GT AUDIO WORKS AXPONA 2019 RM 1430

[allvinyl]

Here is John's pair of upgraded GTA3r speakers + SI600 open baffle servo subwoofers in the listening room undergoing final testing prior to shipment. They look stunning in Corvette Cyber Grey Metallic finish, and the revised stainless steel legs and x-over location looks much nicer. Most importantly, Greg comments in the video "I think you've got the best sounding pair I've ever made". Congrats John!

Thanks Bodhi! It all seems surreal that I'll soon have them in my room. I am speechless and so grateful to Greg and Steve for the time and attention to detail they put into every aspect of this effort. I tried to upload pics of everything in the shipping cube but the image files are too large...

 

[the sound of Tao]

Great to get a sneak preview video of the new speakers, looking awesome and even more looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the new beasts when all set up and playing all your vinyl allvinyl

 

[allvinyl]

Great to get a sneak preview video of the new speakers, looking awesome and even more looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the new beasts when all set up and playing all your vinyl allvinyl

Absolutely! I will post pictures and probably a video as well.

 

[Bodhi]

Thanks Bodhi! It all seems surreal that I'll soon have them in my room. I am speechless and so grateful to Greg and Steve for the time and attention to detail they put into every aspect of this effort. I tried to upload pics of everything in the shipping cube but the image files are too large...

I'm sure you're floating on cloud nine right now John! Btw thanks for your input which culminated in Greg developing the new ss supports & revised x-over location that has evidently taken the GTA3r's to the next level. No doubt those developments will inform Greg's roadmap to develop the new Reference 3-way panels. Looking forward to your update once these beasts are uncrated and setup in your room!

 

[allvinyl]

I'm sure you're floating on cloud nine right now John! Btw thanks for your input which culminated in Greg developing the new ss supports & revised x-over location that has evidently taken the GTA3r's to the next level. No doubt those developments will inform Greg's roadmap to develop the new Reference 3-way panels. Looking forward to your update once these beasts are uncrated and setup in your room!

Yes, a kid in a candy store!!!
Freight company dropped the cube early Friday morning and I got everything but the large main speaker crates unloaded before it started to snow. We got another 6" as it basically snowed all day. I put a space heater in the cube to help minimize any condensation issues on the diaphragms. I have help coming today to get the crates in and I'll also have them move the subwoofers downstairs, as well. May have it all running some time Sunday. Don't want to get too far out over my skis...

 

[Bodhi]

Thanks for the update & photos John. The shipping company did an excellent job securing the crates in the cube. And the crates themselves look well constructed. Good to hear you managed to get most of the crates unloaded before the snow set in. Smart move putting a space heater in the cube to reduce frost & large temperature fluctuations. Looking forward to seeing your speakers setup and playing music!

 

[allvinyl]

Thanks for the update & photos John. The shipping company did an excellent job securing the crates in the cube. And the crates themselves look well constructed. Good to hear you managed to get most of the crates unloaded before the snow set in. Smart move putting a space heater in the cube to reduce frost & large temperature fluctuations. Looking forward to seeing your speakers setup and playing music!

Thanks Bodhi. Yes, the heater in the cube worked well. Kept the temp in the 40's.
It was actually Greg and Steve to which credit goes for packing the cube so well and securing everything so well. I don't anything budged an inch...

 

[Bodhi]

John, now that you've got your GTA3r's + SI600 servo subs setup, would love to get an update on how they're sounding & maybe a pic or three

 

[allvinyl]

John, now that you've got your GTA3r's + SI600 servo subs setup, would love to get an update on how they're sounding & maybe a pic or three

Bohdi, yes I finally have the speakers and subs setup and on the Stillpoints. As soon as I have the room back in order I will be posting pictures and a link to a video. My daughter is coming over this weekend and will be helping with the video. I should be able to post the pictures before that.

At the same time I have been setting up the new speaker system, I have been sorting out a hum issue in my vinyl chain. I now understand the root cause, anyway, and at least I have a workaround though it required me removing the tuner from my system. I'll discuss this in greater detail, as well. Very frustrating...

 

[Bodhi]

Thanks for the update John. Yes setting up a system is real work, and can ocasionally throw you a curve ball. The last time I setup my system I blew the fuses in my Vitus cdp after I forgot to switch off my power conditioner. The iec also smelled like a Sunday bbq, but after a precautionary check by an authoirized repair centre, a new pair of fuses & a little 99.8% Isopropyl alcohol, all was well again.

