Decay structure! Yep. ❤ The overlap of multiple decays from various instruments, when that is present in the background on top of the attack, spaciousness and great tonal balance….. realism!
I purchased a TS120se about a year and a half ago. Love the sound of it after some break in time. Always thought my speakers weren't quit up to the task. So last year I had GR Research build and ship me a pair of NX Studio's that was the missing link. I have not had anyone listen to my system that doesn't have a jaw dropping moment. Including a buddy that has close to a 100K system. He is rethinking his life a little now LOL. This is truly a pairing that is really hard to beat . Even if I were to spend another 20 or 30k the improvement wouldn't be worth the investment. Thanks Thomas and Danny for creating such outstanding products
Funny timing - I *just* bought the Galion TS A75 and absolutely adore it. It's the best amp I have heard in my system and it's helping me get back into listening more regularly. Thomas is an awesome guy too - extremely nice, passionate about what he does, and responsive to questions. ...maybe I'll save up for the TS 120 down the road, but I'm very happy with the A75. Thanks for the review!
I definitely think it'd be cool if Danny reviewed amplifiers every once in a while, especially to see what he would recommend for his speakers. Great vid!
Thanks Danny. Even though we grew up blaring AC/DC, lots of us are in apartments now. For us, cranking it is no longer an option. An amp that handles moderate volumes with grace is an ideal product for us.
Nearfield subwoofing can help enormously as significantly less level is required (with the bonus of lessening the room's resonances). Or, for even greater tactile effect, and even less overall acoustic level, one of the many tactile transducer approaches would be ideal (enthusiasts with $50k systems are elevating their performance via $50 JBL subs utilized as tactile systems). Either platform, when you get closer to the sub, the perceived LF level and impact increases with no increase of contamination to your neighbors.
Thanks Danny, I like hearing your recommendations even if it's just pretty quick. A lot of us don't have the ability to try out multiple pieces of equipment in our own rooms that we are familiar with, so we have to do the best we can trying figure out if other people's experience approach a consensus before we roll the dice with our hard earned cash.
I appreciated this video and knowing how critical you are, it showed very high praise for Thomas's designs. I'd really like to see your extremes or servo subs reviewed by one of them. Kind of a nice colab.
Danny, I'm sure Thomas appreciates the review. And funny you should comment on transient decay because a long...long...time ago that was the immediate thing I noticed from between good and amazing amps...and speakers circa 1976-80. Thanks again Danny... I was fairly certain you would like Thomas's pieces... I've been bugging him to design an Integrated amp as well. Something around $1K. 20-25 Class A and say 65-75 Class A/B.
Every component Thomas has released gets great reviews You doing reviews like this are a good thing so if you decide to do more that would be fantastic
It’d be interesting to get Danny’s take on the two speakers on which Dr Viet and Thomas have collaborated- particularly his thoughts on when a design is intentionally voiced to a profile that might not necessarily “measure well”. Out of idle curiosity, has anyone pranked him with the task of “improving” a pair of vintage Rogers LS3/5As?😂 Cheers, y’all
I REALLY enjoyed and appreciate this review video. Sometimes it is hard select high dollar gear, but when someone like you, who I follow because I value your audiophile perspective, it helps me narrow down candidates and save me money. Keep up the great work, and keep sprinkling in the reviews. Review suggestion, Orchard Audio GaN amp. Thx!
Nice to see the TS120 as a preferred amp fir the NX Series. I have a TS120 non SE but I modded mine with Jupiter Silver bypass caps + all Gold Lion tubes. The caps took 100-200 hours to sound best but now it sounds absolutely lovely. Sound demos at my channel with NX-Otica's and Double Troubles.
Danny, have Thomas send you his Galion TS A20. Its 20 watts of pure class A with high current delivery and excellent build quality. It's $3,750 but worth it. As you know, its about current delivery not watts especially when you have fairly efficient speakers.
Bravo! I liked this video. I think you should do a few more like this. I have a tube amp, and the decay structure is something I enjoy about how it sounds. To me, it's more natural and organic than most solid state amps. How something sounds is the most important thing. You've established the credibility. Mix in a review like this once in a while.
This is the kind of review that I like. 10,000 words of flowery crap about equipment has little meaning, and I skip through much of that. This... I understand. 👍👍👍
Great - but would be really interesting to have your thoughts on the TS A20, you indicate that the A75 doesn’t provide as good a harmonic decay as the TS120… so let’s see how the A20 does!
The A75 seems to remove the veil between the vocalist and what they actually sound like. It’s remarkable. When I crank up the volume I get the exact opposite of what you’re describing… The music starts to get hard but never obnoxious. I prefer my Audio Research amp when driving it really loud levels. 95% of my the music that I listen to is acoustic jazz, blues, yacht rock, small group classical and a lot of other acoustic genres so I’m not experiencing the same issues that you are when you drive really hard. It does sound like more than 100 W per channel driving my Maggie 3.6 R’s
You mentioned AC/DC Bon Scott what a legend he never got the credit he deserved 1st time i heard his voice was from a big sound desighn boom box i was instantly blown away ! Brian Johnson done an amazing Job carring on the torture ' Thanks for the video '
Really liked this video. Would request you to do a video educating us on some of the basics of component matching - voltage output from digital devices, acceptable voltage inputs on preamplifiers or integrated amplifiers, overall gain in the system and how all of that can impact the so called "synergy" of the system. I have noticed that a lot of us mix and match components from different manufacturers, but sometime the information is not available regarding the aspects mentioned above....
Great review..Easier to interpret than many amp reviews from so called 'Amp experts ' as yours was more stripped down to the 'nuts and bolts' as it were..Review was "All killer and no filler" Well done to Thomas as well.
