How about a magnetic planar speaker?
Jeff made clear to me that panel speakers present to the Ion a very difficult load to drive, and in some cases the amp would be mismatched with certain magnetic planar or electrostatic speakers. However, Exogal has an adjustment to the Comet available to address this potential incompatibility in some systems. Though this will not pertain to the bulk of Ion buyers, I will discuss it thoroughly as the Ion is more than just another pretty amp, and if it is integrated properly owners of such speakers will be handsomely rewarded. There is perennial discussion among Magnepan owners as to which brands of amps drive the speakers the best. Magnepan owners need to pay special attention at this point.
I am engaged in a review of the Magnepan 1.7i currently, and I had a chance to hear these affordable magnetic planar speakers with the Comet and Ion. As might be expected the 1.7i reacted extremely well to the pairing holistically with a packed midrange and flowery treble. The Ion did not drive these speakers with absolute authority, as it is after all a 100Wpc amplifier and the Magnepan 1.7i is 86dB sensitive at 4 Ohms. As might be expected, the Red Dragon S500 class D amp drives these speakers with more ease and with greater impact, yet despite the considerable difference in power ratings between these two amps, the transients were cleaner and images more focused with the Ion. Stop to consider that thought, as it is an inversion of the typical performance of a solid-state amplifier. Often when comparing solid-state audiophile amplifiers, the amp with more power sounds cleaner and the transients crisper. The Ion is exquisitely beautiful and stunningly fast, so although it is less capable in comparison of macrodynamics than the much more powerful Red Dragon S500, it is more pristine. It would be a legitimate decision on the part of the audiophile to favor the Ion’s quickness over the impact of the S500.
One of the speakers in for review is the Sound Lab Ultimate U-4iA, a new, more diminutive member of the top series of Sound Lab speakers. Electrostatic speakers are notorious for their difficulty to drive and require substantial amplifiers to do the job well. The Ion was not designed to be all things to all amplifier owners. It’s designed use leans toward more efficient speakers, or ones using outboard subwoofers to handle the lower bass responsibilities. All lower-powered amplifiers are problematic when used with such speakers, regardless of the class of amplification, so the following is no slight to the Ion. When using the U-4iA, the Ion was incapable of driving the speaker to whatever listening level I desired. I habitually stop well short of what I consider unhealthy listening levels, yet there were two times when I “red lighted” the Ion’s LED. The music cut out, the Led showed the dreaded flashing red indicator, followed by flashing alternating red and amber, then solid amber. Knowing that I had tripped the protection circuit preventing overheating damage, indicated on the Comet’s display as “IONOVT”, I cycled the power and the unit came back flawlessly. I am impressed with the ease with which the Ion protected itself and was so quickly recovered, in less than two minutes of time from incident to recovery. Over the course of the review there were two instances of the Ion entering the protection mode, in both cases with the U-4iA, and a perfect recovery of the Ion in both instances.
Jim Kinne, Chief Technical Officer at Exogal discussed the situation with me, “With electrostatic panels, the impedance drops rapidly as the frequency increases. When this happens, the impedance of the speaker drops below 2 ohms and thus draws considerably more power from the Ion at any given volume level.
The ION has internal temperature monitoring that is used to protect the output devices from damage. What you observed is what would occur if the output device were approaching overheating. The flashing red/yellow indicates that it is approaching its upper temperature limit. This would be accompanied by an “IONOVT” message on the Comet display. Once the upper temperature protection threshold is reached, the ION will go into standby, with a solid yellow indication on the ION. Even though the ION rapidly cools off when it is placed in standby, the protection algorithm requires that the user manually restart the ION by un-muting it. Note that the temperature measured is the internal die temperature of the output devices, not the case temperature. The external case temperature of the ION may not have increased by any measurable amount when this occurs.
We are continually working on this algorithm to make it less obtrusive to the user experience. Any improvements will be freely available to our customers through a firmware download. The ION firmware update is via a micro-USB connector on the back panel and will be executable from Windows, Apple, or Linux computers with a USB port.”
