ELECTROCOMPANIET AW 800 M POWER AMPLIFIERS REVIEW

Electrocompaniet AW 800 M Power Amplifiers are big, expensive, and come from Norway. Stuart Smith takes a listen and is smitten.

Inside the Electrocompaniet AW 800 M Power Amplifier

The best I’ve ever heard either Wilson or perhaps it was Magico loudspeakers was at the National Stadium in Warsaw when powered by a pair of Electrocompaniet monoblocs. It was stunning, and I came away from that demonstration knowing in my own mind that I really wanted a pair of their amps, though given their price, that is unlikely to happen anything short of a substantial win on the Euorsquillions lottery. However, like with many things, not being able to afford a product does not stop us from admiring them and I have done just this with these amplifiers and the AW 600 NEMO amplifiers from this Norwegian manufacturer that preceded them. Of course, a show is no place to make definitive comments on a product, though you can get a very good idea of whether it’s likely to be something you would like to audition…or just sit outside your local dealers drooling through the window.

Big, purposeful and Nordic

£19,500 (EU and US prices are at the end of the review) is a chunk of money and unless you want to run this amp in stereo mode (which is an option) then you are going to be wanting two of them, though following my time with these amps I think I would settle on owning just the one to power our Audiovector R6 loudspeakers….or any other of our speakers for that matter. I think you can probably tell where this review is going from this point on.

Electrocompaniet says the following about the design of the amplifiers: “The AW 800 M encompasses the Electrocompaniet direct coupled high open loop bandwidth topology, further enhanced with high slew-rate and very high bandwidth amplifier stages. In addition, a brand-new output stage is designed that heavily shields the input and driver stages from the load and makes the output extremely stiff and unaffected by the connected load. This has the added benefit of significantly simplifying the workload of the already gently working feedback system and thus provides vanishingly low distortion figures.”

BUILD AND FEATURES OF THE ELECTROCOMPANIET AW M 800 AMPLIFIERS

The Electrocompaniet AW 800 M Power Amplifier continues the company’s aesthetic with the massive perspex front panel covering

If you love big, luxurious, and purposeful-looking audio equipment that sits there in a rather attractive but somewhat menacing kind of way then you are going to fall in love with these amplifiers. They have an air of a product that doesn’t need to shout about what it can deliver. A quiet confidence in its abilities without demanding attention. That said, they are pretty big and you are going to need a decent amount of space to home them if you buy the pair. If you buy just one of them then they are no bigger than any other muscle-bound power amplifier and pretty much any decent rack should be able to accommodate it.

The front of each amplifier has a thick clear Perspex plate over it and little else other than the Electrocompaniet “E” that glows when switched on, the company name and the model number in gold lettering, and an on/off button. It’s understated and classy, and I just love the aesthetic of these amplifiers.

The glowing E on the front of the Electrocompaniet AW 800 M Power Amplifiers

Around the back, we have XLR inputs (there are no RCA inputs) and a mode selection switch to position according to whether you want to run the amps in mono, stereo, bi-amp mode. Not having RCA inputs may irk some but I much prefer XLR interconnects and they do allow for longer runs of cable than their RCA counterparts. There are two sets of left and right stereo speaker binding posts and they are clearly labeled as to which you need to use when running in mono. You get a ground terminal to connect the amp to a ground source in your system, a mains power switch, and the power IEC. There are also 12V trigger input and outputs.

Instructions for the amplifiers are provided by a pamphlet which is very clear and well written.

Each amp weighs 55kg/122lb and measurements are 292mm (11.49”), 406 (14.98), and 488 (19.21) (HWD).

The amps are supported on Soundcare Superpikes.

Around the back of the Electrocompaniet AW 800 M Power Amplifier

INSIDE THE ELECTROCOMPANIET AW 800 M AMPS

For those that are interested in this kind of thing, in each amplifier there are two 800VA toroidal transformers that are both electrostatically and magnetically shielded and the amps have built-in DC and high-frequency mains filtering. Power supplies for each channel are wholly independent as are the power supplies for the input and output stages of the amplifier. There is a total of 210 000uF of power supply filtering and we are told that “hyper-fast, soft recovery rectifier diodes are used throughout”.

