XPA-1 Review and Comparisons

[mintzar]

When stepping through the threshold of the online retail living room we find the tendency of manufacturers to make equipment that’s “just good enough.” That isn’t to say that their equipment is bad or even sub par. It could very well be good, it just means that it’s just good enough so that consumers don’t go out and do the comparisons to slightly more expensive models.

More often than not, marketing mumbo jumbo predisposes us to like certain equipment before even opening the box. As was perhaps my conception of the XPA-1s, and they certainly are wonderful. However, rather than being happy with that judgment, the child in me who is never satisfied decided to compare this unit to some other amps I was also playing with at the time.

Before the XPA-1 I had been powering my mains with the XPA-2. However, I had also recently brought home a Bryston BP-14SST, Linn Klimax, and Mark Levinson 433 to play with. Also, a note before I get carried away: the price points of these items are in the realm of 5 times that of the XPA-1.

One of my concerns when purchasing the XPA-1 was that I might ultimately be disappointed with the upgrade, wishing I had just forked over the extra cash for the Levinson or Linn pieces, which I was able to get a good deal on.

However, I pulled the plug and ordered a pair of XPA-1s, unpacked and plugged the heavy suckers right away and started doing what I do. They sounded great out of the box, and after about a 15-minute warm-up their initial edge faded.

I don’t generally do in depth listening tests before a component is broken in, especially when comparing it to other units. And so I gave the amp 300 hours before actually taking notes on what it sounded like. This unit does need about 150-200 hours of break-in time before it sounds its best.

For most review readers, you want to know how a component sounds. And while I could sit here and describe, in my audiophile vocabulary stuffed with confectionary treats, how exactly the component sounds on my system, I feel that unless you have my system the response will always vary. So my review will be merely a comparison of the amplifiers listed and the sound and enjoyment I experienced from each. Personally I think components, like cabling, are very system specific when it comes to the actual sound you get. To have a good component it should be a neutral conduit through which the music can flow. It should add little and take little away. However, musical listening is all about fun, and neutral is boring right? Certainly not! I would go as far to call this a very neutral amplifier. This amplifier, which is smart enough to get out of the way of the music, is effortlessly fun to listen to. The 1000watts pumping into my low sensitivity Aerial 10Ts was like a fresh glass of lemonade on a warm summer day. The speakers drank up every bit of power this amp had, and happily dished out something that could only be defined as truth. I found my toes tapping, the music moving organically throughout my room, and received more compliments on my system than ever before.

Okay that’s great, Ryan. Big deal, this amplifier sounds good, there are lots of good sounding amplifiers out there. BUT, how does it compare to the big guns? Honestly, it’s not as good as any of them, but that’s to be expected. That being said, it does come relatively close in a few areas. The Levinson could be classified as extremely neutral and detailed with very good extension and openness. On film soundtracks the Levinson made an expansive sound field that was broader than the speakers and added a sense of scale that is absolutely superb. I heard information in ways I’ve never experienced before, this Madrigal amplifier is truly reference.

The noise floor of the XPA-1 is quite low. It exhibited exceptional clarity and detail, but wasn’t as forward in its performance as the Levinson. While the scale and openness wasn’t anywhere close to the Levinson amp, it was a big leap up from the XPA-2.

The Linn, on the other hand, is a very different beast from the Levinson. It is the most musical amplifier I have ever had the chance to listen to. The swing and acceleration of the music is both refined and foot tapping. While the Levinson is probably more accurate, the Linn is more fun to listen to. Every piece of music I listened to seemed to dance around the room, up and down, back and forth, and throbbed in ways which left an emotional appeal that the Levinson lacked.

One of the reasons I am happy with the XPA is that while it is detailed and open like the Levinson, it also provides a sense of musical acceleration and swing. Nowhere near the grand scale of the Linn, however. The XPA-1 is smooth and extremely easy to listen to. It’s relaxing and mesmerizing.

The Bryston is one of those units that you either love or hate. Bryston has a slightly cold sound, but it’s a pleasant sound that is exceptionally clear and controlled. I preferred the Levinson to the Bryston for detail, but the base control on the Bryston was unrivaled in any of the units I played with. The base is tight on the XPA-1, but it has an airier sense to it. It’s more organic, but less solid than the Bryston. I preferred the fullness of the XPA-1 to the clarity of the Bryston. This is a slightly warm amplifier, but I would more so classify it on the warm side of neutral rather than plain warm.

