The Octave Audio V 70 Class A Integrated Amplifier has a lot of great things going for it.
Back in August of last year I spent review time with Octave V 16 Single Ended Integrated/Headphone Amplifier (review) and concluded, “If you own speakers that have similar friendly-to-drive manners and also enjoy headphone time and you want your music coming out of both to sound clean, clear, delicate, rich, and powerful—that tickles both hemispheres, left and right—hear ye the Octave V 16.” The friendly-to-drive manners part was mentioned due to the V 16’s 8 Watts of output power. The V 70 Class A offers 50 Watts but don’t let that number fool you as 50 in tube/Octave Watts is more than you think.
Octave Audio is based in Karlsbad, Germany and the company’s history dates back to 1968 when Karl Heinz Hofmann founded the transformer winding factory Hofmann. Andreas Hofmann took over the Hofmann company from his father in 2000, giving it its new name—OCTAVE Audio—with a focus on the tube-based electronics he’d been designing and building since the 1970s.
The Octave Audio V 70 is a Class A push-pull pentode integrated amplifier that incorporates the company’s Dynamic Bias Control. I’ll let Octave do the talking:
Dynamic Bias Control means that Andreas Hofmann has found ways to dynamically shift the limited dynamic range, and thus the limited power of the Class A concept, according to the requirements. The development of the dynamic operating point setting enabled a self-regulating Class A amplifier with approximately twice the output power of 50 W RMS with up to 70 W (with Super Black Box) peak power.
This technology combines the tonal purity of Class A with the dynamics and performance of push-pull A / B technology.
The modern concept of a Class-A push-pull amplifier in a pentode circuit makes it possible to guarantee the Class-A virtues over the entire frequency response up to maximum modulation. The enormous power, with up to 70 watts peak power, is significantly above the performance level of conventional Class A amplifiers and is more than sufficient for most speakers.
While I’m letting Octave do the talking, I was also sent their Super Black Box external power supply. Unlike some black boxes, the company offers more than peak inside:
The dynamic and tonal stability of an amplifier is strongly dependent upon the stability and capacity of the power supply, therefore the Black Box and Super Black Box were developed as external upgrades to the OCTAVE amplifiers’ power supply storage capacitors by increasing their capacitance by a factor of 4 (Black Box) or 10 (Super Black Box), respectively. This is a tremendous benefit if the speaker is difficult to drive. Loudspeaker efficiency is made less critical, while the amplifier is enabled to handle speakers with minimum impedances as low as 2 ohms.
The power supply capacitance increase realized via use of the Black Box or Super Black Box stabilizes current delivery and reduces the impedance interaction of the load. This improves dynamic range, separation, depth, soundstage size and articulation, rendering the musical reproduction clearer throughout the entire frequency range. The amplifier remains unaffected by mains variations and interferences due to the noise filtering characteristics of the capacitors.
The Super Black Box costs $3500 and based on my listening impressions with and without, it’s worth the spend as it offers better control of the attached loudspeaker which translates into deeper, tighter bass and greater overall clarity that shows up most obviously in the size and specificity of the sound image. While the level of improvement offered by the Super Black Box varied with the accompanying speaker (and its load), I preferred it in the system with the easiest to drive barn Resident DeVore Fidelity O/96 while the more difficult the load, the greater the improvement. Worth the spend if you can swing it.
The V 70 Class A comes with a total of 5 line level inputs (3x RCA, 1x XLR, 1x Front Channel/HT Bypass), a Tape In and Pre Out. A MC or MM Phono module are optional. There’s also a single set of speaker binding posts, a Black Box Connector for adding one of Octave’s external power supplies, a 3-position Ecomode toggle switch (“Ecomode serves to reduce heat and unnecessary power consumption when the unit is switched on but not in use”), and an IEC inlet. I’ll let Octave explain the reason for the Power Selector High/Low switch:
Power High and Low, so that the device can be optimally adapted to different power tubes. Due to the high power in Class A operation, a KT 120 or KT 150 tube must be used for Power High. Less powerful KT88 or 6550 types should be operated at Power Low. Around 15 W Class A and 25 W music power are still available.
I preferred Low Power mode with some speakers and High Power mode with others. Seeing as choosing between the two is as easy as flipping a switch and your speakers and tastes will play a bigger part in your preference than anything I have to say, I’m not saying anything more other than choice is good in matters of taste.
The V 70 Class A shipped with Tung Sol KT120s but you can also use 6550s, KT90s, KT100s, KT120s, and KT150s in their stead. I was also sent a pair of KT 88 Carbon output tubes which I preferred to the KT120s for their richer, denser sound. The preamp and driver stage employ a single 12AX7/ECC83 and a pair of 12AT7/ECC81s.
The front panel’s two dials dial in input selection (left) which also has a stop for checking the auto-bias of the output tubes while the other dial is for volume control. In between sits a display that shows the selected input, Bias status when in Bias mode, and amp status (Power, Soft Start, Protection, Front Channel).
