[bdfein]

I recently purchased the Audio by Van Alstine (hereafter AVA) Transcendence digital to analog converter (hereafter DAC) and FET-Valve 350 hybrid power amplifier. My system now consists entirely of AVA’s top of the line components including one of their Transcendence preamplifiers and Biro L-1 loudspeakers complemented by a Biro Kensington subwoofer.

Surprisingly, the amplifier and digital to analog converter made similar improvements in my system’s sound (the amplifier had a greater effect on bass quality while the DAC had a greater effect on imaging). Since these components have many more commonalities than differences, I am submitting similar reviews for each. Anyone considering purchasing both should note that the improvement they made when used together was even greater than one would expect by “adding” their individual contributions.

First of all, the AVA FET-Valve 350 made my system’s sound dramatically more realistic. I suspect this realism was due in part to its superior transient response from the lowest bass to the highest treble. Where most electronics emphasize high frequency transients and shortchange the power of the midrange and the bass, the FET-Valve 350 captured the power and weight of live music more accurately than I have ever heard before. For me – and for all who have listened to my system – the FET-Valve 350’s combination of power and resolution dramatically enhanced the listening experience.

Like the sound of live music, the sound of my system with the AVA FET-Valve 350 is effortless. Like live music, the AVA FET-Valve 350 sounds amazingly powerful; music reproduced over lesser equipment, by contrast, often sounds strained and compressed. Of particular note is the FET-Valve 350's phenomenally accurate reproduction of bass frequencies. Fundamentals are reproduced with clarity, control, and power -- often more felt than heard, and always convincing.  

Regardless of the level at which it is played, my AVA system with the FET-Valve 350 amplifier is able to capture the subjective “size” of instruments. As those of you who attend concerts of unamplified music know, even a solo flute on the stage of a concert hall sounds huge. Most systems make instruments sound small and anemic, thus robbing music listening of much of its joy. My AVA system, with the FET-Valve 350, preserves much that of fascinating and enjoyable sense of size. It also reveals the location and dimensions of sound sources – from human bodies to the bodies of guitars) with remarkable clarity.

With the FET-Valve amplifier, my AVA system is able to capture the subtle tonality of instruments more accurately than I have ever heard elsewhere. On most systems, it is difficult to know whether you are listening to a violin or viola over much of the range they share. With AVA electronics, making such distinctions is effortless. This same characteristic makes it easier to distinguish voice from one another, and make it easier to appreciate the expressive artistry of voices and instruments. When I listen to discs I know well, the FET-Valve amp revealed expressive subtleties I never knew were there.

Finally, where the vast majority of electronics sound harsh when attempting to reproduce sibilants (s’s, t’s, and f’s), the attacks of trumpets, and the brightness of violins, the AVA FET-Valve amplifier reproduces theses sounds naturally and sweetly, while providing unsurpassed resolution of high frequency information.

In sum, the realism, excitement, and listening ease of AVA’s new FET-Valve 350 amplifier transform listening to reproduced music into an adventure. It is a remarkable technical achievement and, at its price, an equally remarkable bargain. I recommend it – even to those who think know how good reproduced music can be – without reservation.

Please feel free to contact me at bdfein@aol.com if you wish to correspond personally.

[Hajime Sato]

Thanks for the detailed impression. I've recently found out about AVA through this forum and am intrigued by the business model and philosophy of the company. I'm especially interested in the power amps, and I have a question.

What power amp(s) did you use in your system before the AVA, and how did the FET-Valve 350 compare? Thanks.

[bdfein]

The enthusiasm of the review was a response to the improvements AVA made when I last returned my amplifier (and digital to analog converter) to them for upgrades. Their previous stuff had been excellent (and easily as the sonic equal of vastly more expensive Audio Research, Krell, Levinson, Conrad-Johnson, and Quad electronics (and much better than a wide variety of lesser-known and lesser-esteemed brands I recently auditioned). However, the current versions of their equipment are simply spectacular (as described)!

A friend whom I accompanied on an audio odyssey to high-end shops in Pennyslvania, Virgnia, and Maryland (I also went to shops in Toronto and New York; he went to additional shops in Florida) searching for his "dream system" ended up purchasing a system identical to mine. He viewed my sound as the most accurate he'd heard. I agree. We used a collection of his reference recordings and mine with which we had gained familiarity through repeated listening, and which were chosen for their ability to reveal equipment strengths and flaws.

It is, of course, difficult to compare the qualities of amplifiers in different systems. However, regardless how exotic the system (and we listened to very expensive and highly-reviewed equipment), we never heard sound that equalled mine.

I hope this is helpful.

[Hajime Sato]

Thanks!  It was helpful.