Hello From London

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JONTY
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Hello From London

Post by JONTY »

Just Wanted to say hello to everybody and I am now owner of an ET3 Pre Amp (not SE version) my first Conrad Johnson Purchase actually. And will be looking forward to contributing on the site. I've worked in the trade and owned Krell to Audio Research and have been a committed Audiophile for around 40years.
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Re: Hello From London

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Welcome to the site. Very nice to have you with us. Congrats on the ET3, I'm sure you are going to be very happy.
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Main stereo: ART Amplifier and ET7s2. 2nd stereo: PV-14L and MV-55. Previously Owned: PF2 preamp, Evolution 2000 Amp, PV-12AL preamp, D/A-2b Vacuum-Tube Digital Processor.
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Re: Hello From London

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G'day mate, welcome to the site & the land of CJ.

Yes, great one indeed, the ET3 should be a good one down the line and should serve well. I have used the SE version and found it was only a marginal improvement in overall sound, hence you're not missing out on much. The comparative jump in performance comes from the ET5 or GAT. The ET3 is very good value and having said that the Classic 2/SE preamps were of superb value but no longer in production...

What power amp are you using and the speakers? Sources etc., let us know, always something more we can learn from. Also based on your present system, what was the previous preamp you were using? Why and reasons to go for CJ? and how has it been an overall improvement?

These are the learning points I would like to know about your experience.
Cheers, RJ
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Re: Hello From London

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Hi RJ,
Thank you for your quick response
You've answered one of my questions regarding the ET3 as to what the differences to it and SE version and if people think they are worth it or not.
My System as it stands at the moment is:
Michelle Gyrodeck SME V Tone Arm with Benz Micro Glider or Denon DL103
Conrad Johnson ET3 With Phono (Replacing Croft Pre Amp and Icon Audio PS1.2 Phono Stage)
Musical Fidelity A3.2 Power Amp.
PMC 21 Loudspeakers (Replacing Kef LS50)
CD Player Marantz SA 8005.(Replacing Marantz 6005)
Very Good Question re why the changes.
Simply put when I last changed this system about 4 years ago I slowly but surely stopped listening to it although friends would come over and say how great it sounded it sounded well boring and didn't draw me into the music and I lost interest in it.
The First thing I did was to start looking at different speakers and was surprised to find that the Kef's were a large part of the Problem so ended up settling on the PMC 21 after auditioning several others (I can only really accommodate small speakers at the moment) The PMC 21 Put all the life and timing back with better image scale and focus dept ect As usually happens when changing components this then in turn Highlighted a weakness in the CD Player This often become a chain reaction once you've upset the balance here and I thought here we go again The Marants SA8005 had more scale body to the sound and in fact timed better and was pretty much the grown up version of the Marantz house sound with tremendous timing punch and Dynamics. This in turn Started sounding better than my
Analouge set up, I'm sure there's a lot of people who know what I'm talking about Remember this all started from changing just one component. Now to the relevant part for this forum:
I Started looking at Pre amps and when I started looking into CJ
one thing in particular Struck me about there Design philosophy: you've only finished your Design when you can't take anything else out of the circuit Something I agreed with, simple circuits with the least components you can get away with well implemented.
I've had the ET3 preamp for only 5 Days now and am suffering the usual burn in idiosyncrasies Wandering image all over to one side then the other, sounding small and Lazy veiled and not really timing very well ect ect however On the odd occasion When I've put a CD in and sat down ive quite literally been momentarily blown away with a huge 3Dimensional sound stage height width and depth with a focus that makes you think that a female vocalists is there in the room with you singing only to you with all the emotion and feeling that make music so relevant Which is what I was looking for in the ET3 So for me this is looking like one of those rare occasions were I may have exceeded my expectations as everything I believe important in the way I listen to music I've had briefly in this current system set up, Just waiting for the preamp to settle down. Incidentally speakers were a used but pristine pair however the CD player was new so this will also be playing its part.
I'll keep people posted as to how this all ends but in my experience it can take weeks if not months for caps to form ect before they perform at there best but I've had some tantalising glimpses from the CJ
Cheers.
J
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Re: Hello From London

Post by Big Dog RJ »

G'day Jonty,

Nice one indeed! The Michelle TT is a classic! in every sense of the word. In fact I've been lusting over a Michelle for some years now, and will eventually get one. For now, I'm using a Rega RP3 with the Ortofon 2MBlack+ Rega phono stage- pretty good quality analogue as it is, so the Michelle is going to be a fair step up and worth it, since I've been spending some time listening to Gyrodecs at my dealers store.

Now I understand why the system changes... and yes very correct, once you change something there will be changes to other components and the vicious cycle begins... Why I term it as "vicious" is because as you spend more, there seems to be improvements. BUT remember these improvements are only marginal and you can actually enjoy your music with what you've already got.

My best advice is once your system reaches a certain level of performance, just sit back and enjoy it. After many years of fulfilment, when the brand has a newer model such as, a preamp or power amp, that is the time to investigate. In all my experience, the two biggest factors that have made significant improvements in overall sound are the amplification and speakers. All other gear can be tweaked to sound better.

Agreed on the speakers, the Kef's are good but to me the top line Kef's such as the Blades were quite impressive, not so much the other versions. Kef usually delivers a very flat laid back sound, easy listening kind of ambience, which some do like of course. Compared to Kef's I preferred the Mission 753's but no longer made. Energy Veritas were also excellent, including Monitor Audio and matched very well with Musical Fidelity amps.

I am sure your PMC's are superb value, as the same dealer who carries Michelle & Rega also does PMC in Melbourne. I have heard PMC speakers and they are superb value. Excellent sonics and soundstaging, worth every penny spent as you go up with their speakers.

With the CJ ET3 and Musical Fidelity amps plus your analogue gear and PMC's, I am sure you can finally sit back and enjoy the music.

The ET3 does take a while to break in, as most CJ gear does, and this should be after a good 100-200hrs of average listening. You will begin to notice the soundstage expanding, imaging improves, and the full frequency spectrum starts to open up and nicely balanced. The midrange is the main key, you will notice it to be more fluid and prominent with well balanced mid-bass. When all this happens, you will also notice that the level control on the preamp doesn't require turning up that much. As things begin to settle with the ET3, you will start enjoying music with less level being turned up.

Also, with CJ amplification, as you turn up the level, the sound doesn't change to an effect where things become overly exaggerated unlike other brands. The sound seems to merge will into the listening room, like a camera lense and allows you to relax into the music, without giving you a headache. Once you notice this, the preamp has reached its burn-in mark.

Average listening of burn-in should be around 3-4 months, you will notice a significant improvement with the ET3 over this period.
You certainly have a superb system there Jonty, the ET3 will definitely serve extremely well, no doubt.
Cheers mate and have a good one, RJ
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