December 2024

World Premiere Review!
Wells Audio Innamorata III Stereo Power Amplifier Review
Incredible voicing, seductive soundscape, and high-performance musical pleasures.
Review By Ron Nagle

   As an audio manufacturer and owner of Audible Arts, Jeff Wells is at the very foundation of what drives high-end, high-performance luxury audio. Need proof? Then read the below review of the Wells Audio Innamorata III power amplifier to truly grasp the outstanding nature of this product's design and engineering. Jeff Wells is an old-school entrepreneur who founded a family business in 2014 with only $2600 of spare parts and a great idea. There would be no high-quality audio today without small startups and visionaries who are willing to take great risks. And I say thanks to that group of audio entrepreneurs whose innovations are the lifeblood of our hobby!

Objet d'Article
Let's take a look at the new Wells Audio Innamorata power amplifier. This is the third power amplifier in the Innamorata series. According to my Webster's dictionary, the amplifier's unusual name is of Italian origin and it usually refers to a person who you are in love with. The Innamorata III is an evolutionary rethinking of the previous amplifiers in the series. A major advancement is the redesign of the amplifier's power supply. After years of trial and error testing the amplifier now incorporates the nearly mythical Kemet slit foil filter capacitors. The Kemet data sheet tells us that the slit foil laminations dampen capacitor resonance.

The basic Wells Audio Innamorata III comes standard with expensive Bybee AC purifiers and discreet DC Music-Rails noise filters. The review sample Wells Audio Innamorata amplifier is the base model priced at $8,500. It comes with a painted black matte finish. There is an upgraded version with premium parts and even more noise filtering for $15,000. Additionally, Jeff Wells offers a beautiful chrome-finished Innamorata amplifier for $16,000. All Wells Audio components are hand-built, one at a time. Jeff Wells can custom-build you an amplifier if you wish. All three Class A/B production versions of the Innamorata amplifier are rated at 150 Watts per channel (Wpc) into 8 Ohms and 210 Wpc into 4 Ohms. I will list the complete manufacturer's amplifier specifications near the end of this review.

Be Distinctive
The most distinctive part of the amplifier is a front panel gold bezel D'Arsonval Voltmeter. That Volt meter reminds me of the automobile headlight of the 1948 Tucker automobile. The meter's only function is to display the line voltage to the amplifier. The amplifier's enclosure is fabricated from aluminum as opposed to the larger acrylic body of the series 2. I measured the new amplifier; it is 15” wide by 18” deep by 7.5” high. The amplifier weighs 40 pounds and is supported by four glorious gold-colored feet. The open sides of the amplifier and the vent holes on the top provide more than adequate ventilation so that after two hours the Wells Audio Innamorata III power amplifier was only slightly warm.

Connections
On the back panel is a combination IEC power cord socket and fuse. There is a pair of left and right channel RCA input jacks along with four very high-quality WBT-style left and right loudspeaker cable binding posts. Last but not least, after an e-mail to the manufacturer I found the amplifier's On / Off switch underneath on the bottom of the amplifier. Very odd place to put it, but I was told it was relocated for structural reasons. I used the power strip it was plugged into to turn it on and off.

Ear Test
The Innamorata III stereo amplifier was shipped in a double cardboard box with a thick black rubber interior lining that was cut to mimic the shape of the amplifier. After you unpack the amplifier you need to connect it to your audio system to see if it works... and a great way to do that is to listen to John Williams and the Berliner Philharmoniker on Deutsche Grammophon [00289 486 2003] playing The Berlin Concert. I have previously watched this compilation of his famous film scores on my local (fundraising) PBS television station. But it is stunning to listen to his musical genius on a truly revealing high-end audio system. Even cold out of the box there was something that distinguished the sound of the amplifier.

It would be easy to say it was slightly warm. But just to say that would not do the Innamorata III justice. The very last John Williams composition on this CD was the Imperial March from the Star Wars movie. At one point in the lower midrange, the music score mimics a repeated and threatening sound like marching boots. At this moment the Innamorata paints not just a panorama of sound but also a visualization in your mind's eye of the event. What I'm trying to convey is that there is something organic in the sounds that hints at flesh and blood reality. This tonal characteristic mimics a slice of reality that will lend itself to voice recordings.

