New Amp in the System--Unison Research S6

I just made another change to our reference system at CCI World Headquarters. I swapped out the Unison Research Sinfonia I've used for the last 18 months for another Unison integrated...the S6. The only reason I made the change was because we sold the Sinfonia as a demo piece to one of our dealers. The S6 I'm now using was the same one John Marks reviewed for Stereophile last month, so it's sort of a celebrity.

The S6 was the first Unison integrated amplifier with which I became familiar once Colleen and I started CCI in July of 2011. Although I've used numerous Unison amps in our home system and at trade shows over the last two plus years, the S6 might just be my overall favorite so far. It's an EL-34 based amplifier instead of a KT-88 based amplifier, such as the Sinfonia, which gives it a slightly more dynamic and modern tube amp sound. The Sinfonia was a warm, slightly lush-sounding tube amp that sounded a bit more old-fashioned than the S6. It was also slightly less powerful (27 wpc vs. the S6's 35 wpc) and yet slightly more expensive--mostly due to the more elaborate use of wood in the chassis and the more complex circuitry designed for the KT88s.

I quickly compared the two amps before I made the switch using a couple of CDs I just received from jazz pianist Todd Hunter (article/review coming soon). The Sinfonia might be slightly more refined and romantic, but the S6 is gutsy and powerful. In my rather large room with fairly sensitive speakers (the 89dB Opera Secondas), Todd's rich and lyrical piano sounded much more forceful and impressive. I have to admit that my new Colorado listening room is so big that some of my speakers are having trouble energizing its boundaries. Deep bass exists, but it doesn't quite hit you viscerally like it should. The S6 has eliminated this issue completely.

So welcome back, S6! I'll really miss the Sinfonia, but the new amp feels like an old friend...one that I've missed a lot.

CCI at the T.H.E. Show in Newport Beach

Colleen Cardas Imports, along with Blackbird Audio/Gallery, will be exhibiting at the upcoming T.H.E. Show in Newport Beach, California on May 31-June 2. Our system will consist of the Unison Research Giro turntable, PureAudio Vinyl phono preamplfier, Unison Research Unico CDE CD player, Unison Research Sinfonia integrated amplfier and Opera Seconda loudspeakers, with all cabling and power management by Furutech. We will be located in Room 525 of the Hilton, so come see us! For more information on the show, please visit the T.H.E. website at http://theshownewport.com/visitors/index.html.

CCI Visits the Arizona Audio Video Club

"Interesting and professional guests!"

That's how Colleen and I were described by the members of the Arizona Audio Video Club after we were the invited guests at their November meeting on the 28th. Both of us thought, "Wow...we've never been called that before." But we'll take it. We've also never attended an event like this before, but I have to admit it was a lot of fun--even though we didn't know what we were going to talk about once we were standing in front of the packed conference room at the Phoenix Airport Marriott. We decided that Colleen would talk about CCI--who we were, how we got started, and what lines we carried--and I would describe the system we brought and play some music. I was warned that there were many engineers in the club so I knew I'd have to be ready to explain all of the technical aspects of the gear we brought. I did a lot of homework.

We kept the system as simple as possible because we knew we'd only have a couple of hours to set-up the system and make it sing in the rather large room. One person seemed surprised that we didn't bring a turntable since I'm a "vinyl guy," but that would have been too much to assemble. Instead, we brought the Unison Research Sinfonia integrated amplifier (27 wpc, single-ended parallel ultralinear pure Class A amplification that uses 6550 valves in the output stage, $6495), the Unison Research CDE CD player ($3895 plus $225 for the optional optical DAC) and the new Secondas from Opera Loudspeakers ($3995 per pair)--finished in a beautiful gloss white. We also had a pair of the new little Opera Mezzas ($1495 per pair) on hand. Both pairs of speakers were the first in the US, so it was a real treat for the members.

The system was wired with Cardas Audio Clear Light speaker cables and interconnects, Cardas Audio Golden Reference power cords, and Audience jumpers for the bi-wireable Secondas. Steve Wooten, president of AAVC, provided a PS Audio line conditioner. The rack was from Quadraspire.

I then played three cuts for the members: "Midnight Sugar" by the Tsuyashi Yamamoto Trio from The TBM Sounds! sampler, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" from Halie Loren's They Oughta Write a Song... and "1 Speed" from Dean Peer's Airborne. The system sounded surprisingly good in such a big room; it's amazing how a group of warm bodies can tame the resonances in a big open space. Then Steve Wooten (pictured here) took over and allowed members to play their music. Bill Coombs of The Sweet Spot, our dealer in Phoenix who helped to put together the event, commented and how quiet and attentive the members were during the demo...much more than usual. Afterward we received several emails from members telling us how nice the system sounded.

