I have been doing a lot of listening of late. Primarily because of the sheer enjoyment of it. I’ve bought a shitload of CD’s from under the radar bands which I’ve ripped and just let the album play at night. Late night, low volume and the enjoyment is at the same elevated levels as mid day high volume listening. Enjoyment for different reasons but still counts as such.
Putting a fuse in the F8 really helped to extend it its technicality which is probably the only area where it didn’t clearly measure up to the UL+. Then again, that wasn’t a fair fight because the UL+ excelled there.
I also switched the power cable to a different Shunyata Anaconda Helix Alpha was much better suited to the LTA pre and the Python Helix Alpha is better suited to the F8. Funny that when I dove back into the hobby about six years ago now, I would have laughed at reading that comment from someone else.
Anyway, the F8 is a perfect dance partner to the Microzotl pre, they enhance each other and it’s truly a better sounding pair than they would be if judged individually. I say this because the only audible limitation to the F8 is it’s relatively narrow 15 dB or gain. The LTA can more than make up for that with its gain window and “audiophile” volume range setting, where another pre may struggle as I can easily see the sweet spot being too narrow otherwise.
Settle is the wrong word, I bought what was best avail used. It’s got an SR Orange in it. I didn’t try anything better than that but I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m leaving something on the table. I’m convinced and have confirmed from crazies I trust that have tried, that a good copper or silver slug is the the optimum but… yeah, don’t.
By technicality I mean the ability to present detail and texture. Where things like slam and body, grip, control I don’t consider technical but more about power. Semantics, as it’s all technical really but these are certain things that are more about the amps power and delivery ability. You would argue that something like coherency (is technical and power) the ability to play complex or busy passages while still being able to differentiate soft from loud and each instrument from others.
I was thinking about these things as you hear a reviewer something talk about a particular piece of gear and I wondered how they’d have described that piece of gear were it presented in the best possible way, with good power, good cables, a fuse.
Nelson Pass himself says not to waste too much time and effort on cables and fuses, but there’s obviously gains to be made there. I guess I agree with the sentiment but not until you find the one you love. When you find the one you love, then max the foundation for it. In that context I can see no being too fussy.
You’re not wrong on the meanings. That was my point. lol I do believe that I’m leaving something on the table. But money isn’t infinite and satisfaction can be had for less than the best.
Oh, another keeper… SIT-3 pulling duty on Charney Companions and doing a really nice job taming their energy. I don’t know how i lived without this amplifier for so long she has joined the stable now though and is staying put.
It’s not the amplifier alone outputting the flavor, she has company, a variety of components and parts operating together will adjust the flavor of the sound output of the transducers and the presentation and I’m getting a rich deep flavor of midrange beauty i absolutely adore at the moment w/ the pictured combo.
Innuos Sense > Innuos Zenith MK3 > Line Magnetic LM32 DAC > SPL Phonitor X (pre) > SIT-3 > Charney Audio Companion w/ Lowther DX65
I got into a “grumpy-nitpicking-snit” of a mood tonight, sometimes tubes will do that to me, so i decided to go completely tube-less fuck them tubes, who needs them? Not this guy
I went in and flipped the switch on my Vinnie Rossi and went all JFET buffer linestage. Ha, tubes need not be my slave masters! The First Watt SIT-3 synergizes well w/ various speakers in my home and the ease of use may push me over the edge enough that i go looking to trade some tube amps for a variety of Nelson’s amplifiers I adore the glow of tubes, but the constant fiddle-fucking around trying to find just the right combination sometimes grates hard on my nerves making my left eyeball twitch in frustration and annoyance.
The most pleasing dimensionality of the soundstage using open baffles in my larger room has kept me going back for more a few days in a row now and i’ve completely ignored my box speakers so much i swear they may be conspiring against me in allegiance through my tubes and my inability to get a completely silent and stress free roll the past few days. Despite having suffered a bit of hearing loss, at least according to my lovely missus, i can hear a crackle or even light hiss at 10 paces after dark when i use only the lowest volume notches and evenings like tonight it makes me lose my mind and I start pulling the little bitches out of their sockets. I am genuinely pleased at the moment that i need not be a slave to the cute little fuckers, they don’t lord over me
I know i have issues, but Nelson Pass’s First Watt amps aren’t currently one of them and the versatility and performance of the Vinnie Rossi L2i-SE hasn’t disappointed me yet.
Gratuitous grainy photos for your enjoyment and a visual reminder to myself later on (after this evening is long forgotten) that i can go tube-less and still have an enjoyable listening session.
If you sell your tube, you’ll have enough money to retire.
I am a Nelson Pass Firstwatt fan for life; despite it being the least costly component in my chain, it was the missing piece of the puzzle that made it all click together. Everything before it was a struggle, the F8 and Voxitiv have synergy in spades.
Did you finally get around to changing the fuse on it?
With some trepidation, but yes i finally put the fuse in and nothing blew up. I’m sure it’s a fine fuse but fuck if i can hear a difference, i swap components and move speakers so much that it’s impossible for me to keep track of any changes that fine. I do sincerely and genuinely appreciate the fuse though
The amp sounds great and has not frustrated me one bit.
I’ve been trying to really understand what I’m enjoying so very much about the SIT-3 amplifier, and ultimately my conclusion is that it does 2 things so very well that they hit my own personal “soft spot”. Beautiful midrange quality and space.
Combined with a good front end it reproduces spatial qualities in a superior fashion to even other very good amplifiers. The width, depth and space between instruments and voices when you get your speakers placed well is really excellent. I got a good taste of this in my larger room using my open baffles and I’m enjoying it immensely. So much that I have not moved anything or tried different speakers in this room yet for fear of possibly messing something up and not being able to get things just right again That’s a first for me.
SIT-3 pulling duty on Charney Companions and doing a really nice job taming their energy. I don’t know how i lived without this amplifier for so long 
she has joined the stable now though and is staying put. 
fuck them tubes, who needs them? Not this guy 
tubes need not be my slave masters! The First Watt SIT-3 synergizes well w/ various speakers in my home and the ease of use may push me over the edge enough that i go looking to trade some tube amps for a variety of Nelson’s amplifiers 
I adore the glow of tubes, but the constant fiddle-fucking around trying to find just the right combination sometimes grates hard on my nerves making my left eyeball twitch in frustration and annoyance. 
and my inability to get a completely silent and stress free roll the past few days. 
That’s a first for me.