The best sound I have heard was found at Jacob Heilbrunn's house.

[Mike Lavigne]

You don’t see a lot of Dart matched with Wilson. I wonder why?

Only Fremer and now Jacob. The 2 most prominent rooms in reviewer-dom. Who have heard more than most.

how many reviewers have had darTZeel to try in their systems?

I’m told there are others; people with darts and Wilson, not reviewers. But I don’t know who.

 

[Lee]

Dear Lee,

Thank you very much for that photo and for telling us about your visit to Jacob!

Which cartridge/tonearm combinations did you hear? Other than the DS Audio cartridge what other cartridge does Jacob have on which other tonearm?

What amplifiers is Jacob using to drive the Master Subsonics?

Just got a text from Jacob. It was the top TechDas cartridge on the Graham.

 

[Lee]

Only Fremer and now Jacob. The 2 most prominent rooms in reviewer-dom.

how many reviewers have had darTZeel to try in their systems?

I’m told there are others; people with darts and Wilson, not reviewers. But I don’t know who.

The mono blocks are what $200K a pair? Preamp is $60K? That does partly explain it as well.

 

[LL21]

I’ve known about this for awhile, but was asked not to share. Lee (Absolute Sound publisher) has mentioned it so I can comment that Jacob did move to the darTZeel.

as far as his sharing his impressions we wait for the review. He did still own the Ypsilon’s when he first got the dart’s to listen to.

I respect that. Thanks. Will look forward to his review. Do you know if Jacob ever had the Boulder 3000 series in his room? I know he really like Boulder phono stage...was it in the top right of the photo of his system?

 

[Ron Resnick]

Just got a text from Jacob. It was the top TechDas cartridge on the Graham.

Thank you very much, Lee!

Did Jacob play both cartridge/tonearm combinations for you? (I'm just fishing to see if you have any personal sense of the DS Audio cartridge versus a moving coil cartridge.)

 

[Lee]

Thank you very much, Lee!

Did Jacob play both cartridge/tonearm combinations for you? (I'm just fishing to see if you have any personal sense of the DS Audio cartridge versus a moving coil cartridge.)

He did. I found both to be really sublime. The optical cartridge sounded different and maybe a smidge quieter...but I would be ecstatic with either one.

 

[Hi-FiGuy]

Yes, Magnum Opus I believe.

If you do not pair Transparent with Wilson do you not get chased out of town by the villagers with pointed sticks...

Stunning system, DarTZ are the ones for me.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

The mono blocks are what $200K a pair? Preamp is $60K? That does partly explain it as well.

Yes. Actually the 468 mono blocks are $195k and the NHB-18NS mk2 preamp with one phono is $53k last time I checked. Mine has 2 Phono’s $8k ($10k?) more.

a case can be well made that the dart pre is a system building bargain (even at $53k or $63k with two phono's).

it's battery powered (don't need an expensive power cord), it includes a great phono stage (or two), which saves on a phono stage, expensive interconnects, shelf space and footers. it will take a formidable assembly of gear to surpass it......if it can be done. and it will work amazingly well with a tube amp or solid state amp.

not going there with the 468's. it is what it is.

 

[Ron Resnick]

He did. I found both to be really sublime. The optical cartridge sounded different and maybe a smidge quieter...but I would be ecstatic with either one.

Did the TechDAS cartridge or did the optical cartridge afford you a greater suspension of disbelief?*

*The witness may plead the Fifth Amendment to avoid incriminating the innocent.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

I respect that. Thanks. Will look forward to his review. Do you know if Jacob ever had the Boulder 3000 series in his room? I know he really like Boulder phono stage...was it in the top right of the photo of his system?

i have read his Boulder phono stage and preamp review......

Boulder 3010 Preamplifier and 2108 Phono Preamplifier - The Absolute Sound

Boulder 3010 Preamplifier and 2108 Phono Preamplifier -

www.theabsolutesound.com

in 2014-2015 i think Jacob did review the Boulder 2110 pre and 2150 amp. could not find a link.

those boxes on the top right are DS Audio phono's. i would not guess as to Jacob's feelings about a Boulder amp as 'his personal' long term choice.