Danny I really do respect your opinion on these things... don't be shy - keep it coming. I know you are an analogue guy but if you do have opinions on dacs and streamers I would like to hear it. They just keep getting better and better.
pretty tough to double current output as impedance drops in half unless really huge power trans and capacitor banks are used. The big Krells and Levinsons come to mind but they are much higher priced than this amp. Always impressive to see how much farther the dollar or pound goes when the dealer mark ups and dist mark ups are all removed from the cost structure equations.
There's plenty of capacitance. He went excessive on the capacitance as a matter of fact. It's totally dependent on the circuit topology and output devices chosen. Mosfets for example are voltage devices that do not double in current like bipolar transistors. Total myth
Hey Danny, thanks for bringing this out. Glad to hear that you found awesome sounding amps, i think both of these Galions are amazing as well. Did they work equally well on the speakers you tried, could they both drive most speakers well at reasonable volumes?
Thanks for this offering. Some reviewers comment that the TS A 75 has a slightly tube sound. I’m not sure if that’s true. The second model seems to live up to the hype.
Thank you Danny for your review. What you said is the same as mine! I listened to these two amplifiers at an audio show, and I still didn’t believe that such a good sound performance could be achieved at this price. Then I thought it might be the problem with the songs. After a while, I went back to his room to listen again. OMG. The sound is very good. After that, my friends and I talked about this amplifier because my friends also make DIY amplifiers. They said that the cost of such an ultra-thick chassis and accessories would exceed $1000+ , If you add the labor and package, this amplifier for $1,500 is basically about the cost price, and there is basically no profit to be made. I really can’t understand how he did it, or is he really not asking for money and doing it for nothing?
Is it desirable for power to double with impedance? We generally want linearity in amps. Does impedance-dependent power output introduce a big variable in speaker matching as impedance varies by frequency in all speakers?
A lot of audiophiles seek out a "warm" sound in their amps. But as old man Carver demonstrated, "warm" is not accurate. It's "warm" due to distortion. Carver showed that you can add distortion for that warm sound. Not only could you add distortion, but he designed an amp to add that distortion. So he knew exactly what distortion to add to a solid state amp and how to do it. I'm of the audiophile school of total control over the sound. If I want it to sound "warm", I can add that in. If I want it to sound "weird", then I can add that in too. But if I want it to sound exactly as the audio engineer meant it to sound, I have to start with equipment that is as accurate as possible. An amp that starts out sounding "warm", cannot sound accurate. And that's my criticism. With the right equipment, you can make an accurate signal sound warm. But you cannot make a warm signal sound accurate. It's like your cup of coffee. You can add sugar, you can add cream, you can add mustard if that's what you want. But you can't remove it once it's in there. 99% of all amps need at least one of two things - a better power supply, and internal EM shielding.
These days I don’t listen to my main system and instead have a good headphone set up however when Danny starts reccomending stuff you know it’s going to be good
They don't really do reviews over there. They just take measurements and theorize how things sound. It is also a pretty toxic environment over there. They get hostel if someone starts talking about how things sound.
One thing every audiophile should know. Measurements mean jack! They give you numbers. That’s it. I’ve heard many pieces of gear that “measured great” and sounded like trash.
I've been interested in the Vincent Audio SV-237MKII integrated and Jay has done a review on it, would be cool if Danny heard it on his system to see what he thought about it.
Personally, i liked how you once made a reference to how you design your speakers to work best with all types of amp design... (tho all amps can be upgtraded to improve the sound of a good speaker design, at a cost & to perdonal taste) ...but its good to hear reviews particularly like this, i.e. of amps that have shocked you particulsrly for their humble.. (for the sound quality on offer) ..price . i.m.o.
Thanks Danny, just out of curiosity did you try the a74 with a pair of your bully's? Just a thought that not dealing with low frequencies might help it.
I was using them with the NX-Treme's. So the bottom end was being handled by open baffle servo subs, and the lows being sent to the A74 was being filtered out a bit by my pre-amp.
I build my own amplifiers. Based on tube amplifiers audio reproduction. Build my own speakers as well. Some of the crossovers cost more than some whole speaker products. Way more. My last pair I built are mostly Bowers & Wilkins products that I hated them. But yes I can do good stuff with them.
Nice change fom the norm. Pls do more review videos... But ONLY if its outstanding and up to ur standard as we have more than enough normal review videos in youtube.
6:00 only amplifiers with massive power supply can double the wattage from 8 to 4 ohms, if this one goes from 75 to 100 it means that the transformer is not big enough to double, another thing is the quantity of output transistors, fewer transistors is easier to get excellent sound because of transistor matching, an amplifier with only 2 transistors sound more transparent than one with 4 transistors, but with less bass slam and damping factor, one of the best sounding amplifiers I have ever repaired is the Quad 303 that gives only 45 watts
Not true at all. In fact, it's definitely false with the given amplifier considering the size of transformer and the excessive capacitance he overspent on it. It boils down to the output devices. Most likely they are mosfets which do not always double in power because they are voltage devices rather than current like bipolar transistors. That's a gross oversimplification to say something should double in power and it's an audiophile wise tail that needs to disappear since it purely matters on the output devices and circuit topology.
@@HiFiWright You are wrong, the Ts-A75 use only 2 bipolar transistor on the output to achieve more transparency, possibly 2SA1295 and 2SC3264, a lot of capacitance but a couple of only two 200 watt transformers, the sum of small transformers and 1 positive transistor and 1 negative transistor per channel avoid the possibility of doubling the power at 4 ohms, the designer preferred transparency over power but to give punch in the bass use many capacitors, thanks for reading
I believe Thomas said it doesn’t double mainly for reliability reasons. The design was limited to keep it from running at max and possibly burning out components.
