861 power amplifier
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Excerpted
from The Absolute Sound,
Issue 117 (May/June 1999) by Paul A Bolin ... Far too many components are able to capture all of the constituent elements of sound but are somehow dyslexic in translating those elements into music. Like a scholar who can speak six languages, but who has nothing to say in any of them, such components shortly become intensely boring, however superficially impressive their presentation. The EAR 861 not only speaks the language of music, it has plenty to say in the bargain.... The amp is strikingly tactile and intimate through the midrange, at times bordering on the sorcerous.... Great recordings of strings are ravishing in their woody sweetness and properly rendered overtone structure, without losing the correct measure of bite. The 861’s treble performance is not stereotypically tube-soft, but harmonically rich and complete. The last smidgen of airiness is not entirely present. Tonal colors are intensely saturated through the 861.... This rather unusual characteristic is not the same thing as the golden, romantic glow of some tube electronics.... The EAR does not euphonically soften transients or boundary definitions, but it presents the core of music with an immediacy and textural and tonal intensity seldom heard from an audio component. On music that is principally about sheer sonic beauty... the EAR is nothing short of enrapturing. The 861’s presentation of low-level musical detail is of a very high order.... There is, however, a pervasive darkness to the EAR’s resolution of low-level ambient detail in the far field, as if the air further away from instruments were somehow thickened, absorbing some sonic information.... This minor suppression of ambient information at the far reaches of the stage, when taken together with the amp’s intensely rendered tonal hues, explains the 861’s remarkable quality of musical intimacy. It is as though a certain amount of ambient information is sacrificed in order to bring the listener into a close, personal relationship to the musicians.... Ultimately there is something more painterly than photojournalistic in the 861’s presentation.... As beautiful as a photograph of the English countryside may be, a Constable landscape has more depth and soul, and can capture an ineffable sense of time and place. The EAR, in similar fashion, has an unerring ability to go straight to the emotionally evocative heart of the musical experience rather than focusing on some of the more hi-fi qualities cherished by some as a part and parcel of the audio experience.... Music at its best can give glimpses into the heart of the human experience, and the small failings the EAR may have in terms of "neutrality" are more than compensated for by its uncanny ability to let music touch the mind and heart....The 861’s deep and subtle tonal colors, solid imaging, and surprising extension at the frequency extremes take it well beyond the specialty niche of its lower-powered triode brethren....
Ultimate Audio, Winter 1999 Glass EARS? The Esoteric Audio Research 861 Vacuum Tube Power Amplifierby Dayna B. GLASS EARS I’m not sure where the term "Golden Ears" originated, but I’ve wondered whether I should think of my own ears as being metallic. I’ve met a lot of people whom I would classify as "Transistor Ears," and a few who were definitely "Tin Ears," but such labels don’t seem appropriate for the true music lover. To those listeners, I offer the title "Glass Ears," as they often prefer tube equipment. Come to think of it, "Vinyl Ears" may be even more appropriate, but we ARE talking about a tube amplifier here. Vacuum tube heads unite! Come gather round the thermionic glow of sacred valves. Today, we worship - uh, listen to - the Esoteric Audio Research 861 push-pull triode power amplifier designed by Tim de Paravicini. The EAR 861 is a 32 wpc stereo amplifier that can accept either fully balanced XLR or single-ended RCA phono jack inputs. Manufacturer Yoshino Limited calls the 861 an "enhanced triode mode, zero overall negative feedback, pure Class ‘A’ I push-pull amplifier." Got that? There will be a quiz later. (Just kidding.) In the case of the 861, de Paravicini started with the EL 519 pentode power tube and configured it in a way that makes it function as a "super" or "enhanced" triode tube. According to Dan Meinwald, EAR importer, the enhanced triode mode is more linear than the majority of directly heated triodes. Hmm... What about that "zero overall negative feedback" thing? Well, feedback is often required to keep distortion to a manageable level. Some circuitry needs feedback in order to remain stable (read: not self-destructing). Essentially, it sounds like feedback when the signal is fed back through part or all of the circuitry and amplified a second time. Make sense? Well, I certainly didn’t invent the idea; I’m just glad EAR doesn’t use feedback. Class "A" biased amplification is nothing new, The tubes are constantly in "ready" mode and have no on-off continuity problems. The sonic benefits are dramatic, provided you can get away with this less efficient method of amplification. When it comes to the best performance, who cares about efficiency (at least with amplifiers)? The EAR 861 has an open chassis design, mostly black enamel with chrome bell caps on the transformers. The faceplate is chromed with a single illuminating pushbutton power switch. The power transformer sits front and center, with the individually caged output tubes flanking it and running along the sides. The output transformers sit in the rear comers of the chassis, completing a "U" shape when viewed from above the amplifier. industrial chic. Aside from the usual connectors in the back, there are inputs for XLR plugs and potentiometers for adjusting the input level to match the 861’s sensitivity with the preamplifier’s output. THE EARS HAVE IT Well, just to show you "Glass Ears" that even I listen to CDs, I started off with some rather