Looking forward to your first impressions!

 

[allvinyl]

Thanks for the update John. Yes setting up a system is real work, and can ocasionally throw you a curve ball. The last time I setup my system I blew the fuses in my Vitus cdp after I forgot to switch off my power conditioner. The iec also smelled like a Sunday bbq, but after a precautionary check by an authoirized repair centre, a new pair of fuses & a little 99.8% Isopropyl alcohol, all was well again.

Looking forward to your first impressions!

Bodhi, whoa! Glad to learn there was no permanent damage incurred.

Included are some pics of the current speaker setup. (Excuse the basement listening room. My home was built in '63 and, so far, we've done little to no remodeling downstairs. Hence all the throw rugs on the ugly linoleum.) Hopefully my daughter and family will be past their strep throat by this weekend so I can film some video and provide those, as well.

I found the subs location in my room better inside the main panels. I also spread the main panels further to set the tweeters 8' on center. I may even fudge them out a couple inches further, but I am now getting the stage width/depth I know can be had in the room. I'm actually achieving the best results, in that respect, that I ever have from my cdp/digital chain. In this respect, it is close or equal to soundstaging from my vinyl chain. A definite improvement I am loving!

Frequency extension and transparency are greatly improved already and getting better as the drivers and line stage log hours. I probably only have around 15 - 20 hours of real listening logged at this point as attending to daily life has been very demanding as of late.

Another consequence of the new speakers and their capabilities is the issue of room acoustics. I tried to get ahead of this issue in the preceding months by adding 4 more Apertures to the back wall and acoustic panels to the side wall. I haven't permanently mounted the side walls' panels yet as their location is dependent on speaker location, so as I move the speakers so do I move the panels on the side. I'm also going to add a couple more as my measuring tells me I need a little more absorption. It's getting there...

Pardon the rant... As to vinyl hum and speed variation issues, moving the ADS to my tuner's previous location in my 2nd rack is the only way I can banish its interference/emi radiation affecting the Coincident that resulted in a terribly loud hum in the speakers when the ADS is play-engaged. The unit still hums when powered on, but you have to be within a foot or so to hear it. At least now I can listen to vinyl again. I've yet to swap the tuner back into the main rack where the ADS used to sit, but at least I have a workable solution. As for speed variation, I recently wrote on the VPI forum, "My basement listening room here in MN is about 8 degrees cooler in winter than the rest of my house. I use a space heater to warm the room when listening or exercising. I have found the ADS changes speed as the room temperature varies. I am constantly adjusting the speed (33 or 45) during listening sessions. I use a Phoenix Roadrunner to monitor SPR so I am able to watch and verify the changes real-time. It's not my imagination." Now to find a new turntable motor drive system.

 

[Bodhi]

Sorry about the late reply John. I've had a crazy week with family commitments. Lol, I remember lino - we had that in the kitchen in the house where I grew up. That's ok, it's all about the audio system. Apropos that, nice job with your initial setup. The updated GTA3r speakers look terrific! How does the automotive finish look in person? I've got to say I like the concept of the Sound Insight servo subs, with front and rear-firing drivers. I know the Genesis Primes have opposing rear-firing woofers on the bass towers, so there must be something in that.

Interesting that your Vitus cdp is now rivalling your vinyl setup in some areas. Do you have the SCD-025Mk2? That is an awesome single box cdp. Given a sufficiently resolving system, the Vitus has an analogue-like sound which can mix it with decent vinyl rigs. Though i'd say the APL Hifi DTR-MR/DSD-MR transport/dac is even more resolving, dimensional and analogue-like, but is a lot more doh.

You've certainly doubled down on SP Apertures! Though Steve gave me a heads up that system does need carefiul attention to room acoustics. But once dialed in, the system is capable of amazing sound as you know. My plan is to have SMT or ASC do a custom design for my room with the GTAW speakers in situ. Not cheap, but they're the experts.

Yes, tt speed controller/psu's spew out a lot of emi/rfi. My friend had the speed controller for his Transrotor Tourbillon sitting next to his tt on the top shelf. I advised him to move it to the bottom shelf of his rack, or as far away as possible. When he tried that, I got a text back from him saying "Breathtaking increase in air and lowering of noise floor. Good tip".

Btw, good choice using a space heater. I've found they maintain a consistent temperature better than split system a/c units. Though if your space heater ever breaks down, you can always upgrade to a pair of Pass Labs Class A mono's. Great room heaters! Looking forward to a video update once you've logged some more hours & got your setup dialed in .