The amplifier circuits in each amplifier are fully discrete and run with Class-A input circuitry and no capacitors are used in the signal path. JFET and bipolar transistors, low noise metal film resistors, and film capacitors are used throughout – there are no less than 32 15A, 60 MHz bipolar output transistors used!

In stereo mode, the amplifier delivers 300W/ch into 8 ohms, 600 into 4, and 1000 into 2 ohms. If that wasn’t enough, when used in mono mode output into 8 ohms is 800W, 1500W into 4, and 2200W into 2 ohms.

Those that are into specs and whatnot will be tingling with excitement having read the above, I’m sure. Before they arrived I too had a look at the specs online and my excitement at their imminent arrival grew.

Whether running stereo or mono, the ancillary kit never changed and I used Audiovector R6 Aretté speakers, with a Music First Baby Reference V2 phono preamplifier (review soon come), a hugely modified Lampizator BIG 7 DAC, and a Stack Audio streamer. Everything other than the amplifiers went through a Torus power unit and the streaming system was through an Ansuz switch (review soon come), Cables were by Tellurium Q, Atlas, Cardas, and Way Cables on this occasion.

Just look at it!

The first thing I noticed when plugging in these amplifiers was the bass control they had over the Audiovector R6 loudspeakers. The TotalDAC Amp 1 that serves as our reference is certainly no slouch in this aspect of its performance, but the Electrocompaniet amps bring another level of control and depth to everything I listened to using them. And, for the record, the AW 800 amps are certainly a terrific match for these speakers. I’ve said it a fair bit in reviews (and perhaps folk get the wrong impression with regards to myself and bass) but the bass performance of the system underpins everything that goes on top of it and lays the foundation on which the music and our perception of the music we listen to is built…that’s my thoughts anyway. The bass with the Electrocompaniet amp/s is addictively powerful and tight; listening to Gui Boratto and his fantastic Abaporu was as good as I’ve heard it at home, or anywhere else for that matter. That bass control allied with the R6’s isobaric loading really was a thing to behold. Drums and bass are the rhythm section of a track and it’s these that get your ass out on the dancefloor, the elements of a track that our bodies relate to, and the Electrocompaniets in this system and with this type of music do engage your body in a very real and primeval way. Now here is where there may be some confusion with my relationship to bass in a system – yes I like big, powerful, and controlled bass for all the reasons I’ve touched on above, but a system that is bass-heavy is just that and sounds unbalanced and uninvolving. If bass is the foundation of a track, the mids are the structure of the building, and the tops are the embellishments that make everything so appealing visually/aurally… a bit of a crap analogy, but you get my drift. With these amplifiers there is nothing that is overly exaggerated and, like a piece of well-structured architecture, everything from top to bottom and including the trimmings comes correct. Small details in the makeup of tracks on Abaporu are presented (as I would see) correctly and without being over-pushed in the mix and they appear in the stage where I would expect them. This is another thing that struck me about the amps in this system; our resident amp has a wonderful presentation with regards to soundstaging, but it’s almost as if the system has been at some kind of enhancement powder that brings everything into crystalline detail before you…and it’s all underpinned by that bass. Look, whatever sounds were played on this record (yes I’m still only on about the first album that I bothered to take notes on) they sounded “better” than our resident amp – and so they should given the price difference. I know there will be people reading this that will say that they can achieve a similar or better sound with less outlay – (adopts wry smile and says) “Well isn’t that lovely. Carry on.” I don’t have this kind of money, but if I did, on the basis of what I have played through them so far, they seem to be worth every single penny powering the Audiovector R6….apart from the speaker binding posts, they wouldn’t accept the Atlas spades I was using!

