Van Alstine?

I must back up ,I changed my order to the Synergy 450
225 wpc into 8 ohms ,and roughly 450 into 4 ohms stable to 2ohms.
I will go on record that this will be very hard to beat even at $5k
Which it would be if working with dealers inside parts quality is first rate.
The plastic type connectors on back possibly could be improved
But the contacts are Brass then Gold plated at $2k a true hiend bargain
The preamps are also Vety good. Digital I think would rather use others
Such as the Schiit Gungnir.i owned several $4-5k dacs I love this $850 hiend bargain. Could not resist build quality excellent too !! value- no dealers.

AVA amps have been OK, have owned Omega SS amp and EC pre, then Fet Valve Hybrid 350 and Fet Valve EC pre-amp, both circa 2000, still use these in home theater system. In his owner's literature, VA always insisted his team could hear no difference between his included Chinese tubes and others, but I replaced all four, both amps, with matched Sovteks from Audio Perfection in Richfield, MN, and heard a 25% improvement right away in clarity and depth. Living a few miles from Burnsville, MN, I had been out to his house 5-6 times from '93-2000 to buy and listen in his basement assembly and demo room, and yes, he always voiced disdain for the audio salons and their expensive, over-marketed lines and that they would do anything to save a nickel. He was at that time very centered on his products as incomparable for the price, even though options brought the totals up quickly.

Of late, I am glad AVA gave up the lamp-quality power cords. I had IECs installed on my fet valve amps a long time ago, posted photos of the mod on the AVA forum on AC and garnered many derisive comments from his followers, and I don't need to mention his ridicule of any cable costing more than $10, if that.

AVA prices have jumped considerably as AVA has rolled out new models and so many upgrades, the most fervent followers cannot get off the audio nervosa merry-go-round. The upgrade fatigue has been apparent on the threads. Seems he has brought a design team on board to move closer to wherever he wants things to be. For his costs now, one also do well with a pair of used tube amps from ARC, another MN company that was on his list of over-priced salon pieces. I have not heard his recent offerings, though, to be fair, but I do notice the same plastic nuts on the binding posts--in my experience, these do crack.

There are many happy customers there, no doubt, and the service and personal attention is a big draw. You could do a lot worse, as well.

Had I first noticed its age, I would not have commented on this thread, revived by one AVA fan, Audioman58. I wholly endorse your choice of AVA and am sure you will enjoy your AVA amps. Mine still work well for me after fourteen years.

I can say without hesitation. This new Synergy450 which I have had for a week now. Sounds Excellent under any guide lines.i have been in this hobby for well over 30 years this amplifier even at $5,000 would be a solid investment. Since Frank hired a ree thinking very good electrical engineer
These new amplifiers with 12 Regulated power supplies truly allow the amplifiers to be at their best .i have 225wpc into 8 ohms and 450 into 4 ohms it sounds excellent. These Wavetouch audio loudspeakers are great
Withthis amplifier.the amp give it 100 hours ,even though they say not needed,it does,also a good aftermarket power cord also a Nice improvement.

Hi folks,

In 2005 I purchased an AVA Omegastar dac after having read a review that resulted in a TAS golden ear award... I had been curious about the brand anyway, the price was right and it actually sounded fantastic.
I was looking for a simple improvement for a cd player in a second system and it was so good that I used it in my main system for a few months. Engaging, big, effortless, grain-less... sound you could listen to for hours. Slightly lacking in dynamic slam and wanting more resolution I decided to send it up to Steve at Empirical Audio. He was such a salesman he convinced me that his "mods" would give me an increase in everything I wanted without losing the great scale/sound-staging and wonderful musicality. When I got it back it had a little more resolution but all the humanity was gone. After a week or so of letting it "break-in" there was no change and he refused to give me my money back. I sent it back to AVA to have it put back stock... Frank was very gracious, laughed at the mods and didn't charge me much. I purchased a Benchmark dac in the meantime which overall was not as holographic or tonally right but was a tag more smooth and focused as I recall. I since sold both units along with many other things but would not hesitate to try another AVA product. That was a while back but just wanted to share the very positive experience I had dealing with AVA and being a bit blown away at the humanity that the AVA brought to my system at the time.