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i've had my Tenor 300 watt Hybrids for 3 weeks.........

Posted by mikel (A) on October 24, 2003 at 06:06:18

In Reply to: Tenor Audio 300HP: First Impressions posted by Quint on October 22, 2003 at 00:20:09:

.....and they are the real deal.

like Frank i was skeptical. after living with the Tenor 75 watt OTL's for the last 2 years.....and comparing them to many of the best amps out there......they had set a standard that, in my mind at least, was going to hard to equal, let alone beat. i was expecting more dynamic control, less heat in my room.....and possibly more speed. but i thought i would also lose some naturalness and clarity. i expected the Hybrids to be less texturally complex and articulate.

then i spent time with the Hybrids in SF at the Stereophile Show and it was very clear to my ears there that they were quite a bit better overall than the OTL's. but......i rationalized that somehow the OTL's were underperforming at the Show.....maybe bad power.....or something.

then the Hybrids arrived in my room......really from the first note it was clear the Hybrids did EVERYTHING better than the OTL's. first, much more neutral.....and......much lower noise floor.....and yet.....completely organic and natural. i was not prepared for that combination of supurlatives......as i have never experienced it before outside of live music. the Hybrids actually have more clarity, speed and inner detail and texture than the OTL's (which had set the standard in these areas for me). combine those attributes with much greater dynamic control, better pace and drive, more solid frequency extention, bigger more focused soundstage and better overall coherence and lack of strain......and you have simply raised the bar for amplification.

the easiest way to describe it.....it just gets out of the way of the music......you don't get a sense that it is there.

the way the Hybrids reproduce pianos, horns, and voices must be heard to be appreciated. there is a seeming complete absense of the recording and reproduction process.....these sounds just sound real.

many people focus on bass performance as that seems to be the 'hard part' of any amp/speaker performance. no system is completely fulfilling without great bass performance. the Hybrids are simply unbelievable in this area. the bass is extended, balanced, articulate, fast, textured and has a presence and effortlessness that makes it completely complimentary to the musical event. and it does all those things in complete coherence with the rest of the frequency range.

these are not cheap.....but i have heard plenty of just as expensive or more expensive amps.....and the Tenor 300 watt Hybrid monoblocks go to a new level. i consider them a bargain. and they will work well with about any speaker that i know of.

if you get a chance to listen to these......do it!

mikel

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