Dynamically speaking these amps are incredible; it’s as if they react to every part of the signal they are fed immediately and without hesitation. The bass drum kicks on the track and the amps react instantaneously and tell the speakers what to do. The snare hits and it’s instant. Dynamics are important to the way we enjoy music and the way a piece kit reacts can make or break a system – these amps make this system and I’d be very happy to pitch this system (with these amps) against pretty much anything out there, dynamically speaking. This comes across perfectly on the Groove Culture (fantastic label) “All About The Culture” track by Micky More & Andy Tee on 12” 45. I know this track inside out and have played it pretty much every day we’ve been at home since it arrived. The dancefloor comes to your home only with a level of refinement that only a high-end system can bring to the party when the Electrocompaniets are in the system. I defy anyone to listen to this track on this system and not want to move! Detail is pulled from the record by the excellent front end of Hana Umami and Technics 1200G with a Nasotec Swingheadshell and the amps get this to the speakers. Likewise, the groove is brought to life when listening to the excellent Funkadelic Reworked By Detroiters remix record. Look, both of these records sound wonderful on the system with our reference amp in place, but, as I have said before in this review, these amps add something else by way of power and control.

Switching to an American first-press of Rumours by Fleetwood Mac, that power and control is still evident; the walking basslines and the way they interact with the drums is all there, but so are subtle details like the tap on a cymbal that is on pretty much the whole of Dreams. Again, I think this is as good as I have heard this record sound anywhere, and again, it’s a record I play a lot. Power and subtlety are, I suppose, what I’m banging on about here. It’s almost as if the amps aren’t having to try to get across the full experience of every little nuance of the record and everything feels natural and unforced on every track and makes the whole experience an absolute joy. My late dad used to like cars and whilst he never owned really esoteric cars, he did have a Merc or two and a Daimler Double Six way back in the late 70s and I’m reminded of something he always said about such cars – “You don’t use the power they have very often, but it’s good to know it’s there should you ever need it.” And this sums up these amplifiers very well; they are a bit like that Double Six – big, heavy, quite luxurious, and fabulous to cruise around in, but hit the motorway, put your right foot down and you can leave much of what went before you in your review mirror. And it’s time to put the Chain on again!

There’ll be a reason that these amplifiers are so dynamic

And then I want some more techno and reach for Regent “Cory, Embedded, Simulation, and Efficient” on ARTS (045). This is hard techno that may well sound a mush to some, but these amps and these speakers partnered together to bring out a wonderful sense of the stereo image and details that may well be missed on other lesser systems. This is a glorious experience and a demonstration of why I love this kind of techno so much. There is power in the kick and the bass, and then there is finesse in the details that draw you in and let you lose yourself in the music. Again I’m hearing small details that I knew were there but are now more evident. Look, it’s not lifting veils or any of that reviewer-babble, it’s just better than I’m used to…and I’m used to very good!

Look, I can waffle on forever and a day and pull endless records of the real and virtual shelves but the long and short of it is that there is so much to love about these amplifiers when partnered with these speakers that I don’t think I need to go on. The R6 aren’t a difficult speaker to drive and you can do so with modest amps, but these amps take them to a level I have not had the pleasure to encounter before. Whether it’s Songbird off the Rumours album or something from Dusty Kid, these amps bring the best out of the speakers and the music. I’ll leave it there!

Playing the same tracks with just the one amplifier in the system isn’t all that much different from having two if I’m honest, though there are small differences in overall control and dynamics – most won’t notice or care and will enjoy their music either way! Would I prefer the pair, yep, I would because I want to eek that last ounce of performance out of a system and I want to connect with my music on an emotional level; and a higher fidelity (read better), however small, allows for this connection to be better made. Our brains and bodies react better to better products, or mine does, otherwise I’d spend my money on other things and not chase the ultimate aural high, though your mileage may well vary!

QUIBBLES

Speaker posts would not accept my Atlas cables with spades, though I’m told they will accept less thick spades. I want to be able to attach any speaker cables a want, please, particularly at this price.

The control for the illuminated E on the front of the amps is underneath the amp and all but inaccessible.

Another look round the back of the amp

I can’t afford to allow these to stay with us, but I am so pleased to have had the opportunity to experience them at home.

CONCLUSION

The truth is that I was very excited about these amplifiers arriving for review and my expectations for them was very high. From a review perspective, this is a double-edged sword – will my objectivity be swayed by my excitement or will I be harsher on them because I am expecting too much? As always, I have tried to review these amplifiers as I would any other product that arrives for review and I hope that my enthusiasm for the brand and my previous encounters with their amplifiers have not allowed me to be swayed.

