Wadia 9xx series

Roysen

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Aug 6, 2011
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Series 9 with GNSC mod

Hi,

I am waiting for delivery of the 971, 931 and 922 all latest versions with GNSCs Statement modifications + some extra work Steve at GNSC put into my units:
- the new patented power filter used in the 971 is also installed in the 931 and 922s.
- ByBee Power Rails are installed in all units.

When they arrive I will have the chance to compare them agains my other digital combinations:
Zanden 2000P + 5000S
MBL 1621A + 1611F
Goldmund Eidos Reference + Mimesis 20H
Soulution 745
(possibly also Esoteric P-01VU/G-0Rb/D-01VU).
(possibly also APL HiFi NWO-Master).
(possibly also full four piece dCS Scarlatti stack).
(possibly also Burmester 069).

My Wadia combination has been at GNSC for almosts two years now. When I sent it away it was without the 971. I used the 270SE instead (also GNSC Statement modified). Additionally the 922s where 921s back then. Already before I sent this combo away it was better than the Zanden and the Goldmund without the new dedicated Mimesis 20H DAC. It will be very interesting to see how all of these compare now.
 

krell_man

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Dec 16, 2011
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Roysen,

I imagine that your 9 series will sound fantastic when you get it back!

I do have one question though since I've never had GNSC modify anything, why is it taking two years? I was without my S7i for three months while it was being modded and that seemed like an eternity?

Have a Merry Christmas!
Chuck
 

Roysen

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Aug 6, 2011
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Hi Krell_Man.

I doesn't take two years. My combination was already statement modified. When the power supply one one of the 921s needed service, I had to send it to GNSC because the Wadia warranty was voided. Since I needed to send it to Steve anyway we decided to do the Series 2 Upgrade (921 to 922) at the same time. Since we also didn't know the release date of the 971 at that time (we hoped it would be soon), I decided to trade in the 270SE I used at that time and buy that with the GNSC statement modification. So the waiting time has been for Wadia to release the 971 and get a real production unit.

Merry Christmas to you too Chuck,
Roy
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
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Hi,

I am waiting for delivery of the 971, 931 and 922 all latest versions with GNSCs Statement modifications + some extra work Steve at GNSC put into my units:
- the new patented power filter used in the 971 is also installed in the 931 and 922s.
- ByBee Power Rails are installed in all units.

When they arrive I will have the chance to compare them agains my other digital combinations:
Zanden 2000P + 5000S
MBL 1621A + 1611F
Goldmund Eidos Reference + Mimesis 20H
Soulution 745
(possibly also Esoteric P-01VU/G-0Rb/D-01VU).
(possibly also APL HiFi NWO-Master).
(possibly also full four piece dCS Scarlatti stack).
(possibly also Burmester 069).

My Wadia combination has been at GNSC for almosts two years now. When I sent it away it was without the 971. I used the 270SE instead (also GNSC Statement modified). Additionally the 922s where 921s back then. Already before I sent this combo away it was better than the Zanden and the Goldmund without the new dedicated Mimesis 20H DAC. It will be very interesting to see how all of these compare now.

Wow! Nice digital equipment, Roysen! I have the Zanden DAC myself which i bought second-hand years ago...i have yet to get the Transport...but am tempted at the right trade-in price. I have been very impressed by the later generation Wadia digital. Your thoughts are most welcome on differences of Zanden vs Wadia. Thanks!!!
 

Roysen

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Aug 6, 2011
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Even before I sent the Wadia combination for upgrade there really was no comparison. The Wadia combo is better than the Zanden in almost every aspect you can think of. They excel in the same area (rythm and pace), but the Wadia digs out so much more resolution, dynamics and soundstaging from the CDs. Even though it is so resolved and neutral it is as musical if not more musical than the Zanden too.
 

LL21

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Dec 26, 2010
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Even before I sent the Wadia combination for upgrade there really was no comparison. The Wadia combo is better than the Zanden in almost every aspect you can think of. They excel in the same area (rythm and pace), but the Wadia digs out so much more resolution, dynamics and soundstaging from the CDs. Even though it is so resolved and neutral it is as musical if not more musical than the Zanden too.

Thanks for that...i fully believe technology has passed the Zanden by on detail retreival. The Scarlatti proved that to me in spectacular fashion...way, way beyond the reaches of the Zanden in noise floor, detail retreival and a smoothness to the sound. incredible. I still felt i preferred Zanden's musical flow, if there is a technical term for that. However, i could believe that Wadia is capable of achieving both. It was only a matter of time before someone did. Enjoy and look forward to hearing about the upgraded Wadia 9!!!
 

krell_man

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Dec 16, 2011
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My S7i is burned in now and sounding really good! I posted a review on Audiogon if anyone is interested: http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/f...6&&&/Wadia-S7i-(-an-extreme-upgrade-)-CD-Play

Although I have not heard this for myself, I'm told that my upgrade smokes the stock 9 series. In late February or early March, I'll be taking it to Rob's (Rtn1). This will give me a chance to hear his system, and then we can compare his 9 series with my S7i. Of course, Rob's 9 series has the GNSC Statement mods, so we probably won't know for sure about the difference compared to a stock 9 series.

