Are valve amplifiers and vintage inspired speakers the ultimate combination? A study and review of Audio Notes Cobra integrated amplifier and Audio Note AN-K loudspeakers. Matt from our Cardiff shop takes a deeper look into the Audio Note brand and talks about his passion for all things valve.

Being a guitarist, I have always loved the sound of a valve amplifier. They have a certain tonality and warmth to them. Different combinations of valves (or tubes) offer different tones which we can identify with different brands of amplifier as well as different tone circuits in each brand giving us that “Holy Grail” of tone that myself and other guitarists continually chase.

Over the years I have come to be able to distinguish the difference between classic guitar amplifiers. An example of this is the Marshall Bluesbreaker, which immediately makes me think of Eric Clapton and John Mayall as this was the amplifier used in the recording of the album, “Blues Breakers”. Another unmistakable classic is the Vox AC30. The band that comes straight to mind is The Beatles. Both John Lennon and George Harrison used the iconic AC30 on many occasions whilst recording.

Guitar amplifiers are not the only ones to incorporate valve technology. The world of Hi-Fi has had its fair share of valve amplifiers from the very beginning. Valve technology goes back further in time before the modern days of solid state and digital amplification were ever a thought. I'm talking war time Britain when our only entertainment was radio, and yes you guessed it they had valve power sections in some models, they even had a valve rectified section if you look back to the original His Master’s Voice (HMV) radios and other brands like Bush. Most of the radios from this time period were valve based. In fact, once upon a time, Britain had one of the biggest valve production factories in the world, the Mullard Vacuum tube factory based in Hammersmith, London. Even though Mullard stopped manufacturing in 1982, their valves are still highly sought after today, with many enthusiasts hunting them out to use in their recording equipment, guitar amplifiers and even Hi-Fi systems.

Whilst many Hi-Fi manufacturers moved to solid state technology during the 70s and 80s, some continued to champion the alluring glow of the valve. One such contemporary Hi-Fi brand utilising valves in their equipment is Audio Note, who have made some groundbreaking amplifiers, speakers, DACs, phono stages and CD players. The Audio note CD 3.1 uses a pair of ECC88 dual triode valves on the output stage, so valves are not just about amplification.

A Little History behind Audio Note…

Peter Qvortup founded the company back in 1989. His love of music and relentless pursuit of perfect tone brought him to building and perfecting his first production all valve integrated amplifier in 1991, the OTO PP. As an amplifier the OTO has certainly stood the test of time as it is still in production today. You can read a more in depth look at the current OTO amplifier in our Bristol stores blog. Peter’s vision with turntables, CD players, amplification and loudspeakers is to listen to music as it should be heard, perfectly balanced with every nuance and detail we want to hear. Perfect synergy between the equipment, from the source to the speakers is the end goal.

Reading Store Manager, Gareth, in Peter’s home listening room.

Peter has an incredible collection of music and a very eclectic taste, ranging from Classical to Drum & Bass and everything in between so that he can put his equipment through its paces.

Also, one other little known fact, which I think is rather awesome, is that he has hand selected and stockpiled the valves he uses… His secret? Whilst many manufacturers were moving to solid state technology, Peter was travelling the world and purchasing valves, but not just from musical sources… Under lock and key in the Horsham factory, You’ll find a large selection of small brown boxes, stamped with “Property of the US Government”, all of which contain valves (Or tubes as our American brethren will say)!

Many years down the line from the birth of Audio Note, Peter has come up with yet another great all valve beauty; The Cobra…

Has the Cobra got any bite?

The audio note cobra - a classic sound for a modern age

This little giant of a valve amplifier puts out a hefty 28 watts per channel, thanks to a quad set of Electro Harmonix EL34 power valves operating in class A (for the guitarists out there we all know Electro Harmonix as a quality valve brand). 28 watts may not sound much but in the language of valve that is pretty powerful. In the preamp section it’s running 2 x 6AU6 and 2 x 5670 Electro Harmonix preamp tubes.

This amplifier is capable of running a wide range of speakers not just Audio Note (although it is highly recommend that their is an obvious synergy between a pair of Audio Note speakers will have with an Audio Note amp). We have also tried this amp out on one of my favourite loudspeakers the Spendor D7.2s, let’s just say this was a great match.

