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RE: Breaking my rule of not commenting on gear I've never heard

Posted by B. Scarpia on February 5, 2021 at 12:31:31

In Reply to: Yamamoto Sound Craft A-03S posted by Rocket_Powered on February 4, 2021 at 12:58:21:

I have heard, lived with, the first Yamamoto to hit these shores, the 45 stereo amp. It was a revelation after years of listening to all sorts of single-ended amps, 45, 300b, 2A3, and more. There was a magic, an almost unreal quality to the sound that made me set about building my own as close to the circuit as I could get at a price I could afford. It wasn't nearly as magical as the Yamamoto as it blended the circuit with Dan Tucker's "Simple 45" direct-coupled parafeed effort but performed brilliantly for me for nearly 10 years.

Every designer has a "house sound" and I would think that the unit your considering would offer some sort of magic within the envelope of a triode strapped beam tetrode. Anyone who's heard the KR Audio offerings, for example, would agree. Their VA300XB, VA340, and Kronzilla that I've had at home all share some sonic attributes despite using varying output tubes.

It's axiomatic that you'll never really know if the A-03S is for you without an audition but that was never easy in the past and quite impossible with the Pandemic. In your shoes, unless you'd be selling your first born to make the investment, I'd take a chance on the nameplate and risk the likely $2,000 bath if it doesn't satisfy.

I'm a huge fan of the Gold Lion KT-88 tubes which power my current push-pull mono blocks, so good I've left single-ended behind, so there's that.

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