M1.1 Stereo vs Mono Blocks

[agencal]

Hi everyone. As most of you suggested i am adding new units one by one. Now my sustem is;
C1.2 , L1, X1 with two cards , M1.1 stereo and Sonus Faber il Cremonese ex3me . I am a digital guy and listen qobuz on roon.I really like how they sound. I am mostly after deep soundstage and holographic imaging. The set up is great for this. Most people say T1 is mıstly usefull with a cd transport but not with stream. What do you say?
Sould i go for mono blocks and will it improove soundstage ? Or what sould i except with it?
It would be great to try these at home but dealer does not have them and will order for me. So ıt would be great to hear from you.
Thanks

 

[delphi17]

Depends on what type of soundstage you are looking for .

For depth , definitely go with mono mono .
As it will improve your speaker’s dynamics.
If its width you are looking for.
I would look at ways to drop your background noise .

The X1 is an excellent upgrade for your C1.2 which you already have.

The T1 is about fluidity of the music , it’s will improve the C1.2 , but it’s main job is as you mentioned for upgrading the D1 or D1.5’s performance.

Not sure what cable you are already using between the C1.2 and the L1 , but that would be the most logical choice to improve on if you are looking for soundstage width and micro details of the music.

 

[delphi17]

Also another thing to consider is the CMS footers for your C1.2.

They are magical in what they can do for DAC.
Really have to use them to believe how much improvement they can do for your system.

They make music believable for me, holographic imaging is great , but making that holographic imaging become cohesive is just as important , as it makes it feel that you are actually there.

 

[agencal]

Depends on what type of soundstage you are looking for .

For depth , definitely go with mono mono .
As it will improve your speaker’s dynamics.
If its width you are looking for.
I would look at ways to drop your background noise .

The X1 is an excellent upgrade for your C1.2 which you already have.

The T1 is about fluidity of the music , it’s will improve the C1.2 , but it’s main job is as you mentioned for upgrading the D1 or D1.5’s performance.

Not sure what cable you are already using between the C1.2 and the L1 , but that would be the most logical choice to improve on if you are looking for soundstage width and micro details of the music.

Thank you for the informative and detailed answer. I am mostly after the depth of the soundstage and layered instrument layout. As i understand going mono will improve this. I also did my best for setting up the speakers. They are now 2 meters away from the front wall with a closer than equal triangle to my listening position. I mean the speakers are 3.2meter away from each other but 3 meters to my listening position. This not only made a huge and deep soundstage but also a feeling like you are in the stage.
Never heard of CMS footers. I will look for it. I thin it is not for L1 or X1 but more fore C1.2 right?

I use CH XLR interconnects between c1.2 and L1 which is made by argento from silver i guess. Do you thing soundstage can improve with interconnects?

 

[delphi17]

No problem.
Happy to share my findings.

Soundstage depth is created using contrast of great dynamic control.
It's like creating fine lines around your sound that gives you clear indication of depth.
Better power to your amps or going mono will help with that for sure.
Especially in the bass region.

Close or equal to a equilateral triangle is the best you can get, gives you the best soundstage you can get, you are a lucky man.
Yeah, the CH XLR Interconnect are very similar to Argento's Flow interconnects, and are very neutral cables.

And yes going higher in the XLR interconnects will give you better flow and wider soundstage as less is being lost during the connection.
When you can hear more into the music, you will perceive the stage feels wider, but really it's just being able to hear more.
Argento FMR would be a logical next choice for you to move up the chain.
But of course there are other brands like Nordorst, and Transparent Cable which excel on this aspect too.

Argento power cables also work well if you prefer a neutral sound.
I am currently using Goebel power cables, and they work really great with CH also.

I currently use the CMS Center Stage TT footers for all my CH components, and they really are amazing.
Steve Williams who owns this site also has them under all his components.
Definitely highly recommend them under the C1.2 first, as it has the greatest effect for me.
But of course it will be suitable under any component.

Looking forward to your findings too.
Cheers.

 

[heihei]

If you are committed to staying with CH as a digital source, I'd upgrade the digital as much as you can - IMHO it's the weak link the in the CH chain.

 

[adyc]

So

If you are committed to staying with CH as a digital source, I'd upgrade the digital as much as you can - IMHO it's the weak link the in the CH chain.

Sorry I do not agree. I own C1.2 mono. They are the best DAC I have ever heard or owned. I owned MSB Select II or Lampizator GG before. CH DAC is definitely not the weak link.

 

[delphi17]

I think it really depends on which CH dac Heihei listened to.

I have to say the C1 when I heard it, did not impress me at all either.
Even with X1 installed, the C1 just didn't have enough sound stage depth or width to convince me.

The C1.2 definitely is a huge step up in terms of performance.
Also C1.2 will still need a good music server and digital treatment to make it's streaming shine.
It was designed with D1 or D1.5 in mind, so one does need to work on the networking side to make it shine.
In the end, it's all about system synergy and optimizing.

So I agree and disagree with HeiHei, the CH C1.2 by itself is probably a "weak link".
But it's only because it was designed so neutral , so that you can elevate it the way you want to.