The first part of this review was sweeping in its perspective and discussed the larger topic of the efficacy of using a pair of integrated amps, specifically ones with DAC/pre/D topology. This segment will explore tuning that system configuration with the associated cables, especially HDMI cables used for transmission of the I2S signal favored by PS Audio.
It has been several weeks since I submitted the first part of this review, then within five minutes informed PS Audio that I would buy both Stellar Strata Mk2 Integrated Amplifiers! I gobbled them up because there was no way I would be without the new performance paradigm offered by horizontally bi-amping speakers with a pair of DAC/pre/class D integrated amplifiers! My conclusions have only strengthened, and I am now engaged in a further review in which I am investigating the Teac VRDS-701 Dual Monaural USB/DAC CD Player/Pre-Amp/Headphone Amplifier and CG-10M-X Master Clock Generator. I am using these products with the “Strati”, and the results are exceptional. In the Strati review, I was impressed by the upgrade to CD listening, even with the humble Musical Fidelity CDT-1 Transport. The Teac units have steamrolled that source’s performance and boosted CD playback with the Strati further.
Do not jump the gun and conclude that I am saying the Strati are the absolute best match for the Teac components. I am saying that as an integrated source, the Teac pair has elevated the PS Audio review results for the Strati. I am still on my first configuration, using the XLR outputs of the VDRS-701 into the Strati, treating them as though monoblock amps, and the result is better than previously. The performance might again skyrocket when I use the VRDS’s digital output into these integrated amps’ Coaxial Digital input. That may leverage both brands’ best features to create something truly special. More to come in the upcoming Teac review. This is all happening with components with a total MSRP of $15K for all of them!
My system building lately has led to radicalizing my audiophile worldview, turning me into something of a rebel system builder who is making configurations of equipment that would be laughable were they not decimating traditionally configured systems. The twin Stellar Strata Mk2 in the horizontal bi-amp configuration blew out of the water all the traditionally configured systems I had built as a reviewer for 17 years regardless of cost. Now, with the addition of the Teac front end, the performance gap between the old system building paradigm and the new is widening. I will have much more to say about that in the Teac review.
Going outside the audiophile community to upgrade
You might be tempted to think that any worthwhile means to upgrade your system would reside well within the confines of the audiophile industry. You would be wrong. If you attempt a conventional upgrade to your system, there are many ways available through the HiFi industry. But if you seek a technologically novel method and need custom connections, you are pretty much on your own. That makes it harder for breakthrough system configurations to be found. If companies which make custom products will not come through for a reviewer, they likely will not for you.
I do not wish to sound bitter, as my success rate in sourcing cabling for the novel configuration was decent, and the company most responsible for that success was AudioQuest. The other company which contributed to the effort was WireWorld. I have conducted reviews of both companies’ products previously, so I went back to the well when I needed specialty cables for the Faux Mono Integrated setup (technically, horizontally bi-amped integrated amplifiers).
Still, I am disappointed that some of the biggest names in cables in the industry declined to make an HDMI Y-cable. No cable companies would run outside the lines for this review. The cost would be too great, the Chinese machines making the molded housings for cables would require too much jiggering for a one-off product. I get it, and if I were running the company, I would make the same decision. If your novel configuration is too odd and requires too novel of cabling, you are not assured such companies can accommodate you. My experimentation is insignificant to them, and they are about the bottom line, not exploratory audio.
Here’s the hard business truth of the situation; if they had found it, you would be marketed. But if you find it, they won’t touch it unless eventually they see it and want to exploit it. That’s how the industry works, but it does not always work to your benefit. I do not blame these companies at all; they were as helpful as possible within their company policies. If I were not a longer tenured reviewer, no one would pay attention to it. If I did not go outside the lines of the industry and source what to some would be unsuitable cables, you would not be reading this review. Most reviewers are content to build systems traditionally and use whatever is within easy reach. You benefit greatly that I am an experimenter with systems and unafraid of what the industry thinks of my methods such as using Amazon sourced generic cables when necessary.
