Price Paid:  $1098.00 from Quicksilver Audio

Summary:


I've recently gotten back into audio after a nearly decade's long hiatus.

Like many others long-term audio enthusiasts I decided that this time around
I would glean all that I have learned over the years (in my case 25 of them) in
owning a myriad of equipment.

My first purchase was a Linn Classk CD/receiver along with a pair of Linn Kan V speakers. The Classik would turn out to be the centerpiece of my latest system, offering excellent sound as well as a number of very worthwhile features.

In my travels I also purchased an old Systemdek IIX turntable which came with a very nice Grado Reference Platinum MM cartridge, and a short time later found a lightly used Sumiko Blue Point Special MC cartridge to use when I was not listening to the Grado.

I have long enjoyed tube audio gear and wanted to purchase a pair of low powered tube monoblocks to incorporate into my system. Since my last pair of tube mono's were the Quicksilver 8417's I decided to give QS a call and settled on a new pair of their mini mite monoblocks.

During my search I also learned of another pair of low powered (25wpc) tube monoblocks from Antique Sound Lab, which I also decided to purchase -- since I listen to this system for several hours a day -- and wanted to give the amp's a rest every now and then. Given the affordable price of these amplifiers I was able to afford to pairs of monoblocks for considerably less than many stereo tube amplfiers would have cost. And the fact that they are beautifully built is an another added bonus.

As it turns out both the Quickies and the ASL Wave 25's are superb sounding amplifiers which faithfully honor the music, while mating up quite well to the preamplifier section of my Linn Classik CD/receiver (or as I like to call it the Swiss Army Knife of High End Audio).

I've owned enough systems over the years to know that this one's a keeper.
I enjoy every moment of listening pleasure and no longer agonize as I used to
in considering all of the money that I once had tied up in hi-fi gear.

If the reader is considering a low power tube amplfier and has a pair of fairly efficient speakers (88db@1watt or higher), the QS Mini Mite and ASL Wave 25 quite literally no brainers.

Strengths:
The Quicksilver Mini Mite is a beautiful sounding amplfier with a warm, full and transparent midrange.

The excellent build quality and ability to use 6 (I believe it's six) different types of output tubes willl ensure that the Mini Mite's don't end up sitting in your closet as the QS 8417's did once the supply of these tubes was exhausted.

My old pair of QS 8417's were wonderful sounding amplifiers, however they quite literally ate 8417 output tubes. You could lower the bias but not without compromising the sound quality of these amplifiers. Fortunately, the Mini Mites
have been designed to be self biasing so that they are able to automatically optimize any of the output tubes that they have been designed for.

This also give the owner the ability to extensively "tube roll" the Quickies to tailor the sound to their specific tastes.

No one in the audio business has learned their lessons better than Quicksilver proprietor Mike Sanders, who continues to offer some of the best value in hi-end audio today.

Weaknesses:
At this price, hardly any. One would think the that low power of the Quicksilver Mini Mono would be problematic. However when played in a moderately sized room, and with efficient speakers, these amplifiers will play very loud and with a liquid midrange that is simply palpable. Oh that's right this section is supposed to be for weaknesses. None that I have found so far.

Similar Products Used:
Antique Sound Lab Wave AV 25 monoblocks

These are another affordable audio gem that come close to matching the Quicksilver Mini Mites in nearly everyway. The only real drawbacks are that
you must bias them manually, and that the only output tubes this amplifier will use
are 6L6's.

These caveats aside, the AV 25 monoblocks are a superbly musical little amplifier that like the Quicksilver Mini Mono's, match extremely well with later model Linn Kan speakers -- these include the Linn Kan series 3, 4 and 5.

Given the Kan's super affordable price -- $495 as of 2002 -- they are also a great value. There have been some "Kan purists" on the Web who insist that the later Kans are not nearly as good sounding as the first and second versions are.

However, this just hyperbole. While the later generations of Kans did not off the the facility to bi-wire or bi-amplify them, they still sound quite good -- arguably even better than the originals.

Build quality, while excellent, does employ the use of a less expensive cabinet, yet the drivers and crossover are still of a very high quality. No longer available new, all versions of the Kans have become highly sought after.

