Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

From tubes to solid state.
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adeep42
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Obviously, C-J makes one which I'm sure is terrific. However you didn't mention what cartridge you are using, a big part of the puzzle. I must admit that choosing a phone-pre to me is on of the most challenging issues in hifi. In my current set-up I am using an Ortofon Cadenza Bronze, Bob's Devices VPI Step-up Transformer and a Bottlehead Eros phono-pre that I recently built from a kit.
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Wanted to add, With so many product permutations, the possibilities are endless. I was using a very compact solid state pre similar to the NAD. Maybe a tad costlier. Moving up to the Cadenza Bronze made me think that I should take the pre up a few notches. one can go absolutely bonkers cash wise on a phono-pre. I had recently built a Bottlehead headphone amp and was so pleased with it, and had so much fun with the build that I decided to try their top of the line phono-pre. Not at all cheap, and then you have to build it. The build was quite challenging, but the results were, to my ears, fantastic.

Best regards,

Alan

Ps. Am really intrigued by the CA-45. Would love to hear it.
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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g'day mate! Cheers to phono!
finally, managed to get hold of a brand new Rega top of the line phonostage called the Aria. it was at quite a decent price less than 2 grand and way less than cj's offerings, which of course would be just dandy.

The Aria has two separate phonostages on board that are completely isolated with their own power supplies and discrete circuitry. The MM stage uses bipolar inputs and the MC stage uses FET's. on the back panel it has separate settings for load impedence and gain and can match any cartridge with perfect settings.

for now I'm using the Ortofon 2M blue to run the Aria in a bit and later I will place back in the 2M black perhaps after the first 100 hrs. listening to an old recording of Larry Carlton from the 80's superb strings I must say!
The Cav45 can now drive the level with ease and the Aria is a huge significant in performance over the Rega phono mm. great stuff indeed and I would highly recommend the Aria for those looking for superb value in phonostages without having to sell the house! The Aria will not disappoint and the level of flexibility it offers is remarkable where you can use more than one TT with detailed settings for each type of cartridge.
Another superb product by Rega. and when you partner this with cj- wow! what a remarkable level of musicality!

Cheers and enjoy your LP'S!
RJ
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Nice choice re: the Aria. I'm a fan of Rega as well. Really find the CA-45 so interesting. Love the idea of SIMPLICITY coupled with fine performance. I have thought about a very simple SET system for some time, Just another costly fantasy as I have two systems that I really love already.

Best regards,

Alan
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Greetings from down unda! we are having the best weather possible. picks up to around 15-20c during the mornings, then suddenly dips to gloominess around the arvo and rains in the night dropping the temp to 8c!
sounds like the impedence curve on the Quads...

Anyway, what I wanted to state, which I have already done so Re. to the Aria, sorry about the repetition, is that now after a nice couple hours of run-in, with the cav45 it reproduces music in its most natural form and matches extremely well with the Cav45.

finally, we're back in the game of musical bliss. The Quads, the Cav45 and the Aria, what a wonderful musical family!

I plan to embark on the Martin Logan hybrid journey only next year as I am really enjoying this beautiful combination. The cav45 will no doubt perform more efficiently on the ML'S due to their active bass drivers, hence the EL 34's on stat panels will be a superb match. at the moment the cav45 is driving the Quads full range, and it seems to be doing a wonderful job.

The Quads do have their limits though and is capable of producing music in the most natural way, which is what I'm after. However, I believe easing the cav45 further on full range duties and allowing it to focus on a pair of panels would give it maximum flexibility and control. Afterall my reference point will remain with the CLX'S, I'm just at the tip of the iceberg...

happy listening to all and have a good one!
Cheers, RJ
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Big Dog RJ wrote: I plan to embark on the Martin Logan hybrid journey only next year as I am really enjoying this beautiful combination.
ML has put out a few new designs recently that look really impressive. Any idea of what specific model you plan to look at for a future purchase? I used to run their Vantage speakers and they sounded really great with my CJ gear. Although I love my current magnepan 20.1's, I do sometimes miss the more powerful low end that came from the well balanced traditional woofer of the Vantages. I don't think there is another manufacturer of planar speakers that has incorporated traditional speaker technology into their flat panel design so well.
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Big Dog RJ,

Think you might find this of interest:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/ ... c-speakers

Best regards,

A
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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I have used back in the hay day, ML SL3's with Krell integarted KSi150 I think it was. Great sound but it had that typical ss finish, hence changed over to tubes when I had the CLSIIz, and that was far more musical.

