Yamamoto Sound Craft meets Audio Note - the complete saga!

[BrianB]

Ever wonder about the amplifier shown in my avatar? Well...

Yamamoto Sound Craft's exquisite single-ended triode amplifiers and tube preamplifiers are widely recognized in Japan as being some of the finest audio components around. And the A-08 SET amp is no exception.

The A-08 is designed around the 45 directly-heated triode for the ultimate in sonic purity. Rounding out the tube complement of this amplifier are a pair of 717A "mushroom" driver tubes and a 5U4G rectifier tube.

The A-08 is an exceptionally quiet tube amplifier, and its amazing speed, transparency, and tonal richness are leagues ahead of other SET amps in this price category. Additionally, the A-08 sports a number of features that make this amplifier an even more incredible value. To name a few:

1) The amplifier is 100% hand-crafted with point-to-point wiring.

2) Custom Hi-B transformers wound with Teflon-coated foil are used for peak performance at the frequency extremes.

3) Premium parts are used throughout, including Dale resistors and Yamamoto's own highly-regarded Teflon tube sockets.

4) The chassis is sculpted from resin-infused Japanese cherry, a beautiful material that is akin to Bakelite in terms of its electrical insulation properties.

5) Solid ebony support columns are used for resonance control.

6) All tubes (45 output tubes, 717A drivers, and 5U4G rectifier) are NOS.

7) Auto-bias circuitry ensures hassle-free operation.

8) A hospital-grade power cord is included.

I have a Yamamoto A-08 for sale that is a customer trade-in (the customer decided he needed a few extra watts for his speakers). This particular amp is less than three months old, has very few hours on it, and is in near-mint condition. Original packaging and owner's manual included.

Retail price = $2250, ASKING PRICE = $1575.

The Yamamoto A-08 recently received a Blue Moon award from Six Moons. To
read the full review, click here (http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/yamamoto/a08.html).

Venus Hi-Fi
www.venushifi.com (http://www.venushifi.com)
812-320-4004

[spkrman57]

I can attest to the beauty of this amp as I also am the proud owner of one.

I was using it to run my Edgarhorns(now sold to 2A3Matt in Dayton), and it is impressive.

I have heard other 45/2A3 SET amps and the only contender(that I heard) is MikE's 45 amp(sorry, brand name slips my mind here, MikE feel free to chime in on this).

The Yamamoto is unsurpassed in cosmetic beauty also and comes with GREAT tubes, no made across the border with 10 day guarantee!

The Yamamoto will show up any flaws in the rest of the system as it will not lie. I know there are several folks drooling if I ever sell mine(NOT!!!)

Don't pass this amp up, this kind of design and craftmanship does not show up every day.

Ron

[THOR]

Mike's is a Moth amp I believe ;)

[spkrman57]

Thor, you are so correct. My feeble old noggin don't recall like it did in the old days!
Ron

[Dave918]

This one kept me up all night, but I will resist - I will resist!!

/d

[tentoze]

This one kept me up all night, but I will resist - I will resist!!

/d

I hear ya on that...........I gots no speaks to properly mate with it.

[spkrman57]

Quit holding back dudes!!!!

[Billfort]

Yes, very cool amp and a great deal at this price but you GOTTA have the right speakers. I use a 45 amp with my 100db eff Altecs and it was enough in a small room but I haven't tried it in my new larger space yet - I suspect it'll be borderline.

Some are quite happy with 45's on lower eff speakers or even things like Fostex 1/4 pipes so even though I don't care for these systems, it's definitely a matter of personal preference and what suits your listening habits. I will say that of the amps I've heard, the 45 is my all-time favorite directly heated triode to date (within it's limits) and the Yamamoto is probably one of the best.

[one1speed]

oooooo...someone hold me back. i'm shaking...help...

[DRCope]

Of all the audio discussion forums in all the world, why'd I have to drop into this one?


Okay, Brian. I'll bite. I really want to hear this amp, and I'd really like to see how the Audio Note Hi Eff E speaker does with a 45 amp. It also opens some interesting doors for my TAD 2001 drivers which are mounted in Martinelli horns. At 112 or 114dB/w/m, I've got serious resistor ballast hanging off them to drag them down to the level of the TAD1602 woofers. An Audio Note 300B amp on the woofers and the Yami on the tweeter should be really interesting!

I'll contact you offline for payment details. :thmbsp:

[Billfort]

Congrats DRCope and keep us posted with how this works out for you!

