I am a music lover. Many of my earliest memories are associated with music, from the weekly (not to be missed) Lawrence Welk show, to forcing my family to sing along with Mitch Miller. That last bit probably contributed to my need for therapy as a young adult . . . an impressionable child should never have to listen to his tone-dead father croak out "Que Sera Sera," however much the man liked Doris Day.

The earliest purchase I ever made with my own money was a large transistor radio that became my dearest companion. I started music lessons in the forth grade (trumpet) and much to the surprise of my parents (who didn’t know I sang), I won my first vocal competition in the fifth grade (I wanted to go on the field trip to the competition, so I quickly memorized the words to "America the Beautiful").

I taught myself to play the drums and by junior high I was playing for money. Such a heady experience to get paid for something I loved! At sixteen I was sneaking in the back of local bars to thrash out the Stones, Cream and Vanilla Fudge with a group of much older musicians. Throughout high school and college I participated in band, chorus and a variety of musical theatre productions, as well as working my way through a steady procession of rock bands.

Early on I realized I simply did not have the requisite talent to make it in the big time, so I concentrated on having fun and putting myself through college . . . and building piquant and treasured memories that have lasted my whole life.

Sadly, in my early thirties rapidly increasing professional demands (real job) and the cold-eyed realization of the unromantic life of a modestly talented bar musician with a day job brought about my permanent retirement.

So, as I approach fifty I no longer play, but listening to music remains perhaps the most consistent and central element in my personal existence. I listen to music, every day . . . period. Even though I travel extensively for business, I am never without music.

From my first radio to my current system, most of my life I have been searching for reproduced music that sounds like what I have in my head. Quite the opposite of seeking the "absolute sound," I have long recognized (at least since my Perceptual Psychology course in college) that any sensory based process is based on transduction (converting one type of energy to another). There is no such thing as isomorphic transduction . . . there is always deletion and distortion in any sensory process. Regardless of technology, the "absolute sound" is and will remain ephemera; a representation of a thing can never be the thing itself. Recorded music is exactly that, recorded music.

This limitation does not have to (nor should it) reduce the pleasure taken in listening to recorded music. Recorded music brings the world to us in ways none of us could ever directly experience. And, I confess, as I get older and crankier, often I find the overall experience of recorded music to be superior to that of live. No ticket hassles, no gun-play over parking places, and no one is coughing and checking themselves for polyps in my listening room!

In my head, with the willing suspension of disbelief, lies the anticipated experience of recorded music with no serious distractions . . . additions or deletions; not reality . . . but a somewhat impressionistic "picture" of reality. This approach has always allowed me to take pleasure from music, even if not pristinely reproduced . . . but the idealized portion of this anticipation has always remained at least somewhat unfulfilled.

For me, the Teac/Timbre/BAT/ESP ensemble presently in residence in my listening room meets my subjective criteria for a truly reference level audio system. More importantly, it satisfies emotionally. Constructed around the needs of the phenomenal ESP Concert Grands, I have assembled a system which allows me to forget about the distracting mental exercise of focusing on the various positives and negatives of the equipment (listening with a "butcher’s ear"). Quite simply (and miraculously) I am able to enjoy the music with only the most intermittent and mild attacks of "audiophilia nervosa."

I suppose I am not an audiophile in the conventional sense. I listen to junk a lot. I own multiple AC/DC recordings, and not one copy of The Power and the Majesty. There are no Mpingo discs, VPI Bricks, Electron Microscope mounting tables or chicken blood and feathers in evidence. I have thousands of recordings (I often binge-buy with only the cover and my intuition to guide me). For the most part, I would rather listen to excellent music, poorly recorded and reproduced than banal audiophile dreck on a superb system. I love Schubert and Mozart . . . Chestnut and Leo Kottke. But in all candor, I prefer Joplin (as in Janice, not . . . oh, never mind) to Lieberman any day of the week, however it was recorded.

My tastes in music extend beyond eclectic . . . literally to every musical genre available (with a few minor exceptions) . . . from Anonymous Four to ZZ Top, so I simply don’t have the luxury of only listening to the best recordings.

My system goes on in the morning (just after the lights and before the coffee) and is often the last thing switched off before lights-out when it is time to retire to bed. When I am home it is not unusual for me to listen for four to five hours a day, with frequent marathon sessions of longer duration.

Historically, my primary objections to music systems (including my own) have been irritation, fatigue, and boredom. You will note that each of these conditions is an emotional state (rather than an auditory description) which might give you some insight into this reviewer’s aesthetic sensibilities.

It is so curious to me that in such a sensory-based hobby, there is so little discussion or understanding of sensory preference in reviewing audio equipment.

While we all sport basically the same sensory "equipment," there are three primary sensory orientations that effect how we listen, think and talk about the experience of listening to music (each with its own lexicon of adjectives). These sensory orientations are auditory (harsh, mellow, screechy, sonorous, etc.), visual (transparency, vivid, image, shimmer, etc.), and kinesthetic (this term refers to emotional response, touch, proprioception, etc.). Common kinesthetic adjectives include words like slam, impact, rough, smooth, palpable, etc.