I also had the chance to listen to some Levinson 33H monoblocks. These mammoths, retailing at $24k outclass anything and everything short of a DartZeel amplifier. The large price tag surely made the fat lady sing in the most pleasant way. These and the DartZeel amplifiers are the best of the best that I have had the chance to listen to. I was able to listen to a friend of mine’s system running DartZeel Preamp/amps powering Evolution Acoustics MMThrees with TARA Labs omega/Zero cabling. If you ever get the chance to listen to any of this equipment, please ruin your life by doing so.
While this verbiage is veering most verbose, I want to briefly mention that my dealer stopped by my place and was very much impressed with my XPA-1s. I was able to play these bad boys on some of the systems there, but rather than making this review endless, just message me and I can add to this review if necessary the details of that adventure.

While it lacks in a few of the areas that the high dollar amplifiers excel, it is only a 1% difference. If that 1% loss saves me $8-10k then I am by all means happy to accept that deal. The XPA-1s will be staying in my system until I can afford something Earth shattering… like a 5-dimensional music system.

My System:
Mac Mini – server
Sumiko Pro-Jekt USB DAC Box
Mark Levinson 380S Preamplifier
XPA-1 Monoblock Amplifiers
Aerial 10T speakers
Cables were changed often: Virtual Dynamics Master, Goertz MI3 Boa, Transparent MusicWave Super MM2, TARA Labs The ONE.

[grapenuts]

Min,
Very nice review with some large name comparison amps. I too found the XPA to have a great price to performance ratio. My Classe's performed better overall, but for the price differential, I doubt I would have gone that route again. If I ever decide to drop the Classe's, I think the Mono's have a home in my theater!

[RPA-1 man]

Wow!! You've been around the block when it comes to amplifiers. You're one lucky person.

My amplifier experience is limited to Carver M1.5t, Nad 2200PE, various Pioneer models and Emotiva RPA-1.

Your honest review is greatly appreciated.

[mintzar]

I also have experience with many other amplifiers from the ranks of Ayre, Musical Fidelity, Classe, Audio Research, McIntosh and others. I have only listened to an Audio Research Reference 3 on my system, the others I have just demoed in the store using Aerial 9s rather than my 10Ts. But I can give ideas in those realms also.

There are very few companies that actually truthfully say that their price-performance ratio is above normal. Most companies will say that, but in reality it's just marketing hype. Emotiva has a nice amp on their hands. I would love for them to release a Preamplifier that can compete on the level of performance with the XPA-1s. I don't think the current (or soon-to-be) release models will compete with my Levinson 380S with a $6500ish price tag.

[DYohn]

Well... my $500 LPA-1 competes favorably with and in many ways sounds better than the $6000 Krell 3250 it replaced.

[trekker]

Is the Bryston BP-14SST the old model or the new Bryston BP-14SST^2 model?

[artiek]

Jun 20, 2009 11:09:06 GMT -5 DYohn said:

Well... my $500 LPA-1 competes favorably with and in many ways sounds better than the $6000 Krell 3250 it replaced.

And this is why I'm an Emotiva user and fan. His words.

[mintzar]

It is the old model Bryston 14BSST, I haven't had a chance to listen to any of their new gear yet. Levinson just released a new series of components also that I hear are pretty darn good.. Levinson went through a period where I didn't much care for their gear, but I think this new stuff will be pretty shiny.

[vincedog3]

Nice review. I like the Aerial 10T speaker. The XPA-1 makes it hard to spend so much because it already gives so much. If I had more $$$$s' I would have bought the XPA-1s, but logistics and etc. made me stay with the XPA-2. Very nice to hear that the XPA-1's go against the pricey heavyweights and give them a run for their money.

[rudy]

Hi Ryan.

Thanks for the review. I personally would love to hear what else you may have to say about the XPA-1s. Don't worry about your review being too wordy. Whoever doesn't want to read more doesn't have to. You can add it to your blog or post it here as a follow up message.
Now that you've had the amps for a month there maybe new things to report on top of the things you wanted to say initially but held back worrying about the length of the post.

TIA
Rudy

[mintzar]

Unfortunately I'm out of town at the moment, so haven't listened to them for almost two weeks now. I'm doing some work for a TV station for the month and won't be home until August 1st. I can do a better job giving my thoughts then when I have some notes in front of me, but here goes...