Jim’s explanation made me wonder why the Kingsound King III did not react similarly to the Sound Lab U-4iA when I played at similar listening levels. I presume it has to do with the physical design of the speakers (the King III uses multiple, smaller Bass drivers while the U-4iA uses two larger ones), the design of their power supplies, and the electrical impedance curve for each speaker, which tells how difficult each speaker is to drive.
The questions to address in regards to the use of the Comet and Ion with panel speakers are what type of panel speaker do you own, are you willing to consider introducing subwoofers, and in some cases would you be willing to trade off elevated listening levels for superior sound quality across the board, excepting a small percentage of macro dynamic impact?
First, a word to those willing to assemble a hybrid speaker system; if you would entertain adding a subwoofer or two you might be able to capitalize on even better sound quality than the typical Ion user might experience using the same speakers! Exogal has been working with owners of Magnepan speakers, which are in the tough-to-drive club, and has been adjusting the frequency output of the Comet such that it would send only those frequencies below a predetermined frequency, say 80Hz, to the subwoofers while the Ion would drive the main speakers with only those frequencies above. That would result in the panel speakers being much easier to drive, improving their sound as they would not handle the frequencies which would introduce more distortion at higher levels while letting the subwoofers handle the frequencies at which they excel. It is a win/win solution and an elegant fix for a potential problem of the combination of gear. If you have a panel speaker that would qualify as more difficult to drive and you find the Comet and Ion an intriguing alternative to your current setup, I suggest you speak with Exogal to see about the frequency adjustment solution. At some point in the future Exogal plans to put the control of the Comet’s output into the hands of the owner as a function on the Exogal app remote. I long for that day, as I have two Legacy Extreme HD Subwoofers that would work just dandy in that role!
A quick aside to those with active subwoofers; you do not have to wait for an update from Exogal to supplement your panel speakers. The stock Comet puts out the full frequency spectrum from the RCA jacks which you can send to your sub if it accepts an RCA line level input. If your active subwoofer has a low pass filter, which allows only lower frequencies to be played, it can be used effectively with the Ion. The difference in this setup is that the main speakers will continue to function full range, so it does not solve the potential overheat protection circuit incompatibility. However, with the use of external subwoofers one may reach a satisfactorily impactful performance running the system at a bit lower volume. I will be trying the Magnepan 1.7i with this setup, and I anticipate superior performance by the addition of generous heaps of ultra-clean LF via the Comet.
The last solution may be the most difficult to accept for some, that is, to simply turn the volume down. This suggests an unwelcome recommendation, as the idea is to listen to what we want when we want and as loud as we want! There are some who are more gentle listeners, who don’t care to jack up the sound, who care about pedigree of sound more than pounding sound. Also fans of chamber music, Jazz and vocals may never push an amp to the degree that other genres of music and levels might. If you are a gentle listener, or using a speaker that is easier to drive, then you likely will not be operating near the protection circuit threshold. You gentle listeners know who you are, and I assure you that the Ion’s pedigree is most worthy of amplifier fanatics.
Exogal is currently working on a kinder, gentler circuit that would not cut off the music abruptly, but rather half mute it as it recovers from the red light zone. My understanding is that this, too, would be updatable for owners.
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How did you hook it up with the Whispers processor? I have the Aeris and I am not sure how it integers with the Xilcia 4080 processor.
Did you forget Devialet on purpose? I presume so, the best way to present something that is not radically new as radically new is to ignore what was really new…
Is Devialet digital or a hybrid of A and D?
Steve,
God’s Joy to you,
I’m sorry if it wasn’t clear; my set of Whisper speakers is custom and has both passive operation and active operation modes. If your set of Aeris speakers are only actively run, then it would be problematic to use the Ion. Please see my review of the Legacy Whisper DSW Clarity Edition for further details on my speakers.