The included remote is the same simple chunk of aluminum that came with Octave’s V 16 and I really appreciate a simple remote with the appropriate number of buttons/options for an integrated amp—up or down. When I handle a big plastic remote that includes all kinds of superfluous functions not available on the thing under review that are meant to control other products from the company’s range of gear, it’s like getting a full set of surgical tools along with your chopsticks for your Nigiri dinner. What am I supposed to do with all these?
I’m also a big fan of the matte aluminum finish on both the remote and amp as it doesn’t leave a trail of touches (why, oh why, use a finish that shows a smudge or fingerprint after every touch when the thing is meant to be touched?). The V 70 Class A also catches light with a warm subtle glittery glow in return, something my camera also appreciated. As I said up front, build quality is robust and the Octave V 70 Class A looks the part of a well-made serious music machine. Its near 50 lb weight, silky smooth volume control and just the right amount of resistance input control reinforce this impression.
The Octave V 70 Class A got to drive, command, a number of speakers including the aforementioned DeVore Fidelity O/96 (review), the recently reviewed Living Voice R80 OB-X (review), Dynaudio Contour Legacy (review), Qln Reference 9 (review), and the Canton Reference 2 (more info) for a few days. And here’s another great thing about the Octave V 70 Class A amp—it drove every pair no matter their load as if they were ready for marriage. Even after just a long weekend with the Cantons. Nice.
Digital duties were handled by the Barn resident Grimm MU1 (review)/totaldac d1-unity (review) combo on the A-Side and the Mola Mola Tambaqui (review) on the B-Side. All cables, on both sides, are from AudioQuest and all gear sat on equipment racks from Brooklyn’s Box Furniture (see full Barn and system details).
The V 70 Class A also came with the optional MC Phono Input Module so I got to play records, lots of records on the Barn resident Michell Gyro SE/Sorane SA1.2/EMT HSD 006 rig. And for an interesting A/B, Octave also sent along their stand alone Phono EQ.2 to see what more sounds like.
The Octave Phono EQ.2 handles MM and MC cartridges, offering a number of Impedance and Gain setting for MC cart’s via bottom accessed DIP switches. Here are some of the things Octave says about the reasons for offering the Phono EQ.2:
Vinyl has always played an important role at Octave. Ever since the company was founded, nearly every Octave pre- and integrated-amplifier model produced has offered analog aficionados the option to add a perfectly tuned, built-in phono input – with perfect adjustment possibilities (RIAA curve) according to the pickup used.
Surely there are many music lovers who own a turntable but have yet to own an Octave component, and Octave did not want to leave them empty handed. The brand new Octave EQ.2 separate phono-preamplifier fills this gap. The EQ.2 is a compact yet complete MM/MC phono stage housed in a magnetically shielded chassis with an external power supply.
Vinyl plays an important role for me too.
The Octave integrated has been living in the Barn since July, about 4 months, which explains why it got to play with so much gear and so much music.
Bill Dixon’s Thoughts was recorded on May 16, 1985 at the Paul Robeson House in Bennington College, Bennington, VT and I was fortunate enough to attend Bennington during this time and see this ensemble with Dixon (trumpet, flugelhorn, piano), John Buckingham (tuba), Marco Eneidi (alto saxophone), Peter Kowald, William Parker, Mario Pavone (bass), and Lawrence Cook (drums) perform on campus which remains one of the most intense music-inspired experiences of my life (so far) and these musicians held, bent, and released time in a manner only Einstein could explain.
This is gentle, for Dixon, slow paced music that moves time around like chess pieces. Artist Marcel Duchamp, a favorite, offers a related quote:
In chess there are some extremely beautiful things in the domain of movement, but not in the visual domain. It’s the imagining of the movement or the gesture that makes the beauty, in this case. It’s completely in one’s gray matter.
Just as these master musicians re-performing Thoughts in Barn took place invisibly in space, only coming fully to life in my head (when we can measure the entirety of this experience, I’ll pay closer attention). With the Octave amp driving the DeVore O/96 on the A-Side and the digital version streaming through the Grimm/totaldac, Dixon & Co. appeared in my gray matter in fully captivating form, perfectly placed in space and fully voiced with clarity and energy that erased the mechanics at work. Perhaps the standout quality of the Octave V 70 Class A is its combined strengths of control, voicing, and stunning clarity, stunning due to a complete absence of extraneous sound/self noise leaving just me and this music alone in the Barn to re-live and remember (when we can put a price tag on this experience, the gesture that makes the beauty, I’ll pay more attention to complaints about the cost of hifi).
