Avondale Audio Reviews 93

I have received the SE400 monobloc amplifiers from Avondale Audio, a revelation in audio nirvana. I previously had the SE230 amplifier and that is a stunning sounding piece of equipment, the SE400's take detail, imaging and bass control to the next level. I'm bowled over by the sound they produce, thanks' Les for your expertise in producing such wonderful products.

I purchased the ASR2 Shunt regulator to up-date my TPR4 in my Avondale Hi-Cap Last week. It arrived really quick.
Now it is fitted, the NAP250/NAC72/hi-cap is well and truly singing. I can't recommend this relatively cheap upgrade enough.
Yet again, im a happy camper, and equilibrium has been restored. Before making other changes to the chain, try this, and you will hear a difference (for the better) immediately.
On top of that, the personal communications are superb. Cant fault Avondale!

I installed a pair of NCC300 in my aging Naim 135 last week and can’t stop marvelling at the transformation this has made, Tighter, deeper bass, more open sound and cleaner detail across the spectrum. A definite upgrade which would have cost many times more by replacing, Great informative service and reassurance to make the change, from an expert. Many thanks.

The type who answered the Phone was Curt. Not giving my money to this Middle Class type

I have a Naim NAC 252 which is 20 years old and needed a service, having done some research and approaching a few different companies, I opted for Avondale Audio as it was clear Les was going to do much more than just replacing components like for like, he was going to apply a number of upgrades to take the performance up a number of levels.

Once the unit was returned I could hear straightaway that there are improvements in many areas. The standout improvements include:

CD's that sounded harsh previously are much easier on the ear now, I originally put this down to the quality of the CD production, but it seems the preamp was to blame so this has got me listening to all my old 'problem' CD's again. Les explained to me a that one of the changes he made to the NAC 252 was the reduction in the gain stages as these Naim Pre amps are known to have very sensitive volume controls.

The presentation of the more subtle sonic elements of the music are much better defined, and what I would describe as a delicate airiness to the music which I like and I'm also hearing new sounds buried in the background that were not there before, so overall the presentation is much more revealing than it used to be.

So all in all I am very pleased with the service and the cost of the service & upgrade represented excellent value for money.

Responsive and flawless after-sales service coupled to fantastic products. What more could anybody want?

Avondale stuff has never faild to exceed all my expectations.

I bought a custom-made set of monoblocs with SE230 boards powered by C-transformers and a Grad 1 preamp with ASR-Z shunt power supply from Avondale. I am a very happy chap with this equipment, which replaced a Naim 552/250 combo. The system is paired with a set of Totem Hawk speakers and uses Naim CDX2 and SMSL Sanskrit Dac/Macbook as sources. I am missing absolutely nothing and are very pleased with the results. The craftmanship is excellent. Looking forward to the announced Magnetrac TT arm. Highly recommended.

I have owned Les' products for over 25 years now. I recently decided to upgrade to the new RMS SE230 mono amplifiers, 821 Preamp with AR boards and the new ASX power supply. You couldn't knock the smile off my face with a cricket bat, I am that happy. Thank you Les and Gavin.

New ASX Power supply. The power supply is absolutely fantastic and transforms the system yet again. I thought the change to SE200 boards was dramatic, and it was; the ASX takes everything to yet another level. I feel like I now have the best system I have ever heard. At a macro level it seems like you are listening to direct master tape versions of everything, the whole performance and feel of every track has immediate impact and the music is presented in a way that I haven't heard before. At a micro level you can really hear the way the performers are playing their instruments and the feel that they have, where there is real technical brilliance you hear it and can discern who really were the best. As usual the service from Les and the team was excellent.

The APX2 has been powering my 82 for two weeks now and replaced a snaps2 which was serviced and dragon newt regulated by witchhat 2 years ago. My source is an nd5 xs2 and my amp is an unmodified 160. The APX2 has made a big improvement. Every sound is more detailed, cleaner and clearer, more realistic and warmer. Drums are tighter and resonate more. The vocals are more natural and smoother. The brittleness and harshness I was so accustomed to ( I used to think that the volume was simply to loud ) has gone. But what really got me is the new dynamic and powerful undercurrent of bass my Sbl's have found! I was happy with the bass before and it was by no means lean! But this is different, like there's a hidden sub! And this is in an airtight but timber framed, rockwoolled and plasterboarded room with solid hardwood flooring. Makes for a much more dramatic listening experience. Really impressed and pleased with this upgrade and will definitely be purchasing more products in the future, especially the crossovers.
Les and Gavin are clearly audio sorcerers!

Purchased 4 x SE230 amplifier boards to replace 4 x NCC-300 boards in my monobloc power amplifier cases. After 3 weeks or so from fitting these amps, the sound quality from my system has been transformed - never sounded so good! Everything has improved - top end smoother with no harshness, imaging no longer two-dimensional, improved midrange clarity, vocals and ease of listening, I've not experienced with other amplifiers. I highly recommend these amplifiers. Thanks again Les and Gavin!!

I recently bought an ASR2 Regulator board for my Naim HiCap from Les & Gavin. I had some issues removing the original board but they were very helpful with advice on how best to proceed.

Once fitted, the ASR2 has transformed the sound of my Naim 32.5/HiCap/250, giving extra focus, clarity and tight control from high to low frequencies - and seemingly an extra octave of bass!

