VAN MEDEVOORT PAQs

MJ10.11.2014

Power amplifiers

The sound of the Van Medevoort combo had two very attractive features that reminded me of Mark Levinsons: the sound was very clean and very controlled. The VM PAQs is a powerful amplifier (2x480W into 4 ohms) and my speakers loved it - the sound that poured out of them was efortless, authoritative and dynamic.

Function and form

87%

Ease of use

80%

Sound

78%

Appearance

The housings of all three devices are very essential in their simplicity - black paint sprayed steel chassis with rectangular aluminum front panels are actually free from any design, they just are what they are and remind me of DIY modules. The other possibility is to consider them to be puristic in almost Zen manner. The PAQs power amplifier cannot be more puristic: there is just a single black ON/OFF button on its aluminum front panel. The rear panel hosts RCA and XLR connectors (one pair each) plus single-wiring binding posts.

The PAQs is not cheap so I would expect a little more than a resonating steel chassis. The top plate of the chassis is only slid into its place with no bolts and it comes alive during music playback. Do not even dare to knock on it.

Bass management

Weight

Slam

Articulation

Motorhead's Runaround Man is a heavy metal stomper with locomotion energy and the band's trademark dirtiness. I actually liked its production through the PAQs - it was not the best mix ever made but it somehow successfully balances between 1982 and 2012. Guitars were biting, vocals raspy, perhaps only the kick drum was too decent, it lacked more punch.

The decent bass was quite good in Richard Marx's Hazard but it was again just like that, decent. The roll of drums was also less weighty than I was used to; the drums were not the backbone of the track, rather they were secondary to the synth line that took rhythmic leadership. This also indicated slightly elevated presence region, which was confirmed by voices that had less sonourous character with sounds generated by mouths rather than chests. Highlighted details were the positive side of this type of voicing - guitar strings were nicely outlined as well as a flute was put in spotlight. Thus the music shone with immediacy and had a spark.

Clarity & delicacy

Detail

Air

Transparency

The PAQs excelled in tranzient attack and in midrange. Combined it resulted in sensational strum sounds and guitar licks. The sounds were very dynamic and with ink black background. Orchestral climaxes were bursting with energy and distorted guitars were exceptionally dirty. But Van Medevoorts could also play well the clean guitar in Tennyson Mansion (Mostly Autumn) which was better and better with each half turn of the volume knob clockwise. The PAQs is a reservoir of energy and I could hear it.

Tonal accuracy

Timbre

Dynamics

Temporal resolution

Van Medevoorts were quite sensitive to the quality of power (despite the CAQ comes with an outboard PSQ power supply unit), and to the power cables consequently. During the review I mostly used Actinote Aria cables. When I replaced them with SnakeBlock power cables I could enjoy a tad better tonality but I lost a bit of resolution. Plugging the power amplifier directly to the wall did not bring a sound improvement - quite opposite, the sound was again better resolved and more dynamic with Actinote power strip. I also tested my resident Nordost Valhalla power cords but eventually I returned the Actinote Arias as they sounded the best balanced with the Van Medevoorts.

Spatial resolution

Holography

Soundstage width

Soundstage depth

Not only the rock music kept me nailed to the listening chair. The classic guitar of John Williams in Recuerdos De La Alhambra (SACD layer) conjured up the images of fingers tapping the strings and sliding on a fretboard, the body of the guitar that resonated with wood, and the crisp energy of strings with metallic overtones..

Like my Audiodrom mate Tomek says, the best voice is a human voice. Not only was the human voice tonally correct through the Van Medevoorts, but they were wonderfully positioned in the wide and deep stereo soundstage that the amps created in my room. Thus I could savour details like a performer walking towards a microphone from the depth of a stage. This Van Medevoort's combo is pure high end.

Price as reviewed:467 000,- Kč

Recommended resellers

AudioRanny, Praha, tel. +420 777 003 134

Manufacturer's website: http://www.vanmedevoortaudio.nl

Associated components

Sources: Accuphase DP-78, Van Medevoort CT460 CD transport + DA468 DAC
Amplifiers: Van Medevoort PSQ a CAQ, Van Medevoort PAQs, Accuphase A-60
Interconnects and speaker cables: Krautwire Fractal, Cardas Clear, Actinote Sonata
Loudspeakers: Bowers & Wilkins 802 Diamond
Power conditioning: Nordost Thor (modified), Nordost Valhalla, Block Audio Snakeblock, Actinote Aria

Gallery

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Recommended resellers

Nisel SK, Bratislava, tel. +421 905 203 078

Sound

79%

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Recommended resellers

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Sound

78%

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