M5 Sapphire - All new M design introduction

mreeter · « **Reply #220 on:** 12 Nov 2019, 07:16 pm »

Quote from: Spatial Audio on 12 Nov 2019, 03:42 pm

Capfest Awards came out this morning from AVshowrooms

Spatial Audio, Linear Tube Audio and Lampizator Capfest Room 526
Clayton Shaw of Spatial Audio debuts the M3 Sapphire loudspeaker and talks in detail about his new product in the AVShowrooms’ video. Also, Fred Ainsley, describes the new Lampizator Amber 3 DAC that includes technology from its pricier siblings. Mark Schneider, founder of Linear Tube Audio, impresses us with the Integrated Z10 amplifier that includes a David Berning-designed preamplifier. This entire system is just under $10,000 and punches way beyond that price point and I mean way beyond. This is one of the best systems I’ve heard at a show this year. We played a track from Musica Nuda and the bass was perfectly natural and perfectly integrated with the rest of the frequency response. Lightning-fast transient response delivered a natural and emotionally engaging sound. Audience Audio supplied the power conditioner and cabling was by Anticable. Innuos was the server.

Mr. Shaw, Congratulations on winning such a coveted Award! I have recently placed an order for a Lampi Amber 3 and I'm patiently awaiting it's arrival.

Your new Sapphire offerings are making the hair on the back of my neck tingle, I'm certainly going to have to get my ears on a pair one day.

Tave5 · « **Reply #221 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 03:35 am »

I bought M4 Turbo S and liked them so much that a few weeks later upgraded to the Triode Master 3s. My other speakers are Quad 57s - Tonian TL-P1 Mk3 - Viking Acoustic Instrumental and a pair of Full Range Single Drivers made by John Kalinowski. Claytons room was one of the first I hit as there was buzz in the halls about them. I can’t say in my time exactly the differences between my TM3 and the new M3 Sapphire but it seemed to go deeper and the imaging was spectacular. It just was so open and musical and loved the way the the music breathed into the room. It was one of the best rooms at the show w/ Signal Cables - LTA EL84 Amp - Lampizator Dac and Innuous Server. The Price Point that Clayton has the Saphires is way to low but don’t tell him:)

RonN5 · « **Reply #222 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 04:08 am »

I’d like to hear some comments from those that have heard the new M’s about their tone. Describe the accuracy/pitch/realism of how they do piano, saxophone, trumpet, acoustic guitar, snare drum, cymbals. I’ve always found that these are hard to get right and the speakers that do usually do a lot of other things right as well.

Dr.J · « **Reply #223 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 04:34 pm »

Greetings everyone. I'm intrigued by all I've read, regarding Clayton's new M3 Sapphire, so much so, that after 40 years of listening to my DQ-10's, I'm actually entertaining the possibility of replacing them. However, I suffer from tinnitus and listen typically in the 40 db range, peaks around 60db. Every speaker, system, setup has a volumetric sweet spot - what are the chances that the new M3 Sapphires sound great at these low volume listening levels - does anyone know?

Thanks,

John

SnowPuppy77 · « **Reply #224 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 05:09 pm »

Quote from: RonN5 on 13 Nov 2019, 04:08 am

I’d like to hear some comments from those that have heard the new M’s about their tone. Describe the accuracy/pitch/realism of how they do piano, saxophone, trumpet, acoustic guitar, snare drum, cymbals. I’ve always found that these are hard to get right and the speakers that do usually do a lot of other things right as well.

This question seems like something I would ask. A lot of what I listen to is acoustically recorded chamber music. Lots of early music, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and even some modern. I also love lute and classical guitar music. These are the hardest things for a system to convincingly reproduce. This almost led me to purchase Magnepan 1.7i with a JL E112 subwoofer. But I also love classic and progressive rock and the 1.7i just did not have the bass and mid bass authority that to me was mandatory. So I auditioned the M3TM hoping to get a speaker that could do both and I kept them because they did. The M3TM’s tone, openness, and imaging works so well with chamber music and orchestra I ended up adding lots more of it to my collection. The dynamics with orchestra were so good and brass so much less offensive that I bought most of the Telarc Erich Kunzel Cincinnati Pops recordings.