Legacy is offering an upgrade to the Aeris in the new Wavelet processor, and I suggest you look into it as a nice boost to performance.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
Rui,
God’s Peace to you,
I often compare products which seem similar to determine how they fare. There are many factors which go into the final decision on which products to review and write about, and I am not interested in discussing them here. I do not care much for the politics of the industry, so suspicion that I would purposely avoid a competitive product is off-base.
Unless you know information about the technology which Exogal is using but has not released I conclude you assume that Exogal and Devialet are technologically doing the same “radically new” thing. Both in my examination of the operations of the Devialet and Exogal, and in communication with Exogal specifically on that question, I understand they are not similar.
My opinion that Exogal has created a new breed of sound/component remains unchanged. I am not interested in further discussion or debate on this topic.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
Note to the Audiophile Community,
I have learned from Exogal that the occurrence of the “IONOVT” message in the display of the Comet can also be shown when the amplifier has a current demand by a speaker greater than the current the Ion can provide. The test which produced the shutdown was ironically on the track “Galaxies” by Owl City, which has an enormous amount of LF. I had to play it at about 97-100 on the digital readout of the Comet to trip the safety shutdown; that would be right at 90dB. That was with the Sound Lab U-4iA speakers under review.
In other words, when using less efficient speakers with more difficult loads the Ion may not push them to unlimited listening levels, as I discuss in the article. However, importantly, the issue causing shutdown is not overheating, but simply the amp not being able to drive the speaker pushing heavy LF at higher listening levels,, well beyond where most people listen. I am pleased to know that there is no overheating happening, and that the protection circuitry in the rare case the amp is overdriven works superbly.
This strengthens my impressions of the Ion, and I strongly recommend it for such speakers at more conservative listening levels. Frankly, it drives such speakers well beyond the limits I anticipated.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
So the only way to use this digital amp is to hook up a DAC and power supply from the same company using a proprietary interface?
Yeah, that seems reasonable, cost effective and generally great for the end consumer.
Thank you for your review of the Ion – Comet from Exogal. I just placed an order based on your word! Can you share some speakers / speaker brands (in addition to those you discuss in your review) that you feel would pair well with the Ion? I have already noted ones which rely on box reinforcement as not being as good of a match.
– David.
I recently found a review on the Shure se215 on this site http://in-ear-headphones.com/most-durable-earbuds-2016 and I decided to buy it for me. My question is, if I purchase a DAC would the sound quality improve considerably?
Jeff,
God’s Joy to you,
If I read your post correctly you are being sarcastic, as you state, “So the only way…Yeah”; if I misread, my apologies. If you look at only the digital amp function, then your skepticism is warranted. However, your analysis is simplistic. The value and power in the combo is that it contains all the system needs, source, preamp and amp. There are plenty of companies which offer full systems with source, preamp and amp, yet cost many multiples more and theoretically have maximum synergy when used together . I do not see much justification in dismissal of Exogal simply because they choose to package the functions differently than more traditional manufacturers. Frankly, it is a gift to audiophiles that they allowed the Comet to be used independently of the Ion. That they offer the stunning performance of the upgraded DAC/PowerDAC combination along with superlative amplification for such a low price is remarkable.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
David,
The Joy of God to you,
If you got the impression that the Comet/Ion combo would not sound good with box speakers from my article I apologize. I would think they should sound terrific with them. I don’t particularly pursue speakers with the boxy resonances, but if they were favorable to me I would not hesitate to put the Comet/Ion with them.
Aside from perhaps those speakers with very low impedance, which would take ridiculous amounts of power to drive, I suggest it’s a wide open world. As a jumping off point scan my past 12 years of speaker reviews. I would be very happy to retrace my path and use the Comet/Ion with any of them. This is the most universally applicable component review when it comes to speaker matching I have ever written. So, essentially, name the brand of speaker and it would likely sound great.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
Hi, Douglas,
I have a few comments.
