Official Anthony Gallo Owners Thread - Page 80

Hmmm... The Gallo TR subs also use 10 inch drivers, and using 2 of them would give an identical driver complement to the system. Was your comparison done with one sub or two? With one I would agree with you. Adding a second sub, in my opinion, gives the edge back to the sub sat system. Now I fully understand how money could factor into the equation, as a set of used 3.1s would likely be less than $2k at this point. But, for about $3k at street pricing, a set of Strada on floor stands with two TR-1D subs would make a phenomenal system that I know would better a set of 3.1s, as I've heard that setup my self.

you mean TR-3D subs.

No, I mean TR-1D subs. With an MSRP of $599 each, I'd go for two TR-1D subs over 1 TR-3D with an MSRP of $984.50. With the new digital amplifiers both of the TR series subs have more output than thaey did before, and the new TR-1D has nearly as much output as the former TR-3

What is the difference betwen TR-1D and TR-3D? Only the power?

Yes, TR-1D has a 200 watt amplifier, and TR-3D has a 300 watt amplifier. Same drivers, same enclosures. If two subs is a problem, then one TR-3D will make due. But if having two subs can work in your room, 2 TR-1D subs is a better option for only a little more money.

I am not sure anybody can look at it in that way when it comes to determining is it worth spending extra money. Seldom would spending 2x (or 10x) come out to sounding 2x better (or 10x better) in some perceived way

I have had both the 3.1's and the 3.5's while I would never say they 3.5s are twice as good sounding, the improvement is enough for me. Now, if I hadn't owned the 3.1's, then I may have taken more time to consider other speakers at the 3.5's price point.

He has two of the newer subs. I was moving and stored my equipment at a friends home while waiting for my new condo to become available. He decided to plug my 3.1's into his system so that he could A/B them. He spent a lot more time with this setup than I did but I visited on multiple occasions and got a lot of seat time.

I have a brand new Strada stand available, PM if interested.

I need a little insight from the owners here. I have an 7.2 all Paradigm/HSU setup. Studio 100v5, CC690v5, & 4x adp 590's, and two HSU ULS15 subs. Amps are Wyred4Sound sx1000mk2 and sx500 for the center. Do you think it would be an upgrade or side grade to switch Front 3 channels to Reference 3.5s & The center that goes with it. The Reference AV Center Channel Speaker. Any thoughts? What do you guys think?

The cc to go with the 3.5s is the Strada, not the Reference AV Center. I would recommend getting the vertical configuration of it if you don't have to fit it under a TV where there's not much vertical space. The Strada is identical to the MTM used in the 3.5s; the Ref AV Center is more common with the older Ref 3.1s. You may want to couple the Strada with a small sub such as the ones Gallo carries since it starts to drop off around 100 Hz. Without one the CC690 would have a much better low end.

To answer your question, obviously it would be best if you could listen to the 3.5s. I've heard earlier versions of the Paradigm ref 100s as well as the first version of the Sig 8s and if it were my choice I'd go with the Ref 3.5s. I think they image and sound stage better than the Paradigms and the tweeter in the 3.5s and Strada is one of the best I've ever heard. Some people think they sound a little thin in the upper bass, not unlike electrostats.

Russ pretty much nailed it. Gallo's CDT really is one of the best tweeters available, very detailed, but sweet, without any grit, ringing, or hardness. I think most of us here in ths thread are owners and fans, so were going to tell you we like them. You really do owe it to yourself to give them a good listen, preferably in your room/system. Once you've heard them I think you'll keep them

I haven't posted here for a while. AVS stopped sending me email notifications of new posts.

I've been listening to the Strada a fair bit in the last two weeks.

Up to two days ago I was thinking of selling them as they kept hurting my ears with the fierce treble which sounded like it needed taking back 6 or 9dB. It was never a pleasant or enjoyable listen. No bass either.

I was using 'updated' Meridian 605 mono blocks. Yesterday I used an extensively modified Hafler DH200 and the Stradas sounded nice, that unlistenable top was gone and the bass was better, possibly as the DH200 bass boost circuit had been left in. I used the Hafler with my old big speakers with their metal dome tweeters and metal dome super tweeters and they sounded too polite and overly easy going, veiled really and lost the 'open' sound of the Strada. The M605 however were better in the treble with the big speakers and also more power in the bass.