 

[allvinyl]

Sorry about the late reply John. I've had a crazy week with family commitments. Lol, I remember lino - we had that in the kitchen in the house where I grew up. That's ok, it's all about the audio system. Apropos that, nice job with your initial setup. The updated GTA3r speakers look terrific! How does the automotive finish look in person? I've got to say I like the concept of the Sound Insight servo subs, with front and rear-firing drivers. I know the Genesis Primes have opposing rear-firing woofers on the bass towers, so there must be something in that.

Interesting that your Vitus cdp is now rivalling your vinyl setup in some areas. Do you have the SCD-025Mk2? That is an awesome single box cdp. Given a sufficiently resolving system, the Vitus has an analogue-like sound which can mix it with decent vinyl rigs. Though i'd say the APL Hifi DTR-MR/DSD-MR transport/dac is even more resolving, dimensional and analogue-like, but is a lot more doh.

You've certainly doubled down on SP Apertures! Though Steve gave me a heads up that system does need carefiul attention to room acoustics. But once dialed in, the system is capable of amazing sound as you know. My plan is to have SMT or ASC do a custom design for my room with the GTAW speakers in situ. Not cheap, but they're the experts.

Yes, tt speed controller/psu's spew out a lot of emi/rfi. My friend had the speed controller for his Transrotor Tourbillon sitting next to his tt on the top shelf. I advised him to move it to the bottom shelf of his rack, or as far away as possible. When he tried that, I got a text back from him saying "Breathtaking increase in air and lowering of noise floor. Good tip".

Btw, good choice using a space heater. I've found they maintain a consistent temperature better than split system a/c units. Though if your space heater ever breaks down, you can always upgrade to a pair of Pass Labs Class A mono's. Great room heaters! Looking forward to a video update once you've logged some more hours & got your setup dialed in .

Bodhi, no worries. Family commitments will always take precedence and remind us of what's really important and profer a greater appreciation for our hobby. On that note, since I last wrote on this thread I had my own interruption to deal with. I had to contract for home electrical system updates that include a new panel, wire and outlet replacement, and proper home ground system. These updates were necessitated by a fireball shooting from the duplex into which my right channel subwoofer amp was plugged. As luck would have it, I was downstairs on the elliptical when it happened. Freaked me out and I hope I can erase the image of that fire coming out of the wall! On the plus side, after all the inside and outside work was done there was no component damage to the system and the improvement to its overall sonic character was immediately evident upon first listen. Better articulation across the board, more drive, improved separation of the image from the speakers. I'm now in safe, code-compliant home audio heaven!

I think the speaker's finish is essentially flawless and I am very happy with the metallic grey Corvette color. I know Greg is planning to offer a second vendor in hopes of quicker turnaround and improved pair-to-pair consistency.

The SI600 system I heard at Steve's has the drivers all forward facing. I couldn't determine if the forward/backward facing configuration provides advantages as the additional drivers of the SI600 provide a fuller more impactful presentation. His room supports that much energy well with the proper acoustic treatment, though I doubt I could support that energy in my room. I would have to deaden the room in such a way that I think it would rob the top end and midrange.

Yeah, I'm really happy the CDP performance is as improved as it is. Given your recommendations of the SCD-025Mk2 and the review link you provided I am still especially interested in having my SCD-010 upgraded. Likely an upgrade that will have to wait. In the meantime, I don't feel like I'm suffering...

I only have the SDS and ADS controllers to compare in my system. I used the SDS successfully in the same rack on the shelf below the preamp. I certainly wish I had never sold it before I auditioned the ADS. Enough written about this as I could easily ramp up again...

Warming the room helps as does the rising humidity now that it's not -10 outside. I control the humidity as well and when I was down there this morning exercising, it was the first time since early last fall that the humidity was above 45%! I usually try to take some out of the air once it rises above 55%. Yeah, those Pass Labs Class A monos would help and have the added benefit of sounding pretty good as well. Steve's bent my ear on several occasions and I admit they sounded great in his system. If I were to switch I'd have to A/B in my room against the Symphony. It's no slouch, IMHO.

I'm looking forward to making the videos and now that the electrical issues are in the rear-view, I can probably make them sooner than later.

