Gato DIA 250S NPM

[rivendell]

Trying not to hyjack my own thread with tunes but bloody Nora, i cant let this one slip by

Syd Arthur - Live in  Brighton

Its got the lot

A bit of Prog

Canterbury (oh my heart is wrapped up in that Soft Machine/Wyatt/Matching Mole/ Henry Cow/Hatfield sound)

What a band, very underated and they dont have the exposure they deserve.

Robert

 

[rivendell]

Nor can i, but i did forget Caravan. Ive listened to these bands since i was 15 ffs and they always sound amazing

 

[rivendell]

And nowi await the po po coming to get me, ive foned ahead to save time ive also cuffed myself and will go quietly

Well except for - pigs pigs pigs pigs pigs pigs pigs - gnt

 

[rivendell]

And brian auger - fill your head,it is turning into a blimey every track i play, but bloody nora this is good and a cracking album

My apologies ,but if you have good tracks/old tracks/new tracks etc etc you have to share, its the law probably

 

[rivendell]

Last call -for achohol.

Your never ever to old,

my 30 yr old daughter said, Dad Dad you have to hear this guy, i did we went to see him about 3 years ago in Glsagow and he was, well,just amazing, i adore him.

So have this -mac demarco - this old dog on me

Beautifully written, well produced and oh , what a sound

 

[iann]

Glad it's not just me who waits for the delivery like a small child at Christmas.

Currently hammering the virtual F5 on a UPS delivery from soundimports which has been 4 days so far.

 

[rivendell]

How fecking lucky have i been, talk about winning a watch!

Contacted Gato, the amp ive bought was used (its always been the way ive done things, bigger bang for your buck etc)

Anyway they confirmed the amp still had warranty on till Nov (so its less than 2 yrs old ) and if i mailed them my deatils, serial number etc they would extend the warranty till 2024 wtf!

What about that forback up support.

 

[DomT]

Now that you have had the amp a while how would you sum up the sound please? Do you have any further thoughts please?

You have got my interest with this one. One of the things that I had noticed with the class D that I tried was that music had an artificially to it. I can’t really describe it but it didn’t sound right. 

 

[CnoEvil]

Now that you have had the amp a while how would you sum up the sound please? Do you have any further thoughts please?

You have got my interest with this one. One of the things that I had noticed with the class D that I tried was that music had an artificially to it. I can’t really describe it but it didn’t sound right. 

I wrote my thoughts on the Gato Thread......and I find the mix with Harbeth exceedingly good  - with no artificial edge. I got the amp, as every review I read, said the same thing ie. There was nothing cold, analytical or artificial sounding about the presentation.

In case it's of use, here is what I wrote:

What the Gato is not:

When a sound is hard to describe, sometimes it's easier to start with what it's not:
 - It's not quite the uplifting, ethereal presentation of Valves

- It doesn't quite have the hard hitting speed and Transient Response of a good Class A

- It doesn't have the slightly cold, uninvolving sound that I would normally associate with Class D

So, what is the sound like:

Years ago, when I had an  MG Metro (bear with me here), the engine on tickover rattled like a bag of bolts sitting on a vibration plate. When I added Slick 50 engine treatment, it purred like a cat that had been given a saucer of cream, while getting its belly rubbed. The Gato seems to add the audio equivalent of Slick 50.

It's like the music glides out on a cushion of air, like the puks on those Arcade Table Hockey games you would see on Brighton Peer.
I have heard amps that have more air, that are faster, more exciting and hit harder.....but they were considerably more expensive.

What you seem to get, is a clear, detailed and unagressive sound, that eases out of a silent background, and seems particularly suited to Female vocals. A bit like Harbeth, good recordings sound marvellous and bad recordings are shown up for what they are, without hammering home the deficiencies. 

It's hard to see what I could have spent £2k on that would have met, let alone exceeded, its performance. Would I take the £8.5k Nu Vista 800 that I heard a few weeks ago over it? - Absolutely. Would I take the £5.5k NV600 over it? - Almost certainly....but with a 2k budget, there is imo little better, if buying ex-dem.