There must be a way
Imagine discovering over-the-top performance through a unique system configuration, but seemingly no audiophile cable company can supply what you need to use the best connection between your source and the integrated amplifiers. That was the case as I could not source an HDMI Y-cable from any of the audiophile cable makers that I contacted. I had a serious, beneficial discussion with Iconoclast Cables and Blue Jeans Cables, which cooperate in production (Blue Jeans terminates cables for Iconoclast), but neither one could make me an HDMI Y-cable. Blue Jeans entertained my request and suggested they might be able to fabricate a male to two female splitter, but it grew increasingly technically problematic until the idea collapsed. I cannot blame them for seeing it as untenable. I was willing to pay for development and assembly, but it was not worth their time. Besides, like all the other cable companies, they thought it was a waste of time because it would not follow protocol established by theory.
It’s not fun to find a performance barrier-breaking inexpensive system configuration and hit a wall when it comes to maximizing it. But where there is a will, there is a way! I had found one way with a junky $10 HDMI Y-cable from Amazon, but I had been in the game long enough to know there must be a way to make the dual HDMI cable concept work better.
More frustrating, imagine that you have found a component topology and system configuration that truly leverages companies’ integrated amplifier performance, and none of them want to join your party. To date, five makers of integrated class D amps have given me zero response, absolutely zero reply without acknowledgement of my emails, to a request for two integrated amplifiers to conduct the Faux Mono Integrated setup with their component. As all of them are well-known, larger makers, I suspect the reason is not inability but disdain at the idea. In 17 years, I have never had any review request met with silence from five companies. Usually, within one or two contacts, and almost never ignored, I have found a component matching my criteria to review. When corresponding with these five companies are like talking to a wall, I conclude, right or wrong, that the idea is too much for them to stomach. They simply won’t entertain such oddities, especially if there is a possibility the odd arrangement could outperform their upper end separates.
Makers of components typically push back against my requests for exploration, which makes PS Audio and Heaven 11 noted exceptions. Almost universally, manufacturers want nice, consistent reviews that fit inside the lines. The less they must expend, i.e. one review unit only, and the more the article fits the traditional system configuration template but yields effusive descriptions of the results, the more they benefit. Why would they give a reviewer two units and open the possibility that in the right setup they likely outperform their expensive separates? That would be conjecture, but not unfounded, as 17 year’s-worth of expensive separates systems were outperformed.
Consequently, I have some challenges ahead of me as I work with the twin integrated configuration. I presume that to push ahead on this matter, I will have to review single integrated amplifiers, then determine if the performance of the single integrated amp reviewed is sufficiently superior that I would buy a second unit just to try them in dual mono configuration. That’s a very expensive game to play. What do you think it says about how serious the results are and how committed I am to be pushing it ahead when I am considering buying components to test them in such a fashion? Perhaps you are starting to believe that this is no fluke. I am after SOTA sound, not average sound. If I find a method that gets me SOTA on the cheap, I will put some money into it. The only reason the community will hear of this is because I am publicizing my personally expensive experiments. Except for the two component makers and two cable makers above, the manufacturers are not helping you to find a less expensive pathway to SOTA. They appear deaf to it, for reasons you can imagine.
Please take me seriously
I figured I would amuse several peers and community members when I revealed in Part 1 that I had used mismatched HDMI cables in my initial dual HDMI setup. Not only had I employed an Amazon $10 HDMI Y-cable to split the HDMI output of the PS Audio AirLens, but I had paired two different models of AudioQuest HDMI cables! It doesn’t get worse than that! We all know that is how you wreck sound quality, right? Why take anyone seriously who does such things? Their advice can’t be worth much. Wrong! I explained that their use was chiefly for proof of concept, to see if the Y-cable and dual input to the integrated amps via the I2S input would work. I did not have a matching pair of HDMI cables, and the two were so close in performance as to fail my Law of Efficacy, meaning they were so similar that the difference was hardly worth noting. However, when paired properly, nuances between them became more noticeable. They worked very well together. Splitting the signal, even with a lousy $10 Amazon Y-cable, was a major win performance-wise. Aside from proof of concept, I would never pair two different models of cables in any audio system.