With that in mind I purchased from Chad Kassem of Acoustic Sounds a great two-record vinyl reissue of the Nils Lofgren concert album, Acoustic Live [APP 090]. I have the very same recording on a CD / DSD. My favorite track from this record is, Some Must Dream. If you want to listen to shifting transient sound this is a very good place to start. What this recording gives you is the overtones of wood as the guitar body resonates with the strings. And in that is the Innamorata warmth I mentioned and that is exactly what it should be.

With an analog recording, those overtones slowly decay into silence naturally, just as it is in life. A far more intimate recording is the Diana Krall CD, Steppin Out...  [Just Time Records 50-2]. This is a special very early Diana Krall jazz recording made in Canada. This is my go-to recording for a natural not over-engineered jazz and vocal performance. The clarity and warm intimacy that you hear in her voice is seductive. The resolution and the micro textures of this album are so detailed that you can hear the sound of fingers sliding down the bass fiddle's strings. The sound stage is far more dimensional and deeper than most solid-state amplifiers. The sounds are so very realistic, try and listen with the lights turned down, as I did.

Many recordings and many hours can be summarized by describing this first track from Sting's vinyl album, The Dream of the Blue Turtles song "If you love somebody set them free" [AM&CD 2750]. This is one of my go to and the least compressed vinyl recording that I own. The track is replete with tons of studio reverb featuring a repeating backup chorus chanting, free free set them free. The amplifier sounds far more powerful than its 150 WPC specification. The reverberation may be artificial but it is full of micro dynamic details that locate and separate all of the players onto a wide and deep soundstage. Nothing is held back that bass line is reproduced as a deep driving force. It has a repeating low-frequency tempo that compels you to become involved. It serves as a perfect example of large and powerful dynamic contrasts.

Conclusion
The toughest thing a reviewer has to do is to form words that leave you with a real sense of what you will experience. Wells Audio's Innamorata III stereo power amplifier turns that task into a thing of joy and admiration, while also making life a tiny bit easier. Because it is so unique in its presentation, the Innamorata III perfectly plays within the middle of vacuum tube and solid-state technologies. The soundscape can sound exceptionally expansive like a vacuum tube powered amplifier with lovely complimentary overtones of warm holographic textures. But at the same time nothing is lost, it still has the definition and detail of a high-performance solid-state amplifier. Give Wells Audio a call, it is something you truly have to experience for yourself. Highly recommended!

Epilogue
Jeff Wells has a never-satisfied mindset that strives for the ultimate reality. Last year in a conversation at the Capital Audiofest 2023 he mentioned that he has been voicing his amplifiers for 14 years. I can identify on a personal level with his hunt for the very best. Years ago I bought a wreck of an old Dynaco Pas 2 preamplifier and stripped it down to its bare bones. I replaced the old phenolic circuit board with a fiberglass board and searched for the best audiophile Teflon wiring, metal-film resistors, and plastic-film capacitors that I could find. I installed a new Zener-regulated power supply. After every part substitution, I placed the preamplifier into my system to listen for the results. I learned firsthand that nothing is unimportant, everything matters. And that in an electronic chain nothing can sound better than the poorest performing part.

Remember to enjoy the music, and from me, Semper Hi-Fi and a very happy holidays everyone.

Specifications
Type: Solid-state monoblock amplifier
Frequency Response: 10 Hz to 50 kHz
Power Output: 150 Watts per channel @ 8 Ohms, 210 Wpc @ 4 Ohms
Signal-to-Noise Ratio: -103 dB, reference level: full power output
Total Harmonic Distortion (THD): <0.025% at 1 kHz, at 100 Watts
Gain: 30dB
Input Impedance: 30 kOhms
Damping Factor: 200, reference 8 Ohms nominal
Inputs: High-quality gold-plated RCA jacks 
Outputs: Two pairs of five-way binding posts
Meter backlighting is available in blue, green, and white
Dimensions: 17.5" x 6" x 18"(WxHxD)
Price: $8500

Company Information
Wells Audio
106 Bascom Court
Campbell, CA 95008

Voice: (408) 376-0861
E-mail: jeff@wellsaudio.com 
Website: WellsAudio.com