Initially I thought about the ML Theos, since the Cav45 is driving the Quads quite well, I don't believe it would be an issue with the Theos at higher sensitivity (90dB) vs 86/87dB on the Quads. But then after more research and listening to other systems with similar config, I noticed that 45-50 watts of power is more than adequate for panels. It is the current and voltage stability that is required to drive panels, not merely watts.

Ribbons also present difficult loads but more so stats, with their eccentric impedence curves, many so called high powered amps cannot produce the necessary high current to control and handle stats. This is why the Pass Labs XA series of Class A power handles the CLX's effortlessly. I also heard a SET amp of just 20 watts drive a pair of Summits to very realistic levels, as well as a CJ MV60 (not the SE version). Tubes on the panels with active bass amplification of Class D topology was something real special to experience with just the right volume.

Since I do not listen at loud levels and most of my listening sessions are past midnight, having the Cav45 on the panels with active bass would be just perfect. I was very keen on the Theos but then realised that the Theos is passive bass and not active. It is only the Ethos and upwards that does the active bass, also taking the sensitivity to a higher level of 92dB. The level of transparency from the ML's compared to the Quads is greater, probably due to the lack of dust covers and the outer coverings of mesh and cloth, allowing ML's to just pass music straight through unhindered.

My overall plan was to acquire the Cav45 for a while and then trade it in for a Classic SE pre. Now the Classic pre's are no longer in production, only the ET3SE would be the choice, and this is not something I prefer. I was then going to partner the Classic SE with a Pass Labs XA30.8 to drive the Ethos, and eventually move onto the CLX.

However, after having the Cav45, I find it VERY hard to part with it, as it is doing something that I had never experienced with my Quads. Only the ARTsa in triode mode with the ACT2 gave me this level of resolution, fine detail and pure musicality. Therefore, I have decided to keep the Cav45.
How it works out on the Ethos, I wouldn't know until I actually have the Ethos down the line.

Looking ahead, I don't think the Cav45 would be adequate to drive the CLX's full range, hence my venture towards the CLX's may never happen...
All I can say is that right this moment, in all the pre-power combinations I have had, the CAV45 has been the best purchase for me to date!
Having that line stage eliminated altogether, I guess keeps things even more simple, and the level of resolution coming off Quads is just remarkable!

I was planning on taking the Cav45 to the ML dealer's place and trying it out on the Ethos but after it's sounding so wonderful on the Quads, I don't want to move the thing an inch! Just let it sit and play wonderful tunes.
Perhaps the ML thing may never happen, only time will tell until I find the right buyer for my Quads. As for now, I'm totally satisfied with what their doing, and I hope they will last at least for a while more...
Cheers, RJ
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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G'day mates, currently enjoying this wonderful sunny arvo with some great tunes!

Since the CAV45 arrived and has been settling in very nicely over the past few weeks, all I can say is that this thing is absolutely top notch! The depth, soundstage, layering of bass notes, extended highs and glorious midrange are just superb! I never experienced this with my Quads before, even when I had larger amplification with a separate line stage.

Having eliminated the line stage altogether, all it really does is control the output level with zero hindrance, lets more of the music through without any loss/gain whatsoever. It is sounding so wonderful, I have decided to hold on to my Quads for as long as time permits. Compared to the Martin Logan's (in a showroom) or average rooms, the depth is not so apparent compared to the Quads straight off. Careful placement and room interaction plays an important part in getting the depth of soundstage right.

