What a Difference a Year Makes – How A Mighty System got Mightier

Posted by Tan

I visited Mr. Soo’s system about a year ago—you can read about that visit here. Recently, I paid him another visit, after knowing that the system had undergone a major transformation. The changes were not limited to equipment; the room’s acoustic treatment also went through a major rework.

The front end is now driven by a Taiko Audio server, while amplification from CH Precision has been fully upgraded to flagship models. The setup includes the L10 preamplifier in mono configuration with separate power supplies, resulting in a stereo preamp housed in four chassis (two preamp units and two external power supplies). The power amplifier is the two-chassis M10, a stereo amp with external power supplies. The trusty Magico M6 speakers and the 2 JL Audio subwoofers remain in place.

CH Precision L10 preamplifier in mono configuration with separate power supply for each each channel

CH Precision M10 power amplifier with separate power supply

Taiko Audio and TotalDac digitial frontend

Equally significant was the overhaul of the room acoustics. The ceiling and walls are now fully treated with diffusers and absorbers, and Mr. Soo told me rockwool has also been added to the cavity between the ceiling and roof.

Diffusers and absorbers on the ceiling

The impact of these treatments was immediately noticeable. The acoustic environment had improved significantly—I found that having a conversation in the room was easy and natural, among the best I’ve ever experienced. We could speak at normal volume without straining to hear, and every syllable was clear, free from smearing or disturbance.

Performance-wise, the system had advanced a few notches. Dynamics were more expressive, giving the sound a muscular, impactful character. At the same time, the refinement I admired during my last visit was not only preserved but enhanced—the sweetness and smoothness in the highs were a particular highlight. Overall clarity and background quietness were exceptional, no doubt aided by the successful acoustic treatments.

Mr. Soo’s approach to bass management with the Magico M6 and JL Audio subwoofers (as described in my previous report, where he used an active crossover to send bass to the subs and mids/highs to the main speakers) continued to deliver excellent results. There was no hint of bass boom; instead, the low frequencies were supple and seamlessly integrated with the mains. It was impossible to tell where the Magico ended and the JL Audio took over, very well done indeed.

As for what comes next, I’m not sure how Mr. Soo will push his system further. But our hobby is about pushing the boundaries, so, who know, my next visit may reveal yet another big leap forward!

The Mighty Magico with the Equally Mighty JL Audio Subwoofers

Posted by Tan

 This home visit stands out as one of the most memorable in my experience at 3 different levels – the sheer size and quality of the system, the meticulous care and attention the owner, Mr. Soo, put into setting it up, especially in the bass region, and its final sonic performance.

When I first saw this system, the question that came to my mind, which would also be the question many audiophiles have, was whether full-range high-end loudspeakers like the Magico M6 need to be augmented with subwoofers, and whether they can integrate successfully, Furthermore, it was with not one but two subwoofers, both being the massive JL Audio G213.

The system owner, Mr. Soo, had done a tremendous job. Before I get into the subwoofer matter, let me first say that the sound performance of this system was beautiful, and I meant this quite literally. The sound was refined, from the first song on, I could detect no graininess anywhere at all. The highs were silky with a smidgen of sweetness, the midrange was pure, together they rendered female vocals rather intoxicating and seductive. Transparency was top notch, the sound was wide open with clarity and high definition details. The soundstage was well formed both in width and depth, aided by  the room size and skillful speaker positioning. There were lots of air and ambiance, likely enhanced by the subs. Image focus and definition were excellent, the kind that you can “look” at and pinpoint.

As a testament to the match between the CH Precision amplifier and the Magico M6 loudspeakers, the delivery was always well in control and well defined. There was a gentle touch and civility in the presentation throughout, letting the listeners enjoy a cultured and relaxing experience.

Now, about the subwoofers: The integration was so seamless that it was impossible for us to tell where the Magico ended and the JL Audio subs began, such was the seamless integration between the two. The subs were working for sure, providing a firm anchor on the bottom end, with good body on the sound and no thinness.

Bass boom is one of the if not the biggest bane for a HiFi system. It diminishes our system’s ability to deliver music enjoyment, limits the kind of music that can be played, and in the worst case makes some audiophiles give up the hobby altogether. Bass boom is difficult to treat, so some find peace with the situation by narrowing their music selection, playing music that won’t excite the room; some switch to smaller loudspeakers with less extended bass to avoid the frequency that causes the boom problem; some may just resign themselves to live with the boom issue; some even take boom as impactful and thunderous bass performance.

Still, many decide to take the problem head-on, taking the route of acoustic room treatment, or go the electronic way by resorting to DSP, or a combination of methods.  

