NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

All reviews of NVA here.
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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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Audiophile, May 1992
pipe_sq.jpg
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NVA
SOUND PIPE
Interconnects are usually cables which just hang around. But they don't have to be. Dave Wiley tries out an alternative, NVA's Sound Pipe


NVA Sound Pipes
are more like
sound tubes than
conventional
interconnects
Well, aren't interconnects suppose to be all floppy and come wrapped in pretty plastic? Not according to NVA. Interconnects are supposed to be stiff and come wrapped in a solid metal shield, ooh-er. Inside, there's a dielectric and a solid core conductor.
NVA's Richard Dunn is keeping schtum about the genesis of the Sound Pipe. 'Just try them out, and let me know what you think', he said with the air of a man who knows he's on to a good thing. The Pipes need a bit of careful shaping round the back of the system, but the set I've been playing with for the past month haven't shown any sign of fatigue despite the hard time I have given them. In use, the Pipes are nothing short of a revelation. No matter how squeaky clean I thought the window between my loudspeakers was before, the Pipes have been applying elbow grease like never before. The system's powers of analysis have shot up many fold, yet it's not at the price of upping roughness and aggression.

Regular readers will know how much I value musical and emotional impact and integrity. It's on this level that the Sound Pipes work. I'm not going to talk about singing highs and growling bass. What they achieve is more to do with involvement and believability.

NVA now specifies the Sound Pipes instead of the captive leads between its power amplifiers and pre-amps, and between its head amps and pre-amplifiers. But even before upgrading my power amplification to accommodate the Pipes, they worked absolute miracles between the Micromega BS DAC and the pre-amp. At just £50 for a 25cm set, £60 for a 50cm set and £80 for a 1m set, the Sound Pipes really do deserve your attention - they've just blown away every interconnect I could find at home. And with no apparent sonic signature, they should be at home in almost any system, so on the strength of my experiences, they're well worth seeking out an NVA dealer for.
Audiophile May 1992

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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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Phil, by PM

NVA P50 v2 and S80 power amplifier.

Image

I thought the P50 or even a direct connection via NVA SSP iii from my Dac to my class d monoblocks was special. The sound quality was good and I enjoyed the experience.

However, a number of people on the HFS Subjectivist forum had suggested that class d can’t touch the performance of the current NVA power amps never mind their mono blocks. So when I was offered a chance to trial a S80 over 30 days I took the plunge. Rather sceptically I connected up thinking this better be good!

Initially, as I had been warned, things were a little scratchy - that’s a technical term - so I kept the music flowing overnight with the P50 volume at zero to help burn in. Day two was an extended listening session with random music playing from my network player.
Gradually things came together and the sound quality is now - day 12 - fantastic. I don’t use that word glibly, but detail, soundstage, vocals, bass, blackness, little details on well known tracks are all evident and even my wife has given the sound her seal of approval!

Absolutely gobsmacked as the music has flowed everyday since purchase as I work my way through my extensive library - long may it last! I have no connection with NVA - I just enjoy listening far more than I used to, and I have been dabbling with hi fi for a long time.

Both the P50 and the S80 are keepers!

Thank you!

View the NVA P50 passive pre-amplifier at the NVA website: https://nvahifi.co.uk/products/nva-p50- ... mplifier-1

View the NVA S80 stereo power amplifier at the NVA website: https://nvahifi.co.uk/products/nva-s80- ... -amplifier
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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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P50SA UPGRADE

My original P50SA with stepped attenuator had become very noisy when changing the volume and one channel was dropping out at some volumes when wiggling the knob (which was easy to do without intention because it was quite heavy/stiff in operation). An email to Paul and his quick phone call back gave me my options of either being talked through opening the case and where to apply contact cleaner which they obviously couldn’t guarantee how long it would last or sending the amp to them and the new, better more reliable stepped attenuator fitted. I went with the latter and the communications and turn around in less than a week were superb.

Putting the pre back into my system and sparking it up amazed me as it was straight out of the box. The sound stage was much wider with greater depth than the original. Which was no slouch. I can’t wait to see how it develops with more use. Well done lads!

Roy. P.

View NVA P50SA upgrades at the NVA website: https://nvahifi.co.uk/products/upgrade- ... cification
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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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View and buy the NVA Starter Bundle here: https://nvahifi.co.uk/products/starter-system-bundle
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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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From Andrew. T, by email:

Just wanted to thank you for 2nd PSU, it's opened up the soundstage ! Every NVA item is perfect and you can hear the difference . Thank you Tom and Paul - very happy.

View NVA Phono Stages on the NVA website: https://nvahifi.co.uk/collections/phono-preamplifiers
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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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From Richard. N, by email:

I finally got to see Dub War at a local dive / pub/ venue on Friday and it was awesome.

