Affordable Integrated Amp, Seriously Transparent!
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- čas přidán 11. 07. 2024
- The Audio by Van Alstine CA1 integrated amp is a sweetheart!
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I use the AVA set 120 control amplifier with the LRS+ maggies and this combination is just audiophile heaven. Both beautiful American brands that provide exceptional value for the money.
I love the system of the day. Just what I couldn't afford when I was in college. I'd love to hear it. So nice that companies like Van Austin and Belles are still out there and making great products.
my CA-1 and I spent some time today at a hi-end boutique dealer listening to Rosso Ferentino Stand Mounts powered by the well regarded 8 grand Canor Virtus I2 Integrated amp, a KT88 tube design.
When I swapped in the CA-1, the dealer's jaw dropped, as the CA-1 was every bit the equal of the Canor. The dealer said, "Wow, I guess I won't be selling you an amp ever! I know a great amp when I hear one, and that's a great amp."
Guttenberg undersold the CA-1 in his review.
One of my special memories as an occasional audio journalist back in the late 70s was trekking out to a Minneapolis suburb to interview Frank Van Alstine. I recall that he did very well regarded mods of Dynaco preamps and such; Haflers maybe, not sure As well as Grado cartridges. I remember him as quite an interesting guy, holding forth in his bathrobe in the basement of his suburban rambler. I couldn't afford one of his amps, but I did buy one of his Grado mods and it was really good.
Was always curious about this brand’s products. Thanks for giving them some attention.
diddo
Wow, one of my favorite “viewers systems” segment. What a beautiful rig. I enjoyed seeing how they have a mixture of vintage and more current production gear. I do the same, and it can absolutely work out beautifully.
Wow, I've been looking at AVA since the mid 80s. Glad to see some recognition.
Everything AVA I’ve owned has been extremely enjoyable. Currently have their top tier tube preamp, excited about this new amp architecture. The SET120 is lovely and sounds insanely natural.
I recently purchased the NP1 power amplifier from Van Alstine. I can't wait to get it into my system.
Steve! , Thanks for posting this video.
Amazing Shirt! Great week Steve!
Alstine new to me, thanks! Love these smaller HiFi companies that keep chugging along! Gil-Scott, "Pieces of a man" 1971 is a well recorded classic worth a listen! The prisoner features Ron Carter on bass. Ron begins piece using a bow which is rare for him to do so. "Home is where the hatred is" cut, speaks on addiction; very relevant today.
All the Van Alstine are terrific bargains, if you're looking for purist design....
I’m glad they hit this price point. Very much needed for an American made amp. A big consideration for my first amp.
Dude! Get a Rogue Audio Sphinx V3! Hybrid, tube amp with great built in phono stage and 100 watts per channel 8 ohms. Also made in USA
@@zizendorf I was thinking about getting the Rouge but I saw some videos on build quality and some say it’s not that good. I don’t know and I don’t know how any of these even sound. I was looking for a very reliable a/b design intergraded amp that I can used as a pre later down the road to start my end game system. Or I just might get the schiit vidar and their headphone amp and modi dac to start.
@@christopherspiro9857 Interesting… All the reviews I have seen save one have been positive raves. I too rave because that amp has a great synergy and sound with my Tannoy speakers. The one negative review from a well known site - which I don’t remember the name of - but is all about metrics and measurements (not specs). It doesn’t measure well. But my greatest “measurement” is done with my ears. The build quality is great! Appearance is rather “industrial”.
@@christopherspiro9857
Whelp...
Get something:
Get MUSIC!
🎵🎶😊🎶🎵
Not sure you need Rouge!
😊😅
@@christopherspiro9857Don’t listen. Made in the US my arse! It’s all Chinese junk inside. And I’ve yet to hear one good review from anyone I trust. I’ll never understand why people keep recommending them. Probably because they’ve never actually owned them. ✌️
Steve. I've said this before. You're my favorite reviewer. Thanks. I may buy this!
Thanks!!
