price - performance - ease of use

really, none that I could find

It has taken me a long time to write my feelings down about the VAC Avatar Super, about three years to long, why, I can not say. In fact, as I write this review I recently sold it sold it due to moving to a smaller but nicer condo, and because of that purchased a smaller less expensive system.

I have participated in this audiophile hobby for what seems a long time now, and have had the pleasure of owning and listening to a variety of different equipment that has ranged from good to excellent. With this in mind, the Avatar Super (which, I miss) is one the best items I have “ever owned or purchased”; this includes sonically, appearance, ease of use, durability, versatility, quality of workmanship and customer service (the people at VAC are simply fantastic). I will not get into the details of valuating the sonic qualities of the Avatar Super, for one can read various reviews. However, I can say to anyone looking at a $7,000 and below cost integrated amps to at least consider and listen to the Avatar Super, it just might be what you are looking for.

In closing, there are many integrated, power amp/pre amps to choose from at or below this price range and yes there are units out there that only cost $700 to $1,000 to $2,000 + that I must say are very good. However, I feel there are only really a few integrated amps in the $7,000 price range that begin to get pretty close to that “high end” experience that experienced Audiophiles seek, and I feel that the Avatar Super is one of them. Does the Avatar Super compare to units costing $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000 +, almost NO, (lets face it, you typically get what you pay for). However, over the three years of owning the Avatar Super it never disappointed and more importantly it faithfully provided excellent listening each and every time I had the pleasure of using it. More importantly, it never left me wanting for more, which is a hard thing to find in this sometimes elusive, narcissistic hobby!

Customer Service

ELNT.

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BAT, Audio Research, McIntosh, Musical Fidelity

Ease of operation, system integration, tube sweetness and delicacy, pretty darn good bass, and overall musicality. It's as sweet as listening to Van Morrison, Marvin Gaye, Tom Waits, Roger Watters, Robbie Robertson, Dave Matthews, and so on.

None to mention.

I've owned a variety of solid state products, Quicksilver tubes, and Audio Research LS8, PH3, VT60, LS5, and VT130, but none of them have come close to the musical enjoyment I've experienced with my VAC Avatar integrated tube amp. The separates may have certain advantages with regard to detail, delicacy, mid range sweetness, and low-end slam, but it was much harder to integrate, took up more space, consumed more energy, and was a great deal more hassle to deal with. In the end, I ended up getting dissolutioned and was ready to give up until someone recommended that I listen to the VAC Avatar integrated. Needless to say, I purchased one immediately, been happy with its performance, and have not looked back since. I can't even tell you how many nights I've popped a CD into my Rega Planet or spun a vinyl on my Linn LP12 and caught myself smiling, knowing that I've made a great decision with my VAC purchase. Sure, I may not be getting the same great phono stage that was in my old PH3, but what I do have is close and enjoyable enough. My old LS5 may have much greater detail and sweetness, but it was also a whole lot harder to integrate and was too revealing of other components' weaknesses. Besides, the balanced XLR to single-ended RCA converters were flimsy in my opinion. I won't even tell you how many power amps I went through before I was satisfied. One piece of advise: Listen to the Avatar in triode mode if you can. I listened to it for two years in ultralinear mode because I thought I needed all 60 watts of output, but ever since I switched it to triode I have not switched it back. Find yourself an efficient pair of speakers and forget the wattage. I don't even feel the need to turn the volume past 10 o'clock. 27 watts of triode is plenty! I certainly became a triode convert quickly. Even if I can afford the most expensive tube system, I won't give up my Avatar. It's just been that good. The only thing that would make me part with it is an extraordinary woman who might make me choose between her and my musical enjoyment or an unforeseen financial hardship. With my Avatar, I have to upgrade other components in my system just to keep up with its performance and musicality. I don't even find it necessary to upgrade to the SE version. Find an Avatar, purchase it, enjoy it, and don't look back - just as I did. Happy listening... John P

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Audio Research separates Quicksilver Mono 60s, Mini Mites (25s) Conrad Johnson PV10 Krell 300i Arcam NAD separates variety of solid states

Customer service countinues to be second to none.

Difficult to mount and wire in trunk for use with car stereo. Have had to resort to transistor amp for mobile listening.

More update on Avatar: I recently had Kevin upgrade the Avatar to the "SE" components and install a pre-out for use with a sub or bi-amping. Performs even better than before; and since it has survived shipping around the country 4 times now with savage UPS men and brutal Fed ex couriers, I suspect it may be (almost) indestructible.

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McIntosh MA 6500

Multifaceted product with stunning looks and sound beyond approach.

Company does not make enough money to pay off major stereo magazines to buy votes.

