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October / November 2008
Aaron No.1.a Integrated Amplifier
Aaron is owned by Sovereign, an ultra-high-end
audio manufacturer with roots in Germany
going back to 1985, but now developed and manufactured in the
A Matter of Trust Reviewers tend to have separate pre and power amplifiers to give their system more flexibility, but I certainly have no prejudice against integrated amplifiers. A vintage Tandberg 3012A graces my primary video rig in the family room. So that is kind of where I'm coming from.
Getting Started
The other conical knob on the left was labeled INPUT SELECT, and below that, Push for PROGRAM. Doing that revealed that you can preset the sensitivity of the input, as well as individually preset the sensitivity of the R and L output, effectively giving you a balance control. The advantage of this modern microprocessor control is to allow you to program your inputs so your sources all function at about the same volume. Of course, different CDs will be recorded at different volumes, and different radio stations will vary in signal strength, but you should be able to program them to be reasonably close. The volume control on the remote can then be used for fine tuning the volume. Pushing the INPUT SELECT knob a second time brought up PROCESSOR, No, presumably indicating that no processor was in the loop. Again, a manual would be helpful. Six sets of RCA gold plated inputs, a tape output, a preamp output (for bi-amping) and a processor loop are on the back side, along with a single set of gold plated speaker connectors that accept spades, banana plugs or bare wire. No evidence of Euro-regulation plastic was seen. The standard speaker connectors were easy to use. In spite of the small diameter, they held snugly throughout the review. Those who are drawn to brand names may wish to order theirs with WBT speaker connectors, a $200 option. The EIC power connection concealed access to the active fuse, as well as a spare.
Enjoying The Music After the outstanding focus comes awareness of the outstanding transparency of the music. And this too works against the perception of soundstage depth. Everything seems visually bright and evenly lit on the recordings. There are no dark corners in the soundscape. Everything in the distance is in such clear focus and so present that it seems closer than we expect it to be. The audible sense of depth is determined in part by focus, transparency and volume. Think thunder, for example. Distant notes are thought to be less sharp, more dimly perceived and lower in volume than that same sound would be if played by a closer musician. The Aaron messed up my familiar equation by vastly improving the focus and transparency of distant notes. My brain was forced to pay more attention to the volume of an instrument in determining its distance in the soundscape. With the Aaron, a lyric or musical phrase has to be really obscured to seem truly distant. The refrain "57 channels and there's nothin' on" in Bruce Springsteen's "57 Channels" is such a line, and it appears has clear through the Aaron as I have ever heard it. Yet because it is so buried in the mix and low in volume, it is easily perceived as coming from a more distance source. In most other regards, the vivid transparency of the Aaron delivers immediate connection with the music — both cognitively and emotionally, which is a big plus in my book. On the downside, this ultra-transparency seems to illuminate and thereby erase some of what we call tonal shading that comes across with tube amplifiers. The timbre of the instruments, however, was clearly revealed. And if you know the difference between an American Steinway, an Austrian Bösendorfer and the Australian Overs with its evolutionary grand piano action, the Aaron will let you hear that difference. Ditto for electric guitars and megabuck violins. The third virtue that became evident was the excellent dynamics of the Aaron. The focus and transparency combine to give lightning-like attack which is central to the perception of dynamics. Without a crisp attack, the dynamic of a rim shot is compromised. (Some would say an inverted phase would be just as disastrous as a soft attack, which makes me wish there was a second "P" on the remote to control the signal phase). Likewise with the decay of a note which was focused and brief. When a note was over, it was gone. And when a particular instrument (or the music as a whole) called for large sudden shifts in volume, the Aaron delivered... which leads me to the fourth virtue... power. I knew going into the review that the Aaron was rated at 95 watts per channel @ 8 Ohms. This is a lot more powerful than most amps I've dealt with, except my Plinius and the KR Kronzilla, each with 100 wpc, Class A. But the power always served the music, never capturing my attention by jumping out in front of it. My reaction was always "This is really good music," not "This is a really powerful amplifier." Partly, this is because I listen at relatively sane levels (80 to 95 dB peaks at the listening chair, depending on the music). With relatively efficient and easy to drive loudspeakers like the Kharma and Coincident this does not require megawatts. Obviously, loud bass can be very demanding and one such passage on my compilation CD proved enlightening. The final seconds of a segment of Chinese drum music has always seemed muddied during several notes in quick succession from the largest drums. I had assumed it was the recording that had been over-driven and that the volume was falling off because of the fade-out used in assembling the compilation disc. With the Aaron, these deepest drum notes were clearer and tighter. Furthermore, the volume did not seem to fall off as much as in the past. I was impressed. The opening minutes of the Fourth movement of Mahler's First Symphony, by comparison, were a piece of cake with the entire orchestra completely in focus. Contrary to its modest size, the performance of the Aaron simply stands tall. And it does so at lower impedances as well, putting out 160 watts into 4 Ohms, 250 watts into 2 Ohms and 400 watts at 1 Ohm. The Aaron should be able to drive much more difficult loudspeakers than the benign loads presented by the Kharma and Coincident. Normally, I would suggest figuring out what room and what loudspeaker you would be using before making an amplifier choice. But with the Aaron's substantial power and ability to drive low impedance loudspeakers with high current demands, your choice of loudspeaker is fairly wide open. A late night listening session at low volume (70 dB at the listening chair) was thoroughly enjoyable with the focus and transparency sustaining the illumination of the soundscape. At that level, only a fraction of a watt was employed. In the "old days" a "loudness" control would have boosted the bass and treble to compensate for the ear's roll-off in sensitivity at low volume. The thought of having that kind of control with the No.1.a was certainly intriguing. Given the corporate tag line (Handcrafted for the friends of fine Music), that would not be a huge transgression. Plan B is a separate headphone amp. So much for the analysis — how about the feel of the music? Pace, rhythm and timing is spot on. It rocks, it swings, and it engages both cognitively and emotionally. The mind thinks, the toe taps and the soul is moved. My love of live performance recordings was greatly rewarded. The Aaron is so physically compact and does what it does so well that it effectively removes itself from the listening experience. It's just you and the performance. We talk about the ability of loudspeakers to "disappear". The Aaron pretty much pulls off that trick, too.