I've been toying with the idea of bi-amping and using a 45 on horns and a 300B on the woofers but never dove in due to concerns that the tonal differences in these amps just wouldn't jell at a high-ish crossover point. Sure would love to hear from someone who has tried it.

[grumpy]

DrCope

Is that the AN E's that are 98 db you want to try this amp with. Just curious.

I lust for the E's............ :)

[DRCope]

Somewhere in the cosmic supply chain there's a pair of E/Lexus Signatures coming my way. They are not only 98dB with silver voice coils on the drivers, but have external crossovers using the AN copper foil caps. Each xo fills up one of AN's small "standard" chassis and weighs about 20lbs without the enclosure.

Have you discussed your "lust" with Brian B? :D

[DRCope]

Congrats DRCope and keep us posted with how this works out for you!

I've been toying with the idea of bi-amping and using a 45 on horns and a 300B on the woofers but never dove in due to concerns that the tonal differences in these amps just wouldn't jell at a high-ish crossover point. Sure would love to hear from someone who has tried it.

I've heard others express this concern before, and I don't claim to know, but I'd kinda expect the dynamic driver in a BR box vs. comp. driver in a horn to be more difficult to blend than two triode amps. I'll just have to taste it and see!

At one New England Bottlehead meet I had an Audio Note Kit4 driving the woofer to 300hz, then a pair of Quests driving the mid and tweet. The triode driven tweeter didn't sound out of kilter relative to the woofer, but the JBL mid stuck out like a sore thumb compared to both the woofer and tweeter. I'm trying to back it down to a 2-way, but I'll probably have to change woofers or who-knows-what to do it.

[grumpy]

Somewhere in the cosmic supply chain there's a pair of E/Lexus Signatures coming my way. They are not only 98dB with silver voice coils on the drivers, but have external crossovers using the AN copper foil caps. Each xo fills up one of AN's small "standard" chassis and weighs about 20lbs without the enclosure.

Have you discussed your "lust" with Brian B? :D

Yes I have. Problem is my wallet couldn't keep up with my lust.

So i gladly settled for the J's :)

Grumpy

[BrianB]

Okay, Brian. I'll bite. I really want to hear this amp, and I'd really like to see how the Audio Note Hi Eff E speaker does with a 45 amp. It also opens some interesting doors for my TAD 2001 drivers which are mounted in Martinelli horns. At 112 or 114dB/w/m, I've got serious resistor ballast hanging off them to drag them down to the level of the TAD1602 woofers. An Audio Note 300B amp on the woofers and the Yami on the tweeter should be really interesting!

Consider the amp yours, Dave - many thanks! And I look forward to hearing your reports on how it sounds in your various setups... :)

[spkrman57]

98 db speakers and a high quality 45 SET amp will do everything you ever wanted except blow out the windows.

But hey!!! You did not buy it for that. With my Edgarhorns (105db approx), a titanic 12 sub thermally shut down trying to keep up with my Yamamoto. And the sub amp was 250 watts into a 91 db 12" driver!!!!

I found the right preamp and speakers make all the difference in the Yamamoto.

Ron

[DRCope]

Thanks Brian! I was kind of holding my breath hoping no one else had snagged it!

Speakerman - Nope, blowing windows out isn't the goal at all for me. I'm pretty sure the high efficiency E's will be great for what I listen to, and I think the new Audio Note M3 will bring out the best in both.

I'm sure I'll have the amp in time, but I'm hoping I have the speakers in time for a New England Bottlehead meet I'm hosting next month. I know, I won't have built either of them, but I think folks will find them interesting just the same.

Oh, just in case anyone wondered, my amp-avatar is the new 2nd generation Ongaku. No, I don't have one, worse luck! :no:

[spkrman57]

Your NE Bottlehead meeting will have some folks lusting after your Yamamoto. I have friends that are die hard SS and they love my Yamamoto. It will change peoples minds on what a triode amp is.

Be sure to match it up with a good preamp. The preamp/amp matchup makes a BIG difference in flavor of sound coming out!

Ron

[DRCope]

The A08 arrived today.

1st - This thing is absolutely beautiful. I had seen all the pictures, but I was still pleasantly surprised.

2nd - 717A is the funniest looking tube ever! ;-)

3rd - First minute listening - this thing has SCHtonkin' bass! Holy Mother of Crap, as Art Dudley once wrote. I think this thing is going to kick ass into the 94dB E's. Can't wait for the 98dB version to arrive. slobber, slobber, slobber. . . . .