I am still a big fan of the XPA-1s. At their price they are hard to beat. However, there are certainly better amplifiers. While this amplifier is quieter than the XPA-2 by far, there are certainly MUCH quieter amplifiers. The high gain structure doesn't help to lower the noise floor and compared to the heavy hitter amps it doesn't have as much power in reserve. My Aerial 10Ts are power hungry with a 86dB sensitivity and use up every bit of oomph the XPA-1s have. The Levinson 433 was more at ease with this situation, providing excessive amounts of current to the power hungry Aerials. The XPA-1 is a very laid-back amplifier and quite forgiving and easy to listen to at length. That being said, so is the Levinson. The 433 is one of their better amplifiers they've made in the years after Harmon took over. The XPA-1 has a fuller, almost rich sound in comparison to neutrality of the Levinson piece. I enjoy the XPA-1, and in a system that is a bit forward it would make for a great match. The part that sells me on the Levinson piece is that is has a more realistic soundstage, and is more open and dynamic with a very present sense of air around the notes.

The XPA-1 is a great pair of amplifiers, and especially for $2k they really are great performers. The Levinson, retailing for $10k, is better in every category, but that's to be expected for reference quality pieces. I can't say that anything at all is "bad" about the XPA-1. It has a wonderful sound and is fun to listen to. I would highly recommend it if it's in your budget. I have not found another amplifier in that price range that can do what this amp does. I, unfortunately for the XPA-1, compared it to some pretty big guns.

[mintzar]

Another few notes:

I have once again become a fan of my XPA-1 full-heartedly. I had been running my XPA-1s off of a 15amp circuit, the same circuit the rest of my system was on. I recently purchased a 2.5Kva with .001pf isolation Transformer, which I plugged my XPA-1s into. That's effectively a 20amp circuit of pure clean power (isolates 145db of noise) and was one of the largest upgrades I think I've ever made to my system... especially for the $400 I paid for it.

That being said, the extra current availability for the XPA-1s was exactly what the doctor ordered. The base is deeper, the highs more extended and airy, and there's a musical quality I haven't heard before in my system. While I'm sure this upgrade would have benefited the other powerhouse amplifiers in the same way, the XPA-1 with this upgrade (I feel) beats the Levinson 433 for sheer musical enjoyment, speed, and musicality.

[bodhisafa]

mintzar, Im not familiar with this product (2.5Kva with .001pf isolation Transformer), what exactly is that? power conditioner?

Great review by the way

[mintzar]

www.surplussales.com/transformers/IsolationXmers-2.html is where you can buy them. Make sure it has a power cord and receptacle. I replaced the receptacle with a Porter Port, which is the most neutral of the ones I tried.

The Isolation Transformer simply takes the whole electrical signal from the wall and stores it in a huge iron core on the input side. It then releases it to a smaller iron core on the output side that feeds your components. The key piece is when the electricity is released from the large input iron core to the small output iron core, it cleans the electrical signal according to the pF capacitance, in this case .001 pF is saying that the AC signal is cleaned (or background noise or soundstage) is reduced by 136 db. This is a drastic reduction. THE ONE THING that the Isolation Transformer DOES NOT DO is any kind of Surge Suppression.

The Power Conditioner only works on one leg of the electrical signal. Because it only cleans up one side (either the Hot or Nuetral side), it affects how the Power Conditioner makes the components hooked up to it sound. It's like using a stock power cord or a Dream State power cord or a Shunyata power cord, these affect the sound by the different materials they're made up of. The Power Conditioner USUALLY DOES PROVIDE Surge Suppression.

The bottom line is that the Isolation Transformer cleans the AC without adding any sound of it's own, and it reduces the soundstage noise a lot more than most of the Power Conditioners on the market.

I own an $1800 Transparent PowerIsolator power conditioner, and it doesn't even come close to what the Isolation Transformer did.

The bigger the Kva value, the better because of the AC storage on the input side, the bigger, the better the dynamics and bass power (headroom basically). 1.8 Kva is 1800 watts, 120 watts times 15 Amps. 2.5 Kva is 20 Amps, 3.0 Kva is 25 Amps. They say that the 5 Kva is the 'best' one to have for the headroom and ease, like a 500 horsepower engine will get you to 60 mph faster.