In a world of niche products, the product that embraces most other products virtues without falling folly to thier excesses is the top dog. In this case the VAC clearly gets my vote as well from others I suspect, for the TD. This fence post rider of sorts embraces so many of the traditional virtues of tube gear but adds the speed and direct tightness of transistors. I love what the tube gear of past has offered but, being a die hard SS fan I could not deal with most tube short falls. The AR is extended from top to bottom but really lacked timbre, slam and rythmn. The CJ had better timbre but lacked top end and directness. If I did not know better, I would have suspected that NAIM had moved thier headquarters to sunny florida and decided to go tube.

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Real music! That good

I will eventually have to replace the tubes, which will probably trigger another religious experience. (Are you now or have you ever been a purchaser of soviet vacuum tubes). Far more user friendly than other tube gear I've looked at over the past year. The "hassles" of owning tube gear that have been repeated to me are minimal compared to the rewards. Outstanding customer service. Mr. Hayes was kind enough to share his opinion and experience with me both in numerous emails and in a 30 minute-long phone tutorial. It's difficult for me to imagine Mr. Sony taking time to explain how his minidisc players work.

I will eventually have to replace the tubes, triggering a decrease in the weight of my wallet. A pre-out option would be nice (for biamping with the VAC Auricle).

Update on previous review: I have had the Avatar for over a year now and it has only gotten better. Extended listening in the triode mode has convinced me that the description "27 wpc" is meaningless. As Kevin Hayes modestly describes, "tube watts have longer legs". What an understatement. I have to amend my previous review about demanding material; I have yet to encounter a DVD-A or SACD that the Avatar can't handle. I have found limitations only in the bass response of my speakers, not the ability of the amp. In addition, the amp has allowed me to find good things in mediocre and even poor recordings. In an age of ever increasing digital processing and feature laden audio equipment (just HOW many inputs and signal processors do you need?), the Avatar is focused on and excels at the fundamental task; reproducing sound well enough to make you forget about the gear and listen to the music (Alhtough I must confess that in a darkened room, the glow of the tubes still beckons, even after a year).

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None of any consequence. Considering the price points of the comparable solid state gear, The Avatar is a true bargain.

Liquid, make that velvety presentation of the whole of the audio spectrum. Solid soul shaking bass and an unbelieveably sound stage, which extends realistically to the sides and rear. The best ever in this regard.

None of any consequence

Where has all the music gone? Well, for my taste, its locked inside tubes,(a woefully select few transistors), and only released when the "on" switch is flipped. Just kidding, but with all the home theater craze, it seems that a lot of people have forgotten how to just relax and listen to Mozart, or Stacy Kent, and be taken away to that place that only music can transport us to. I have been an audio nut for more years than I care to admitt, starting with a Joanie Sommers album back in 1959, followed by Nancy Wilson's comming out album in 1962, I think. Anyway, at the age of 12(while taking saxaphone lessons, reading Louis Armstrong's autobiography Satchmo, and dreaming of living in the French Quarter, I have been hopelessly hooked on music. When it is right, there is no experience quite like it, which brings us to the Avatar. As former Director of Sales for THIEL audio, I have heard practically every electronics line on the planet, ad nauseum. Some are good, even very good, and some are ok, while some are, well...maybe the Bell Curve applies to electronics performance. Nevertheless, this past January, I was in Vegas, helping Craig Oxford with his Nearfield Acoustics Pipedreams suite, (as best I could after a painful back surgery), and I was introduced to Kevin Hayes, who was jointly displaying with Craig at the Alexis Park. The first evening, I went in to meet Kevin, who was working on less than four hours sleep, and was anxious to get to dinner. He said, "I'm leaving but come on in and listen for five minutes or so." Four hours later we went to the bar and ate hamburgers and marveled at the rejouvenative powers of music. Me ailing and him exhausted, we nevertheless listened to everything imaginable and were like two kids with a new toy. Kevin, for those of you who have not met him, is a fine Christian gentleman who loves music as much as I do. And I can only say that it shows in the overwhelmingly wonderful sound of his electronics. They are, in a word, and this comes from a cynical "I've heard it all before", audio nut. Kevin put on his copy of Bobby Darin's "More" with Bobby singing in fron of a big band, and honest to God it came to life. (I will have to start another review as I am informed that I am out of space.

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Gryphon (great solid state gear, the best I have heard)Krell, McIntosh, Ayre, Musical Fidelity, Conrad Johnson, CAT, Rowland Research, you name it I've heard it.

Natural timbre, soundstaging, imaging, ease of biasing,

Lowest levels of bass slam(although I''m very satisfied with bass output); factory installed tubes can be improved upon.

