anirbandd
Conversation Architect
Sonodyne SiA 320 + Sonus 2605 v3 Stereo System Review
Well.. I decided to write this review because there are not a lot of reviews for the particular model in subject. I wanted to target this review for those people who will buy the Sonus 2605 with Sonodyne's own recommended amp SiA 320. During my own hunt for reviews online, i could not find any reviews where the 2605 had been paired with the SiA 320.
*i.imgur.com/JTtdIxw.jpg
A quick note: I will be dispensing with the formalities of posting the specs of the speakers/amp because its available on the Sonodyne website and you might have already gone through them if you are reading this..
This will be a barebone review of just the amp and the speakers, and how they sound together. SiA 320
Sleek black beauty! the wrought iron looks fit it well. the design is pretty minimalistic, with a WYSIWYG approach; no extra bells and features. Its solidly built, full metal cabinet.
*i.imgur.com/FuKOp1R.jpg
*i.imgur.com/XmDjAk1.jpg
*i.imgur.com/XmDjAk1.jpg
Now the important part for the audiophile geeks
[including me] the guts of the amp..*i.imgur.com/3sNntI2.jpg?1
*i.imgur.com/nPSNSi6.jpg
*i.imgur.com/nPSNSi6.jpg
Now, one can immediately see the similarity in the design with Norge 1000, a much revered, discussed and dissected amp, which in turn bears striking resemblance to the Rod Elliot design [*sound.westhost.com/].
for the uninitiated, the SiA carries a toroidal [circular] and an el [the smaller box type] transformer. the toroidal is used for the actual power amp level, for powering the transistors and such, while the other one is an auxiliary trans, which powers the aux systems like the display, the remote receiver, the input section etc..
*i.imgur.com/Tx1Xx9R.jpg
*i.imgur.com/49TWQQ7.jpg
*i.imgur.com/49TWQQ7.jpg
Now the toroidal transformer is a Noratel, manufactured for Sonodyne. As you may know Noratel is a really good manufacturer of txfrs. they have high grade products and are quite pricey. Kudos to Sonodyne for this. A high grade beefy txfr really helps in the power amp stage for continuous power delivery, without failing..
The two secondary are [28V, 4A]x2 and [15.5V, 1A]x2.
*i.imgur.com/1A0C2Vn.jpg
neat binding posts! good for fast de-assembly purposes.
*i.imgur.com/d9tYgRy.jpg
*i.imgur.com/VH6sVaS.jpg
*i.imgur.com/VH6sVaS.jpg
It uses Samwha caps for filtering on both the pre-amp and power amp stage. 9400uF each channel for power amp [really good!!] and 2000uF each channel for the pre-amp. For the power filtering stage Samwha does good, but in the preamp stage and in the driver stage there are a few HQ Nichicon caps for keeping up the audio quality..
*i.imgur.com/wQmacSU.jpg
Thats the power amp section with drivers.
*i.imgur.com/ZquTqM1.jpg
The driver stage on each channel consists of C5171 [NPN] and A1930 [PNP] in push-pull config. Again for the uninitiated, the driver stage amp is stage before power amp and after preamp. it essentially driver the high power transistors on the power stage. for low power amps the driver stage is not required since the input signal is capable enough to drive the amp.
*i.imgur.com/butg1KC.jpg
the power transistors. Toshiba's 2SA1943[PNP] and 2SC5200[NPN] in push pull config. A tried and tested design that has survived for decades due to its sheer simplicity and performance.
PreAmp
*i.imgur.com/8FBtflN.jpg
*i.imgur.com/8FBtflN.jpg
Now, its the input and the pre amp portion of the amp that i have much complaint about. its poorly designed with pretty much bad quality and cheap components.
In the picture, the LM324 is a quad opamp, of unknown company. the electrolytic caps are all KYS, which is a very bad company for caps. the board design is back from 29/6/2006, probably from when they first released the series.
i am quite let down by the preamp section of the amp. i expected something better, better components at the least, in the preamp.
Speakers:
*i.imgur.com/6ldg11p.jpg
*i.imgur.com/6ldg11p.jpg
The speakers are beautifully built. Excellent finishing. They look better with the from mesh off, with the four speakers staring at you. In the ears.
They have gold plated binding posts at the back and are capable of being Bi-Amped.
The specs say the cabinet is Redwood. I dont think so. I think its just a finishing on heavy wood/MDF.
They come with spikes. Good!
Now the most important part of the review, the sound.
Sound Quality
Source: 1. Sony Player with Audio CDs
.......... 2. Sansa Clip Zip with FLACs and 320kbps MP3.
Room Placement: We have a pretty big rectangular room, 25'x11'. The system is kept along the longitude.
*imageshack.com/a/img13/9352/vuu.gif
it is kept a bit to the left than depicted in the pic because there is a door to the right of the back wall. i forgot to include that in the pic.
the FS are kept around 2 feets from the back wall, and the left FS has a ~2.5ft clearance from the left wall. the right FS has more than 3.5ft from the right wall. the speakers have about 6ft space between them, and the seating arrangement forms an equilateral triangle with the speakers. the speakers are toed in to face the listener.
Observations:
I prefer to burn in my audio equipment while listening to them.
While in the process, i listened to them for over 100 hours. The bass was a bit loose and boomy at the beginning; gradually it became tighter and punchier, with the roll off improving a lot. the mid and mid bass opened up a lot. in the beginning it was a bit muddy and mixed. its now cleaner and better. the highs are clear and airy. but it still has that something... i would like them to be cleaner. i do hope it will go away with time.
i will stay away from comparing particular songs. i will only present a general view about the genres. i feel that is much better as the genre defines the music IMO.
the system really shines when playing indian Classical music. its just so good. the soundstage is pretty good and almost visible. it feels as if the instruments are playing right in front of me. the sound is clean, clear, pristine and accurate. flutes, sitars, tablas, the vocals are just too good.
When playing orchestra its equally good. the various layers of the instruments are very much distinguished. it feels really open and spread out, like sitting at a live opera. in a certain live recording, the instruments and audience clapping was quite startling. felt like i was among the audience.
Heavy Metal!!! Like a barrage of music attacking you headon. the double bass makes the critical difference to the bass head. turn the bass knob up by some notches and let the bass hit you like a thunderstorm, only its punchy and tight and comes at intervals. Metallica, Iron Maiden, Amon Amarth never sounded better, even in 320kbps MP3 format.
every instruments are clear and differentiated from the vocals. though there are times in some songs that it sounds like all of them are mashed together. but hey, im not complaining one bit.
Final takes:
Seems like Sonodyne has really pulled it off. I dont know for sure, but i think might some synergy between the amp and the speakers, because the sound is really good even with a really weak preamp section. The overall sound signature is just a tad bright. Its good because i and my family like our music a bit bright.
Considering its price, and the 26% discount that we bought it at, its a steal. its 200% value for money at the price. The quality that it delivers at the price is just unbelievable.
I hope I have been deliver most of the queries. If not, leave a question and i will surely reply.
PS: For those interested, Sonodyne has 26% discount sales every year from 26 Jan to 2 Feb.
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