Vac Sigma 160i with the Harbeth SHL5 PLUS

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KenSea

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I know Mr. Shaw thinks its a waste for money to use a really good amp for his speakers but i am throwing caution to the wind and thinking about using the VAC 160i for the amp. Is there anyone that has used this combination or heard it with this combination. Would love to hear some observations for the pairing.

Thank you in advance,
Ken
 
Ken,

Based on my experience with my 30.1 first and now my 40.1's, ANY Harbeth speaker will certainly benefit from an amp upgrade.

Usually a little more power helps goose them a little but as I progressively went up the line with what amps I have in my room, holy cow! does it get better? Absolutely!

Even putting KT-150's in my Jolida made a huge difference on my 40.1's. I loved my Hegel H30 on them but the ART monos just take the cake on them. I am astounded at how much better they can sound with an amp change.

I truly believe that what Alan Shaw says is a marketing thing. His goal is to sell speakers and if he puts you at ease regarding your amp(s), you will most likely buy them anyway. Eventually we all get the itch to change amps/gear and the Harbeth will clearly show the differences.

I have not tried VAC but I've had, everything from McIntosh MC275's (both stereo and monos), MC601's, Naim Supernait2 with HiCap2, McIntosh MC225, Jolida Fusion 3502 (with EL34 and KT150), ART monos, Hegel H30, Pass XA60.5's, Musical Fidelity NuVista MF800, Line Magnetic LM219IA, Devialet 400, and probably something else that I can't remember. How's that for a list?

In every case it was not bad, in fact great, but only got better as I moved up the line.
 
Last edited:
joeinid said:
Ken,

Based on my experience with my 30.1 first and now my 40.1's, ANY Harbeth speaker will certainly benefit from an amp upgrade.

Usually a little more power helps goose them a little but as I progressively went up the line with what amps I have in my room, holy cow! does it get better? Absolutely!

Even putting KT-150's in my Jolida made a huge difference on my 40.1's. I loved my Hegel H30 on them but the ART monos just take the cake on them. I am astounded at how much better they can sound with an amp change.

I truly believe that what Alan Shaw says is a marketing thing. His goal is to sell speakers and if he puts you at ease regarding your amp(s), you will most likely buy them anyway. Eventually we all get the itch to change amps/gear and the Harbeth will clearly show the differences.

I have not tried VAC but I've had, everything from McIntosh MC275's (both stereo and monos), MC601's, Naim Supernait2 with HiCap2, McIntosh MC225, Jolida Fusion 3502 (with EL34 and KT150), ART monos, Hegel H30, Pass XA60.5's, Musical Fidelity NuVista MF800, Line Magnetic LM219IA, Devialet 400, and probably something else that I can't remember. How's that for a list?

In every case it was not bad, in fact great, but only got better as I moved up the line.
Click to expand...

I also think that Mr. Shaw's statements about using "any amp" with "reasonable power" may be geared more towards marketing than towards science.

When you speak of moving "up the line," do you mean power-wise?
 
joeinid said:
Ken,

Based on my experience with my 30.1 first and now my 40.1's, ANY Harbeth speaker will certainly benefit from an amp upgrade.

Usually a little more power helps goose them a little but as I progressively went up the line with what amps I have in my room, holy cow! does it get better? Absolutely!

Even putting KT-150's in my Jolida made a huge difference on my 40.1's. I loved my Hegel H30 on them but the ART monos just take the cake on them. I am astounded at how much better they can sound with an amp change.

I truly believe that what Alan Shaw says is a marketing thing. His goal is to sell speakers and if he puts you at ease regarding your amp(s), you will most likely buy them anyway. Eventually we all get the itch to change amps/gear and the Harbeth will clearly show the differences.

I have not tried VAC but I've had, everything from McIntosh MC275's (both stereo and monos), MC601's, Naim Supernait2 with HiCap2, McIntosh MC225, Jolida Fusion 3502 (with EL34 and KT150), ART monos, Hegel H30, Pass XA60.5's, Musical Fidelity NuVista MF800, Line Magnetic LM219IA, Devialet 400, and probably something else that I can't remember. How's that for a list?

In every case it was not bad, in fact great, but only got better as I moved up the line.
Click to expand...

I fully agree.
Don't let the marketing speech of A. Shaw fools you.
Mr Shaw is a wonderful speaker designer / engineer. But he is also a very strong marketing guy.
 
kkfan said:
I also think that Mr. Shaw's statements about using "any amp" with "reasonable power" may be geared more towards marketing than towards science.

When you speak of moving "up the line," do you mean power-wise?
Click to expand...

For the most part, power-wise yes. My ART monos just kill on the 40.1's. Big, wide and deep soundstage, tremendous layering, effortless sound, slightly sweet, glorious mid-range, perfect vocals and tremendous bass (make sure you have a big room). Just a wonderful, easy to listen to combination.
 
Jerome W said:
I fully agree.
Don't let the marketing speech of A. Shaw fools you.
Mr Shaw is a wonderful speaker designer / engineer. But he is also a very strong marketing guy.
Click to expand...

Hi Jerome!

You were so right on the 40.1's. I absolutely love them.
 
joeinid said:
Hi Jerome!

You were so right on the 40.1's. I absolutely love them.
Click to expand...

Hi Joe !
The more time you spend with them, the more you love them.
I completely lost my curiosity for other speakers.
I just keep playing with amps from time to time.
Will get a Nagra MSA this week.
 
Congratulations, the Nagra MSA should be awesome. Looking forward to your thoughts.
 
Thanks for your observations, I was being sarcastic with the Allen Shaw statement. Joe how did the SuperNait w/Hicap stack up in your list of things tried? By the way I have tried all the Harbeths with the exception of the 40.1's and it wasn't until I tried the SHL5 Plus that I finally found his design to truly excellent, the others before it the Q of the box just got in the way.

Thanks


Jerome W said:
I fully agree.
Don't let the marketing speech of A. Shaw fools you.
Mr Shaw is a wonderful speaker designer / engineer. But he is also a very strong marketing guy.
Click to expand...
 
Hi Ken,

I have not heard the Super HL5+ speakers, that's one I'd love to own.

The 40.1 can be bass heavy so setup and room size are important.

The Naim was a great integrated. As much as I love solid state for its convenience and carefree nature, tube gear gives me the most satisfaction. You get that dimension, 3D, and mid range bloom that transforms what you are hearing. I've never heard better Naim gear than the Supernait2, but prefer my Pass XA60.5's over the Naim. I truly believe the newer point 8 Pass gear would be even better on Harbeth.

My personal feeling and taste says that the Harbeth speakers in general and my 40.1 in particular, need an amp that's a little bit more lit up in its presentation. For example, my Devialet sounds better to me on the 40.1's with the grills off, adding a little bit more sparkle. Most of my more powerful tube gear sounds great to me with the grills on, sometimes for fun, the grills come off.
 
I have not tried the VAC 160sei on Harbeth speakers but based on how great it was on my Strads, you will be in for a treat. It was wonderful on my Strads.
 
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