So the lesson here is that to get the Strada to sound acceptable you need the right upstream components to achieve an optimum synergy.

Regarding the question about the AV Ref centre channel, last week a pair came up for sale in the UK and I did some asking and was told that the feeling at the Gallo HQ is the Strada is better in every way. I want to get more bass as the pair of TR-1 are just not working for me, not clean sounding and not integrating with the Strada, every time I switch them off the sound in general is better, even the bass, all be it very much less and no low bass. Maybe I don't have the phase dialled in correctly. I had them sitting next to the Strada but the side firing tweeter glared off the TR-1 and sounded better with them not there. Now I'm using them behind by about 3 feet so that's perhaps too far but I can't get them nearer just now. I wondered if the AV Ref with it's two extra 'balls' and 100Hz crossover would bolster the lower end of the Strada and still match the speed of the main two drive units.

I did recently pair the two TR-1 with a pair of ATC SCM 50, with their 9 inch bass units, and got a seamless join. The TR-1 extended the bottom a bit without having any affect I could hear on the mid and top. That was in a recording studio mastering suite used in a moderately near field monitoring position and they were mounted about two feet in front and to the outer sides of, and a little lower than, the ATC and both the TR-1 and ATC were about 4 feet off the ground on speaker tables with plenty of room to the sides and rear. I've been able to try that in my room as there's not really the space. I took my TR-1's over there as he wanted to try subs with the SCM50's. He had ATC's 15 inch 900Watt (or so http://www.atcloudspeakers.co.uk/downloads/PRO_P20-21.pdf) sub on loan. It didn't integrate with the SCM50's but did make the mid and top sound brighter, surprisingly. It did deliver a very massive and very clean very fast low bass that the two TR-1 could not even begin to approach. I felt the soles of my shoes shaking on the solid concrete floor without it sounding loud. In the end, to get both that bass and the integration, he bought the bigger ATC 150 speakers that have the 15 inch bass units built in.
Edited by Ian AS - 6/16/12 at 6:58am

I recently read the article on the new CL-3 speakers in the current issue of TAS.

I have Vandersteen 3A speakers at my other house (which I am selling), which alas will not fit in my new home.

I have the PSB Image T6 speakers here now, and they are very good , but something in my memory keeps telling me that these speakers are not quite as revealing as the Vandersteens. I can't really hear anything wrong with them, but I keep wondering if I can get something even better that will fit my 8" -wide space here....lol.

Anyway, I ordered the CL-3 speakers yesterday, and Fedex says they will be here today. Let's hope they blow me away...lol.

Anyone have any comments on these speakers? One reason I ordered them is because the horizontal dispersion sounds like it should be better than the PSB speakers, and that is an issue since we don't sit right on center. They have to sit either side of the 60" TV, and our two recliners sit off-center.

By the way; the TAS article says they are $2395 per pair, but online they now cost only $1595 direct from California. They also say that you have 60 days to evaluate them and return them at no cost, even for shipping.
Edited by commsysman - 6/16/12 at 7:32am

Well, did the Fedex guy show up?

Yes, he did!

These CL-3s are incredible! Right out of the box, they sound almost as good as my Vandersteen 3A s at my other house.

One-third the size and one-third the price and they sound that good? These speakers not only sound better than the PSB Image T6s they are replacing, they also sound better than the KEF Q900 and the paradigm Reference Studio 60.

How they get this much sound and this kind of ultra-refined sound out of a speaker that size is absolutely astounding!

I hear details and clarity in the music that I have never heard from any speaker before except the Vandersteens and some speakers costing $7000 and up.

When people start finding out about these, they should sell a million.

A funny thing; my Image T6s sound good enough that you can listen to anything and never hear anything you don't like. I would have been happy with them forever except that I knew that there was a little more there in the music from listening to the Vandersteens for 15 years or more. So I decided to look around more, and man did I get lucky with these.

Keep us updated as you become more familiar with the speakers. I've only read reviews, no real world experiences. What are you driving them with? How large is your room?

