[jimava]

Thank you to those who visited our listening room at AXPONA 2026 this year, where we unveiled three new products: the FVA1 Monoblock Power Amplifier, the L1 (Linear One) Stand-Mount Speaker, and an updated AVA DAC 2. Preorders open in early summer 2026 at avahifi.com.


The FVA1: The FVA1 is AVA's flagship monoblock amplifier and the first product to employ the company's new Fet Valve Advanced (FVA) hybrid architecture. The design pairs a tube input stage - using an ECC83/12AX7A dual triode - with a high-performance class AB solid-state output stage, bridged in a differential (monoblock) configuration.
https://avahifi.com/products/fva1-monoblock-power-amplifier

The L1 Loudspeaker: The L1 is AVA's first fully branded loudspeaker, and it arrives with serious engineering ambitions for its price class. The two-way stand-mount design centers on four key technical choices that work together to produce what AVA calls a smoother, more transparent, and more imaging-focused result than conventional speakers in this range.
https://avahifi.com/products/l1-linear-one-stand-mount-speaker

The AVA upgraded DAC 2, now updated for Spring 2026, is AVA's statement digital-to-analog converter and preamplifier. Built around a famed AKM DAC IC and custom discrete class-A gain cells, the DAC 2 retains a fully differential signal path from input to output - meaning the balanced architecture of the digital-to-analog conversion stage is preserved all the way through to both the XLR and RCA outputs.
https://avahifi.com/products/dva-digital-preamplifier-dac-2

Full Press release is below
https://avahifi.com/blogs/news/audio-by-van-alstine-debuts-three-new-products-at-axpona-2026


Thanks!

Jim

[RonN5]

Thanks for getting the "new products" posted on AC and your website so quickly after the show.

It would be great if you could show more pics of the speakers asap...different finishes, sides, rear, and especially grills on

Also, did AVA once upon a time sell a speaker also called an L1....or actually the Biro L/1?

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=4345.0

[cd45123]

Maybe we can get some insight on using the DAC 2 as a digital preamp. Why can this be better than using a traditional analog pre and what updates/changes have been done to improve the product?

I have to commend you for a great show at Axpona with these 3 products, very exciting!

[Huskerbryce]

What characteristics and sonic difference is the FVA1 compared and contrasted to a DVA M750?  Has anyone compared the two?  I see the gain on both amps seems high around 29db.  Can anyone from AVA who has heard the two chime in?  Very curious to know listening impressions.

[jimava]

Thanks for getting the "new products" posted on AC and your website so quickly after the show.

It would be great if you could show more pics of the speakers asap...different finishes, sides, rear, and especially grills on

Also, did AVA once upon a time sell a speaker also called an L1....or actually the Biro L/1?

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=4345.0

Thanks for the post. We are still working thru what finishes we will offer and will share more as we get closer to launch. Concerning the Biro speakers, please see Mithat's newest blog post on the topic, which helps fill in the history to date.
https://mithat.avahifi.com/blog/2026/04/speakers-again

[jimava]

Maybe we can get some insight on using the DAC 2 as a digital preamp. Why can this be better than using a traditional analog pre and what updates/changes have been done to improve the product?

I have to commend you for a great show at Axpona with these 3 products, very exciting!

Thanks for the Axpona feedback. Concerning the DAC2 as a preamp - if most of what you listen to is digital and you don't need to manage multiple (potentially analog) sources, then it can be a great fit. Streaming or CD transport directly in works simply and it makes for one less component on the shelf. Alternatively, if you a) want to impart a different signature or more precisely manage your music, and/or b) have multiple sources across digital and analog domains, then one of our (or a competitor's) preamp might suit the situation better. The updates to the product are evolutionary. We are using an updated AKM chip, and have improved on two of the circuit boards.

Cheers,

Jim

[YungestMarco]

If I wanted to use the DAC 2 with the Fet Valve CFR, would I turn up the volume up all the way on the Dac and adjust volume on the preamp or is there a setting on the DAC 2 that uses it at a fixed output?

[RonN5]

@jimava

Thanks for the update regarding the mithat designed LC1 speakers....based on everything else he's done with/for AVA, I think we know they are going to sound good!