@@Pok-001 You need a current limiting circuit to do that, but it will affect the sound, no amp can double power only using 2 transistors, no need to mention that the transformer should be a 300 watt instead of 200 watt in order to produce 150 watts at 4 ohms, the transformer should be bigger in watts than the power you desire to get from it
@@ThresholdZhor you’re correct about the transformer should have some reserves/headroom when amp is maxed. Does it have one pair of transistors? Maybe that’s why it’s limited? So it preserves sound quality? Limiting power at the power stage would keep transistors (depending on their values) running more efficiently/cooler. Which would only improve SQ. If it’s running one pair of transistors and just enough power transformers maybe that was a decision to keep it at the price point? Regardless sounds like it would have plenty juice for most. Especially considering type of speakers most people would have at this price point.
Harmonic decay structure..........;reserved for the better amplifiers .....when the notes live their life until the end . One does not know what this is before one heard it . Even a lot of very impressive sounding and expensive amplifiers are missing THIS QUALITY..... This is / was also an issue with many digital sources.......the difference in perception and the connection to the music when reproduced correctly ( with this quality ) is huge !
It would be interesting to compare these amps with some of the clone/copy amplifiers that you can buy from China.I own a few of them and believe they give amazing sound .Not just for the money but by any standards.The FM Acoustic FM300A copies for example sound extremely good .As does the FM Acoustics FM155 preamp which you can get for about $300 .That is better than most of the $5000 preamps I have heard.The real things would cost you around $50,000!The days of needing to spend $5000 or more to get a good sounding amplifier are gone.Which is great because we can spend more of our budget on speakers and room treatment which is where you are going to gain the most benefit.
I hear a lot here abput "liking the sound." Are there amps that don't add or subtract or change anything about the sound going into them? Can we just make the sound louder without changing it otherwise?
I don't consider myself high end. But $4500 for a good tube amp is a reasonable price especially when you consider the features. I Had $1000 in the last amplifier I built, and I used reasonably priced transformers from Heyboer who makes quality transformers.
Maybe a GR Research special edition version with Tube Connectors and some low mass copper RCAs, something like KLE or WBT. Although brass is no where near as bad as steel it is no where near as good as pure copper. (This is assuming that the connectors Thomas uses are brass and not pure copper. I've used connectors that look identical to these and they were brass)
Glad you like Thomas's amps.. I’ve had the Dodge 10b in silver since he gushed on about it the first time. I like classA 30 watt low feedback setting. I’m listening 7 ft away from the long wall in 17x14x8 room with three doors, one leading outside. A way to tune the sound. I’ve never rolled the tubes and I don’t leave it on. It puts out a tremendous amount of heat which I’m not crazy about except in the winter. Always enjoy your take fun to watch, you’re improving everyone’s speakers by making them use better parts.
i have a question..I m currently using Sonus Faber Olimpica Nova III....I recently watched some videos about Sonus Faber Olimpica Nova III, they recommend to use amp which has 300W for this speaker...however, the A 75 amp in this video is only 75W per chanel....does that mean, this amp is not enough for my speakers (Sonus Faber Olimpica Nova III))??
Danny I like the direct approach. I have a Rega Aethos amp. Its good but lacks some things. So I got the Hegel H190 and found it thin. So lets say my budget was 4k What would you get. My wire is yours... Two 8' stands its your top of line cable and really made a huge difference. But I keep going through amps. Looking for something outside the normal rhelm. I had an old Nakamichi Nelson Pass design 25- years ago, and really miss that sound. Just a point of reference. Any idea I will listen and not hold anyone accountable :)
I’m not Danny, but I would highly recommend the Yamaha A-S2200, which is close to your budget. It’s a tight, controlled amp, with excellent detail and resolution, and end-game build quality. It has enough balls to drive just about anything. For smaller rooms and moderate listening levels, the Sugden A21 SE is as good as it gets. Pure Class -A, single-ended, and a non-fatiguing, effortless delivery. The amp sounds much bigger than its 30 watt rating would suggest. My last recommendation would be the Musical Fidelity A1, another Class-A masterpiece in sound delivery. It’s ridiculously good, considering the $1669 price. Anyway, hope this helps.
@@ChicagoRob2 I simply require genuine ultra high end performance and sadly most gear in a nutshell has in my experience and opinion unfortunately fallen very short and very substandard in comparative performance to that admittedly high required set of standards. It may be worth noting that when all what appears to be obnoxious level hype is cleared away and people look honestly and intelligently at what CAN BE done to obtain far higher performance even at lower Budget levels the industry may actually grow to be far more honorable and inviting.
@@davidcross890 Well, my perspective comes from 50 years in the audio game. I only recommend gear I own or have heard in my system. To eliminate hype, research non-CZcams reviews of the Sugden, for example. Take notice of the gear used in evaluation and the expertise of the reviewer.
@@ChicagoRob2 it's nice 👍 you offer helpful advice from many many years in the game. My pursuit for nearly 40years has been to either/or invent, design, and then build or own and Audibly enjoy and engage with the cost no object simply best of the best. From that perspective I have seen and painfully heard how disappointed so many others were with even many of today's supposed ultra high end offerings.
@@ChicagoRob2 I have to say you are spot on, I have the Sugden. Its in another room. It will not power my Kef R3 metas. Thanks you much looking the yamaha. Never considered that unit.
Please continue the amp reviews... 'No B S" reviews are tough to find on CZcams...when a reviewer accepts money for a review, I don't know if they can be totally unbiased. Yes, they all say ' Everything I'm about to say is my opinion alone'. Sorry, I have become very skeptical in my latter years. Ok off the soap box...Love what you are doing at GR-Research...keep the great content coming...
