Posted by manualblock [ 24.191.167.32 ] on September 28, 2004 at 09:50:06:
Pheew! This is a lot of work this reviewing gig. First of all there are now three very well written and thorough reviews on the books. Akilesh's specific, detailed and carefully crafted analysis. Wayne's nicely worded enjoyably descriptive set piece, and Phil's complete and thorough description and comparison between different amplifiers. I would suggest to anyone amp shopping to first read these reviews of the Stoetkit.
What qualifies me to review this amp? Nothing really, I just love music and listen to many different systems. Also I have assembled 6 kits of varying complexity as of now so I think I have a handle on kit building and what is required. Not that you must buy the kit version, the price of the fully completed amp is still very reasonable; but if I may suggest that you consider the kit. It basically consists of a nicely constructed PC board clearly marked. You would have to stuff the board; soldering parts into marked and annotated spots. Mount the hardware, ie. switches, jacks and the IEC cord, transformers with color coded wire and plug in the tubes. The manual is complete with pictorial diagrams of every step and is easily read. Anyone with simple soldering skills and a rudimentary knowledge of electronic components can accomplish this assembly in a weekend of careful attention to detail on the kitchen table.
I liked the design, it has a low profile that lends itself to shelf mounting. The unit is smaller than you would assume from the pics and I was able to slide it into a 6" high bookshelf until only the front face was exposed. This helps with integrating the amp into your existing decor', and consequently with wifely acceptance issues.
I settled the Steotkit into my existing system in the dedicated listening room. There are no PC's, TV's, or any other V's in the room, just stereo and couch and bookcase. My current amplifier is a Push-Pull EL-84 Kit amp that uses very good transformers and also is designed around a PC board so the Stoetkit just slid right in to that spot. This little baby puts out a hefty 10 watts, believe me that ten watts will drive almost anything without noticeable distortion. I tried them on the Polk 25i's and they certainly can fill a room with sound.
Here is the ancillary components used throughout the review;
AES AE-3 Pre-amp; A 6sn7 tubed line stage
Linn Sondek LP-12 Turntable with Ittok tonearm and Empire MC Gold Cartridge.
Seduction Phono stage with all the mods
Rotel 991 CD player stock
And for speakers I used:
Pi Theater 4 two way, 15" woofer and horn loaded tweeter(Which I will state now categorically that the Steokit and Pi 4's are a match made in heaven.)
And for contrast I pulled out my Polk RT 25i's
I had considered using some of the well known audiophile source selections as the music for the review, but then I said; NAAH!
I decided to put on music I just felt like hearing. So some of these selections are probably verboten in audio land. I won't bore you all with minute and detailed descriptions of all the tiny revelations on each disc, I'll just say what I heard and how I felt with some of the choices.
Friday night it was quiet so I sat down to do some listening, with a notebook no less. Here are some of the notes;
I put on the TT an old record that I have listened to continuosly for 35 yrs. on a regular basis; Tumbleweed Connection, by Elton John.
Thats the mood I was in so I put on the cut; My Fathers Gun. If you are not familiar with it, it is a nice ballad that starts low and builds to a solid climactic refrain. It's the story of a boy who buries his dad, accepts his gun and goes off to fight in the civil war. The Stoetkit gave this old warhorse a nice melodic glow, the piano sounded full and deep. One thing I did notice during the chorus there is a female backup group; one of whom is Dusty Springfield, and old favorite of mine. Her voice rang clear and sharp in harmony with Elton, something I had always found to be muted on many systems. This side makes use of a full orchestra on some of the cuts. The Stoetkit does a good job of seperating out the instruments and keeping the integrity of each distinct sound, even in complicated passages. Nice interlude, relaxing and involving.
I tried another old favorite on the TT, Pharoah Sanders, The Creator Has A Master Plan. This is a real emotional, spiritual record. You need to be in the mood, but if you are in the mood then nothing else will do. In my notes I wrote, "The kalimba in the opening bars of Hum-Allah is so real it startles." This section, the voice of Leon Thomas harmonizes with Pharoahs sax so perfectly it is hard to distinguish them, the Kalimba breaks that up and transitions to the main chorus. Real sweet. The notes are crisp, with nice sharp attack and good delineation. Lonnie Liston Smith's piano; he plays the strings with his hands, what a nice waterfall effect. Sorry, the music is taking hold. I spent some time following Cecil McBee's bass lines. The Stoetkit has nice control of the deepest fundamentals. There is alwyas tone to the bass, it doesn't slide into one-note; low resolution drone like many amps will with fundamentals. The deepest notes are tuneful and well resolved. And this 10 watt amp can re-produce those bottom tones with the best of them.
Frank asked for comparison's. While I listened again on Sunday and sporadically throughout the week; all in all I spent about 25 hrs with the Stoetkit. I hate comparisons. Why? Because I believe all components are subject to the symbiosis between all other components. Does the Stoetkit sound as good;better; or worse than my amp? I don't know. I do know it sounds spectaccular on Friday night with the Pi 4's. I know on Sunday I listened to CD exclusively. It did a great job on Nanci Wilsons new album. So much so that my wife commented on how nice the music sounded as we sipped our coffee and stared out the porch window.
Here's my summation in a nutshell. If you are looking for a real sweet, spacious, clear and detailed sounding amp that works well with many different components. If you would like to try your hand at assembling a kit, you cannot go wrong with this one. If you would like to build a system around a good hum-free tube integrated that won't break the bank, is very easy to use, well; here you go. It is my considered opinion that you would need quite a bit more cash to better this trim little powerhouse.
I would like to thank Frank for making this program possible, J.R.
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