1) Specifications
You’re in a better position, as you’ve heard the ExoGal system, but I have a few salient points from the specifications sheet:
DYNAMIC RANGE: >105dB
THD: 0.03% THD @ 1W @ all frequencies into 4 ohms
http://i0.wp.com/www.msbtechnology.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Select-90db-Graph-900×690.jpg
While a dynamic range of 105 dB isn’t amazing, it is fine for 16-bit content. Compare to – 173 dB of MSB Select DAC II.
http://www.msbtechnology.com/dacs/select-features/
A PowerDAC is hardly a new concept.
1) Here’s the original audiophile one (that I know of), circa 2002:
Wadia PowerDAC ($80,000.00 USD, 117,000.00 EUR)
390 Controller / 790 towers
http://www.pureaudio.net/digital/wadia.shtml
http://hifi-advice.com/Wadia-Database-Digital-Amp.html
I haven’t heard it, but it was hardly a technical (or business) failure. Selling for $40,000.00 USD .
2) Wadia’s present line-up, a PowerDAC:
Wadia Inution 01 Power Dac (also $8,000.00 USD)
http://www.wadia.com/en-us/products/intuition-01
http://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/equipment-reviews/739-wadia-digital-intuition-01-integrated-amplifier-dac
A present product (and lower-end competitor to Devialet D-Premiere / Expert), it’s been out for 2-3 years. Admittedly, it’s integrated, with one box.
It’s 190 watts at 8 ohms, and 350 watts at 4 ohms.
3) Wadia 151 PowerDAC Mini ($1,300.00 USD)
Includes Wadia Digimaster!
http://www.hifiplus.com/articles/first-listen-wadia-151-powerdac-mini/
http://www.wadia.com/ContentsFiles%5CWadia_151_Tone_Audio_31.pdf.pdf
I agree with others that the Devialet should of been a comparision.
The Devialet Expert 130 Pro ($9,995.00 CDN)
http://en.devialet.com/expertpro/#models-pro/expert-range-2/130-pro/
THD+N : 0,0005% (130W / 6Ω)
THD : 0,00025% (10W / 6Ω)
Signal-to-Noise ratio: 130dB
Sorry for all the links posted to your great website. I just wanted to back-up my notes.
Thanks for your great reviews!
FROM THE EXOGAL CEO:
Measurement comparisons are interesting but real world user experiences is what is important to us. We believe that our product allows our customer to be swallowed up in the music. If you’re a guy who plays music to listen to his gear, you’re probably not our customer.
Also, to clear up some misconceptions in the comments:
The original Wadia PowerDAC was never a commercially viable product. Yes it was announced, yes a few were sold, but they weren’t reliable and never worked right and were quickly taken off the market.
The Intuition is not a power DAC, it’s an integrated DAC and Amp with a manufacturer’s data sheet reference design Delta Sigma DAC and a standard Class D amp from PowerSoft.
And the guy who invented the hallowed Digimaster design now works for us and has gone light years beyond anything Digimaster ever did in a completely different way. Digimaster is a bicycle. EXOGAL DAC technology is a Tesla.
And what, the review is invalid because Mr. Schroeder didn’t compare us to Devialet? Please.
You should go listen to the Comet / Ion Combo. If you like it, buy it. If you don’t, no hard feelings.
Hey Douglas, Thanks for a great review. I presently own the Comet with separate power supply. I absolutely love it. You’re article sold me on the Ion, but I think I’ll wait on the monos. Would be nice if they have a Analog to Digital converter with XLR inputs so I could listen to my SACD’s. I have a large collection I use often. Or, it would be nice if Exogal would introduce a Transport for the Exonet system. Not opposed to replacing the old Esoteric player. Thanks again for the informative review.
Chad O.
