Most Wanted 2016

Decware Zen Mystery Amp ($5,695): The Zen Mystery Amp is a push-pull tube amplifier based on an ultra-linear design.  It’s a Class-A design, using two KT66 per side to produce a powerful 40-watts per channel with zero negative feedback.  Right from the start I was impressed with the gorgeous midrange that one expects, especially from a tube amplifier. Neither euphonic nor syrupy, this design boasts a very rich harmonic palette.  The sound is musically convincing and thus engaging: voices and instruments had a believable color, texture, and presence with palpable weight and solidity.  How does Steve Deckert offer all this performance for asking price on only $5,695.00, with lifetime warranty?  I don’t quite know but the Zen Mystery Amplifier is one of the best-kept secrets in high-end audio… ‘til now. (Key Kim)

Digital Audio Company Stereo Maraschino ($1000): Small, lightweight and as far as appearances and heavy-weight amps go, this little baby is almost laughable. Once installed however, I was gobsmacked with actually how good this little digital dynamo performed. Iinstalled this standard 48v version (a more powerful 60v version avalible for $1500.00), right up against the New Audio Frontiers 300B SE ($18k) and Grandinote Demone mono amps ($45k), and though not in the same realm in terms of overall sonic attributes, I could state for the record: the Stereo Maraschino produced a sound that was far more rewarding than I thought possible based on its size and price. Has a sweet, tube-like presentation with great low-end foundation to boot, thanks to its digital power-supply. Really impressive design. Review forthcoming! (Clement Perry) 

Grandinote Demone mono amplifiers ($45,000) and Domino preamp ($13,000): My first experience with these Italian-made devices occurred at the 2012 High End show in Munich, Germany. Didn’t know it at the time, but never heard a ribbbon/planar loudspeaker in the new Leonardo’s produce so fine a dynamic coupled to amazing low-end control as when driven by the Grandinote gear. Subsequently found out later while visiting the Leonardo facility in Italy how important their performance was related to the Grandinote electronics. No other amplifier they had on hand could reproduce music in the same incredibly warm and musical fashion, with a sense of control only solid-state designs can boast.

Well, now the Grandinote Demone and Dominos are here and connected to the Swiss-built SoundKaos Wave 40 loudspeakers where they’re producing harmonic delights that I had expected only from tubes. Add a sense of control, dynamics and finesse that’s associated to only the finest solid-state devices. Review in the works! (Clement Perry)

HiFiMAN Edition X V2 Headphones ($1,299.00): Well, I started with the Edition X V2 headphones early in the year and found them to be immensely musical and articulate. But I complained to HiFiMAN’s Fang Bain that the headband wouldn’t adjust low enough so I put the review on hold while that was addressed and other improvements were made. The resulting V2 surpassed my expectations providing a better fit to my noggin, more realistic soundstaging, and a blacker background with impressive retrieval of fine details I haven’t heard from any loudspeakers. Highly recommended! (Frank Alles)

LampizatOr 211 PP True Balanced mono amplifiers ($12,850/pair):  They feature a unique push-pull Class-A design using a pair of 211 SETs to produce a powerful 85-watts per channel.  It is not like a typical push-pull design; most of the time push-pull sounds inferior to SET because of the phase splitter circuit.  Instead, the 211 Balanced amps do not split the phase.  On the contrary, this monoblock is effectively two SET mono amplifiers in one chassis sharing an output transformer.  The signal is as pure as the SET but also provides error cancellations and humming cancellations due to mirroring of the signals. The 211 True Balanced amps render music beautifully with SET purity, transparency, and midrange with power and authority. (Key Kim)

New Audio Frontiers 300B SE Integrated ($18,000 Reviewed here): The Supreme 300B Special Edition is one heavy integrated amplifier. At ninety pounds it is perhaps the heaviest integrated amp I’ve encountered in recent memory. Even a casual glance at the Supreme 300B SE reveals its Italian heritage—it is gorgeouswith a wonderfully sculpted rose-gold and black chassis. This faceplate sets off a trio of control knobs for power, volume and input selection, and its carved mahogany side panels give it high marks for aesthetic excellence. At $18,000, the Supreme 300B is not inexpensive, but considering what else you can spend eighteen grand on, that may not get you half-way there, this purchase is a steal (Clement Perry).

Parasound Halo 2.1 Channel Integrated Amplifier ($2,500): The Parasound Halo 2.1 is a great sounding unit, with a feature set and preamp based on other well-regarded Parasound products and it’s power amp stage is a John Curl design, as are the circuits. The Halo 2.1 includes some future-proof features –  digital inputs, on-board crossovers and high quality, gold-plated connectors and both balanced and single-ended inputs. The theater bypass/amps input makes the Halo not only suitable for two channel use but also for powering the left and right channels in a surround sound system. With the Halo superior to any surround receiver, it can take the load off the receiver by powering the left and right channels separately, leaving the receiver to power the center and surround channels. However, in bypass mode, volume adjustments must be made from the surround sound receiver’s remote.

The Halo 2.1 provides 160 watts per channel into 8 Ohms and features a dual-mono power supply with an over-sized toroidal power transformer and the power amplifier section has good stuff under the hood. My power-hungry speakers, with their 83 dB sensitivity, were driven to a fair listening volume in our large loft, though at a higher volume knob position than I like. The Halo’s onboard DAC was warm, dynamic and engaging and the Halo’s included phono section was a very good sounding addition, with adjustments of both MM and MC cartridges included. (Greg Voth)

 

Silbatone RP300 Stereo Power Amplifier ($100,000.00): While this Korean-designed amplifier only produces less than 10W of power per channel, typical of a 300B driven amp, there is nothing typical about its sound. The way that the 300B has been executed here has never, nor will ever be, equaled anywhere else on earth. While one may flinch at the asking price, the fact that it is itself not only a beautiful piece of art, but produces timeless works of musical art every time it plays, goes a long way to justifying its price tag. A more detailed review is to follow soon. Meanwhile, if you are thinking of dipping your toes into the 300B world, do not make any decisions until you have heard this amplifier. Why? Because it redefines what is possible from the 300B vacuum tube. (Stephen Yan)

 

Wells Audio Majestic Integrated Amplifier ($3,599.00): At one point in my late 20’s I owned a $40,000 stereo system; all Naim and all bought second hand.  Out of necessity, I also owned a couch, a desk, an inflatable mattress and…  that was it (It was all I could afford after buying the stereo).  Later, I came to realize this was not a balanced lifestyle. I also came to hear audio equipment that pushed the exact same sonic buttons for me for much less moola.  Eventually, I bought a more comfortable, non-inflatable bed and other furnishings. My few remaining friends stopped describing me as “eccentric.” Flash forward 20 years and in 2016, for about 1/6 the cost of my former uber system, I managed to surpass it in nearly all regards.  Indeed, in combination with my trusty Tekton Lore Reference loudspeakers and Aqua Hifi DAC, the Wells Audio Majestic amplifier became the engine for the most musically consonant system I’ve ever assembled in my home, bar none. The Majestic came in for review and ended up changing what I now expect from my hi-fi.  It made music sound more like life and less like a bunch of electrons putting on a puppet show than any other audio device I’ve ever had in my home. Dead quiet, unassuming, minimalist, potent and palpable, the Majestic is for me an involving music machine that has set the bar high indeed. The best part? To own it, I don’t have to sell my non-inflatable bed. (David Abramson)