slawman

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $550.00 from Local Seller

Summary:
If you read Sam Tellig's review in the March 2001 Stereophile, you probably won't be suprised by my way-positive review of the great tube amps. I'll just add a few commentos of my own anyway, thank you, thank you verrry much. I recently moved into a much smaller listening room which I am able to customize a bit more than previously by adding some room treatment, dedicated AC, etc. When a pair of the Mini-mites came up for sale locally in Arizona, I jumped at the chance to check them out, and bought them after a (very) brief listening session - I didn't need a ton o' time to decide, that's for sure! They had EL-34s in them, and since I didn't have anything else around, that's how I've listened so far. After settling them in my rack, I powered them up for 45 minutes, and put on Loreena McKennitt's "the mask and mirror" CD. Well, I've read the Quicksilver reviews, had some other good tube stuff in here, but let me tell you, I was pleasantly suprised! First, and this is maybe too simple but it's true - they just sound right musically. They sound like music. No strain, no ooh-ahh highlighting of any one facet, just good music, flowing out with ease. Loreena's stellar vocal, backed by violin, cello, classical and Coral sitar guitars on the CD's 3rd cut "The Dark Night of the Soul" came in from out of nowhere, with incredible space and depth, revealing nuances I'd never heard before. Similarly, Nancy Griffith's "Southbound Train" from the CD FLYER gave up new vocal inflections and loads of gorgeous detail I had not heard before. The Mites replaced a very good Bedini 100/100 Class A amplifier that had been modified and rebuilt by Gary Bedini a year or so ago, and the 100 was no slouch at detail and air. But somehow, the Mites made everything come alive with (as Sam T calls it) that "lit from within" glow. And all this detail did not come with etch or stridency. In fact, I found I could listen longer without fatigue, even to recordings that I used to have to dole out in smaller portions. Make no mistake, there's no rounding off of highs, no roll-offs at all that I could detect. There's a magic happening here that just flat-out makes you want to listen more. One of my guilty pleasures is progressive rock music - The Flower Kings from Sweden are my latest "find". Their music is awe-inspiring, but let me tell you, the recordings are awe-ful. Take "Stardust We Are", perhaps their masterpiece recording from a few years back. Compressed, smashed, thin, edgy - you get the picture. Through the Mites, all the detail was there, but presto - I could sudddenly listen to whole epics, and there was some actual SPACE around instruments! No audiophile experience, but plenty listenable. You can roll lots of different tubes with these - they're self-biasing - and I'm looking forward to doing that shortly & will report back. I'm also driving them with a McCormack Passive pre - supposedly this is a no-no, but I can't hear any issues at all. Hmmmm... No downside musically that I've found yet....OK, they are only 25 watts, so you can overdrive 'em, but they play suprisingly loud without strain, even on my not-so-efficient B&W CDM1SEs. But then I am in a smaller room. Compared to an SE amp - the Decware SE84C is the only one I've had personal experience with - these seem to me to be more....honest, musically. I know SE is all teh rage, and maybe I didn't spend enough, but the Decware got too syrupy for me - the midrange sound is cool at first, but over time became irritating to me. I can't recommend these enough - look at the price, take a listen, and I think you'll feel the same way. How does Quicksilver/Mike Sanders do it? Who knows, who cares, but keep it going Mikey!

Similar Products Used:
Decware SE84C, Dynaco ST-70, Bedini 100/100, Acurus DIA 100

Zkidd

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
4.89 of 5, 9.00 votes

Price Paid:  $600.00 from Audiogon

Summary:
Seeing as how no one has taken the plunge and taken the time to write a review of these fine little monoblock amps, I'll go ahead and stick my neck out. I bought these amps to save my aging and rare Lumley monoblock amps. Going from large 85 lbs.each 150 watt monoblocks to 20 lb.25 watt monoblocks was going to be pretty interesting. But hey, the Quicksilvers allow you to "tube roll" and they take EL34s, KT88s, 6550's and my newly found favorite, the 6L6. Anyway, let's get into the review... These are great amps! I am not saying this to make myself look like a genius for buying them. These are the most under rated and under appreciated amps in the land of stereo. Now, there are certain caveats in these amps but if you correct these, you will be one happy listener! I got these about 3 weeks ago. I know that that is not long enough for a review but I have been playing the snot out of these amps for that time. They have shown me nothing but the professional attitude of a true performer. The EL34s that came with the amps are a great tube for transparency in listening, but lack a little kick in the bass. I have used KT88s and wow, the bass was there (and this is no joke, these have some serious slam for a small 25w tube amp) but the transparency in the midrange was just a bit off, to me anyway. To the rescue comes The Tubestore with a matched quad of 6L6 tubes. Well, let me say the transparency is there in spades and the bass as well. Mike Sanders of Quicksilver is right too, about using silver for speaker wire. I am using silver and it really opened up the sound of the amps. The soundstaging is wide and deep. The final caution is speakers. Hey, this is 25 watts! I am using Soliloquy 5.3s and they are loving these amps. Get some speakers that are fairly efficient and easy to drive and you will find that for a $1000 new you will have quite the amps. Lastly, I would like to echo the statement made by Sam Tellig in Stereophile. Though I often disagree with high end magazines, I am in complete agreement on this and that is his statement about how much these amps sound like single ended triode amps, or SET. I recently tried some Cary 300B monoblocks and I was not as bowled over as I expected to be. Now here I am listening to amps that are a third of the price of the Cary and I am much happier with the music I am hearing. The highs are delicate and airy, the midrange is warm and "lusty", and Lord, there is bass! The music is some of the best I heard! It all can be summed up by a comment made by my wife tonight. She heard me playing an Eva Cassidy CD and she asked me why I put the Lumleys back into the system. I asked why she thought that. She pointed to the Quicksilvers and said, "You mean those little things are giving you that much music? With the 'size' here (she means a large and expansive soundstage) I thought the Lumleys (at 150 watts) were playing". I think that helps sum it up. Oops, one last downside to the amps but it is easy to deal with. The amps have a barrier strip as opposed to binding posts. Just use smaller spades, or do like I did and take the Dremel tool to the plastic "walls" on the strip. Carefully grind away the unnecessary plastic and large spades can fit right in. I also heard the Mike Sanders of Quicksilver might have some adapters for the barrier strips if you use large lugs so you might want to check there first. Thanks for your time!

Strengths:
Crystal clear and warm midrange Exceptional soundstaging Great bass for its size Accepts several type tubes and only needs four output and two input so retubing is cheap Point to point wiring

Weaknesses:
Barrier strip for speaker wire 25watts if your speakers are inefficient but then if so, why would you buy these amps?

Similar Products Used:
Cary 300B monoblocks Lumley Signature Megavox 150