All humans have what is (apparently) a genetic preference for organizing and representing subjective awareness primarily in one of these sensory modalities. Our sensory preferences have a profound effect on how we perceive, understand and represent subjective reality. In effect our "map" of the world is formed from our sensory orientation.

Logically, listening to music is primarily an auditory exercise. This does not mean each of us processes or makes sense of what we hear in the same way. There are visual listeners, (translating sound into pictures) kinesthetic listeners (translating sound into feelings and body sensations) and auditory listeners. And . . . there are visual, auditory and kinesthetic reviewers.

To get a better idea of what I mean, try this quick exercise. If you will re-read some typical audio equipment reviews with this sensory-orientation idea in mind (paying attention to the sensory-based language choices the reviewer makes), you should be able to quickly discern the primary sensory orientation of the author, as represented in his or her writing.

I find that many audio reviewers use predominantly "visual" terms to describe what they are hearing (clear, image, transparent, resolution, depth-of-field, gloss, sheen, etc.). Reviewers will talk about having to listen in darkness (so their internal pictures are not interfered with), and their need to "see into" the sound stage.

These are perfectly wonderful adjectives and would obviously make sense to their "visual" readers. But what of the rest of us, for whom vision is not the predominant aspect of listening to music? Presumably, many audiophiles are primarily auditory and kinesthetic. One might even reasonably argue that listening to music is, by its very definition, an auditory/kinesthetic experience, not a visual one. That is, we listen to artificially propagated sound waves and experience emotional and tactile responses as a result of what we are hearing. Generally we "non-visuals" are left to our own devices to "translate" visual terms, oh . . . and to latch on to the occasional "goose bump" reference.

More to the point for reading audio reviews, the reviewer’s primary sensory orientation will skew their subjective responses to the sound they are hearing. We have the same basic sensory equipment, but once the sound gets past the equipment (our ears) and into the brain, anything can — and frequently does — happen.

While I know of no specific empirical research to support the following contention, I suspect primary sensory orientation will affect how we actually process music and our resultant tastes and preferences in its reproduction. For example, while "pin-point imaging" and "transparency" may be extremely important to a visual-based listener, harmonic "weight," "dynamic impact" and tonal "warmth" are likely to be more meaningful to the kinesthetic listener. The auditory listener should value "timbral accuracy," "voicing," and "tonal richness." I also notice that highly auditory people are often keenly aware of dynamics and are quick to criticize systems that don’t "swing."

This is not just a matter of individual "taste." It has to do with the very nature of individual subjective reality.

So, up front, I will identify my sensory bias so you don’t have to wonder . . . this reviewer is primarily oriented towards the emotional impact of music, not the visual specifics so frequently touted in audio reviews. However, because I am aware of this bias, I will endeavor to present an equal-opportunity sensory profile of the VK-5i and VK-500.

The VK-5i is a non-phase inverting, fully balanced, single chassis tubed preamplifier, utilizing eight (8) 6922 and two (2) 5881 vacuum tubes (Sovtek) in plate-loaded triode operation. The preamp offers 5 XLR line-level inputs and 3 XLR outputs (2 main, 1 tape). Output gain is rated at 18 dB (with approximately 180 joules of energy storage). Input impedance is rated at 100 kW , with minimum power amplifier impedance rated at 10kW . Remote control is optional and controls only volume and mute functions. For single-ended inputs and outputs, RCA adapters are available from the factory (and they are very cool looking). Be certain to specify input or output adapters, ‘cause as we all know . . . XLR connectors are hermaphroditic.

Visually the VK-5-i is a fairly utilitarian, although altogether attractive, gray box with lighter gray colored control knobs. At 35 pounds the unit has a substantial feel (without the usual super-heavy face-plate), complimented by its no-nonsense appearance. Controls are minimal with two switches (power and mute), a non-mechanical volume control (shunt type), source selector and two channel gain controls (balance). In addition there is a circular LED volume level readout.

The VK-5i is described by the manufacturer as a "purist" design, and features their Unistage® construction, which functions as a single amplification stage. According to the manufacturer, "Effectively (but not quite literally), the signal has to go though only one tube." The preamplifier has no solid state devices whatever in the signal path. BAT also eschews buffers or followers in the design of the VK-5i.

According to the designer this approach allows for maintaining high level integrity of the source signal and offers high output with relatively benign response to declining load impedance. The VK-5i operates with no global feedback. Considerable care is taken in all BAT products to insure vibration control.

Visual examination of the VK-5i with the top down reveals meticulous design and construction. Immediately noticeable are the 3 oz. PC board (3 oz. of copper per square foot of board), and the two 5881’s (more commonly used as power tubes) which serve to regulate voltage and current.

For the highly technical among you, there is an excellent "white paper" available from BAT, which goes into some detail on the alleged merits of various design and construction features of the VK-5i.

The VK-500 is a fully balanced, two-stage (driver and output), N-channel MOSFET-based solid state amplifier, utilizing a "single-ended, bridge topology" and no global feedback. According to the manufacturer, this topology offers most of the advantages of a pure single-ended design (such as the Nelson Pass amps), with few draw-backs.

