[blosert]

I recently purchased a VAC Avatar SE integrated amp.  In most respects, I the amp sounds wonderful: very alive sounding, good base (once the tubes got settled in), musical, holographic, etc.  But the amp sounds, to my ears, a bit bright when compared with other amps I've had in my system (Musical Fidelity, Parasound, Coda, a couple of others).  I am not a fan of brightness in an audio system, and so this is starting to bother me.

Is this simply a feature of the VAC house sound?  Is this distinctive to the Avatar?  Or is this not something others using VAC amps, and the Avatar specifically, have found?

My system includes: Intuitive Design Summit speakers (two-way stand mount, 89db efficiency, impedance no lower than 4 ohms, 6 ohms for the most part); a Marantz CD/SACD player, and synergistic research cabling (X4).

Thanks for any thoughts,
Tim

[Imperial]

You like to play a bit louder than average?

Imperial

[arthurs]

A friend of mine has Intuitive speakers with a VAC Phi 110, hopefully he'll see this and comment.  I heard no brightness in his system the last time I was listening at his place...

I run Phi 300.1's as mono's and have nothing resembling brightness in my system, detailed but very smooth and natural top end...not sure what to tell you here, I haven't heard the Avatar SE, but have heard plenty of VAC and never have heard them sound bright...

[Brown]

Bright is NOT VACs character. Has the unit been altered ? Modified ? Stock tubes ? Could be a Synergy issue with the speaker cables.

[richidoo]

blosert, is this your first tube amp? Treble of tubes is very different than the SS brands you mentioned. Maybe your system is voiced for those ss amps and is too much with pure natural treble of a premier tube amp. It may take some getting used to, but you will like the tube sound after your brain adjusts to the clarity and natural tone.

[Brown]

do we have a tube Virgin here ? I can't control myself, may the tubes be with you.

[jimmm18]

Tim

Hi.  Have you been able to figure out the brightness issue?  I have owned a VAC Avatar, non SE version, for the past seven years so I can tell you that I have HEARD that it can be bright but it is not that way for me.

What are you using for the rest of the tubes.  This amp is a chameleon based on the tubes you are using.  The valve arts are a great place to start with this amp though the stock chinese output tubes look the same.  I am using Cryo TAD but these just look like VA to me as well.  If you want a warmer sound try the mullards, more open try the EH.

Check the driver tubes.  Mind came with some USA made NOS.  Some of the amps seem to come with chinese tubes here.  This is where I would start.  VAC has NOS 12au7 on their website and these, so far, have proven the best choice.

I use GE 12ax7, long plate, horse shoe getters in the preamp section.  They have an open sound, great soundstaging, and detail, especially in the voice.  They are not NOS mullards and dont have the creamy mid which I find rather opaque

Mine came with JJ 12ax7 (non S version) and they are nice but not as transparent.

I am using Dali Mentor 2 speakers which are NOT tilled down speakers.

One last thing, what are you plugging the avatar into?  I use a cinepro20 Balance power conditioner (no longer made but was built by furman).  This really makes a diff and I can't listen to the amp without.

Once day I will upgrade mine to se status.  Just dont want to be with out it for 2-3 weeks.

[blosert]

Thanks to all that have responded.  Things have gotten noticeably better.  First, I think, as a first time tube user, I wasn't prepared for some of the sonic differences here.  The more I have listened to the amp, the more I've grown accustomed to the more sparkly, and clearer, high frequencies in this amp, and come to enjoy it.  Still, I wanted more warmth in the sound, so I've done a bit of tube rolling.  The first change was to replace the stock 12AX7s with some NOS Matsushida's that were recommended to me as a not-to-expensive option.  This made a real difference: the sound, across the board, is smoother, with a bit more bloom, less grain, and greater presence, as well as a touch more warmth.  Then I replaced the Valve Arts EL34s with SED Winged C's.  This warmed things up to a point where I am now thrilled with the sound of the amp.  In fact, though, I miss a bit of the extra extension and sparkle I had with the Valve Arts tubes. 

Regardless of the tubes I've used, though, the basic qualities of the amp have stayed basically the same, thankfully: there is still plenty of detail, plenty of liquidity, and a wonderful musical vitality that I haven't heard in any other amp I've tried in my system.   But now, in addition to these qualities, the sound is a bit warmer, a bit "rounder," and bit smoother than it was.

I really like this amp!  I doubt I'll be looking to change anytime soon. And tube rolling is really a lot of fun...