Vera Fi’s latest creation solves a common problem, and at a reasonable price.
If you’ve ever suffered the aggravation of a ground loop you can’t break, you know what we mean. But there are a few different ground issues that can add noise to your system and rob you of dynamic range. It’s not always about getting louder. And those of you with SET and super sensitive horn speakers also fall victim to that bit of noise that drives you nuts when you put your ear close to the tweeter…
Ditto, when incorporating multiple pieces of vintage gear in a system.
Some power conditioners will solve this problem, some will not. There are a whole new line of grounding solutions from premium cable manufacturers that work well, but some of them cost as much as a nice amp or DAC! Not always cost effective.
What we like most about the Ground Floor is that it is scalable. If you only have an issue with a turntable, or another single component, you only need a single unit to solve the problem. Intro price on these is $199 and if you’re struggling with noise, it’s priceless.
The Ground Floor can be configured with the supplied cables three different ways, from merely floating the ground on a device, to establish a system wide star ground, or telescoped grounds between outlets. A very versatile device indeed, and once that noise is gone, it’s a new world.
A full review will be forthcoming, but we have a number of different scenarios that both Chris Harr and I want to investigate, so we’d like to deliver a full report. No purchase link is available yet, but the folks at Vera-Fi should be able to give you more info.
When you think of Canadian music artists, perhaps you think of Rush, Triumph, April Wine, Max Webster, or even William Shatner. hahah.
I’d say yes to all of these, but there’s one I found by accident while in a record store in Milwaukee, many years ago. And it was definitely one of those records you just buy because the art was wacky or the name of the band seemed cool. Doug and the Slugs? Why not? I didn’t even know they were from Canada till years later, but it’s a fun new wave-y, kinda power pop-y type of record.
Well produced, fairlly well recorded and well played. Plus you can stream the Slugs’ catalog on Qobuz and Tidal just in case this might not be for you.
FYI, you can usually find a great copy on Discogs or your favorite used record stores for about $5. Woo hoo.
Neoson Genese Tube Integrated – $7,885 Atlantis AT 16 Pro speakers ($1,609/ea. as tested, in black leather – $1,729 ea. in white)
With such a wide range of hifi gear at your disposal, even someone who doesn’t suffer from severe FOMO can get overwhelmed in a hurry. We’ve recently run into Decibel-Plus in Las Vegas and they will be putting together some amazing system bundles that can get you rocking right away. For now, these are separate offerings, but we’ll treat the review as a “bundle,” ok?
Owner, Gabe Toro, shares space with his father, Hiram Toro, the proprietor of Supreme Acoustic Systems. While Supreme focuses more on mega gear, Gabe is carving his own niche, focusing on components and systems aimed at younger, perhaps more mid-market audio enthusiasts.
With more readers asking us for help mixing and matching components, we like the approach that Decibel+ is taking, making the process easier for music lovers who don’t necessarily want to become gear-loving (and trading) audiophiles. The Neoson amplifiers and the Atlantis speakers both hail from France. From the look and feel, they share enough design aesthetic that you might think they come from the same factory, especially with their emphasis on lighter woods and tones.
Speaking of tone
The Genese tube integrated is a 10-watt-per-channel amp that uses KT88 tubes in a single-ended class-A configuration. While this produces less power than a typical AB, push-pull amplifier, it delivers a much richer, tonally saturated presentation. A quick look under the bottom cover reveals all top-notch, premium parts as well. In addition to the ALPS potentiometer to control volume level, there’s a bevy of Mundorf MCap Evo Silver Gold caps, supported by premium PSVANE Art tubes.
Everything is beautifully finished, and the sonic signature of this amplifier reminds me of my ampsandsound Bryce monoblocks, utilizing a similar configuration. Overall, the sound is rich through the midband as you’d expect from an SET, but by using the much more robust (and affordable) KT-88 tubes, more user-friendly. And, way easier on your wallet when it comes time to re-tube. With only a pair of KT-88s and a pair of 12AX7s, this should be easy.
Convenience abounds
With three RCA single-ended inputs, you’ve got room for a streamer, a phono preamplifier, and who knows? Maybe a tape deck? The tubes are shrouded for those of you with pets and little ones around the house. A simple, yet functional remote is provided, but I really enjoyed walking up and interacting with the Genese; it has such a great feel, why not?
The materials used on both the amp and the speakers lend a relaxed vibe and will fit in any décor. Atlantis saves a few bucks by using an exceptional grade of synthetic leather that, even under close inspection, looks just like what you’ll see on a speaker from the folks at Sonus faber. Very nice!
Speaker setup
With a front-firing reflex port and an additional rear-firing woofer that is a match to the 7-inch front-firing woofer, this compact (about 32” tall x 9.5 wide) speaker will fit anywhere, and thanks to the variable port, can be user-voiced more for placement close to the wall if necessary. This came in handy in my 13 x 18-foot living room, and was not an issue out in the 24 x 36-foot studio. These speakers performed well in both environments, and can fill a big room btw.
They are easy to place, have great dispersion, and best of all, sport a 94.5 dB/1-watt sensitivity rating. A perfect match for the Neoson amp. Hence the bundle. And Gabe can hook you up with a few great streaming/DACs that fits right into the form factor (and, most importantly, your budget).