The VK-500 is a dual-mono design, which the designer suggests will operate, " . . . even if cut in two with an acetylene torch" (If you want to verify this claim, please let me know how it turns out . . . preferably not in person).

Output power is rated at 250 W per channel into 8 W (450 W @ 4 W ). Input impedance is rated at 100kW each phase. The stock VK-500 has 350 joules of energy storage, which can be tripled with the BAT-PAKä to 1,100 joules. I suspect most purchasers will want it equipped with the BATPAKä . Putting this level of energy storage in perspective, the Mac thousand watt mono-blocks have less storage than this 250 W amplifier!

The ESP Concert Grands used in this review are fairly sensitive but they are rated at 4 ohms and need lots of current to really sing. This makes the VK-500 potentially a great match.

If you need more power and current than this (for what, one can only wonder), the VK-500 is also available in paralleled, mono-block form (the VK-1000), giving you a 1000 W of mono power, and 2,200 joules of storage, in a combination that is still less expensive than the Krell FBP-600, or the big Mac (no pun intended). Discussions with BAT representatives reveal a somewhat unclear picture as to the relative benefit of vertically bi-amping two VK-500’s, as opposed to opting for the VK-1000 mono-blocks; it appears to be primarily a function of speaker matching. This would tend to make the mono-blocks a limited-appeal specialty product.

The VK-500 consumes a maximum of 2000 VA at full power and 400 VA at idle. I turn mine off at night, but leave it on all day if I am going to be listening. From cold start to full warm takes about 45 minutes (to my ear).

The VK-500, like the VK-5i . . . is a gray box . . . in this case, a really big gray box. The manual lists the amplifier’s weight at 105 lbs., for the stock model . . . so I figure the BAT-PAKä adds at least, oh a hundred pounds (Well, OK . . . maybe not quite that much, but I can’t pick it up to weigh it!). Suffice it to say two people are required for anything other than sliding it around on a smooth floor.

Controls are limited to two surprisingly cheesy power switches on the front panel. Ala Krell, the sides of the amp are a solid mass of heat sinks. Connections are made through balanced inputs and the speaker terminals are the sort one would expect for a high-end amplifier. Except for the switches, I sort of dig the minimalist front panel (two, asymmetrically set blue power-on indicator lights and the aforementioned power controls).

Spiked to a slab of jet black granite (which is in turn spiked to the floor) in my listening room the amp has a slightly lean, menacing look and completely avoids the stodgy gray and black blockiness of the Krell (which is its closest appearance aesthetics counterpart). Top off, the appearance of the VK-500 is very similar to the VK-5i, less of course the thermionic devices, plus two whopping power supplies which occupy a significant amount of the amp’s not inconsiderable volume. Careful design layout and superb construction forms the Balanced Audio Technology family crest.

It knocks me out the thing glows in the dark, almost as if it were a tube design.

BAT states the VK-5i and VK-500 are not "exactly" single-ended or push-pull in design. Between the VK-5i and the VK-500 there are only three amplifier stages, total. This fact may more completely explain the resultant sound qualities of the two units than do the more conventional distinctions between single-ended and push-pull, or Class A versus AB operating modes. Essentially they function with the reliability and lack of fuss of push-pull, AB, but with sonic characteristics more like the single-ended, Class A gear (less the high distortion levels). Wow, single-ended stuff that will easily power any load you may care to offer it . . . too good to be true.

Taken together the VK-5i and VK-500 have the appearance and (more importantly the function) of the highly formidable and absolutely competent heart of a reference-level musical reproduction system.

Since leaving the box, both units have performed without so much as a hiccup, even when driven hard. They actually act like they enjoy it, never losing composure or tightening up. Can it really be reference level equipment if it doesn’t break at least once during the review?

Even after hours of hard running I have never found either piece to be uncomfortably hot to the touch.

One has to be suspicious.

I loathe audible noise in a sound system, in any form. I am especially susceptible to ticks, pops and (less as I age) tape hiss. I am also very sensitive to grit, grain and hardness. Because of this I greeted digital with a strongly mixed reaction. I loved the fact that I could listen to music without the intrusion of mechanical noise, and absolutely hated the fact it sounded edgy, hard and mechanical (kinesthetic adjectives all). At the time CD’s were first introduced I was buying LP’s and recording them on reel-to-reel as quickly as they came out of the sleeves. Gee, come to think of it . . . that is still what I do when I buy vinyl. Eventually, as it became obvious that vinyl was experiencing a serious die-back (thankfully, not fatal), I moved to digital. Today, with 2,000 plus discs, I listen primarily to digital. With the recent vinyl renaissance and greater availability of quality hardware and software, I plan to address the analog portion of my system in the coming year.

Digital sound took me to tubes in desperation (I had been afraid of the upkeep and reliability). In a frantic attempt to make those little aluminum suckers sound like music, I was forced to re-examine the entire process of reproducing music, from equipment selection to room treatment. I suspect this has been a common experience for a lot of audiophiles.

