Vista Audio Spark II Review (Amplifer)

[Billy Budapest]

When I read Steve G’s review and he says “the Spark's bass was clearer and better defined. So was everything else, the Spark is a higher resolution amp. More than that the Spark has something harder to pin down, something that had me coming back to listen long after I finished writing this review.” I have to believe that Guttenberg, Fremer and many audiophiles don’t realize how much they like distortion.

Guttenberg and Fremer have been doing reviews for decades and probably don’t realize how much their hearing has deteriorated simply due to aging.

 

[B4ICU]

You can't EQ more power, less noise and less distortion.

Noise - Filter (band pass EQ.
Poor FR. - EQ
Distortion...As good as a tube amp.

 

[ta240]

From what I've seen they use the LM3886 chip and we've seen that it can be implemented much better so do they just not care or is it about costs or are they going for the noisy result because that is preferred by some?

 

[HorizonsEdge]

don’t realize how much they like distortion.

This is the AGE of distortion!

 

[NJC]

OK...here are my thoughts. First, I have wondered how this amp would do in comparison to a Rega IO and mine, a Keces E40. The results clearly show it isn't on par. That said, I find my Keces E40 an excellent performer, just as other stated regarding the Spark II, however, I can make comparisons from experience.

I auditioned a few Fosi HD-A1s, yes a few because there was variability in each regarding SQ, the level hum and how hot the case got. All went back once I bought an Aiyima A04 amp. The Aiyima was much , much better in SQ. The Fosi, possibly the Spark II masked microdetails and other details, quite frankly the Fosi sounded dark to me. Cheapaudioman stated the Spark II reminded him of his SimaudioMoon amp if I am not mistaken, meaning it sounded brighter rather than darker.

I liked the Aiyima A04 so much that I wanted to have the Aiyima A07 which came with its' own 32v PS but I also bought a 36v for more power output. These class D amps are nice, can easily travel, just nice to have.

That said, I found out about the Keces when I was looking at class AB amps in a smaller form factor. One reviewer, Soundnews, reviewed it favorably and even ended up with a larger amp from the same company, so I was intrigued.

The US distributor doesn't allow for returns. You buy it you keep it which may turn off a few people. But I took the chance based on Soundnews and a few other written reviews. In the end, I am happy with my purchase. In comparison to the Aiyima class D amps which I like, there is a bit more detail. depth and separation. It has more bite vs the more levelness of the midrange of the class D amps. I have used Focal, Triangle and Cambridge Audio speakers, as well as others. The Triangle do nice with all but the class D and Zeta combo is really, really nice. The Keces plays well with the Zetas too.

The Focals I have prefer class AB, perhaps due to more current delivery. The Keces is stated to be able to deliver up to 15 amps while the class D amps I think have a 3 amp capability.

Regarding bass, the Keces adds a dB or two at the lowest octaves but the bass isn't loose, it's tight. It adds just the level of warmth I like. I think the frquency range is 5Hx to 100K Hz which is nice.

As to SQ, I like the Keces better, but I also like the Aiyimas. The Keces, if I were to make a comparison, sounds very much in the same vein as my Hegel h160 at low to moderate volumes. I am comparing a 40 watt vs a 160 watt amp, or a 6X price difference.

Still, the little Keces performs admirably at the volume of loudness I listen to. So taking the Spark II off the list, the only one remaining is the Rega IO which is a 30 watt amp.

As to the Keces, some advertise it as a 50 watt, some as a 40 watt. What it actually is, is closer to a 35 watt at 8 ohms. I found one test on it which can be found online.

Using useful results, it seems to have have under .02% distortion starting at under 1 watt, the THD is lower than .02% and decreases to .008 THD in the range between approx. 5 to 14 watts, jumps to .01% but still under .02% up to 33 watts...this is all under a 8 ohm load.

At 4 ohms, the results are even better. with distortion staying well under .01% up to approx 27 watts, remaining at .01% up to about 45 watts and under/at 02% up to approx 58 watts.

So, I would call it at 33/58 watts at 8/4 ohm loads (test loads) respectively. At 1% distortion, it looks like the power output is about 36 watts at 8 ohms and 63 watts at 4 ohms. The unit can be found online and sells for $599, the same price as an IO.

It comes with a MM input, a usb input, a preout and two RCA inputs. Out of looks, I prefer it to the IO but the IO is nice too. These are the onlt two class AB amps I know of in this small a form factor I can recommend looking at. The Fosi I didn't like even though I gave it four stars on Amazon...I was nice. An Emotiva is a possibility as I have heard a BasX A400z in comparison but still preferred the Keces. The BasX a400z did have nice extended and airy highs though, more so than the Keces E40 but the E40 has better tone, separation, mids and depth.

Quite frankly, it sounds like a mini Hegel. Perhaps the distributor should send a test unit in to Amir. I think, not sure a test unit was sent to Soundnews,

I have a Lavaudio DS600 hooked up to the keces. It's fine for movies, sometimes a bit of glare or to much of mids with music but it's still decent. I think I am used to AKM chips with their smoothness for music but for the price, it's a great combo. Size wise, it doesn't get any smaller than that if you want a good class AB performance.

Power to distortion graph can be found on www.hifitest.de for the Keces E40 (really, they should call it an E35) use google translate.