Dan , you hit the nail right on the head. The A-75 is a very good amp for the money , but there just isn't sufficient power for peaks and transients making the music sound compressed. You don't call yourself an amp specialist , but you actually are.
That's not what Danny Said ' I bet you don't even own a TS-A75 ' My buddy 'Stereo Review' Measured my Triangle speakers down to 2.5 ohms @132hz and TS-A75 drives the hell out of them in a room 14ft x 22ft here's the proof ' czcams.com/users/shortst6Mg-qB3dE4?si=8XEnKZ-ktsUgU0a0
I don't think that is what Danny said. As long as he did not push it to crazy volume, the amp can even rival his own reference gear, which means there should be no problem with transients and peaks. Danny, correct me if I am wrong.
A lot of use-to-be CZcams personalities are now going into the audio industry business. A new medium helps where as print and show coverage cost much more. I wish him well, but at some point who will police the police. Thank you for your honest option.
I acknowledge that I simply require genuine ultra high end performance and sadly most gear in a nutshell has in my experience and opinion unfortunately fallen very short and very substandard in comparative performance to that admittedly high required set of standards. It may be worth noting that when all what appears to be obnoxious level hype is cleared away and people look honestly and intelligently at what CAN BE done to obtain far higher performance even at lower Budget levels the industry may actually grow to be far more honorable and inviting.
@@Starch1b2c3d4a Earth is probably flat. But NASA and the 'space' program(s) - are definitely full blown lies. And we spend $93 million PER DAY for NASA.
The A75 has a massive amount of capacitors, not sure why it´s low on power..to small transformers, something else in the design? 🤷 Would be nice to see a stable 75/150w (8/4ohm) and even a value at 2 ohm. This would pairing make less critical..there are a lot of 4 ohm speakers who dip to 3 and 2 ohm..
From the other side of the Globe (Greece) I'm saying ...YESSSSSS please do these kind of videos especially at resonable prices like these products. I was in the sales bussines of hifi for about 30 years and i;m tired to see or hear prices that sky is the limit ,with the excuses like RND or exotic parts or production costs and other b......t.I understand that profit is profit ,we all have to live somehow and pay our bills ,but the things getting worse.Have you seen the companies with their products in Munich ? Most of them regardless what they selling they ask you your foot, your leg,your kidney,and not only parts of our bodies but the amount of money for two lifes. I didnt knew that Europe had so many millionaires or reach people ready to pay tenths or hundrends thousand of euros to buy a pair of speakers or a amplifier or (worse a pair of cables).But anayway who i'm i to know. So PLEASE AGAIN Do these kind of videos like THIS. Thnx
It had been a while since I used this amp. I brought it to Danny's, and we started listening right away. While the amp was warmed up by the time we got to AC/DC, we hadn't bothered checking the bias. When it sounded off, I pressed the change button on the amp, which shows whether or not the power tubes need biasing, and all four of them did. So, at that moment, I just pressed the bias button, and we got back to listening. Danny is right, though; it definitely sounded better.
Decay structure! Yep. ❤
The overlap of multiple decays from various instruments, when that is present in the background on top of the attack, spaciousness and great tonal balance….. realism!
Really, really enjoyed this one, Danny. It's actually refreshing to hear your take on electronics. I hope you do consider doing more of these!
Very nice you did this, Thomas is making amazing stuff, and he does it from the heart.
I purchased a TS120se about a year and a half ago. Love the sound of it after some break in time. Always thought my speakers weren't quit up to the task. So last year I had GR Research build and ship me a pair of NX Studio's that was the missing link. I have not had anyone listen to my system that doesn't have a jaw dropping moment. Including a buddy that has close to a 100K system. He is rethinking his life a little now LOL. This is truly a pairing that is really hard to beat . Even if I were to spend another 20 or 30k the improvement wouldn't be worth the investment. Thanks Thomas and Danny for creating such outstanding products
Funny timing - I *just* bought the Galion TS A75 and absolutely adore it. It's the best amp I have heard in my system and it's helping me get back into listening more regularly. Thomas is an awesome guy too - extremely nice, passionate about what he does, and responsive to questions. ...maybe I'll save up for the TS 120 down the road, but I'm very happy with the A75. Thanks for the review!
I definitely think it'd be cool if Danny reviewed amplifiers every once in a while, especially to see what he would recommend for his speakers. Great vid!
Thanks Danny. Even though we grew up blaring AC/DC, lots of us are in apartments now. For us, cranking it is no longer an option. An amp that handles moderate volumes with grace is an ideal product for us.
I can't live in apartments for this very reason. I'm not willing to sacrifice my music and movies at 2 in the morning. Lol
Nearfield subwoofing can help enormously as significantly less level is required (with the bonus of lessening the room's resonances).
Or, for even greater tactile effect, and even less overall acoustic level, one of the many tactile transducer approaches would be ideal (enthusiasts with $50k systems are elevating their performance via $50 JBL subs utilized as tactile systems).
Either platform, when you get closer to the sub, the perceived LF level and impact increases with no increase of contamination to your neighbors.
congrats Thomas for his achievements. not easy to get a 'like' from GR Research.
Running the TS A75 with Buchardt S400 MkII in a small-ish room and the amp makes these speakers sparkle!
Thanks Danny, I like hearing your recommendations even if it's just pretty quick. A lot of us don't have the ability to try out multiple pieces of equipment in our own rooms that we are familiar with, so we have to do the best we can trying figure out if other people's experience approach a consensus before we roll the dice with our hard earned cash.
That's good that you are picky, I wish you did more amp reviews .
On products that are non unobtainium; affordability is a very subjective factor.
@@fonkenful yes I agree,
I love to see Danny do this type of videos. PLZ do MORE!!!