My search for "high-touch" sound in a "high-tech" world brought me to the target of this review, the Balanced Audio Technology VK-5i pre-amplifier and the VK-500 power amplifier.

The VK-5 (and updated "i" version) has received considerable press and praise, largely reviewed as a stand alone piece or with its companion (tubed) VK-60 mono blocks; both pieces having received the coveted "A" rating from Stereophile and largely unequivocally positive reviews in other journals.

With the VK-5i and VK-500, BAT asks the question . . . "Is it possible to have an audio system with the clear advantages of solid state amplification (high power, high current, extended band-width, low distortion and tight speaker control) and tubes (rich harmonic texture, warmth, air and that magic mid-range)?" And they answer it too . . . in a word, yes! A tubed pre-amp and a solid-state power amp may just be the ticket, if they are designed and executed as brilliantly as the VK-5i and VK-500.

From box to turn-on, the two pieces took about ten minutes to install. The biggest problem was wrestling the huge power amp around and getting it mounted correctly. In operation the VK-5i and VK-500 are about as unfussy as you can imagine. Just turn them on and have fun.

Pre-amp and power amp were powered up with direct wall connections, stock power cords and their own separate AC circuit. The volume level read-out on the VK-5i will blink at you for about 45 seconds on start as the unit stabilizes and takes care of tube bias. The power amp announces its readiness with a barely audible thrum through the speakers. Both units are absolutely dead quiet in operation. Even with the NOS tubes and fairly efficient speakers, there was no audible tube noise.

The VK-5i preamplifier comes with its tubes already seated. However — trust me on this — don’t even bother powering the VK-5i up with the stock 6922’s.

I should emphasize that my opinion of the Sovtek 6922’s is definitely not shared by Victor Khomenko (primary designer) of BAT. The Sovtek 6922 is one of the most commonly selected of current run tubes for pre-amplification. They are reliable, dead quiet, and not prone to microphonics, obvious pluses for manufacturers. To my ear, they are also unacceptably harsh sounding. Mr. Khomenko’s position is that the 6922’s are the best tube for the VK-5i, and that all NOS tubes are subject to undue microphonics. He suggests the "bloom" of NOS tubes may be more a function of microphonics than superior performance.

With respect to Mr. Khomenko’s highly informed opinion, I maintain that replacement of the stock tubes with carefully tested, appropriate NOS alternatives will result in a smoother, more pleasing presentation from this and other 6922-based preamps.

I used an eight-pack of (slightly used) 60’s vintage, gold-pin Siemans (the Queen of Clean). When I told Sean McCaughan of ESP (who also uses the VK-5i as his reference preamp) of the improvements with NOS tubes he was skeptical, insisting that the preamp sounded superb as is. He later popped in some NOS 6922’s he had hanging about. He did not put the Sovteks back in.

BAT suggests if you must replace the factory Sovteks the Siemans 6922 is one of two NOS tubes they like (their first choice being the Amperex 7308’s). If you prefer a more romantic sound there is always the Telefunken, but I find them to be rolled off quite a bit at the frequency extremes. In spite of the manufacturer’s opinion, I maintain that replacing the stock tubes is a must if you are going to really hear what the VK-5i is capable of in terms of air, harmonic richness and smoothness. If you use primarily digital sources, this is even more important. However, make certain that your supplier carefully tests tubes for microphonics (the best suppliers will actually match the individual tubes to their respective locations in the pre-amp).

Update: Shortly after I submitted this review for consideration by Positive Feedback, I managed to secure a brace of 60’s vintage NOS American made Amperex 7308’s (marked NAVY in white boxes) from Kevin Deal at Upscale Audio (BAT indicates they routinely direct "tube-roller" customers to Kevin.). This is THE tube for the VK-5i. In addition to enhanced extension at frequency extremes the 7308’s are quiet, give no "bloomy" evidence of audible microphonics, and provide this absolutely drool-producing golden, lit-from-within character. Resolution is significantly better than with the stock tubes, NOS Siemans 6922, or the Amperex 6DJ8’s (Holland).

I did not replace the 5881’s. I may in the future. The factory suggests these tubes have less effect on the sound than the 6922’s because they are not directly in the signal path.

Update: I have found a source for NOS Tungsol 5881’s (John Birck in Salt Lake City Utah). I have a pair on order. Ah . . . "ever closer my god to thee!"

Another "tweak" might be most appropriately directed primarily at ESP owners. Sean McCaughan (of ESP) doesn’t advertise it, but he hand-makes his own cables (digital interconnects, analogue interconnects, and bi-wire speaker cable). They are simple, inexpensive and made from the same materials used in the crossover in the Concert Grands. From cold start, in 60 seconds, I decided to junk my Tara Labs wires and accept emotionally that price and label (and positive reviews) are no guarantee of a musical match between connectors and equipment. Because I have not had a chance to listen to his cables on other equipment I will not speculate how the wire might sound in other combinations, but with the Timbre-BAT-ESP combination I was hooked from the first notes.

I always have quibbles . . . with the VK-5i and VK-500 these are few and ergonomic in nature.

