I got the visit of François Saint-Gérand from Ana Mighty Sound.
A few weeks ago, François asked we whether he could test some his low wattage 300B SET power amps with my Stenheim Reference Ultime Two.
I found the idea rather odd, and I suggested to bring the Thrax Spartacus 300B mono blocks instead. Rumen Artarski, the CEO of Thrax, joined us. I had the pleasure hosting him a while ago when he came for a home demo of the Thrax Audio Libra preamp which I eventually purchased. Rumen is a no non-sense guy whose knowledge is impressive. We spent the whole weekend enjoying music and discussing.
I previously listened to the Spartacus in François' showroom. I compared them against the darTZeel NHB 468 and I must confess that I found the Spartacus even better than the big darTZeel.
The Spartacus are using six 300B tubes per channel and are delivering 50W in pure class A. They are designed to symbiotically work with the Libra preamp. They use sophisticated electronics to manage the tubes.
The Spartacus are driving the Stenheim Reference Ultime Two with ease. The musical flow is just mesmerizing. Those mono blocks were clearly superior to my bi-amping combo (Krell Evolution One/Tenor Audio 175S) which is no slough. The rhythm, the pace, the soundstage and the slam of the Spartacus outclassed the Krell/Tenor Audio combo by a significant margin.
But Rumen Artarski had a surprise for me: the Thrax Phoenix. Don't try to find them on Thrax's website or catalogue. These are very limited production units that are only built to order. Instead of tubes, they are using very rare and out of production Static induction Transistor (SIT) from Tokin. These transistors are the closest to the 300B in terms of sonic characteristics. The Phoenix are delivering 100W of pure class A which should be ample enough for the Stenheim.
The Phoenix uses a casing like the Spartacus, but they are heavier with a weight of more than 100 Kg each instead of 55 Kg for the Spartacus.
If the Spartacus were sovereign, the Phoenix are imperial. All the sonic characteristics of the Spartacus are further enhanced. You just listen to the music and forget all the rest.
I ordered a pair of Phoenix which should be delivered in about two months’ time. In the meantime, Rumen has graciously loaned me his demo pair.
A big thanks to François Saint-Gérand from Ana Mighty Sound and Rumen Artarski from Thrax Audio for their customer service that is outstanding.
A few weeks ago, François asked we whether he could test some his low wattage 300B SET power amps with my Stenheim Reference Ultime Two.
I found the idea rather odd, and I suggested to bring the Thrax Spartacus 300B mono blocks instead. Rumen Artarski, the CEO of Thrax, joined us. I had the pleasure hosting him a while ago when he came for a home demo of the Thrax Audio Libra preamp which I eventually purchased. Rumen is a no non-sense guy whose knowledge is impressive. We spent the whole weekend enjoying music and discussing.
I previously listened to the Spartacus in François' showroom. I compared them against the darTZeel NHB 468 and I must confess that I found the Spartacus even better than the big darTZeel.
The Spartacus are using six 300B tubes per channel and are delivering 50W in pure class A. They are designed to symbiotically work with the Libra preamp. They use sophisticated electronics to manage the tubes.
The Spartacus are driving the Stenheim Reference Ultime Two with ease. The musical flow is just mesmerizing. Those mono blocks were clearly superior to my bi-amping combo (Krell Evolution One/Tenor Audio 175S) which is no slough. The rhythm, the pace, the soundstage and the slam of the Spartacus outclassed the Krell/Tenor Audio combo by a significant margin.
But Rumen Artarski had a surprise for me: the Thrax Phoenix. Don't try to find them on Thrax's website or catalogue. These are very limited production units that are only built to order. Instead of tubes, they are using very rare and out of production Static induction Transistor (SIT) from Tokin. These transistors are the closest to the 300B in terms of sonic characteristics. The Phoenix are delivering 100W of pure class A which should be ample enough for the Stenheim.
The Phoenix uses a casing like the Spartacus, but they are heavier with a weight of more than 100 Kg each instead of 55 Kg for the Spartacus.
If the Spartacus were sovereign, the Phoenix are imperial. All the sonic characteristics of the Spartacus are further enhanced. You just listen to the music and forget all the rest.
I ordered a pair of Phoenix which should be delivered in about two months’ time. In the meantime, Rumen has graciously loaned me his demo pair.
A big thanks to François Saint-Gérand from Ana Mighty Sound and Rumen Artarski from Thrax Audio for their customer service that is outstanding.
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