Sonus Faber Electa Amator IIs and CD upgrade questions

Posted by: david r on 13 September 2000

I have the above with 135's, 82 + 2* HiCap and old Mrantz CD85 and Meridian 203 DAC. The SF's sound fabulous but need to be too far away from teh wall (at least 3 feet) for where I have moved to - any suggestions for alternatives. I heard Credos and hated them. I have about £3k to spend.

Also I find the CDX + XPS the only reasonable upgrade within the Naim kit from what I have but I find the investment needed too much. Any suggestions here?

Posted on: 14 September 2000 by Former member

David,

The context of your system might suggest CDX/XPS but you should listen to the alternatives. Firstly, a CDX standalone is a pretty serious piece of kit and should make good music if properly supported. The XPS can come later when funds become available. If you can find a used CDS, that would be a super buy for similar money, which gives you a natural upgrade path to CDS2. Listen and then decide.

It's a shame the SF Amators don't work in your room. With a budget of GBP3K, I thought you might be aiming for SBLs at least. If you prefer walnut and leather, perhaps the Concerto (with front facing port) would suit wall mounting better.

Tell you what, I'll swap my Concertos with your Amator IIs and even throw in the freight for free. How's that?

Jame

Posted on: 14 September 2000 by david r

Sorry no deal! Regarding the CDX I really was not that impressed with the difference from my present kit expecially for over £2k. The CDSII is great as it should be for that price!

I can't seem to find a happy medium for thesource.

Posted on: 14 September 2000 by Former member

david
I only compared a bare CDX vs CDS2. The difference is huge in my opinion, so I decided to stick with my 3.5/HC for a while until I can afford a new CDS2.
What's wrong with a fabulous pair of SF Electa Amator in the middle of your room? If you like their presentation, why not keeping them?
From my (limited) experience, SF is a good match with Naim. IMO, SF speakers have a radically different sound from Naim (and Linn) speakers, so I'm not surprised you didn't like Credos.
Stefano.