[Mike Hughes]

Short impression after 2 weeks of owning the AMP-23R.

Pros
Love the tonality of the amp, linear with a bit of musicality/warmth to the overall tonality. It is not overly warm for my ears. (If you consider those Niimbus US4/5 as ruler flat neutral, ie. 5 out of 10 where 1 being WARM and 10 being COLD, I would say Enleum to be on 4 on that scale. For my ears, Niimbus was too bright )
Separation and layering are one of the best I have ever heard. Even for complex music like full orchestral Symphony music, the separation of instruments was exceptional
Detail retrieval was remarkable as well without being harsh or fatiguing, with the blackest background I have ever heard.
Great bass extension without overwhelming other frequencies.

Cons
The Bass isn't as tight as I hoped. It isn't loose but at the same time, it is as tight as other SS amps.
Relay based volume control... never a fan of these as it generates those tick-tick sounds

Initially purchased this amp to drive Susvara, SPL Phonitor X was good was looking for an amp with more power. Amp has plenty of power for the Susvara and drives it amazingly, as in other reviews. A huge leap from my Phonitor in every aspect.

Not only it drove Susvara so well, it drives both HD800 & 800S exceptionally well. It added those low end that the headphone was lacking without marring treble or mids. It brought the best out of this cans.

This was my very subject impression of the amp

Are your bass impressions re: headphones or speakers? What specifically was missing/wrong/disappointing? What kinds of music?

 

[xtiva]

Are your bass impressions re: headphones or speakers? What specifically was missing/wrong/disappointing? What kinds of music?

Should have made it clearer but all my test was done with Headphone and not the speakers, Hifiman Susvara, Sennheiser HD800 & HD800S. I do not know enough about speakers yet...

All the music I listened to during the test was classical music (Baroque era) mainly.

I am very happy with the amp, and is an improvement from amps I had, in every aspect..

 

[iFi audio]

Agreed, it is a great amplifier. I should be receiving some very sensitive (94.5db@1m) omega speakers in a few days, can't wait to see what it will do.

As far as specs go it should be a great match

 

[Tubewin]

As far as specs go it should be a great match

Amp pushes it well.

 

[iFi audio]

Amp pushes it well.

Coaxial drivers, one can't have enough of these

 

[Burakk]

I'm looking a pair of speakers for Enleum. I'm not very much experience in 2-channel world. Do you know any good match ?

 

[iFi audio]

I'm looking a pair of speakers for Enleum. I'm not very much experience in 2-channel world. Do you know any good match ?

Are you after floorstanding speakers? Or monitors? And how much you can spend on these? That's a good place to start

 

[Burakk]

Are you after floorstanding speakers? Or monitors? And how much you can spend on these? That's a good place to start

bookshelf, I don’t wanna pay over 2k.

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Actually, there's a gain selection that you can set with the remote controller.

Hold the mode button on the remote controller (the O button in the middle) for 3 seconds. The LEDs will start blinking. With the up/down buttons on the remote, choose V1 or V2. V1 is low gain and V2 is high gain. Press the mode button again for 3 seconds to set it.

No idea on that part. If I remember correctly, that was the case for 13R. The 23R manual doesn't mention that the gain setting applies only to headphone output, though.

This is all correct. Unfortunately, the gain selection does not apply to speakers.

 

[iFi audio]

bookshelf, I don’t wanna pay over 2k.

For a second I had hopes you were after full-size speakers

Just to clarify, how far away from these monitors will you be sitting? And how large is your listening room? Enleum outputs 25wpc, which is not a lot and bookshelf speakers tend to be power-hungry.

 

[Burakk]

For a second I had hopes you were after full-size speakers

Just to clarify, how far away from these monitors will you be sitting? And how large is your listening room? Enleum outputs 25wpc, which is not a lot and bookshelf speakers tend to be power-hungry.

Haha, give me some hints for floor standing ones too. I’ll listen from 4m and it’s rectangular and L shape room. It’s not so hifi friendly and around 35m2.

 

[iFi audio]

Haha, give me some hints for floor standing ones too. I’ll listen from 4m and it’s rectangular and L shape room. It’s not so hifi friendly and around 35m2.

Someone here mentioned ZU Audio speakers (high-efficiency products in general) and around $2k something like Union 6 would sound great with Enleum.

 

[Mike Hughes]

Darko recommended Zu. I do too but have yet to audition the Enleum with them.

 

[iFi audio]

Darko recommended Zu. I do too but have yet to audition the Enleum with them.

This match makes a lot of sense on many levels. ZU speakers are VERY easy to drive and the way how they sound like should make them an awesome companion for Enleum I believe.

 

[flea22]

Has anyone used this with meze elites? Would love to know your impressions. I am looking for a top end unbalanced amp. Also has to be black.