Obviously, I would need to obtain identical HDMI cables for optimum performance, so I reached out to Stephen Mejias, a former reviewer, now the reviewer liaison AudioQuest, who was intrigued – or at least gave the impression of being intrigued, as he likely fields all sorts of breathless reports of astounding performance – by my description of the dual integrated setup. He has been very helpful to me in this process and the company’s products have performed splendidly. He saw to it that AQ supplied another set of HDMI cables such that I ended up with a pair of 1.5m Cinnamon 48G HDMI, a pair of 1.5m 48G Thunderbird DBS HDMI, and a single Firebird 48G HDMI. I bought another $10 Amazon Y-cable, and with the pairs of AudioQuest HDMI cables, I could build two sets of split HDMI, Cinnamon and Firebird, and swap them out to consider their influence upon the system.
Why seek a single Firebird HDMI? It was intended for the next phase of testing. Not content with the cheap Y-cable solution, I scoured the Net for HDMI splitters, knowing that a splitter might yield a better result than a cheap Y-cable. I found one and ordered two of them so that I could build similar quick-change dual HDMI sets with the Cinnamon and Thunderbird HDMI cables. There as only one problem; the body of the splitter did not fit into the output of the PS Audio AirLens’ HDMI because it encroached on the power cord! Grrrrrr! One solution was to use another HDMI cable (the Firebird) from the AirLens to the splitter.
But I had another idea that sidetracked me. Earlier, when I was searching for an HDMI splitter on the AQ website (none exist), I had seen a right-angle HDMI adapter. Would that 90-degree turn allow my HDMI splitter to fit into the AirLens’s output? Another call to Stephen… A few days later, I had two AQ right angle HDMI adapters! Why not ignore proper audiophile principles one step further by adding a right-angle adapter to the HDMI splitter? There is no way such a cobbling together of adapters and splitters could sound good, right? I ask, are solutions presumed in this community, or built? I built the contraption and tried it with the doubled Cinnamon and Thunderbird cables. Better, much better than the Amazon Y-cable! I had wasted $20 on two throw away Y-cables that I likely will never use again. I’m ok with spending $20 in a process of finding performance improvements sonically worth tens of thousands of dollars. You can hardly imagine how grateful I am to AudioQuest for making that right angle HDMI adapter! It wasn’t made for this application, but it works! You should be very grateful to AudioQuest that they play ball with a wildly inventive reviewer such as myself.
Cinnamon and Thunderbird DBS HDMI 48g Cables, and WireWorld Sphere 48 and Silver Sphere 48 HDMI Cables
Before I discuss the performance of these cables, a word about my methodology of reviewing cables. After two decades of comparing sets of cables, I have resolved to do no reviewing of mixed cable sets. What about my use of Iconoclast Cables as my preferred set but adding in AudioQuest cables? When a company does not make a genre of cable, there is not much choice but to mix them! Iconoclast makes interconnects, speaker cables, and one model of power cord. Most cable companies do not have the breadth of AudioQuest, where nearly any cable associated with a traditional system is offered. Here is my rule for one-off cables; try at least three of them from different manufacturers and models. I applied that principle in this situation.
Using a couple of different AQ HDMI cables was insufficient to ensure optimization of the system, so I contacted WireWorld and requested a couple pairs of their HDMI cables. I had the entire discussion of the Y-cable and splitter with them, and like AudioQuest, because their cables are made overseas and by big machines that mold the housing, they couldn’t accommodate my request to fabricate an HDMI splitter. But they would happily send some HDMI cables. They sent 1m sets of Sphere 48 HDMI and Silver Sphere 48 HDMI. These I switched out with the AudioQuest HDMI cables on the Amazon splitter with the AQ right angle HDMI adapter. Now, I could swap four sets of dual HDMI cables for comparison! This is how an individual advances a system, not by presumption or conjecture, and certainly not by waiting for things to change!
