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 For those that are spaced challenged, not mentally but rack wise, this stellar integrated is a combo of the Twenty pre and amp in one box. Sometimes you only have so much space! And the good folks at Ayre certainly didn't skimp. None other than that purveyor of great sound Michael Lavorgna has been using the AX-5 with his new pair of DeVore X's, and I have that very same rig set up here for your listening perusal.
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 Yet another doozy in the Ayre lineup, this amp is in the same chassis as the big integrated, or they sure seem close. A step above the V-5xe with more intricate and stepped up power supplies. And you can hear it. An absolutely wonderful stereo amp on its own or in a rack of Ayre.  I've had scads of CD players thru these rooms, both as a hobbyist and a retailer. This one is sweet, open, detailed, and lets the shoulders relax. You know I'm all about the feel of music. And this unit conveys that easily.  I call this one the lil chubby. It seems big, yet it's maneuverable, and it just yields the sweetest sounds....It's playing now as I type, and I keep drifting off to listen. Emmylou Harris is belting her heart out from the stage of the Ryman, and this is transporting me there. Yeehaw!!  Lots of features, lots of fun to use, and best of all, great music making  Would you believe a rack of Ayre? Coaxing wonderful sounds out of the DeVore X's.  Here we have the VTL IT-85 integrated amplifier, making itself at home on a Box Furniture Co amp rack. Oh my goodness, it's a lovely piece of gear. With remote.
 And what a perfect record to go along with the sky - this classic from Anne Briggs. If you haven't heard of her or this album, you owe it to yourself to give it a listen. This is a reissue on 4MenWithBeards. She made two records, then disappeared, and has recently resurfaced. Next up, some Phil Ochs, then a round of Sibelius, I think Sym #2, for starters.   a great sky for Maundy Thursday Many of you have been buying tube gear from me, and before the transformers have even broken in you're off on a tube quest. Now I have to remind you that most all of the factory tubes are very good to start with. For many of you that's all you will need. Yet like any other hobby, there are some, or lately it seems like most, that want to extract the most out of their units that they can. And you can clearly yield better results - usually. Sometimes you can botch it, making your unit too mellow or too bright. So proper matching is important. The only trouble is you won't know until you hear it, meaning buy it, and that can get expensive. So here's my basic advice: for many of you I suggest starting out with Tung Sols- they are new production stock, and quite reasonable. They will often outperform the stock factory tube. Next up in quality would be the Genelex Gold Lions- they are also new production stock. Remember with all new tubes they need to burn in, and will start to settle in after 40 hrs of play time. After that, we venture out into the land of NOS, or new old stock. This is where it can become hit or miss, and relatively inexpensive to outrageous. There are many online sites for tubes. For new production I recommend Tube Depot, who often have coupons going. For NOS I recommend Brent Jesse, TubeWorld, Jim, McShane, and Kevin Deal at Upscale Audio. They can give great knowledge about a particular type of tube, and are very helpful.  these are new old stock GE 12AX7s, known as long plates  these are new old stock GE 12AX7's, long plates, from a different batch. Still 1961 vintage, as are the 2 in the first photo. Yet each has a different sound.  Did he say 16"?  No way! Did he really say it was 16"?  He's high! Well, whether you say 16 inches or 400 mm, that's a long tonearm! Come see and hear the new Well Tempered Lab Royale 400 turntable, sporting the longest arm in the county.  The WTL Royale 400, here sporting even more royalty, the King of Cartridges, the Dynavector 1t. |
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