[Mithat]

An article posted today to Stereophile outlines some challenges both the audio industry and audio consumers are currently facing. To help our valuable clients, instead or raising prices, we have recently:

• Reduced the price of the "DVA Digital Preamplifier" DAC from $2,499 to $2,199.
• Initiated a summer sale on many core system components: 15% off all analog preamplifiers, the DVA Digital Preamplifier, DVA M225 and DVA M750 Power Amplifiers, and the CA1 Control Amplifier.

Is there anything else AVA can do to keep the audio love flowing for you? Please let us know. But no politics, please. There are more appropriate places for that. This is about helping all of us -- consumers and manufacturers alike -- to continue doing what we love.

[YungestMarco]

Have you guys considered making a hybrid power amp like the fet valve 400R / 600R again? Would be nice to have that as an option when looking for a new power amp

[ckullmann1]

Great suggestion - I second that!

[cd45123]

Is the Vision RB preamp gone? Not seeing on the site.

A mono block version of the NP1 would be sweet.

[Rocket]

Hi,

It would be great if the AVA Ultravalve could be brought back from retirement. I'd buy one for sure.

All the best.

Regards Rod

[hawkmoon]

Another vote for Fet-Valve amplifers that use RCA inputs!

[Mithat]

Thanks everyone for your comments and suggestions so far. I'll try to come back soon with more specific replies and additional comments.

In the meantime, please keep them coming.

[Huskerbryce]

A 6 channel full balanced high fidelity class AB amplifier for home theater would be nice.  Something reasonable like 150-200 watts per channel. 

[G E]

Would AVA consider designing and building a pure Class A power amp like Pass Labs XA 160 or XA 200?

My Bryston 28 squared mono blocks are Class A for the first 50 watts and the sound is stunning. Above 50 it’s AB and quality falls off some.

[Mithat]

A mono block version of the NP1 would be sweet.

I'm glad you're interested in this. A solid-state monoblock using ANA could very well become a reality one day. In the meantime, please consider a pair of DVA M225's if you're looking for a monoblock setup. It's an amp that has made countless people incredibly happy, and we expect it will do so for quite some time yet.

[Mithat]

It would be great if the AVA Ultravalve could be brought back from retirement. I'd buy one for sure.

We would utterly love to bring back the Ultravalve. The issue is that the only reliable suppliers who make good A470-equivalent output transformers right now need so much for them that it would completely gut the value the amp represents. Translation: we'd have to charge so much for the amp that no one would want one.

I check periodically for potential new suppliers though. So rest assured, if and when it's possible to bring the Ultravalve back at a reasonable cost, we will. I've also considered redesigning the amp around a different output transformer. But I'll need to burn down my engineering TODO list some before I have the time and headspace to look seriously into this.

[Mithat]

A 6 channel full balanced high fidelity class AB amplifier for home theater would be nice.  Something reasonable like 150-200 watts per channel.

Home theater and two-channel audio are two distinct markets, with users having different requirements and expectations. Because we're a small company, years ago we had to make a decision to serve one or the other. Serving two-channel audio was the easy winner because it was what everyone here loves.

That said, we know there are users like yourself who are looking for true audiophile amplification for their HT setups. However, we found with amplifier product experiments in the past that there just aren't enough of you to get a return on the engineering, tooling, and marketing resources required for these products.

So, for folks like you, we suggest simply using multiple stereo and/or monoblock amps. If a 12V trigger input is a requirement, then consider the NP1, which has paralleled 12V triggers -- meaning you can easily daisy-chain three (or more) of them. It doesn't have the power you're looking for, but it still might work for you.

I do wish we were big enough to allocate the kind of resources needed to do HT right. I'm not saying this will never happen, but I don't think it's something AVA will be in a position to take on in the medium term.

[Mithat]

Would AVA consider designing and building a pure Class A power amp like Pass Labs XA 160 or XA 200?

Neither theory nor practice has demonstrated that a well-designed (important disclaimer!!) class AB amp has artifacts that are traceable to crossover phenomena. On the other hand, theory and practice have both amply demonstrated that class A amps require much more metal (heatsinks and transformers, essentially) for comparable power. And that metal is growing more and more expensive almost by the day.

So, if we made two equivalent-sounding amps, one class A and the other class AB, would you spend four or more times more on the class A version because you like the class A story?

Believe me, if I thought class A was the path to truth, I'd be all over it. But because this isn't the case and because of the very considerable additional costs associated with it, my personal view is that a class A power amp would be a distraction from AVA's mission of delivering high-value, honest products. But if we reach a point where the high-end audio market simply insists on spending more, AVA may have no choice.

[Rusty Jefferson]

....Is there anything else AVA can do to keep the audio love flowing for you? Please let us know. But no politics, please. There are more appropriate places for that. This is about helping all of us -- consumers and manufacturers alike -- to continue doing what we love.

Since you've asked...

I was going to email to ask if my DVA dac/preamp could have an AES/EBU input added?  It's my preferred interface rather than s/pdif (rca or bnc) or optical s/pdif.

Ultimately, it would be very attractive if the DVA dac/preamp could become a network device/streamer. Any consideration of adding this capability? Ideally, it would have an SFP optical ethernet and a standard cable ethernet port (inputs).

Thanks for the consideration.

[Mark-OFWG]

Mithat, you are probably starting to regret opening Pandora’s box but I am going to take advantage of the opportunity. Since someone previously mentioned hybrid amplifiers is there any plan to bring to market the prototype hybrid monoblocks that you played at AXPONA 2024. I have been patiently waiting for an announcement. I personally found those to be among the most musical and beautiful sounding amplifiers I heard at that show. I can say with confidence that if/when they come to market I will be one of your first customers.

Thanks and please keep providing us that escape into the music that soothes our spirit.