This was refreshing. I'd definitely like to see more equipment reviews. Thanks for keeping things interesting, Danny!
Excellent video. Love your honesty, which is why I watch all of them. Yes, more please if you get the time.
I appreciated this video and knowing how critical you are, it showed very high praise for Thomas's designs. I'd really like to see your extremes or servo subs reviewed by one of them. Kind of a nice colab.
for sure
Loved the video. Please do more. Thank You
Interesting diversion from speakers. I enjoyed it.
Very Nice. Always love to hear what you think about any gear.
Well done !!! Easy to understand. Thomas has something good going here.... So happy for him !
Thank you for an amp for your insightful review of a appropriate amps for your speakers
Danny, I'm sure Thomas appreciates the review. And funny you should comment on transient decay because a long...long...time ago that was the immediate thing I noticed from between good and amazing amps...and speakers circa 1976-80. Thanks again Danny... I was fairly certain you would like Thomas's pieces... I've been bugging him to design an Integrated amp as well. Something around $1K. 20-25 Class A and say 65-75 Class A/B.
I've heard so many good things about these amps. This video might help me pull the trigger on buying.
I really enjoyed this video, Danny. Thank you.
You have great reviewing skills Danny.
Every component Thomas has released gets great reviews
You doing reviews like this are a good thing so if you decide to do more that would be fantastic
It’d be interesting to get Danny’s take on the two speakers on which Dr Viet and Thomas have collaborated- particularly his thoughts on when a design is intentionally voiced to a profile that might not necessarily “measure well”.
Out of idle curiosity, has anyone pranked him with the task of “improving” a pair of vintage Rogers LS3/5As?😂
Cheers, y’all
I REALLY enjoyed and appreciate this review video. Sometimes it is hard select high dollar gear, but when someone like you, who I follow because I value your audiophile perspective, it helps me narrow down candidates and save me money. Keep up the great work, and keep sprinkling in the reviews. Review suggestion, Orchard Audio GaN amp. Thx!
Yes we appreciate you reviewing some amplifiers It even preamps in the future thank you Danny I think a lot of us trust your judgment
Awesome reviewed Danny!
Nice to see the TS120 as a preferred amp fir the NX Series. I have a TS120 non SE but I modded mine with Jupiter Silver bypass caps + all Gold Lion tubes. The caps took 100-200 hours to sound best but now it sounds absolutely lovely. Sound demos at my channel with NX-Otica's and Double Troubles.
Danny, have Thomas send you his Galion TS A20. Its 20 watts of pure class A with high current delivery and excellent build quality. It's $3,750 but worth it. As you know, its about current delivery not watts especially when you have fairly efficient speakers.
I love all your stuff!!
Bravo! I liked this video. I think you should do a few more like this. I have a tube amp, and the decay structure is something I enjoy about how it sounds. To me, it's more natural and organic than most solid state amps. How something sounds is the most important thing. You've established the credibility. Mix in a review like this once in a while.
This is the kind of review that I like. 10,000 words of flowery crap about equipment has little meaning, and I skip through much of that. This... I understand. 👍👍👍
Great - but would be really interesting to have your thoughts on the TS A20, you indicate that the A75 doesn’t provide as good a harmonic decay as the TS120… so let’s see how the A20 does!
The A75 seems to remove the veil between the vocalist and what they actually sound like.
It’s remarkable. When I crank up the volume I get the exact opposite of what you’re describing… The music starts to get hard but never obnoxious. I prefer my Audio Research amp when driving it really loud levels. 95% of my the music that I listen to is acoustic jazz, blues, yacht rock, small group classical and a lot of other acoustic genres so I’m not experiencing the same issues that you are when you drive really hard. It does sound like more than 100 W per channel
driving my Maggie
3.6 R’s
You mentioned AC/DC Bon Scott what a legend he never got the credit he deserved
1st time i heard his voice was from a big sound desighn boom box i was instantly blown away ! Brian Johnson done an amazing Job carring on the torture '
Thanks for the video '
Thanks for this video. Although pricey, might be worth the investment.
Really liked this video. Would request you to do a video educating us on some of the basics of component matching - voltage output from digital devices, acceptable voltage inputs on preamplifiers or integrated amplifiers, overall gain in the system and how all of that can impact the so called "synergy" of the system. I have noticed that a lot of us mix and match components from different manufacturers, but sometime the information is not available regarding the aspects mentioned above....
Tube, Integrated with tone controls....I am in Love!
Great review..Easier to interpret than many amp reviews from so called 'Amp experts ' as yours was more stripped down to the 'nuts and bolts' as it were..Review was "All killer and no filler"
Well done to Thomas as well.
Yes' do more reviews like this
Danny I really do respect your opinion on these things... don't be shy - keep it coming. I know you are an analogue guy but if you do have opinions on dacs and streamers I would like to hear it. They just keep getting better and better.
The shirt you are wearing has a very good color! Makes the whole video look really elegant... Just saying
pretty tough to double current output as impedance drops in half unless really huge power trans and capacitor banks are used. The big Krells and Levinsons come to mind but they are much higher priced than this amp. Always impressive to see how much farther the dollar or pound goes when the dealer mark ups and dist mark ups are all removed from the cost structure equations.
There's plenty of capacitance. He went excessive on the capacitance as a matter of fact. It's totally dependent on the circuit topology and output devices chosen. Mosfets for example are voltage devices that do not double in current like bipolar transistors. Total myth
All good, thanks matey
Hoping they go through amps thats available in the market and share the ones with synergies with their speakers. From budget, DIY to high end.
Hey Danny, thanks for bringing this out. Glad to hear that you found awesome sounding amps, i think both of these Galions are amazing as well. Did they work equally well on the speakers you tried, could they both drive most speakers well at reasonable volumes?
