Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!

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Bassphil

Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« on: 24 Sep 2010, 03:27 pm »
Hi Tommy, I just wired in the new Cherry Plus Tuesday night, and I'm officially sleep deprived- I can't seem to turn it off and go to bed. It sounds amazing! Thanks for helping me out!

When I have a second, I'll post a more detailed description of what it's done to my system, and the differences between it and my old Cary Slam 100 monoblocks. Plus, I have a few small questions.

Oh, and before I forget, I recommended you to a friend who runs the jazz department of the Fieldston Academy school here in Riverdale. They need a new amp...

-Phil
www.philpalombi.com

watercourse

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #1 on: 24 Sep 2010, 03:43 pm »
Keep us informed ... I'm waiting for my PLUS to show up, hopefully tonight.  :thumb:
I've been Cherry-deprived for a while, so I feel your pain.
I'll also post my thoughts once I've had some time with it, and comparing with my two preamps (Dodd battery and Juicy Music Peach II) and straight from my DAC3.
Wilson

jrg4785

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Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #2 on: 24 Sep 2010, 04:17 pm »
I got my Cherry as well.  More to come after my Soundscapes arrive, but so far, I'm very impressed.  thanks Tommy!

Bassphil

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #3 on: 24 Sep 2010, 05:39 pm »
Okay, I have a minute. First, a few questions.

I tried the XLR adapters (for the inputs) without the extra ground lift attachment, and it sounds fine. Is that okay, or do I need to put the ground lifts back in? I'm guessing that if there's no buzz, then I don't need the ground attachments.

The input impedance is 10K, right? I dug around and found another post with that, but I though I'd double check. I'm using stereo Vandersteen 2W subs with the adjustable M5-HP crossovers, so I need to set those up properly.

And finally, is there a break in period? It sounds great now- I'm just curious if it's going to get better  :thumb:


watercourse

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #4 on: 24 Sep 2010, 05:50 pm »
Phil,
Tommy can chime in later, but here's my $0.02, hope it helps:

If you don't have a hum or buzz without the ground lift, then you're good to go. I need to get me some of those ground lift adapters for my Peach II, which buzzes with my custom RCA to XLR cable.

Also, you are correct re: input impedance of the Cherry at 10K.

Lastly, based on my experience with the Jr., the unit was broken in after 24 hours of continuous signal. After that, there may have been minor settling in, but the majority of break in was complete.

Sonny

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #5 on: 24 Sep 2010, 06:00 pm »
Man, I have to bring my EVS over to compare with the Cherry Plus Wilson, and the Curcio with the HEED

watercourse

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #6 on: 24 Sep 2010, 06:06 pm »
Sounds good! I want to hear your new phono stage in its natural habitat too.

Sonny

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #7 on: 24 Sep 2010, 06:12 pm »
I can give a couple of hours this Sunday if you're up for it?

watercourse

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #8 on: 25 Sep 2010, 01:31 am »
Tuan: Depends, the weather is finally really nice - might need to be out and about since we finally have summer here in SF. I'll let you know if I can do it, and happy 1 year anniversary!

To the rest of you: I GOT MY PLUS TODAY!!!! I can say the faceplate silkscreen is much nicer than the photos show, good job Tommy and the gang!

Bassphil

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #9 on: 26 Sep 2010, 12:46 am »
Lastly, based on my experience with the Jr., the unit was broken in after 24 hours of continuous signal. After that, there may have been minor settling in, but the majority of break in was complete.

Thanks! Soo, does that mean that you just left it on for 24 hours, you played music through it for 24 hours, or you had about 24 hours of use on it? I'm guessing that it's one of the first two, since you said "continuous"...

Also, I noticed that the amp is pretty loud when operating- 13db above room noise, to be precise. When I pause the music, I can hear it from about 5 feet away. It's not a hum sound, but some kind of mechanical transformer sound. It's not coming though the speakers. It's coming directly from the amp itself. Is that normal? Just checking...

Over all, here's what I hear from switching from the Cary Slam 100 monoblocks that I was using. The first thing I noticed was the low end was a lot cleaner. The Cary's did indeed have a lot of Slam, but the Cherry has a more refined tone down low. However, since my stereo Vandersteen 2W subwoofers are catching the super low end, the Cherry only has to handle down to about 80hz or so. Still, the sound stage is a lot cleaner overall. Maybe someday I'll pick up some super full range speakers and ditch the subs...

I didn't feel like I switched from tubes to solid state, though. I feel like I just switched to a better amplifier. Everything is cleaner and richer. I'm hearing things in recordings that I've never noticed before. It's still warm sounding, and the tone of instruments seems to be more correct- less equipment coloration. Also, my soundstage grew both sideways and front to back.

I definintely think that I've bought my last power amp. Maybe I'll get some bigger Maggies now  :icon_lol:

-Phil
www.philpalombi.com

watercourse

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #10 on: 26 Sep 2010, 03:49 pm »
Yeah, sorry I wasn't clear - I've been playing music continuously through my PLUS for about 32 hours now - I use a music server to break in my components. There is a great deal of difference from the first hour after installing it, most noticeable in increased frequency extension at both extremes.
About the transformer hum, you should talk to Tommy about this. I had intermittent hum from the Jr., where at times it is as you described, but this was not constant, otherwise my wife wouldn't have it anywhere near us. Tommy has been great to work with, and will help you out if there's a problem.
More later, but the sound is quite different from the Jr. - the mids and bass are a bit more fleshed out, detailed yet richer, and the overall tonal balance is a bit warmer. This is through my Dodd, which is a detail monster. I'll report back if break-in time is more than what I've stated earlier.
« Last Edit: 15 Oct 2010, 03:01 pm by watercourse »

Bassphil

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #11 on: 26 Sep 2010, 08:37 pm »
Actually, mine doesn't have a hum that cuts in and out, so maybe it's normal. Does your Cherry Plus make any sound at all? Is it completely silent?