4th - I'm really not amused that I have to wait through an episode of 24 Hours to get back to listening after one stinkin' minute. Who gives a rat's ass about TV? Who cares how many times Kiefer can do his version of looking intense in an hour? gaaaaawwwwwwdddddddddddd !!!!!! Where are the gods of audio when you need a highly selective lightning bolt to strike the idiot box dead without damaging the audio gear?

[spkrman57]

DRC,

When mated with the right preamp and speakers, nobody I know can believe it is only a 2 WPC amp.

It has a sonic audio signature of a "ballsy" brute SS amp, but without the harsh SS signature. (sorry SS fans, but with my "high-efficiency" speaker systems, even my Sansui AU-7900 amp(touched by EW's magic wand) can't compare to the soft sound of tubes in big horns.)

My systems start at 97db and go up to 105db watt and tell all, good and bad!!!

Ron

[one1speed]

I knew Ron would chime in here. He's had this amp for a while and still raves about it every time we talk. I don't think you can go wrong with the Yamamoto...

[BrianB]

1st - This thing is absolutely beautiful. I had seen all the pictures, but I was still pleasantly surprised.

Yup, Yamamoto most definitely makes some of the purtiest gear I've ever seen - and more than one buyer has told me that the looks alone justify the cost of this amp!

2nd - 717A is the funniest looking tube ever!

But once it's lit, it's also one of the coolest-looking tubes ever, don't you think?

3rd - First minute listening - this thing has SCHtonkin' bass! Holy Mother of Crap, as Art Dudley once wrote. I think this thing is going to kick ass into the 94dB E's. Can't wait for the 98dB version to arrive. slobber, slobber, slobber. . .

One of my favorite things about the Yamamoto A-08 is its bass performance. The 45 output tubes obviously have a lot to do with this (45s are well-known for their sonic evenness), but Yamamoto's custom output transformers deserve considerable praise for allowing these tubes to do everything they are capable of doing at the frequency extremes.

[DRCope]

The 717A reminds me of the dancing mushrooms in "Fantasia". Very cool, indeed. I can't wait to see the double takes on the looks, the 717A and the sound at the May New England Bottlehead meeting!

I'm sure the 45 contributes to nearly shocking bottom, but I think the pentode driver plays a key role as well. An amp designer friend referred to the pentode-combination (not this one specifically, but as a general topology) as "very Zen".

I tried it with the AX Two Signatures yesterday, and it was a lovely combo, with the tighter sounding cabinet serving the resolution of the amp well, the small cabinet serving the sense of spaciousness and, of course, the bass being nicely aided and abetted by the shot of pent/tri/45/c-core xfrmr testosterone. synergy strikes again.

Today, the K's. In this case, apple K/SPx's. A finish to die for . . . .

[gbeard]

Hi DRCope,

Minor thread hi-jack here...

I have been jealously following this thread because I really wanted to buy that amp from Brian! You are a lucky dog, but now you must complete the journey and purchase a CA-04 preamp! :yes:

My other reason for posting is due to your comments about the AX-2Sigs. I'm presently demoing them and they sound really good with the Fi-X integrated too. Even though there is not quite enough headroom unless the volume is fairly low, the 2A3s really sound wonderful through the AXs. I haven't yet tried any 45s yet, but will be soon.

I have the Sigs in the corners on the short wall of a 19x12 room and other than lack of volume, the sound is SWEEEET! :thmbsp: They sounded very good with the Almarro amps too (I'll bet AN amps pretty fair too! :naughty: ). Oh those glowing bottles!!!

Cheers, gb

[DRCope]

The speaker smorgasbord continues . . .

I tried the Audio Note AX Two Signatures and found the sound to be quite lovely - very detailed, fast, explicit, with the "tuff" (don't you EVER call me a tweeter amp, pal-o-mine!) bottom end adding some authority to this bookshelf speaker.

I then moved on to the K/SPx. I must admit I'd never heard the Spx incarnation of the K before, but it provided gorgeous sound. And the apple veneer with piano lacquer was mighty easy on the eyes, too.

I didn't have J stands handy and was too lazy to go out in the rain to retrieve them from my climate controlled speaker storage, and besides, I wanted to get back to the main line of inquiry, so I built a pair of E stands and put the E/SE Silvers up. I haven't done serious on-axis listening yet, but I was listening to Bela Flek during dinner at low volume, 90 degrees off the starboard speaker, and I was getting more detail and musical enjoyment than most systems provide with your head in a vice in the absolute, golden ears blessed sweet spot with your eyes scrunched shut in painful concentration.

More later when I'm at least in the same room. These are the 94dB E's still. I've had several requests to turn the volume down in the last couple days. 2 watts - capable of getting too loud. What a hoot!

