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Review of Dartzeel NHB-108 Amplifier

Dartzeel is a relatively new entry to the high-end game. Despite being reviewed by John Marks in a recent issue of Stereophile, the company's only current product offering, the NHB-108 stereo amplifier, hasn't gotten a lot of press on these shores. Hopefully this "review" will do its part in rectifying that.
As many of you probably already know, Switzerland-based Dartzeel is the brainchild of one Herve Deletraz. Herve is a wonderful guy who's dedicated to the very best customer service. As essentially a one-man operation, I'm sure his time is limited, but he's always responded to my e-mails in an extremely courteous, timely manner.

On to the amp. I'm not one for technical details, so I'll leave them to those of you who want to visit Dartzeel's website. Basically, the 108 is a "purist" stereo amp rated at a relatively modest 100 wpc. Its smallish dimensions belie its weight, which measures around 65-70 pounds.

Internally, the amp is incredibly well laid out (if tightly packed), with an attention to detail that one should expect--but doesn't always receive--from components in this price range.

Outside, it's purely love-hate. (Refer to the website for pictures). Either you get it or you don't. Personally, I've grown used to its appearance over time, but it's taken a while to become acclimated. If WAF factor is any sort of issue, practice up on your compliments. Then again, I may be overstating the case. While it's not Liv Tyler, it's not Janet Reno, either. Time reveals its inner beauty.

Performance-wise it's a much more straightforward issue. In my experience the 108 is the most balanced, natural-sounding amp I've ever heard. It has a way with timbre that's downright spooky--up there with the very best tube units one cares to mention. The sound is just "right"--every note is reproduced with a tonal correctness and warmth that is as close to the real thing as I've heard in an amp. Because of it's sheer naturalness, it can take a while to overcome the initial impression that it is somehow soft or rolled off. That is most emphatically not the case! Dynamics are crisp and fast, and the frequency extremes are right where they need to be--not overstated or highlighted at all, just perfectly natural and realistic.

The only potential weakness of the 108 is its power rating. It flows a nice amount of juice for 100 watts, but one could theoretically run into problems with particuarly current-hungry or inefficient speakers. Part of the amp's midrange purity, I believe, is attributable to the use of the bare minimum of bipolars in the output stage. That, of course, comes at the price of power, but in this case the tradeoff is more than worth it. Just take some care in speaker matching--as you should, anyway--and you'll be rewarded with a sound that balances the very best of solid state with a midrange that will make some question whether they even need to fuss with tubes.

Despite its novel physical appearance, the need for careful speaker matching, and the fact that the US dollar has been taking a Tyson-like beating lately, the Dartzeel is a serious contender in the super-amp category. Yes, there are amps out there that do this or that "better" than the 108, but I've yet to hear one that strikes a better balance between the various areas of performance. It's a stunning piece of engineering and a landmark amplifier.

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Product Weakness: Appearance is strictly take-it-or-leave-it. Power rating requires some attention to speaker load. Cost.
Product Strengths: Naturalness, midrange magic of the highest order, speed, dynamics

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Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier: Dartzeel NHB-108
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): EMM Labs DCC2
Sources (CDP/Turntable): EMM Labs CDSD
Speakers: Von Schweikert VR-4 Jr.
Cables/Interconnects: Jena Labs Pathfinder
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Rock, blues, country, some classical
Room Size (LxWxH): 24 x 20 x 7
Room Comments/Treatments: Echo Buster, ASC
Time Period/Length of Audition: 3 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): Shunyata Hydra-8
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner
hooper
jafox
1,454 posts
 
Oh no, the man wants two Dove bars. And you should have asked about the ice cream sooner as I was just at the Ben & Jerry's factory last week. All I can do now is promise you the goods if and when you ever make a visit to Minneapolis.

