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I borrowed a Torii mk iii (vcap upgrade and volume attenuator) this weekend placed on a wall mounted symposium ultra shelf. Fed it signals thru a 25k analog rig and top shelf Dac and tubed cd player with my reference vinyl and cds and high rez downloads using reference cabling (cardas golden reference, harmonic tech, tara labs zero etc). Speakers (Esoteric MG20) have nominal impedance of 6 ohms dipping to 3.7 with 89 efficiency rating. I found Torii to sound best with 8 ohm selected (facing rear of unit) since it seemed to open everything up (more kick and taller/wider/deeper) with treble dial at 1pm and bass dial at 10am. Treble dial proved super useful esp changing from recording/format. I ran Torii alone and via my VAC Ren mkiii preamp.
This is a giant killer and amazingly combines best attributes and features into one component. I think I will be buying one. For the price it is insane.
It is very very very special. Very musical. Gives sweet, pleasant energy. Shockingly dynamic with lower register heft. Midband and just above is probably best i have heard ....I heard details didnt know were there (eg, exactly how soft and where an instrument or stroke or note is played). Front to back spatial imaging is sublime. Certain sweet notes hung in space.
Compared to my 19k VAC amp, the Torii mk iii had more weight and heft and sounded more musical on certain pieces. VAC had better articulation, transparency/air, speed. Faster starts and stops especially with lower registers. VAC had more seamless left to right soundstage and made speakers dissapear better. VAC lacked heft of Torii and was tilted to upper registers but had better grip of 50-70hz. VAC sounded a little dry and analytical compared to Torii which was smoother and more organic. Torii was quieter than VAC. No tube rush or hum whatsoever. Only had one area where I wish Decware performed better in my system -- the lower registers could sound a bit "one-note" undefined and flabby/wooly/loose. This was consistent across most formats/songs. Not sure because I was hearing so much heft and was trying to make sense of it, but bass sounded a bit loose and smeared compared to my (more lean) VAC. I played with impedance and bass control but couldn't crack the code. Maybe tube swapping would impact this. I'd give up some of the heft (and consequential "thickness") for tighter more articulate bass. When I switched from Zu Mother power cable into dedicated outlet TO Audience powerchord "e" to Audience Adept 12 conditioner, that added punchier dynamics.
So many times the past 24 hours I was thinking if I knew about the Torii mk iii before buying the VAC I might have bought the Decware instead. A 19k 150 wpc tube amp versus a 3k 25 wpc amp. Amazing. Many thanks to Jeff Dorgay and TONEAudio for highlighting this amp. I'm thinking TONEAudio is rocking it with products covered and what they choose to bring to readers' attention. Nice!
Addendum - ran Herron VTPH-2 phono preamp straight into the Torii mk III and that took some of the thickness/looseness away.
2nd Addendum - I return the Torii III to its owner tomorrow. When I was playing tennis last night with a fellow Audiophile I was bragging about the Decware Torii Mk III. He swung by today with a fellow Audiophile friend. We did A/B testing across a number of LPs and CDs with the Torii Mk III competing against the VAC 300.1a. They shared the same impressions. Amazement at the musical flow, low end extension, ease of listening, etc of the Torii. VAC had better iron grip of the speakers, smoother grain free vocals/more detailed high frequency, and more set in stone imaging (mixed reviews on whether it was too specific in imaging). When I asked if they had to choose between the two the quote was "That's a tough one. The Torii is more musical so probably that one." Both agreed that the price performance value of the Decware was staggering. Again, two great amps, but calling it out that the Torii Mk III competes easily (and musically) way outside its price class. I'm almost thinking it would be good to have both -- two very different amps.
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