ZYX Universe Premium "The Bad Boy Opus"

[Mobiusman]

I had a ZYX Universe Premium which I was using in a VPI Aries 3D on a vibraplane and had incredible sound, much better IMO than my previous standard, the Benz Micro LPS. Unfortunately I was having some bass feedback issues at volume that I concluded were from floor oscillations. I rebuilt the floor supports with 6x6 white pine supports and cross joists which helped things somewhat, but not enough for me to be at ease. I then bought the ZYX Universe Optimum to try to get away from the PPS microridges in hopes that that was the problem with the bass, which was even better top to bottom and nothing short of remarkable in the midrange and highs. Unfortunately, at volume it still had bass oscillations, albeit less than the LPS. I then tried an experiment and bought a Triangle Art Reference SE because of its massive weight (275 lbs) and a Rockport Sirius 6000 air bearing straight tracker because I love straight trackers. After considerable customization I could not deal with the periodic stalling of the arm due to the cartridge's ultra light weight, although the sound was mesmerizing.

I am so sold on the ZYX Premium Optimum, I am in the middle of what will hopefully be my last experiment, after trying to buy a SME 3012 R from David K (a true gentleman), but realized that the Triangle Art and 3012 RCA outputs are mechanically incompatible and would cost much more than the arm to custom machine a fix without any idea of resultant sound. So this weekend, Tom Vu from Triangle Art is flying from CA to NJ with my new Osiris Makassar Ebony and brass MK 2 12" tonearm, which I heard at Axpona 2018 with Tom's Apollo Cartridge and to my taste produced the best analog sound of the show. Tom is also bringing the Apollo cartridge to mount after we hear the ZYX and hopefully my simple attempt to revisit vinyl that started more than 3 years ago with allegedly a cartridge upgrade from a Spectral Reference to a Benz Micro LPS and what I promised myself would be a simple budget of $10k, including a Pass Phono Stage and some great RCA IC's from tonearm to Phono, will come to an end. Tom assures me that I will prefer the Apollo to the ZYX Optimum, but hopefully not because then I have to deal with selling a yet unbroken in ZYX Premium Optimum and buying another cartridge. However, if the Apollo is better than the Optimum, then it must be the sleeper gold standard, because I have never heard something better than the ZYX Premium Optimum and I have not heard it at its best yet.

BTW, as someone who hates selling audio equipment when I am overloaded by life and have been for the past two years (problem hopefully finally resolved) probably the topic of one of those "Mobiusman threads" about the interplay of life and audio enjoyment, I have for sale at highly barterable prices an essentially brand new VPI Aries 3D, VPI ADS speed control, Pass Labs X-15 Phono Stage, Rockport Sirius 6000 Linear Air Bearing tone arm, Shunyata latest version of Anaconda 2 meter RCA IC, Triton V2, Typhon and a Niagara 7000 power conditioner, AND #80 of 80 (meaning the most improvements) of the Jonas Miller custom fabricated by Steve Katz straight tracker Rabco tone arm on a Thorens 125.

Let me say what you are already thinking--yes Russ is addicted to audio, at a high level and has finally realized (hopefully), that audio does not fix life, but hopefully fixing life makes audio much more enjoyable.

 

[Al M.]

You will be surprised at how similarly people hear. Most of the forum noise happens due to different experiences, stubborn and defensive attitudes, and then different music. Many of the people have arrived at a system configuration not based on listening preferences, but based on buying behavior, which has nothing to do with listening preferences. They buy after reading online or because a tempting deal comes up. And then try to get some other deal to supplement what they just bought. Or they go to a show, or to a dealer, and buy within restrictions. Or they buy based on principle ("I will only buy well measured stuff, no valves"). If only systems were built on real listening.

Let's agree to disagree then.

Why do you think that different people prefer different seats in a concert hall?

It's not just what people hear, it's also how each person prefers different things they hear.

 

[bonzo75]

Let's agree to disagree then.

Why do you think that different people prefer different seats in a concert hall?

It's not just what people hear, it's also how each person prefers different things they hear.