Now just before I got the M3 Sapphires I was listening to lot’s of Monteverdi on the M3TM. I have grown to love Monteverdi Madrigals. After about an hour into listening to the M3 Sapphires I played some Monteverdi and the tone was off being too thin lacking fullness. Same with piano music. Bear in mind that this is 1-2 hours after unboxing the M3 Sapphires and this is way too early to make determinations. I then started pumping brown noise into them while at work every day. Also did pink noise. It took about 25-30 hours of break-in for the mid/tweeter to sound natural. And once it did I was very impressed with the integration between the upper mids of the tweeter and the lower mids from the 15” woofers. Started playing Nojima Liszt Reference Recording on vinyl and it sounded amazing. Yes the tonality is different than the M3TM but considering all the extra high frequency detail and the release of upper harmonics it is bound to. I also understand now that the lower midrange on the M3TM is a little warm or wooly. Lower midrange on the M3 Sapphires is cleaner with more detail and insight. And when Nojima really gets pounding the dynamic expression with the lack of crossover can be startling. Like a quality automobile when you think you are going 50mph but actually going 100. Now about a 1.5 weeks into break-in I revisited Monteverdi on the Sapphires and things were much different. It now sounded beautiful. Voices now had proper fullness and the instruments sounded as natural as I remember on the M3TM. But the sound field of the voices was much better along with the acoustic space around each voice. The organ and bass viol during the chorus had more detail, impact, and fullness broadening the stage. All this with the improvement in stage height make for a more enveloping sound field. And the dynamics with the vocalist, like the Nojima piano, can be startling. This adds an emotional element. My love for Monteverdi Madrigals has now increased with the Sapphires. I have ordered Book 6 and Book 7 since I purchased the Sapphires and want to order more. And by the way I am also actively purchasing more progressive rock. I listened to the new Tool album and the song Chocolate Chip Trip and it left me flabbergasted with the Sapphires. Sound was coming at me from the walls to the side and behind me (no exaggeration). Have never heard a recording create a stage like that. Goes to show that soundstage is primarily driven by the recording engineer.

So in Summary yes the Sapphires have very good tone and timbre but it will it not be the same as what you are used to with the M3TM. The Sapphires are a much different speaker in my opinion. I think the extension in the highs is the biggest reason for the change vs. the M3TM. Also what I perceive is a more linear or less plump lower midrange contributes as well. I think the new woofers are just faster and do better at its higher frequencies. The tone and timbre on the bass overall is a big improvement IMO. The treble on the Sapphires is not as sweet (wet) as the M3TM. It is not dry either but to me neutral on the wet vs dry spectrum. And that aspect of tone will depend on your components.

jazzman463 · « **Reply #225 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 05:30 pm »

All good feed back. I hope my M5's ship this week.

PS · « **Reply #226 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 05:48 pm »

@SnowPuppy77

Thanks so much, for your detailed and extremely helpful post.

SnowPuppy77 · « **Reply #227 on:** 13 Nov 2019, 07:40 pm »

Quote from: jazzman463 on 13 Nov 2019, 05:30 pm

All good feed back. I hope my M5's ship this week.

Looking forward to hearing more about the M5. I know there are plenty of good ways to break a speaker in. I find this to be particularly effective. And when I close the door to the room it seems to be less intrusive to others in the house since it is more like background noise:

https://www.musicdirect.com/recommended-gifts-under-50/cardas-ayre-acoustics-irrational-but-efficacious-ibe-burn-in-cd

Read about all the tracks.

jazzman463 · « **Reply #228 on:** 14 Nov 2019, 01:10 pm »

Thanks, on order.

dvdboulet · « **Reply #229 on:** 14 Nov 2019, 01:35 pm »

Hi all,

I'm new to the forum (first post

)... I attended CAF the other weekend and was astounded by the sound coming out of the room with the Sapphire M3s... open, airy, natural, extended, and bass that was realistic and palpable. I'm on a mission to audition speakers over the coming months as I save towards my next purchase... and I'm wondering if anyone in the Washington DC area has the Sapphire M3s and would be willing to host a listening session? Or any advice on where to audition them in driving distance? Thanks!