Whereas the Quads have a completely different dispersion pattern. Due to the concentric anode rings, working as a point source, audio signals start from about 30cm from the back instantly adding to that depth, and only expanding with extra room around the panels. I have noticed that once you get this right, it is near perfection to the actual event.
With ML's this placement and room interaction matching can take quite a while to get it right, and most of the ML systems I have heard aren't quite there (other than of course Kostas CLX's, perfect placement and superb depth and layering).

Once the amplifier is matched well, with adequate output to your liking, you will know straight away that this is a very good match. Before, I used to experience bass as a somewhat "drummy" affect, the low end was not well defined. Using KT120's was slightly better but made everything full of bloom, and sounded fuller. Plenty of drive and had a good overall punch. The KT150 took the edges off that bloom and made it slightly more defined, especially in the bass but nothing extra special to be overjoyed.

However, this EL34 design of the CAV45 is simply remarkable. The highs are smooth and well extended, I am hearing finer details that I never thought even existed! The midband from mid highs down to mid bass is superb! The imaging and realism are so natural and uncanny, I actually stood up to shake hands with Kurt Elling last night! And the bass is so well defined, it is tight, well controlled and allows you to experience all the bass lines that ever existed on those tracks.

Last night I was up again till 3am, listened to: Kurt Elling, Cassandra Wilson, Carmen Mcrae, Kenny Burrell, Brian Culbertson, and the classics, such as Ella Fitz and Nat King Cole- absolutely wonderful! On Kurt Elling (Live in Chicago at the Green Mill) the bass strings and drum wacks are so real and live, full of energy but did not over-energise the room to an artificial effect. Kenny Burrell's strings sounded even more lifelike, and the accompanying bass lines were so well balanced, just sheer musicality.

The only level of performance that was higher than this in my experience was the CJ ARTsa (in triode mode) with the ACT2 or GAT. Again this was not a huge improvement in overall performance and absolute sound but rather more in terms of power and finesse. Therefore, for those who don't have elaborate systems, without multiple configs, such as audio and home theatre and extra crossovers, and can do with just three inputs (without linestage gain), I very highly recommend the CAV45- it will play just pure music!

It handles the Quads effortlessly and should be fine on other stats but I am not sure about large ribbons. I feel that larger tube amps (greater than 100w/ch) or ss class A/AB would be far better in driving and controlling ribbon transducers. With the CAV45 there is plenty of headroom and current to handle stats, and the "resolution" reproduced is something to experience. I really don't have anymore words to describe it in any other way, CJ has come up with a superb design with the EL34 at its best!

I have parked the Martin Logan journey for a while, as the Quads sound far more coherent and very real and lively with this new amplifier. I do know that the ML's would be more transparent, with more slam on the bass and can certainly go louder. I am not sure of what margin of improvement it is going to deliver until I actually try it at home with the exact same config. Of course the CLX is a totally different ball game but one that will take me quite a long time to achieve, therefore might as well just sit back and enjoy the music!

On a closing note, if you have a relatively easy load on your speakers, or stats, or quite a reasonable sensitivity rating (87dB or higher rated around the 8ohm mark), and you can live without a line stage/preamp- give the CAV45 an audition, it will outperform all notions that a line stage is required.
Cheers to all and enjoy your music, RJ
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

Post by Kyrlos »

My CAV-45 arrived last Friday. I couldn't be happier. I replaced the Russian re-issue EL34's Mullards with Genelex Gold Lion KT77's. :D
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Re: Announcing the conrad-johnson CA-45 control amplifie

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Kyrlos wrote: Wed May 31, 2017 1:56 pm My CAV-45 arrived last Friday. I couldn't be happier. I replaced the Russian re-issue EL34's Mullards with Genelex Gold Lion KT77's. :D
Great to hear. If you have a little time I would love to hear what you think (strengths/weaknesses). It's a pretty unique offering from CJ considering you get preamp and an amp in one package.
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