I have owned my Avatar almost 1 year now. It replaced a very respectful Jolida 502A. I had performed some modifications to my Jolida but realized there were limits that just couldn’t be overcome via internal upgrades so I set out to find a better tube integrated. Because of my speakers limitations I confined the contenders to tube integrated amps which were at least 50 watts. I had narrowed down my search to the Avatar and the VTL IT-85. I had the opportunity to audition the IT 85 in my home but couldn’t audition the Avatar. While the IT 85 was a nice amp it sound very “solid state like” to my ears. I thought it might be in need of better tubes but found out if I changed the tubes I would void the warranty. I didn’t like the idea of not being able to do any tube rolling so I looked more seriously at the Avatar but it was used whereas the VTL was a demo with a full warranty. I called Kevin Hayes of VAC and between talking in depth with him and the reviews on the Avatar I purchased the Avatar without hearing it. A little scary I know! Two of the most significant selling points for me were the home theater bypass and the phono stage. Another feature which I really like with the Avatar is the ease in biasing the tubes. I rediscovered this crazy hobby about 3 years ago after building a home theater. I found very quickly that I also rediscovered music and began the process of trying to build an integrated HT/2 channel music system which many folks said couldn’t be done. I think the Avatar does a wonderful job integrating the two systems. I purchased my Avatar used through Audio Shopper and it is the standard version. It doesn’t have a remote control but that’s ok. I don’t find myself getting up and down to adjust the volume. That said it is a feature I probably wouldn’t use much so I’m ok without it. The buying experience wasn’t one of the better one’s I have had but due to the seller selling for a friend but in the end everything worked out. Upon receiving the Avatar the first thing I noted was how heavy it was. This baby is one heavy amp thanks to those big transformers. I unboxed the Avatar and carefully inspected it. The build quality is first rate compared to my Jolida, although for almost 4 times the price I guess it should be. The faceplate is very nice looking. The bias meter in the middle of the faceplate adds a nice nostalgic look to the

Similar Products Used:

VTL - IT 85

Versitility, natural timbre, dynamics, soundstage, imaging, quality build

Probably not the best bass in terms of slam but that''''s ok. I think factory installed tubes can be improved upon.

I have owned my Avatar almost 1 year now. It replaced a very respectful Jolida 502A. I had performed some modifications to my Jolida but realized there were limits that just couldn’t be overcome via internal upgrades so I set out to find a better tube integrated. Because of my speakers limitations I confined the contenders to tube integrated amps which were at least 50 watts. I had narrowed down my search to the Avatar and the VTL IT-85. I had the opportunity to audition the IT 85 in my home but couldn’t audition the Avatar. While the IT 85 was a nice amp it sound very “solid state like” to my ears. I thought it might be in need of better tubes but found out if I changed the tubes I would void the warranty. I didn’t like the idea of not being able to do any tube rolling so I looked more seriously at the Avatar but it was used whereas the VTL was a demo with a full warranty. I called Kevin Hayes of VAC and between talking in depth with him and the reviews on the Avatar I purchased the Avatar without hearing it. A little scary I know! Two of the most significant selling points for me were the home theater bypass and the phono stage. Another feature which I really like with the Avatar is the ease in biasing the tubes. I rediscovered this crazy hobby about 3 years ago after building a home theater. I found very quickly that I also rediscovered music and began the process of trying to build an integrated HT/2 channel music system which many folks said couldn’t be done. I think the Avatar does a wonderful job integrating the two systems. I purchased my Avatar used through Audio Shopper and it is the standard version. It doesn’t have a remote control but that’s ok. I don’t find myself getting up and down to adjust the volume. That said it is a feature I probably wouldn’t use much so I’m ok without it. The buying experience wasn’t one of the better one’s I have had but due to the seller selling for a friend but in the end everything worked out. Upon receiving the Avatar the first thing I noted was how heavy it was. This baby is one heavy amp thanks to those big transformers. I unboxed the Avatar and carefully inspected it. The build quality is first rate compared to my Jolida, although for almost 4 times the price I guess it should be. The faceplate is very nice looking. The bias meter in the middle of the faceplate adds a nice nostalgic look to the a

Similar Products Used:

VTL IT 85; Jolida 502A

Switchable between UL and triode; best of both worlds. Incredible mids, coherence, bass response for 27W tube amp. In triode, might outperform VAC''s own 100/100 w/ efficient speakers. Also, great built in MM stage.

Best run in triode; 27Ws may not be enough w/ speakers whose impedence dips below 4 oh. or is unstable. Need step-up device w/ low or mid-MC phono cart. Have to spend big $$$ (Renaissance series or similar) for signif. upgrade.