-Dave

aniwolfe · « **Reply #230 on:** 14 Nov 2019, 06:25 pm »

DVD

Try this thread https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=144142.0

KLH007 · « **Reply #231 on:** 14 Nov 2019, 06:31 pm »

dvdboulet, Linear Tube Audio has some Spatials on display in their shop in Takoma Park, MD. Link; https://www.lineartubeaudio.com/

Shakeydeal · « **Reply #232 on:** 14 Nov 2019, 07:09 pm »

Quote from: dvdboulet on 14 Nov 2019, 01:35 pm

Hi all,

I'm new to the forum (first post )... I attended CAF the other weekend and was astounded by the sound coming out of the room with the Sapphire M3s... open, airy, natural, extended, and bass that was realistic and palpable. I'm on a mission to audition speakers over the coming months as I save towards my next purchase... and I'm wondering if anyone in the Washington DC area has the Sapphire M3s and would be willing to host a listening session? Or any advice on where to audition them in driving distance? Thanks!

-Dave

You might be the one I replied to on Agon, but I have a pair of X3s about 3.5 hours from DC. Happy to demo.

Shakey

SnowPuppy77 · « **Reply #233 on:** 16 Nov 2019, 03:43 am »

Another good review from CAF:

https://audio-head.com/spatial-audio-debuts-m3-sapphire-alongside-linear-tube-audio-lampizator-innuos-and-anticables-caf-2019/

Spatial Audio · « **Reply #234 on:** 16 Nov 2019, 06:02 am »

Quote from: SnowPuppy77 on 16 Nov 2019, 03:43 am

Another good review from CAF:

https://audio-head.com/spatial-audio-debuts-m3-sapphire-alongside-linear-tube-audio-lampizator-innuos-and-anticables-caf-2019/

Herb Reichert can't un-hear the M3 Sapphires at CAF. He was a little shell-shocked and wanted to know more about how they work. OB is quickly going mainstream - Finally!

Clayton

bobh123 · « **Reply #235 on:** 19 Nov 2019, 05:16 am »

I see Clayton and Snow Puppy mention 25 to 100 hours of break-in time. I've had my M3 Sapphires less than a week so am ramping up hours.

What SPL do you find is appropriate for this early time?

Thx, Bob

Shakeydeal · « **Reply #236 on:** 19 Nov 2019, 08:40 am »

I think any SPL you like (within reason) is fine. Speakers aren’t like cars, you don’t need to baby them during break in. They will certainly sound better the more hours they have until they have fully reached their potential. Of course higher SPLs will accelerate this process.

Just listen and enjoy. My X3s sounded good out of the box, more time was just the icing.

Shakey

SnowPuppy77 · « **Reply #237 on:** 19 Nov 2019, 12:13 pm »

Quote from: bobh123 on 19 Nov 2019, 05:16 am

I see Clayton and Snow Puppy mention 25 to 100 hours of break-in time. I've had my M3 Sapphires less than a week so am ramping up hours.

What SPL do you find is appropriate for this early time?

Thx, Bob

I second what Shakeydeal said. Does not need to be loud for break-in but may take longer which is fine. Do what you can. I did not do mine super loud while at work because I did not want to bother people at home during the day. So I used moderate to moderately loud volumes of brown and pink noise. Highs and midrange will become more natural and imaging will improve. While the bass was impactful at the start on mine I noticed after a little more than a week a significant increase in bass authority.

What finish did you get?

bobh123 · « **Reply #238 on:** 20 Nov 2019, 06:19 am »

Thanks for the break-in tips. Will run them when the dog and others are not at home

I bought the walnut finish mainly chosen because we have walnut floors. The M3S walnut finish is very subtle. Our floors have a wide variation of textures and colors so the sapele would have also worked.

SnowPuppy77 · « **Reply #239 on:** 20 Nov 2019, 12:12 pm »

Quote from: bobh123 on 20 Nov 2019, 06:19 am

Thanks for the break-in tips. Will run them when the dog and others are not at home

I bought the walnut finish mainly chosen because we have walnut floors. The M3S walnut finish is very subtle. Our floors have a wide variation of textures and colors so the sapele would have also worked.

Thank you for the pic. Your M3 Sapphires are beautiful. Have fun getting to know them. By the way I think I see an acoustic panel in the background? I have a 2" ATS acoustic panels behind each of my Sapphires. Improves bass impact and detail some. You can see in one of my previous pics. I now have it vertical vs. horizontal like I had them on the M3TM. Not sure yet if I will keep vertical or horizontal. For now I do not have an urge to switch back from vertical to horizontal.