MANLEY PRODUCTS @ HYPERAUDIO

[hypertriode]

1. STINGRAY integrated amplifier

"CATCH OF THE DAY"
THE STINGRAY - STEREO INTEGRATED
FRESH FROM MANLEY LABS
It all began at the HI-FI '97 show, at the bar of course, where things like this seem to happen. J. Gordon Holt was with his traditional martini, and EveAnna Manley with her stimulant of choice, a cup of coffee. She was describing a new, integrated amplifier she wanted to build and sketched one of those legendary "bar napkin drawings". Gordon remarked, "It looks like a stingray!" (the fish, not the car.) And so, in honor of J. Gordon Holt, we call this catch of the day: "The Stingray". No stinger, but it sure does pack a punch!

EveAnna arrived at this distinguished chassis design after careful research of optimal component placement for the purity and symmetry of the signal path layout. She also set out to reclaim the rich midrange and silky top end of our vintage designs and combine it with a driving low frequency register which had not previously been achieved with MANLEY's smaller amplifiers.

The key to realizing this all-encompassing, driving spirit would be found in a new output transformer design which "Hutch" Hutchison and Michael Hunter set upon with great vigor. Armed with our extensive technical library and in-house transformer winding facilities, they returned to more traditional thinking with the clever twists coming along at the end. Measuring, listening, testing and tuning led to a decision to replace our venerable 15 year old input stage with an innovative and fresh contribution from Paul Fargo. The door to "true Soul" was unlocked and burst open wide.

Separate left and right silver-contact select switches (for the four stereo line inputs) deliver your music into the premium Noble® balance and volume controls before hitting the first 12AT7WA input tubes. The advantages of a passive preamp driving an extremely short and low capacitance cable are well known: near-absolute transparency, no added noise, and extreme signal path simplicity.

Following the mighty 6414 driver/phase splitter, the trusty EL84 output stage can be factory strapped for either 25 watts of TRIODE or 50 watts of Ultra Linear mode push-pull operation. (UL Mode is the Standard Configuration.) Individual bias for each tube is easily adjusted using the trimpots and test points, conveniently located on the top surface of the amplifier. The Stingray's power supply is extra-rugged and stiff, a MANLEY hallmark. It swims with the sharks: fast, agile, fluid, and with consummate authority.

With the Stingray, the MANLEY team has struck a remarkably harmonious balance in design which satisfies the sonic desires of the audiophile and the rocker, the artist and the musician, the student and the master, the yin and the yang. We invite you to experience the stunning sonic quality and visual beauty of the Stingray personally. Contact us for your nearest authorized MANLEY dealer.

Features And Specifications

4 x Stereo Line RCA Inputs
Passive Noble Volume and Balance Controls
All-Vacuum Tube Lo-feedback Design
8 x EL84: Output Ships with Ei 6BQ5 or Russian EL84M
2 x 6414 Driver Ships with GE or RAYTHEON JAN NOS USA or 6414W
2 x 12AT7WA Input Ships with: Ei 12AT7 large plate
Output Power: 50 Watts X 2ch. (1.5% THD @ 1kHz)
Frequency Response: -1dB: 15 Hz - 40 kHz
Gain: 37 dB at max Volume
Input Sensitivity: 185 mV in = 50 watts out
S/N Ratio: typically 87 dB A WGT 20Hz-20KHz
Input Impedance: 50 Kohm nominal
Load Impedance: Optimized for 5 ohms
Actual Output Impedance at 20Hz: 2.8 ohms, at 100Hz: 2.6 ohms, at 1KHz: 2 ohms
Power Consumption: 200W (idle); 370W (full power)
Dimensions: W= 19", D=14", H= 5 1/2"
Shipping Weight: 30 lbs.

2. Manley Shrimp Preamplifier
Fresh for 2002, we present to you our new entry-level tube preamplifier,
The Manley Shrimp.

Features:
Very short, simple minimalist signal path. All-tube design. 2 x 12AT7 + 2 x 7044
Generous energy storage via large power supply capacitors.
No global feedback. [Some local feedback]
Non-inverting two-tube gain stage is direct-coupled.
Cool white-follower output.
Filament supply floated 80V above chassis ground for quieter operation
and longer tube life.
NOBLE audiophile-grade level and balance pots.
MIT/MutilCap polypropylene audiophile-grade signal coupling capacitors,
including two 30 uF monsters on the output stages.
Warm-up delay / MUTE button. Features and quality components usually
not found on entry-level pieces.

