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£1k integrated amp for Shahinain Obelisks?

alanbeeb said:
There is no endgame in this game. I want to try the Obs to see how I like the sound. If I like them I will consider refining the partnering equipment to hopefully gain incremental improvements.

But I need a cost-effective starting point. That starting point is now sorted, and will be both an AVI Lab series, and a class D pro amp. Sort of a triangulation point if you like.

Of course, its entirely possible I will not like the presentation of the obelisks at all, and all of these items will be on sale again. Given the current thread in off-topic regarding the classifieds section, I then will fully expect to be accused of being some kind of dealer <boo-hiss> despite the fact I will be advertising these items at same price or less than I paid.
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Hi Alan, interesting that you have moved on your Opals but bought Obs so the other way round to me. I think you will love them, presentation is very different to Opals but they are the most natural sounding speaker I've heard and I'd have another pair again in a shot. Just hope that AVI amp isn't too out of its depth.

Regards

Jez
 
Cesare said:
Now odd as it may sound, given a couple of negative comments about the meridian amps, i'm even more keen to give them a go - as DV has alluded to, it's tricky to evaluate stuff like this quickly.
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To be fair, my comment was not intended to be negative, but cautionary - "classic Naim" to fairly modern Meridian is going to be a substantial change in presentation, which may well suit you, but may not.

And as good, unmolested CB 135s are not as "common" as they once were, I thought it would be a shame to move them on, and then find you weren't enamored with the new amp(s).
 
JezmondTutu said:
Hi Alan, interesting that you have moved on your Opals but bought Obs so the other way round to me. I think you will love them, presentation is very different to Opals but they are the most natural sounding speaker I've heard and I'd have another pair again in a shot. Just hope that AVI amp isn't too out of its depth.
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Thanks - I have wanted to try Shahinians for many years but never ever got the opportunity. I really loved the Opals but had a silly notion of going headphones only, as the rest of the family had designs on the room with my hifi gear. I found the Opals really gave their best when well out into the room.

And that was all going fine as a concept until somebody had to advertise a pair of Obs here at a very good price - and I couldn't resist! I'm hoping the fact the Obs are on castors will persuade family they can be moved out of the way when other people want to use the room.
 
Hi Alan, please report when you are up and running. I have lways wanted to try Obs (and Opals for that matter)but, in the case of Obs, was put off by talk of the need for very expensive amps. Your solution and the AVI integrated mentioned upstream seem an interesting and pragmatic solution.

I'd be particularly interested in your comparisons with the Opals as that is the other route I'm considering.

PS Whats all this talk of amp lifting? I can only assume this is the 'Toy audiophile lift'* a daily amp decoupling activity. I haven't lifted mine for over two years- no wonder I fancy a change!




*Note- you will have noticed that over time the rubber feet of your amplifier stick to the shelves of the stand (particularly glass) Effectively coupling the whole mass together. As a result speed and PRAT is affected. Lifting the amp and breaking the seal each day is guaranteed to put the prat back at the heart of your system.
 
These days I'm not a regular of the Audio Forum, but I'm the person DVD referred to regarding Meridian Amps and Shahinians. I've owned both Arcs and Obelisks (at the same time in a 4.0 system!!), and driven them with a variety of amplifiers. In comparison with Obelisks, Arcs are a doodle to drive, Obs like power and then more power, until you've heard them driven by a serious current driving amplifier you really don't know what they are capable of. I'm talking about Obs 1s here as I've never owned 2s.

The big Meridian amplifiers when partnered with Obs produce a big, clean and dynamic sound, in my opinion they sound great with any music thrown at them. In terms of PDF king order I would go like this

2 x Meridian 559 bridged
1 x Meridian 558 in bridged mode
1 x Meridian 559
1 x Meridian 557

Note although they can be bridged, Meridian do not recommend Bridging the 557, if you want mono blocks and could only afford a single 557, you would be better with a pair of 505s

But the best sound I had with the Obelisks was with Pass Labs amplifiers.

I owned Naim equipment for many years and are a fan of them, but 135s are not the amplifier for Obelisk 1s, I have had 135s shutdown with Obelisks at moderate volume levels.

At the end of the day there are many choices, but the obelisk 1s really do like lots of current.
 
Interesting the pass labs recommendation. The best I had was with a nakamichi pa7; a Pass design for threshold then licensed by nakamichi.
 
oldius said:
Interesting the pass labs recommendation. The best I had was with a nakamichi pa7; a Pass design for threshold then licensed by nakamichi.
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Hi Mr P good to see you around on pfm after all this time. Hope things are looking up for you.

I was offered the Pass Labs by Mr P at a good price and I think they were summat like 200wpc pure class A. Unfortunately there was a big no no that meant that the amps wouldn't get past the dragon guarding the drawbridge. They were silver. If only they were black! Unfortunately silver clashes with our light oak and brass/gold decor.

Now thinking about it and from what has been said about the Pass Labs amps then two 559s in bridged mode may sound better than one because they have twice as much class A power. With a guestimated 28W class A per channel then the signal will most likely spend most of its time in class A. But when a sharp fast rising transient appears woomph a 1000w+ could go via class B.

