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Review 2 of 2
Price Paid:
$0.00
from Lockridge Hi Fi - Ca Summary:
This is my first foray into the Tube world - it was prompted by the earlier purchase of a tube Guitar Amp - a VOX. This amp was so vibrant and yet smooth I thought I would that maybe a tube amp for my audio system might be of some benefit.
WOW - was that ever an understatement!
So off I went (with my speakers) to my buddies at Lockridge Hi-hi, just north of Toronto. They setup the SP 120 with a couple of different CD players and the review began.
I had a couple of CD's that covered pretty much all genres of music that I tend to play more frequently - Classical, jazz, solo artists and some Annie Lennox, Hootie and Nellie Furtado
The in store test was pretty much what I expected - a very clean and controlled delivery, extremely spacious soundstage, very well controlled low end and beautiful clean and smooth highs
One problem with an in store demo is it is not the same as your home - we had to play with the position of the speakers, which were very boomy at times, but we eventually figured it out
So far your probably thinking - Were's the WOW ?
Well - I had heard the amp a few time before at the store and was suitably impressed, so based on that I purchased the unit. - OK I was a little more impressed than it appears above..
The WOW came when I got it home and connected it to the rest of the system.
Once out of the box I allowed it 15 minutes to warm up and then started going through some more material - it was then that the frenzy set in!
I could not believe the magnificent sound of this amplifier - smooth, clean ,detailed, controlled, spacious.
I could pick out individual musicians across the soundstage. Various types drums came to life and sounded incredible, bass details I have never heard before lept out and the voices were so smooth. And there was depth - finally I have depth
I have a BB King CD that I had found difficult to listen to because it sound so harsh - with this amp it sounds amazing.
Album after album was frantically searched out and tracks played and every one sounded incredible. I spent the whole day listening.
My conclusion is that this amp alone has sparked an enthusiasm in me which had been lacking for several years.
The look of the unit is impressive and the weight too.
It gets a little warm - so if you have kiddies mount it high on a strong stand out of reach if little fingers
It is a very simple unit - volume and an input selector with 4 inputs and a 4 or 8 ohm load capability - that's it.
The finish is amazing and it looks really cool too!
It does have a remote control (cheap plastic), but the boys at Lockridge supply the upgraded metal control for free.
The volume control is a little different in that the change is not immediate - it adjusts the volume to the newly selected level at a predefined rate - a little strange.
It likes reasonably efficient speakers so I'm told - so I would suggest another model if you have exotic speakers that need a lot of power - but I have seen this one handle sever floor standing models in the store, including Tannoy and the smaller Neat floor standing speakers with ease.
My setup is:
- Magnat Speakers (German 3-way design - 8" woofer)
- Pioneer Elite DVD
- Rega P2 with RB250 and Ortofon cartidge
The previous amp was an old Yamaha Receiver - so now you know why I found such a huge difference!
This amp is designed in Toronto and manufactured in China under very tight quality control.
If you like all genres of music then give this amp a listen - it will not disappoint you. - you can listen to this puppy all day without fatigue - trust me!
I now use the Yamaha for it's Tuner section and this amp even makes the radio sound good.
The upgrade for me was mazing - if you haven;t tried a tube amp get out and give this one a listen. Strengths:
The sound, the amazing sound - definitely lots of WOW!
Impressive to look at
Heavy - thieves wont bother taking it
Simplicity, nice design and finish
Did I mention the sound? Weaknesses:
Cheap remote - but the metal one is only around $20
Heavy - needs a good stand Similar Products Used:
None - this is my first Tube amp - and probably my last - it looks like it will last forever.
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