The remote control is a nice, substantial piece cut from the same material as the cases (and gives the impression of being hewn from a single block of metal), but it is only a volume/mute control and a dangerous one at that.

At the top of the control are volume pre-sets you can use to program the remote to specific gain levels, depending upon (presumably) various source levels or customary listening levels (i.e. background, sit-down, melt-down) . . . yawn, I mean I know that actually holding the volume button down for a few seconds is a real killer, but . . .

There is one innocent looking, but nefarious button on the remote that is an absolute disaster waiting to happen, the unity-gain button. Designed for by-pass in a multi-channel AV system, this little sucker will ramp up the preamp volume to the level of the source. You have to click it twice, but it is like a loaded gun with no safety. I managed (as most users will) to inadvertently trigger this puppy. Unfortunately I did it with a CD source in play. The net result was the pre-amp volume instantly went to "11" (which is louder than "10") and I almost swallowed my tongue.

No permanent damage occurred but the resultant nuclear sound-burst did take out two resistors in the cross-overs (which serve as an internal fuse for the four midrange drivers) in the Concert Grands, and caused temporary incontinence in our otherwise musically stoic giant tabby. Minor surgery and good as new (uh . . . the speakers, not the cat). I was lucky. It could have been much worse. This is a bad design. I understand you can send your remote back to the factory to have the switch disabled. I plan to do so.

Power switches on the VK-500 are of French origin, and I am assured by BAT they are of very high quality. I don’t doubt this, but they are cheesy and feel like hollow plastic buttons. Perhaps I am a bit shallow but I want my $5,000 + power amp to have a substantial turn-on device which suggests what lies ahead. Maybe BAT could use those big forked switches they used in the Frankenstein movies? There is nothing whatever wimpy about this equipment other than these switches. They work fine, they just feel cheap.

Straight out of the box the sound of the two units was large, refined, very smooth and sweet, with a silvery treble . . . but somewhat stiff and tight sounding, like being strapped into a whale bone corset (not that I personally have ever had that . . . oh, never mind). Oh, well . . . break-in required, no big deal.

Be prepared to exercise considerable patience during the break-in period. While the preamp takes a couple of weeks of frequent use for break in, the power amp will take a good two hundred hours and this means playing time, not just leaving it powered up. The character of the amp will change significantly during this time with some disconcerting, but temporary trends and tendencies. Mid-way through the break-in my amp became overly bright and unfocused . . . and stayed that way for a distressingly long period of time.

Towards the two hundred hour mark, things began to change dramatically for the better. The brightness calmed into a truly seductive combination of ruler-flat extension (my former tube amp sounded seriously rolled off in comparison), openness and appropriate weight (yes, Virginia, real cymbal sounds are made of metal and wood and are not simply shimmery sounds floating in the air; they have weight, size and location).

The sound stage (from initial start up to the present) is absolutely neutral; that is, not artificially created by the equipment and varying considerably by recording, from a delicate, sun-washed sitting room for Joni Mitchell’s Ladies of the Canyon (Reprise), to a veritable sonic canyon for Bruckner’s Eighth (Haitink, Phillips). The only constant in terms of sound-staging seems to be the seductive holographic presentation of the Concert Grands and the high levels of fidelity to the recording the VK-5i and VK-500 evidence.

From the onset, bass response simply slammed the door shut on my hopeful self-deception that tubes can match solid state in bass control and extension. Compared to my former tube amp which excelled in bass reproduction (relative to most other tube amps), the difference was of jaw-dropping proportions. With the VK-500 in place, the Concert Grands were able to energize the entire house, let alone the listening room.

I should note that the most recent factory updates to the Concert Grands include all new bass drivers and coils, resulting in a true reference level bandwidth{20 - 20,000 Hz.}. In addition to picking up those last few cycles, control and tonal differentiation are all superb with this update.

In this review I want to make certain to credit the fact that the performance of the VK-5i and VK-500 can only reflect the quality of the signal source; in my case the excellent transport of the so-so Teac VRDS-20 player, the truly stunning stage-two Timbre TT-1 DAC, and the ability of the Concert Grands to accurately reproduce what they are fed. While the contributions of the BAT components are obviously highlighted in this review, ultimately this is a system review and should be taken as such.

Now that the VK-5i and VK-500 are fully broken-in, working in obvious synergistic harmony with each other and the balance of the system, they evidence the following general characteristics.

So often we hear equipment attributes discussed in reviews like a body in an autopsy; Frankenstein pieces and parts, because the soul . . . the life spark is gone. Now it’s just pieces of inanimate flesh.

Warmly "lit" mid-range, bass slam, pin-point imaging, convincing sound-staging, are all pieces of the act of reproducing music, but to capture the emotional experience of the music, the total has to be more than the sum of its parts, else why can a juke-box playing scratchy 45’s be more satisfying emotionally than a $30,000 hi-fi system? Why do we so often focus on specific attributes of our hugely expensive systems, rather than the whole of the experience? Perhaps because, all too often, ultimately the whole is less satisfying than it can and should be.