good recordings. I like to start things out with orchestral performances, so I led in with Janacek’s The Makropulos Case (Reference Recordings RR-75CD HDCD), with the Czech State Philharmonic, Brno under the direction of Jose Serebrier. This performance was spectacular with natural tones to the instruments. I wasn’t surprised to hear a beautiful orchestral sweetness, thanks to the triode mode of the 861. In "The Cunning Little Vixen Suite," soundstage definition was excellent. The pure power of the crescendo was stunning... make that shocking! Just to verify how sturdy the 861’s power supply was, as the next crescendo came I listened for signs of weakness. Weakness? No way! The soundstage remained stable, and instrumental tones were true. No sagging in the volume was apparent, and there was certainly no sign of distortion. Maybe I should get out my Martin-Logan CLSes, though that would be just a little hard on this amplifier. In The Makropulos Case, the tremendous detail and solid imaging led to definite ease in hearing the subtleties of the performance. The emotion of the music came through clearly and purely. Wonder led to conflict and anxiety. Confusion gave way to serenity and clarity. This is a very moving piece of music - a definite "must hear." The 861 did remarkably well in reproducing the music of this well-recorded CD. As involving and gorgeous as the music was, it didn’t become overly lush. It’s one thing to be able to bring the emotion of the music out, and quite another to recreate the passion and soul of the performance itself. I popped in Abraxas by Santana (Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab UDCD 552) and started jammin’! From the very first song, there was a chilling clarity to the crying guitar of Carlos Santana. It was like listening into the performance. The soundstage depth and width were both very good with solid imaging. This correlated well with the sense of excellent timing the 861 displayed. The imaging never got over-detailed, where images become like cardboard cutouts. Rather, there was a sense of air surrounding the performers and a subtle softness to the edges. While I was listening to "Black Magic Woman/Gypsy Queen," the sensuous moaning of the guitar seduced me, drawing me into the music. The throbbing bass and sultry percussion put a hypnotic spell on me. This was some damned fine musical reproduction. I was sent back in time - to when I first heard this song - and dude, I was there! Something interesting happened when I got to "Incident at Neshabur." The performance itself seemed less invigorating. The sound quality was great, yet the performers themselves seemed somewhat distant. It’s interesting to note that after reading the liner notes I learned that this one cut was recorded at a different studio. That the EAR 61 could reveal this subtle and nearly imperceptible change is indicative of its ability to convey the soul of the recording. ATTENTION "VINYL EARS"! Now comes the real deal. I put the needle own on Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (CBS Masterworks IM 39699), performed by Michael Tilson Thomas and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The instruments had good tone and timbre, sounding detailed and accurate. The 861 was able to capture the sounds of the piano and orchestra thoroughly, covering the full frequency spectrum in a well-balanced manner. The instruments possessed a good sense of texture, making the individual instruments singular in character, but the body of the instruments were a tiny bit variable. The violins could have used a little more warmth and harmonic intensity, while the cellos seemed a touch over done (picky, picky me). The clarinet was perfectly dreamy. It was reedy, woody and furry. This was like living it. The brass section sounded ever so slightly more distant than usual. I say this because on this LP, the soloists and piano were recorded well in front of the orchestra. This was the big test: to see how well the 861 could reproduce the piano. Tone and timbre are fairly easy to get right, but dynamics, tempo, texture and body are much harder to balance properly. The subtle microdynamics were very well delineated, making it quite obvious that I was listening to a pianist of great accomplishment. The large-scale dynamics were very impressive, once again displaying an evident strength. The piano was the instrument that helped me discern the variation in the intensity of the secondary harmonics. The fact that this variation is so minor means that I would hesitate to call the 861 either dark sounding or bright. Throughout my listening to the EAR 861, the bass was consistently just a shade bloomy. It made bass instruments sound a tad heavy. This contrasted with the rather quick, tight, and tidy upper frequencies. In other words, the 861 sounded clean and crisp in the upper frequencies, while a shade loose in the lower frequencies. Understand that I’m being very picky and speaking in absolute terms-that is, relative to a real piano or other actual instrument. Notably, the 861’s rhythm and pace were very solid, providing excellent punch and boogie factor. Obviously, the bass bloom was doing no harm to the rest of the performance. EARS TO YOU The EAR 861 is a superbly performing power amplifier. It is capable of extracting fine detail without sounding dry or electronic. The midrange is sweet but doesn’t cross the line toward lush. The EAR 861’s strength lies in its handling of dynamics. Its finesse with microdynamics allows for the emotion of the music flow. The sheer power of the macrodynamics is exceptional, providing a major startle factor. The 861’s one minor shortcoming is its ever-so-slight bass bloom. I would prefer a touch more texture and body to the instruments, as well as a tad more ease in the flow of the passion of the recorded performance. Still, I love this amplifier. As I wrap up my final draft of this article, I am going through separation anxiety. That’s a sure sign that the EAR 861 is a winner. |