 

[Bodhi]

Thanks John, my Niece's Wedding was on the W'end, so it's been a busy week. You've had a bit of excitement there...seeing a Napalm canister ignite in your wpo. Geez you're lucky the short didn't send a spike into your sub amp! But glad to see you've taken the opportunity to replace the panel, wiring & crispy crittered wpo. Did you replace it with an audiophile wpo (eg: Furutech)? In any case, your tradie's done a good job by the looks of it with commensurate sonic benefits.

Great feedback on the automotive finish of your speakers. I like the Corvette Cyber Gray Metallic finish. Though I think i'd be tempted to get Steinway piano black finish like one of their Grand pianos. The SI600 open baffle servo subs certainly require (and deserve) a medium-large or large room with careful attention to room acoustics to do them justice. But they surpass even the mighty IRS-V's and 1st generation Genesis speakers by all reports. I think you've chosen well going for the SI200 subs for your room. That said, I'll be interested to see what the future 7.5ft Reference 3-way panels look like when they arrive in the next 12 months.

I forgot you had the SCD-010. That was the player I heard with the Vitus SIA-025 driving Magico Q1's at my Dealer's showroom which directly lead me to sell off my old system & build a system around Vitus and Magico. The SCD-010 is still a musical sounding spinner. But yes the 025 Mk2 is quite a bit better again, and a worthwhile upgrade. Vitus is speculating about developing a new dac module in the next 12 months, so by the time you're ready to upgrade you might get a newly upgraded player.

The Pass Class A mono's are very good, though my next amp will be the Vitus SIA-030 integrated. That should be a heck of an amp. Looking forward to your video update!

 

[Bodhi]

Here is some reviewer commentary from Axpona...

Mike Bovaird from Audioshark/SunCoast Audio included the GT Audio Works GTA3r crossoverless planar/ribbon panels + SI200 open baffle servo subwoofers in his "Best of" list at Axpona, 2019. Here are his comments -

"GT Audioworks planer magnetic speakers. Magnepan has stiff competition. This company based out of New Jersey (I believe) has taken planer magnetic technology to a whole new level. Wonderfully musical and transparent. A true show stopper. "

Peter Breuninger from AV Showrooms also summed up the GT Audio Works/Sound Insight room, saying -

"This system fully pressurized the room with starship Enterprise holodeck reality. Amazing! "

Kemper Holt from AV Showrooms commented -

"I think getting that system to perform so astoundingly excellent in such a small room is a testament to the nature of dipoles especially the OB subwoofers. Greg and Steve had an expansive soundstage wide and deep, focused vocals with the singer at the correct height, exceptional detail retrieval, tight powerful deep bass with chest crushing impact (best low bass in any of the small rooms), no boom/bloat/muddy/one note bass here, the Sound Insight OB subs were a perfect blend with the GTA 3.1Rs, absolutely seamless. The system produced stunning dynamics, even more so on Sunday after switching Zanden amps to a more powerful one using 2 pairs of KT120s, knock you over dynamic swings, very live concert feel."

 

[GT Audio Works]

Mike Bovaird from Audioshark/SunCoast Audio included the GT Audio Works GTA3r crossoverless planar/ribbon panels + SI200 open baffle servo subwoofers in his "Best of" list at Axpona, 2019. Here are his comments -

"GT Audioworks planer magnetic speakers. Magnepan has stiff competition. This company based out of New Jersey (I believe) has taken planer magnetic technology to a whole new level. Wonderfully musical and transparent. A true show stopper. "

Peter Breuninger from AV Showrooms also summed up the GT Audio Works/Sound Insight room, saying -

"This system fully pressurized the room with starship Enterprise holodeck reality. Amazing! "

View attachment 50453

 

[GT Audio Works]

Thanks for passing this on Bodhi... left
Chicago this morning will not get home till late tonight
It was a good show...good vibe lot of happy people in our room

 

[allvinyl]

Yeah it was a great show. The Kronos Sparta turntable and Zanden electronics we're both first-rate. Had a great time with Greg, Steve, and Eric. Already looking forward to next year. Thanks guys!

 

[Bodhi]

Here is AV Showrooms Reviewer's View from Axpona, 2019 hot off the press. The review of the GT Audio Works GTA3.1r planar magnetic panels + SI300 open baffle servo subs starts at 2:56. Congratulations to Greg and Steve for doing a great job with the setup & assembling an impressive system incl: Zanden and Kronos

 

[Bodhi]

Good sounds coming from the GTAW/Sound Insight room at Axpona!