Thanks for this offering. Some reviewers comment that the TS A 75 has a slightly tube sound. I’m not sure if that’s true. The second model seems to live up to the hype.
I've owned the Galion since it first came out and it if tremendously hard to say a bad thing!😊
Im liking the emotiva differential equipment
Thank you Danny for your review. What you said is the same as mine!
I listened to these two amplifiers at an audio show, and I still didn’t believe that such a good sound performance could be achieved at this price. Then I thought it might be the problem with the songs. After a while, I went back to his room to listen again. OMG. The sound is very good. After that, my friends and I talked about this amplifier because my friends also make DIY amplifiers. They said that the cost of such an ultra-thick chassis and accessories would exceed $1000+ , If you add the labor and package, this amplifier for $1,500 is basically about the cost price, and there is basically no profit to be made. I really can’t understand how he did it, or is he really not asking for money and doing it for nothing?
Curious to hear what you would think of Galion's new amps: Galion A20 class A SS amp ($3750) and TS34 (EL34 tube $3000)!
Please keep reviewing amps! Preamps and DACs too! Would especially be interested in your opinion of relay ladder vs chip-based DACs. Thank you kindly.
Nice review.
Is it desirable for power to double with impedance? We generally want linearity in amps. Does impedance-dependent power output introduce a big variable in speaker matching as impedance varies by frequency in all speakers?
A lot of audiophiles seek out a "warm" sound in their amps. But as old man Carver demonstrated, "warm" is not accurate. It's "warm" due to distortion. Carver showed that you can add distortion for that warm sound. Not only could you add distortion, but he designed an amp to add that distortion. So he knew exactly what distortion to add to a solid state amp and how to do it.
I'm of the audiophile school of total control over the sound. If I want it to sound "warm", I can add that in. If I want it to sound "weird", then I can add that in too. But if I want it to sound exactly as the audio engineer meant it to sound, I have to start with equipment that is as accurate as possible. An amp that starts out sounding "warm", cannot sound accurate. And that's my criticism. With the right equipment, you can make an accurate signal sound warm. But you cannot make a warm signal sound accurate.
It's like your cup of coffee. You can add sugar, you can add cream, you can add mustard if that's what you want. But you can't remove it once it's in there.
99% of all amps need at least one of two things - a better power supply, and internal EM shielding.
You pretty much nailed it. That’s why we call it ‘high fidelity’ ain’t it?
These days I don’t listen to my main system and instead have a good headphone set up however when Danny starts reccomending stuff you know it’s going to be good
I spend lots of time over at ASR reading reviews and looking at measurements. be interesting to see these put to tests:}
They don't really do reviews over there. They just take measurements and theorize how things sound. It is also a pretty toxic environment over there. They get hostel if someone starts talking about how things sound.
One thing every audiophile should know. Measurements mean jack! They give you numbers. That’s it. I’ve heard many pieces of gear that “measured great” and sounded like trash.
@@Fidelity_Soundas Danny said in this review, measurements correlate to the sound. You may not like it but numbers don’t lie.
Been looking for an upgrade from a pair of Amp Camp Amps … A75 was on my list, now it’s leading.
I've been interested in the Vincent Audio SV-237MKII integrated and Jay has done a review on it, would be cool if Danny heard it on his system to see what he thought about it.
British Audiophile also reviewed it.
czcams.com/video/nuJu2uG5BKY/video.htmlsi=i21gsNGcmFOZzwLz
Thnx Danny.
Personally, i liked how you once made a reference to how you design your speakers to work best with all types of amp design... (tho all amps can be upgtraded to improve the sound of a good speaker design, at a cost & to perdonal taste) ...but its good to hear reviews particularly like this, i.e. of amps that have shocked you particulsrly for their humble.. (for the sound quality on offer) ..price .
i.m.o.
I wish more reviewers were more like that , no sugarcoating , and more picking .
But how does the TS120 do with AC\DC on 95DB in the room? I am considering Hypex Nilai Monoblocks and mix and match with preamps.
If you listen at 95 dB, you are going to have hearing damage.
@@ChicagoRob2 Just like Brian Johnson
Curious if this can drive LRS capably
I was hopping for the TS A20 review, i have it and cant really compare it the audio labs 6000a thats, just not a fair fight.
$1,500 is on the edge of my budget. I don't jam much these days and sound quality is more important than volume.
Thanks Danny, just out of curiosity did you try the a74 with a pair of your bully's? Just a thought that not dealing with low frequencies might help it.
I was using them with the NX-Treme's. So the bottom end was being handled by open baffle servo subs, and the lows being sent to the A74 was being filtered out a bit by my pre-amp.
@@dannyrichie9743 thanks
I build my own amplifiers. Based on tube amplifiers audio reproduction. Build my own speakers as well. Some of the crossovers cost more than some whole speaker products. Way more. My last pair I built are mostly Bowers & Wilkins products that I hated them. But yes I can do good stuff with them.
So there is the TS A20 waiting in the queue.
Hello Danny I would like to hear your opinion on rel subwoofer do you think their worth it how they made and how they sound Thank You Michel
I can tell you that quite a few REL sub owners have upgraded them to our servo controlled subs.
Thank You I'll check that out
what was used as pre amp and source?
Nice change fom the norm. Pls do more review videos... But ONLY if its outstanding and up to ur standard as we have more than enough normal review videos in youtube.
