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Summary:

I owned many 300B amps before...and auditioned many others...this rates as one of the very best.

Granite Audio is no big name like Audio Note nor Cary, its product not super sexy looking. But what you paid for is superb workmanship, quality, and a truely sweet and musical amp.

The 8wpc SET rating on this amp is truely deceiving.....my previous 300B amps like Audio Note, Cary, ICL, Welborne Labs all sounded like 4wpc. I have to drive them hard to get good attack on some Mahler tutti passages. The Aspen 800 sounds much more authorative...may be the most authorative of all.

(I know I must be nut to use an SET amp to play Mahler or Bruckner - but the sound from 300B is too glorious....EL34 nor 6550 just doesn't do justice to the Mahler sound).

Comparing to other SET amps that I owned before....this Aspen 800 is easily in the top 3, with the Gamma Rhythm (an British made, 211-based SET) the best sounding of all. This amp will stay in my setup for a long long time.

Strengths:
Just heavenly musical.

Weaknesses:
Well it's no big name and no sexy gimmick look.

Similar Products Used:
ICL Softtone 300B SET integrated (nice sounding budget 300B integrated)

??? (Chinese made audio crap) 300B integrated - no longer made - rest assured the unsold are broken into parts that are now in other Chinese amps

Ming-Da blah blah blah (an 300B driving an 805 SET) - what a disaster it sounded. BTW it is deliberately made very bulky so even a legally blinded person won't miss kicking it...thus voiding the useless warranty

Antique Soundlab AQ1006-845 (an 845 SET monoblock) - AbsoluteSound award-winning, and the reviewer is also legally deaf

AudioNote Quest - great sounding....but at such a ridiculous price

Bel Canto SET-40 (805 based SET...just average)

Gamma Acoustics Rhythm SET integrated (super hard to find, 211-based...the best in my experience)

KR Audio VT6000BM (solid state sounding....ranked 2nd in my experience)

Welbourne Lab Laurel 300B monos (an OK product if you could get rid of the buzz and hum)

Welbourne Lab Apollo monos (it uses some funky $800 a pair KR Audio tubes....an OK product anyway if you could get rid of the buzz and hum)

A few others I don't quite remember (that means they are too average to be
remembered)