Colleen and I would like to thank Bill, Steve (who treated us to a great dinner beforehand) and the members for a wonderful event. Special thanks go to another member, also named Bill, who brought a pumpkin pie cake that was the real hit of the evening. Almost every email we read said, "Great sounding system...and that cake!"

CCI Visiting the Arizona Audio Video Club Next Week

CCI is proud to announce that Colleen and I will be the featured guests at the November 28th meeting of the Arizona Audio Video Club! We are demoing the Unison Research Sinfonia integrated amplifier, the Unison Research Unico CDE CD player and the Opera Secondas (the same white pair that recently received rave reviews in both AV/REV.com and TONEAudio). Guests are welcome as long as they RSVP at wootsmusic@live.com. Event starts at 7pm at the Phoenix Airport Marriott, 1101 N 44th Street in Phoenix. See you there!

My Audio Design (MAD) 1920 Loudspeakers in the House

For the next couple of weeks I get to play with these small British floorstanders, the 1920s, from My Audio Design (MAD). Designed as a tribute to the classic LS3/5a, the 1920s are roughly the same dimensions--except in depth, where the 1920s are much deeper. The 1920s are ported, however, unlike the sealed LS3/5as. They are also much more efficient--90 dB vs. 82/83 dB. That means they should mate well with my 27 wpc Unison Research Sinfonia integrated amplifier.

After just a few hours of listening, I've noticed that the 1920s possess a very classic British sound, which means they are extremely smooth and refined. It's been a while since I've heard an LS3/5a, but I'm going to say the 1920 is more extended in the bass while matching the older speaker's natural midrange. The 1920s are also much more attractive, with thick-walled cabinets finished in a rich walnut veneer. You won't find the LS3/5a's sloppy Velcro fasteners on these baffles.



Thanks goes to the 1920's designer, Timothy Jung, who is friends with Colleen and asked us to give them a listen before they head to another reviewer in the US (they came to us directly from their first American review). There's currently no distributor in the US for MAD, but the entire line is becoming popular in the UK and the rest of the world. After seeing the export prices on the 1920s, I would think that they'd retail for between $2500 to $3000 per pair in the US, which indicates they are a strong value.

I'll follow up after I've let them warm up and play for the next two weeks. Until then, you can check out the entire speaker line from MAD on their website.

New reference amp for my system--the Unison Research Sinfonia!

We have a new amp in the house--the Unison Research Sinfonia! This is going to be my personal amplifier for a while, and after just a few hours with it I'm very, very happy.

It's a single-ended parallel design that uses Tung-Sol 6550s (KT88s can also be used) to get 27 beautiful watts per channel. In comparison to the newer S6 amplifier, this is a more "classic" tube design that offers a smoother, warmer and more seductive sound. The S6, which has been my favorite Unison amp so far, sounds a little "faster" and more linear, but the Sinfonia has this romantic, addictive sound that's better suited to classical music. I'm currently listening to the TrondheimSoliste LP I reviewed just a few days ago, and the forward presentation I found "bracing" now sounds more balanced and musical.

And since it's Italian, it has to be gorgeous! I love the stainless steel plate on top, and the wooden chassis that's finished in cherry (with a matching cherry remote).

I have a big pile of CDs and LPs to review, and now I can catch up. In addition, the FedEx man is currently driving around Central Texas with my Giro turntable, which was just returned by Dave Clark of Positive Feedback Online--review will appear shortly. Once I get my Unison Research Simply Phono phono preamp back from reviewer Michael Mercer, my reference system will be once again intact--for the first time in 2012!

My Kingdom for an Amplifier

After being on the road for a while--nine states in nine days--I finally came home to Central Texas and found a lot of new music in the mailbox. I only have one problem: no system to play it on! That's right--we've been so busy sending out equipment to dealers, reviewers and customers that my own system is decimated. Well, not quite decimated, but I do seem to be lacking an amplifier.

As you can see, I'm down to my old system--Rega P3-24, Lehmann Audio Black Cube SE and my Trenner & Friedl ART monitors. I do have the Unison Research CDE CD player, but that's the only piece of inventory in the house. Most importantly, there's no amp. Unfortunately, that's what I need to listen to music.

Fortunately, help is on the way. I'll be getting a new Unison Research Sinfonia integrated amplifier from Italy in a few days. Also, Dave Clark of Positive Feedback Online is getting started on his review of my Giro turntable, so I should have it back pretty soon. (No rush, Dave, but hug the Giro for me!) Within a couple of weeks I should be neck deep in gear again.

And once I have a complete system again, I'll get started on those CD and LP reviews.