cafe67 Posted December 29, 2020 Share Posted December 29, 2020 (edited) Hi all, On a bit of a whim/curiosity and to compare it to my Marantz PM10, I ordered a new Michi X5 integrated back in October and it finally arrived a couple of days before Christmas. finally after Christmas and then back to work , got a chance tonight to unpack , at 50kgs packed and 43.8kg net weight, it’s a bit heavy and thank god for air conditioning in Perth’s yuck weather. very well packaged, double boxed and a fairly solid foam liner and then in a black velvet liner. The 2 small boxes marked Michi , 1 has the rather nice remote & USB stick with owners manual and the other box has power, network and USB cables. Ended needing Sharon’s help to unpack it and that will do for tonight, tomorrow installing it into the system. Stay tuned. . Edited January 3, 2021 by cafe67 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psychometrics1 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 I look forward to the next instalment. I hope 2021 is a better year for you both and Sharon's health in particular. I will hear one of these on Saturday at the Coates wines GTG. Best wishes, Kym 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted December 31, 2020 Author Share Posted December 31, 2020 4 hours ago, psychometrics1 said: I look forward to the next instalment. I hope 2021 is a better year for you both and Sharon's health in particular. I will hear one of these on Saturday at the Coates wines GTG. Best wishes, Kym Hi Kym, excellent to hear from you and hope like you ate doing well. Had hoped to plug it in last night, but busy with work. Happy NYE Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psychometrics1 Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 Thanks Dave. I will get back to Perth in 2021 once Covid allows. Still doing part time PhD at ECU. Roman will have a GTG when I am over. Take care, Kym 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 3, 2021 Author Share Posted January 3, 2021 festivities and work impinged on hifi time. So install and set up was finally today. I also pulled other components off the rack to be able to dust it off and also move the rack forward to more easily access the rear connections. Couple of photos show how big the X5 is compared to my Marantz PM10. Initial impressions on sound are very good so far - sounds right, sold bass through my Revel F208s 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pops110 Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 Very nice mate, looks like you’re onto a winner. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psychometrics1 Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 That new big black box is deceptively heavy. Good to hear the initial thoughts. Look forward to the next instalment on due course 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy1062 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 Nice pics, what about the listen part? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 9, 2021 Author Share Posted January 9, 2021 (edited) Listening now to my CD player via Coax to the x5 to see how it compares to the CD players dac. had to sit down this morning with the manual and go through the various settings, fairly painless though a couple “why did they do it that way” moments also installed new firmware 1.02 to 1.04 again fairly painless although it refused to recognise the first USB stick I tried, then picked up the second one up straight away. Then had to do a reboot, bit weird, not had an amp as techy as this before. haven’t tried the blue tooth yet. But will give go it later. soundwise - Initial thoughts are a very natural sound, bass seems deep but well controlled and not plodding. The mids and highs likewise seem good, doesn’t seem to be any harshness or brightness. more listening to be done, stay tuned Edited January 9, 2021 by cafe67 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luc Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 Important question a little bit later on will be: Is it a keeper? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 9, 2021 Author Share Posted January 9, 2021 (edited) just tried the Bluetooth with my iPad Pro and a gen 1 iPad mini connected easily, . Sounds not too at all certainly for casual listening. Edited January 9, 2021 by cafe67 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metal beat Posted January 9, 2021 Share Posted January 9, 2021 How does it sound spinning your vinyl? so far your enthusiasm is muted. which seems a shame, but is the risk we all take with new gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 9, 2021 Author Share Posted January 9, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, metal beat said: How does it sound spinning your vinyl? so far your enthusiasm is muted. which seems a shame, but is the risk we all take with new gear. Interesting thought, no i am enjoying it but I’m also looking at from a technical POV as well as musical. things like