Ana Roxanne’s Because of a Flower, released on kranky in November of 2020, is a quiet meditation of a record that’s more spirit than form, floating in the air like a ghost. What you ideally want your hifi to do with Because of a Flower is lay it out in your place in every dimension free from the speakers so that the air and space between all the working parts are distinct in space, voice, and time. The V 70’s stunning clarity allowed this to happen with the Canton Reference 2s throwing out a huge perfectly defined sound image in Barn that was nearly more space than sounds. With this kind of specific yet billowy presentation, one’s attention is drawn well into the intimate workings of every part, every moment, every silence so that time evaporates in the mist of Ana Roxanne’s wondrous sound world. It’s tempting to suggest the Octave amp has a soundless sound but there’s a spark of life and touch of sweetness that suggests otherwise in the very best way. I think it’s called ‘voicing’.
From the liner notes:
The sublime songs comprising New York-based musician Ana Roxanne’s second record, Because Of A Flower, germinated gradually across five years, inspired by interwoven notions of gender identity, beauty, and cruelty. She describes her process as beginning with “a drone element and a mood,” then intuiting melody, syllables, and lyrics incrementally, like sacred shapes materializing from mist.
“Starburster” from Fontaines D.C.’s Romance is a favorite track of the year and every time it gets to Grian Chatten’s heavy heaving while the band chugs away with their typical brute stutter my adrenal gland takes note. Extra especially so when played loud and the V 70 Class A amp can play louder than you want to go. Fontaines D.C., to my mind, do energy as well as any band and Romance can feel like a mad dangerous joyous ride teetering on the edge. While I’m very nearly too tired of hearing about ‘tube amp sound’ to care or comment, the Octave V 70 Class Amp has edgy edges as well defined and finely tuned and turned as any solid state amp. I wish I still had the Audia Flight FLS 10 Integrated (review) here so I could do a direct comparison with the Octave because my sense is they would have a lot in common. Chief among these shared traits are control, fluidity, clarity. and great bass control according to my memory of the FLS 10 coupled with a refresh re-read of that review.
And that’s all I’m going to offer in terms of comparisons for the Octave because its sound, its combination of strengths and price make it rather unique, at least in my experience. A stand out.
How about that internal versus external phono stage shootout! Let’s begin with the numbers—the optional MC Phono Input Module runs $850, while the stand alone Octave Phono EQ.2 runs $1950. It’s worth noting that internal module comes in an MC or MM version whereas the Phono EQ.2 handles both.
I chose to use Thoughts to talk about this phono stage comparison for two reasons—I love this record and it offers the opportunity to say something about digital versus analog. But let’s get the easy part out of the way—the Octave Phono EQ.2 retrieves more detail, reveals more nuance, and offers more weight and texture than the optional internal phono input module. > $1000 more?
That’s a question only you can answer but I will share that I spent real time, and one helluva time it was, spinning through some of my favorite records—The Birthday Party’s 12” single Release The Bats, Einstürzende Neubauten’s 12” Yü-Gung, Jimi Hendrix’s 12” single Gloria / Hey Joe, Bob Marley & The Wailers 12” single Trench Town, the Budapest String Quartets Haydn: Quartets and many more using the Octave’s internal phono stage and never felt a lack of anything other than time.
On digital vs. analog, Thoughts streaming vs. Thoughts spun, these are different kinds of experiences due to their very nature so comparing the two makes as much sense as comparing night and day to determine which is better. But on a purely engagement quality level, vinyl always wins. Hands down, no contest, and anyone who believes otherwise may have convinced themselves that things which don’t matter, matter, and things that do matter, don’t.
The Octave Audio V 70 Class A Integrated Amplifier has a lot of great things going for it. Important things like performance and price that may be unexpected once you spend time, real time, listening to it power speakers to play music. Unexpected things like real-world power, seamless performance with a range of speakers, big current kinda bass grip especially so with the optional Super Black Box, air, depth, and the kind of rich-just-right timbral complexity one comes to expect from an amplifier with vacuum tubes in the output stage. Add in superb build quality and ultra-quiet operation and it’s easy to understand why I’d say the Octave Audio V 70 Class A Integrated Amplifier has a lot of great things going for it.
To say it in simpler terms still, if you value build quality, sound quality, and a rich company history, the Octave Audio V 70 Class A has got the goods.
Octave Audio V 70 Class A Integrated Amplifier
Price: $12,000, +$3500 for the Super Black Box, optional Phono Input $850
Company Website: Octave Audio
Specifications
Output Power: High: 2 x 50 W / 4 ohms; Low: 2 x 25 W / 4 ohms
Frequency response: 20 Hz – 70 kHz @ 50 W +1 / -3dB
Total Harmonic Distortion: 0.1% at 10 W / 4 ohms
Signal-to-noise ratio: – 100 dB / 50 W unrated
Options: Phono MC or MM
Design: Silver or Black
Tube Configuration: 4 x KT 88-S4A-Carbon, optional 4 x KT 120 TS
Inputs :5 x line level RCA (one is a bypass input and one is a phono input with the phono option) / 1 x XLR
Outputs: 1 x pre-out regulated / 1 x record output RCA / 1 x loudspeaker output
Dimensions: 17.75”W x 16.4”D x 5.9”H
Weight: 49 lbs.