I had read that it was a worthwhile upgrade but wasn't prepared for just how much of an improvement it would make. I'm no expert with a soldering iron but fitting it was very straightforward. Would definitely recommend.

I finally finished installing my Avondale elements 2 months ago, and everything is working perfectly. The system is now running smoothly and listening is great: it's not demonstrative (so much the better), there's an energy and a breath that I love. Just "Made for Music" as Heybrook used to say in his heyday. Several friends came to listen and no one was impressed, as they listened they fell under the spell, I think that's where you recognise a good system!

On the technical side, I kept the connections to a minimum, both in the power supplies (230 AC and DC supply) and in the audio circuit, where I used as few connectors as possible. For example, I don't have any mains sockets, the wires are connected using Wago plugs on the cables that come directly from the house electrical circuit breaker (3 separate power supplies: Digital, Amplification, Analogue).
It's completely voluntary not to have systematically grouped cables like Naim does for its equipment, I think it's not always a good thing, manufacturers do it to save wiring time and reduce assembly errors. The fields induced in cables can be "harmful ».

I built a power supply for my Naim preamp with a TPR4 module, and an amp with 2 HCR 200 modules, 2 NCC 220 QUDOS modules.

Keep up the good work.

Just to state from the off set I have been involved with "Naim" on both sides of the counter for many years, So after upgrading to a Townshend Audio Allegri passive Pre Amplifier and having not given much thought to adding a Power Amplifier, Just by chance a good friend had available after going Active a Naim Audio power Amplifier with Avondale conversions known as a Zap250. So thinking I must at least take a listen removing any preconceptions I may have had and forgetting I may be racing with the devil and not ignoring the fact that there are many very happy Avondale customers out in the field. So plugging in the Zap250 and with next to no warm up time I realised this was the Amplifier for me. The ease it places on the music in a relaxing ,realistic way (not laid back) is just breathtaking. Also the ultra low noise floor and blackness between instruments and vocals is so very believable in its presentation along with it's great timing and pace which is very important. After living with the Zap250 for a few weeks and enjoying every listening session often late into the night it was suggested to me to further upgrade to the latest / current SE230 modules along with the SSMS soft start module. so it seemed logical to continue my love affair with AA. Having packed and shipped the Amplifier back to their HQ in Hebden Bridge it was returned in under 5 days along with photographic evidence of the work completed which was a lovely touch.I can only say with the new additions in the form of the new modules it's just so much more of the same a real music machine no more no less !! and for any Avondale owners without the latest SE230 / SSMS modules it's a no-brainer I guess there should be some technical back up in this write up but as Avondale themselves say - whatever measurements read you should not ignore what you're actually hearing. This fully blown Avondale Amplifier is now a permanent keeper in my system - Thank you AA.

ASR2 is an unbelievable upgrade. Better and cheaper than the DR and totally DIY if you want👍

I bought an external crossover for my SBL loudspeakers and had my NAP250 power amplifier upgraded. These two modifications transformed the sound from my Naim 52/250 system. I used to have an active olive system with SNAXO/Supercap/second 250 and loads of speaker wire everywhere. I loved the sound but sold it because it was taking up too much room. I can honestly say my single 250 system now sounds at least as good -- it also takes up much less room and won't be so expensive to service. I'm very glad I made the leap of faith.

I have bought several products from Avondale Audio over the last couple of years and will definitely being buying more. As well as designing and producing electronics of the highest quality, their communication has always been friendly and patient. What has prompted me to finally post a review? While all of my Avondale purchases have been deeply satisfying, my most recent purchase (the ASR) is quite extraordinary. Thanks Avondale :-) I'll be back...

Having dealt with Les on a few occasion over the last few years I was looking forward to my visit to Avondales new premises nr Hebden Bridge .
What a truly idyllic setting it is this coupled with the warm welcome I received from both Les and Gavin made for a very enjoyable visit . The purpose of my visit was to upgrade my S100 with the new SE 230 boards . Having installed NCC 220 boards a couple of years ago I was more than happy with the result and made a decision it was definitely my endgame amplifier . That is until I started reading about the new boards and “ upgradeitus “ got the better of me . Without doubt it is the best decision I have made in over 40 years of box swapping and upgrading various components .
Having let the boards settle for a few days I can only report the sound from my system is truly superb and streets ahead of anything I have previously experienced. The sound from NCC 220s was excellent but these new boards have taken my listening experience to a whole new level . Everything is just more musical with the slam, bass and overall dynamics way beyond my expectations . Vocals are more realistic with low level detail unsurpassed . Make no mistake I believe these boards will compete with the very best I can only dream what the SE 400 s sound like .
Another real winner Les , for me without doubt your best yet , good luck and best wishes for the future .

Les sent me a new minicamp 6, ive just completed building a nap110 amp with this in, sounds way better than it did, fast delivery and one hell of a product.

This was only one of many modules i have had from les
and they all live up to expectations

Keep up the good work Les

I have known Les for many years and I have been a very happy customer, professional and always out to help with advice.I have lived with Les’s mono amps for many years now and enjoyed the musical pleasure they have given me, clear natural crisp involving sound ,amazing deep soundstage with pace and drive .
Les puts a lot of effort into his work with a passion on circuit board design with clinical perfection and the outcome is amazing sound quality.
I am looking forward to upgrading.
See you soon. Nigel