So, I've had my Exclame 150 SE since 2019 and I've considered an absolutely amazing piece of equipment. It has provided me with a vast number of extremely memorable listening sessions.
My cabling loom has also been upgraded over time to some very "good" Furutech products and considering the improvement they have brought to my system I wondered what extra qualities we could excerpt from the Exclame amplifier if what was outside the box was also put inside the box.
I contacted @Schalk and after some discussion we came up with some parts that could be upgraded with Furutech components.
Next I contacted @JeandreB the distributor of Furutech in SA and ordered some "goodies".
I was a little nervous as to what improvements the upgrade would bring, since the cost was not going to be negligible.
The day Schalk let me know the unit was ready it was like being a child again the week before Christmas. Arriving to collect Schalk and I had had a short listening session together on his setup but at that point it was almost impossible to gauge any improvements, if there were any. Once I set it up at home and started listening on my setup which I was very familiar with, I could notice a difference however it was small.
For those that have purchased Furutech components you know that they can "open up" substantially after a few hours of initial use and I had high hopes that this would happen with the Exclame too.
I was right and after a couple of hours I could hear some nice differences and I was pretty pleased with the changes, but after more than 70 hours I can honestly say that subjectively this is a significantly better amplifier, the improvements are not subtle and qualities a music listener appreciates about music and sound are there in leaps and bounds.
Many of the components replaced are aimed at creating a darker listening background for the music to shine through and this enhances all the little details, nuances, and harmonics that musical instruments and voices have to offer. I can sit at low listening levels but enjoy ever bit of the sound that comes through the speakers and don’t have to push to hear those little details that sometimes only come through at higher volume levels. The soundstage and holographic image depth and width and height is beautifully realistic. Listening to some electronic type music and hearing how sounds move from the back of the sound stage and then come toward the listening positions as if to run you over is a experience worth every cent paid.
Others have already posted reviews on the Exclame so this will not be a review. I will say though that I do also have a Exclame 100 to compare with and I can say that the improvements over the 100 to the upgraded 150SE are significant. I definitely have no regrets and this is probably and an endgame amplifier for me, and I think it would be difficult that a better amplifier could be had for the money.
I just wanted to thank and give honour again to Oom Schalk he is an incredibly upstanding individual, and the art pieces he creates are not unduly appreciated by their owners.
I'm not sure if my piece will be a one-off but for those interested on the upgrade I will list the Furutech components below:
Components:
FT-816（R) Carbon Finished Speaker Binding Posts
FP-900（G） High End Performance RCA sockets
FI-09 NCF Top-end NCF Performance IEC Inlet
Internal wiring:
FP-TCS31α (Alpha) PC-Triple C Power Cable
FS-α36 High End Performance α (Alpha) OCC Cable
Furutech High Performance Solder (4% fine silver)
My cabling loom has also been upgraded over time to some very "good" Furutech products and considering the improvement they have brought to my system I wondered what extra qualities we could excerpt from the Exclame amplifier if what was outside the box was also put inside the box.
I contacted @Schalk and after some discussion we came up with some parts that could be upgraded with Furutech components.
Next I contacted @JeandreB the distributor of Furutech in SA and ordered some "goodies".
I was a little nervous as to what improvements the upgrade would bring, since the cost was not going to be negligible.
The day Schalk let me know the unit was ready it was like being a child again the week before Christmas. Arriving to collect Schalk and I had had a short listening session together on his setup but at that point it was almost impossible to gauge any improvements, if there were any. Once I set it up at home and started listening on my setup which I was very familiar with, I could notice a difference however it was small.
For those that have purchased Furutech components you know that they can "open up" substantially after a few hours of initial use and I had high hopes that this would happen with the Exclame too.
I was right and after a couple of hours I could hear some nice differences and I was pretty pleased with the changes, but after more than 70 hours I can honestly say that subjectively this is a significantly better amplifier, the improvements are not subtle and qualities a music listener appreciates about music and sound are there in leaps and bounds.
Many of the components replaced are aimed at creating a darker listening background for the music to shine through and this enhances all the little details, nuances, and harmonics that musical instruments and voices have to offer. I can sit at low listening levels but enjoy ever bit of the sound that comes through the speakers and don’t have to push to hear those little details that sometimes only come through at higher volume levels. The soundstage and holographic image depth and width and height is beautifully realistic. Listening to some electronic type music and hearing how sounds move from the back of the sound stage and then come toward the listening positions as if to run you over is a experience worth every cent paid.
Others have already posted reviews on the Exclame so this will not be a review. I will say though that I do also have a Exclame 100 to compare with and I can say that the improvements over the 100 to the upgraded 150SE are significant. I definitely have no regrets and this is probably and an endgame amplifier for me, and I think it would be difficult that a better amplifier could be had for the money.
I just wanted to thank and give honour again to Oom Schalk he is an incredibly upstanding individual, and the art pieces he creates are not unduly appreciated by their owners.
I'm not sure if my piece will be a one-off but for those interested on the upgrade I will list the Furutech components below:
Components:
FT-816（R) Carbon Finished Speaker Binding Posts
FP-900（G） High End Performance RCA sockets
FI-09 NCF Top-end NCF Performance IEC Inlet
Internal wiring:
FP-TCS31α (Alpha) PC-Triple C Power Cable
FS-α36 High End Performance α (Alpha) OCC Cable
Furutech High Performance Solder (4% fine silver)
