Andrew - same question as well? Is the turntable also new?
I have a dear friend who just went from Vivaldi to Bartok, but not for the normal set of reasons.
I will say, as someone who as an aversion to “boxes” (ex Naim owner) there is something to behold in a minimalistic system. My friends simplified system (photo cropped for privacy)
DarTZeel 8550 Integrated + Bartok APEX = STOP
for me the “ultimate” 2 box high end system
Not sure if Andrew managed to make enough room for Varese on his rack.
Stop teasing the community. !
Less is more?
Like the bikes and more especially the slide sandals on the left…
Is there anything else to be seen on this photo?
Love your floors Andrew! are you making way for a Varese?
Well, sometimes you have to downsize in order to upsize. As usual, @Ermos called it - back in November 2024!
Congratulations, Andrew.
I am envious!
LIFE GOALS!
(Your Bartok is looking on in the same way I suspect our dog would if we got another dog.)
Congratulations, Andrew 
Great stuff, looking forward to seeing it unpacked. And now I really should invite myself over to Sweden sometime 
I see I started some sort of trend by packing up my stack 
Congratulations Andrew
Now the big question - how are you reconfiguring “our” silver rack?
Not ideal but it will do for now. My T2 is temporarily confined to storage.
It feels like after a lifetime of doing this I am starting to reach the summit of Everest!
My OCD is telling me that running mono DACs into a stereo amp is just wrong. But that’s a problem for another day..
Surely, you’re now there…? 
I’m certainly there as far as my source is concerned!
Andrew, what are your plans/thinking for upgrading the rest of your system in order to let the Varèse demonstrate its full capability?
Haha, pretty much everything else is now the bottleneck! Although I am very happy indeed with the darTZeel, I realize dual mono amps are inevitable now I have dual mono DACs. Then there are my darling Ktêmas. They make beautiful music just the way I like it, but they’re not quite up there with the best I’ve heard (one of the best, and worst, parts of my job is that one becomes thoroughly spoilt). Once speakers and amps are decided it will be time to revisit racking and cabling and accessories. Luckily I’m in no hurry because we’re talking a good few (hundred) paychecks!
Not difficult to find a pair of DarTZeel mono blocks 
Love it Andrew. Expensive times ahead.
Hope you got some nice discount on the Varese, or hasn’t it been spotted missing yet?
