Price Paid:  $1100.00 from eBay

Summary:
Canary is a little known audio manufacturer located in California. They have a reputation for quality hand built, clean sounding units. I was in the market for a tube amplifier having decided that my old NAIM (NAP 110, NAC 42.5)gear had to go. I won the amp on eBay..new in the box..with warranty. Unpacking the unit was fun, as it should be, and I was immediately struck by the solid construction and very clean wiring. This amp weighs in a 55lbs. It''s beautiful. It has a gold faceplate (the blue faceplate seen on their website is from earlier units). It uses 4 X EL 34''s (Ei Big Bottle) and 4 X 6SN7GTB''s. I hooked it up to a Sonic Frontiers Line 1 (another eBay find) and wired them up with TMC Tellow Label. Speakers are Canadian manufactured Angstrom Radix 400''s..discontinued but well worth the price when I bought them years ago. I use TMC Gold Reference for the hookup. The front end used is an Esoteric CD-Z5000...another oldie but a goodie for the price way back when, but it will have to go soon, possibly an Aero Prima.. Conclusion: This is an excellent amplifier bordering on great ! It does everything well. Bass response is excellent for a tube amp..(destroys the old NAIM units). The soundstage is now very large bordering on huge on some recordings. Depth was good but would probably be better with a newer CD player(Aero Prima ?).. Mids are gorgeous with beautiful rendition of string instruments and horns. The human voice is rendered with a beautiful warmth and clarity. High frequencies are clean and free of harsh grain. Lots of air. Overall, with any kind of music(I listen to everything) you get a silky smooooooth and well balanced sound with lots of extension at both frequency extremes. On good recordings it provides a sense of being "there" with the musicians. For the price I paid it''s a steal. You''d have to pay upwards of 4-5K to get much better. Highly Recommended

Strengths:
Smooooth, clear, very detailed and full sound. Very good stage depth. Lateral stage can be huge on some recordings. Bass response is surprisingly good for a tube amp. Mid frequencies are lush and full but not exaggerated. Excellent portrayal of strings, human voice and wind instruments. Very good control. Presents music is a very satisfying way. I would say that it''s more neutral than coloured.Natural. Very good dynamics.

Weaknesses:
Bass can be boomy so choose the right cable to compensate..I used TMC Gold Reference speaker cable with TMC Yellow Label IC''s with excellent results. If you hook up your CD directly to it the sound can be a little forward. Team it with a good preamp (SF Line 1 is great)

Similar Products Used:
Anthem, Bryston, Naim, Linn, Rega, Cary

Price Paid:  $1100.00 from eBay Auction

Summary:
Canary is a little known audio manufacturer located in California. They have a reputation for quality built, clean sounding units. I was in the market for a tube amplifier having decided that my old NAIM (NAP 110, NAC 42.5)gear had to go. I won the amp on eBay..new in the box..with warranty. Unpacking the unit was fun, as it should be, and I was immediately struck by the solid construction and very clean wiring. This amp weighs in a 55lbs. It''s beautiful. It has a gold faceplate (the blue faceplate seen on their website is from earlier units). It uses 4 X EL 34''s (Ei Big Bottle) and 4 X 6SN7GTB''s. I hooked it up to a Sonic Frontiers Line 1 (another eBay find) and wired them up with TMC Tellow Label. Speakers are Canadian manufactured Angstrom Radix 400''s..discontinued but well worth the price when I bought them years ago. I use TMC Gold Reference for the hookup. The front end used is an Esoteric CD-Z5000...another oldie but a goodie for the price way back when, but it will have to go soon, possibly an Aero Prima.. Conclusion: This is an excellent amplifier bordering on great ! It does everything well. Bass response is excellent for a tube amp..(destroys the old NAIM units). The soundstage is now very large bordering on huge on some recordings. Depth was good but would probably be better with a newer CD player(Aero Prima ?).. Mids are gorgeous with beautiful rendition of string instruments and horns. The human voice is rendered with a beautiful warmth and clarity. High frequencies are clean and free of harsh grain. Lots of air. Overall, with any kind of music(I listen to everything) you get a silky smooooooth and well balanced sound with lots of extension at both frequency extremes. On good recordings it provides a sense of being "there" with the musicians. For the price I paid it''s a steal. You''d have to pay upwards of 4-5K to get much better. Highly Recommended.

Strengths:
Smooth, balanced sound with excellent soundstage width and depth.Detail is nicely brought out. Involving presentation of music. Instruments are well defined and nicely positioned. Midrange is clean and full with a liquid texture. High frequencies are smooth and clean. Things sound controlled..like the amp is "in charge of the situation"...Overall very very satisfying sound.

Weaknesses:
Bass can be boomy and can obscure detail A judicious choice of cables cleans this up nicely. The TMC Gold Reference speaker cables/Yellow Label IC''s did a nice job of tightening it up. Dynamics aren''t tremendous but I''m being really picky now. If you hook up your CD player to it directly (no preamp) the sound can get a little forward. A nice neutral preamp ( SF Line 1 is super) should do the trick.

Similar Products Used:
Naim, Cary, Counterpoint, Rega, Arcam, Anthem, Linn