Chad,
Gods’ Joy to you,
Happy to have you join the Exogal club! I appreciate the feedback. I hope the wait for the Monos is not too long. I suggest you work toward file playback. I wrote up the Salk Audio StreamPlayer III, and it is a wonderful product used with Tidal and ROON. The sound quality is splendid and convenience off the charts. I suspect you could achieve sound quality equivalency to SACD with a good file server/streamer. It’s not a very expensive proposition, certainly less than an Esoteric player.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
They always say “Never say never” but when it comes to transports, we’d come pretty close to never… But only because we don’t see any way to make them better at a lower price point.
We’ve been asked about A2D’s and Phono Stages but it’s kind of the same answer as with transports.
In all of these things, there may be a way to make them “better” or “cheaper” but unless there’s both we’re probably gonna leave that to someone else…
I’ve been A/B’ing this quite a bit with other combos. I like the DAC a lot, and the more I listen to it, the more I like it. It’s voiced nicely and pairs well with several different amplifiers. But the following combos beat the Comet/Ion combo pretty easily in my experience:
– Comet/Krell 2250e (krell is dead neutral, detailed with insane dynamics – what a thrill ride)
– Comet/Pass Labs xa60.8 (come on….)
-Comet/FirstWatt F7 (come on…)
I think the DAC is a winner and competes up to $12k dacs. I like it better than my Grace m905 and Schiit Yggrisil. It absolutely murders the mushy, boring AMR DP-777SE. Is it better than the EMM Labs Dac2x? No. Just simply, no.
Remember the goal is to reproduce the sound of live music. And if that is the goal, then the top class A and Class A/B amps are still quite a bit ahead in my opinion and I can confirm that this article is over-the-top in it’s gushiness. New toys…gush, gush, gush. Then they’re old toys…
Note: I use AES input with Balanced Output. I’m a USB hater although I admit it’s getting MUCH better. But the USB dac technology seems to have softened and quieted it to death to make it sound nice. Again, to me reproducing live music is what it’s about.
To add, why is it not the best? a little dark sounding and not the last word in accuracy, natural timbre & spacial queues. To be the best the guitar needs to sound exactly like a guitar, and feel like it’s in your listening room, same with cymbals, voices and everything else.
but does the combo “sound” awesome? yes.
Sorry to be annoying…but this is for the sake of accuracy. A/B’ing has continued. Listened the Schiit Yggy for the first couple of times with XLR balanced output and it’s a totally different DAC than when using it Single Ended…I prefer it to the Comet. Cleaner, more open, spacious, and gorgeous. It’s the most extreme difference I’ve heard a component between SE and XLR, it’s strange.
Jason,
God’s Peace to you,
We are essentially in agreement. When you confirm that the Comet competes with up to $12K DACs, that covers the bulk of the market. That it takes a $15+K DAC to best it is an exciting conclusion.
The Comet and First Watt J2 was airier, but lost a lot on macrodynamics, as would be expected from the 25wpc. I haven’t heard the combo, but suspect the F7 would suffer the same anemia compared to the Ion. Recall that I used the Comet/Ion with five speaker systems ranging from higher efficiency dynamic to electrostatic speakers. The First Watt was a non-starter with the Sound Lab U-4iA, while the Comet/Ion blew the doors off the speaker, and that with 100wpc. So, my comments must be taken in the context of a wider range of speakers and the combo excelled with all of them. That is worth popping the champaign cork.
I am disappointed in the connection between the Comet and Ion being so difficult to upgrade as imo it is crucial. There seems to be a paucity of high quality passive HDMI cables. I suspect that the Comet and Ion are operating “with one hand behind the back,” in the wrestling match between it and other combinations due to the economical HDMI link. (This is my opinion, not the opinion of Exogal.) Enhancing that I suspect would substantiate my seeming over-the-top claims and fix the perceived shortcomings you note.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
So yours is the definitive decision…for yourself. Congratulations. Everyone is a critic, an expert…for their own ears and write about what they think.
You post a comment about how you thought the other amps you listened to (Krell!) were better than the Ion. Then you hear something else on the source side you say sounds so much better than the Comet. Maybe you should try the speakers next then circle back to the Comet/Ion? EXOGAL does state that USB is the preferred input for the Comet. Your admission of being a “USB hater” seems to preclude that consideration. Was USB ven tried?
