[GrahamMiles]

Almost a week now on my recently purchased SAMs. (Many thanks to Canada Rob for making an offer I couldn't refuse.) First playing out of the box on a cold solid state Anthem receiver, I almost cried, so lean was the sound. I was prepared though, after a ton of reading. So I threw on a varied playlist and left the room. First serious listening was last night with perhaps 80 hours on them. Still on the Anthem mind you, my 845 SET is getting a tune-up and won't be back 'till Friday. Impressions? The soundstage on these SAMs is huge. Totally fills my listening room. High frequencies such as violins are smooth and silky. Bass is still a tad lean but the 845 might fix that. I can play at louder volumes without the steely glare that metal tweeters seem to impart. The detail retrieval is staggering, hate to sound cliched but I'm hearing new stuff on old recordings. My SO who turns her nose up at anything without tubes and who's ears are my final arbiter, comments, the music has an organic quality to it. Yes, I agree, then she comes up with a comment that floors me with its perceptiveness: listening to the music on these, she says, is like looking at a beautiful woman without her make-up.

[FullRangeMan]

They are Alnico?

[FireGuy]

Excellent first impressions.  Keep us updated and pics please.

[GrahamMiles]

They are Alnico?

I think that's what the A stands for in SAM.

[GrahamMiles]

[FullRangeMan]

I think that's what the A stands for in SAM.

Great, Alnico sound always fascinated me since the 60s.

[Canada Rob]

First playing out of the box on a cold solid state Anthem receiver, I almost cried, so lean was the sound.

No doubt the Anthem receiver.  On my Super Zen Select, they were full and rich with a gorgeous, tuneful bottom end.  I think your 845 SET will be a revelation.

[GrahamMiles]

845's are back and so is the bass. 

[Canada Rob]

I've found over the years that Omegas like low damping factor amplifiers, and SET amps fall right into that category.

[GrahamMiles]

Well I'm happy to report the combination of the Line Magnetic 518 and SAM's is a winner. I had worried they might not go as low as the Monitor Audio Silver 6's which have a two 6" drivers and a tweeter, but the 6" Alnicos have no problem. On the Dead Can Dance track Yulunga, there's a couple of chimes from what I think is a Japanese temple bell. On the Anthem solid state, they came out as a whisper. On the 845 tubes, not only can you hear them, you can feel them too. The electric bass on Jennifer Warnes' Somewhere, Somebody is solid and textured. Likewise Holly Cole's Temptation. Overall I'm thrilled, although the break-in period is not a pleasant experience. Best to stay out of the room for a few days. I'm glad I had the Anthem receiver to do the grunt work. Some tips regarding the speaker stands and thanks to CanadaRob, for his post on the Skylans. You don't need to fill them with sand if you can damp the steel rods. As I mentioned in that thread, a wrapping of sound-deadening material which you can find on Amazon, will tame the ringing. I fancy some of the brightness i heard initially may have been reduced by the damping although this may or not be a placebo effect. Could also have been the speakers breaking in. I would be interested in hearing the experience of others. I also recommend floating everything on a roller bearing system to totally decouple them from the floor. Admittedly, this is counter intuitive and violates one of Newton's Laws of Motion but seems to work in my setup. Magico use the technique on their flagship system. You can do each speaker with two slabs of mdf, 6 metal drawer pulls from Lowes and three ball bearings. Again I would be interested to hear from someone else mad enough to give it a try. You can drop me a message and I'll show you how. Shouldn't cost more than $20 for both stands.

[Canada Rob]

Graham,

Did you try the Q-Bricks, damped rods, the feet for hardwood floor combo, with no ball bearing?  My floor is Laminate on concrete, and that setup worked well here.  I experienced none of the trouble you are describing.  Might be your floor is (partly at least) causing a different experience to my floor. 

On the AC I read much about room treatment, but not so much about the floor the system is sitting on.  It seems to me your ball bearing setup may be addressing a situation with your floor as much as anything else.  My current listening room is the first I've had with concrete substrate, and I don't recall having better sound, especially in the bass department.

[GrahamMiles]

Actually Rob, everything is sounding peachy right now, no problems at all. My house dates back to the 1960's and has a springy wooden floor which may not be too speaker friendly. Ie energy transmitted into the floor may be working its way back into the system. I have a soft spot for roller bearing isolation, if it's good enough to protect office blocks from earthquakes then it's good enough for my source and speakers. I've always detected an extra level of clarity using this isolation. I would love for someone else to give it a shot and voice their findings. That's part of the fun, finding a tweak that defies logic but seems to work. High-end audio has an intriguing touch of alchemy, except of course for the products of Peter Belt which are totally and delightfully in the realm of magic. I will at some point give the Q blocks and spikes another shot, just out of curiosity.

[GrahamMiles]

Another thing I like and respect about these SAMs is their ability to play at low volumes, a must for my listening tastes. I'm listening now to a lute recording by Ron McFarlane. The 518 is less than two notches above silent and I can still hear his fingers moving on the neck of the instrument. There's no sense of detail being masked or a flattening of dynamics.