I own the Heed Obelisk SI mk2 with the separate x2 power supply which I purchased used for £600. Drives my Opera Callas monitors (86db, 6ohms) faultlessly. Warm natural tones with great texture & decay, top to bottom. Solid & smooth, never sounds strained at any volume I care to listen at. A good looking, minimalist integrated that punches well above its weight. An outstanding buy used. On a completely different level to the Arcam A85 it replaced. Responds well to a better power cord.

A bit cramped round the back. Remote is very basic but Arcam remotes also work, so I can use one for both my CD player & amp. Perhaps lacks a little air, but that is being picky & could be my aged ears !

2 years ago I buy a "Obelisk i" in Hamburg to feed my "epos es 14" with a nice priced integrated amp...and after checking a creek destiny amp, who was totally not my taste, I was fully satisfied with this little heed.
I know Richard Hay's amp's back in da 80's, when I had a nytech pre/power combi on a arc 050 loudspeaker, I never forget that system with lp 12 and supex sd 900e super cartridge...after loosing that stuff I've always looking and dreaming to touch that highly emotional art of music reproduction again...naim wasn't it, exposure wasn't it, a tube amp wasn't it...
Now I finally reached that "turning point" again with those wonderful heed amps, I upgrade my obelisk i a few months later with a x-2 power supply and then with the obelisk power amp to bi-amp my epos es 14, and that was the real thing!
The Obelisk on it's own is a great bargain and a tube-like music machine, very involving, but the upgrade possibilities by heed let them grow up very high, I must say that any time I switch my 3 heed's on, the music shines, with authority and lively dynamics...high resolution(front end is a Resolution Audio CD-50!) and top timing + huge power, yes, it seems they can't clip, like real fat tube amps they act...;-)
I think it's hard to get an better amp for the money and far beyond and a nicer one to watch...!! - sorry 4 my english, I'm german guy;-)

This is an impression of the Heed Audio Obelisk Si with external power supply X-2. The first thing that surprised me after connecting the obelisk was that there was nothing to be surprised about. Even new out of the box it did what It was developed for. Amplifing music. Nothing special, no highlighting. Just some limitations at the frequentie extrems. But that's common without burn in time. I just let it play for about 10 days 24/24. There's no on and off switch anyway so they always stay turned on. At iddle they only use 5W or so. In these 10 days I got more and more attrackted to the little magic these Obelisks do. Ofcourse I know my music but over the Obelisks my cd's sounded really .... uh good. From my desk ( I work at home ) I more and more often turned my head looking at my set. Ok I know that cd very well but I never experienced it this way. It became increasingly clear to me that this black box did something extraordinary. For my feeling it had something to do with the way of presenting the recorded music, or better presenting the recorded space with the musicians in it. The Obelisk is a physically small device but it began growing more and more. If you feel that you have a special device than you go listen to them more specifically. So I began firing the hardest music to him to see where the weaknesses are. All music I know very well ( jazz trio, bigband, piano, trumpet, gitar, femal vocals and some classical symphonies). And after listening to the (whole) Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker" I was really flabbergasted. How in the hell was it possible that this tiny looking 50W rated shoe-box amp was able to build/reproduce a gigantic 3 dimensional, clear soundplatform for this piece of music. I couldn't believe that the whole orchestra was there in my living room, playing so clear and loud that the tears cluthered my eyes. Even the huge dynamic hurdles on this tube recorded Philips cd were taken with the least effort. Never did the picture get cluthered, amazing. It didn't matter what material I fed it with it always made music out of it. Always in balance with the right pace and rhythm and always this 3D performance. Plenty of details without highlighting them but revealing them in a natural way as if you were looking at the performance too. And that's what makes it so special. This amp is really able to create an image (3D) of the recording and all the musicians in it. Each instrument is visibly present and each has its own place on the stage. The tonal richness and harmony is very high and tonal decay is very natural. All these elements create a feeling of being there with the recording. Amazing.
Does this amp has no weaknesses then? Of course. But they don't come to your attention because it is the music that grabs you. My Leben CS600, which I also love, is a tube integrated that cost 2 times as much. It's maybe a little more refined and transparent then the Obelisks. The Leben is also an amp that brings the music into your room and let you enjoy it for hours and hours. But when I listen to the Obelisks I don't miss my Leben or other tube amp. I just don't miss the tube(s) in it and that's very special to me. They hardly run warm, they are easy to handle and place and they look nice too. ( if they only could make these blue leds less flashy).

- Warm tube-like sound
- Small size
- Can be upgraded by external power supply for more bass and precision.

- The sound (for those who are looking for modern hifi sound)
- The remote is quite rediculous - a huge plastic AV remote for DVD-player, TV etc - and it's for volume only
- Simple on/off-switch on the back, not the kind of switch you would trust for years
- Slight humming sound from the amp
- Very flashy blue LED that is able to illuminate a dark room by itself. When do manufacturers understand that this is NOT cool?

This is a review of the Obelisk i. Its a nice little amp with basic functions only. Although not very powerful by specifications, it drives Sonus Faber Concertinos with ease and style. Its strength is obviously its warm and organic sound, it is very musical and makes listening a very pleasing experience. Although in disciplins like accuracy, precision and speed it is mediocre at best, it makes listening a very pleasing experience. Perfect amp for small analogue setups.

Similar Products Used:

Luxman, Electrocompaniet, EAR, PrimaLuna, NAD