Tube Phono Stage Jerry Lee Lewis' The
Session was recorded in My friend Tom Lathrop came over for a listen, bringing
with him a copy of Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra (picked up for
$1.00 at a garage sale) that was even more stunning. And his $25
re-mastered audiophile pressing of Joni Mitchell's Blue
album held us both spellbound. (We both own copies of the original LP and
the original CD of this album, so it was quite familiar to us). The other
insight gained from running the tube phono stage of the CAT was to hear
the contribution of adding tubes to the system. That the benefit was
slight indicates to me that the Aaron lies very close to the point of
convergence between tube and solid state gear. This convergence is a trend
that has been going on since I've been involved in the high end. Both
camps have made very significant gains in focus, transparency and tonal
balance. Tom and I both felt the CAT's tube phono stage made a small but
welcomed improvement to the overall sound. I take this to mean that the
Aaron still lies in the solid state camp, but close to the border of
Star Wars On FM "Timeless world of space, ambient and contemplative music." It is a relaxing way to end the week. With my tube powered reference rig the mostly synthesized music creates an enormous soundscape that is often very transparent and liquid. With the Aaron, unfortunately, the music hits the wall, losing the spatial dimension of the music. It is as if the second or third harmonic is being stripped away. It is still acutely focused and exemplary in all other aspects, but the music does not expand beyond the boundaries of the room like it normally does. In contrast, Music for the 21st Century, a locally produced show of modern music played mostly on conventional instruments follows Hearts of Space. On this program the music springs to life in three -dimensional glory with the Aaron. I'm baffled. If you covet New Age synthetic music or Hearts of Space, I strongly recommend you get with the program and listen with tube gear. I should point out that my Sony ST-S550ES tuner is solid state, though it has been tweaked with a shielded captive power cord, a sheet of ERS paper, SoundDeadSteel IsoFeet, Boston Audio Designs Tuneblocks, and probably has received a brushstroke or two of AVM Anti-Vibration Magic (Blue Tube Goop). The signal is captured by a Fanfare FM-2G antenna mounted indoors by a window. I don't feel deprived at all. It is in a league far above the stock unit.
Party Time! The group of non-audiophiles raved about the clarity of the music and the presence of the performers in the room. Every note was audible, some said. There was no place for any musician to hide. My visual observation captured people bobbing their heads, tapping their hands and feet, indicating a real emotional connection was being made with the music. This was not news to me, having had the same experience in both critical and casual listening. But it was certainly validating, coming from people who would not know an electron if they saw one. Of particular note was the one male guest whose hearing is somewhat impaired. From the prime listening chair, he listened transfixed, amazed at what he could hear. Knowing that his hobby is building beautiful wooden kayaks, I planted a seed, informing him that with his skills he could easily build a loudspeaker that would bring him much of what he heard that evening. I'll let you know if anything sprouts.
