[CES 07] Audio Research New Hybrid Puts Tube on Front End
January 12th, 2007 — By Alan TaffelAudio Research HD220 Stereo Power Amp
Solid state/tube hybrids are all the rage at this year’s CES, but Audio Research has been playing that game for years. There is a big difference, however. Whereas all the new designs feature tubed input and drive stages feeding a solid state output stage, ARC has been doing the opposite. Until now. The HD220 stereo power amp is the company’s first hybrid with tubes at the front end.
This turnabout has been made possible, the company says, by the recent availability of superior components. The beefy-looking HD220 makes an impressive 220 watts/channel of power, yet will sell (starting in March) for a surprisingly modest $8,995.
What struck me most about the HD220 was how much it shares with Audio Research’s far more expensive–and widely lauded–Reference Series amps. The input stages are nearly identical, and the HD220 even carries over the Ref’s nifty tube hour meter. Of course, given its hybrid design, the HD220 offers far more output for the money than the all-tubed Reference. A similarly-powered pair of Reference monoblocks would run twenty grand! ARC says the HD220 and Reference amps sound surprisingly close. We hope to test that claim in the near future.
You are completely wrong this time. ARC’s new HD220 hybrid amplifier has one 6922 at the input gain stage plus one 6H30 at the driver stage per channel. The output stage comprises 12 bipolar transistors per channel. See http://www.arcdb.ws
Comment by Ronaldo Franchini January 13th, 2007 @ 7:25 pm