New SS8 Owner...and the end of the line?

Beatlebum · « **on:** 5 Oct 2013, 02:34 pm »

Hello all,

I thought I'd post how proud and pleased I am to be the owner of a pair of Jim Salk's SS8's in Curly Cherry with Deep Red/Rose finish.

Thanks to a lot of the member's posts here and on other forums, I was able to do detailed research that enabled me to make an educated purchase and man oh man am I pleased!

Aside from the excellent fit, finish and looks, the Soundscape 8's are (to me) a perfect blend of attributes that I love about Magnepans 3.7's (coherence, soundstage depth and that spooky "you are there" quality) and my previous excellent stand mounted Lahave Mela's (incredible imaging, high frequency extension and finesse along with a beautiful midrange and a seamless crossover) and as an added bonus, I no longer need to fill out the bottom with my REL B3 subwoofer (soon to be for sale if anyone's interested).

I drove up to Jim's factory late last week where he graciously welcomed me and showed me around. He's growing and expanding fast and after purchasing these SS8's I can now see why. I really appreciated the fact that Jim answered all of my questions leading up to my purchase without ever giving me the hard sell.
To me when you are making a major purchase like this there needs to be a pride of ownership factor involved otherwise you end up second guessing yourself. I know we've all said this before bit I gotta believe that these may be my end of the line speaker (unless Jim and Dennis somehow offer up an even better speaker for the money!).

Tim

Saturn94 · « **Reply #1 on:** 5 Oct 2013, 02:39 pm »

Beautiful! Enjoy!

MikeC78 · « **Reply #2 on:** 5 Oct 2013, 02:41 pm »

Congrats!! I'd see no reason to ever upgrade if I had those!

I'm currently enjoying my Veracity ST's and have absolutely NO plans to get rid of them, EVER!!

I can honestly say, I've reached my sonic bliss.

Ern Dog · « **Reply #3 on:** 5 Oct 2013, 02:57 pm »

Looks nice Tim.

What kind of amp are you driving it with? From the pic, it looks like a tube amp. How many watts per channel?

Austin08 · « **Reply #4 on:** 5 Oct 2013, 03:04 pm »

Very nice system you got there. Congratulation Tim.

Beatlebum · « **Reply #5 on:** 5 Oct 2013, 03:13 pm »

Thanks everyone for the kind words.

Ern Dog, the amp I'm using at this time is a Jim Nicholls KT88 amplifier that provides about 50 wpc. I also have a Pass Labs XA30.5 that sounds excellent with the SS8's as well.

I hope to be getting a Bruce Moore Audio Custom 60 KT88 amp soon to audition. The amp supposedly delivers 60 wpc.

I do not listen at very loud levels so low volume performance is very important to me.

Thanks again,

Tim

Beatlebum · « **Reply #6 on:** 6 Oct 2013, 03:15 pm »

To further the discussion, I am curious as to what amplifier others have tried with their Soundscapes and what they liked/disliked about the pairings?

Also what placement has worked out best for everyone in their respective listening environments?

My placement is 40" from the front wall to the back of the speaker, 8' apart center to center, and 9' from the listening position with a slight toe-in (firing just outside of my shoulders).

Midrange chamber is unstuffed with the open cover on.

Tim

Austin08 · « **Reply #7 on:** 6 Oct 2013, 05:58 pm »

Quote from: Beatlebum on 6 Oct 2013, 03:15 pm

To further the discussion, I am curious as to what amplifier others have tried with their Soundscapes and what they liked/disliked about the pairings?

Also what placement has worked out best for everyone in their respective listening environments?

My placement is 40" from the front wall to the back of the speaker, 8' apart center to center, and 9' from the listening position with a slight toe-in (firing just outside of my shoulders).

Midrange chamber is unstuffed with the open cover on.

Tim

Tim,

I placed my speakers in a similar position like your - I used to power my SS8 with BAT VK6200 and very happy with the result. Soundstage is deep. The bottom end is very tight and tunefull. Midrange is clear and very natural. Recently, I change my amp to a pair of Rogue M180 with TS KT120 tubes. My first though of this amps is very solid state feel. In ultra linear mode, The Rogue has all the quality of BAT but more sparkle on top. Both amp throwing a really big soundstage and picture perfect images. I feel that the Rogue has slightly forward sounding. I also heard better detail and more sparkle on top. The Rogue edged the BAT when being pushed hard but at low listening level, the BAT is taking over. So how much different Rogue M180 in triode mode, a lot of different in color and texture. The midrange got more tubes bloom. Warmer and more seductive. Soundstage seem deeper and wider in triode but less detail. The bottom end is very well control but not as good as the BAT. Overal, I think The Rogue M180 edged out the BAT in triode mode and when listen to vocal or acoustic jazz. When watching movie or rock concert, I like to switch to ultra linear mode or prefer the BAT.