"Mongo Santamaria"? "Hey, you can't park that horse there! It's illegal!"
“See that hand?”
“Steady as a rock”
“Yeah, but THIS is my shooting hand” 😂
I bought a Van Alstine AVA Omega III (1980s Dynaco chassis) amp “needing repair.” I contacted Frank thru his Audio Circles forum, and received assistance with documentation and was able to solve all issues. A very well designed and built 85 watt /8ohm amp. Top notch products in their current lineup, worth checking out.
awesome shirt!
Another fine piece of equipment out of the Twin Cities. Audio Research, Magnepan, Van Alstine...
repreSENT 😤
Bel Canto too?
Great to know about this amp!
Talking about Gill-Scott! Love your observations about music.
The godfather of rap !
My highschool band director introduced me to the world of Frank Van Alstine back in 1974. He picked up Frank's Double 400 along with a modified PAT5 preamp for his amazing Magnaplanar system. While in college my roommates and I would occasionally hang out at Frank's on weekend nights. Frank tolerated us well and never hesitated to clean up our substandard soldering in the Dynaco gear we built. I bought a turntable, cartridge, speakers and had a ST70 mod'd by Frank. Great times.
I really like the viewer system of the day.
Thanks Steve, appreciate your commens here. This is also available as a stand alone amp for anyone who can use that or wants a preamp/line stage with more controls.
Yes, they have the NP1 amp. See their website.
I have a Van alstine super pas 3. It is a great preamp. Frank is a great guy.
Love that system of the day and that room looks very cool. I had an AR XA turntable with a Pickering Cartridge back in the early '70s.
I bought an XA in ‘72, with a Shure cartridge, and used it until ’05, when it was smashed in a move. Broke my heart. 💔
@@christophernoto
Mine along with my AR walnut speakers and whole system got destroyed by a broken water pipe while I was on vacation. My only reminder is a few old album covers that got water damaged too. Life sucks sometimes, lol.
@@chrislj2890 “We’ll always have Paris!”
@@christophernoto
Huh?
@@chrislj2890 It’s a quote from the movie Casablanca. Bogart says it to the Ingrid Bergman character, meaning, “Whatever happens, we’ll always have our memories.”
No sales reps. No dealer mark-up. No expensive ads in Stereophile and TAS. No rooms at hi-fi shows.
Great review… love the affordable price…
What a great system!
They’ve been great for 50 years too.
Keep spreading the news about affordable audio components!
Thanks for watching, the catch is really exceptional affordable Audio is rare. Most of it is generic, cookie cutter same old same old. I'm looking for products that really stand out, that's harder to pull off in the affordable category.
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac And you do it so well, hats off to 'ya maestro.
In my honest opinion after all these years of reading and watching his You Tube channel i can honestly say i trust Steve Guttenberg enthusiastic assessment of these products !
good review Steve! i've purchased two speaker brands you reviewed, and they are wonderful, BUT ,90% of the newer amp ,preamps or dacs just do not evoke beauty, emotion, or a sense of pride of ownership. I look at these cheap flat black or flat silver painted boxes and they just turn me cold. For example. on this amp , look at minute 2:22. the speaker terminals look like they cost five cents! on the top left rear side, the panels don't even line up....right? I am about your age (70) . For my daily driver im using a yamaha A-s1100 integrated with beautiful VU meters ,real wood side panels and the rear panel is a work of art! I still think Yamaha still exudes that real 70's vibe. I found this open box deal on ebay..$1,500.00 bucks 10 years ago and never looked back. Steve , you gotta admit late 60's - 70's was the best..These components had gravitas! thank you.
No frills… a better world indeed. But… Nice shirts 4ever!!
Cheers.
That Is a fun shirt you're wearing
I have an AVA SET 120 power amp and Transcendence 10 SLR preamp driving Spatial Audio M3 Triode Master speakers. A match made in heaven.
I've had the pleasure of going to Frank's house in Woodbury to audition some pieces. I ended up buying a pair of his M225 monoblocks.