The Shrimp is very quick and alive sounding. Good rhythm and extension. Very transparent sounding. We hope you enjoy our fresh and clean Shrimp cocktail!
(Lemon and tartar sauce not required for normal operation.)
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Manley Shrimp Preamplifier Specifications
Vacuum Tubes: input tubes: 2 x 12AT7WA , output tubes 2 x 7044
Five line level inputs unbalanced RCA
MUTE switch and Warm-Up muting delay
Accurately tracking NOBLE volume control within 0.25dB
Center detented NOBLE balance control
Record Output
Two sets of unbalanced RCA main outs
Gain 11.8dB
Input sensitivity 200mV in yields 1V out
Frequency response: 10 Hz - 80 KHz
Noise Floor Typically -95 dB A WGT 20-20K with volume control fully open
Noise Floor (shorted input) Typically -106 dB A WGT 20-20K with volume control fully closed
S/N ratio: typically 95 dB A WGT 20-20K
Input Impedance: 250 Kohm
Output impedance: 50 ohms
Maximum Output: +26dBu @ 1.5% THD into 100K load (15.5V rms)
Maximum Output: +21dBm @ 1.5% THD into 600 ohm load
Power Consumption: 55 Watts (485mA @ 120VAC)
Dimensions: W=19", L=11", H=3 1/2"
Shipping weight: 15 Ibs.
Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price: $1,880 clams (USD $)

3. Manley SNAPPER

Always fresh, never frozen!
Just emerging from the depths of the Manley design lab, The Snapper swam to market in February 2002.

Brand new for 2002 we present to you a very tasty all-tube 100 watt monoblock called The Snapper (oceanic names continuing). At $4250 per pair for stereo playback, we also welcome you to catch a school of Snappers for surround systems.
Another brilliant design from Mitch Margolis features a quartet of EL34's in a fully differential circuit topology, including the input (12AT7) and driver (7044) stages. This Snapper can be driven fully balanced all the way through via the XLR inputs. If you have balanced outputs on your preamplifier, this amplifier is the first Manley design to really let you take advantage of your XLR's without additional balancing input circuitry or input transformers. Very cleverly, the unbalanced RCA's can alternatively be used in this special topology with equally impressive results.
Biasing is easy with all measurement points and trimpots located on the top deck and speaker connection is made with heavy duty WBT binding posts.
Over three months of prototyping in the Manley Magnetics department resulted in a brand new output transformer design, a true 19-section incredibly complicated piece. The Snapper will crank out 100 watts at 10 cycles all day long and a full 110 watts from about 15Hz all the way up to 40KHz. Don't let frequency response specs fool you when people give you amazing bandwidth measured at... oh, five puny watts. We're talking full power bandwidth here! Continuous duty. Real muscle.
The Manley Snapper An EveAnna Manley production, Designed by Mitch Margolis, Mastered by Baltazar Hernandez. Handcrafted with pride in Chino, California, USA!

Features and specifications:

100 Watt partial triode (ultralinear) EL-34 output stage is tolerant of a wider
variety of output load conditions than pure pentode.
Precise and balanced signal path from input to output. Circuit
self-balances with either single-ended or balanced inputs. [Don't let
either speaker terminal contact chassis, earth or any other ground.
Otherwise there could be fire ;^} ]
Switch-selectable RCA unbalanced inputs, or XLR balanced inputs. RCA
jack input impedance about 330k-ohms, XLR 15Kohms. If one
input is not occupied, the input selector switch may then be used as a
poor-man's MUTE switch. Handy for checking the bias, swapping input
cables, etc..
Input Sensitivity RCA jack: 750 mV RMS for full output.
Input Sensitivity XLR jack: 1.5 V RMS]
Overall voltage gain RCA jack to output: 31 dBu, or about 32 volts per
volt.
Signal to A-weighted noise ratio on Humberto's bench is about 110 dB.
All-balanced amp topology keep B+ voltage variations from degrading
the performance of the input and driver stages. This technique can
help make a push-pull amplifier very revealing of signal detail, in
part by canceling power-supply-related perturbations and increasing
signal-to-noise ratios.
Portly 180 Joule energy storage reservoir in the main B+ supply
channel for explosive transient response and athletic musical stamina.
Also reduces B+ fluctuations due to varying current demands of output
stage [duh].
Wideband transformerless balanced input with switchable bridged
15Kohm or terminated 600 ohm input impedance. Balanced input
sensitivity may be selected by changing one resistor to suit whatever
operating level may be required. 0 dBu, +4, +8, etc... If desired, the
user may safely ground either pin 2 or 3 for single-ended drive of the
balanced XLR input... [Be careful NOT to drive pins 2 and 3 of the XLR
with a large common-mode signal, or the internal B+ fuse could blow.]
Quiet DC supply for the input and driver tube filaments.
Excellent square-wave response, and very low excess phase-shift with
frequency.
Amp actually puts out 110W @ 5 ohm load @ 2 kHz @ onset of clipping,
117 VAC mains voltage, 3.5 amps mains current.
100 W spec: 15 Hz - 40 kHz into 5 ohms
Puts out 100W into an 8 ohm load.
Snapper unit weight: 38 lbs.

