New member

[thegreber]

I've been reading this board for a while, but never posted. I'm an 18 year CJ user with my main system Premier 12 monos and Premier 17LS through Sonus Faber Elipsa SEs and VPI turntable. I have a secondary system with a CAV50 powering Joseph Audio RM7s. I had the teflon upgrade done on the 12s and the CAV50 a few years back by CJ, and they were nice upgrades to both systems. It's great to read the posts from everyone on the forum.

[admin]

Great to have you with us. Welcome to CJO. Those sound like great systems. I've said this a few times on here but I think Sonus Faber makes the most beautiful looking speakers of any manufacturer. The quality of the woods, finish, and construction are below none. They truly are works of art.

If you have time, maybe you can post some pictures?

[roberto]

I've been reading this board for a while, but never posted. I'm an 18 year CJ user with my main system Premier 12 monos and Premier 17LS through Sonus Faber Elipsa SEs and VPI turntable. I have a secondary system with a CAV50 powering Joseph Audio RM7s. I had the teflon upgrade done on the 12s and the CAV50 a few years back by CJ, and they were nice upgrades to both systems. It's great to read the posts from everyone on the forum.

Hola and welcome thegreber,

Great that we can talk about what we love!...Here we speak about CJ great sound. I do like a lot the Sonus Faber sound too.

Please tell us your findings regarding the upgrade, previous and now. Teflon caps take time to break inn. I do like them a lot, the transparency and the no more soreness at the throat of the voices...is what I do like most. This did happens to you too? The air between the musical instruments, the stage and the staggering image presentation...I am still re-discovering all my music. I am listening things that I never did before.

Happy listening!

[joeinid]

Welcome to the forum!

[Big Dog RJ]

Ah! Those beautiful Elipsa's... Drop dead gorgeous, nothing on earth compares, absolutely nothing!

This was going to be my final speaker, as it was on my shortlist just before I ventured into the Quads. The version was also the SE version and a stricking Red colour like no other! Even the wifey gave it a thumbs up! But then, since my passion remains with TT's, tubes and electrostats, ended up with the Quads. As the famous story goes... The Quads were an absolute disaster! Far too many breakdowns, panel repairs plus multiple transformer failures, just had to get rid of them. The pricing on the Quads and the Elipsa's were around the same but then pricing took a different turn on the Quads and the Elipsa's went further upwards.

That's when my short list took a slightly different twist, so the top three resumed as the MG 3.7i, AG Duo XD's and the CLX's. Ultimately it was the CLX's but I must say, if I had gone for those Elipsa's they would have still been with me, simply because they're far more reliable!

The CLX's were my overall dream speakers, so eventually I would have had those one way or another. Only as a second preference / system, it would have been wonderful to also take ownership of the Elipsa's.

Very very nice system you have there Thegreber, with the Prem 12's & Prem 17LS, plus the VPI TT, that's about as good as it gets SOTA all the way!

Cheers mate and enjoy that pristine level of musicality, at its finest!
RJ

[thegreber]

Enclosed are a couple of photos from my current set up (old TV as well). I have the amps and wiring, etc hidden behind that.

With regards to the teflon cap upgrade, they do take time to break in, though I didn't find it to be that bad. I just ran my music server and kept it as background music to get the hours in. Biggest downside is the impact on the tubes, which have since been replaced. Though fortunately they were on the second half of their lifespan, so the timing worked out well. But the upgrade has definitely added a deeper soundstage and more "airiness" to the overall sound. Putting in KT120s also added some extra punch to the sound, so all together it was well worth it and given they're 18 year old amps, it was a nice "upgrade". I spoke to Jeff Fischel and he recommended the amps over the pre-amp, so I always have the option of upgrading the 17LS to the LS2. However I couldn't be happier with the sound, so I have no plans to mess with it. Combined with the Elipsas, it's just a pleasure to listen to.

[joeinid]

Beautiful system and photos.

[admin]

Wow, absolutely stunning. Just look at the finish on those speakers!

[Big Dog RJ]

Very nice indeed!
Those Premier 12's are a rare breed. In fact CJ doesn't do monoblocks anymore, other than just one model, which is the ART300's. Although they're absolutely brilliant amplifiers, they also come along with a brilliant price tag!
That kind of power is really not required for most well designed tube power amplification, such as CJ, and nearly any CJ amplifier can drive virtually any speaker combination with ease, thanks to their highly stable current and power supplies.

I sincerely believe that 100 - 140w/ch is all you would ever require for playback levels on a realistic scale. As long as the speakers don't distort, you can always enjoy such realism but the moment the speakers tend to distort, this is where issues start, and that's only around 40 - 45w the most.

The premier series, LP series and later on the ART series monoblocks are outstanding amplifiers! They're built to such high standards that they can hold themselves firmly against the top of the line in terms of true amplification with best money can buy. The beauty of these monoblocks is that each one pair can be very easily upgraded to a SE version, which takes the performance even further. These upgraded versions should last a lifetime since they're built tough!

As our Aussie's say "good on ya mate! "
Those Elipsa's in special Red limited edition is absolutely stunning! Nothing can really match their finish.
Enjoy to the fullest mate, cheers RJ