I am driving them with an Audio Research LS-26 preamp and a Bryston 3B-SST2 power amplifier, and using an OPPO BDP-95 as a CD/SACD player.

The room has a 24-foot wall opposite the speakers, and the wall behind the speakers and 60" TV is angled across the other side of the room about 14 feet away on one end and a bit less at the other end.

They are giving a 60-day home trial with free shipping both ways, so you can order online and try them out with no risk.

Ordered two subs TR-3D, to pair with my Stradas. Can't wait to hear them.

How can I connect two subs on pream, where I have two rca outputs?

When you say 2 rca outputs, do you mean 1 left and 1 right, or Output 1 L+R and Output 2 L+R?

Also it might help if you list your amp and pre-amp so that I can do some research on their connectivity.

After reading this review of that amplifier I'm not entirely surprised you were unhappy with that combo

Thanks for that link Barry.

I changed them a lot though. Took off the current limiting, added 40,000uF to the main res caps, threw in a handful of Black Gates and Nichicon KZ. Vishay feed back resistors. Dealt with what must have been high frequency oscillation. Got rid of the grainy course and nasty sounding Van Den Hull wire. Bigger output coil and Caddock output resistor. Beefed up the mains wiring. Put a 15 amp fuse in. Also removed the balanced input connection as it was 'syphoning' voltage away from the feedback to the op-amp. Each of these resulted in a change to the sound, IMO all improvements. They are now not bass light, blurry and without dynamic wallop. Although those reviews don't seem to say it, the original design is fully DC coupled with no series caps anywhere and there is no electrolytic cap in the feedback, like so many amps have, including the standard Hafler DH200. This Hafler though has been improved by similar measures and is doing quite well really considering it has less that half the PSU of my vastly more muscular M605's.

I expect they can sound better still but the box is too small to do much and anyway, they are saleable as they are and I'd need to get entirely rid of the IEC socket / switch / single pole relay and properly get the mains supply onto the transformer, which most likely could do with being twice the size. I'm going to regress them mostly back to standard and sell them and maybe make a pair based on the simple circuit but, unconstrained by having to use two Meridian 205 extrusions for an inadequate sized box, with better PSU and better layout. Should have done it years ago when they were worth double on the second hand market what they're worth now.

There are 20 year old photos of Martin Colloms using four M605 with his pair of Wilson Watts, speakers known for being fairly bright. Friends have similar speakers using the same or similar Focal titanium tweeter and Kevlar reinforced bass mid and my Strada were a fair bit more 'alive' in the mid and top prompting one person to say there were better in every way, but that's the normal first response to a load more treble.
Edited by Ian AS - 6/21/12 at 5:30pm

yes, 1 left and one right.

I have Nuforce DAC-9 as dac and preamp, and amps are nuforce ref18. DAC and amp are connected over XLR.

Can that pre-amp output to both the XLR and the phono jacks at the same time?

yes, I have connecter XLR and RCA in same time and works normally. Before I had Velodyne sub, and worked normally. But now I will have two subs.

one option is: left chanel on left sub (1 rca), and right on right.
or, buy splitter, and take both channels on both subs.

Ok, do not use a splitter! Use the R RCA from the preamp for the right sub and the L RCA from the preamp for the left sub. Easy as pie

Dr. Sah. You are thinking right. With subs it is usually like that to connect a Sub-Out on A/V receiver via single RCA wire to R input on the sub. But as you will be using two AG TR-3 subs and you have a Pre with L and R output you can connect them as you suggested. On the sub side you can connect them either to L or to the R input, it doesn't matter at all. I do not recommend using Y splitters as this just bring one unnecessary extra piece of wire and connectors which only degrades the sound.

best, d.

That's what I'm doing. One TR-1 for each channel. Mounted on approx 22" stands over by each Strada. Stereo bass. Well upper bass at least. The TR-1 are making sound as high as 1kHz.

Just get a couple of Y-adapters, and the power amp will connect to one side of the Y and the subwoofer to the other side on each channel. See "RCA Y-adapter cable AH25" on Amazon for $3 each.

Whilst you're trying to help you're not doing as a couple of posts up he say he's using XLR's.