Preview of the Audio Research Ref 150 amp from The Audio Beat...

[ojdeteos]

i too still waiting for ref150 to arrive, can't wait to hear it

[ojdeteos]

well, i've pick it up today, haven't heard it, but it sure is heavy.

little photo





tube



and my arc combo :music

[Ritmo]

Very nice! I've heard the new 150 with Wilson Sashas, Ref 40, and Ref CD8 - terrific combination.

Your ARC components are super nice. Enjoy the ride!

Mike

[jpgr4blu]

Ref 150 is at dealer. I take delivery on Saturday. Review to come.

[Ritmo]

Excellent! Keep us posted.

Mike

[jpgr4blu]

The fans on the Ref 150 are so dead quiet that I cannot tell they are on without putting my hand right behind them.

[cmalak]

That's good to hear jpgr4blu How's the Ref 150 sounding for you? How many hours do you have on it?

[Tonepub]

About 300 hours on the clock on mine and it's really opening up. Very happy with this amplifier!

[jpgr4blu]

Hi Cyril:
I had actually written a fairly extensive review and thought it was awaiting posting. But so far I only see my initial fan comment in this thread. Pardon me if the review posts after this and appears twice.
I now have 7 hours on the unit. Reviewing it at this point is probably like seeing a play in rehearsal and writing about it as if it were opening night. But, as no one else has posted details, here goes. The differences between the Ref 150 and Ref 110 are the same in character as the differences that I found between the Ref 40 and the Ref 5, only to a lesser degree. The Ref 40 is simply an astonishing piece that startled me when I first turned it on as it was so much better right out of the box than the Ref 5 in the areas listed below. The Ref 5 has continued to improve such that I think I can say with confidence that it is the finest single piece of equipment that I have ever owned.
As to the Ref 150-110 comparison, the main differences I hear are that the Ref 150 has better textures, richer and more palpable sound, better transients and appears to be more dynamic in all but the low end where the thrust seems to be about the same as a broken in Ref 110 with KT 120s. There is also more dimensionality on some tracks. None of these improvements are more than slight as of now. (But, as I remember, it took hundreds of hours for the Ref 110 to go from a light/midweight to a powerhouse.) When the huge caps break in, I hope to hear more of the above qualities.
I am happy to report that this unit is a step forward. Whether it is a little or big step will take hundreds of hours to tell. As I am not one to speed up break in (I enjoy listening to the progress), I expect that a full analysis is months away. Of course if there is a significant change sooner than that, i will post it. Hopefully, others will get there first and write about it. So far, I am pleased with the upgrade.

[Tonepub]

I have to say the 150 did sound surprisingly good out of the box, but it just keeps getting smoother and more open as the hours pile up.

But I would say the comment about "texture" is really on the money. That's what I noticed from the minute I turned the REF 150 on, is that it's got a level of detail and texture that jumped right out at me.