Same here, love the M225's; paired w/ Vision SLR preamp.
I wholeheartedly support your selection! I have found that these incredible Audio by Van Alstine M225 monoblocks are truly musical amplifiers with a stratospheric performance-to-value proposition. Add all of that to the uncommon level of helpful guidance and direct support I received from the friendly folks there, and a discerning music lover might have to go a long way (and likely spend a lot more $$$) to find any US audio company as deserving of their business.
I bought the power amp only version (NP1) after watching this. Plan to pair it up with a LTA Mz2
Built in DAC is not a deal breaker. No frills unit. An amp worthy of saving my lunch money with.
How does the CA1 compare to the Van Alstine Set 120 integrated amplifier you reviewed just 2 years ago? They seem to be very similar. Would be nice to know the differences. Thanks.
Audio by van Alstine’s flagship preamp (fet Valve CFR), along with CA-1 would form my retirement from audio, system. That dac from Denafrips, the Enyo 15 would also definitely be on the list as well! Although Parasound’s JC-3+ phono stage would get used FAR more than that Enyo, Initially!
As dinner gatherings progressed, I’d play far more Cd’s of course. An excellent job as always, Steve!
(We dread the time if you retire).
I'm not sure, but I think you'd be better served with the AVA NP-1 amp than the CA-1. The "CA" stands for Control Amp, which is more of an integrated. It's not as full-featured as the fet Valve CFR, but it's more than you'd need and the NP-1 should suffice.
@@beans4jc Excellent advice!
I appreciate it, thank you.🌹
Love its classic looks...any chance you can review a similar looking amp, the Vincent Audio SV-500? ATB, Gerlach Sven.
Yo Steve, I got a 10yr old Denon AVR-1613 from the thrift (with remote) for $10. That's affordable. $1600 isn't that easy to come by for all of us. Very nice unit. Had it been below $1k I might agree with you.
Noticed the Ciccone Youth LP next to the Maggies. !
I watched many audio equipment reviews. It seems to me you have to have different audio equipment for different songs to be completely happy.😆
Here's what I've learned, all speakers, electronics, and sources are imperfect. We each have to find the gear that matches our tastes in sound and music.
Frank Van Alstine is awesome. So are AVA products.
Although there isn't a pre out or sub out, SVS has come out with their SoundPath Speaker Level Subwoofer Adapter in the event, the inputs and outputs of one's sub isn't up to par as a pass thru option.
Still, would like to have seen an XLR input on it. Either way, tempted to try it as an upgrade that still has a reasonable sized footprint and weight.
For music, get a sub with speaker cable inputs. Its the best way to integrate a sub. Also, an xlr input means nothing. Its just a connector. If want a balanced connection, the 2 components you are connecting need to be balanced, not just the cable. And if you don't have all that in place, the connection defaults to single ended. That means only 2 of the 3 conductors in the balanced cable are used, and the result and its electrically identical to using a pair of rca cable. There will be no difference whatsoever.
@@052RC Only reason I would want an XLR connection is to make use of a dac where it seems there may be better performance to be achieved, maybe, per measurements or what others purport to have heard.
Used to have an AVA upgraded dynaco ST-150 and it was an impressive amp
YESSS makes sense that LP, cartridge, and table isolation/ motor quality are about the same difficulty as CD or stream quality, and DAC ability, or Tape quality, motor/machine and or deck rebuild quality
Here as with LEAK you get the sufficient stages of amplification for all but moving coil? 55w solves so many issues IMO
My bet, half the market is TT only - wonder what per cent uses reel to reel, maybe TT - but no DAC?
I've had 10+ amps, some way more expensive, and this is easily my favorite running Zu Soul 6s.
Red Clay Strays... is a religious County group. The song mentioned is about wanting divine love not a lost lover. No judgement here, just not as Steve interpreted it.
Just listened to it… and I agree with ya
Nice Shirt math.