The lower the pF value the better: .005 pF = 126 db noise reduction, .001 pF = 136 db noise reduction and .0005 pF = 146 db noise reduction. Of course when you look at the website, the lower the pF, the more expensive. A 5 Kva with .0005 pF is $2,077.00 plus shipping. I paid $400 for the 2.5kva .001pF unit, though it was used.

[rudy]

Wow Ryan, this is incredible info. This is the first time I have heard of a transformer used to clean up power. Seems rather brilliant in its simplicity, if not inexpensive. However, I have a few questions for you.
1. Why would you need to clean up the neutral side, isn't the hot side the only one carrying the noise, since that's what carries the current?

2. If my system is used abroad where the wall outlets produce 220, what would be the figures for me to look for in a transformer?

Thanks for all the great feedback so far.
Rudy

Edit: Last questions. I have heard that power cables tend to have greater effectiveness than power conditioners. Have you by chance had exposure to any power cables with your system? How do they compare to you power conditioner and the transformer?

[mintzar]

1. Yes and no. Your components, like the XPA-1, also generate noise of their own that is sent back along the power lines. That noise infects other components in the chain. That's why many people say they cut the breakers on their refrigerator and microwaves when they are listening to music because it cuts out noise in power lines. By using an Isolation Transformer you are effectively isolating the components from everything else. They are not effected by other components that are plugged in, and they do no effecting themselves.

2. If you look on the surplus sales website, most of the Isolation transformers will tell you voltage in/voltage out. It usually will say 120/120, or 120/220 or 220/120... or any of the other ratings you may fine. Some go as high as 440 volts, others as low as 115. If you need it to work abroad, then look for ones rated 220/220. That means the voltage coming from the wall to the transformer is 220volts and the voltage leaving is 220volts.

It also means that a 2.4Kva transformer will output about 11amps rather than 20 as it does on a 120volt circuit.

3. Yes. I have used many power cables. I'll be honest, I was VERY skeptical myself at the effects of power cables on a system. But boy was I converted when I brought some home. I have used the upper echelons of Shunyata, Tara Labs, Lessloss, Virtual Dynamics, and a few others. Purist also makes good, but expensive, power cords.

They make the biggest different on CD players or transports. A large gauge power cord makes a good difference on power amps too -- the XPA-1s love a good power cord, the standard cords suck (for lack of a better term).

The basic reasoning is that the power from the wall is what the audio signal is created from. With a CD player, some of that current is used to create the laser that reads the CD, another bit of current is used to create the digital signal, and a third bit of current is used to convert that to an analog signal. If that power coming from the wall is noisy, then the signal you get from the CD player is noisy. This is why power supply design is so important, it helps to filter the noise coming from the wall (among many other things).

A good power cable should also help filter the power coming from the wall by use of capacitance and low resistance (among other things. If you want more info you'd have to call me because it's too much to type up). That being said, I've heard power cables in my system make as big a difference as a component change. They make a bigger difference than speaker cables and interconnects -- depending on the budget you're running anyways.

I am a believer in power conditioning. It makes a huge difference in my system. I'll probably buy another isolation transformer and sell my power conditioner though -- the isolation transformer is more neutral and actually does a better job at cleaning the power. My advice: buy power cables before a power conditioner. A power conditioner will help bring your power cables up another notch.

Feel free to send me a PM and I'll give you my number. I'm happy to explain a bit better and give more examples. It's just too much to type up.

[localnet]

Min,

I like the idea of the transformer, went to the linked site, so which make and model did you actually purchase? As I saw nothing in the $400 price range matching your specs. Please fill us in...

Mike

[mintzar]

I bought it from a buddy of mine. Check ebay also, I found my Topaz Isolation transformer for $199 a few weeks ago-- though I'm not sure what voltage it's configured for or if it has a receptacle. It looked like it had a power cord. Just gotta look around, you may not be able to get it for $400. New units pop up on the surplus sales site all the time.

[localnet]

Gotcha, thanks for the info, it is on the shopping list. And hey, power cords, who would you recommend without breaking the bank?

Mike

[mintzar]

Lessloss are extremely good power cords for the price. I also liked my Audio Art cable I had for $100 or so. For front end, the Audio Art cable is quite nice. I have heard REALLY good things about VH Audio Flavor power cords. For amps, you'll want something of larger gauge. Tara Labs cables have the best bass control and texture of any cables I've used. Every cable is different, it's a matter of trying them.