It is at this somewhat mystical, adjective-bereft level, the Teac/Timbre/BAT/ESP combination is at its best. Taken element-by-element, each of the pieces may be bested in some way by a very small number of the competition, but taken as a whole the result is a coherent musical experience which allows one to forget about pieces and parts and the equipment altogether.

If you are a music lover, rather than a sound-effects, hi-fi aficionado (no insult, slight or derogatory connotation intended) you need to hear this combination.

Now . . . on to the pieces.

The richness, weight and warmth of thermionic devices are clearly present here, but without the tendency to err at frequency extremes. High frequencies are extended without glare, grain, excessive sibilance or harshness of any kind. Even the more aggressive CD’s are tamed of that spitty, crunchy "digititus" we all loathe. Recorded sibilance is not removed or glossed over, but it is not highlighted or exaggerated either. If the recording is shrill and thin, it will remain shrill and thin but high frequencies will be characterized by a less-than-typical dissociation from their apparent source and a more appropriate weight, in comparison with supposedly more "transparent" gear. This lowers the "irritation" factor of many digital recordings.

Early Joni Mitchell and Beatles recordings on plain vanilla CD’s can sound a bit threadbare. The BAT ensemble doesn’t artificially fluff or obscure these recordings but rather lights what harmonic structure is there, for an accurate and enjoyable experience. The mid-range is tube-like in its "lit from behind" character, but it never succumbs to overly romantic euphony.

There is a mid-range "magic" often described in the context of the ESP Concert Grands. The VK-5i and VK-500, with equal parts rich, holographic presentation and competent iteration of necessary detail, enhance this "magic." Personally, I have not heard a solid state amplifier so utterly devoid of grain and solid state "flicker." As Sean of ESP referred to it . . . the VK-500 is "sweet." No, the VK-500 does not sound like a tube amp but neither does it sound like a solid-state amp. The sonic signature is surprisingly (or not) congruent with the unique nature of the design.

If the VK-5i and VK-500 depart from true neutrality in the area of harmonic structure, it is with respect to finding air in even the most compressed and limited recordings. This is not the air of enhanced presence. Rather it is the stunning ability to clearly resolve ambient spatial cues, and yes . . . artificial delay and studio echo effects. It may be the two pieces are just a little colored in this respect but because I listen primarily to non-audiophile digital discs, I appreciate the coloration. It makes the "wince" factor in Patty Griffin’s superb "Living with Ghosts" (A&M Records… which sounds like it should be entitled "living with having to record this in a ceramic tiled phone booth.") nearly non-existent.

I am not willing to trade lush harmonic structure for the ability to produce dynamics. Too often I have heard "digititus" cured by blurring detail and dynamic structure or by painting over the recording with overly euphonic, artificial harmonics. This generally results in an overly polite, reticent and uninvolving sound.

A reference-level system must have sufficient power and control to address dynamic transients appropriately or the music becomes lifeless and without excitement. While leading edge transients are often emphasized in discussions of dynamics, it is just as important that the system can stop adroitly as well as start. This is one area where the superior speaker control of solid state amps has always had an advantage over their tubed brethren.

A reference system has to be unstrained at high volumes (again, generally a plus for large solid state designs) and delicate enough for nuances and shadings to emerge, even at low volumes. It is generally at this point where the solid state folks end up with their noses in the dirt and their heinnies in the air.

At the macro level, the BAT combination has the absolute ability to shock you out of your socks, not just with sheer volume (which, believe me, the combination has in abundance), but dynamic impact and punch. I have watched listeners in my room stare open-mouthed as the system swelled to dynamic and volume crescendos they simply had not previously experienced from recorded music.

As my wife so eloquently put it . . . "Makes me sweat."

But big, fast and loud isn’t enough. There has to be subtlety as well as power and control.

At the micro level there is a delicacy and a sweetness to the VK-5i and VK-500 that is never cloying. I have personally never heard these qualities from a large solid state amplifier.

I believe the unique performance characteristics of the VK-5i and VK-500 are largely a function of their unique design. There are only three amplification stages total between the VK-5i and the VK-500, the design goal being to do the least amount of damage possible to the signal. This combination of power and simplicity results in illumination of the inner structure of the music without resorting to overly clinical detail (Personally, I don’t want to hear musicians passing gas . . . but hey, that’s just me). Speed and control match the richness of the presentation tit-for-tat.

This means that when Koko Taylor rasps out "I can love you like a woman, and fight you like a man" the growl is that of a barely domesticated jungle cat at your arm . . . disconcerting and exciting at the same time. You won’t mistake the experience for an "effect."

My analog system (soon to be updated) is markedly inferior to my digital front-end. I also currently lack a balanced phono stage. As such, this review is based primarily on digital source material. All of the recordings listed below are on CD.

My goal in this section of the review is to highlight how the general system characteristics translate into the experience of listening to specific recordings. It was hard to narrow down my choices and these are selected more for variety and scope, than specific artistic or sonic merit. That, and I love each of them . . . for different reasons.