Mr. Soo did face the bass boom issue with his listening space, so he devised his innovative approach to solve the problem, which he generously shared.

Here is where the subs come in. The first point is that the two big JL Audio subwoofers were not there to add more or to extend the bass from his Magico M6 loudspeakers. The Magico M6’s positioning was the best for every aspect of stereo performance already, so loudspeaker positioning could not be used to further address the boom issue. Mr. Soo’s method was to split away the frequency range that caused problem from the main speakers and used the subwoofers to recover it. An active crossover from JL Audio, the CR-1, was used for this, the crossover point was set at around the 40Hz region, with the high pass going to the power amp driving the main speakers, and the low pass going to the 2 active subwoofers.

Once that was done, he had all the freedom to deal with the offending frequency range via subwoofer positioning and tweaking the volume and the phase setting (the crossovers on the subs were not in the signal path, they were set to max). Using two subs, instead of one, allowed him the freedom to find the best position for each channel. Indeed, we saw that the final positions for the subs were not symmetrical. The subs’ phase and volume setting also ensured that they were integrated seamlessly by avoiding cancellation or addition of sound wave.

The 2 subs placed close to the left and right walls with different distance from the loudspeakers and listening position

Mr. Soo did not do all this with only his ears, he did a lot of measurement on REW of his subwoofer setting effort over many months.

This is the most extensive and innovative way of using subwoofers that I ever came across, and the owner’s effort paid off handsomely. The sound was full range with rock solid bass extension, the dreaded bass boom issue was totally banished, and the subwoofers just ‘disappeared’. Bravo to the owner for a job well done!

Audio Image Is Now House Of Burmester.

This is the latest state of the art Burmester 100 flagship phono pre amp, a.k.a. phono stage. It even has it's own built in ADC(Analog to Digital Converter) for those who wish to digitally archive their treasured LP collection.  It is just one of the Burmester equipment on demo in Audio Image.

Audio Image has been officially appointed the Malaysian representative for Burmester Audio Systems, the well respected high end German marque. Adrian, the boss of Audio Image has almost the full range, from the new Rondo replacement budget series to state of the art Reference series of Burmester hifi equipment on demo in his Petaling Jaya showroom.

While at Audio Image, do check out the pair of Magico Q3 speakers on demo with Burmester Reference range electronics.

Demo is by appointment basis only, contact call Adrian of Audio Image at 03-79563077.

Magic, O!

We gathered that our local Magico dealer, Audio Image, had delivered a few pairs of Magico Q3 and Q5 so far. We were very interested to listen to a Magico Q3 or Q5 based system, and as luck would have it, we received an invitation from a new Q5 owner, whom we shall refer to as ST, to have a listen to his system. What a pleasant surprise! It is not common that a highend audiophile opens his door to strangers like us, so we are very grateful for ST's generosity.

And so it was, a few of us descended on ST's bungalow on a Saturday afternoon. After the introduction, we were promptly led up a few flights of stairs into his listening room. ST appreciates the finer things in life, he told us that in addition to excellent sound quality, he also wanted his hifi system and his hifi room to look good, as after a long hard day, when he comes into the room to wind down and relax, he wants to enjoy not just glorious music but also beautiful sight, as such the equipment and the room deco must be pleasant too. Well, after my time in ST's listening room, I am certain he has achieved what he wanted on both counts - hifi and eye-fi.

I'll let this series of photos do the talking:

The system view.
Due to the number of equipment in the system, ST has positioned them in two layers. The front layer, which you can see in this shot, consists of the frontends and pre-amp. The second layer behind, hidden from view, consists of the monoblocks and power conditioner.
The room was designed and constructed by Centre Circle Audio. It has a nice and warm ambiance. It is acoustically treated with wood panels and Auralex's acoustic treatment material, both nicely incorporated into the design itself. In the photo above, the wood panel behind the loudspeakers with its uneven surface acts as a nice acoustic diffuser. Auralex bass traps are installed at the corners, together with Auralex sound absorbing foams at the sides of the loudspeakers (the burgundy coloured material).

A wood panel acting as diffuser is installed on the ceiling. If you look closer, you'd notice that each square in the panel has different depth, following the quadratic residue sequence approach used in many sound diffuser products.

The digital frontend is a Simaudio MOON Andromeda top loading CD player with separate power supply (not shown)

The analog frontend is a Clearaudio Innovation turntable...