Note that I made no attempt to let the cables break in, as I have demonstrated that is ineffectual. I have written extensively about this topic, and you can read about my testing on the subject in two articles at Dagogo, Doug Schroeder’s Audiophile Law #6: Thou Shalt Not Overemphasize Burn In, and Audiophile Law: Burn In Test Redux.
Characteristics of the HDMI cables
Holistically, WireWorld HDMI cables are softer sounding and more laid back than AudioQuest HDMI cables. Liken WireWorld’s wares to more plump, warmer, less in-your-face tube amplifiers, and AudioQuest’s offerings to forward, unvarnished solid-state amplifiers. If you are familiar with genres of speakers, the WireWorld cables presented like a high efficiency dynamic speaker with a lot of cabinet contribution, with a more rounded sound – think Audio Note UK or Tannoy. The AudioQuest cables presented like a dipole speaker, with less warmth and an emphasis on resolution – think Magneplanar or my cherished Kingsound King III electrostatic speakers. The difference between pairs of HDMI cables as heard through the twin integrated amp setup is striking. WireWorld’s HDMI cables are not as forward but make the performance seem localized further from the listener. They require higher listening levels to produce some of the dynamics of the AudioQuest HDMI cables.
The AudioQuest HDMI, in contrast, puts the performance in the listener’s lap. The action is brought very close and intense. It may be a bit too much forwardness for fans of relaxing sound. However, it could be a panacea for those who are frustrated that their system sounds dull and would like more vibrancy.
With both sets of cables, the lower model was outclassed by the higher model. Chief characteristic changes were higher resolution, better tonality, and superior imaging by the upper end models.
Manufacturers’ preferred digital links
Those with digital sources and experiment with digital cables learn quickly that there is no consistency in the industry when it comes to digital links and that each manufacturer thinks they have the performance edge. USB is a popular digital link, and some manufacturers and dealers call it the best. The ones who are most confident in that assessment build in models of DACs with only USB output.
The Digital Coaxial (SPDIF) connection is a standard in the industry, and most makers of digital gear include it. Few in the industry call it the ultimate digital link, many of them concluding that AES/EBU (which uses the XLR plug) is superior. In most cases I have done comparisons, I have concluded similarly. It is possible for the Digital Coax link to outperform the AES/EBU link, but only comparison of cables in the system determines the outcome. One is not universally superior to the other when it comes to system performance with any given set of components and speakers.
PS Audio’s Paul McGowan despises the USB link, and although there is a USB B port on PS Audio components, it is only operational for computer audio. This is one of the greatest shortcomings of PS Audio. They presume that USB can never win and is only good for a computer source. But in actual system building, USB often wins. Eliminating it removes thousands of permutations of components that could potentially offer superior performance to the Digital Coaxial or I2S connections. It also forces many to change their DAC to use a PS Audio source such as the AirLens.
In building several iterations of systems, the I2S connection was clearly superior to the SPDIF (coaxial) with the Strati. A layer of obscurity (grunge seems like a harsh word) was peeled off by this digital link. Don’t fret over that; your system has grunge, too, which can be removed by proper assessment and selection of a set of cables.
I had to watch it that there was not too much top-end energy with the increase in information retrieval. The added revelatory power of the AudioQuest cables and especially the HDMI, seem to slightly skew upward in frequency emphasis. With speakers having prodigious tweeter elements such as the Aspen Acoustics Grand Aspen which has an array of twin 1” ribbon tweeters per channel, the treble can get intense. I had a simple solution handy with the two models of Iconoclast Series 2 TPC (Tough Pitch Copper) and SPTPC (Silver Plated Tough Pitch Copper) Speaker Cables. Do not let the “tough pitch” phraseology throw you; Iconoclast is very by the book in design, and they use industry terms for the copper. These are very smooth sounding, refined speaker cables. If I felt the treble needed to be adjusted tonally, I switched the speaker cables between the bass drivers and the mid-treble drivers.