As I looked, finally, at recording labels . . . the classical selections were disproportionally taken from the fine Reference Recordings library . . . it wasn’t the least bit intentional, just how it worked out.

Redolent of stale perfume, cigarette smoke and mescal, this recording is a compelling stomp-polka-and-waltz journey through oregano and chili flavored Tex-Mex bar-band fun. Freddy Fender’s hardship-laced tenor is presented (in a very hot, forward sounding mix) with a fragile sweetness. The bass is strictly funky-mariachi flatulence and all the more charming and authentic for it. From the cheesy Vox organ fills, to the concertina-like clacking accordion, the richness of this music is never lost in the less than stellar (clear against the bump-stops) recording. Audiophile it ain’t . . . real, it is.

Warm, rich bass tones . . . and the perfect degree of brass "bite" effectively counterpoint one another in this boisterous and dynamic recording. Convincing sound stage size and image placement are maintained through effortless triple fortes (on some things there is simply no substitute for power). Such swing! I found myself reaching for a baton and using my pen instead. Bass drum transients shook the house with no sign of distress or misbehavior (other than from a wall-mount lamp I was seriously worried about).

With its deceptively "sotto voice" opening, the climax of the first cut will rip your head off. I found myself literally holding my breath as the trumpets screamed and the drums shivered under the impact of fierce assault (This from a drummer who has personally broken two Speed-King pedals in half!).

This is a big swing band at full roar, and it requires enormous reserves of power and control to accurately represent scale and volume levels. If you have not listened to a LARGE swing band, live . . . the sheer volume they are capable of can be shocking. The recording sound stage is big dance hall accurate . . . and the climatic cymbal crashes strike with unsoftened metal realism, trailing off into endless decay to black. Breathtaking.

A luscious auditory confection . . . reference recording . . . embarrassingly Time-Life in content but completely delicious despite the sugar content. Air-wrapped images are utterly stable throughout the recording. Best accompanied by a good Stilton, some walnuts and a vintage sherry . . . Gee, I guess I do have some audiophile recordings. (Shush, don’t tell them you are planning to buy nearly the entire JVC XRCD catalog!)

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Mr. Miller, he is best described as a decidedly more "hard" country, somewhat more socially conscious, little soul brother to Steve Earle (who, by the way, appears on the disc). This blissful hill-flavored nasal fest features a "who’s who" of side-musicians, including back-up vocals by Emmylou Harris, Tammy Rogers and Julie Miller. This, somewhat stridently recorded disc, is often rendered almost unlistenable through systems with an aggressive upper mid-range. With the VK-5i and VK-500 you get all of the "nose (twang-twang) but very little of the screech.

With topics ranging from land mines (Buddy is apparently agin’ ‘em.), to classic country ballads, emotionally this material is as alien to modern MOR country (ala Garth Brooks, the "anti-Hank") as I am to health-food restaurants.

Formerly of Poi Dog Pondering, Ms. Moore’s first solo offering is an absolute treat. Restrained and delicate, the VK-5i and VK-500 allow you to track the singer’s movements against the microphone as she sings, and at the same time, still presents low bass that will make your butt itch.

There is a very important point here . . . with all of the power reserve of the VK-5i (the preamp has as much energy storage as many power amplifiers) and VK-500 . . . whatever happens in the recording that requires sheer brute force does not seem to mask or obscure the delicate flower of nuance happening elsewhere. You can have savage and sublime . . . simultaneously.

While the first couple of cuts are unrealistically close mic’d, it gives the listener an opportunity to hear what an absolute tour d’ force of control this phenomenal young musician really is. Often, extreme close-ups reveal all the blotches and imperfections. With James you just marvel and wonder at how he managed to sneak a breath in without you hearing it, after holding a single note for twelve hours (Hey, Inside Edition says that Kenny G. can hold a note for 45 minutes!). The VK-5i and VK-500 render this recording in a manner that captures the pure balance of wood, brass and sweat in Carter’s sax with such realistic aplomb and effortless grace I simply forget to listen to the equipment.

This London Classics recording is wonderfully detailed and possessed of a great deal of upper mid-range energy. Never edgy or hard, the BAT combo delivers this brightly-lit recording in a most transparent manner, clearly delineating individual instrumentation and the recording venue. More to my taste, it is done with a sense of vibrant excitement and rhythm that brings me back to the disc over and over.

I admit it; I am a baby-boomer rocker. I absolutely love the disheveled, irreverent, middle finger in your face stance of indie and alternative (no, I don’t mean college) rock. When else in history have angry twenty year old women ever had a venue to express themselves to society at large? Too cool.

Courtney Love (lead singer) is mostly known to us oldsters, first as the wife of deceased Seattle grunge-rocker Kurt Cobain, and secondly as budding movie star (The People versus Larry Flint). This second Hole recording (the first was an EP of somewhat limited charm) is the real thing and for me ultimately more satisfying than her more famous ex’s work (so sue me).