You have at least taken the time to listen and compare using your own preferences and biases over those of others who write in proclaiming injustice because the such-and-such DAC was not compared in the review without giving the equipment under review so much as a listen.
As an owner of the Comet Ion combination for several months, I read Douglas review with great interest. As applied to my system (Silver lie Sonata speakers – 93 DB, 8 ohms / Aurender server) I found Douglas’ observations to be spot on. Very fast, dynamic, quiet, natural tones. They replaced considerably more expensive dual mono tube amps and preamp from a highly regarded manufacturer. while I was very happy with the tubes (which were upgraded by the manufacturer over the years to great effect), I prefer the sound, convenience and reduced size of the Exogal / Aurender team. The combination of the efficient Hifiman Edition X v2 headphones and the Comet headphone amp is also highly recommended.
Alan,
God’s Joy to you,
I’m happy to see my descriptions fit your experiences! By this time I have heard the Exogal products with a growing list of complementary equipment, and to date I have not heard a poor system when they are used either individually or together. You have a jump on me in regards to describing their sound with headphones as I only have the Kingsound ESL headphones with tube headphone amp.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
Hi,
I have a Comet Ion combination with digital input from a Melco and connecting via chord reference cables to Spendor D7 speakers.
The Chord Sarum USB interconnect has been a revelation.
Would a higher quality passive HDMI replacement have the same positive effect?
Any suggestions?
Kind Regards
Peter Dickens
Peter,
Gods’ Joy to you,
I am open to trying more passive HDMI cables for the Comet/Ion combo. I have tried one I borrowed from a friend, the WireWorld Platinum Starlight 7, which was made into a “shorty” cable for the Comet/Ion. It did confer a difference, and a positive one, however not enough to induce me to order one. I found that with the Exogal’s stock HDMI cable and an upgraded Ethernet cable I could achieve a similar effect to the “jumper” HDMI. If I were approaching the system from a cost-no-object perspective I might obtain the Platinum Starlight, but I suspect there may be better cables for the Comet/Ion. Anyone with experience in this matter I would very much like to hear back.
As a humorous anecdotal aside, Jeff Haagenstad and I had a very low cost bet (I do not gamble) of $1 over whether the HDMI would effect the sound of the Comet/Ion. He said effectively no, and I said it would. The outcome was that in my comparison there was a discernible difference, but that it was below the threshold of my Law of Efficacy; i.e. time better spent pursuing other options. Imo, we were both sort of right. The dollar went to a non-profit ministry. 🙂
Now, I am not finished with my exploration of the passive HDMI cables for Comet/Ion. One cable is nowhere near enough attempts to draw a firm conclusion regarding the efficacy of the link. I will attempt to find at least two or three other passive HDMI cables to test with the Comet/Ion.
QUESTION: DOES ANYONE KNOW OF AN AFTERMARKET QUALITY PASSIVE HDMI CABLE (Not shouting, soliciting!) which might be suitable for a short link between the Comet/Ion? Please render assistance with your suggestion; I appreciate it! I did look online and found not much about passive HDMI cables, so any suggestions are much appreciated! Note, we are talking Passive HDMI, not the typical active HDMI, which is the majority of HDMI cables in existence.
So, concluding, the issue is not firmly resolved at this point. However, I have done enough comparisons in regard to Ethernet links to firmly recommend upgrading them. Article on Ethernet cables forthcoming.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
Hi, you wrote “QUESTION: DOES ANYONE KNOW OF AN AFTERMARKET QUALITY PASSIVE HDMI CABLE (Not shouting, soliciting!) which might be suitable for a short link between the Comet/Ion?”
I would like to know if you have found “better” aftermarket HDMI cables? If so, which cables do you prefer and what is the audible benefit of them? Thank you.