@Jules_S also wrote an excellent description of his impressions: https://www.hifiwigwam.com/forum/topic/124279-gato/page/6/ 

HiFi News Review: https://static.wixstatic.com/ugd/5e5570_f6fe1f161a584ff7b39fdbb006537d25.pdf

Review using Harbeth: https://www.the-ear.net/review-hardware/gato-audio-dia-250s-integrated-amplifier-dac

 

[rivendell]

Ive used valves for a number of years and throughly enjoyed it, but fancied a change and due to personal circustances also was very attracred to a 1 box solution so

One box solution - yes (as i said im a roon/tidal user so perfect for me)

Power - i was always advised the more the better for the Focals - yes likely more than i will evey need

Stunning detail with a slighlty warm edge - in no way clinical nor indeed tiresome to listen too. Enitirely the opposite to be honest

Good midrange deatils, lots of seperation of instruments etc

And bass, well it goes deep its tight and controlled, no wollyness here.

Am i impressed, you bet your life i am

And a lovely thing to look at.

I dont know what else to say really other than im very happy.

Now this is my ears on my system others may disagree but hey thats hifi you. It would be a hell of a dull world if we all liked the same thing.

Also i still havent got round to hooking up my existing Chord Qutest DAC and LPS which says a lots about the internal DAC IMO.

Anyway hope that helps

Rob

 

[CnoEvil]

@rivendell If I ask exceedingly politely - will you change the title to say "NPM".....NMP is playing havoc with my OCD.

Thank you bigly. 

 

[rivendell]

Ive used valves for a number of years and throughly enjoyed it, but fancied a change and due to personal circustances also was very attracred to a 1 box solution so

One box solution - yes (as i said im a roon/tidal user so perfect for me)

Power - i was always advised the more the better for the Focals - yes likely more than i will evey need

Stunning detail with a slighlty warm edge - in no way clinical nor indeed tiresome to listen too. Enitirely the opposite to be honest

Good midrange deatils, lots of seperation of instruments etc

And bass, well it goes deep its tight and controlled, no wollyness here.

Am i impressed, you bet your life i am

And a lovely thing to look at.

I dont know what else to say really other than im very happy.

Now this is my ears on my system others may disagree but hey thats hifi you. It would be a hell of a dull world if we all liked the same thing.

Also i still havent got round to hooking up my existing Chord Qutest DAC and LPS which says a lots about the internal DAC IMO.

Anyway hope that helps

Rob

 

[rivendell]

no problem all you need to do is tell me how to do it

 

[CnoEvil]

no problem all you need to do is tell me how to do it

xD

As a total luddite, it will do my ego no end of good to help with this.  B|

Go to the Edit Box of the first post. When you click on  it, you will see the Thread Title above the dialogue box. Edit Title and Save. 

 

[rivendell]

xD

As a total luddite, it will do my ego no end of good to help with this.  B|

Go to the Edit Box of the first post. When you click on  it, you will see the Thread Title above the dialogue box. Edit Title and Save. 

Everyday is a school day

 

[CnoEvil]

Everyday is a school day

Thank you, Sir.

This is the first sense of calm I've had since the thread started on the 5th March.  :^

 

[jobseeker]

You weren’t alone 

 

[rivendell]

Well tonights the night, ive been kinda putting it off tbh as ive been enjoying the amp so much as it is, but ive just plugged in my chord qutest and lps, so i will let it run away in the background then sit down later on for a proper "pay attention session"

Should be interesting

Or maybe a dac and power supply for sale, who knows

For what its worth im using RFC interconnectes with KLE plugs betweek the amp and dac. USB cable is MIT with the dac

Right, Im off to find my white coat and clip board from the dressing up box to make it looks offical

More to follow likely

 

[CnoEvil]

Well tonights the night, ive been kinda putting it off tbh as ive been enjoying the amp so much as it is, but ive just plugged in my chord qutest and lps, so i will let it run away in the background then sit down later on for a proper "pay attention session"

Should be interesting

It will be very interesting - and can you let @DomT know - as when I recommended the Gato to him, he asked how good the DAC was....and this is a good test. I don't use its built in one.

 

[rivendell]

Before i go any further i have to say that given the fact its taken me so long to plug the qutest in says a lots for the dac in the amp imo. I fully appreciate that everyone will have different opinions so i can only say more me, my ears, my rig and my room.

I should also say i previously used a  chord dac and bought the qutest to replace it. Its a fantastic dac made better again imo with an lps hanging off, againviews may differ.

But its going to get a got run out, thats for sure

Rob