Steve, I think you reviewed the Van Alstine SET 120 control amp a few years back. That one doesn’t have a remote or phono input but presumably has 60/120wpc into 8/4 ohms. You liked that one quite a bit. If you are able, can you comment on any differences from your notes or memory as it is still offered?
Sorry I cannot comment on any differences between two.
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac No problem. Thx for responding.
I have one too .Why would he not comment ?
@@thrimnak1 Sometimes too much time has gone by that the reviewer doesn't believe he can give a good answer. Or, perhaps in this case the mfr asked him not to make a comparison (for whatever reason). It is what it is. Whoever is interested should contact Van Alstine and inquire as to any sonic differences. I would expect them to provide an honest answer as they are a small company which has built their business based on integrity and providing value.
@@johntucker5994 Thank you sir.
Great review Steve 👍
1600.00 is not cheap but it’s a reputable old brand and American made still. So it’s a good buy.
Hello Steve from Meaford Ontario Canada : Steve, Angela Gilbert Yeung here in Canada is a super genius audio electronic engineer, This gear can outperform equipment three times it's price the features Angela Gilbert Yeung puts into there pre amps and amps is outstanding with a tube dial and upgrade abilities that bring the gear to top audiophile sound ....have you reviewed thsee products ? If not highly recommended
I have not, thanks for bringing them to my attention.
My pleasure Steve , have a great day good sir
Thank you for nice informative video's
You never mentioned car or portable speakers, could you recommend portable speakers or car audio
Thank you for watching, sorry I don't cover portable speakers or car audio.
Lucinda Williams Wakin' Up belongs in a Quentin Tarantino movie.
Care to dare? Steve compare with Rogue Audio Sphinx V3. I’m pretty sure the Rogue is better at same price, with more power, and an excellent phono stage. You even reviewed the Sphinx!
Curiosity here about another comparison, which is the similarly priced Gallion ts75 from Thomas & Stereo. I noticed that the speaker binding posts looked a little cheap for $1600 amp.
Has Steve ever called out any gear?... everything is smooth, Musical, magical... cmon man
Hi Steve, Are the PAP speakers MIA? I bet that would be an interesting combination. I need to hear some Maggies looking forward to your thoughts. Do you have your 3 room dimensions and listening position from each speaker? This is super valuable info to extrapolate all of your reviews into our own set ups. The room is as important a component as any other in evaluation. l saw Lucinda live at House of Blues here in Atlanta. All star band and a fantastic show. She has a double live album ( Live at the Fillmore) from that period about 20 years ago that is 115 minutes of bliss. Very well recorded.
The Pure Audios are still here! It's very hard to describe my room because it's not a rectangle, it goes off different directions. The longest dimension of the wall behind the speakers you see is 32 feet and it's about 17 feet deep. But it's divided into different sections. There's no long parallel walls, that's why it sounds so good.
@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac Thanks. So you probably have a variety of seating positions, always good to know the distance between the speakers and the listening position which in a room like that gives you several options. With Herb and Art :(< I am (was) trying to ascertain if what is working for them would work for me. My room is much like yours but smaller and only 7 ft. acoustic ceiling but sounds very good. That would be a perfect mid power amp to try on the PAPs l would think.
Is this the unit you mentioned in the Caladan video I believe
I wish my amp had a remote like that. Keep the remote simple.
Love my enyo. At least until I play a record..
I would suspect the select buttons are for input selection?
The button is for power, the selector knob selects input.
Ran 1.7is w SOA ll AB 350w@4ohms 😊
Can you please put a better set of binding posts for heavensake?
dang, I own an AVA set120 amp and their tube amp, but my current setup are DW6's, I almost ordered it but ......
Which one is better? This or set 120?
AVA says on their site they're happy to ship international orders, so that likely should be corrected.
CA1 vs the Rogue Audio Sphinx v3 driving the LS50 meta?
LM3886 chip tripled? Looks like.... thus sound similar to LEAK 150 which has it for sure....