Atlantis claims +/-1dB down to 40Hz, and while we don’t carry out proper measurements, going from a 50Hz test tone to a 40Hz one feels equally powerful, though going down to 30Hz shows a significant roll-off at that point. Highly respectable for the form factor and price point. And you can always add a sub or two if the need arises and you have the space.
As with any other speaker, set them up in your room for the maximum amount of bass extension and lock on the room – that way you will get all the dynamics the system is capable of, then fine-tune for bass to midrange transition, with a little extra fine-tuning for image width and sparkle.
More Listening
The Atlantis/Neoson combo can play music as loud as most of you should need. I am always amazed at just how loud 86dB actually is. Should you need more, Decibel+ has other things in its stable, if you want one-stop shopping.
Of course, a few other things were tried, all with excellent results. The PrimaLuna ProLogue 1 ($2,595 – all tubes) and the Atoll INT-200 Evolution ($2,900 – solid state) are another great match-up. But this review is about the combo from Decibel +, so most of the review listening was done with the Neoson.
Bass is full-bodied, with definition and extension. Those 7-inch woofers deliver clean, articulate bass. Zooming through a few Jaco Pastorius tracks from the past, and some of Kim Gordon’s The Collective, from the present, shows these speakers can muster a lot of weight in the lower frequencies.
Listening to the entire 2 hours and 2 minutes of The Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness reveals these speakers to work with densely packed music. Should this be one of your faves, suffice to say all the sonic nuggets that make this record a masterpiece came through with ease. Bouncing back to that Kim Gordon record is another example of the same. The way these speakers keep the pounding bass line, the distorted instruments, and Gordon’s highly processed vocals all separate is spectacular. Ditto for some vintage Nine Inch Nails. These speakers will keep the music flowing at your next party with ease.
Atlantis does an excellent job mating the compression tweeter to the dynamic woofers, giving these small speakers a level of coherence beyond what is normally on tap for this price. Spinning the Black Crowes latest, A Pound of Feathers, which has the BC’s back to their hard rock roots, is a challenge for a speaker with limited dynamic range. Again, the AT16s impress, with a clarity that makes this music come alive.
Perfect synergy
What we really like about Decibel + is the way they are carefully curating components that work well in a small to medium-sized space, in a budget range of about $5,000-$30,000. The components chosen give you more than just a taste of what the crazy money gear costs, and look great doing it.
Where similarly priced ZU and Klipsch give you pretty basic boxes, the Atlantis speakers have a lot more style. (and I own a pair of each – so this is high praise)
Decibel + Principal Gabe Toro is 40 years old and is relatively new to the hifi retail scene. They are selling direct, but you can visit their experience center and do some in-person listening if you’d like. What he brings to the table is a fresh perspective that is much more in keeping with what his demographic might enjoy. And that’s a good thing for our industry. He’s off to a great start.
We’ll be featuring more systems from Decibel + and a few others in the future, in an attempt to draw you in. Enjoy.
NOTE: Decibel + will be offering an upcoming 10% discount on bundles on Audiogon and at this week’s THE Show in Las Vegas….
This has to be today’s Record of the Day because I had the most bizarre dream last night. Aimee Mann knocked on our door and asked if she could hear a record, because she “heard I had a pretty good stereo, and she was in the neighborhood.” (Portlandia comeback, maybe? – and she was in town for shows on Thursday and Friday)
I invited her in, and she said she really wanted to hear Simon and Garfunkle’s Bridge Over Troubled Water.
“Do you have the MoFi version? They did a pretty nice job with two of my records,” she said in her signature deadpan, calm voice.
“Sure do, come on in.”
She sat down on the couch and listened to two sides of the 2-record, 45 r.p.m. set, and said, “That sounded really nice. Thank you very much.”
And as she got up from the couch to leave, I woke up.
The reason today’s choice is not on vinyl (and I might still buy a vinyl copy just because I really love Squeeze) is that all the demo and bonus tracks are only available on the CD version.
Trixies is a concept album that dates way back to the beginning of Squeeze in the early 70s, that they wrote but never recorded. Now, they’ve revised it and launched a brilliant addition to your Squeeze collection.
But hey, enough of my yapping. Here’s a link to Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook talking about it on YouTube. Fantastic.
The table featured here is the Modi, with their Thor linear tracking arm. CD’s and SACD’s are auditioned on the dCS Varese Cartridge is a modified LYRA Helikon SL, modified by Ana Mighty Sound Phono Pre is the award winning XP-17 from Pass Labs Cables by Cardas Audio All on top of the Pagode Master Reference MKII, courtesy of MoFi Distribution
All kidding aside, we’re big fans of SVS. Their subs deliver the goods. Well made, easy to use, and easy to set up thanks to DSP processing and a killer app that lets you dial it all in from your phone.
With 2,000 watts on tap, (5,000 peak) a massive 15-inch driver and a LF point of 17Hz, you can feel every bit of oomph from the lowest bass notes to the most powerful cannon shots. The SB-5000 is equally at home with music or movies.
We’re almost done with the full review, but the SB-5000 has been used with great effect on a number of different systems, including one built around their latest Ultra Evolution Towers. You can even connect them wirelessly if you don’t want to deal with cables.
In our other reference system featuring a pair of the latest Klipschorn AK7s, the matchup is seamless and paired with these classic horns, we could play our favorite Massive Attack and Art of Noise tracks at club volume without strain. But fear not, they possess plenty of nuance for your favorite acoustic tracks.
At $1,999.99 each, SVS offers great sonics, execution and value. You might just want two!
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