If however, my S7i does indeed smoke the stock 9 series, that would be especially interesting cost-wise since my S7i and its external power supply only requires the additional cost for typical accessories of one power cord, one set of interconnects and two rack spaces compared to the 9 series and its additional cost for typical accessories of four power cords, one set of interconnects, whatever digital cables are required and four rack spaces. My S7i and upgrade was under $31k. The ultra high end may have just gotten a bit more affordable.

Chuck
 
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LL21

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Dec 26, 2010
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Wow! Great news...congrats. just read and posted on your review. Enjoy! Thanks for sharing...an interesting read.
 

fas42

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Jan 8, 2011
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Chuck, thanks for that review. You certainly have got to the "good stuff", nice to to see yet another happy consumer! The language used by the listener is always the giveaway: when the system gets to that "level" all the usual twiddly adjectives disappear, you just know you're getting the real deal ...

It is certainly noteworthy that it was so much about the power supply, in the Wadia. No matter how expensive the component is "raw", that side of things almost never seems to be engineered sufficiently. And so both for the amp and CD player: heavy duty tweaking was needed to get you through that last iteration of improvement necessary for achieving realistic sound.

So, congratulations from me!

Frank


... Tim, are you listening ...?
 

egidius

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Feb 13, 2011
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It is certainly noteworthy that it was so much about the power supply, in the Wadia. No matter how expensive the component is "raw", that side of things almost never seems to be engineered sufficiently. And so both for the amp and CD player: heavy duty tweaking was needed to get you through that last iteration of improvement necessary for achieving realistic sound.

So, congratulations from me!

Frank


... Tim, are you listening ...?


I wonder.. I have switched over to Audio Consulting amplification, so one of my ideas is now to use batteries all the way (I use a Wadia S7i, modded by GNSC), have not done so - would this presumably get near this result of a hyped power unit, since the grids inefficiencies are avoided. That is, if you have a good accu ;-)
Any experience?

thanks for your thoughts, Egidius
 

fas42

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G'day, Egidus. Yes, a modified Wadia seems capable of getting very close or reaching "optimum" sound, so it's worth trying a few experiments to see if you can close the gap.

It's not so much "grid inefficiencies" but noise on the mains that pulls the sound down; so a shortcut to seeing how relevant this is, is to do everything that you possibly can, as an experiment, to get the power in your listening enviroment as clean as possible. As a starting point, if you haven't already done so, create a dedicated, or effectively dedicated spur, to the Wadia, and a separate, same thing for the amps. "Effectively dedicated" means pulling everything else that plugs into that circuit from the socket; you end up having one circuit dedicated to digital, the other dedicated to the amps. A bit extreme, but you're doing this as a test. Does this make a difference? Also, try all the filtering for mains devices you have at this time, in and out, what effect does this have? Also, try and have as much elsewhere in the house pulled from the mains, especially if it has computing circuitry, or switching supplies.

Depending on everything, this may have a dramatic effect, or none at all. You're playing around to get some sense of what's relevant to the sound quality, hopefully you may get some answers ...

Does any of this make sense?

Frank
 

egidius

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Feb 13, 2011
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G'day, Egidus. Yes, a modified Wadia seems capable of getting very close or reaching "optimum" sound, so it's worth trying a few experiments to see if you can close the gap.

It's not so much "grid inefficiencies" but noise on the mains that pulls the sound down; so a shortcut to seeing how relevant this is, is to do everything that you possibly can, as an experiment, to get the power in your listening enviroment as clean as possible. As a starting point, if you haven't already done so, create a dedicated, or effectively dedicated spur, to the Wadia, and a separate, same thing for the amps. "Effectively dedicated" means pulling everything else that plugs into that circuit from the socket; you end up having one circuit dedicated to digital, the other dedicated to the amps. A bit extreme, but you're doing this as a test. Does this make a difference? Also, try all the filtering for mains devices you have at this time, in and out, what effect does this have? Also, try and have as much elsewhere in the house pulled from the mains, especially if it has computing circuitry, or switching supplies.

Depending on everything, this may have a dramatic effect, or none at all. You're playing around to get some sense of what's relevant to the sound quality, hopefully you may get some answers ...

Does any of this make sense?

