I have a pair of Heresy II with the rectangular input cup. I replace the capacitors on mine last March.   There are four (4) caps on each crossover. The caps are soldered to a small printed circuit boardthat is attached to the cup with

What are people’s thoughts on powering Heresy IV’s with a Topping MX5?   I’d like an all-in-one Amp and DAC for simplicity. Topping are very low distortion Class D amps paired with quality DAC‘S, however they are extremely neutral with minimal sound colouration so I’m worried will make the Heresy sound too clinical, compared to a warm vintage sound with a Class A or tube amp.   Heresy IV’s will be mainly used for home theatre, plus the occasional listening session. I listen to all genres from classical and jazz all the way through to electronic and hip hop.

I have taken pictures of both my units. One is from 2014 with musical note logo. Bought it second hand from @cincymat here on forum. Second unit is from ebay seller in Hong Kong(China in other words). Has 2023 date code. Seller wanted some astronomical $$ I bid them down considerably. Has the different logo. I will post the pics tomorrow...as far as I am concerned I have convinced myself the Hong Kong unit is genuine Xilica. I believe @Gnote also purchased one from same seller.

I don't believe anyone is born with a critical ear, it's something that is developed. Everyone's ears are liars to the ear's owner and the only way to hear the difference is to AB them. Too many times I have let listeners hear on system A their favorite tunes, and hear them say that they have never heard it sound so good. Then let them hear the same tunes on system B and let them hear what was missing on system A. Similar to your speakers and your whole system: You won't know what sounds better or worse without listening to what you have, then make a change. It's like adding salt to a plate of food without tasting the food first. A first-time buyer who buys the ultimate sounding system will not know how good it sounds. This hobby is not a destination, it's a journey.      I had a pair of HII with round cups, which made capacitor replacement more difficult. Although I have recommended you pump the brakes on any changes, if you're going to keep them, refreshing the capacitors is a move in the right direction.  To make a better sound now, as I see it, you have an ABC or more options. In descending prices:  A - refresh your amp with new caps and such (an amp that old really needs it) B - replace your amp but be selective about what you buy C - refresh your caps in the Heresy. 

Oh yeah, supposedly the kids are going back to school tomorrow on a 3 hour delay. They have only had one day of school since Dec 20th.  

I'm yet to see a Chinese knock-off of any audio equipment where they managed to make the logo appear identical to the original. I lost count of how many fake DSPs I came across over the years. Ebay had many of them for sale. U87 mics and other gear as well.   Attached are pictures of the original xilica units. It would be great to see the inside of some of these Chinese units so we can compare. There are too many for sale at the moment when Zilica said that they discontinued them.

The band made it over the mountain to TN on Saturday for our music video shoot. We were able to shoot everything on schedule and finish up in time to make our dinner reservation.   This week we’ve got to practice and nail down a handful of songs for a gig at a private party this Saturday.    

You mean the idents in the knob? That could change anytime I would think.

@Schu your second pic is the Xilica logo circa 2017 or 2018. The one with the musical note is older. I have both. I will de-lid.......neither is in use currently.

The room is quite large at 24ft x 20ft, however listening position will only be around 8ft away. They will be mainly used for home theatre, plus the occasional listening session. I listen to all genres from classical and jazz all the way through to electronic and hip hop.   I’d like an all-in-one Amp and DAC for simplicity. Topping are very low distortion Class D amps paired with quality DAC‘S, however they are extremely neutral with minimal sound colouration so I’m worried will make the Heresy sound too clinical, compared to a warm vintage sound with a Class A or tube amp