...with a Clearaudio Universal tonearm and a Transfiguration Orpheus MC cartridge...
...and Simaudio MOON 310LP Phono Amp & 320S Power Supply
The pre-amp is the 2-piece Simaudio MOON 850P, the top dog in Simaudio's line-up

The monoblocks are the best that Simaudio offers - the MOON 880M, which give out 800w per channel into 8ohm, double into 4ohm.
Doing powerline conditioning and protection duty is a Shunyata Triton, seen above at the centre of the shot, flanked by the 2 monoblocks.
At the end of the chain is the majestic Magico Q5, 176kg/387lbs of aluminium chassis and more

To match his top notch equipment, ST does not skimp on cables. He uses mainly JPS Aluminata. Seen here are the Aluminata powercord, interconnect and speaker cable which go in and out of the Simaudio MOON 880M monoblock.
Other than JPS Aluminata, there are a couple of Shunyata powercords, the Python Helix and Anaconda Helix, which you can spot in the monoblock-powerline conditioner photo before (the ones with green and red plugs)
The JPS Aluminata speaker cable that goes into the Magico Q5

ST also uses hifi accessories to fine tune the sound. Here we see the Harmonix Tuning Spike Base under the Magico Q5. In fact, ST is so big with Harmonix Tuning Spike Base that he has 12 sets in his system, installed under almost every piece of his equipment

ASI's resonators are used to tweak the acoustic property of the room. This one is placed at the top corners of the room

More resonators from ASI. These are installed at the centre of the front wall

The more eagle-eyed among you would notice that ST prefers to stick to the same brands for his equipment - almost all his electronics are from Simaudio, and almost all his cables are from JPS. He told us that he preferred such an approach because he could be confident that there would be no mismatch issue with equipment coming from the same brand. I cannot fault such a philosophy, it will indeed take away much guesswork when putting together a system.

After just a short listening, I loved the tonal beauty of this system already, which I recognized as a beguiling quality common to the Magico line. I heard the same beautiful tonal colour from other Magico models, such as the V2 and V3, in the local dealer's showroom too. Just that the Magico Q5 in this system conveyed this quality more clearly and more prominently than the dealer's system. The system also sounded dynamic, fast and detailed. Both ends of the frequency spectrum were very extended. Bass featured prominently in the mix, it brought much exceitement to the listening experience though it could be just a bit overwhelming at times. The overall sound was not the thin and analytical kind, instead it had excellent body, a nice bloom and sounding simply musical. The sound was also non-fatiguing for long hours of listening.

Listening to this system is a joy. ST, thank you for your hospitality, we had a truly memorable weekend.

Magico Q5 Speakers And Devialet Digital Amplifiers. Now On Demo In Audio Image.

The Magico Q5 speakers are stunning indeed. A must listen!
Audio Image is revitalising their high end audio product lines. The absolutely gorgeous and rich tonality of the Magico Q5 speakers powered by Soulution electronics must be heard if one appreciates good sound.
Devialet amplifier represents the latest thinking in digital amplification topology.

While you're there, you can also marvel at the latest digital amplifier topology design, courtesy Devialet Amplifiers. This French made and designed amplifier is certainly avant garde looking. It's designed to be hanged as the center piece on your wall decor. An RF(radio frequency) remote is provided for whole house signal reception. As this is an integrated amp, all you need is source and a pair of high quality speakers. The amp is rated for 50W RMS out put.
The Artemis SA-1 turn table set up is special. Too bad the demo set is sold.
Adrian also had the latest Frank Schroeder designed Artemis SA-1 tun table on demo too fitted with a tone arm bearing the same desginer's name and an Air Tight PC-1 cartridge last week, but is now sold. If interested, please enquire at 03-79563077.

A Magico Soulution! Only At Audio Image.

Magico V2 speakers.

Folks, I finally found the chance to hear the magic of Magico for my self. Audio Image has a pair of "budget" priced, (RM$65k/pair! See, I told you not to question my logic of "value") Magico V2 speakers on demo with the Soulution pre/power kombi!

Soulution pre/power kombi.

On the front end was a Nagra CDC CD player, which I admire a lot too! The best sound description of the demo system is just "Oh.... so natural".

Full frontal view of the "budget" Magico.

I think the Soulution pre/power kombi may have just found a buyer as I was there. So if you wanna hear the Magico strut it's stuff, hurry over and pay Adrian a visit!

The rear view of the Magico, note the three black cyclinders sticking out the back? Adrian says by inserting a shaft in to a marked hole on the cylinder's sides(which you'll notice if you look close enough) and turning the three cylinders clock/anti clock wise, you can tune the sound of the Magico in your room! A bit like positioning the Shun Mooks tweaks!(remember those?) Adrian, you sure about that?

Please contact Audio Image for an appointment, tel:03-79563077