What I really was after was what your feelings were when you ultimately made the decision to pass on the Tenors for the big D. Recently I went way way beyond my financial means with a pair of CAT JL-3 signature amps. After hearing the JL-2 vs a pair of Atmasphere MA1 amps, both products were so very impressive. And yet, neither was what I would call the "best". They both did music incredibly well. It was just that they each had some strengths the other did not. What I wanted was an amp that did what both of them did. There was a tradeoff between an awesome warmth (MA1s) and a more neutral presentation (JL-2). And then there was that smoothness (MA1) vs. the resolution, dynamic contrasts and attack of the JL-2. Man oh man, I wanted it all. And the MA1s were brand new with new tubes. I can only imagine what more they would have done in a few more weeks. And with me being a warmth/bloom fanatic for years and years, the CAT's dynamics was something I could not get out of my mind. But neither amp was the absolute winner. It simply came down to which set of strengths won me over the most. But I could be so very happy with either for a long long time provided I did not run into compatibility issues with a future speaker change.

So it was a comparison along these lines that I was hoping to get from you. You had an opportunity like very few of us ever get to compare two such highly praised amplifiers.

And JTinn, I was not directing any anxieties your way. I simply thought the dealer identification idea was a good one. I have talked to you a few times over the phone and each time you have been very polite and professional.

John
sean
6,231 posts
 
Jtinn: I have publicly described how a product will sound and / or respond based on electrical measurements that i've seen. On more than one occassion, folks that have owned or used these products have confirmed those comments at the time of posting. Others have come to agree with them after familiarizing themselves with the product over a longer period of time. There is no magic involved, it is strictly a matter of applying science and logical deductions to the specifications gathered through standard testing procedures. This is also why i've repeatedly stated that specifications can tell us what a product sounds like, IF the spec's were accurately obtained and there are enough of them to formulate a theory on.

Other than that, i've only ever chastised you about your lack of disclosure about your being in the retail audio business and promoting some specific industry affiliated products. Nothing more, nothing less. Most of this took place several years ago when you first got in the business, but failed to publicly acknowledge that your avocation had changed. If you see it as anything more than that, you are delusional.

I couldn't care less about who you are or what you sell. I only want those that read posts submitted by those working within the industry to know that the opinions expressed within those posts may have specific motives for saying what they do. From there, an intelligent consumer can sort things out for themselves. If a person, regardless of their affiliations, consistently submits quality material that is both helpful and non-manufacturer specific to these or other forums, nothing that i could say or do could impugn their reputation amongst the intelligent group of consumers that frequent such forums. Sean
>
rgcards
39 posts
 
Jtinn,
You are right , you do comment on a lot of different products, and are generally ver fair. I apologize.
hooper OP
396 posts
 
Jafox:

Just like Marlan Brando in "The Godfather," I grant you this information now, but one day I might call on you for a favor. Don't worry; it'll be small--a pint of Guiness if I ever make it to the Minneapolis area. :)

The original intent was to pair the Tenor 300s with my Kharma Midi-Exquisites. That pairing didn't turn out very well; I got swayed by all the hype and bought the Kharmas sight unseen. Big mistake. The Kharmas were absolutely lifeless and undynamic. The 300W of the Tenors did something to jumpstart them, but not nearly what I expected. At the time, I thought the problem was the amp--and the Tenors had been acting up (blown tubes, bad balanced output, etc.)--so I got a pair of DartZeels in for audition. When I hooked them up to the Midis, the result was much the same as with the Tenors: some dynamics, but largely lifeless.