I have one more question for you- what do your binding posts look like? Do they have the clear plastic knobs like the WBT's or are they solid gold?

Thanks!

-Phil
www.philpalombi.com

watercourse

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #12 on: 26 Sep 2010, 09:18 pm »
Hey Phil,
My Plus hasn't made any mechanical transformer hum at all, but I only got it Friday.
Mine has the gold plated speaker posts, but Tommy told me it would not have the clear WBTs.
Wilson

AmpDesigner333

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Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #13 on: 27 Sep 2010, 01:46 am »
Okay, I have a minute. First, a few questions.

I tried the XLR adapters (for the inputs) without the extra ground lift attachment, and it sounds fine. Is that okay, or do I need to put the ground lifts back in? I'm guessing that if there's no buzz, then I don't need the ground attachments.

The input impedance is 10K, right? I dug around and found another post with that, but I though I'd double check. I'm using stereo Vandersteen 2W subs with the adjustable M5-HP crossovers, so I need to set those up properly.

And finally, is there a break in period? It sounds great now- I'm just curious if it's going to get better  :thumb:

There is a break in period, but how long is determined by use.  I recommend keeping it on all the time for a few weeks, playing it hard through a few songs once a day if possible.

Regarding the ground lift, we include those now because many preamps aren't connected to earth ground.  In that case, removing the ground lift fixes hum issues.  This is a topic I have written about many times, but maybe a long-winded explanation is in order (someday when I'm feeling extra-energetic).

Thanks for the compliments, and enjoy the sound!

satfrat

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Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #14 on: 27 Sep 2010, 01:58 am »

Regarding the ground lift, we include those now because many preamps aren't connected to earth ground.  In that case, removing the ground lift fixes hum issues.  This is a topic I have written about many times, but maybe a long-winded explanation is in order (someday when I'm feeling extra-energetic).

Thanks for the compliments, and enjoy the sound!

That topic would make for a good sticky for your Circle Tommy.  :D
 
Cheers,
Robin

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Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #15 on: 27 Sep 2010, 02:05 am »
Actually, mine doesn't have a hum that cuts in and out, so maybe it's normal. Does your Cherry Plus make any sound at all? Is it completely silent?

I have one more question for you- what do your binding posts look like? Do they have the clear plastic knobs like the WBT's or are they solid gold?

Thanks!

-Phil
www.philpalombi.com

Phil,

Mechanical hum from the transformer should be very slight at most.  However, this is sometimes accentuated by poor AC mains quality --- not such a great "sine wave" in my house, for example.  With the chassis open, I hear a "buzz" from the transformer when the air conditioning kicks in!  It can also be accentuated by the cabinet or platform that the amp is on.  Some of the seem to amplify mechanical hum.  There are other countermeasures, but give it some time first, and we'll discuss it more.

Regarding your binding posts, they are WBT.  We don't use the plastic coated ones.  Take a look at the posts closely, and you can see "WBT" on the there.  Wilson opted for the less fancy posts on his particular amp (Dayton).

Well, if there are any other issues, please don't hesitate to post.  I'm all for an open forum about Cherry amps, inside and out.  This is one advantage of dealing with Digital Amp Co.!

AmpDesigner333

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Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #16 on: 27 Sep 2010, 02:06 am »

That topic would make for a good sticky for your Circle Tommy.  :D
 
Cheers,
Robin
Yes!  Now if I can only figure out how to do that (haven't before)...  Hmmmm.   :scratch:

Barry_NJ

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Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #17 on: 27 Sep 2010, 11:52 pm »
Yes!  Now if I can only figure out how to do that (haven't before)...  Hmmmm.   :scratch:

It should be pretty easy Tommy. When you're looking at the forum index there should be some little icons towards the right of every topic. One of them probably looks like a push-pin or post-it note, click that and it'll sticky the topic at the top. At least that's how it works on the forums where I've got mod rights.

Delacroix

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #18 on: 28 Sep 2010, 12:24 am »
As the facilitator Tommy, you should be able to select an option called 'make topic sticky' after the last message on a thread. Scroll down to the end, it should be there.

Bassphil

Re: Just received my Cherry Plus this week- WOW!
« Reply #19 on: 29 Sep 2010, 03:13 am »
Thanks for the post Tommy! I was wondering if it could be an AC issue. Is it safe to run the amp without speakers or interconnects plugged into it? If so, then I could take the amp to another room that has a dedicated AC line to test it.

Also, a strange thing happened. Initially I had left ground lifts out of the mix with the balanced adapters because there was no buzz. Two days ago, I noticed a slight  buzz for the first time, so I put the ground lifts on and the buzz disappeared. It's not a big deal, I just thought I'd share. Maybe the amp broke in enough that the buzz frequencies were finally audible??

Thanks again!

-Phil
www.philpalombi.com