A question I'd like to ask...either/both of you.  What is the sound profile you are going for that will be compelling for buyers?

The $2-3k speaker market seems to be getting more and more crowded with lots of new products every year.  I just read the Buchardt is replacing their very successful s400mkll with a mklll as an example...using a 7.5" paper driver and a 1" aluminum dome. 

Another would be Chesky coming out with their own  Chesky Audio lc2 with a 7" driver and 1" textile dome  (hmmm...they are also using the LC designation)

And then obviously there are the KEFs, MOfIs and many more...

So, I'd just say that the more you can tell the market and the sooner, the more buzz you can create for AVA. 

[jimava]

What characteristics and sonic difference is the FVA1 compared and contrasted to a DVA M750?  Has anyone compared the two?  I see the gain on both amps seems high around 29db.  Can anyone from AVA who has heard the two chime in?  Very curious to know listening impressions.

Concerning the FVA1's -vs- the M225's and M750's: The solid state (M225 and M750) amps are a bit more revealing and precise; they seem to have stronger attack and play clean without being bright, whereas the FVA1's are a shade smoother and more forgiving, but not overly so, and play more relaxed. We used both at Axpona for 16+ hours, same music set and found the FVA1's excelled at vocals and classical/acoustic guitar tracks - no listening fatigue.

Thanks
Jim

[jimava]

If I wanted to use the DAC 2 with the Fet Valve CFR, would I turn up the volume up all the way on the Dac and adjust volume on the preamp or is there a setting on the DAC 2 that uses it at a fixed output?

Hi - yes, you'd just turn the DAC2 volume all the way up.

thanks
Jim

[Huskerbryce]

Concerning the FVA1's -vs- the M225's and M750's: The solid state (M225 and M750) amps are a bit more revealing and precise; they seem to have stronger attack and play clean without being bright, whereas the FVA1's are a shade smoother and more forgiving, but not overly so, and play more relaxed. We used both at Axpona for 16+ hours, same music set and found the FVA1's excelled at vocals and classical/acoustic guitar tracks - no listening fatigue.

Thanks
Jim

Sounds intriguing to listen to.  Perhaps I need to just buy a pair, connect them to my tweeters/mid circuit and use the 750’s on the lower woofers in a bi-amp and see how it goes.  I do a lot of back n forth listening from soft vocals and instruments to louder live rock concert Blurays.  Would be relatively easy to swap out XLR cables to run the amplifier/amplifiers of flavor preference for the genre and volume level I'm in the mood for.

[gene9p]

easier to get a tube preamp and just change tubes for what you are listening to that session ....your adding multiple different amps wired simultaneously to your speakers is a bit over the top.

[hawkmoon]

It will be interesting to compare the monoblock amplifiers to the older 600R amplifier. Maybe someone will send me a pair so I could do it!

[RonN5]

Jim,

Can you say whether the speaker is going to have a grill?

On the ASR photo is looks like maybe the cabinet at the show was a dark stained walnut...might this be an option?

How soon before you might be ready to provide more details and take orders?

[jandrews]

Is the DAC2 not a digital preamp?  Just a dac?

[Tone Depth]

Does a DAC have a volume control?

https://avahifi.com/products/dva-digital-preamplifier-dac-2

Is the DAC2 not a digital preamp?  Just a dac?

[NIGHTFALL1970]

The DAC has volume control on the touch screen and on the remote.
It does not have a “separate” pre-amp inside. The volume control is done in the digital domain. It is fantastic. The version one is the best DAC I have ever had.

[jandrews]

I'm aware of how the volume control in the DVA digital preamplifier works.
It's just that in the website copy for the DAC2, no mention of volume or using the device as a digital pre is mentioned....so I thought it was lacking this function .
If it is a dac/digital pre, would love to know how they are different, beyond using a different chip?

[cd45123]

Can someone explain why it can be better to use a DAC with digital volume control vs. a dedicated preamp for streaming? I always thought there was information loss or a lack of dimensionality when removing an analog pre. 

I wouldn’t mind removing my pre to simply the audio chain, get rid of an additional box

[NIGHTFALL1970]

Mithat did an article on that. https://mithatkonar.com/blog/2017/03/19/ava-dac-mk-5-released/?utm_source=chatgpt.com