[panomaniac]

[ Not one has the same input and power caps as the other.

LOL!  Ain't it the truth.  I've had many dozens of them thru my hands.  They were all different.  Some where better made than others, too.  Build quality went thru some rough patches, but seems to be sorted out now. (I think)

[neutralos]

[ Not one has the same input and power caps as the other.

 I've had many dozens of them thru my hands.  They were all different.  Some where better made than others, too. 

Are you really sure ?? You mean same model, same price but different qualities ...?
Such things shouldn?t produced by an audio manufacturer who wants to be regarded as reliable.
Or not ??

[jimi00]

[ Not one has the same input and power caps as the other.

 I've had many dozens of them thru my hands.  They were all different.  Some where better made than others, too. 

Are you really sure ?? You mean same model, same price but different qualities ...?
Such things shouldn?t produced by an audio manufacturer who wants to be regarded as reliable.
Or not ??

Come to think of it, the amp that brought the tripath TA2024 chip to mass market was the SI T-Amp which was one of the worst built piece of audio gear of it's time. Nevertheless it was a remarquably sounding product for the price ($35 at the time). So it's no surprise that Trends would sell a $100 amp based on the same chip and sometimes use different parts to cut on costs. After all, it would still sound pretty awesome for the price.

[neutralos]

Excuse me but I cannot agree on your statement. Trends Audio acts on the market like they want to belong to the Hifi Establishment while the Sonic Impact was an underdog/insider product from the start and they were pushed and recommended by the consumers.

And believe me that the parts in the Trends are never so curtly calculated that the result must strongly end in a game of chance for the customers ...

[jimi00]

Excuse me but I cannot agree on your statement. Trends Audio acts on the market like they want to belong to the Hifi Establishment while the Sonic Impact was an underdog/insider product from the start and they were pushed and recommended by the consumers.

And believe me that the parts in the Trends are never so curtly calculated that the result must strongly end in a game of chance for the customers ...

Neutralos, do you distribute this product?

[Bemopti123]

[ Not one has the same input and power caps as the other.

 I've had many dozens of them thru my hands.  They were all different.  Some where better made than others, too. 

Are you really sure ?? You mean same model, same price but different qualities ...?
Such things shouldn?t produced by an audio manufacturer who wants to be regarded as reliable.
Or not ??

I think it is like any product made overseas at a certain cost.  I am sure the designers got some samples from the factory at first, they might have been exact as the spec demanded, but after production goes into full swing, do they bother to listen to other production samples?  That is when the customer and perhaps the design/distribution company gets taken for a ride. 

Even that examples of the 3 Trends having different components, shows you there are perhaps subtle but sonically substantial changes on each batch of production. 

That is the price one pays for purchasing electronics built and sold at a low price point. 

Imagine the stink it would cause is a big, high profile manufacturer had such discrepancies in their fancy high $$$$ units.   

[panomaniac]

I look at products like this as falling into the "Accidentally Good" category.

Certainly the little Sonic Impact fits.  It is almost a toy and was meant as such.  It just happened to have the lovely TA2024 chip inside. That it ever made its way into the Hi-Fi world is a strange accident of some online reviews.  The rest is history.  And it is not badly built.  Whoever does the SI boards does a nice job.  I've seen much worse in the T-Amp world - and at higher prices.   The design itself is minimal, but that's the price point.

Some other small T-amps seem to be designed with the audiophile market in mind, but the build quality is not there.  A lot of it is built on buzz words, not engineering.  Sometimes that works and sounds pretty nice. =)

But lets get real.  Most of this stuff is built to a very low price point with a decent margin for the reseller.  If you get a nice sounding piece of gear for the price, you should be happy.  It's not the fancy kilodollar audiophile stuff and will never be.  it's great value for money.  And mostly great by happy accident.

[neutralos]

Neutralos, do you distribute this product?

Which product you mean ? The Trends ... ? If Pano or whoever here hadn?t notified it here, I never
knew about such differences in a production range.
What plays the rule if I am distributing any audio gear ...? Every hifi enthusiast know something about the principles in audio production and distribution.
BTW: where do you get the Trends for 100 $ new as you notified here  ? Or is this the reseller?s buying price ?

Again: I don?t want to make here the Trends bad. It?s still a great value for money but anyhow it disturbs me when I know that the next Trends I would purchase could be better than that one I bought yet ... ? Are you so relaxed to overlook about this ?
Do you want to see a similar product with much better build quality ? Here is my tip:
The Silverstone EB02. A fantastic sounding Tripath with the TA2021B Chip. I have sold my Trends but this one I will keep for a fullrange solution in future. It?s cheaper meanwhile than the Trends because Trends Audio is flying straight to the Audio heaven and raised the prices based on some good reviews in the past. It?s just marketing like everywhere ...

[jimi00]

Neutralos, do you distribute this product?

BTW: where do you get the Trends for 100 $ new as you notified here  ? Or is this the reseller?s buying price ?

Prices seem to have risen. I just noticed that the Trends retails today for about $179. When it came out in 2007, I bought three for $130 a piece.

[tubesound]

Did anyone compare Virtue ONE/TWO to Onkyo A-9555?

[Phillysoul]

Just saw this post-- in fact, I returned a 9555 just prior to my Virtue TWO purchase. I was looking for an upgrade from a Panasonic XR55 and, to my ears, the 9555 was not it. That's when I stumbled upon Virtue nad the rest is history... The 9555 sound tinnny too my ears or was just not a good match to my speakers (Ascend Acoustics 340SE)

[Marcin_gps]

I've been using Trends TA-10.1 for over a year now (yellow capacitors version, not bennic - is it worse?) and I am very happy with it. Recently I've got new speakers - Aurum Cantus V3M and I could use greater bass punch. Is Virtue One.2 a lot better in this area? I also don't want to lose great mids and highs that Trends provide. Do you think I should get Virtue or maybe upgrade stock PSU to LSA batteries in Trends?

Best regards,
Marcin