Getting Under The Hood Only two emails later, Thomas Hoehne, owner of both Sovereign and Aaron, as well as another company or two, called and graciously spent a half hour in conversation with me. The identification of the Motorola bi-polar transistors was removed because he does not want end users replacing them with off the shelf parts. The pairs in the Aaron are as perfectly matched as is humanly possible — something that must be done at the factory. Anything less would degrade the quality and undermine the brand name. As for what was missing, most of it is protection circuitry that degrades the sound in typical amplifiers. There are no relays to protect the output side of the power section, for example. He also pointed out that the printed circuit boards followed the power transistors. These PCB's reduced the electromotive force between the amplifier and the loudspeaker, allowing the Aaron to drive speakers rated below 1 Ohm, in case you own a pair of Infinity IRS Betas. The amplifier, he told me, runs DC coupled from input to output, so care must be taken to shut it down when changing cables and making connections. The No.1.a is a completely new design from the earlier No.1, which was rated at 80 wpc vs. 95 wpc for the 1.a. Total capacitance was also boosted from 40,000 microfarads in the No.1 to 60,000 in the 1.a. The microprocessor control of the line inputs with the accompanying blue screen on the face is obviously a very modern approach in the preamplification section — likewise, the two push & rotate conical controls on the face. The remote control is also introduced with the No.1.a. In contrast, the power amplifier section remains a more traditional approach.
Aesthetics The chassis design is basic, clean and minimal. The two conical knobs are unusual, but perfectly suited for the push-to-change functions incorporated into them. The rotational functions (source selection on the left and volume on the right) are equally precise, emitting soft clicks as it passes through the function or steps on the attenuator. Dry skin on the polished knobs call for a more tactile surface treatment…or hand lotion. The resulting design is minimalist, save for the machined square on top which is embellished with the name Aaron and the inscription "Handcrafted for the friends of fine music". The heavy decorative square plate is in all likelihood a vibration damper. Overall, the look and feel is basic, yet clever, and competent with the highest degree of precision. When positioned in a component rack, your attention will probably be drawn more often to the source components, or more likely, to the music itself. The remote control is a very handsome unit milled from a block of aluminum. The vertical corners are visibly rounded and the top and bottom have just enough edge taken off to feel comfortable in your favorite hand and remove any fear of it scratching your leather listening chair. It is a hefty piece, definitely not to be thrown at children or pets. Four synthetic feet have enough drag to keep it from sliding around on wood, leather or mouse pads. The eight input selector buttons are placed in two logical rows, while the + and – buttons for the volume are on the right side, along with the previously mentioned button for power/standby in the upper right corner. The pattern is easy to learn and tactile enough to be easy to operate in the dark, a good thing since there is no light on it. Come to think of it, wouldn't it be cool to add a switch for a small LED that could be used for finding the songs on CD jewel cases when listening in the dark? Obviously, you need to evaluate the relevance of these comments in the light of your own aesthetic values and ergonomic preferences…or perhaps those of your spouse.
Value But how "good" is "good"? Aaron, after all, is not a
household word in audiophile circles on this side of the Atlantic
. My exposure to mbl gear from Germany
is fairly frequent, Burmester perhaps not so often, and Goldmund from
Closing Remarks
Specifications
Company Information Voice: (224) 678-5287
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Not even our editor had heard
of Aaron before — and Steven R. Rochlin covers the
When
I first fired up the Aaron, it sounded like a decent amplifier, but not
great. Leaving it powered up overnight proved to be a good idea. In fact,
I left it powered up constantly when I was actively evaluating it. There
is a prominent button in the upper right corner of the remote labeled "P"
that seemed to be an on/off switch. It was not until the end of the review
process when I was taking photographs that I noticed the fine print
engraved on the silver faceplate (but not filled with paint). Beneath the
conical volume control on the right side of the unit it read: VOLUME, Push
for STANDBY. This allows you to leave the amplifier warmed up all the
time, drawing very little power. With the increasing importance of
conserving energy this feature scores a big point for going green. From
the Standby mode, it seemed to take about a half hour for the amplifier to
begin to really sing. The "P" on the remote also drops the amplifier into
Standby mode. No owner's manual came with the review sample. On the black
anodized version of the No.1.a the silver engraving stands out very
clearly.
As
the review period came to a close, my curiosity finally got the best of me
and I took off the folded metal top cover — no expensive extruded
sidewalls or thick machined top plate here. Only the square engraved plate
was added to quell vibrations. Inside was additional proof that less is
more. The layout was tidy, signal paths were short, but something seemed
to be missing. I mean, there was a lot of 
My
rig is normally set up with the power amplifiers on short stands on the
floor between and slightly behind the loudspeakers. It was necessary to
place the Aaron in that same position, rather than up on the rack with my
source components. My JPS Labs speaker cables would not stretch any
further. This meant I had to swap interconnects when switching sources. It
also meant the Aaron was in direct sight of the listening chair. Great for
the remote, but visually distracting with its large (10cm x 2cm) blue LCD
display. At a distance of about 12.5-feet (four meters) it was not
readable, given my pesky cataracts. I would have preferred it to be
dimmable or even turned off, regardless of my compromised eyesight. The
screen will certainly appeal to the techno-geeks among us, but for me,
listening to music is a more emotional or romantic pursuit. I respond much
more favorably to the warm candle-like glow of tubes.
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