Frank

It does indeed, I actually have one dedicated line, but that's for the whole system. So have to try a separate one for digital, and the rest of your suggestions, i have to take them one by one!!
thank you very much for your patient laying out of possibilities (Accu just seemed the easiest way, since the AC gear goes that way, so actually its only the phono TT which is still on the grid, sometimes a tuner or a DAT
egidius
 

fas42

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thank you very much for your patient laying out of possibilities (Accu just seemed the easiest way, since the AC gear goes that way, so actually its only the phono TT which is still on the grid, sometimes a tuner or a DAT
egidius
Glad to hear that you're willing to give it a go! Some time ago there was a whole discussion thread about this sort of thing, in part directed by me towards getting Jack to try such. There was a specific post by me with even more detail, http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showt...an-they-co-exist&p=39248&viewfull=1#post39248,
you might like to check it out, and also some of the surrounding comment, both plus and minus!

Frank
 

Robert

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Nov 10, 2010
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Hi,

I am waiting for delivery of the 971, 931 and 922 all latest versions with GNSCs Statement modifications + some extra work Steve at GNSC put into my units.

Roysen,

Have you received your Wadia components yet? Any comments at this early break-in stage? If not, what's the estimated time of arrival.
 

Roysen

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Aug 6, 2011
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Roysen,

Have you received your Wadia components yet? Any comments at this early break-in stage? If not, what's the estimated time of arrival.

Hi Robert.

Yes, they have arrived. Out of the box without any warm up or burn-in they sounded as transparent as I have ever heard from any digital playback source. There is a little hard edge to the tweeter and the midrange is a tad closed in at the moment. I can however sense that this is going away gradually as time passes and the units gets burned in. The transparency, resolution and noise floor is so much better than how it played before I sent it away. This really is the one to own - unfortunatly for most people Great Northern Sound has not closed their business, so only the very few who has already bought this combination with the GNSC modifications will ever have the chance to own this magic combination.

With the 971 Wadia introduced a new power filter based on some new patented magnet technology. Steve Huntley of GNSC also built that filer into the 931 and the two 922's as well. Additionally has has put in some ByBee Power Rails in all four of the components in the combination. This is of course in addition to the regular GNSC statement modification with extensive damping in all four components, change of all resistors to Vishay, change of all capacitors to Black Gate, a lot of ByBee filters, a special digital ByBee filter etc. He has also removed some CE required protection which was not good for sound quality.

Cheers,
Roy
 

Robert

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Nov 10, 2010
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Hi Roysen,

It is truly a loss to the audio world that GNSC is no longer in business. Steve is one of the best people in the business. He has great technical abilities and a keen ear. He won't change something for the sake of changing something - he will only do it if it improves the musicality. He understood that the economies of mass production required a stable supply chain, and that full potential could be gained by implementing parts that are expensive and very difficult to acquire.

Unfortunately, the audio business is very competitive and the economic climate is not particular conducive. Whenever I see all the new products announced every day, I wonder how many will survive.

Like you, I feel very fortunate to have this machine. I will enjoy it for many, many years to come.
 

LL21

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Dec 26, 2010
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Hi Roysen,

Congrats!!!!!!! That sounds amazing, and i know you've been looking hard and doing lots of listening to major components. Enjoy! Now, as to your comment about GNSC...i thought Steve was still doing stuff ont the side...no? Or are they truly gone and no longer modd'ing? May i ask what GNSC charge for the Wadia 9xx including the upgrade? Thanks and enjoy.
 

egidius

Member Sponsor
Feb 13, 2011
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Hi Roysen,

Congrats!!!!!!! That sounds amazing, and i know you've been looking hard and doing lots of listening to major components. Enjoy! Now, as to your comment about GNSC...i thought Steve was still doing stuff ont the side...no? Or are they truly gone and no longer modd'ing? May i ask what GNSC charge for the Wadia 9xx including the upgrade? Thanks and enjoy.

Although this is a thread about Wadia, i believe the best you can do for Steve is to buy Resolution Audio! And - as they do outstanding products I may well go down that lane, despite owning luckily a GNSC modded S7i.
 

MarinJim

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Feb 2, 2011
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Hi Roysen,

It is truly a loss to the audio world that GNSC is no longer in business. Steve is one of the best people in the business. He has great technical abilities and a keen ear. He won't change something for the sake of changing something - he will only do it if it improves the musicality. He understood that the economies of mass production required a stable supply chain, and that full potential could be gained by implementing parts that are expensive and very difficult to acquire.

Unfortunately, the audio business is very competitive and the economic climate is not particular conducive. Whenever I see all the new products announced every day, I wonder how many will survive.

Like you, I feel very fortunate to have this machine. I will enjoy it for many, many years to come.

+1. I am also fortunate to have a new GNSC Statement S7i. Any suggestions on digital cables? I use a Transparent Reference Digital Link to my blu-ray player and am looking at usb cables for my MacBook Pro. I will surely miss Steve and talking with him about hi-fi. Does anyone know if the GNSC S7i Statement also has Bybee Power Rails?
 
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MarinJim

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Feb 2, 2011
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Anyone? No?
 

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