Greg - So glad you shared your story. I too have tried to find sweeter midrange production with these Gallo 3.1's. Tried parasound and the latest W4S class D amplification, with W4S DAC-2 and Live Dirac calibration. Clarity, detail and imaging was always good but I remained convinced there was something better that would retain speedy bass performance, air and improve midrange with tube glow and texture.
Enter the Raven Audio Blackhawk. This was always meant as a match for the DI's, but holy cow, what this integrated does for these 88db Ref 3.1's is amazing! Talk about speed, sparkle and texture. Details emerge without the sterile qualities many amps impart. After insisting that my wife listen, she suggested pulling up some Fergie, Beyonce pop tunes from tidal. Reluctantly I started listening only to find beautifully textured voices from these stubborn midrange speakers. Jazz instruments seem more acurate tonally and rock music still has plenty of punch. This may be one of the best integrateds for multi-genre music listening. I am thinking Pass XA30.8 or
AricAudio SET KT-88 territory but with a preamplifier. To cut this short, my listening experiences paralled those found in the reviews.
A couple of nit picks - driving 25-35Hz on the Live Dirac test tones revealed limitations. This equated to the absence of club/rock concert bass room pressurization ambiance, so step up to the higher power Raven integrateds or 250+wpc ss if you want earthquake bass. Captain of the obvious.
The remote has nice weight and feel but the button press feed back could be better.
We all know Dave Thomson of Raven provides excellent customer support, but that fact should be a side note to the wonderful music his amps make. The amp was packed well with extra tubes for rolling with labeling and an extra battery for the remote.
I am going to trust your experience Greg and move forward with the sale of the Gallos, as good as they are sounding now. I could be ordering the DI's with upgrades as soon as Monday.
Brody
