Happy Holiday Season to you all! I hope you are well, safe, and are enjoying listening to music with your hifi rigs! 

Pass Labs XP-17 phono preamplifier.

Next up for review at Positive Feedback is the Pass Labs XP-17 phono preamplifier, designed by Pass Labs' Wayne Colburn.

First Watt SIT-3 amplifier and Pass Labs XP-12 line-level preamplifier.

I'll be writing about the XP-17 in combination with the First Watt SIT-3 amplifier (review HERE) and the Pass Labs XP-12 line-level preamplifier (also designed by Wayne, review HERE), that has impressed me by being such a musical match for my Altec loudspeakers (HERE). 

I hope to get started on the article for Positive Feedback in the next few weeks, although it may be after the Christmas holiday as my life is a little more complicated than usual of late, and with the eventual article being published sometime in January. That's the plan!

Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier.

I have fallen down a little on the job on getting adequate run-in time on the beautiful Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier, due to aforementioned life complications, so I decided to install it into my Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre audio-visual system to get some extra hours on it during the evening hours while I'm watching movies and such.

Leben CS600 & Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifiers.

Normally my Leben CS600 integrated amplifier occupies that role, but I am really impressed with the 2 watt Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier's performance in my AV system, which is aided by the highly sensitive nature of the Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre loudspeakers. 

I think I reported to you that the 45 EVO's PSVANE ACME 274B rectifier got damaged during shipping, with some glass breaking off of it internally where the support structure inserts into the base. 

I tried a couple of other highly regarded NOS rectifiers in the 45 EVO, and they made the 45 EVO sound positively dreadful, making it sound harsh, forward, and just unpleasant to listen to most music with.

I put a Sophia Electric Aqua 274B rectifier in the 45 EVO that I pulled out of one of my MC30 mono amplifiers (below), and that beautiful SET magic was there in spades, with the 45 EVO sounding very impressive indeed. 

Triode Lab 45 EVO integrated amplifier with Sophia Electric Aqua 274B rectifier.

With encouragement from Frankie at Triode Labs, I gave the ACME rectifier a try (below), and it turned out that it still worked just fine, even though it was a little disconcerting to see bits of broken glass inside it.

Triode Lab 45 EVO with ACME rectifier.

The PSVANE ACME 274B rectifier in the 45 EVO was very smooth and rich sounding, although the Sophia Electric Aqua 274B provided more of that SET-style magic from the 45 EVO.

The Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier is super-sensitive to rectifier choice, so if you have or buy a Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier, I recommend you don't skimp on rectifiers. Good rectifiers are money well spent with the 45 EVO if you want to hear it at its considerable best!

Sophia Electric Aqua 274B rectifier.

As a side note, I was talking to Sue and Richard at Sophia Electric about rectifier choices for the 45 EVO, and among their rectifier offerings they thought the Sophia Electric Aqua 274B rectifier was the best choice given the circuit design of the 45 EVO, with a 274B mesh plate possibly being a risky choice due to a shortened life given the nature of the 45 EVO's circuit.

However, Frankie at Triode Labs thought the Sophia Electric 274B mesh plate would be ok, as he says the 45 EVO is easier on rectifiers than the circuit would imply, so you may want to experiment a bit with some of the high-quality 274B rectifiers that are available, and check it out for yourself.

In any event, Sue and Richard are going to send me a pair of their Sophia Electric 45 mesh plate power tubes, along with a fresh Sophia Electric Aqua 274B rectifier, to try in the 45 EVO (thank you Sue and Richard!), so I'll be able to compare those to the Emission Labs 45 valves and the PSVANE ACME 274B rectifier that Frankie sent as his preferred tube choice.

I'll write up some blog posts about how the two tube sets compare, and I'll write a full article for Positive Feedback about the Sophia Electric 45 mesh plate power tubes and Sophia Electric Aqua 274B rectifier, after I get a good understanding of how they perform in the 45 EVO.

Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier with Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre loudspeakers.

Back to the Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier with the Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre loudspeakers in my audio-visual system. Wow, just wow!

It is no secret that the vintage Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre loudspeakers sound great with SET amplifiers, and of course the Altec A5 in combination with the Western Electric 91-A was a revered combination in the early days of movie theaters.

The Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier sounds amazing with my A5s while watching movies, being rich and colorful, with a lot of nuance, and with all of that holographic SET vibe in full evidence. 

Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier.

I'll also get the Leben RS-30EQ phono equalizer hooked up to the 45 EVO, and spin some vinyl on my Thorens TD124, and report back on the result. 

I'll continue to report on the Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier as it gets more time on it, but I'd say it is off to a very good start!

The Audio Note (UK) IO I MC Phono Cartridge mounted on a Pete Riggle Audio Engineering "Woody" headshell.

I attached the Audio Note (UK) IO I MC phono cartridge to a Pete Riggle Audio Engineering "Woody" headshell, installed it on the Schick tonearm on my CTC Garrard 301, and got it all set up and playing music.

The Audio Note (UK) IO I MC phono cartridge sounds really superb. 

Audio Note (UK) AN-S4 step-up transformer (SUT).

The signal from the Audio Note (UK) IO I MC phono cartridge goes from the Schick tonearm to the Audio Note (UK) AN-S4 step-up transformer, and exited the AN-SR silver SUT via a pair of Audio Note (UK) AN-V silver interconnects ...

Audio Note (UK) AN-V silver interconnects.

... connecting it to the Audio Note (UK) Oto Phono SE Signature integrated amplifier.

AN-S4/L SUT with the Oto integrated amp.

This expensive Audio Note (UK) analog source combination sounded sublime providing its musical signal to the Oto Phono SE Signature integrated amplifier, and impressed the heck out of me while listening to vinyl on the "Stokowski" Altecs (below). 

Even though the combination of Audio Note (UK) IO I MC phono cartridge /  AN-S4 silver step-up transformer / AN-V silver interconnects are out of my normal beer-budget range, it is really sweet to hear how the champagne crowd lives! 

If you've got the dough this is a no-brainer analog combination.

Orchestre Symphonique de Sherbrooke Christmas concert!

I've got a whole lot more to tell you about, but it is time to wrap this post up, and get on to fixing dinner, while I listen to the Big Simons Christmas concert, "Christmas with Marc Hervieux" and the Orchestre Symphonique de Sherbrooke. 

Update: I decided to wait on dinner, and instead watched the Orchestre Symphonique de Sherbrooke Christmas concert in my AV system, with the Altec A5 Voice of the Theatre loudspeakers and the Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier.

I'm so glad I did!

Orchestre Symphonique de Sherbrooke Christmas concert!

The performances of the Orchestre Symphonique de Sherbrooke Christmas concert were superb, and the combination of vintage Alec A5 Voice of the Theatre loudspeakers with the Triode Lab 45 EVO SET integrated amplifier brought the music to tantalizing life, full of beauty and emotional engagement, in a way that I found very satisfying on a lot of levels.  

Thank you for telling me about this Christmas concert, François, I enjoyed it immensely! 

By the way, that's François, the timpanist, towards the back of the above photo.

As always, thanks for stopping by, and may the tone be with you!