Audionote Soro SE, or cheaper single-ended?

You can't go wrong with any Audio Note amps. So go ahead and enjoy.

I agree with Phil & Carl too. I also have the Soro SE Phono, and a pair of ASL Wave 8's. I like the Wave's a lot. I like the Soro a lot more. I know the Wave's are not the same as the Fox, but the only ASL amps I've heard that I like better than the AN are the Hurricane's, and even then, not by much. For $1300, you'll be kicking yourself in the ass if you don't do it.

For those of you who don't recommend the Fox: Have you actually heard one? Seriously, if you want to help this guy, you can't compare the ASL Waves to the Fox. By the same token, the Hurricanes are, again, tottally another species. They are as different as night and day.

The Fox is a highly unique expression of SET design; there aren't many things like it. If you don't recommend the Fox, you should be able to tell SPECIFICALLY why due to experience. My experience is that there aren't many deficiencies, especially at the price point.

LOOK: I'm not trying to steer anybody away from the SORO; I'd like to try one myself. All I'm trying to suggest is that the ASAL Fox might be a bargain, depending on needs.

I understand your point, and yes I have heard it. I should have been more specific. I didn't compare the Waves or the Hurricanes. I only said "The ONLY ASL..." And I never said it was in any way deficient. But Crazy, you are correct, I was a little vague. I just bought the Waves for shits & grins. Still lookin for more; I want to use them in my HT.

I didn't spend a lot of time listening to the Fox, maybe four hours, in a digital based system. The system pieces are similar to mine, sans vinyl. The fact that I could make a decision in four hours ought to indicate something....

The first thing I didn't like is no auto-biasing. I am lazy, and like to roll tubes. Biasing each time is, to me, a PITA. The second thing is no phono. Since my main focus is vinyl, no phono stage didn't do it for me. The Supratek has made no phono a moot point, now, in my system. That's the nitpikin' out of the way.

Those things made difference to me, but they might not to others. First off, I liked the sound. But it soon became obvious there was something missing. I guess it was just kind of lifeless, or maybe not as quick as the Soro. The bass was about even, but the Soro just does more things right, and carries more "weight".

I would have liked to A/B them, but the real world of no dealers of ANY kind around here precludes that. I still think that in the same system, the Soro would spank the Fox.

I don't normally do "reviews", because I hate trying to describe sound, a very subjective topic. I just know what sounds better to me. And in my case, I think the Soro is a clearly better piece, IMHO.

Now, I'd like to hear the Fox with some different tubes. It could make a world of difference. The 6C33C-B driven by 6sn & 6sl7's leaves some room to play. But so does the Soro, even thought it's more costly just because it has 13 tubes (phono version). And, unless you buy it used, the Soro is not really a "budget" piece at four grand. The $1300 (previous post) refers to the one here for sale, no phono (not mine either).

So, I hope this helps. IMHO, I don't think any of the options Lousyreeds1 listed are even close to the Soro. It is truly a great piece for an AN Level 2 product.

Jphii: Thanks for your clarifications. I should add some of my own. The Fox is pretty good, but it becomes a different beast with the addition some NOS Sylvania 6sn7 wgt ("Chrome Domes"). It's performance is a little flat with the stock tubes (I think that one of the ways ASL keeps costs down is that they have a sweetheart deal with a Chinese tube manufacturer).

Regarding the SORO, I am intrigued, and I will keep my eyes open for one in my area. What is interesting to me, though, is that the ASL seems to be able to retain its value like most other gear (about 1/2 of its retail value), while the SORO's used market value seems to be really low. Maybe it's just psychology: even if the watts are really good, the average audiophile wants to get as much power for the dollar. Or, perhaps, the quoted retail price is, in reality, very inflated; maybe most dealers sell them for considerably less than that.

Either way, thanks for your comments; they are, indeed, helpful.