Raven Audio Nighthawk

Haven't compared the two amps but I've done the rough equivalent by going to better caps and diodes. A lot of the difference between the amps is their bespoke Raven caps. These types of upgrades are always worth it, with a significant improvement in detail, less grain, a more liquid natural sound. With Raven your extra also gets a higher quality 4 stage (vs 2 stage) powder coat finish. Hard to see in video buy I bet in person it does look better. I'm sure this is one of those things where if you can go for it, go for it. But if not, don't sweat it.

"I find much to admire with the Raven gear. However, more than one person has commented about a hum problem they could not get rid of. Might want to talk to Dave about that before you pull the trigger."

Yes, I experienced hum from a well-used Blackhawk. It wasn't in the signal, it was transformer self-noise. I could clearly hear it from my 12 feet away listening position and it was enough to dissuade me from buying.  The amp had been returned for evaluation on this issue, without solution. I did think the amp was superb though, in terms of sound quality. Quite special. However, I won't tolerate any noise of any kind from a tube amp or preamp. It's just not necessary. I've had similar experiences with the first generation of Rogue Cronus too. I hope that was subsequently engineered out of their products. Perhaps that's now the case with Blackhawks....I hope so, they deserve success with their designs. Myself, now I live with utterly silent Van Alstine and Quad tube equipment.

tried raven with B&W 805s D3. did not like what I heard. There was a strong buzzing sound. amp got very very hot. I can't imagine using that in the summer. Had Rotel before and ended up with Hegel. Very happy. I would not recommend Raven. 

I had a hum on  different brand amplifier and it drove me nuts.  I swapped out PC's, plugged them directly into the wall, swapped speaker and RCA cables, changeds tubes and nothing corrected the hum in one speaker.  It ended up being a simple loose grounding wire.  Just saying there a lot of steps to go through before deciding if it is an actual hum issue.  

The only reason I haven’t tried the Raven is the restock fee. I could probably stomach $150 plus shipping on restock, but I cannot do $400 plus shipping, likely $500 total for me.

I also pause as I recently heard a new PrimaLuna Evo at a buddy’s house that just didn’t work to my ears. He ended up returning it after a long burn-in and with multiple speaker set-ups.

My system is comparable, and I fear if they were even vaguely similar that neither would be a good match with my gear.

I’ve been VERY interested in the Raven for a long time, but I’ll stay with a rebuilt Scott in one room and a Conrad Johnson pre with custom monoblocks in the other.