That's a stunning setup, congrats !!
You combine Moon and Bryston, which I think is a really good match. I have the Moon P-8 RS preamp (and Moon 750D CD/DAC) combined with Bryston 28B SST2 monoblocks.
In fact, I had up till now a Bryston 14B SST amp and, since yesterday, I'm the proud owner of a pair of ex-demo 28B SST2 monoblocks (silver beasts in the front in the picture below)
Sorry for the cable mess, I just set up everything provisionnally, being eager to hear how the 28B SST2 monoblocks sound (you can still see my 'old' black 14B SST to the right in the back (left is a black 6B SST for surround)). The 28B SST2 monoblocks sound amazing: sweet, homogeneous across the frequency range and less bass emphasis than my 14B SST. But, oh boy, the 28Bs really have grunt when you turn up the volume.
I've been quietly reading this entire thread and I've been impressed with how forthcoming James Tanner has been in this thread with trying to respond to all kinds of questions. I registered with AudioCircle to react to the comments made by some people earlier in this thread.
As a fresh owner of Bryston 28B SST2 amps, am I disappointed because Bryston released the new Cubed series? Certainly not ! My Bryston 28B SST2 monoblocks are reference amps. They were so when they were introduced to the market and they didn't get any worse since, period ! My ears didn't get any better either, in fact they continue to deteriorate since I was born, just like the ears of everybody else (it's physiology).
Besides, I do not wish to spend the budget to buy such amps new. Most of my audio gear is ex-demo or second hand.
Bryston should also not need to justify itself to introduce a new series to the market after 7 years or so. A 10% price increase is also reasonable: parts become more expensive and salaries go up. This is in contrast to the quite shameless price increases I've seen with other brands that I like, such as B&W en Pass Labs. Those companies seem to have priced their latest series rather on the 'how-far-can-we-stretch-it?' principle than on parts + labour + reasonable profit margin.
I appreciate that Bryston is looking into the possibility of offering an upgrade for SST2 owners. I'll see what it adds up to (cost + sound wise) and then make my decision.
My advice to James Tanner/Bryston is: continue exactly like you have done up till now. If so, I will remain your (very happy) customer for the rest of my life.
Greetings from Luxembourg,
Antoon.