Any comments, thought appreciated. If you are an IO owner, I would like to hear your experience.

 

[Tks]

That's a lot of money for such poor performance. Maybe it makes you breakfast in the morning?

I just wanna know who thought this thing looks good enough to buy blind? I just cannot get over the awful font of the logo.

Ah well, maybe people enjoy the sound because they were looking for tube amp emulation, but without the tubes or without emulation software.

 

[Labjr]

Just by looking inside, I wouldn't spend $400 for it.

 

[GGroch]

.....I have to believe that Guttenberg, Fremer and many audiophiles don’t realize how much they like distortion.

None of these guys do blind tests, but neither do they do quick sighted A/B tests against a control amp of known quality. So, expectation bias becomes a huge deal. I think it may not be the front panel font but rather the brand story that swayed them. Without measurements to sway us, we may be duped as well.

 

[Koeitje]

None of these guys do blind tests, but neither do they do quick sighted A/B tests against a control amp of known quality. So, expectation bias becomes a huge deal. I think it may not be the front panel font but rather the brand story that swayed them. Without measurements to sway us, we may be duped as well.

Just looking at the place of the power connector tells me this won't be high performance.

 

[NJC]

A headless panther is the kiss of death.

 

[ta240]

I just wanna know who thought this thing looks good enough to buy blind?

But, but, but it isn't buying blind when Guttenberg and Zero Fidelity rave about it. There was a point where I was really tempted by this one.

Just by looking inside, I wouldn't spend $400 for it.

And that is what stopped me when I was about to buy one. The small size wasn't something I needed and the Akitika GT-102 looked like a much better implementation of the LM3886 and it had the plus over Neurochrome's offerings because it was a full kit.

Ah well, maybe people enjoy the sound because they were looking for tube amp emulation, but without the tubes or without emulation software.

The old Dynaco ST-70 looks like it had less power supply noise and slightly higher second harmonics so at least with it there was less of the stuff that even most tube people don't want. Some tube people actually like as clean of signal as possible beyond the 'magic' harmonics

 

[KR500]

Yikes !, I was seriously thinking about buying the Vista last year, glad I went with something else instead.
Thanks Amir for posting this.
Gee....l guess I'm glad there weren't measurements of Jimi's Marshall amp at the concert I went to in 1968.

 

[NJC]

The Akitika GT-102 looks interesting too and could be an option with a dac that has a decent pre section for a minimalist system.

 

[Labjr]

The old Dynaco ST-70 looks like it had less power supply noise and slightly higher second harmonics so at least with it there was less of the stuff that even most tube people don't want. Some tube people actually like as clean of signal as possible beyond the 'magic' harmonics

Which one do you think has more resale value?

 

[NJC]

Anyone have any other experiences with class AB amps/integrateds? What were they and how did you find them?

 

[ta240]

When I read Steve G’s review and he says “the Spark's bass was clearer and better defined. So was everything else, the Spark is a higher resolution amp. More than that the Spark has something harder to pin down, something that had me coming back to listen long after I finished writing this review.” I have to believe that Guttenberg, Fremer and many audiophiles don’t realize how much they like distortion.

I really want to hear this amp now.

It seems like the power supply noise would make it sound less detailed but they go on about how great the details are. With the comments about detail and the 'air' to the sound; is that because of the bass roll-off allowing them to hear more of the high frequencies? Since they would tend to use this amp with smaller speakers the roll-off to the amp could help by not making the speakers try to reproduce frequencies that they aren't going to want to do anyways.

Combine that with the 2nd harmonics and it explains a lot of the review comments.

 

[Koeitje]

Anyone have any other experiences with class AB amps/integrateds? What were they and how did you find them?

Had a Marantz PM-16. Perfectly fine amplifier with lots of power. But got rid of it because it was just too big. Also had an entry level NAD 300 something, also a good amplifier. Think Amir tested one a while back and it was actually pretty good and above average. There is nothing wrong with class A/B.

 

[HiFidFan]

There's not enough lipstick for a pig this ugly

Thanks for the review @amirm

 

[NJC]

It seems like the power supply noise would make it sound less detailed but they go on about how great the details are.

The comments in the videos about the 'air' to the sound; is that because of the bass rolloff allowing them to hear more of the high frequencies?

I am not sure how a manufacturer adds more of high frequencies and air, whether it is the quality of a PS, the Capacitors or something else. I wouldn't think the bass should affect that quality unless it is boomy and detracts one's attention away from other details in music.

As to my Keces E40, the highs are there but they are not pillowy or relatively more airy, which can sound nice with certain instruments. I found an Emotiva a400z having this quality but still preferred the SQ of my Keces E40 although its' highs aren't as pillowy. In the past, I had a Marantz, a Luxman 50 watt, that were very airy on top.

Another amp I tried was a SoundArtist SA-200IA which was stated to have strong bass but I can't even remember how the bass sounded because the upper mids and highs were far too prominent. I didn't think it was airy, it was blatantly bright. It had other issues as well. If they could rework its' issues, the company would have a real winner. Issues include, a relatively noisy pre section, popping noises when hitting tone button, overall SQ...but it's relatively cheap.

 

[NJC]

There's not enough lipstick for a pig this ugly

Thanks for the review @amirm

Well, it doesn't draw attention to itself for sure. It's as plain as they come.