the sound is more "present" without any audible peaks in the mids. Altogether using Room Perfect in the TDAI 3400 is a great success for my system!

I use a Cardas-style set up and have for years because this maximizes realism of imaging and staging from most speakers in my room. Those sonic aspects are the most important to me. I'm not so sensitive to bass balance as long as there is no midbass boom, which there wasn't. The Watkins speakers are on 30-inch stands. In my room that puts the woofer about the same distance above the floor as it is from the side wall. Perhaps that causes a null or dip in the upper bass/lower midrange, but that's just speculation. I know putting the Graham speakers on the 20 inch Skylan stands I first used and the same distance from the walls caused a bit of the same kind of dip/null, but not to the same extent. Moving the Grahams to the shorter Graham stands made the Grahams nice and full sounding.

If you have used Room Perfect in the past and have not achieved altogether positive Room Perfect results, check your software version. The current one, and the one I'm using in the TDAI 3400, is version 3.3.0. I also strongly suggest that you try the following "trick" set up for Room Perfect if in the past Room Perfect was emphasizing the highs or in some other way producing less than totally satisfying results.

Lyngdorf's instructions for setting up Room Perfect, which I have followed in the past call for placing the microphone at "random" room positions and orientations with respect to the speakers after the initial measurement at the listening position. That is NOT the way I set it up this time. I should note that Lyngdorf admits these days that if you have an acoustically treated room (as I do), you can avoid having the Room Perfect correction end up with excess highs by always aiming the microphone between the speakers regardless of the "random" positions of the microphone within the room.

For my current Room Perfect set up, I put the front tip of the microphone where the center of my head is between my ears when I'm in the listening chair. I pointed the mic level and straight forward to the point on the wall behind the speakers, midway between the two speakers. I did not move the microphone for any of the measurements. I started out with the volume set at minus 30, but Room Perfect said that was too low and to set the volume at minus 12 dB. That was quite loud, but seemingly safe for the speakers. I was running the measurement from my computer desk outside the listening room, so the room was empty of people and with the door to the listening room shut (my usual way to listen when I'm in that room) it was not loud at all outside the room. Room Perfect told me it had 100% room knowledge after the Focus measurement and one room measurement, but I ran two more room measurements anyway, again not moving the mike. After the third room measurement (a total of four measurements including Focus), Room Perfect said I was done and should exit. The entire Room Perfect measurement process, including setting up the mike, which is the most time and detail intensive part, only took about half an hour.

In walking around the room, I hear not much variation in bass level with Room Perfect set on Focus. I worried that it might sound too bassy outside the listening postion, but that is not the case.

So I guess my effort to "fool" Room Perfect about how to adjust the response worked. I love it when a plan comes together! I will not be going back to the Lumin/Benchmark equipment!

Let me add that before purchase I was aware of the less-than-stellar measurements of the TDAI 3400 reported by Audio Science Review (ASR) and some others. I was also aware of the stellar subjective reviews from other sources. I also note that ASR at least partially recanted once the author heard the results of Room Perfect on his own home system, then giving the 3400 his recommendation.

Before purchasing my Lyngdorf TDAI 3400 I also heard a friend's TDAI 3400 set up with the Graham Audio LS8/1 speakers and was quite impressed. Now, having heard the 3400 in my own room, all I can say is that whatever objective flaws the electronics may reveal on the test bench, the Lyngdorf TDAI 3400 yields subjectively amazing results in my listening room.

A picture of my newly further simplified system is attached.

 

[tmallin]

My main objection to using Roon for all my listening is the way it treats internet radio stations. As I've mentioned, I'm a big fan of internet radio since I frequently like being surprised by programming,. Yes, Roon offers multiple streams for many stations, frequently with AAC or MP3 alternatives and sometimes FLAC. That is good. Also, for many stations Roon offers a three-click path from the piece being played live to the Qobuz/Tidal version so you can begin listening to it in "full fidelity" within ten seconds or so if you like. That is very nice.

But for most of the lower resolution stations (i.e., those not streaming in FLAC, which means most stations), Roon automatically and undefeatably upsamples the streams to 24 bit resolution even if the original stream is 16 bit, which is usually the case. I have complained to Roon about this multiple times since, in my experience across many iterations of my system, native resolution sounds best overall. Roon disagrees, finding such upsampling more helpful than deleterious. I find upsampling to add a bit of edge to the sound, reduce clarity, and significantly reduce the three dimensionality of the presentation.

This is one reason I found the internet radio function of the Lumin X1 to be superior to Roon's. The Lumin App pulls internet radio stations from TuneIn which does not upsample them and neither did the Lumin App unless you elect such upsampling.

With the Lyngdorf TDAI 3400 I get around this problem by using the airable input function. Airable seems to have a catalog of internet radio stations at least as large as vTuner which the Lyngdorf also offers as a source of internet radio stations. Neither of these services upsamples the internet radio streams and neither does the Lyngdorf. I find that the airable streams often sound a bit better than those from vTuner. Also, the airable interface is more user friendly, allowing choice of an unlimited number of "Favorite" stations, which are then listed alphabetically within airable, allowing easy recall of any "Favorite' station within airable. These airable internet radio streams sound at least as good as the Lumin App internet radio streams did. The Lyngdorf treats both vTuner and airable as "native" applications so that AirPlay is not used.

Airable also breaks out a list of "High Quality" stations from around the world, meaning those streaming with at least 44.1/16 FLAC quality. The vTuner function does not provide any FLAC stations at all. This airable "High Quality" list parallels the FLAC stations the Lumin App automatically included and is in fact a more extensive list of FLAC stations.

For some internet radio streams, such as the subscription Sirius/XM and JazzRadio services, AirPlay is the only way to play them through the Lyngdorf. That was also true with the Lumin X1. AirPlay sounds fine on such streams and allows the user to pick the highest resolution stream available--which is expecially helpful with the SomaFM streams which generally have quite good sound for such "low resolution" sources.