Do you think if all seats were same priced, that would be the case? Have you accounted for the fact that apart from price many also buy when their desired seats are sold out? Plus, different people do not have the same experience with different concert hall seats? My gf, for example, can hear the different sounds in different seats but does not care for where she seats as long as she gets to see the concert. Again, there is a lot of buying behavior that goes into where people end up seating. Preference is different from hearing.

 

[Al M.]

Do you think if all seats were same priced, that would be the case? Have you accounted for the fact that apart from price many also buy when their desired seats are sold out? Plus, different people do not have the same experience with different concert hall seats? My gf, for example, can hear the different sounds in different seats but does not care for where she seats as long as she gets to see the concert. Again, there is a lot of buying behavior that goes into where people end up seating. Preference is different from hearing.

From my experience it is obvious that different people prefer different seats, regardless of price.

Within our group of audiophile friends we even disagree about the very same sounds from the same system.

 

[Ron Resnick]

I agree Peter and Al. But I also agree with Bonzo75. It is such a good point I will start a new thread on the topic.

 

[PeterA]

You will be surprised at how similarly people hear. Most of the forum noise happens due to different experiences, stubborn and defensive attitudes, and then different music. Many of the people have arrived at a system configuration not based on listening preferences, but based on buying behavior, which has nothing to do with listening preferences. They buy after reading online or because a tempting deal comes up. And then try to get some other deal to supplement what they just bought. Or they go to a show, or to a dealer, and buy within restrictions. Or they buy based on principle ("I will only buy well measured stuff, no valves"). If only systems were built on real listening.

I think this is correct. You are building your system on real listening. Ron did that with his speaker and electronics choices. However, your reports provide people with stuff to read, and some of those readers make decisions by reading such reports. It is not always easy to do the exhaustive research and listening that you do. In fact, this travel and comparison approach is a major part of the hobby for you. I think people end up doing what they can within their time frames, abilities, and budget, to make their purchase decisions. Of course this may also mean buying on reputation or buzz.

Some people like to turn over gear, others like to spend years optimizing what they have. There are so many different approaches. Just look at the four guys in our Boston group. We all listen to the same or similar live music. We have similar tastes in recorded music. We all are devoted to this hobby. Yet, our systems are fairly different, listening habits and rooms are varied, and depending on who is asked, they also sound different. So in this sense, I tend to agree with Al that we hear differently, because we seem to have similar sonic priorities, but we have found different solutions to achieve those priorities.

 

[Tango]

@Ron Resnick . This ZYX although rated at a low 0.2mV., it plays quite louder than the AtlasSL which is rated at around the same figure. Actually the loudness is about the same as Opus 0.5mV. May be not so worry about playing with your phono.

Kind regards,
Tang

 

[Ron Resnick]

@Ron Resnick . This ZYX although rated at a low 0.2mV., it plays quite louder than the AtlasSL which is rated at around the same figure. Actually the loudness is about the same as Opus 0.5mV. May be not so worry about playing with your phono.

Kind regards,
Tang

Thank you, Tang. I understand.

But if the vdH is as amazing as you and David and Kedar report it would not upset me at all to completely eliminate any theoretical noise concern I have about using the ZYX with the Io.

 

[microstrip]

You will be surprised at how similarly people hear. Most of the forum noise happens due to different experiences, stubborn and defensive attitudes, and then different music. Many of the people have arrived at a system configuration not based on listening preferences, but based on buying behavior, which has nothing to do with listening preferences. They buy after reading online or because a tempting deal comes up. And then try to get some other deal to supplement what they just bought. Or they go to a show, or to a dealer, and buy within restrictions. Or they buy based on principle ("I will only buy well measured stuff, no valves"). If only systems were built on real listening.

I disagree. Considering stereo sound reproduction - a process dominated by subjective minimal cues, people hear very differently, and what we hear is mostly due to our focusing on specific aspects. Our process of buying is dominated by our preferences, but also contributes to create them - as well as our live experience, friends opinions, meals and wine.

IMHO it is better buying on search, advice from knowledgeable people and experience than just extrapolating from systems that are very different from ours and extremely tailored to to the owner preference, as it often happens with top systems.

BTW, we all hear much more similarly when listening to multichannel - we have much more direct information and proper localization, but curiously most of us enjoy much more a process where we have much greater participation.

And fortunately, IMHO most WBF members systems are built on real listening.