Vincent SP-331 Power Amp Loaner

Discussion in 'Closed Loaners' started by sphinxvc, Feb 8, 2017.

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  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Might be a lot... most of you guys are in the NY area. Shipping weight is 49lbs. You can get an estimate from the UPS site.
     
  2. spwath

    spwath Hijinks master cum laudle

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    I may need to back out if it's too much then. Didn't think about that before
     
  3. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    No big deal. You can make the decision when your turn is up.
     
  4. Daveheart

    Daveheart Friend

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    Looks like it would be somewhere around $65 through UPS (ground, sig-required, $1200 insurance) to go from say, Dallas to Denver.
     
  5. Pyruvate

    Pyruvate Friend

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    Did this loaner fall through? Just curious before I participate in other loaners
     
  6. sphinxvc

    sphinxvc Gear Master (retired)

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    Nope, it's underway. Check the thread in my sig for location. Should still be in the NY area, either with @Vansen or shortly on its way to him.
     
  7. Pyruvate

    Pyruvate Friend

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    Thanks for the update, bud.
     
  8. gaspasser

    gaspasser Flatulence Maestro

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    I know this is underway already, but if there is anyone in the NE that drops out I would love to join and hear this in my 2-channel system since I just got a Saga.
    If not, I can't wait to hear the thoughts of the NY Crew.
    Thanks guys.
     
  9. gaspasser

    gaspasser Flatulence Maestro

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    So what does the NYC crew think of this amp so far and combo with Saga?

    What speakers have worked well?

    I have a pair if Elac B6's and Paradigm Phantoms I plan on using. I wonder about how the Philharmonic AA's would match up.
     
  10. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    20170405_101313.jpg
     
  11. take

    take Friend

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    I liked the Vincent overall. I was comparing it to my Emotiva Fusion Flex (which is essentially a mini-x a100 with 2 inputs).

    Compared to the Emotiva, it had more controlled bass and sounded sharper and cleaner across the board. It also had a slight euphonic quality to the sound, which could be the tube pre, but I wouldn't call it gooey or tubey in any way. By sharper, I don't mean tonally, rather that it handled transients better than the Emotiva.

    The Emotiva is a slightly warm amp, which you can see in the raw FR differences between the two amps as I heard and measured (Vincent in green, Emotiva in red):

    emotiva vs vincent.png

    The fact that it had more power wasn't a major factor (Vincent 150 vs Emotiva 50), since I listen within 4 feet from the speakers in a smallish room, but it did very well when turned up a bit and had more of that "makes you want to turn it up" quality than my amp. I suspect this was more of it sounding generally cleaner overall, though, rather than a result of the greater power.

    The only negative to me was that it seemed to be outputting a bit more noise than the Emotiva, which sounded like random noise, but oscillating in amplitude, so it was less ignorable than a steady level of background noise.
     
  12. Ziva

    Ziva Friend

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    My wife - Q: “Seriously, you bought another amp?!” A: “I swear, it’s just a loaner…”

    The Vincent is heavy, solid and good looking in an industrial way. It feels like you are getting your money’s worth.

    My setup: Acoustic Signature Challenger Mk II -> Soundsmith MMP3 -> Saga -> Vincent -> Omega Super Alnico XRS

    For comparison: Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum (Mk1, with EH KT-90 tubes) substituted for Saga/Vincent (the Rogue doesn’t have a separate preamp input)

    I listened to a fair amount of jazz and classical, some female vocals, some male vocals, and one or two Pixies albums.

    Overall – nice, coherent sound, everything was well balanced, very little was exaggerated or wrong. It’s engaging, and I didn’t find it veiled. Seems like it has plenty of power (though my speakers are very easy to drive). For $1700 (including the price of a Saga), plus some relatively inexpensive speakers, you could put together a very nice system.

    All criticisms are sins of omission, not commission (with one exception, see below):

    ·Bass - it lacks a little punch. I’m not a bass-head, and this could have been my speakers (single driver, no sub), but if you like the sound of Moffatt bass, the Vincent is a little polite. I wonder how it sounds with multi-drivers.

    ·Imaging/soundstage -- while the Vincent produces a nicely coherent sound, it’s hard to place the instruments (the Omegas are great at this). I didn’t hear a lot of width/3D to the soundstage, either, but I never have at this price

    ·Euphony -- I admit to liking a slightly colored sound (the Cronus is relatively neutral but still a tube amp, and my primary headphone rig is Sonnet 2 -> HD 600), but this felt at times like a different kind of euphony. In certain cases, the coloration smeared the presentation a bit (maybe this is what others meant by “veiled,” but I see it as smeared)

    The only record that sounded really “off” to me was Norah Jones’ Day Breaks. The lack of precise imaging and the tube euphonics combined to distort the sound on my system. Instead of precise and ethereal, it was bloated and diffuse.

    The Cronus Magnum is pretty clearly better w/r/t the issues above, but it’s $2500 new (or $1500+ used). So maybe the Vincent isn’t a “giant killer,” but I suspect it’s pretty close to “best in class.” It’s incredibly well balanced, and I had a great time with it. If you can find one of these used for the price Big D was talking about, seems nuts not to jump on it.

    PS: the Saga did not come with the loaner, but I purchased one myself, and it is really a stunning value proposition.

    This was my first loaner. I can't say enough about this community. Thanks to @Marvey, @sphinxvc, and everybody else who makes this place awesome.
     
  13. ohmaigulay

    ohmaigulay Friend

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    Vincent is with me now. Really making my speakers sing. This is what real amplication is . :punk:
     
  14. Wfojas

    Wfojas Friend

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    Is it too late to get to try this?
     
  15. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Nope. I should swing on back to CA sooner or later. Whoever has it to send back to the West Coast, please PM me so we can help pay for shipping.
     
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