The NEW NVA - User Reviews - post your review here

[savvypaul]

LS3 TO LS6
After moving from LS3 to LS6 an improvement was immediately obvious, more of the same musicality, smoother highs, more bass and natural midrange. However a bigger plan unfolded. With the LS3 LS6, previous starter system and recent addition of M600’s the possibility of bi-amping became a reality. So here we have now Mac mini > Icron USB extender > MScaler > 2xSSP MkII > Hugo2 > Phono splitter > ( Sound cord > A20 ) > LS3 > Quad 12L Tweeter, (SSP MkII > 2x M600 ) > LS6 > Quad 12L Bass/Mid. The digital front end has been a lot of effort to get right, however the NVA amplification has just been a slam dunk, as I have previously commented the little power amp is a sweetie, but combined with the M600’s the bi-amp combination has it all. All the usual HiFi superlatives apply …… but one unexpected bonus of bi-amping - you get to try different cables between the amp for the tweeter and the amp for bass/mid, and for me this was an important factor in achieving what my ears tell me is just right. SSP Mk II between Hugo and M600’s to bass/mid and Sound cord between Hugo and A20 to tweeter. Overall this combination is so natural sounding the NVA bi-amp set up is a keeper. I’m glad I read the upgrade path advice notes on the NVA website. I am now listening to and enjoying much more music. Thanks Paul and Tomasz. The next challenge maybe speakers - NVA ?

 

[savvypaul]

LS6
WOW! The difference is not subtle from LS5 upgrade. Tweeters of the Alon (Nola) Petites wired with LS5, with the upgrade to the mid/bass units. More space, intelligibility, foot tapping pace. Sweeter with sibilance reduced. Feel the spades for the speaker end makes a difference as well. System: A70 mono/AP20 Power/P50/MDac+/Audiomeca Kreatura.

 

[savvypaul]

LS6
I've been listening today, comparing the LS6 with my own Tellurium Black. The Blacks, in fact all of the Tellurium cables, have been getting some rave reviews on some of the forums and magazines, and they are very good. Similar price to the LS6, the LS6 being a bit more expensive. The LS6 wins by a fairly easy margin. Better rez, better focus, more powerful and better defined bass. It's a bit brighter, which may help with the rez, or maybe the Tellurium is a bit darker. Same thing! The LS6 are easily worth the slight price premium, imo. A very fine cable ... hmm, I wonder what the LS7 sounds like ... :?

 

[savvypaul]

LS6
I have lived with the LS5 for about 5 years and been really happy with the end result, A upgrade from Royd Apex to Cube 1s put a big smile on my face a few months back and I felt I was close to as good as it gets (for an MP3 based system). There were times when it seemed as if the performers were in my bedroom next door and someone had opened a window into the lounge. Then I chopped the LS5 for LS6. No argument - the improvement was immediate and obvious. Difficult to explain without employing the usual cliches but I will try. Music is more involving - it sounds live - er. I find myself constantly picking out hidden nuances in vocal phrasing that didn't strike me before. Treble sounds ring out without being shrill. Welcome to Acousticville is a live Janis Ian track from Hunger. Janis is now in the room performing a few feet in front of me. It's very much a story with acoustic guitar accompaniment. Although I could hear every word before I now seem to get a better sense of what the lyrics mean and how the story unfolds. There is so much more clarity. The song is no longer just a pleasant ramble. So in conclusion, in my opinion LS6 is a well worthwhile improvement on LS5 and I can't wait to get my turntable set up again and listen to some real music.

 

[savvypaul]

LS6
Having moved from LS2 to LS3 previously, I took advantage of a cable sale to try LS6. I have previously been fairly agnostic about cable, LS3 was clearly an upgrade on LS2 but I can honestly say that hand on heart, the move to SSP, and LS6 in particular was a revelation for me in terms of their importance. They are genuinely the biggest single ‘bang for buck’ improvement I have experienced and made me re-think the way I looked at hi-fi – in the context of my system of course, I have not tried SSP or LS6 with other amps or speakers. I would urge anyone with a modest NVA (or other) system to try these cables first before buying a new box. It is a cliché but LS6 opened the window wide and allowed my little system to really shine. Everything just seemed to relax and you could listen in to each musical element individually, without spoiling the event as a whole. Give them a try, the 30-day trial period makes it a no brainier and you may never know how good your system is if you don’t. Not sure what sort of fairy dust is inside but they work!!

 

[savvypaul]

LS6
LS6 speaker cable replacing chord odyssey. Wow is all I can say. Greater resolution and detail and has really opened up the mid range and top end. Very happy

 

[savvypaul]

LS7
I posted my 1st review quite a while ago and I was impressed with this cable. Now it's run for a time, I'm even more impressed. Whether that's because I've learned how to get the best out of my system or a real improvement I'm not certain. The most obvious improvement is in the bass response. It is even more articulate and has greater weight than ever - it was never lacking anyway. The top seems smoother and more articulate as well. Imaging is to die for on the right recording. It's the old cry "removing veils". It's difficult to express how surprised I am. I have spent years and lots of £ on cables but nothing has come close to TIS / LS7 - and I've had some really expensive and unusual cables in my time. Looks like I've found system synergy and I trust the P50, A80 change will only improve this. KW550, MA PL200, BMU, LS7, Blusound Vault, TIS.