packaging, build quality , ease of use and of course sound quality all add up the the user experience. also a few extra options here I’m not used too. stay tuned Edited January 9, 2021 by cafe67 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRC Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Warm up time seems important, the X5 seems to be a little clinical for an hour or two after booting it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 20, 2021 Author Share Posted January 20, 2021 (edited) 16 hours ago, DRC said: Warm up time seems important, the X5 seems to be a little clinical for an hour or two after booting it up. Yes agreed on that plus the unit are very new. Plus its interesting to hear the difference s between the sa10 dac and the dac in the amp. Immediate thoughts being a "lightness" to the inbuild dac compared to the sa10 - however i am running the sa10 to the x5 via xlr cables, however the sa10 has a transport via a old composite cable., while waiting for coax cable to arrive. Edited January 20, 2021 by cafe67 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 29, 2021 Author Share Posted January 29, 2021 (edited) New addition, custom length coaxial cable from @Bill125812 replacing an old Tara Labs composite cable . Interesting to hear the differences between the sa10 da and the AKM based DAC in the amp, but there are also a lot of things to consider in the sound. the amp continues to impress , there is a nice deep controlled bass but also a natural touch “deftness?” to the sound.. I was listening to the first Agnes Obel album and her voice was carried across beautifully along with the Piano and other instrumentation in this album. Edited January 29, 2021 by cafe67 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted February 28, 2021 Author Share Posted February 28, 2021 (edited) Update, the X5 continues to impress with its sound, not really sure how many hours I’ve put on it lately as feb has been a bit of blur with work and family health issues, right now I’m listening to Angelique Kidjo’s - Remain in Light album ( yep the talking heads album) if you’ve ever heard this album you’d appreciate how much is happening in the mixes, from her vocals , the percussion, brass and finally the drums. It’s a fast album and through the x5 to the Revel F208, the bass keeps up with the rest of the music, there’s no boom or stodginess. this especially clear on “once in a lifetime” Edited February 28, 2021 by cafe67 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted February 28, 2021 Author Share Posted February 28, 2021 (edited) Conversely now playing the Talking Heads album and hard to imagine I enjoy its “slower pace” and again the X5 plays well from the faster born under punches to one of fav my TH tracks “the overload” - the foreboding bass synth drone through the track and the accompanying sparse druming and guitar work is clear and controlled with DB vocals well presented. Edited February 28, 2021 by cafe67 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted February 28, 2021 Author Share Posted February 28, 2021 (edited) Vinyl time for me and @metal beat. Sunday night a chance to lock my self in the music room away from Mafs. the X5 only has settings for Mm or Mc, but the actual phono stage seems very quiet and detailed. I first thought that a bit more gain on the Mc might have been nice. But tonight sitting down having a proper listen I’m not so sure. Bearing in mind my Lyra Argo i cartridge is low output, I’m only turning up the volume a bit extra to achieve a satisfactory listening level. first up is Kraftwerk’s Techno-pop new pressing in translucent grey/silver which is well recorded and a quiet pressing. In the opening track with its Boing Boom Tschak, the vocals with their reverberating stereo mix come come through clear and controlled as the sampled voices go deeper bass wise. The drumming is crispy clear and starts n stops on dime. likewise the track Music Non stop with its alternating fast t t t t t sounding drum track followed by the slower boom boom drums comes through clear and controlled as do the various male and female “vocals”. Edited February 28, 2021 by cafe67 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mix Posted January 16, 2022 Share Posted January 16, 2022 Hi just interested a year on your thoughts on this amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cafe67 Posted January 16, 2022 Author Share Posted January 16, 2022 Hi,I'm very happy with it, I've tried it with some different speakers and it sounds very good. So far has been reliable. It would be interesting to compare it to the X3 but that's kind a academic. I think the sound is very neutral and lively, I can't say it's sounded leaden or slow to me. And cranked up it doesn't get bright or shout. For the price, I think its very good. Alternatives would be the Hegel h390 and the audis flight fls9 Hope that helps 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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