6:00 only amplifiers with massive power supply can double the wattage from 8 to 4 ohms, if this one goes from 75 to 100 it means that the transformer is not big enough to double, another thing is the quantity of output transistors, fewer transistors is easier to get excellent sound because of transistor matching, an amplifier with only 2 transistors sound more transparent than one with 4 transistors, but with less bass slam and damping factor, one of the best sounding amplifiers I have ever repaired is the Quad 303 that gives only 45 watts
Not true at all. In fact, it's definitely false with the given amplifier considering the size of transformer and the excessive capacitance he overspent on it. It boils down to the output devices. Most likely they are mosfets which do not always double in power because they are voltage devices rather than current like bipolar transistors. That's a gross oversimplification to say something should double in power and it's an audiophile wise tail that needs to disappear since it purely matters on the output devices and circuit topology.
@@HiFiWright You are wrong, the Ts-A75 use only 2 bipolar transistor on the output to achieve more transparency, possibly 2SA1295 and 2SC3264, a lot of capacitance but a couple of only two 200 watt transformers, the sum of small transformers and 1 positive transistor and 1 negative transistor per channel avoid the possibility of doubling the power at 4 ohms, the designer preferred transparency over power but to give punch in the bass use many capacitors, thanks for reading
I believe Thomas said it doesn’t double mainly for reliability reasons. The design was limited to keep it from running at max and possibly burning out components.
@@Pok-001 You need a current limiting circuit to do that, but it will affect the sound, no amp can double power only using 2 transistors, no need to mention that the transformer should be a 300 watt instead of 200 watt in order to produce 150 watts at 4 ohms, the transformer should be bigger in watts than the power you desire to get from it
@@ThresholdZhor you’re correct about the transformer should have some reserves/headroom when amp is maxed.
Does it have one pair of transistors? Maybe that’s why it’s limited? So it preserves sound quality?
Limiting power at the power stage would keep transistors (depending on their values) running more efficiently/cooler. Which would only improve SQ.
If it’s running one pair of transistors and just enough power transformers maybe that was a decision to keep it at the price point? Regardless sounds like it would have plenty juice for most. Especially considering type of speakers most people would have at this price point.
Curious to know what preamp was used with amp
I was using a Dodd Audio battery powered tube pre-amp.
Harmonic decay structure..........;reserved for the better amplifiers .....when the notes live their life until the end .
One does not know what this is before one heard it .
Even a lot of very impressive sounding and expensive amplifiers are missing THIS QUALITY.....
This is / was also an issue with many digital sources.......the difference in perception and the connection to the music when reproduced correctly ( with this quality ) is huge !
I have the Galion TS 120 fir review. Its the best amp I have heard to date
I also love the TS120, its a phenomenal amp.
It would be interesting to compare these amps with some of the clone/copy amplifiers that you can buy from China.I own a few of them and believe they give amazing sound .Not just for the money but by any standards.The FM Acoustic FM300A copies for example sound extremely good .As does the FM Acoustics FM155 preamp which you can get for about $300 .That is better than most of the $5000 preamps I have heard.The real things would cost you around $50,000!The days of needing to spend $5000 or more to get a good sounding amplifier are gone.Which is great because we can spend more of our budget on speakers and room treatment which is where you are going to gain the most benefit.
I hear a lot here abput "liking the sound." Are there amps that don't add or subtract or change anything about the sound going into them? Can we just make the sound louder without changing it otherwise?
There is a lot more to it than that.
Thomas needs to add a tube amp only to the line up.
I don't consider myself high end. But $4500 for a good tube amp is a reasonable price especially when you consider the features. I Had $1000 in the last amplifier I built, and I used reasonably priced transformers from Heyboer who makes quality transformers.
Maybe a GR Research special edition version with Tube Connectors and some low mass copper RCAs, something like KLE or WBT.
Although brass is no where near as bad as steel it is no where near as good as pure copper.
(This is assuming that the connectors Thomas uses are brass and not pure copper. I've used connectors that look identical to these and they were brass)
Was struck how the Gallion ts120 tube amp is very similar to my Rogue Cronus Dark. If it's anything like the Dark, then it's worth the money.
The Cronus Dark is no slouch but the TS 120 is even better, both more neutral and transparent.
I havent taken the "dark" for a spin but I prefer it over the Cronus Magnum.
We already trust your ears to help us with speakers. Why not for other gear?
Glad you like Thomas's amps.. I’ve had the Dodge 10b in silver since he gushed on about it the first time. I like classA 30 watt low feedback setting. I’m listening 7 ft away from the long wall in 17x14x8 room with three doors, one leading outside. A way to tune the sound. I’ve never rolled the tubes and I don’t leave it on. It puts out a tremendous amount of heat which I’m not crazy about except in the winter. Always enjoy your take fun to watch, you’re improving everyone’s speakers by making them use better parts.
I had to replace my Dr2 emotive for the perifi from Dylan at Buckeye amps to run my T2 from Tyler.
i have a question..I m currently using Sonus Faber Olimpica Nova III....I recently watched some videos about Sonus Faber Olimpica Nova III, they recommend to use amp which has 300W for this speaker...however, the A 75 amp in this video is only 75W per chanel....does that mean, this amp is not enough for my speakers (Sonus Faber Olimpica Nova III))??
Danny I like the direct approach. I have a Rega Aethos amp. Its good but lacks some things. So I got the Hegel H190 and found it thin. So lets say my budget was 4k
What would you get. My wire is yours... Two 8' stands its your top of line cable and really made a huge difference. But I keep going through amps. Looking for something outside the normal rhelm. I had an old Nakamichi Nelson Pass design 25- years ago, and really miss that sound. Just a point of reference.