 

[savvypaul]

LS7
I had been using Atlas Mavros bi-wire and it was the best I'd ever come across - and I've had a few through my system. The LS7 immediately improved the bass. It seemed to stretch down about another half octave and it gained a little weight. There are a slight improvement in the high treble (or at least as high as I can hear at my ancient age). I thought to myself, this stuff doesn't need running it. How odd. Well, this simply shows how wrong you can be. It has been in my system for just over a month and it is still improving. The stereo image is to die for. I can hear stuff I've ever heard before e.g. two voices singing in unison now sound like two voices not a single voice double tracked. It is also much clearer how the music was recorded - work through the Fleetwood Mac catalogue and you can clearly hear the step changes. Notes now have greater shape as well as pitch and volume. Overall a very pleasant musical experience. I now play stuff I have passed over for ages and I enjoy rediscovering these old pieces. One niggle. The Mavros is fitted with right angle plugs which means that expensive cable doesn't need to go round in a curve twice to reach between the amp and the speakers and so less is needed. Fortunately, the straight plugged LS7 is a little over stated length otherwise it would have had to go back. Is it worth the high cost? I think so but I am in the fortunate position that I can afford it. Anyone want to buy a 2.5m bi-wire Atlas Mavros speaker cable set?

 

[savvypaul]

LS7
Firstly, they look like a top of the range product. A very elegant silver braid finish and a bit thicker than my LS6. There’s really not much else to say. Just plug them in and listen. Listening is where it gets interesting. The cables are not a night-and-day change. I think that my system has become too sophisticated for any change to make a significant improvement. What the cables manage is to make recorded instruments sound a bit more like real ones. I’m currently having something of a telecaster fixation (I won’t bore you with the details) and have found myself listening to some status quo during their transition from psychedelia to boogie. The cables just make that telecaster sound that bit more realistic. To be honest, this applies to all instruments and for me that’s good enough. Vocals are rather good as well. Listening to Billie Holiday as I’m typing this and you can hear her voice on the edge of falling apart on Lady in Satin. One of the things I have noticed is that a good system makes some singers sound worse as you can clearly hear how badly they are singing ! I’ll let Ms Holiday off on that one. However, it can become quite engaging and enhances the “performance”. If you are considering an upgrade then a pair of TSCS are worth considering and might be a better purchase than a bigger amp.

 

[savvypaul]

LS7
For a brand new cable, first impressions were very positive. Music was immediately more dynamic, bass and treble more prominent and the flow of the music noticeably easier to follow. The sound just seemed to fill the room more, as if the 156 cores had opened the floodgates. LS7 is very revealing of whatever it's presented with. I had been making adjustments to my PL-71 and at first vinyl sounded bright and harsh. It turned out that LS7 was highlighting the effects of misalignment in the arm and cartridge. Differences in recording and pressing quality are also more apparent. I never knew just how much detail was hidden in the grooves of some of my old LP's. Again, presentation was vibrant and involving. As impressive as LS7 is at resolving detail, it's the ability to convey the spirit and emotion in a recording that draws me in. This was already apparent with my NVA setup, so I imagine that LS7 is allowing more of these characteristics to come through. The usual NVA qualities of space, dynamics and realism were enhanced with LS7. Any initial brightness was short-lived with the sound becoming smoother as the cables were run in. LS7 will not hide any deficiencies, as I found with the Pioneer, but will be transparent to upgrades and other changes. It will be interesting to see how much and for how long the LS7 continues to improve with use. What I do know is it won't be going back after the 30 day trial.

 

[savvypaul]

J.L. by email

This is a bit of a follow on as I started out with the S80 before using the trade in scheme to move on to the S150 for more power and eventually upgrading that to the S300. Since this is all subjective I should say what other components I use so my pre is a refreshed NVA P80 with MM phono stage and separate power supply, Kralk Audio BC30 MK2's, Topping D30 Dac, Audiolab CDT6000 and Project Debut Carbon DC with Ortofon 2M Blue.

In some ways there is little to say that isn't already said online in the descriptions, the S80 is fantastic with 90dB+ speakers but will struggle with harder to drive speakers. I have some 85dB speakers and while the S80 didn't get hot it was clear more power was needed to drive these speakers which now sounded bass light. I upgraded to the S150 which made a clear difference but upgrading to the S300 really pushed them to their full potential.

With regard to sound, I always call it the magic which is mostly clarity, realism and imaging. When I first got the S80 it changed what I thought solid state was capable of giving, made my tube amp virtually redundant and completely switched me off from the seemingly never ended path of trying to build the best hifi system I can within my budget.

I couldn't live without an S80, it's a sweet sounding amp so now I use a pre-owned S80 (bought from NVA) to power my 90dB Kralks and my S300 powers my 15'' semi U-frame OB subs.

The S150 carries the same clear open sound of the S80 but will drive less sensitive loads easier, it's really the same for the S300 and no doubt the mono blocks. There is no suspiciously magic upgrade path here where the manufacturer promises you better components or more complex tech, you get more power and that gives more dynamic ease which is more noticeable with difficult loads. All three of these amps stand out as being very musical and engaging which is no doubt partly down to the purist design of the amplifier boards.

I highly recommend an NVA matched system, especially if you're looking for your end game. Customer service and support has been excellent. Their finance options and trade in schemes have made it possible for me to build a fantastic system while their home trials allow potential customers to demonstrate without risk.