This is an amazing integrated, even at full retail of $4000. I bought a trade-in at my local dealer for half price. Can be switched between pentode and triode. Even the 27 watts in triode drives my speakers better than most 100 SS amps. I auditioned at the shop w/ several speakers: Spendor, Reference 3As, Krix. I ended up taking home the VAC and a pair of small Spendor S 3/5s. The 3/5s are not easy to drive! Several of the highly touted 40-50W British integrateds just didn''t have the power to drive them, and even the Creek 5330SE and Roksan Caspian didn''t do them full justice (compared to some Sim gear I had heard them on in the past or other high end separates). The Avatar, in contrast, drove them exceptionally well even in triode. Incredible midrange, coherence and detail, and as much low end as the 3/5s could muster. I ended up selling the 3/5s, though, and picking up a used pair of Spendor 2/3s, a speaker than I had owned in the past and decided to give one more try. The 2/3s have great midrange "presence" and with the right amp are almost capable of wrapping the performers around you in a small room. Very slightly rolled off at the top end (but not etched sounding like some high end speakers), but have a reputation for having a soft sounding base. That had been my experience w/ the Golden Tube amp I had in the past, and that I had heard at the dealer w/ several products. However, once I got the system "tuned in" at home, the Avatar running in triode, have the 2/3s a low end precision and "grunt" I had not heard w/ any other amp. Still preserved the midrange "reach out and touch the performers" magic of the 2/3s, but with a low end that was tight and realistic sounding in my 12X14 room. In triode, it is a little rolled off at the top, a little warm sounding (but I think live music generally sounds this way). Running in pentode gives a little more volume(not that much!), not any real difference in bass response, not quite as sweet "tube magic" in the mids, but a little more treble info at the top end. In pentode, sounds almost like a high end solid state amp, w/out any of the glare or roughness that almost all SS amps have. In sum, mid magic of SE (in triode), low in grunt of best SS (w/ right speakers), pace & timing of best Brits, no real weaknesses unless used w/ incompatable speakers. Also, great phono.

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Golden Tube SE 40, Anthem Amp 1, Antique Sound Labs, Aronov (integrated) tube amps. Amber, NAD, Acurus, Belles SS amps. Listened to almost all amps under 5 grand (CJ, VTL, Rogue, ARC, Aragon, Sim et

Musicality; decent lower bass. Remote too expensive.

High output impedence (3.5-4 Ohms) can cause extreme frequency aberrations with partnered speakers. Flash Gordon aesthetic has poor WAF.

Listening with an old non-audiophile friend who's listened to acoustic jazz/classical for forty years: cymbals have no attack, horns way too bright. Hmmm...the Verity Audio's didn't sound like that at two dealers' with other amps. I noticed a lean balance, LOTS of tube glare (hardness), and a completely closed in top! Substituted TWO other amps, and the balance changed dramatically. Upon measuring frequency response in-room, 1/3 octave sweep: the other two amps matched within 0.5 dB 20-20k, but the AVATAR: flat to 100, 2.5 dB down at 250, back to flat at 1k, then rising to a 3 dB peak at 4.5k (tube glare), then falling like a rock to -11dB (!!) at 10-12k...but then shooting back up to +3dB at 20k! I remember reading the warnings in Stereophile, etc, re high output impedence amps affecting speaker frequency response, and indeed they sometimes publish "speaker load"
synthesized curve along with the normal resistive-load sweeps, and these curves show the same shape as I've described above, but with amplitudes of 0.5 to maybe 1.5dB
max (audible, but maybe euphonic if it's to your taste).
But what the AVATAR did with this relatively benign speaker load (88dB/w, 5.7-9.5ohms!) is unconscionable! I called VAC to discuss this phenomenon (after borrowing ANOTHER amp to verify the accuracy of my results), and was told that the output tubes in the AVATAR tend to modify speaker response more than the tubes in their pricier amps; nonetheless they were surprised especially by the giant upper treble suck-out.
Some comparable tube amps (CJ CAV-50) HAVE LOWER OUTPUT IMPEDENCES (0.4 OHMS), and should affect a speaker response more gently, and perhaps in an appealing way. Such was the case with Air Tight, CJ, and MacIntosh glass with the Verity Audio. So a word of warning is in order with amps like the AVATAR: make sure the gross changes they make with YOUR speaker are really what you want. These changes can be much more detrimental to the overall musical experience because of their completely unnatural portrayals than any perceived benefits in other areas. Sorry to go on for so long, but I spent a LOT of time figuring this out empirically, and thought my experience might be helpful.
Anybody know of any fine amps for the Parsifal Encore?
Thanks.
For obvious reasons I'll omit the simplistic star ratings.
Oops! Apparently I can't post without stars...aargh!
Obviously if partnered perfectly the AVATAR deserves 4-5 starts, but in my application it was 1! Disregard the "3's".

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Conrad-Johnson separates, Acurus, Audio Refinement (YBA), old NAD, Air Tight, Levinson...still hunting!