Got the house to myself so have stuck their first mini LP on and, oh my god! I can crank it up and the sound quality and purity is just sublime!

The Dynaudio Special 40 paired with your amps and cables ( and the Rega planar 3) are just achieving a sound I have aspired to all my life!

Hope everyone doesn't come down too soon and I have to turn it down!

Keep fighting the good fight!


Go to the NVA website: https://nvahifi.co.uk/
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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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From Patrick, by email:

The best thing I did was to buy this system.
Simply put, the sound is fantastic, that’s what it’s all about.
Great lads creating a British product to be proud of.
Just try the amps, you won’t return it.

The system:

P50 MKII Passive Preamplifier
S150 Stereo Power Amplifier
Balanced Mains Unit

Rogers speaker
Cyrus CDi

Keep up the good work.
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Company Name: NVA Hi-Fi
https://nvahifi.co.uk/

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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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NVA Starter Bundle review by Stereonet online magazine: https://www.stereonet.com/uk/reviews/nv ... ier-review

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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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P50/S80 loan

Current system:

Linn LP12/Dynavector 10x5 high output MC/Dynavector P75 phono stage
Audio Note CD2.1 CD player

Amazon HD music streaming through Arcam Bluetooth receiver and Audiolab m-dac (used for exploring new music, not as a main source)

Audio Analogue Maestro Setanta integrated amp

Snell Jii speakers on AN stands

Cables are Rothwell/Chord/Mark Grant

Hi Paul,

First impressions as promised. Not being used to 'reviewing' hifi at all, and not having listened that extensively to loads of other gear, I can only describe things against what I know my preferences to be - I prioritise ‘musicality and tone’, over ‘pace and clarity’ – to use a couple of the phrases often bandied about – but of course, I want a lively, engaging sound with appropriate tempo. My music taste is wide but firmly in the acoustic/singer songwriter/jazz/small-scale classical camp. With this in mind, I am finding the system delivers a really well-balanced sound, a well-considered musical presentation – not too sharp on top, not too soft at the bottom. A double bass resonates; a snare drum rasps; I can hear Charles Lloyd controlling his breath as he plays sax and flute on his Vanished Gardens release. The music has ‘presence’. Vocals are placed in a solid, convincing soundstage. So, I guess you can say I'm impressed.

Up to now I have just been listening without any a/b comparisons to either my existing amp (Audio Analogue), or a newly acquired Audio Note Oto Line SE. I guess the AA is a 'price appropriate' comparison, the AN maybe not? In any case, before the system is picked up on 31st, I will do a bit of mixing and matching.

Thanks again for the chance to get to know the NVA equipment.

So, as promised, after a week of just listening (enjoying) and not overanalysing the sound of the P50ii/S80, I did put a couple of amps into the system for a/b comparison.

First, switching back to my Audio Analogue Maestro Settanta was enlightening. To use a photographic analogy, the AA amp presents more of a ‘soft-focus’ soundscape, not lacking detail but definitely not as much ‘contrast’ as the NVA sound. I would say it’s different, not night and day better or worse – but at the end of the day I think the combination of musicality and extra dynamics of the NVA would win me over.

Then, putting my newly acquired (2-year old) Audio Note Oto Line SE into the mix made things interesting. The AN gave me a bit more of everything that the NVA serves up - it puts more space between instruments, pulls you more into the performance to follow rhythm lines or specific instruments, the leading edges of notes are cleaner, vocals are so 'present', and the whole thing just sounds at the same time both more ‘alive’ and more effortless.

I guess at close to £4K new, you should expect something - and it does deliver (at least to my ears in my room and with the rest of my system) but actually, the differences made me wonder what a comparison of (say) the P50iiSA and M300 monoblocks to the Oto might bring...

It's been great to spend time with the new NVA kit. By the way, I've already recommended the power amps to a friend who is looking for a change in his system...

Richard
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Company Name: NVA Hi-Fi
https://nvahifi.co.uk/

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Re: NVA Reviews (THIS THREAD IS ONLY FOR STASHING REVIEWS)

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Keith Patterson, via Facebook...

"I discussed vintage recordings with you, and listened to the 1930's recording of a late Beethoven quartet by the Busch Quartet. On replaying my CD copy at home ( Sugden CD player, Arcam irDacII DAC, Exposure integrated amp, and Castle Howard S2 speakers) it didn't sound quite as involving, much to my surprise. Kudos to you and your new integrated amplifier!"

Did we see you at NWAS? https://nvahifi.co.uk/a/blog/did-we-see ... audio-show
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Company Name: NVA Hi-Fi
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