 

[Lee]

Did the TechDAS cartridge or did the optical cartridge afford you a greater suspension of disbelief?*

*The witness may plead the Fifth Amendment to avoid incriminating the innocent.

I'm going to plead the fifth.

 

[chuck]

i have read his Boulder phono stage and preamp review......

Boulder 3010 Preamplifier and 2108 Phono Preamplifier - The Absolute Sound

Boulder 3010 Preamplifier and 2108 Phono Preamplifier -

www.theabsolutesound.com

in 2014-2015 i think Jacob did review the Boulder 2110 pre and 2150 amp. could not find a link.

those boxes on the top right are DS Audio phono's. i would not guess as to Jacob's feelings about a Boulder amp as 'his personal' long term choice.

Anthony Cordesman did the Boulder 2110/2150 review for TAS.

 

[Addicted to hifi]

I was finally able to go to Jacob Heilbrunn's house and hear his sound system. It was breathtaking and even surpassed the WAMM installation at Dave Wilson's house.

As the photo will show, he had some exquisite gear, most notably an Air Force Zero with Graham and SAT tonearms and DS audio optical cartridge. Preamp and amp were Dartzeel which really impressed me. There was clearly something magical in the pairing of Wilson Audio WAMMs and the Dartzeel mono blocks. They are also the prettiest amplifiers I have seen. Digital which did not sound digital was the full Vivaldi stack.

Describing this fully in words is difficult but I think of two words, lifelike and effortless. Music just flowed so smoothly and naturally. Soundstage was deep and wide. You just could not locate where the speakers were if you closed your eyes.

A truly religious experience for me. It's valuable to hear how realistic the latest reference gear can be. Spooky good in many areas!

Perhaps even better was having a few hours to talk to Jacob. He is a very interesting and intelligent person. I am very glad we have him writing for The Absolute Sound.

Wow never seeing such an amazing system.you are very lucky to experience it.congratulations and thanks for the post.

 

[ddk]

You don’t see a lot of Dart matched with Wilson. I wonder why?

From 3 years ago !

American Sound AS-2000 Installations- Far East (Mr. T's)

With two purpose built massive listening rooms packed with the most exotic high end equipment and a 3rd building under consideration as a high end museum serious doesn't begin to describe Mr. T's passion of high end. Here's my Thai support team, Pisset is the technical and setup wiz working...

www.whatsbestforum.com

There’s also Fremer, pretty certain it not an uncommon pairing.
david

 

[andromedaaudio]

You don’t see a lot of Dart matched with Wilson. I wonder why?

May be its a drivability issue .
Not many will have the 195 k 468 dart monos to play with
The 108 might be a great amp on the right speaker but its not a powerhouse.
So its strenghs may get kind of lost on regular wilsons as compared to other amps with more power(reserves).

I hope to hear the darts in munich , this dumb deaf audiofile has never even heard the darts mono s
Only a 108 at 1 occasion and what stood out was a clean top end

Ps J heilbrunn has great looking speakers in what appears to be a good size room fit and doing D wilson honour by having the whole system meaning wamm incl subsonics as it was designed to be

 

[Mike Lavigne]

May be its a drivability issue .
Not many will have the 195 k 468 dart monos to play with
The 108 might be a great amp on the right speaker but its not a powerhouse.
So its strenghs may get kind of lost on regular wilsons as compared to other amps with more power(reserves).

I hope to hear the darts in munich , this dumb deaf audiofile has never even heard the darts mono s
Only a 108 at 1 occasion and what stood out was a clean top end

Ps J heilbrunn has great looking speakers in what appears to be a good size room fit and doing D wilson honour by having the whole system meaning wamm incl subsonics as it was designed to be

the dart mono's are rare, and from what i understand, back ordered to a degree. hope there are a pair at Munich, but Herve is not big on doing shows. hope you can hear them; i did see that the Paris darTZeel dealer was getting a pair of 468's so you might hear them there before they get sold.