[grumpy]

You luck dog. Can i borrow your speakers ? OK then how about some of that climate controlled storage space :)

Don't forget to let us know what you think when you get more listening time. Oh yeah and hows about some pics please

[DRCope]

Well, I'm livin' absolutely large at this point! :banana:

My Audio Note E/LX Signatures (98dB/w/m w/external crossovers) arrived Friday, as did the first batch of CDT2/II's (brandy new & improved CD transport). To avoid MSCCS (multiple simultaneous changes confusion syndrome), I plunked the transport in for a 48 hour warm-up spin before changing speaks. While this was going on, I switched back and forth between the A08 and AN Quest Silver amps - 5x the power! With the 94dB/w/m E/SE Silvers, the A08 has a lovely purity about it and that famous 45 nearly psychedelic spatial thing workin', but at the end of the day I have to say I prefer the Quest's additional power and more filled out sound.

HOWEVER, after setting up the E/Lex Sigs and letting signal burble through them all day yesterday paying no real attention, I played real music at real volumes through the late afternoon and early evening, and I'm here to tell ya that the combination is MAGIC. The additional efficiency adds a sense of effortless power, dynamics and speed, the 12+ lbs of copper foil caps/channel in the crossover provides a sense of body, grainlessness and effortlessness you're just not gonna hear in a "normal" crossover equipped speaker, and the Lexus bi-wired speaker cable inside the spkr and between the xo and speaker (hardwired at the speaker end), and, in this case, between the amp and xo continues the full-bodied trend. With the A08 being extremely pure and detailed, but IMHO just a hair dry, the synergy is staggering.

It happens I spent Saturday night at a table about 10' to the left and about 8' forward of a Big Band, so I had a wicked refresher course in body and dynamics. The body the speakers bring to the party, and the dynamic freedom the higher efficiency brings let the AO8 shine, shine, shine!

I listened to big band jazz, small jazz ensemble with female vocalists, Gospel/Spiritual, small, medium and large classical - male and female voices, piano, violin, orchestra. If you've never enjoyed listening to opera, one likely reason is the eye squinting jaw clenching hands clutching the chair arms effect caused by BROSS (Badly Reproduced Operatic Soprano Syndrome.) That just doesn't happen in this system. The soloist and orchestra are arrayed (at least) speaker to speaker, floating well beyond the front wall/end of the house. I'm NOT an imaging freak; in fact I'm inclined to agree with Peter Qvortrup that it's a distraction from the music and a manufactured artifact which keeps us entertained when there isn't enough musical value being delivered. HOWEVER, the sense of air, depth and space created, particularly by the A08, and ably abetted by the rest of the system (not yet mentioned: AN DAC3.1x Balanced, M3 preamp) does add to the sense of "you are there."

Jeez, Brian, I may have to do the "Audio Note Summer Road Trip" after all, at least to Michigan. You've GOT to hear this. Might make an interesting side show to your Grand (Just Got Into Town) Reopening Summer . . . . :scratch2:

[spkrman57]

You should hear the Yamamoto with Edgarhorns!

Ron

[BrianB]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for the update following the arrival of your new high-efficiency AN-E/LX Signature speakers! In response to just a few of your numerous comments:

I switched back and forth between the A08 and AN Quest Silver amps - 5x the power! With the 94dB/w/m E/SE Silvers, the A08 has a lovely purity about it and that famous 45 nearly psychedelic spatial thing workin', but at the end of the day I have to say I prefer the Quest's additional power and more filled out sound.

Not at all surprising. The Yamamoto A-08 doesn't truly sing until one reaches the 95dB point with speakers, IMO - and even then, a few more dB's of efficiency will vault this amp into whole new terrains of realism. But even with sub-95dB speakers, the soundstaging and bass texture of the amp can be stunning.

With the A08 being extremely pure and detailed, but IMHO just a hair dry, the synergy is staggering.

Let's just see if that "dryness" doesn't go away once the speakers have broken in - and once you've received your new EML 45 output tubes!

I'm NOT an imaging freak; in fact I'm inclined to agree with Peter Qvortrup that it's a distraction from the music and a manufactured artifact which keeps us entertained when there isn't enough musical value being delivered. HOWEVER, the sense of air, depth and space created, particularly by the A08, and ably abetted by the rest of the system (not yet mentioned: AN DAC3.1x Balanced, M3 preamp) does add to the sense of "you are there."

Agreed!