First of all, let me say again that one of these amplifiers will suffice for the vast majority of people. They have the power and control to satisfy even the most demanding of music lovers and deliver the music to your speakers with authority and control across the frequency spectrum  – nothing is lacking in this respect. Adding an extra amplifier and running in mono is better and with even more of a feeling of the amplifiers being fully in command of proceedings, but only you can decide whether that increase in performance is worth the extra £19 500. Personally, if I had the money I’d have both, but, equally, I’d be cock-a-hoop with just the one sat betwixt my loudspeakers. For those with the financial ability, by all means buy four and go double mono – and if I had just shy of 80K to spunk on amps, I’d likely go down this route myself.

I’ve thought about this and then I’ve rethought about it again and I have absolutely nothing I can say about these amplifiers that is negative other than I can’t get the speaker posts to accept spades and the dimmer for the light on the front of the amps is way underneath and all but inaccessible. I love the looks, I love their sonic performance…and they don’t even have or need a remote control that I can whine about!

These are the best solid-state amplifiers that I have experienced in our reference system… bar none!

AT A GLANCE

Build Quality:

Look great and very Electrocompaniet

Binding posts wouldn’t accept my Atlas cable’s spades

Sound Quality:

Power allied with subtlety

Tremendously detailed throughout. It’s a cliché but I really did hear details that I’d not been as aware of previously

Dynamic as a dynamic thing that has just been on an extensive dynamics training course

Totally detailed at every level and every frequency but without any harshness or a feeling things are being forced or over-emphasised

They really  connected me with the music I listened to on both an emotional and a physical level

Value For Money:

That’s for you to decide. I can’t afford them but if I could I’d have them in a heartbeat!

We Loved:

There’s not much I don’t love about the styling or the sound of these amps. They really did tick every one of my boxes, bar a couple of quibbles as outlined

We Didn’t Love So Much:

I have to send them forward to whoever it is that is lucky enough to be getting these next and the speaker binding posts are a bit pants

The LED dimmer doodad is underneath and you need small fingers to get to it…so I didn’t bother

Elevator Pitch Review: Form Norway Electrocompaniet will be well known to many. These amps are big, heavy and purposeful-looking and when you turn them on they carry this on through their sound. They are hugely dynamic and fast, but with that they also bring subtlety and nuance when a recording has it. They are equally happy banging out floor shaking techno as they are female vocals and whilst they are expensive they are not as expensive as some that I don’t think have the same high quality sound. There’s a couple of things I’d want done better, with my main quibble being that the binding posts wouldn’t accept my chosen Atlas spade-terminated cables. If you have the dosh, audition now!

Price:

EU is 21.800 €

UK is 19.500 £

US is 22.500 $

SPECIFICATIONS PROVIDED BY ELECTROCOMPANIET

Input impedance: 330 kΩ

Frequency resp. (in. filter active):0.5 – 220 kHz

Frequency resp. (in. filter dis.): 0.5 – 1.1 MHz

Voltage gain (mono, bal. input):  35 dB (x56)

Voltage gain (stereo, bal. input):  29 dB (x28)

Input-referred noise (20-20kHz):  < 2 μV

SNR (ref. 1W/8Ω load, 20-20 kHz):  95 dB

SNR (ref. full power out, 20-20 kHz): 122 dB

Slew-rate (input filter disabled): 270 V/μs

DC output voltage: < 5 mV

THD+N: 0.0006 %

IMD: 0.001 %

Damping factor (8Ω load): > 1000

Power consumption standby: < 0.5W

Protection: DC, overload, temperature

RATED OUTPUT POWER STEREO:

8Ω load: 2 x 300 W

4Ω load: 2 x 600 W

2Ω load: 2 x 1000 W

RATED OUTPUT POWER MONO:

8Ω load: 800 W

4Ω load: 1500 W

2Ω load: 2200 W

WEIGHT & DIMENSIONS:

Weight:  55 kg – 122 lbs

Width:   406 mm – 15.98 inches

Depth:   488 mm – 19.21 inches

Height:  292 mm – 11.49 inches

*Features and specifications are subject to change without further notice.

STUART SMITH

SUPPLIED BY ELECTROCOMPANIET