It had been a long time since I used AudioQuest cables with their DBS system, and I rather like returning to it. The DBS system is profoundly beneficial in pulling additional information from a digital source. The Thunderbird 48 HDMI with DBS was immediately recognized as having fundamentally superior resolution, which results in better micro dynamics, a deeper and better populated sound stage, and a more tactile feel to the lead instrument or voice. Tonally, it was like the Cinnamon 48 HDMI. The upgrade in performance with the Thunderbird is well worth the money. Note also that highly efficacious cables are worth the cost, even if the components are not terribly expensive. Many times, I have used cables that are seemingly too good, too expensive for affordable components. However, all components react well to fine cables, and selecting a winner as a digital link or interconnect is as advantageous as swapping a component!
Relative output of each integrated amplifier for tonal contouring
Maybe you won’t think the idea of twin integrated amps in horizontal bi-amp configuration is stupid after you read this. I can make these integrated amps do something that is impossible for most $100K+ systems.
I did not discuss the nuts and bolts of operating two integrated amps in Part 1. There is a bit of an artistry to it. If the amps are separated by some distance, it is not hard to hold the remote off center to catch only one of them. Should a volume adjustment be imprecise that one unit is louder, a quick off-center touch rectifies the situation. One might think that if the two units are stacked, as I must in certain systems, the Volume function would work in lockstep. Most of the time it does, but perhaps 10% of the time it does not. If they fall out of sync, it’s very difficult to connect with only one unit to adjust it, as the IR receivers are mere inches apart. My best method is to hold my hand out toward the units and rest the remote back about 8” from my fingertips, thus blocking the IR signal from expanding too much. If I hold that odd form at the correct angle, I can influence only the top unit. The suffering I endure for this hobby!
Before you ridicule me for such a stupid setup, consider the super-power contained in it. I guess that you have music you don’t care for all that much because it was mixed with a frequency imbalance (I will only tacitly suggest that perhaps you built a system that emphasizes a part of the frequency spectrum). Perhaps the bass was too weak, or the mid-treble too emphasized, resulting in outcomes such as female singers you like but struggle to enjoy because their voice is not warm enough. No problem: with the twin integrated setup, you can twitch the VOLUME setting of either the bass or the mid-treble unit one or two ticks to shift the tonal palate! There is zero performance penalty associated with doing so! You can’t do that even with mega-buck systems! To change the tonality of such systems, you are looking at cables, a cartridge, or an amp, etc. It is a pleasure to put on any artist, any track, and know that I can make it tonally suitable, and without sonic degradation!
Yes, there is an output variance in doing so, but the effect is subtle, not obnoxious. Within moments, the ear adjusts, and it sounds normal again. If you think it is such a sin to do so, consider how many slaughter the balance of their speaker system with the addition of subwoofers! Others play the mix and match amplifier game, the tube amp for highs and SS amp for lows, subjectively controlling the output of each. Every combination of components and cables yields a novel output from the drivers. So, I’m not doing anything you haven’t done. I just have a lot more distortion-free configurability, and without the cost and hassles of setting up an active speaker system! Trust me, it endears a great deal of music that was previously a disappointment and it’s sheer pleasure to do it for a sliver of all those $100K+ systems!
What about mixing integrated amps?
In Part 1, I mentioned the possibility of using two different brand integrated amps. I have a pair of both the Heaven 11 Billie Amp MK2 and a pair of the PS Audio Stellar Strata Mk2. That means I have potential to make two more systems with one dedicated to the bass and the other dedicated to the mid-treble. I have not done so yet because I am too busy with other projects unrelated to audio while extending exploration toward the TEAC gear. When I build systems, I build systems, many of them! That is how a rig is advanced, and one captures stunning listening experiences.
Will I eventually try cross-brand twin integrated amps horizontally bi-amped? Probably, when I have worked through a bunch of iterations and am curious enough. Could it be even better than a homogenous set? It might, and no one knows until it is tried.
Don’t be afraid to be creative
Convention and fear of the slightest degradation in sound quality have stifled the industry and community. I wrote my first Editorial as a reviewer about that. I have rather enjoyed breaking out from those constraints to explore virgin territory. It has been among the most rewarding times as a writer since I first handled better equipment at the onset of reviewing.
