as appeared in audioMUSINGS
Issue No. 1 1998
by Larry CoxMy listening tastes are still
evolving. When I purchased Vandersteen 2Ci's, I
wanted a full-bodied sound which conveyed a sense
of lyricism and melody, knowing that the speaker
was not as detailed as many others. I still like
and respect Vandersteens, but after years of
listening to more and more gear I don't think
that I could now accept their compromises. (I
haven't heard the newer 2Ce's, so have no
comments about them.) What I want at present is
gear that remains lyrical and melodic, and with
plenty of detail, but not at the cost of accurate
timbre. I want warm but detailed sound.
Previously I equated warmth with bass extension,
but that is a mistake. There are lots of
components with deep bass, but which lack the
warmth that seems accurate to me. Thus, the lamb
I sacrifice for contentedness is bass extension.
The interim holy grail is a resolving system with
realistic timbre and a slightly warm, perhaps
even dark sound. I'm not sure that I really want
darkness, but I know that a bright system would
be short-lived in my living room.
When I moved from a PSE Studio Mk IV amplifier to
the Classe CA100, I got just about as much detail
but a bit more tube-like warmth, while retaining
the sense of "properly" reproduced
timbre. I have been quite happy with the Classe.
What has surprised me these past several weeks is
that I now hear how grainy it is, when compared
to the Alternate Audio CA35 amplifier. The
Alternate is a further step along the road to
more refined, more detailed sound, while
retaining the ability to reproduce realistic
timbre.
The CA35 is much more refined than the Classe,
and at $1000 more in cost, perhaps it should be.
What I mean by refined is that there is a lot
less grain at every frequency response. The
treble is clearer, without being harsh or etched.
What is fairly astonishing to me is the
difference between the CA35 and the Classe in the
midrange. On Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's Facing
Future, the late singer's angelic-but not
pantywaist-voice is communicated with a greater
sense of clarity than with the Classe, as are his
ukelele and the steel guitar. On track 10, the
latter instrument is played very low, and to hear
it with less grain and a greater sense of strings
vibrating in air is a real achievement, at least
to my ears. That ability is part of what makes
this amplifier pretty spectacular.
Almost everything is more transparent and more
"here" than with the Classe. That
increased transparency makes the singer more
"present" in the room, though not as
palpable or full-bodied as some tube amplifiers.
In combination with my tube preamplifier, the
Alternate amplifier gives an excellent sense of
presence, perhaps as much as most people would
want.
Many people describe Classe amplifiers as
"tubey." While it has the excellent
character of palpability commonly ascribed to
tube amplifiers, the CA35 also bears comparison
to tubes in its liquid reproduction of sound.
Like tube amplifiers, the CA35 doesn't go really
deep. However, like solid state amplifiers, the
bottom end it does reproduce is quite solid and
very tight. Its frequency response is seamless.
In comparison, the Classe's more robust bottom
end sounds as though it might be a bit
overstated., although I confess that I really
like it. The Classe's bottom end invites playing
more dance music, more rambunctious rock and
roll, or anything that has a substantial bottom
end. I found that the bass playing of Charlie
Haden on the Missouri Sky CD to be a bit more
restrained and less full-bodied on the Alternate
Audio amplifier, though not disappointingly so.
Tone seems to waver a little less than with the
Classe. In particular, Carlos Santana's licks on
John Lee Hooker's album the Healer seems more
realistic. In my system, this translates as not
requiring the volume to be higher to get a full
sense of the micro dynamics of the instrument.
Lower volume levels are not mandated because the
sound is harsh, but rather because the quieter
transients on the guitar seem to be more clearly
or correctly reproduced. Perhaps like the
portions of nouvelle cuisine, you don't need as
much to get the full flavor of what you are
consuming. The CA35 almost always conveyed a
greater sense of transient speed and rightness
than the Classe. Additionally, the top end is
smoother than the Classe's, even though it is
more extended and perhaps a bit more forward,
without being bright.
Some classical music fares better on the
Alternate amplifier, as the greater numbers of
instruments are more clearly delineated. While
resolving more, the amplifier doesn't lose the
sense of timbre that is so important to me. Large
scale works like Holst's Planets are a little
more inviting on the Classe, but Vladimir
Horowitz' rendition of Beethoven's Pathetique is
more emotionally engaging on the CA35 because it
is more delicately conveyed. What doesn't sound
surprising to me now, but would have seemed
heretical before living with the CA35, is that
the amplifier resolves better in the near field.
Its rendering of small-scale, intimate music
seems to call for the listener to be seated more
closely to the speakers.
The Alternate Audio CA35 could be the right
amplifier for you if you are in a small listening
room, listen to small jazz combinations or string
quartets, or just prefer to listen at low volume
levels. In that environment, the CA35 kicks the
Classe's behind. Moreover, if immediacy is
important to you, this amplifier will bring you
within hand-shaking distance of the performers.
However, if you want a funkier amplifier that
will move more air for dance music or large-scale
orchestral pieces, this amplifier might still do
it for you, but you may have to surrender the
driving sensation other similarly-priced
amplifiers can provide. The CA35 is certainly
worth an audition. For this reviewer, at this
time, I want the macrodynamics and the more
substantial bottom end of my Classe. While a
truncated bottom end is not a problem, the CA35
doesn't have quite enough warmth to make me
switch. The Classe isn't as highly resolving as
the Alternate amplifier-it is grainy by
comparison. If there were a smidge more warmth in
the Alternate, I'd push the Classe out into the
classified ad section without hesitation.
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