With a certain amount of somewhat reprehensible amusement, I remember playing this AAD recording through Positive Feedback contributor John Colletti’s conrad-johnson Premier 8 driven Concert Grands, and thinking . . . "how lush, how warm . . . how polite" . . . while I watched Dr. Colletti (who was nervously watching his sparking Premier 8’s) wince at Ms. Love’s somewhat gratuitous use of the word "fuck." (And who says the fun has gone out of Hi-Fi?)

Whatever else Hole may or may not be, polite they ain’t. Compared to the stunning Premier 8’s, the BAT rendition is sweaty, visceral and significantly more real to this listener. Please don’t misunderstand. Dr. Colletti’s system is glorious and highly refined, and for those of you who listen primarily to unamplified jazz and classical (and have the financial wherewithal), it is a probably a more "civilized" presentation than the BAT gives. But for me, there is just more meat, bone and sinew with the BAT.

And . . . somehow I am suspicious the band never intended the recording to sound "civilized."

On to another potentially unpopular aspect. Rock is loud. It’s supposed to be loud. If we can agree that recordings have an "ideal" playback level, then the target playback level of this recording is reached when your goldfish die.

When pressed, ESP designer Sean McCaughan told me that he has measured the Concert Grands at 120 dB . . . "before I had to leave the room." The Concert Grands, in the grip of the VK-500, will simply play as loud as you wish (unless you are impaired or insane), for as long as you wish without obvious distortion or misbehavior. Take it from an old rocker, they are tougher than you are.

Thick, lustrous, no holds barred studio pop recording. The studio-honeyed voices and marrow-massaging bass lines are completely over the top. If you want to see how big, how deep and how low your system will go, this disc will take you most of the way there (save true pedal-note type bass). The material is laughable (The Bee Gees, oh m’gawd!) and campy as hell, but it will tell you a lot about your equipment. The BAT/ESP system rendered the recording in all of its fudgy splendor.

In the search for a wide-band, true reference system, there are a number of real contenders, and each have their relative strengths and weaknesses. The search for a reference system takes one into the rarified territory of the "cost no object" school of statement products, currently defined by a speaker from Holland that sells for a cool million dollars, and four figure, one meter interconnects.

Not everyone has the patience, space, wherewithal, and complete indifference to normal human concepts of interior decoration to try to assemble a reference-level system. (I won’t even go into my saintly wife’s tolerance of the ESP Grands, which seem to have to sit in the middle of the floor along with the VK-500/granite monolith . . . and the fact I need to enter a twelve-step program to control my software buying binges . . . I am blessed.)

Perhaps more than at any time in the history of the hobby (and yes, gentlemen and ladies, it still is a hobby) the consumer is faced with a bewildering array of choices (remember when there were only about a dozen "hi-end" speakers?). There is a lot of very good equipment out there.

Excellent sound does not require a reference level system. But if you want it all, both in terms of absolute performance and also in terms of "realistic" pricing, the VK-5i and VK-500 combination has few peers.

If you are music lover in search of a large, full scale reference system, and you are seeking the soul of the music . . . you owe it to yourself to hear this combination before you buy.

Listening Room:

Dimensions: 15 ft. 4 in. X 17 ft. 3 in. Ceiling height ranges from twelve feet to seven feet. The room is open to the left mid-way through the long dimension.

Construction: Standard frame with hard-wood floors, recessed skylights and lots of glass.

Power: The room has dedicated AC: separate breaker box, three separately fused lines, shielded AC cable, industrial-grade outlets, extensive star-type grounding. All of the equipment, save the preamp, is ground-lifted.

Treatment: Extensive use of various dimension ASC flat-traps and corner flags. Floor to ceiling bass traps in rear corners. Large, thick Karastan Oriental rug in front of speakers, round Karastan Oriental rugs under equipment racks. A veritable forest of plants. In addition the room is furnished with leather furniture, a large solid walnut table (draped for listening) and houses a large screen TV (also draped for listening).

The flat traps are arranged within the recessed skylights, against the back of the listening space, and against the solid right-hand wall). Overall, the room presents a significant variety of textures (reflective, absorbent, diffusive) and surfaces.

The Concert Grands are placed 72 inches into the room along the short dimension, and approximately eight feet apart (center to center). Equipment racks are behind center and to the rear right of the speakers. All racked equipment is mounted on cones, except for the turntable, which is mounted on Audio Technica adjustable feet, and placed on a Seismic Sink. The power amplifier is spiked with generic ‘tip-toe’ cones to a custom cut, solid black granite slab, which in turn is spiked to the floor with cones.

One to two feet away from back wall along the short dimension. Speakers are 6 to 8 feet distant.

Untreated, the listening room is reflective and somewhat bass-shy (as you might well imagine) with a lot of echo. Construction does not allow for placing speakers diagonally or against the long wall. After treatment, (focusing primarily on diffusion and reducing the effects of the skylights and solid right wall) the room has virtually no echo. Bass response is well controlled by adjusting listening distance to back wall.

I have tried various types of window covering and none of them have proven to be satisfactory, so listening is done with all windows uncovered (How many other listening rooms have a great view of the verdant Oregon landscape?). Recent measurements from ASC reveal very mild, and generally benign measurable in-room frequency response anomalies.