The Cobra is equipped with three analogue stereo inputs and it also boasts a rather good DAC, which has a Philips TDA1543 D/A chip. The DAC can connect to source components via optical input up to 24Bit native or digital coax. You can even connect your computer or tablet via USB!

audio note cobra rear panel inc. dac inputs

The Audio Note AN-K - New speakers with an old soul

The AN-K is classed as a compact bookshelf designed speaker, but I would say a good mid sized stand mounted speaker, which are also a great speaker to look at. In the Cardiff store we currently have them on demonstration in Poplar Burl, these speakers certainly pack a punch in a good way. The design of these speakers is inspired by classic Snell closed cabinet design speakers. The AN-K is a relatively easy speaker to drive so this does make these speakers a great pairing with any lower powered valve amplifier. The cabinet construction feels very solid. The birch ply construction can be seen at the rear of the speaker next to the binding posts. They are available in several different veneers. These speakers are 6ohm, which is a very happy medium, with a sensitivity of 90 db. The specially designed simple cross over incorporates air-cored chokes and hand selected capacitors, going from polypropylene up to river foil depending on the model of speaker. They have a specially designed 3/4 inch soft dome tweeter, and the bass driver is a specially designed by Audio Note 8 inch paper cone with copper voice coils, very much a classic combination in speaker design.

audio note ank speaker rear panel terminals

Setup

Linn Majik LP 12
Nytech CDP 122 phonostage set to moving magnet
Audio Note CD 2.1 CD player
Audio Note Cobra amplifier
Audio Note AN-K loudspeaker pair on Audio Note AN-K speaker stands

Interconnects and speaker cables:

Audio Note Silver Coax cable
Chord company Shawline RCA interconnects
Audio Note Silver speaker cables

Artists tracks and albums used in the audition:

Vinyl

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Greatest Hits 1993 - “Mary Jane’s last dance”

Def Leppard - Hysteria 1987 - “Hysteria”

CD

Red Dragon Cartel - Patina 2018 - “Ghosts”

The Listening

Before I sit down and settle into this listening session as we know speaker placement is key especially with the AN-K’s most speakers need to be brought out from the wall to get the best out of them. In this case with the Audio Note speakers due to their classic closed cabinet design they need to be closer to the wall to work with the room bringing them closer to the wall controls the bass and the speakers become more alive then, everything comes together.

Now I have the speakers placed and the valve amp is nice and warm I can drop the needle and start the listening process.

Starting with the Tom Petty track Mary Jane’s Last Dance, from the start the combination of Linn and Audio Note had me engaged straight away. I can hear the Hammond organ used on this track clearer than I have ever heard it before and the bridge pickup tone on Tom Petty’s Gretsch sounds bright but tone full. I feel this is down to the nature of the EL34 power valves and the tonal character they have making guitars sound more real and alive to me.

Next up, Def Leppard - Hysteria. This track had me locked in from the start as it is incredibly well recorded and this particular pressing is rather good. Right from the start I was mesmerised by everything going on, from the chorus effect on the guitars, Rick Allen’s drums sound tight and not loose at all and Phil Collen’s guitar solo cuts through effortlessly. As I said before the valve amp making guitars sound more alive. I also feel the speakers are a perfect match for this amplifier, perfect system synergy going back to Peter’s vision of how music should sound. I’d say he has achieved perfection with the Cobra and AN-K combination.

Last but not least, Red Dragon Cartel. If you don’t know these guys you may have heard of the guitarist in the band, Jake E Lee, formerly with Ozzy Osbourne. Many years ago, he wrote the guitar parts to such tracks as Bark At The Moon, in my opinion one of the best riffs in existence. Now, many years later Jake came out of retirement to form Red Dragon Cartel. Enough of the band history let’s talk about how this sounds…

In this instance I’m using the Audio Note CD 2.1 CD player using digital coax into the Cobra’s DAC. Right from the off the bass riff on this track hit me in a good way powerful yet well controlled. Drums tight and precise, then Jake’s opening riff kicks in and I can almost hear the pick strike as he plays behind the bridge on his late 60s Gibson ES 335 TD, this is a very unusual but a really cool effect. Then the rest of the track comes together getting ahead nodding and feet tapping which is what we all want from a listening experience to get lost in the music. In short the Cobra’s DAC works really well with the all valve nature of the Cobra amplifier, detailed and warm.

Conclusion

I feel that Audio Note have certainly brought a few surprises to my ears. Things I have not heard before in the music I have been listening to today. This whole listening session today has kept me firmly glued to my seat from hearing what the Cobra can do and the tonal characteristics of the valves right through to how efficient the AN-K speakers are bringing every detail to my ears. Considering this is the tip of the iceberg for Audio Note what a great place to start.

When we talk about system synergy and every component of a Hi-Fi system working well together. We all want the listen experience to be seamless and effortless, just plug in and play and enjoy the music and not analyse everything that’s going on just to sit back and enjoy an album in its entirety. Peter has got this experience down to a T again, just listen to the music.

Why not pop in and have a listen to this fantastic system for yourself and tell me what you think. Even explore more of Audio Note’s range we can organise demonstrations with any of their fantastic equipment. You can contact us to organise a demonstration on Tel 02920 228565 or Email us at cardiff@audio-t.co.uk we’d love to hear from you.

Thank you for reading

Matt, Nick and Kerrin - Audio T Cardiff

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