HiFi Pig
Review part II - Comparison with original
Customer Review
Special thanks to the customer for providing this review. They wish to remain nameless.
No-signal background noise level: extremely quiet, at times if the tubes were not glowing it would be difficult to say if the amp is switched on ( or you would start to suspect your tweeters )
Resolution and detail: excellent on all music types (instrumental and vocal) listened to so far. Can hear some very fine detail coming through ( ie: cymbal strokes ) on well produced vinyl
Depth and separation: excellent
Soundstage focus and positioning: spot on and where the artist and recording engineer intended it to be
Bass response: very good, not for head-bangers but clean and tidy, natural. Pretty good with some “Supertramp” and “Deep Purple” tracks so the amp can rock if the whole replay chain is up to it
Mid response: again very good, natural
Treble response: same again, very good, natural
Overall response: excellent, nothing appears over-emphasised so far
Build, fit & finish: Arthur would be pleased
Circuit: faithful to original with improvements that again Arthur would be proud of
Negatives: make sure the amp sits on a good platform as the main power transformer could allow some mechanical noise to intrude when the room is quiet
Negatives: does your bank balance no good at all
Negatives: need to invest in more good vinyl source material
Negatives: don’t buy one of these amps, you will lose sleep and probably your job as you will spend too much time just enjoying the sheer pleasure of listening to your music through the darn thing
Negatives: Avoid getting lured down dark country lanes, you never know what lies at the end! (I’m assuming this refers to the lane we live in! -Will)
Sum-up: I’m pretty sure Arthur would be smiling right now!
Customer Review 2
Of course, it’s an obvious question. Why buy a forty-year old design using technology that was all but wiped-out by transistors? There is one argument that goes – because it is still hand-built in Britain by someone who loves their work, and almost the only things that satisfy the criteria are the Radford or a Bristol. The car has a longer waiting list and costs considerably more. There are probably well-heeled gentlemen who will buy one to put an a shelf to add to their collection next to the ‘original’ e-bay purchases that needed so much work that they are like George Washington’s axe – you know the one that’s had two new heads and three new handles but is still authentic. Regrettably I can’t afford to buy an amplifier as a collectible or an exercise in nostalgia. For me it has to justify it’s place as my main everyday amplifier.
Happily, William Moores had used the supplied valves as part of his lengthy soak-test so it was ready to go on arrival. It is well built, well finished and has a weight which suggests that the quality of the finish is reflected in the components. In some ways it looks to me like a ‘sixies design for a power station, brutal from some angles but with enough chrome to make it look as if some effort has gone towards acknowledging that it is a domestic object. Like most people, I imagine, I prefer to position the amplifier ‘back to front’ so that the inputs and speaker connectors are at the back and the bias trim pots and test points are at the front. You get a comprehensive set of illustrated biasing instructions which even I could follow.
I am using a Croft Micro 25R pre-amp (add that to the list of hand-built in Britain, is there a pattern here?) which is a valve pre-amp with valve line and phono stages. It is most definitely not at the pipe and slippers end of the valve spectrum, it has drive, precision and real weight. The speakers are Harbeth SHL5 – I know, British; which are probably at the lower extreme of the Radford’s range for efficiency but they work in my small room.
There is the faintest of transformer buzzing which I easily eliminated by sighting the amplifier below ear height. I get a some valve noise from the speakers, probably not surprising given the number of valves in the chain, but nothing audible from my comfy sofa.
I had previously been using a solid-state power amplifier which had great pace and dynamics and presented a wide, albeit slightly flat, image. From the start the Radford had all those qualities with rhythm and timbre and added greater depth.
I don’t know if the E34L valves improved with use, or whether I just grew accustomed to the sound, either way they sounded better to me at the end of the week than the beginning. I took for granted that the combination of amplification and speakers would be easily able to reproduce voices realistically and was not disappointed. This is some of what I played today: followed by chamber, orchestral and vocal jazz, rock (but not RAWK), country, blues, folk and many other things on CD and vinyl, it’s that addictive.
‘Graceland’ has been playing everywhere this month as it reached its 25th year. So I put it on, great fluid bass lines and nimble guitar, most surprising was the drums, on some of the tracks they are given a mighty thwack and the Radford reproduced them with great control.
A 1950’s jazz trio should be made for valve amplification and the first side of Coltrane’s ‘Lush Life’ shows you how accurately instruments can be reproduced. However I have a mono recording which I have heard sounding a little narrow, pinched, as though the performers were standing shoulder-to-shoulder centre-stage. On the STA 25 it’s so BIG and has real room-filling presence. It was the sound of a live performance where three people are playing together, not just playing at the same time. It reminded me how good mono recordings – even played with a stereo cartridge – can sound through two speakers.