Steven,
God’s Peace,
Since I wrote that Exogal has made an upgrade connector; I suggest you seek that from Exogal!
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
At the CES in 1998 I showed the Tact Millennium amplifier designed by Lars Risbo in Denmark. It was a power DAC with 134 dB dynamic range. Since then we have been manufacturing fully digital amplifiers – now under Steinway Lyngdorf, and Lyngdorf brands. We control volume level by regulating a DC to DC power supply giving us full digital resolution over a vast power range. The process was patented in 1996.
I have recently became a owner of the ion comet combo. I have owned many systems over the years including both tube and solid-state. This combo ranks right there with the best I have heard and I have heard some pretty expensive gear. I feel the ion/comet combo is the most accurate to source material as I have ever heard. It is very fast exactly as Doug has explained. It has the smoothness and texture on instruments that I hear with the best tube amps, and the neutrality of the better solid-state gear I have heard. It doesn’t have the extra bloom that the tubes have but it has the presence. What it does better than the other solid-state gear I have heard is it has a natural ease to the sound that you hear with live music but is still dynamic at the same time. I have read one of the previous comments about not sounding as much like a real guitar as another amplifier. Remember this is a recording you are listening to. A lot is lost in the transition from live to a recorded medium especially dynamics. I feel the ion is more accurate to what is recorded to the medium. I know what you mean about more live sounding, but it is a trade off. When I go listen to live music unamplified it never sounds aggressive and in you face. The music is very dynamic and full but in a different way than a recording. We all hear a little differently than one another and have different preferences for what we like. Biases I guess. But I still feel that the ion/comet combo competes with the best I have heard.
Kris,
God’s Peace to you,
Nice that you are enjoying the Comet/Ion! It is a lovely combo!
If you wish to optimize it, you can pursue the PLUS Power Supply for the Comet, an aftermarket umbilical fo the PLUS such as offered by Clarity Cable or Wywires, and a quality digital link for the source to the Comet. All of these will elevate the performance additionally. Also, pay careful attention to power cords used with both Comet and Ion. So, you have no less than 4 discrete levels of improvement to explore if you wish, and all are efficacious. I suspect you will enjoy the sound much more if you explore these suggestions.
Also, if you are using a source with the option of volume control, try both alternatives; setting the source’s output at 100% and using the volume control of the Comet, or vice versa. I always try them both to see which I prefer with any collection of gear.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder
Posting this for historical documentation:
This idea of a better passive HDMI cable has haunted me for years. I believed it when Douglas said vast majority are “active”. So I was afraid to invest in anything. Turns out that’s only partially true. The vast majority of HDMI cable in the real world may be active. But it turns out that the vast majority in HiFi are passive. I’ve recently confirmed that all Nordost and all AudioQuest HDMI cables are passive. I’m sure there are more. But for anyone reading this, you’re obviously still using this fantastic gear and/or somehow curious about it. So if you want to try some better signal cable for the Ion, check out the above brands. (Mabye not the Valhalla. yikes) If there are others you are curious about, contact the company to confirm “passive” status. According to Nordost, High End cable companies only do passive because the active part is bad for signal integrity. Good for really long video runs. But terrible for signal. Hence High End HDMI being mostly (if not all) passive. Cheers and Happy Listening to all my loyal Exogal users!
Craig,
God’s Peace,
This is very good information! I appreciate it! I am still using the Exogal Comet regularly and its quality is proven repeatedly. I will certainly be looking for an upgrade on the HDMI cable because I build systems using the Ion!
The timing of your post is particularly beneficial to you and other Comet owners. Look in my upcoming review for reference to the Comet in conjunction with a network player. I have used the Comet with a lot of gear, but the result was so unexpected, so extraordinary, that I bought the network player if for no other reason than use with the Comet. I haven’t even tried the Ion with it yet, but that will come. I anticipate I will also revisit comparison of passive HDMI cables for the Ion.
Blessings,
Douglas Schroeder