Jeez, Brian, I may have to do the "Audio Note Summer Road Trip" after all, at least to Michigan. You've GOT to hear this. Might make an interesting side show to your Grand (Just Got Into Town) Reopening Summer.

Let's do it! But can we wait until early August? Yamamoto will be issuing a new version of the A-08 then, and I've already got one on order...

Cheers,
Brian

[DRCope]

Sure!

Oh maaaaaaannnnnnnnn! Is this going to be the one with the type 80 rectifier, dc filament supply and meter?

[BrianB]

Oh maaaaaaannnnnnnnn! Is this going to be the one with the type 80 rectifier, dc filament supply and meter?

Yup! :)

[DRCope]

Some guy on AA said that the original version is now discontinued and the next version won't be out for 5 months. Is that true? Seems like less than great planning if it is . . . .

Meanwhile, my A08 (w/Jensen coupling caps) drove a friend to tears playing the Audio Note E/Lex Sigs last week. He said, "I can't go home; I'm ruined."

I do believe I'm going to take the A08 with me to RMAF to show what the AN's can do with 1.5 SCREAMING watts of 45 power. ;-)

[BrianB]

Some guy on AA said that the original version is now discontinued and the next version won't be out for 5 months. Is that true? Seems like less than great planning if it is . . . .
No, this is not true. While the last production run of the original A-08 amplifier sold out two weeks ago, the new A-08S begins shipping at the end of this week! :thmbsp:

I do believe I'm going to take the A08 with me to RMAF to show what the AN's can do with 1.5 SCREAMING watts of 45 power. ;-)
You know, I just might have to go to RMAF this year... :scratch2:

http://www2.117.ne.jp/~y-s/images/A-08S-syoumenn-web.jpg

[DRCope]

My Yamamoto A08 will DEFINITELY be going to RMAF with (at least) Sylvania 45s, Emission Labs Mesh 45's and a couple different rectifier tubes.

The goal for me, of course, is to demonstrate how well the Hi Eff Audio Note E's do with a truly flea-powered amp. A nice by-product will be that folks will get to hear a fantastic little amp in a really juicy system. so Karma-heads, if you're going, stop by room 511! :D

Holy mother of crap; I just realized I did my directory ad with the wrong room number! 511 is correct. The ad will be wrong. Damn, damn, damn . . .

:sigh:

[spkrman57]

My Yamamoto A-08 looks quite different with the EML 45's in it.

They are so honkin huge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ron

[BrianB]

Agreed, Ron - but I think that the A-08 looks WAY cool with EMLs!

http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/yamamoto2/5_4.jpg

[spkrman57]

45's on steroids!

Any bigger and they would fit next to each other, maybe a 1/4" between them.

Ron

[DRCope]

So Brian, are you listening to the new A08 w/EML's these days? How would you compare it to the first version?

I think the two most asked questions in the Audio Note room at RMAF were (1) "What's the little cherry guy in the middle?", (nearly equalled by the comment, "Oh, so THAT's Brian's amp!"), (2) "What tubes are those?", followed closely by "Are you SURE those are 45's?"

[spkrman57]

Sorry to butt-in here, but since I have installed my EML 45's I have not felt like putting the stock RCA 45's back in!

They do sound that good!

Ron

[BrianB]

So Brian, are you listening to the new A08 w/EML's these days? How would you compare it to the first version?

I think the two most asked questions in the Audio Note room at RMAF were (1) "What's the little cherry guy in the middle?", (nearly equalled by the comment, "Oh, so THAT's Brian's amp!"), (2) "What tubes are those?", followed closely by "Are you SURE those are 45's?"

You BET I'm listening to the new A-08S with EMLs! Here's how I'd compare the A-08S to the original A-08:

1) While the original version was one of the quietest SET amps I've ever heard, the new version is even quieter.

2) The A-08S sounds a little more open and transparent than the A-08.

3) The A-08S is a wee bit richer in the midrange.

4) Perhaps the main advantage of the original A-08 over the new version is bass slam of the former - here, the original version was simply "the best of the best of the best!" The new A-08S does not quite offer the almost outrageous bass output of the old A-08, but it's still at LEAST as good as any other 45 SET design out there. In other words, we've merely moved down to "the best of the best" category. Plus, the new A-08S does offer more in the way of bass texture...

Sure wish I could have attended RMAF this year. And thanks again for taking the Yamamoto with you to show off the new high-efficiency Audio Note speakers!

[BrianB]

Sorry to butt-in here, but since I have installed my EML 45's I have not felt like putting the stock RCA 45's back in!

They do sound that good!

Agreed! :)