Crafting Sonic Excellence
Reviews
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WRITTEN REVIEWS
Product: Super 2A3 SET & Spectre 12 Loudspeaker
“Based on my experience, AricAudio is one of the top-notch American artesian manufacturers, and Aric is a brilliant designer and craftsman of hand-built pieces. If you look on any of the audio forums, customers not only rave about their AricAudio equipment but find the type of customer support for their products to be first-rate.”
Product: Expression Tube Preamp & MM Phono Stage
“Aric Kimball builds tube audio gear at his home in rural New England. Although Aric Audio is not a household name among audiophiles (yet), Aric told me he has built/sold more than 400 preamps. Word of mouth gets around! And after spending about six weeks with these two pieces, I can see why his efforts are being rewarded. This is not the kind of gear that will interest the typical thick-faceplate audiophile. It doesn’t have name recognition to buoy the insecure, nor the physical presence to impress their associates. This is cottage industry hi-fi, a niche within a niche. Those who have appreciated the work of Decware, Bottlehead, and Hagerman, …”
Product: Transcend Series KT120
“After I wrote the article What’s So Irresistible About a Single-Ended Triode (SET) Amp? I started to receive scores of emails from readers asking me if I was aware of a company located in Brimfield, Massachusetts, called AricAudio and its CEO/Designer, Aric Kimball. Each reader had purchased either a tube preamplifier or SET amplifier from this company and raved about the build quality, performance level, and reasonable pricing. When I did my research into Aric’s work, it was apparent that he was an innovative tube designer and a master craftsman who handbuilds high-level gear that competes with much more expensive tube equipment in today’s market…”
Product: Transcend 6SN7 Line
“There is nothing like a handmade, artisanal product that you know was not run off an assembly line, by a multi national corporation. It does not matter if is a fine piece of jewelry, clothing, kitchenware, or electronics. It feels good to have something put together piece by piece in a small shop, by a proprietor that is proud of every piece. These entrepreneurs also tend to see their customers as more than just sources of income. In some countries like Japan, high quality goods made in small quantities are celebrated. But this can also true in the USA and Europe.
Enter Aric Kimball who hangs his shingle up as Aric Audio. Aric makes wonderful, old school tube preamplifiers and power amplifiers. He sells them direct via his website, and his prices are more than fair. He also will gladly customize any of his products for a customer’s particular needs. Aric has a particular passion for high fidelity tube components…..”
Product: Transcend MM Phono Stage
“I was fortunate to have the opportunity to audition the Aric Audio Transcend Moving Magnet phono stage for my YouTube channel. I’ve been running this beautiful piece of equipment for a couple of weeks now and the sound has been silky, warm and downright luscious…”
Product: Transcend Push-Pull
“The Transcend push-pull amplifier matches both amplifiers in terms of bass extension and control, as well as current output. It significantly outperforms them when it comes to timbres/tonality. The PrimaLuna DiaLogue Premium and the McIntosh MC275 both sound noticeably dry and somewhat washed out overall compared to the rich colors of the Aric Audio amplifier. Both the PrimaLuna and McIntosh also lack the effortless liquidity that you experience with the Transcend.”
Product: Alpha 300B Push Pull
“Until last week, I had in my possession one of the best-sounding tube amplifiers in the world (from my small world view). Even better, I was fortunate enough to have this amplifier mated with a pair of the most recognizable speakers in the world (Avantgarde Uno Fino). On top of that, my wife joined me in the Audio Room for two(!) listening sessions with drinks in hand. It’s true what they say: You never know a good thing… until it’s gone.”
Product: Super 211 SET
“The Super 211 SET created dense/palpable images of each instrument with a sense of air around each player. It was so transparent that decays off the studio walls created the illusion that I was sitting in that space myself.”
Product: Super KT Push Pull
“The Aric Audio Super KT Monoblocks were a pleasure to use. They are solidly built, presented no issues, no clicks or pops or hums. “
Product: The Motherlode II
“To summarize my findings on the Aric Audio Motherlode MK-II preamplifier here: it offers reference-level transparency (rivaling the noise floor of solid-state designs), an overall purity that allows the gorgeous colors/timbres of instruments to shine through, image palpability, accurate layering in a three-dimensional soundstage, and quick hard-hitting dynamics and speed.”
Product: Super 300B SET
“I titled this review A Combo of Sonic Delights. After reading the above details, I hope you understand why this title fits the AricAudio Super 300B SET amplifier, tubed with the Western Electric 300B matched pair of tubes. Both are first-rate, beautifully built products. “
Product: The Unlimited II
“The Unlimited II is a thoughtfully designed preamplifier that has some great features. The heart of the Unlimited II is its tube-rectified power supply. This power supply uses an over-sized transformer, a 5U4GB rectifier tube, two OD3 regulator tubes, a choke, and a hybrid film/electrolytic power supply filter section. “
Product: Custom 300B PSET
“The first thing I noticed about the Custom 300B PSET amplifier is how dead quiet it is. Not just quiet with no music playing and the volume turned up. It’s quiet in the way background instruments are better delineated and more fully realized. Sometimes, this can be quite startling.”
Product: Super 6SN7 Line
“All my time with the Super 6SN7 was an absolute joy. It gave me no problems and performed as expected. It sounded as good with my Bully Sound Company solid-state Class-A mono-amps as with my VAC Signature 200 iQ amps used in a single stereo amp or with both amps set as mono-amps. The Super 6SN7 performed to the level of the more expensive amplifiers.”
Product: Transcend Push Pull
“In today’s machine-driven, highly commoditized world, the sheer number of hand-crafted artisanal products appears to be ultimately going the way of the dodo bird — heading toward extinction. Thankfully, the Aric Audio Transcend Push Pull amplifier from the genius of Aric Kimball is an exception to this rule.”
Product: Super 300B SET
“The Super 300B SET is a lively amp that renders tonal colors realistically without being over-embellished. Instruments and vocals are portrayed with a natural timbre and are reproduced as you would hear them in a live performance.”
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