SS Amp to replace VAC 300.1 in a side-ways move?

Well, my friend and I auditioned the VAC 300 Phi stereo amp in his system. (He was looking to see how it compared to his hybrid Lamm M2.2 (220 wpc) monoblock amps. (The Lamm M2.2 amps have been the best fit with his Rockport Antares speakers that he has been able to find. The Rockport’s are a true full range speaker and need a lot of power. The Lamm's have a touch of tubes in the treble and mid-range, combined with a deep and tight bass response.) I will be completely honest and state that up until the VAC 300, I had never heard an amp that could compare to the Lamm M2.2, and that includes direct comparisons to:
The DarTZeel NHB 108,
The VTL MB 450,
The BAT 150,
The Kora Cosmos,
The Classe 401,
And a couple of others,

I can not state that one is better than the other, but both units have different strengths and weaknesses, (albeit their weaknesses are really just of the nitpicking type!). Both amps soundstage and image incredibly well, and as good or better than any amp I have ever heard. Neither adds any grain to the music at all. These are literally the two best amps I have ever heard.

(Note: Due to some of the music my friend and I like to listen to, (rock, and large symphonic pieces), we both have somewhat inefficient speakers, in order to get rock solid bass response, so neither of us have ever gotten into the SET type of amps.)

With that said, here are the differences between the two:

The mid-range and treble of the VAC unit was very lush, and wonderful to listen to. Listening to vocals on the VAC was a real treat due to the lushness of the mid-range. It is tough to actually say the VAC's mid-range was better than the Lamm, as the Lamm seemed a bit more neutral, but I will say that the VAC's mid-range was intoxicating nonetheless. (Six of one, half a dozen of the other!). However, the treble response was remarkably well extended and airy, and actually was slightly better than the Lamm. (Which was surprising, as I had never heard an amp better the Lamm before in the treble response.) However, the VAC's bass response was not quite as deep and tight as the Lamm's was. (It could be that this was due to the difference between the amps as the VAC is a stereo amp and the Lamm is a monoblock design, and the limited power supply of the VAC stereo unit may have come into play. That is my guess anyway.) In addition, on percussive instruments, it seemed that the VAC was slightly slower than the Lamm in presenting that initial attack. (Such as on drums, and even on piano key strokes.) It was not a lot, but it was definitely there. This is what kept both my friend from switching to the VAC, and what led to his friend ultimately selling the VAC.
(However, my friend seriously thought about buying the VAC just to listen to vocal music, it was that intoxicating. However it was just too expensive at the time to seriously contemplate.)

There was one other minor difference. The VAC ran really hot, raising the temperature in the room several degrees. The Lamm's ran really warm, so the room only raised the temperature a few degrees. (The Lamm does not get hot enough that you can not put you hand on the unit, but it is very warm to the touch.) This was another influencing reason my friend did not switch to the VAC, as his room is not air-conditioned.

So there you have my take on the similarities and differences between the two units. As I stated quite clearly, both of these amps are the best of the best, and you will have a tough time equaling the performance when, (and if), you decide to switch.

Good Luck!

I owned the phi 300.1 and the Luxman M800a. The Luxman has a very similar tonal balance as the VAC with better macrodynamics. The VAC is slightly smoother a triode mode.

Both these amps are much better in mono config. and i was surprised because I have 93db speakers.

additional note on the darTZeel. if listeners have not heard a darTZeel NHB-102 with the new upgraded circuit boards (based in the new darTZeel 500 watt monoblocks to be introduced at CES) they have not heard what it can do. it's quite an upgrade to an already wonderful amp.

over the last few years i've compared the darTZeel NHB-108 to all the amps mentioned in this thread (except the VAC 300.1) and while i prefered the dart there were trade-offs in many cases. with the new circuit those trade-offs are eliminated or greatly reduced.

no amp is perfect; but the upgraded darTZeel NHB-102 is worth investigating for those listners who had previously formed opinions about it.

My opinion will differ based on my past experience. Went from Canary CA339 tube monoblock amps - 300B push/pull amps with premium tubes throughout. NOS RCA's purchased from Andy at Vintage Tube Services and Sophia Electric Princess Mech Plate 300B tubes. Also had several other top notch tube amps. I am a huge tube fan and never thought I would change long term.

One SS amp changed that. TRL Samson monoblock amps. I have a review here on the Gon. Only $5500 brand new direct from Paul. They bettered my past tube amps in many areas.

I pair them with a great tube preamp and feel I not only gave nothing up, but actually gained.

The McIntosh MC402 and top of the line Electrocompaniet amps are also wonderful and will leave you wanting nothing.

The TRL amp however is the best of the group.

Tube amps are so wonderful, but you CAN find SS amps today that will leave you 100% SATISFIED and not missing a tube amp.

The key is careful system matching including the wire. I'm afraid just changing the amp alone may not get you there. I worked at dialing in the sound with my preamp and wire. For me, a dynamic tube preamp with warm and full bodied wire finished the quest.

I no longer need to deal with tube heat, hassle, biasing, when to replace, cost etc. I can leave my TRL amps on 24/7 with no worries and little cost. They are always cool to the touch and 100% hassle free and always warmed up and ready to go!

The only VAC amps I have owned are the Musicbloc 70's. The Canary 339's greatly outclassed them in my system. I have not heard your amp however.

I suppose a small % of us simply cannot give up a tube amp and I respect that. Just sharing my experience.

Well, as long as Mike made an additional note to his comment, I will do the same! :-)

I should state that my friend replaced the single stock Sovtek 6922 tube in each Lamm amp with a NOS 6922 Amperex U.S. pinched waist PQ white label. These tubes took the Lamms up a notch from a high level contender to the champs that they are now. (So if you get the Lamms, be ready to upgrade the stock tubes.)

I should also state that his system is pretty incredible, and uses very high level of components, to a similar, (but different), caliber as Mike Lavigne's system, (which is pretty damn impressive Mike! Man, I love that room!)

And, since Mike brought it up, the DarTZeel NHB 108 that we compared the Lamm to was indeed the older version, so it probably does not compare to the current version. Therefore, take what I said with a grain of salt. (Although I will state that IMHO the DarTZeel NHB 108, (a 100 wpc stereo amp), does not have the power reserves to handle the bass response of a power hungry speaker like the Rockport Antares.) And I believe that Mike's speakers, (the Evolution Acoustics MM3, right?) are actually partially active speakers, (powered by an internal 1000W amp for the bass response), so his use of the DarTZeel amp is limited to the mid-range and the treble. I will also state that the DarTZeel's mid-range was the equal of the Lamm M2.2s, (which was surprising for a true solid state amp), but I preferred the treble of the M2.2. (Again though, that was comparing the older version.)