VAC Phi 200 tube amps in monoblock form.

I am drooling.. I own a VAC Standard preamp I was able to afford used and love it.
So good luck with your new amps..
WOW..

 

My used VAC Standard came to me with four RCA clear tops.Two 12AX7 and the pair of cathode followers 12AU7.
I have owned it for about 30 months. Nearly the entire time I have left it on 24/7.
I have not tried any other tubes.. (I and sort of nervous about tube rolling)
But I know I need to buy some spare tubes for my VAC.
I have a pile of cheap used 12AU7 RCA clear tops I aquired off eBay. For the 12AX7 I just today bought some cryo'ed tubes. a pair of matched TungSol, and a pair of matched Electro Harmonix.
I plan on buying a few more pairs, so I can try about four sorts.. and then buy enough of the one which floats my boat the best. .. to last for awhile. (18 years should do it.. if they last three years per... 6 pairs... to have on hand.)
Clearly I have found my system for life...
(I am going to have to see if it is true the quality of the 12AU7 cathod followers does not matter.??)

I was looking for a tube pre, mostly searching for a Conrad Johnson, and ran into the VAC Standard for a good price on Audiogon. I looked it up and decided yeah, this could be good. The seller had ust sent it to VAC for repairs and an upgrade, but it took too long and the owner became impatient, and he bought another preamp he decided he liked. He was the person who installed the RCA tubes. So the pre was sent by him to VAC for the repair, and an upgrade on the caps, and remote added.
So I got a great VAC Standard for $1,400. which was amazing.

 

No, not at all.
My system:
Magnepan 3.6 speakers via dual Kimber 8TC
Bryston 4B-SST2 with Pangea AC9 from Furman REF201 conditioner
Bryston BP-26 to Kimber 7 meter Hero to amp
VAC Standard pre used as 'fancy' tube buffer for all digital
Adcom DA700 stuffed with antistatic foam and pangea PC from PS Audio P600 output 110Hz A/C power
Bryston BP 1.5 phono used from Rega P5 with Benz Glider
Audio Research Sp-15 used for phono section, from Kuzma Stabi/Stogi S with Dynavector 17D3
Various five disc changers to Adcom DAC.
Sony SCD777ES (which is only a little better than my DAC and changers)
Rudistor RPX33mk2 with Sennheiser HD800 phones.

All the stuff A/C from Furman REF20i except all digital to PS Audio P600 set to output 110hz (instead of 60hz) A/C
All IEC cords are Pangea brand.
many of my RCA interconnects are home made from 1980's mark Levinson wire with Tiffany RCA.

I am VERY fussy about the top end, and the upper frequencies matter more than anything else for my musical pleasure. I would not be happy with anything but the absolute best upper frequency response..
Just to mention.
So no complaints from me about the RCA tubes in the VAC. They seem to have just the right balance to hide the digital crud from my relatively cheap digital front end.. and still allow the clarity I enoy.

 

Hi Steve,

Kevin is also my audio hero. I have a Phi 200 that I'm completely in love with (don't currently have room for a second one). I was feeding it from a VAC Standard LE for over a year and it sounded great. A few weeks ago, Kevin sent me my new Signature MKIIa with MC phono. It only has about 15 hours on it and I can't leave the house! Every LP I put on is now listenable, and my best recording (many with you at the helm) are absolutely breathtaking! In 32 years of being an audiophile I've never been happier... it sounds gorgeous!

I rolled Gold Lion KT88s into the Phi 200, but after a few weeks went back to Kevin's hand selected tubes. I would encourage you to live with the Phi 200s for a few months before rolling tubes to really hear what these amazing amps can do. I look forward to hearing your impressions as the Phi 200s break in!

 

Beautiful twins Steve!

 

That's some good news!

PS. I hope I am not misquoting this time.

 

Nice looking amps - a clean layout in a classic style. Looks like there are holes for inserting meter probes and a hole for a small screwdriver to adjust the bias, a bit like my Lamms. I hope you have a decent Fluke or similar around to check the bias. Have you tried that?

 

Oh, that's too easy. Lights - we don't have no lights on the Lamms. Had to get a Fluke, but I love it and love setting the bias.

 

that is a very nice feature. thoughtful and fun too.

 

Steve, congratulations on not hurting yourself with these monsters. Positioning my 90lbs Phi 200 in my rack was quite a project for one person!

I was told to adjust bias monthly, however it doesn't seem to need it... this amp is steady as a rock. It could be because I have it plugged in to my Purepower 1050 AC Regenerator, which puts out perfect, unwavering 120V all the time and has so much headroom that it has never impinged on the Phi 200's dynamics and speed. AC regeneration was one of the most obvious sonic improvement to my entire system. Even my wife noticed how much clearer and organic music sounds.

Enjoy your new toys. I added the VAC Signature MKIIa recently and now I can't seem to tear myself away from my listening room!

 

The VAC units are a little over my budget but if he ever sells any output transformers surplus again I intend to buy a pair to build something. Those who bought the last ones he sold were very pleased. He also did a very superior job on the Marantz reissue sets. (I told this to some people in Binghamton.....) I have the reissue 7C he did and am very pleased. There is nothing bad I can say about this box whatever and for me that's unheard of.

 

I love the integrated amp he made, which was discontinued. (I wouldn't mind having one for a second system, just based on looks alone- it's gorgeous!).
He's a good guy, I've spoken with him a few times- unfortunately, when I needed a new line stage, getting one of his to try in my system proved impossible. I gather his gear is in great demand and you typically wait for new pieces to be built.