reviews

During the preparation for this review, I kept thinking about the theme of the Disney movie “Aladdin”: a diamond in the rough. Here at 10 Audio, we’re always looking for products that offer excellent value for the money in addition to offering outstanding sound. So the “rough” would refer to the price category of these beautifully finished speakers: $1600 with stands.

The Ayre K-5xe ^MP line level preamplifier has been in production for about five years and is mostly unchanged since its introduction. These long production lifetimes are standard for Ayre Acoustics which is located in Boulder, Colorado, literally at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Ayre has consistently produced fine sounding audio components which appear regularly on recommended lists.

Craftsman. Snap-on. Stanley. Fluke. These are some of the best tools made. You have heard of them. You might even own a few. Why would you buy a Craftsman hand tool? Because you know it will do the job, it will be well made, and you know that if you need a hand tool, Craftsman most likely makes it.

These two amplifiers are children from the same BAT family and have similar BAT sound qualities. The 125W per channel VK-220 ($3000) and the 150W VK-250SE ($7000) employ mosfets in their output stages. Both amplifiers are fully balanced designs and have XLR input connections. Both amplifiers weigh 75 pounds and measure 19” wide x 6.5” high x 16” deep.