Review: Spectron Musician III Signature Edition Amplifier


Category: Amplifiers

This review is of the newly released Spectron Musician III "Signature Edition" MSRP $5995. The signature edition has improvements over the $4995 standard version (which is an exceptional amplifier as-is) that improve the specs and sound to the degree of making it a strong competitor to $20K-40K reference monoblocks. John Ulrick (former co-founder of Infinity and creator of the first digital amp in 1974) has really outdone himself with this new design. The Musician III Signature version is one of the most natural, detailed, robust and transparent amplifiers I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. The soundstage is so vast that when I closed my eyes, my once constricted sounding listening room sounded like someone snuck into my new home and added an extra room behind the speakers! Ok, I may be exaggerating about the stage a little bit but not about the clarity, detail and bass authority. This amp is POWERFUL and difficult loads do not even phase it. I have MBL 111E Omnidirectional speakers connected to it. I originally focused my attention on the ship anchor sized MBL 9011 monoblocks and fell in love with them at CES 2005. The Spectron was purchased to be a temporary place holder until I could afford the MBL giants. After purchasing this tiny, less than 60 lb. digital powerhouse, I have no desire to shell out for Monoblocks that cost as much as my new BMW 5. Everyone recognizes that the new digital designs are powerful and efficient but there exists an industry wide stigma about the musicality of most digital designs. Many inexpensively or poorly implemented digital chip based designs simply do not have the warmth and natural sound of the finest tube and class A solid state amps. The Spectron Musician III Signature is in a category all by itself. I enjoy listening to cello and piano. I ran through about 2 hours of "The Essential Yo Yo Ma" and was shocked. The Spectron revealed nuances and micro details that I never noticed previously on tracks that I listen to frequently. The bass is robust, strong and very controlled. The Spectron sounds nothing like many of the digital ice-power or tripath based designs. The Spectron is very transparent. What comes out of it is exactly what you put into it. Use a great power cord and exceptional source equipment and you cannot lose with this amp. Other Spectron owners tell me that tube preamps such as BAT are a perfect companion for the Spectron. If you are considering purchasing a new amplifier in the $10000+ category, you owe it to yourself, and your wallet, to give the Musician III Signature a listen. Be sure to have a pair of well respected tube or solid state amps that cost at least twice as much in the same room for A/B comparison. You will be amazed! The manufacturer burns in the amps for a week or so at the factory and informed me that I need to give it at least a week of burn-in at home to fully appreciate it. After a few hours of warm up, right out of the box, it sounded great. I am on day 4 of listening and it just keeps getting better.

Strengths: Powerful, Open Soundstage, Critical Midrange is natural and dynamic. Nice build quality. Pretty Face

Weakness: No rack mount option at this time.

Associated gear
Theta CBIII w/Extreme DACS running 2ch
Underwood Modded Denon 3910
MBL 111E Omnidirectional Speakers
PS Audio Duet
Mr.Cable Musician Power Cord

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Dear Guido,
Yes, of course, Spectron has balanced output - its truly, not big deal.

Dear Zaikesman.

class D power module if anything its not IC chip and if they would be inexpensive then most if not all class D manufacturers would use them in FULLY balanced amplifier. It takes thousands and thousands of man-hours to design proper class D module. In the United States there are only three design studios (Spectron, Nu Force and that of Bruno Putzey)

I see that first of all we need to define word "balanced" - OK, balanced design of anything mean that there are two (2) signal paths in this "something" where all electrical characteristics are as identical as technically possible - with one exception only - they MUST be in oppose phase to each other.

For example, with flip of the switch on the back of Spectron you convert this stereo amplifier into FULLY (i.e. from amp input to binding posts of the speakers) balanced design with may be (nobody measured) 2400 wpc @ 8 ohms. You double slew rate, you double bandwidth, you have this and you have that. Simply the amp is so good that as far as I know nobody ever tried to use two of them in balanced monoblocks form.

The same is probably true (I suspect, I really don't know) with Jeff Rowland and other responsible and talented manufacturers in United States and Europe.
May be one day, I will write small "primer" on true advantages of fully balanced design, at least as can be implemented by end user in Spectron amps and post it on Discussion Form.

All The Best to both of you!
Hi Simon, it was indeed fab talking with you today. Per our discussion, the fully balanced design of such devices as Spectron Musician 3 Signature and JRDG may contribute significantly to their ability of controlling difficult loads by doubling the slue rate without resorting to extravagantly high output currents. Furthermore, you also suggested that the Spectron fully balanced output in the mono configuration of the amp may also yield twice the bandwidth. If I understood correctly, The dedicated speaker wires of the Spectron Musician take furter advantage of the balanced output design by containing three conductors: positive, negative, and ground yielding superior control of speakers with difficult loads.

On a more philosophical note, you probably belong to the more objectivist school, while as you know, I am part-time subjectivist. In the end, you you may likely say that something sounds correct and real but is also sounding beautiful. . . while I may vehemently argue that it fact it sounds beautiful but it is also sounding congruent with correctness and reality. In the end. . . we are clearly both after MUSIC! Saluti, Guido
"I see that first of all we need to define word 'balanced'"
"First of all," not from anything that I in fact wrote could you "see" this supposed "need".
Hello Simon and Guido:

Thank you both for bringing this interesting subject. You are right. I changed my interconnects between my preamp and Spectron amp from SE to balanced and.... to begin with, I think sound level increased by 6 dB so Spectron should change spec info in their web site. HOWEVER,
sound became more "musical" more liquid, more "seductive" - slam appeared to me stronger and bass somewhat deeper. I have read your discussion and expected some changes ...but not as much. I can only wonder how Spectron will sound in balanced monoblocks mode....

One more thing - before I had to turn off my amp every night but I don't need to do it anymore and..
background became significantly more blacker. Verrrrry nice.
Thank you guys again!
Rafael
Hi Rafel, with the limited experience I have, if a device was truly designed to operate in balanced mode, it often sounds better and more fleshed out when connected that way. E.g., I have a system consisting of an Esoteric X-01 Limited, an ARC Ref 3 linestage, and a pair of 1988-vintage Rowland 7M monoblocks. X-01 has balanced output, Ref 3 is completely balanced in input and output, and JRDG 7 M have balanced inputs but SE output. ICS are both Audioquest Sky balanced XLRs. If I turn off the balanced signal on the Ref 3 through the remote, not only I lose sound volume, but the sound becomes significantly vapid and gutless. Admittedly, I have not tried to operate the system using single ended SKY RCA ICs. By the way, it looks like I was wrong about conductors in the Spectron speakerwire: there are 4 conductors, not three. Please let us know any experience with Spectron in balanced monoblock configuration if you have the opportunity.