If you are afraid to fly solo, to try something different, you will get not much different results. If convention defines your desires, that’s perfectly acceptable. But if you seek to be an outlier, and to hear a system that is an outlier, don’t let the disapproval of others define your efforts. Break free and try something different! Be prepared to make fiscal sacrifices in exploration and to at times work outside of the products offered by the industry.
30 years ago, a local dealer told me, “You don’t know what you’re doing. Let us build the system for you.” I took offense at that and determined that I would build superior systems and get SOTA sound on the cheap. I went through dozens of each kind of component in traditional configurations as a hobbyist and reviewer. It all failed to deliver on the grandiose dream of upper end sound at a bargain. If I had not been such a fanatical system builder who brainstormed all possible iterations of systems, I doubt I would have discovered the dual integrated configuration. I started out as someone who didn’t know what I was doing. In 17 years, I have become a person who is making abnormally efficacious systems.
The twin integrated configuration with both the Heaven 11 and PS Audio integrated amps has not disappointed! I have been so richly rewarded for determining I would not let convention, and the approbation of others define my journey in audiophilia! What about all those systems and money I spent on various components? Was it all a waste? No, because that was the kitchen in which I learned to cook with audio gear. It was the laboratory where experiments were birthed. One of the most important principles I learned was that the system building show should not be stopped merely because one facet, one connection, is deemed less than ideal. If the potential downstream benefit could vastly outweigh the single diminishment, wouldn’t it be a big step forward? If splitting a digital output signal could yield a multi-faceted improvement, wouldn’t it be worth it? It is.
The exploration with the twin integrated amps has highlighted the need for exceptionally good cables. When the number of links (and components) are reduced by 50%, those links had better be exceptional! I am blessed that WireWorld and AudioQuest saved me a bunch of money by not having to buy doubles of the SPDIF and HDMI cables; thank you, again, to these companies which had a hand in truly advancing the art of system making for the budget audiophile!
Associated Components:
Digital Sources: Bricasti M5 Network Player, PS Audio AirLens, Teac VRDS-701 Dual Monaural USB/DAC CD Player/Pre-Amp/Headphone Amplifier and Teac CG-10M-X Master Clock Generator
Streaming Music Service: Tidal premium; Qobuz
Interface: ROON; Audrivana
DAC: (Placeholder) Eastern Electric Minimax with discrete opamps rolled in
Preamp: (Placeholder) Cambrige Audio Azur 840E
Amps: Legacy Audio i.V4 Ultra
Integrated: Heaven 11 Billie Amp Mk2 (two units used in horizontal bi-amp configuration); PS Audio Stellar Strata Mk2 (two units used in horizontal bi-amp configuration)
Speakers: Legacy Audio DSW Clarity Edition; Kings Audio King III electrostatic speakers; Pure Audio Project Trio15 10” Coaxial version; Kings Audio King Tower omnidirectional; Aspen Acoustics Grand Aspen; Wharfedale Opus 2-M2 Monitors
Subwoofers: Perlisten D212s Subwoofers
IC’s: Iconoclast RCA and XLR Generation 2 with Ultra-Pure Ohno Continuous Cast Copper conductors
Speaker Cables: Iconoclast Series 2 TPC Speaker Cable; Iconoclast Series 2 SPTPC Speaker Cable
Digital Cables: AudioQuest Digital Coaxial Carbon 1.5m; AudioQuest Digital Coaxial Coffee 1.5m; Iconoclast RCA or XLR 2m Interconnect used as digital link; Audioquest
USB: AudioQuest Cinnamon USB 1.5m; Audioquest Coffee USB 1.5m; Clarity Cable Supernatural 1m
Power Cables: Iconoclast BAV Power Cord; Clarity Cable Vortex; Snake River Audio Signature Series
Power Conditioning: Wireworld Matrix Power Cord Extender; Tice Audio Solo
The post PS Audio Stellar Strata Mk2 integrated amplifiers Review, Part 2 of 2 appeared first on Dagogo.