[G E]

Neither theory nor practice has demonstrated that a well-designed (important disclaimer!!) class AB amp has artifacts that are traceable to crossover phenomena. On the other hand, theory and practice have both amply demonstrated that class A amps require much more metal (heatsinks and transformers, essentially) for comparable power. And that metal iis growing more and more expensive almost by the day.

So, if we made two equivalent-sounding amps, one class A and the other class AB, would you spend four or more times more on the class A version because you like the class A story?

Believe me, if I thought class A was the path to truth, I'd be all over it. But because this isn't the case and because of the very considerable additional costs associated with it, my personal view is that a class A power amp would be a distraction from AVA's mission of delivering high-value, honest products. But if we reach a point where the high-end audio market simply insists on spending more, AVA may have no choice.

Thank you for your response!


My sole basis for preferring the A to AB is my Bryston 28 mono blocks. I hear a genuine difference between the two modes of operation.


I’ve heard your 225 mono blocks too!  They were driving VMPS speakers, the model down from mine. I thought they sounded pretty decent. As good as my Bryston?  No. But pretty darn good. And a fraction of the cost.


Nelson Pass must hear something in Class A as well. Pass offers a range of A and AB amps. If he didn’t feel Class A offered an advantage I’m sure he’d drop them from the line. But there they are!


No, I guess I’ll have to bite the bullet and get a pair of 160.8’s for myself. Probably used market but that’s OK. I have their XP-32 preamp and it’s amazing. Had their XP-22 for a few months and traded it in in60 days for the 32. It didn’t have the clean upper midrange and high end I wanted.


AVA showed me one doesn’t need to spend a fortune to enjoy great sound. But there comes a threshold where that last 10% is expensive to achieve. I’ll likely become a customer again when my hearing falls off in the coming years. I’m 70 so it’s a few years away yet


Take care and continue the great work!

[Mithat]

For those of you asking about hybrid amps (@YungestMarco, @ckullmann1, @hawkmoon, @Mark-OFWG), I'm not ignoring you. I'm just waiting for official word regarding what I can share of the roadmap of the amp we showed at AXPONA 2024.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

I love AVA gear.  But without starting a whole discussion, I find the Class A operation of my Pass X250 amp and other Pass amps that I have had the pleasure of hearing have a very natural and organic sound (I am going to regret selling my Pass as I downsize to a high powered integrated).  AVA does too but more so with Pass amps which cost at minimum 3-5 times as much and more.   AVA is a lot of bang for the buck.  Their 225 mono's and other amps (not including the R series) are very smooth and listenable without sacrificing dynamics.  They have a great musical midrange that is just right sounding.

[Mithat]

I was going to email to ask if my DVA dac/preamp could have an AES/EBU input added?  It's my preferred interface rather than s/pdif (rca or bnc) or optical s/pdif.

This is a request we get almost never, so I thought I'd ask for some clarification and insight. There are three aspects of the AES3 professional protocol, or what we commonly call "AES/EBU":

• The physical connector: 3-pin XLR or BNC versus RCA for coaxial "S/PIDF".
• The electrical spec: 110Ω balanced 2-7Vp-p on XLR, 75Ω unbalanced 1.0–1.2Vp-p on BNC versus 75Ω unbalanced 0.5-0.6Vp-p for coaxial "S/PDIF".
• The data encoding, which differs from "S/PDIF" only in moderately arcane ways).

Which of these is the basis for your preference and why?

To answer the question of whether it's possible to modify a DVA Digital Preamplifier to take an "AES/EBU" stream: yes, it should be possible. It would require both hardware (obviously) and firmware modifications. Changing to BNC would be less physically traumatic than XLR; in fact, I don't know where you'd stick a full-size XLR connector. Would AVA be willing to do the work? I'm not sure. This would require discussion with upper management. Would it be a cost-effective modification? No. You're looking at several hours of new firmware development costs in addition to the time needed to design, fabricate, and assemble the required hardware and electronic modifications. Will a future AVA DAC have an "AES/EBU" input? Sure, if there's an unexpected swarm of requests asking for it.

Ultimately, it would be very attractive if the DVA dac/preamp could become a network device/streamer. Any consideration of adding this capability?

Again, I'd love some clarification or insight on this. Why is integrating the network/streaming data extraction with the DAC attractive? Is it just about box count? As I discussed in The Right Amount of Integration, since protocols and expectations are still evolving wildly, we feel that separating these concerns is the way to go.

Which leads to the question: Why doesn't AVA develop a standalone streamer (i.e., one equipped only with a digital output)? The primary reason is that a standalone streamer is almost completely an IT/software product, and these require a very different kind of business. For example, how do you provide the intense level of user support s/w products invariably require? What's the process you'll use to invigilate upstream resources for security and other updates? How do you then push those updates out to users and (again) provide support when users invariably run into issues? AVA could set itself up to do these kinds of things, but none of this would make the audio itself better. It's even harder to justify when there already are folks providing products with decent standalone streamer functionality. What would AVA contribute to this?

Don't get me wrong -- I'm not shying away from software challenges. In my parallel life, I teach computer science at a local community college. I'm totally up for interesting software challenges. What I'm saying is that we have a hard time seeing the benefit for AVA clients when we could be using our finite time and other resources to develop solutions that directly make the audio better.

[cd45123]

This has been a great thread Mithat. Thank you for doing this.

Question: Is there any sonic advantage with removing the digital pre from the DAC product entirely?

I know it can be used as a standalone DAC but just curious on that front. There have been many standalone DACs without a volume control that have been very popular as of the last 4-5 years. I’ve considered getting the DVA DAC/Pre if only to see how this works as a standalone DAC and also replacing my AVA analog pre, but wondering if this is sonically a step of from the Vision line.