My friend has the CA-1 with Zu DW6 Supremes, and to my ears it's a great match. It's her third and least expensive amp she's had with her Zus and easily the best match in her room, but maybe Steve doesn't have the Supreme model which migh effect matching.
I’m tossing between this amplifier and an exposure 2510 for my dwx supremes so this is good news. What did you like about the amplifier with the Zus?
@@robk5745 particularly compared to the 4x more expensive Moonriver that it replaced, the CA-1 has better bass definition and clarity. Steve, it appears from his videos, has a lively and Zu-unfriendly room, imo. Zus work better in a somewhat damp room. The CA-1 is a great Zu match, imo. Again, I've had lots of Amps, and this is my fav all around regardless of price, below 10k.
America first
Make audio great again
It has a phono section!!!!! Yay! No DAC? Who cares?
It's a shame that the CA1 doesn't pre outs or or a sub out (for those of us that don't a high level input on our subs),
I wish Van Alstin had EU sales and representatives. On this Mongo Santamaria's album there played two great flutists as soloists, Dave Valentin and maestro Hubert Laws, didn't they?
Has anyone else spotted 6 (most likely tda series) integrated amplifiers mounted onto 2 skinny heat sinks ? They could at least have used 2 pairs of mos-fets at the output stage ….just saying …
Steve, where do you stash all these speakers😂😂
Everywhere I can
I make new upgraded crossovers for the Altec Valencia 846.
Steve, I usually don’t make requests but I hope that you will be reviewing both Galion amplifiers in the future. I purchased his solid-state power amplifier and holy moly… $1495 going on $8,000 to $9000.
I would say maggies are power hungry but not difficult to drive, being a quasi-resistive load with very low reactive response.
They drop well below four ohms, they demand current.
The Spkr terminals are too crowded, poor design.
Right? That was my first impression also.
I live in the EU and buy EU gear. Over the pond try and do the same thing......
Why review an amplifier that's unavailable to MOST PEOPLE?
Affordable, lol
Rather boring in appearance
Appearance vs. sound quality, which is your priority?
@@postalgrunt480 You can have both!
$1600 is not affordable
for the millionth time stop calling things over $1000 affordable. most people have to save up for months to muster up that much money to burn. affordable is more like saving up 2-4 paychecks of spare cash.
OK, but note that you're the only one that has this problem! So maybe going forward when you see me claim something is affordable you can disregard it. Thanks for watching.
I'm with you, I couldn't afford some of the headphones Steve talks about. That's why I watch these videos like I watch car porn, or xxx
porn, then fantasize 😅
For the millionth time? Your manners are appalling. Who says that your definition of affordable is anything like correct.
@@jeffjames4064 you're right it's no surprise when you follow the link and find an audio item that you could trade for a used car lol
Hate to tell you friend, but that has nothing to do with the reality of HiFi pricing. This is an affordable HiFi piece. Period. Maybe you should go watch videos about Low Fi, and/or Mid Fi gear.
Besides, I always thought that shopping for, and saving up for, and waiting for the gear was half the fun. Like waiting for Christmas morning. ✌️
1600 dollars for 55 watts no digital inputs 😅😅 nope
Unfortunately, I have to agree with @burton7023 ...That's $1600 USD (and I'd have to convert that to CAD)... plus shipping... plus customs. Only analogue inputs? Not a good fit for me.
It will probably be a better, higher quality sounding amp than one selling for the same price with built in DAC, like the Schiit Ragnarok.
@rhwinner just can't agree with that anymore maybe in the past but not now
@steven3557 I'm not saying it's not a good integrated amplifier but for the money there are plenty out there that you can get as good if not better performance and and much more connectivity
@@burton7023Yup, Rogue Audio Sphinx V3 - hybrid tube-integrated. Awesome sound and great phono stage!
They’ve been great for 50 years too.
Gil Scott Herron and Oscar Brown Junior. Two of the best male vocalist that had something to say about society.