I don’t play as much symphonic music as other types. Partly because it is difficult to get the dynamic range of the orchestra and partly because it can just overwhelm my small room. So it was unfair to throw the Radford at Mahler’s 5th when in the same room an amplifier with five time the power had struggled. What I got was good dynamics, a proper balance between the solo instruments and the power of the full orchestra. It did not turn the far end of my room into a Vienna concert hall, but it did show me that the recording had been made in a hall with instruments properly positioned and a room acoustic which someone with a better ear than mine could probably identify.
I am convinced that at the end of a hard day at the office, the members of Kraftwerk jump on their bikes and when they get home they listen to that day’s music on valve equipment.It just sounds so much better that way, more rounded and human than you might expect. Valves show ‘The Man Machine’ to be a funk and romantic album. Seriously.
I know that it makes no difference to the sound, but I like the idea that I can speak to the actual person who built my amplifier – communication with Radford Revival is easy, they even encourage it! – I also am comforted by the fact that if I do something stupid and damage the amplifier then it can be repaired by someone who not only knows that particular model, but has years of experience of all things Radford.
Any reservations I have about the Radford Revival STA 25 are probably related to my room/speaker combination and how it might fare in a larger room.I suspect that there are further advantages to be found if it is connected to more efficient speakers.
Now, I just need to find someone who will let me have some 12” Monitor Golds in enclosures small enough to sneak past my wife.
Customer Review 3
Special thanks to the customer for providing this review.
Well! What an amazing power valve (tube) amplifier this is! l have a few vintage and modern valve power amplifiers and this new generation Radford STA25 power amplifier would have to be my favorite power amplifier to setup with my system.
lt is beautifully designed (cosmetically/electronically) as taken from the original design and an absolute credit to Will, Steve and the people at Radford Revival on its outstanding looks and sound performance.
The sound is truly gorgeous, playing cd’s by: Jennifer Warnes, Susanne Vega, Tori Amos, Chris lsaak, Mark Knopfler, Eric Clapton to Miles Davis & Marcus Miller. The voices are clear and precise as are the instruments on the jazz/fusion cd’s.
Equipment used is:
- Tannoy (Dual Concentric) Stirling Speakers ‘plus’ Linn Majik lsobariks
- Tannoy Prestige Super Tweeters
- Linn lkemi CD Player
- Bi-Wired speaker cable – using ‘Transparent The Wall Speaker Cable”, with Kordz banana plugs
- And good quality (not over the top price) interconnect leads
Strengths:
Crystal clear sound with the valves (tubes) supplied ie; highs, mid’s, lows and plenty of power in reserve, from the rated 25RMS per channel power amplifier
Weaknesses:
None
Customer Review 4
STA25 Series 5
I am in a state of reverie! Why? because I have just been listening to my series 5 STA25 amplifier and am enthralled by it’s punchiness, subtlety and cleanness of sound. In fact, and this is absolutely true, I was reduced to tears from the sheer emotion that this amplifier squeezes from the recording. Truly, the series 5 offers an awe-inspiring depth to the music with such detail that is left ingrained on the listener. I cannot praise it enough and it is a credit to Steve and Will that they could produce such a high end product for make no mistake, high end this is!
I thought that I might suffer “buyers remorse” after spending so much on one piece of audio equipment. After more than 10 years of listening to my massive Musical Fidelity A370, I was beginning to doubt that reproduction could be improved. Was I surprised? From the very first notes of Bob Marley’s “Legend” I knew that here was something really special. ‘Redemption Songs’ bringing tears to my eyes from the sheer emotion as every nuance of music was being revealed from the recording. The sound stage was immense and liquid with full depth and definition.Dire Straits “Brothers In Arms” moved me like never before. The singers taking each breath can clearly be heard without any trace of distortion. Oscar Peterson Trio “We Get Requests ” brings the stringed double bass right into my living room together with finger movement along the strings. This amp brings heaven down to earth.
I am so pleased that I came across Radford Revival website simply by doing a Google search for Radford STA 25. I seriously cannot praise it enough and would defy anyone to find better at any price. For the cost of a decent Rolex watch which only shows the time, a purchaser of this amplifier can literally satisfy his or her soul and journey into Nirvana. The series 5 STA25 amplifier is astoundingly excellent.