4. Manley MAHI

These cute little guys produce around 40 watts RMS in Ultra-Linear mode or around 20 watts in TRIODE from a quartet of EL84 / 6BQ5 tubes driven by a 6414 dual triode driver and a 12AT7WA input dual triode. The Ei Yugo EL84 has been one of our very favorite tubes for many years, extremely long lasting and reliable, and can be considered the smaller brother of the much beloved EL34: really quick-sounding both in the bass and especially in the top end. And of course this has a lot to do with our Manley Output transformer, the same one we build for the Manley Stingray.
We have been building EL84 amplifiers for well over a decade. The Manley-branded Tiny Triodes were much acclaimed in the early 1990's. In 1993 after the Manley company split off from VTL, the Manley Tiny Triodes underwent a chassis rework to become the Manley 35 watt Monoblocks soon followed by the 50 Watt Monoblocks. The more powerful Ultra-Linear mode operation became the standard with hard-wired Triode operation or Triode/UL switching available upon special request.
After the introduction of the Stingray Integrated amplifier in 1998, we then went back and incorporated the Stingray's new circuitry design refinements into the 50 Watt Monoblocks. Finally, big bass out of a small amplifier! So, topology-wise, the post-1998 50 watters were the monoblock version of the stereo Stingray, with the additional variable feedback feature. After the introduction of the fabulous Manley Snappers in 2002, it was obvious that we had to update our classic EL84 50 watt monoblocks both cosmetically and feature-wise. Make-over time!
Everyone was always asking us for Triode/Ultra-Linear switching. We listened to ya and put on the Triode-UL switch as standard for the new MAHI's. As are the beautiful german WBT binding posts. Also we increased the B+ rail capacity in a major way. The 50 Watt monos only had around 49 Joules or energy storage in the B+ rail. Now the MAHI's have nearly 180 Joules of energy storage for the B+ rail. You can hear this improvement in the especially in the bass region: tighter, faster, deeper. More is more in this case.
The chassis design is like a mini-Snapper. They are so cute! And of course they come standard as a pair so you get.... "Mahi-Mahi."
We believe the MANLEY MAHI's give a lot of value for an affordable price and we think you will be surprised at just how big these little guys sound.
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Features And Specifications:

Input Impedance: 110 Kohm
Input Sensitivity: TRIODE UL
FB MIN: 175mV 155mV
FB STD: 312mV 340mV
FB MAX: 480mV 566mV
Gain: 29dB
Negative Feedback: MIN= 3dB; STD=6dB; MAX=10dB of global NFB
Max. Output Power defined as power output reaching 1.5% THD @ 1KHz
into 5 ohms: TRIODE UL
FB MIN: 18W 20W
FB STD: 27W 42W
FB MAX: 28W 46W
into 8 ohms: TRIODE UL
FB MIN: 14W 24W
FB STD: 24W 40W
FB MAX: 25W 41W
Signal to Noise Ratio Ref. 1W: Typically 82 dB A-WGT 20-20K
Noise Floor: Typically 150µV = -74dBu A-WGT
Typically 650µV = -62dBu unweighted
Dynamic Range: 83dB
THD+noise @ 5W less than 0.15%
Frequency Response at full power UL mode w/MAX NFB: 20 Hz to 20 kHz FLAT
Frequency Response at 5W into 5 ohms: 10 Hz to 30 kHz FLAT, -3.75dB @ 100KHz
Recommended Speaker Load: Optimized for 5 ohms
Actual Output Impedance: TRIODE UL
FB MIN: 2.83 ohms 3.57 ohms
FB STD: 1.87 ohms 2.16 ohms
FB MAX: 1.28 ohms 1.36 ohms
Power Consumption (idle): 102 Watts (0.85A @ 120VAC)
Power Consumption (at Rated Full Power): 168 Watts (1.4A @ 120VAC)
Vacuum Tubes: 1 x 12AT7WA Ei, 1 x 6414 JAN NOS, 4 x EL84 Output per monoblock
Output Tube Quiescent Standing Current: 20mA
Set Bias for 200mVDC measured across each 10 ohm cathode resistor
Fuse types for 120VAC operation: MDL or MDA 3 AMP / 250 Volt SLO-BLO
240VAC operation: MDL or MDA 2 AMP / 250 Volt SLO-BLO
B+ FUSE: MDA 4/10th AMP, 250 Volt SLO-BLO
Dimensions: 11" deep x 10" wide x 5" tall
Shipping weight each: 18 pounds
Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price: $2500 clams per pair (USD $)

[JackD201]

Rene, reserve one Stingray for me please. Tnx.

