I didn't post this in the Critic's Circle, because it's not really a review. It's just my impressions of the modded TEAC and the NuForce Ref 9. I decided to combine my impressions here because I happened to have both amps at the same time.
Before I say anything about the amps, I wanted to thank Loanwolf for his generosity for allowing me to try the TEAC out with no questions asked and no conditions. Same of Kevin Jones of Next Level Audio who not only granted me an audition, but delivered it personally to my home. Now that's what I call fantastic service. I can highly recommend Next Level to anyone without hesitation.
I'll start with the TEAC.
I was very surprised by its lack of power, which was most noticeable in the bass. I wasn't expecting much, but I've had a 7wpc single ended Cary that had significantly more drive than the Teac. It just doesn't seem to have anything in reserve to handle the lower frequencies with any kind of control on my 87 db ProAc. It reaches the lowest frequencies, but there's no punch. I initially thought it was due to too much volume, although I didn't think I was playing very loudly, but it didn't make any difference if I turned the volume up or down.
The midrange and treble is clear and grain free. I could hear deeply into the music and was able to pick up fine details. This meant it had good resolution. It didn't sound bright. It wasn't dry either, the way many SS amps sound to me. I initially commented that my evaluation would be based on transparency and resolution, but I have to admit that the lack of bottom end control and dynamics kind of spoiled it for me. I think I understand what the ChairGuy was saying:
I have found that the refined Class D architecture as found in Tripath and JVC gear is my cup o' tea.....it's available at very appealling prices and it does what I need. But the TEAC, with only 30 watts on tap (and probably limited in important current output) in either stock or Red Wine Audio modded guise, just isn't enough to do duty here. As so many of you have found, I think it best suited to single drivers
I'd have to say that with my system, especially my speakers, the TEAC was not a good match.
Nuforce Ref 9
Now that's more like it. Plenty of power and punch. It really opened things up and sounded dynamic instead of anemic. In terms of a sonic signature, it sounded very similar to the TEAC. The resolution of detail and transparency seemed pretty identical to me, except the Nuforce had a little more body. The big difference was in the clearly defined lower frequency notes. No fuzziness or rounding off. There was more life to the music.
But for me, personally, neither amp suited me. I found that I had trouble listening to either after about 45 minutes. It's hard to explain, but I found both amps caused an irritability and made me uncomfortable. I'm not entirely sure why, though. It didn't sound noticeably harsh, etchy, or bright, but I did detect a slight electronic signature in the music. Instruments didn't sound entirely natural, but vocals sounded pretty good to me. But the longer I listened, the more irritable I became.
Has anyone else experienced this?
I never experience this with my Audio Research tube amp, and I never experienced this sensation with the Belles Reference 350A SS amp.
If it weren't for the irritation I was feeling, I thought the Nuforce was an excellent amp, and like I said, TEAC had pretty much the same sonic character, but it obviously requires a much more efficient speaker. If you are not annoyed by any kind of irritability, either of these amps could be a good choice to consider.
Personally, I'd probably be a better candidate for one of Bill Baker's tube creations from Response Audio, though I never heard one.
One more thing - even though it can be used immediately after turning it
on, I thought the TEAC required about 30 minutes of warm up to reach its best sounding potential.
Another thing: Both amps were extremely quiet with almost no noise coming from the speakers when no output signal was feeding it. I did not hear any benefit to the battery power. This is not intended to be critical of anything Vinnie does. I do not know how much his mods improved the performance of the TEAC, or whether an all-battery system would result in a more significant difference.
Thanks again to Lonewolf, Next Level, the ChairGuy, and Vinnie.
