So it's been a month with the Chinook and I'm happy to report its a keeper, and rounds off the "End Game" components of the main system
A little on how this came to be, I've said many times that I tend to look at components for a given system in "price pools", meaning that usually components in the same $$ range seem to get along nicely, not to say there aren't components that "hit above" their price range. My budget for the main system has always been a simple $2-3K (ballpark) per component. With that said, I've always wanted to creep up the ladder with my phono stage, the Insight is a phenomenal piece of equipment, there are no qualms about that, but, the DUO was always there kind of taunting me, lol.
The speed bump, as it were, was the cost. Sitting at $4k it was more than I wanted to spend in keeping with my budget, so we slowly started weighing out the possibility of moving to the 20/20 ($2650 w/LPS). There were no negatives I could really find, I knew what to expect from Sutherland and the Insight was staying in the family either way, so it was decided to make the move.
Enter the Manley Chinook ($2800). Manley has been mentioned on the forum more than once, it wasn't a new name or anything, it just didn't seem to jump out in discussions (part of the reason I'm writing this). I logged on to Upscale Audio and brought up the phono stage page and sorted it by price, just to give one last glance at what was in the same price range as the 20/20.........and, literally, right next to the 20/20 sat the Manley Chinook SE MKII. I shot a PM to
@HiFi Guy to get his opinions and at the same time gave UA a call to pick their brains a bit about the 2 units.
So little sidebar, huge kudos to both UA and Manley for phenomenal customer service. I spoke to Josh at UA, a few times actually, and a couple of emails as well, in all probably spending close to 90 minutes comparing the two based on my rig, which he was nice enough to ask about, pull up the components to see their specs and use those in formulating an opinion. At the end of it all with all feedback processed we went with the Manley. What I did appreciate was UA breaking it down to this.......spec wise I would most likely enjoy either or, but if I liked the "tube" sound and what I was getting out of my PL I would probably enjoy the Chinook more. As for Manley, it was kind of shocking getting an email directly from EveAnna Manley after registering my Chinook, even more so when they gave me a shout back telling me they may have sent a unit without all the UA tweaks. After some research on their end it was confirmed my unit was fine, but something to take note of, they could have just as easily ignored the issue, it would have been really easy, but they didn't. And on top of that, it was EveAnna who was carrying on the correspondence with me, which was really crazy to me, but I appreciated so much..........I even got a free T-Shirt for my "troubles".
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So, how about this bad boy? It's brilliant, noticeably quieter background, silent. A more detailed, airy, dynamic sound with a fantastic mid-range and soundstage. The comparison is difficult, if not bordering on unfair, the Insight is a SS stage that I would categorize a level below the Chinook. If I were to compare, I would put the Chinook against the 20/20, if not something a little higher. At this price point and with what I'm hearing from it, in my opinion, you would be hard pressed to find better without a substantially higher investment.
The "Special Edition MKII" is in reference to the tweaks Manley added to this unit exclusively for UA. An expanded capability to handle load/gain requirements and UA "curated" tubes. The tubes were something that weighed heavy on this discussion with the Chinook, is stacking this with the PL going to make it "too tubey", whatever that actually means. I really fell in love with tubes, the tube sound, how ever you want to define it, with the PL, the Chinook has just brought that beautifully "liquid" sound up a couple of notches, if it's too tubey, it's a good thing. The Chinook does go through a factory burn in process and it was recommended to give it a week to really hit it's stride, to which I assumed 40-50 hours would get us in the "zone".
I think, as with anything, you think you've heard great until you hear the next "great". The Chinook, in comparison to the Insight, does take music/vinyl to another level, once again I sit amazed at how different certain albums sound, how much they've opened up. While some phono's tend to reveal the flaws in crate finds or "lesser quality" recordings, the Chinook actually does a really good job of making audiophile recordings sound jaw dropping, and not so hot pressings enjoyable. The Chinook is a really easy listen, its comfortable, its not strained in any way when you sit down to listen to a variety of music. Full, lush, detailed with an overall natural sound.
I do like sticking to things that I know work and work to my liking, but I'm glad I decided to go a little outside the box on this one, if you're in the market and in this price range put it on your radar, If you're considering a 20/20 I would toss the Chinook right next to it, it's a phenomenal piece of equipment.