Beatlebum · « **Reply #8 on:** 7 Oct 2013, 02:57 pm »

Austin08,

Thanks for your observations and comments.

Tim

woodsyi · « **Reply #9 on:** 7 Oct 2013, 04:33 pm »

Beatlebum, you are as close as any of us are to the end of the line. But I got news for you -- there is never a end in this line of hobby....

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #10 on:** 7 Oct 2013, 04:42 pm »

BB, you are not very far from me. I'd be happy to discuss the 8 on the phone sometime.

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #11 on:** 7 Oct 2013, 04:44 pm »

Quote from: woodsyi on 7 Oct 2013, 04:33 pm

Beatlebum, you are as close as any of us are to the end of the line. But I got news for you -- there is never a end in this line of hobby....

You're a lot of help!

See you next year!

charmerci · « **Reply #12 on:** 7 Oct 2013, 07:49 pm »

Quote from: woodsyi on 7 Oct 2013, 04:33 pm

Beatlebum, you are as close as any of us are to the end of the line. But I got news for you -- there is never a end in this line of hobby....

So true.....

PETE6737 · « **Reply #13 on:** 11 Oct 2013, 11:02 am »

Nice set up. Congrats

Beatlebum · « **Reply #14 on:** 11 Oct 2013, 01:59 pm »

Thanks Pete.

Still curious to hear from other SS8 owners what amplifiers they are using/have used and why.

Tim

BTW, I had an extended audition of the Hegel H300 and Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum (KT120) integrated amps yesterday at a dealer in the area. I was impressed with both units for different reasons.

The Hegel H300 is dynamic as all hell with great bass while still maintaining a smooth overall delivery and the onboard DAC is excellent.

The Rogue KT120 Magnum while a touch less dynamic presented a fuller, fleshier image with great bass as well.

PETE6737 · « **Reply #15 on:** 12 Oct 2013, 10:17 am »

I'm using a Bryston 14BST amp. Plenty of power. I had a Cary Audio tubeSLP03preamp but replaced it with my old Bryston 1.7 prepro in 2ch bypass. I seem to like solid state better with the SS8s.

jd3 · « **Reply #16 on:** 12 Oct 2013, 10:28 am »

Tim,
You know what I've run through my system in the past. The Emotiva XPA-3 I've got in right now as a stop-gap actually does a pretty decent job. I've also considered looking at both the Hegel and the Rogue, so I was interested in your comments.

glangford · « **Reply #17 on:** 12 Oct 2013, 10:53 am »

The nice thing about Jim's speakers is depending on your budget any of them can be the 'end of your line'. For me that was the SCST. I'll never buy another speaker.

Beatlebum · « **Reply #18 on:** 12 Oct 2013, 07:35 pm »

Agreed Glangford!

Just put my Pass Labs XA30.5 back in the system and it sounds excellent playing Woodkid's "The Golden Age" (UK Germany issue).

The Soundscape 8's excel on all fronts. Imaging, bass, dynamics, coherency, finesse, etc.

Really can't decide whether tubes or solid state sounds better? I don't listen loud so the XA's 60 wpc all class A into 4 ohms is providing plenty of heft and drive.

Beatlebum · « **Reply #19 on:** 23 Oct 2013, 05:39 pm »

Well I sold the Pass Labs XA30.5 and I'm using my Jim Nicholls KT88 stereo amplifier for now. It delivers around 45 wpc and sounds really good but is a little light in the bass. I loved the Pass amp but I'd lie a little more power be it tubes or solid state. I'm really thinking about going with an integrated amp just for simplicity sake. Of course I will not sacrifice performance!

The VAC Sigma 160I integrated amp is very enticing, and I was seriously impressed with the sound and performance of the Hegel H300 (as well as the price as it seems like a hell of a bargain!) I auditioned a couple of weeks ago.