Van Alstine audio
 

Anyone experience with this manufacturer?
Intrested in their new amplifier set vision 400.

Interesting looking amplifier (specs, design, etc.). V.A.A. has been around a long time and they have a "following". I've not heard any of their gear in any "familiar" listening set-up or situation, but they must be doing something right to survive as long as they have in this crazy audio industry.

I own and still use a 600R hybrid, and my friend just bought the SET Vision 400. Frank makes gear that punches well above its cost. Leans a touch on the warmish side, but not at the expense of being soft or obscuring detail. Dynamic, powerful sounding. Not sure about the SET, but the hybrid “R” can drive speakers that run down to about 2 Ohms with no trouble at all. I like Frank’s amps. Are they as good as my Pass monos? No, but for the money and a bit more I’d say a music lover would be hard pressed to find anything better. Different, maybe, but not technically better IMO. His amps are well designed.

I also have a FET Valve 600R that I bought around the end of last year (so the latest iteration). In my system with Magneplanar 3.7i's, it replaced a Bryston 4B SST2. My first impression when I substituted it for the Bryston was that I had lost some high frequency detail. But as I kept listening, it seemed that what I was hearing sounded more natural than it had. I was fortunate enough to attend a live Sheku Kanneh-Mason concert right around the time that I was comparing the amps. The sense of more life-like sound (for lack of a better term) was very evident on recordings of his cello (I had bought some of his recordings at the concert). A fellow concert-goer, who also happens to play cello, agreed - pointing out to me that the 600R sounded more natural than the 4B SST2 before I made any comment about my impressions. Maybe that equates to the warmth mentioned above but, if it does, it doesn't much diminish their fidelity and certainly doesn't detract from my enjoyment of the music.

In a lesson in system synergy, maybe, another comparison was made by swapping between the Bryston and a Parasound A21 in a system with Magneplanar 1.7i's. Here the high freqeuncy level that had seemed a bit too much with the ribbon tweeter 3.7i's was very agreeable with the quasi-ribbon drivers of the 1.7i's.

As always, your mileage, and your hearing, may vary.

LarryRS

Of the two, which has more rolled off high frequency (softer presentation), the 600R or SET 400?

The only flaw I found with the Fet Valve 400R was when I needed to sell it. The market for AVA gear is not as vigorous as for better-known brands with thicker front panels.

The amp itself was great and IMO could compete with more costly units. As mentioned, maybe not with Pass monoblocks, but with gear priced 50% - 100% more than Frank asks.

Some of the most sensible engineers are the worst at marketing. They see no need for bling or added cost or added weight. The bling buyers move on. Time to CNC some bulky face plates and oversized handles with gold “made in the USA” eagle emblems. Charge 3x the price. Nice profit. That should do it.