Any idea I will listen and not hold anyone accountable :)
I’m not Danny, but I would highly recommend the Yamaha A-S2200, which is close to your budget. It’s a tight, controlled amp, with excellent detail and resolution, and end-game build quality. It has enough balls to drive just about anything. For smaller rooms and moderate listening levels, the Sugden A21 SE is as good as it gets. Pure Class -A, single-ended, and a non-fatiguing, effortless delivery. The amp sounds much bigger than its 30 watt rating would suggest. My last recommendation would be the Musical Fidelity A1, another Class-A masterpiece in sound delivery. It’s ridiculously good, considering the $1669 price. Anyway, hope this helps.
@@ChicagoRob2 I simply require genuine ultra high end performance and sadly most gear in a nutshell has in my experience and opinion unfortunately fallen very short and very substandard in comparative performance to that admittedly high required set of standards. It may be worth noting that when all what appears to be obnoxious level hype is cleared away and people look honestly and intelligently at what CAN BE done to obtain far higher performance even at lower Budget levels the industry may actually grow to be far more honorable and inviting.
@@davidcross890 Well, my perspective comes from 50 years in the audio game. I only recommend gear I own or have heard in my system. To eliminate hype, research non-CZcams reviews of the Sugden, for example. Take notice of the gear used in evaluation and the expertise of the reviewer.
@@ChicagoRob2 it's nice 👍 you offer helpful advice from many many years in the game. My pursuit for nearly 40years has been to either/or invent, design, and then build or own and Audibly enjoy and engage with the cost no object simply best of the best. From that perspective I have seen and painfully heard how disappointed so many others were with even many of today's supposed ultra high end offerings.
@@ChicagoRob2 I have to say you are spot on, I have the Sugden. Its in another room. It will not power my Kef R3 metas. Thanks you much looking the yamaha. Never considered that unit.
Please continue the amp reviews... 'No B S" reviews are tough to find on CZcams...when a reviewer accepts money for a review, I don't know if they can be totally unbiased. Yes, they all say ' Everything I'm about to say is my opinion alone'. Sorry, I have become very skeptical in my latter years. Ok off the soap box...Love what you are doing at GR-Research...keep the great content coming...
Send this amplifiers to Jay audiolab. Would be great to hear his opinion.
Dan , you hit the nail right on the head. The A-75 is a very good amp for the money , but there just isn't sufficient power for peaks and transients making the music sound compressed. You don't call yourself an amp specialist , but you actually are.
That's not what Danny Said ' I bet you don't even own a TS-A75 ' My buddy 'Stereo Review' Measured my Triangle speakers down to 2.5 ohms @132hz and TS-A75 drives the hell out of them in a room 14ft x 22ft here's the proof '
czcams.com/users/shortst6Mg-qB3dE4?si=8XEnKZ-ktsUgU0a0
I don't think that is what Danny said. As long as he did not push it to crazy volume, the amp can even rival his own reference gear, which means there should be no problem with transients and peaks. Danny, correct me if I am wrong.
A lot of use-to-be CZcams personalities are now going into the audio industry business. A new medium helps where as print and show coverage cost much more. I wish him well, but at some point who will police the police. Thank you for your honest option.
4:05 Galion A 75 ($1,495)
8:18 Galion TS120 ($4,495.00)
I acknowledge that I simply require genuine ultra high end performance and sadly most gear in a nutshell has in my experience and opinion unfortunately fallen very short and very substandard in comparative performance to that admittedly high required set of standards. It may be worth noting that when all what appears to be obnoxious level hype is cleared away and people look honestly and intelligently at what CAN BE done to obtain far higher performance even at lower Budget levels the industry may actually grow to be far more honorable and inviting.
Dont feell so bad, NASA lost the moon landiding video's , 😅 , this happens all the time apparently.
Earth is flat, we get it
@@Starch1b2c3d4a Earth is probably flat. But NASA and the 'space' program(s) - are definitely full blown lies. And we spend $93 million PER DAY for NASA.
The A75 has a massive amount of capacitors, not sure why it´s low on power..to small transformers, something else in the design? 🤷
Would be nice to see a stable 75/150w (8/4ohm) and even a value at 2 ohm.
This would pairing make less critical..there are a lot of 4 ohm speakers who dip to 3 and 2 ohm..
Lets get that money train rolling everybody !
From the other side of the Globe (Greece) I'm saying ...YESSSSSS please do these kind of videos especially at resonable prices
like these products. I was in the sales bussines of hifi for about 30 years and i;m tired to see or hear prices that sky is the limit ,with the excuses like RND or exotic parts or production costs and other b......t.I understand that profit is profit ,we all have to live somehow
and pay our bills ,but the things getting worse.Have you seen the companies with their products in Munich ? Most of them regardless what they selling they ask you your foot, your leg,your kidney,and not only parts of our bodies but the amount of money for two lifes.
I didnt knew that Europe had so many millionaires or reach people ready to pay tenths or hundrends thousand of euros to buy a pair of speakers or a amplifier or (worse a pair of cables).But anayway who i'm i to know.
So PLEASE AGAIN Do these kind of videos like THIS.
Thnx
So why did the re-bias mix the bass?
It had been a while since I used this amp. I brought it to Danny's, and we started listening right away. While the amp was warmed up by the time we got to AC/DC, we hadn't bothered checking the bias. When it sounded off, I pressed the change button on the amp, which shows whether or not the power tubes need biasing, and all four of them did. So, at that moment, I just pressed the bias button, and we got back to listening. Danny is right, though; it definitely sounded better.
@@Newrecordday2013 Knew there had to be a reason, thanks Ron😊
for that kind of money you can get as well a dartZeel nhb-108 D5 pro clone with 150 watts of control in 8 Ohms non fatiguing sound build like a tank
The A1 clones are also insanely good for the price.
Never heard one but looked into it a few years back and loved the build quality
@@ChicagoRob2 your right about that
... or you could get the real thing(working on my second).
@@tabl10s overpriced jewelry