It was then that I suspected that the problem was not the amp, but the speaker. To confirm this, I pulled out my Von Schweikert VR-4 HSEs, which were doing duty in a two-channel home theatre system. BAM! With either amp, the speaker literally exploded to life. I saw the Kharma sweating in the corner; it knew its days were numbered. Now that I had a suitable speaker to judge the amps with, I was on my way. Over several days of comparing, I came to a few general conclusions: (a) The DarTZeel was every bit the match dynamically for the Tenors, despite a 200W disadvantage. And I thougt those dynamics flowed effortlessly. (b) The DarTZeel had a smoother, more natural presentation, without glossing over any low-level detail. (c) Speaking of detail, the DarTZeel clearly revealed more information, doing it absolutely effortlessly. The transparency of this thing is amazing. (d) Reliability. Here's where the DarT pulls away. The NHB-108 is handbuilt to ridiculously high standards. (That said, one amp had a loose fuse rolling around inside--a refugee from the construction process--but seeing that it wasn't doing any harm, I left it in rather than ship the whole amp back to Switzerland.)

The Tenor isn't shabbily constructed either--it's actually rather beautiful--but the DarTZeel is built like it could withstand a direct hit from a Scud missle. To say that it's built like a fine Swiss watch would be an understatement. The attention to detail throughout is staggering.

I hope this answers most, if not all, of your questions. BTW, those JL-3s of yours are sweet amps. I heard them in New York a couple of years ago. Definitely worth a little fiduciary recklessness!
jafox
1,454 posts
 
Hooper: Wow, now that was what I was looking for! The details on your system changes, and their sonic results, put everything so well into perspective. Thank you much.

Oh yes, I love the JL-3s. I have read the highest praise on the CAT amps for many years but could not get a chance to hear them. When an audio dealer in Chicago, Brian of EssentialAudio, posted here that he had some experience with the CAT, and would give further details to people that would contact him, I just had to write him. He offered to let me visit and not only hear the CAT, but also the Atmaspheres which he liked very much and with Soundlab U1s. How could I resist such an offer.

Brian has one heck of an audio system and the sound was like few other systems I have heard; the capabilities of the CAT and Atma amps could easily be heard. But unlike your case, here it was a case of "pick the amp with the strengths you like the most". Neither product walked away with the checkered flag in an absolute sense.

I had 2 weeks to get my funds in order before I was to make the final choice. I also wanted to hear other speakers, mainly the Avalons, that I felt would be a good fit for me based on what I have read here. But I was 90% sure I would go for a new pair of Maple Soundlab A1s and the demo model JL-2 that I heard. I had just enough money to get this combination. But I wanted mono amps so much and yet the JL-2 just won me over with the dynamic contrasts and attack at the start of each note. It was a new experience for me to hear this. My older Wolcotts and Magnepan 3.5s were musical, but not even close to this level.

During this time, I was in contact with a man selling a pair of JL-3 Sig amps and he of course was prasing these as well. And just when my money was available, he emailed me again letting me know he still had the JL-3s if I still had not made my decision; he would wrap them up and ship them to me for Christmas! I politely replied that his amps were out of my price range and let him know what I would be willing to pay for my ultimate amp upgrade. Of course this would also tear into the speakers (A1s or Eidolons or anything else) fund. But if an ultimate amp deal came along, I'd be willing to forego a speaker upgrade for the short term. It was the amp upgrade that I had been seeking in the first place.....and the desire to finally hear the CAT which got the ball rolling.

A couple days later I got an email that the JL-3s were mine, at my max amp price if I truly wanted them. He came way down and I had no option but to go for this. Wow, that rarely happens! And no Dove bars as part of the transaction. I was a happy camper. But I was also a pennyless camper.

That was the end of the new Maple A1s I had wanted so much, and even the possibility of a good deal on used Avalon Eidolons. But I did manage to find an older pair of A1s at a steal of a deal because the seller wanted to scale back from owning these huge behemoths. He too sweetened the deal as he wanted so much to let them go and was having no luck to sell them. And he had put much money into them a year before with many updates from the factory.

Today I have sound like I never could have dreamed of. Surely the newer generations of Soundlabs have several refinements and when the time comes, I will get back with Brian and go for these, but for now, I am very content with how this all worked out.

Of course I have a little curiosity on the sound of the DarTZeel vs. the CATs, but I will not go down this path at this time. There are other links that now need attention.

Thanks again for your detailed updates.

John
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