the current spec stereo dart 108 Mk2 can power pretty much any real world speaker; maybe an 86db or lower efficient speaker dropping to 2 ohms in a very large room would be a challenge, but even that sort of low efficiency would be fine in a modest sized room. it's got balls. i can't think of any current production Wilson it would have trouble with. other amps might bring you certain attributes, but none i'd want more than the one's the 108 would deliver.

if your priorities are welding, or super high slam; with zero global feedback the 108 Mk2 is not your amp. OTOH if you want grainless, micro-dynamically alive coherence with a sparkling mid-range, texturally rich flow, and extended smooth high frequencies then look no further. it's sets the bar very very high. you can listen forever and you don't get bored no matter the musical choice. not a one trick pony. takes the 468's to equal or surpass it in my experience. obviously i've not heard everything......YMMV.

the 108 does not strangle the musical message, it let's it through transparently.

 

[microstrip]

If you do not pair Transparent with Wilson do you not get chased out of town by the villagers with pointed sticks...

Not mandatory, although usually a safe bet. But many people use big Wilson's with other cable brands - M. Fremer for example.

 

[microstrip]

You don’t see a lot of Dart matched with Wilson. I wonder why?

In fact we do not see a lot of Dart - although top quality and excellent sounding they are expensive and are a niche product. But our local distributor sells DartZeel and Wilson Audio and I can assure you that a significant number of his clients pair them.

My main issue with DartZeel is price - in an hobby driven by preference and our wallets things are more complicated than just saying it sounds sublime. Also the waiting time for upgrades - I am not a patient audiophile.

 

[jtinn]

Also the waiting time for upgrades - I am not a patient audiophile.

I am surprised you made that statement. Many manufacturers come out with non-stop upgrades / model changes which, frankly speaking, annoys the hell out of me. There are only a few reasons this happens:

1. A manufacturer does not put their best foot forward or has rushed to market and needs to make changes.
2. A manufacturer is looking to dip into the well over and over again with "face lifts" and keep milking the customer for every cent they can get.
3. There is truly a technology/material improvement that makes it impossible not to do. (Very rare)
4. Part are no longer available and necessitates the change.
5. Keeps the brand in discussions and magazines as they always have something new.

Many justify this with the "getting a new car every few years" analogy. I do not believe in that justification. A car wears out much quicker and in time does need to be replaced. Not so much with audio equipment.

darTZeel takes many years to develop a new product or upgrade. The process requires a recognized need, a formula for improvement, prototyping, proper testing, listening and only then production if the increase in performance is substantial.

Many darTZeel owners get off the "audiophile nervosa merry-go-round". I experience so many customers sharing how different there musical experiences are from the first few notes with darTZeel instruments. Most darTZeel owners are "lifetime" customers and find themselves focusing on the musc more than the equipment. darTZeel is an "end game" product that is worth the wait.

 

[HenryD]

I am surprised you made that statement. Many manufacturers come out with non-stop upgrades / model changes which, frankly speaking, annoys the hell out of me. There are only a few reasons this happens:

1. A manufacturer does not put their best foot forward or has rushed to market and needs to make changes.
2. A manufacturer is looking to dip into the well over and over again with "face lifts" and keep milking the customer for every cent they can get.
3. There is truly a technology/material improvement that makes it impossible not to do. (Very rare)
4. Part are no longer available and necessitates the change.
5. Keeps the brand in discussions and magazines as they always have something new.

Many justify this with the "getting a new car every few years" analogy. I do not believe in that justification. A car wears out much quicker and in time does need to be replaced. Not so much with audio equipment.

darTZeel takes many years to develop a new product or upgrade. The process requires a recognized need, a formula for improvement, prototyping, proper testing, listening and only then production if the increase in performance is substantial.

Many darTZeel owners get off the "audiophile nervosa merry-go-round". I experience so many customers sharing how different there musical experiences are from the first few notes with darTZeel instruments. Most darTZeel owners are "lifetime" customers and find themselves focusing on the musc more than the equipment. darTZeel is an "end game" product that is worth the wait.

Seriously? Can nothing be improved once it is done? Do people change cars due to wear and tear? How about a new phone, house, etc. Have you heard of capitalism? If all your clients would only buy one of anything from you once, you would be out of business in no time.