Audio Note Meishu, Cobra, Jinro, Ongaku, Quest, Conquest, Oto, Soro, Kegon, Gaku On

Audio Note COBRA Integrated Amplifiers

EL34PP Class A

Audio Note OTO Integrated Amplifiers

EL84 Parallel Single-End

Audio Note MEISHU Integrated Amplifiers

300B Single-End

As with what we learned developing the 211 amplifiers, each element in a circuit is like each lens in a microscope, and has to be perfectly chosen and formed to correctly work with the proceeding and following lenses (or stages in the amplifier circuit). 

If the lenses in a microscope are not correctly chosen and adjusted, the image becomes blurred,  and detail and information is lost. The same is true for an amplifier circuit; if each stage is not absolutely correctly chosen and matched to work optimally with the rest of the amplifier, the result will be blurred, unfocused, uneven sound lacking in information. 

So to create a better amplifier, the natural idea was to simplify the circuit and optimise every element, so the combination works seamlessly and harmoniously together. This is exactly what we have done with the MEISHU Tonmeister.

The new PSU uses only one mains transformer, one 5U4 rectifier valve and one choke. When this arrangement is optimised, it works extremely well, producing a very homogeneous and ‘complete’ sound.

The input and driver stage is very similar to that found in the JINRO, TOMEI and ONGAKU, with a 12AU7 and 5687 driving an in-house designed and manufactured inter-stage transformer for the best energy transfer, evenness and authority. This is the most important, fundamental upgrade over the original design. 

The output transformers for the new MEISHU were designed specifically for the project by Andy Grove, and it is not an overstatement to say that they are superb.

The circuit is now a beautiful example of elegant simplification, something that could only be realised thanks to our ability to create extremely closely matched transformers in-house, and having our own supply of custom resistors, in-house made foil capacitors and custom made electrolytic capacitors. These allow us to exert extremely tight control over the performance and voicing of the complete amplifier from input to output, something that is simply beyond the possibilities of manufacturers who have to rely on 'off the shelf' components. 

The result is an amplifier that maintains the legendary Audio Note musicality, midrange magic and glorious tonal colour of the original MEISHU, whilst bringing new and previously unheard levels of information retrieval and dynamic expression, redefining what is usually expected of a 300B SET amplifier.

Audio Note P3 Tonmeister Stereo Amplifiers

300B Single-End

Audio Note JINRO Integrated Amplifiers

211 Single-End

211 SE integrated amplifier, 5687 input stage driving an in-house designed and made 1:2 copper wired driver transformer on a double HiB C-core, standard Level 3 components, Beyschlag resistors, etc., in-house designed and made copper wired double HiB C-core output transformer, 2 x NOS 5R4WGB rectifiers, HiB double C-core mains transformer.

Audio Note QUEST Monoblock Power Amplifiers

300B Single-End

Quest

Level Three, 9 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made I-E core output transformer, 2 x 300B, 2 x 6SN7, 2 x 5U4G,

Quest Low Gain

Level Three, 9 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made I-E core output transformer, 2 x 300B, 2 x 6J5 metal, 2 x 5U4G,

Quest Silver

Level Three, 9 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made IHiB double C-core output transformer, 2 x 300B, 2 x 6SN7, 2 x 5U4G,

Quest Silver Low Gain

Level Three, 9 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made IHiB double C-core output transformer, 2 x 300B, 2 x 6J5 metal, 2 x 5U4G,

Quest Silver Signature

Level Three, 9 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Audio Note™ Tantalum resistors, Cerafine & standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made SHiB double C-core output transformer, 2 x 300B, 2 x 6SN7, 2 x 5U4G,

Quest Silver Signature Low Gain

Level Three, 9 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Audio Note™ Tantalum resistors, Cerafine & standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made SHiB double C-core output transformer, 2 x 300B, 2 x 6J5 glass, 2 x 5U4G,

It is important to understand that sonically it is desirable to have as much gain available in the circuit as possible, as the wider the dynamic gain window is the better the amplifier/system handles wide dynamic signal levels (contrary to popular belief, dynamics have NOTHING to do with power, it is a function of how much each stage in a circuit’s gain window limits the dynamic peaks), having very high gain and therefore sensitivity in a power amplifier creates problems with background noise levels.

All Audio Note™ power amplifiers have heavily silver plated RCA input and speaker terminals with 4 & 8Ohm output impedance.

Despite the low power output of all out power amplifiers, their ability to drive speakers with even quite low efficiency, there is naturally a limit to how loud it is possible to play, however, even 86dB efficient loudspeakers can be used in smaller rooms.

Audio Note CONQUEST Monoblock Power Amplifiers

300B Parallel Single-End

Conquest

Level Three, 18 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made I-E core output transformer, 4 x 300B, 2 x 6SN7, 2 x 5U4G,

Conquest Low Gain

Level Three, 18 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made I-E core output transformer, 4 x 300B, 2 x 6J5 metal, 2 x 5U4G,

Conquest Silver

Level Three, 18 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made IHiB double C-core output transformer, 4 x 300B, 2 x 6SN7, 2 x 5U4G,

Conquest Silver Low Gain

Level Three, 18 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Beyschlag metal film resistors, standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made IHiB double C-core output transformer, 4 x 300B, 2 x 6J5 metal, 2 x 5U4G,

Conquest Silver Signature

Level Three, 18 watt single-ended Class A no feedback triode mono amplifiers, valve rectified choke power supply, Audio Note™ copper foil signal capacitors, Audio Note™ tantalum resistors, Cerafine & standard electrolytic capacitors, in house made SHiB double C-core output transformer, 4 x 300B, 2 x 6SN7, 2 x 5U4G,

Conquest Silver Signature Low Gain

Audio Note ANKORU II Monoblock Power Amplifiers

211 Parallel Single-End

The ANKOUR/II is a true, fully balanced design, supplied as a pair of mono amplifiers. They utilise the finest components including Audio Note (UK) tantalum resistors, a mix of Cerafine and high grade electrolytic capacitors, our own IHiB double C-core output transformers and fully balanced 1:3 input transformers for the 600 Ohm balanced XLR inputs.

The circuit is fully transformer coupled - once again using our own superb custom transformers - and each amplifier uses a 6V6GT to drive a pair of 211 output triodes in parallel single ended configuration to produce a devastating 45 watts of pure class A triode power. As one would expect, the amplifiers are valve rectified, using a pair of the highly regarded 5R4WGB valves per chassis.

The ANKORU/II has been designed to fulfil all Level Three criteria:
-Pure Class A operation
-Zero Negative Feedback
-Single Ended output stage
-Valve rectification
-Directly heated triode operation