Cheers,

DV
 
I tried a single 557 with my Obs and returned it as was a dull sounding non event IMHO. I was using it with an Avondale Grad 1 and TPX 2, which as many may agree is a good bit of kit. Normal decent service continued when the Voyagers were put back in place of the 557, and so it should given the price difference!!
If I could "do it all again" cheaply I would buy a bryston 4Bsst for £1500 or so and then shop around for a good pre ,maybe valve. I tried the OBs with Bryston 7bsst and they were great, even better than the Voyagers (sorry Les).
I have since moved my Obs on but owned them for 9 years. I did HX75, 135s, M130, Voyagers. I did also try them with Nuforce ref 9 which were ok but nothing to write home about, the matching P9 pre was horrible sounding.
Good luck with your search:)
 
Stilgoe1972 said:
I tried a single 557 with my Obs and returned it as was a dull sounding non event IMHO. pre was horrible sounding.
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To be frank that was my feeling after listening to Meridian years ago. Powerful but didn't time well so not involving. Forum members tend to be very defensive about the equipment they use though and one man's meat is another man's poison when it comes to hifi, so I suppose we should respect all tastes....
 
Used Parasound Halo A21. Sounds great and will drive anything. Power amp but as you said you had a pre already, could be a winning combo for the Obelisks.
 
Rob400 said:
To be frank that was my feeling after listening to Meridian years ago. Powerful but didn't time well so not involving. Forum members tend to be very defensive about the equipment they use though and one man's meat is another man's poison when it comes to hifi, so I suppose we should respect all tastes....
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Personally I think that the 557 sounds great with Arcs, but does struggle with Obelisks. To me the big difference between something like Naim and Meridian is in the presentation, the Naim, puts you on the stage, and slaps you in the face with the music, whereas the Meridian puts you in tow 2 and shows you the whole presentation. As you get older and your musical tastes widen, you don't always want the former.

But that's a personal opinion.

DV - I have been around and active on PFM, just inhabiting the Photo and Music forums more these days. Feel I've completed a musical journey, a bit like Bilbo Baggins, Theree and Back again!! Very happy enjoying music through Squeezebox, Leema DAC/Pre and Mackie HR624s, no intention to change, but buying a new camera lens...well thats different!!!
 
Mr Perceptive said:
Personally I think that the 557 sounds great with Arcs, but does struggle with Obelisks. To me the big difference between something like Naim and Meridian is in the presentation, the Naim, puts you on the stage, and slaps you in the face with the music, whereas the Meridian puts you in tow 2 and shows you the whole presentation. As you get older and your musical tastes widen, you don't always want the former.

I have to differ with you. My issue was with the timing not the lack of Naim leading edge emphasis. My Dynavectors do just what you stated regarding creating a bigger soundstage but still play tunes and involve. That's why I moved from Naim to them. My dealer loves Audio Note gear but it just doesn't rock my boat in the same way Meridian (amongst many other makes) didn't. Neither of us are wrong rather simply find a different type of sound ideal.
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Rob400, that is a valid opinion, but please don't assume that the 558/559 sound like the 557. They are completely different designs, the 557 is based on old Meridian Power Amplifier design whereas the 558/559 are derived from the technology from the flagship DSP8000 active loudspeaker.

I have directly compared a 559 with an HX100 into Shahinian Diapasons, and genuinely couldn't prefer one over the over, but the Meridian can be had for half of the price of the Dynavector!
 
It is all a matter of taste and opinion as somebody else has just said. I never actually tried a 559, just a 557 at home and the new version,the G57 at Grahams. Same sort of sound in a different box. Not for me, but maybe great for somebody else. The chap in the demo then unleashed a NAP 300 with a 282 and I have to say it sound much more interesting to my ears, not better, just much more involving. The voyagers/and Grad1 were better all round although as they were in different rooms ( my house) i couldn't A/b them.
One day I will hear Obs with a 559:) oooops, I forgot I also used the Obs with a Electrocompaniet EC 4.8 & AW250 (pre/power) which was fine ,but over time could sound overly rich almost thick if you catch my drift.
As I said in my previous post I would go Bryston in another life as it could have saved me a shit load of money and the results were great.
I have since moving the Obs on moved to an ARC Ls27 , bryston 7bsst , PMC setup and it suits me and my room better.
Horses for courses:)
 
Interim Report: I've had the Obs since Saturday, liking them a lot. The presentation is different from normal speakers and the soundstage more natural, more free of the speakers.

The Pro power amp I used had some issues - mainly a very noisy fan, so it had to go into anoother room with very long cable runs - I finally found a use for the 9m lengths of NAC A5 I've had sitting unused since buying here a few years ago. But the treble from the pro amp was nasty, spitty and shouty.

The AVI lab series arrived yesterday - so much better. Very nice indeed but bass a wee bit uncontrolled. But I'm really enjoying them with this amp, so will probably keep for a while.

But tonight I decided to try my other amp, a Trafomatic 40W 6550 valve integrated.... totally frowned on I imagine and contrary to almost all the advice offered here. And yet its producing a lovely sound! Bass is definitely curtailed compared to the AVI, but its a lovely beguiling sound even at low volumes, perfect for late nights. Daft Punk, Beethoven quartet op 132 , Brahms Violin Concerto.... all gorgeous. I will go back to the AVI tomorrow for a contrast.
 
Now if you had gone for my Krell 400xi you would have no problem with controlling the bass. Masses of power and control and beautiful to look at lol
 
Hi Alan, today I was facilitating a conference and was playing a case study from my mac. Got it wrong and Lucinda Williams came out instead. Rather embarrassing! However these little pro actives on towering wobbly stands sounded muscular and visceral. How do the Shans compare to the Opals?
 
Alan, over the next few weeks you'll get used to them, and rather than sounding different to normal speakers, they will start sounding normal, and everything else will sound weird ;-)
 
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