[handyboy]

ang bilis mo jack!

[JackD201]

Ako ata ang na-catch of the day!

[hypertriode]

SPECIAL TO THE ABSOLUTE SOUND

Reviews and Reprints
Manley Laboratories "Stingray" Integrated Amplifier

by Aaron M. Shatzman



Fifteen years have passed since my first encounter with Manley-designed audio components, two industrial-looking 100-watt monoblock amplifiers that David Manley (then owner-designer of Vacuum Tube Logic — VTL) delivered to my home. His visit, he said, was prompted by his distrust of the commercial carriers and a suspicion that the amplifier might fall into the hands of a reviewer who lacked ability, hearing acuity, taste, judgment, or common sense. I suppose I passed whatever screening tests he used, since he left the Compact Mono 100s with me. And longtime readers might recall that I wrote a positive review — the first good criticism Manley’s efforts received (in the US, anyway).

Time and again as I looked at and listened to the Stingray, I found myself thinking about that first review, and musing about how much has changed since then. The Compact 100s may well have been prototypes (Manley swore they were "standard production," but that phrase leaves a bit to the imagination), since they were stuffed into cases that had been designed to hold something else, padded with an odd assortment of foam. He had to hand-deliver them — it was clear that no cartons had been made specifically for them. Yet those amps took control of my Magnepan MG IIIs in a way I will never forget, and provided a no-nonsense level of performance (I called it "slam") that was revelatory and a sound that was stunning, if not always nuanced or complex.

It has been a pleasure to follow the evolution of Manley’s products, to review his "Ultimate" preamplifier, and to use for quite some time his VTL 150 amplifiers (among the best I have heard). If those Compact Mono 100s struck me as having been cobbled together in Manley’s garage, later products took on all the trappings of a real business — marketed by professionals, packaged and sold like stuff from RCA and Sony. So when Scot Markwell phoned to say a Manley amplifier was on its way to me, I fully expected it to arrive via UPS or FedEx or Airborne in an appropriate carton, and to look like a contemporary factory-assembled component.

I was, in fact, surprised to find that the Stingray was packed for the Beyond. Not only in a custom-designed carton, but the level of protection afforded the chassis and the tubes (installed) went further than anything I’d seen. The 12 tubes (8 EL 64s, 2 6414s, 2c 12AT7s) travel surrounded by a single foam insert with recesses for each. And instead of the several hand-written pages of "instructions/specs," that David Manley sent to serve as an "owner’s manual" for those Mono 100s, the Stingray arrives with a spiral-bound, 16-page booklet that is the best such publication I’ve read. It is straightforward and comprehensive, offering a host of audio hints/advice/wisdom (ranging from speaker placement to room acoustics to checking/setting bias on tubes) that applies not only to the Stingray and its environment, but to all audio components in any listening room. The ultimate example of "how things have changed" is the appearance — the cosmetics combined with the functional/structural design — of the amplifier. The Stingray is a real looker.

I am told that David Manley did not design the Stingray. Rather EveAnna Manley, who now owns and runs Manley Laboratories (itself not to be confused with the old VTL, which Luke Manley took over some years ago), seems to have conceived the layout and distinctive shape, with others contributing to the overall design. The amplifier circuits, according to the manual, are derived from David Manley’s 50-watt Monos, a great component. The name "Stingray" is attributed to J. Gordon Holt, who said that EveAnna’s napkin drawing of a planned integrated amplifier reminded him of that oceanic denizen. The chassis is highly polished chrome, fronted in gold, with clearly divided channels whose inputs are labeled on the top so users can readily see what connects where. Beautifully machined cone feet (three) support the chassis. Sturdy binding posts beg for a tight connection to speaker wires. Controls are first quality. (All the inputs are identical line-level connections, so even though one is labeled "phono," users seeking to listen to LPs will have to insert a phono preamp between the turntable and the Stingray.) Nothing strikes me as needless. The design is a classic example of form following function: Things are where they are because that is where they logically fit. Add a lush, polished finish and smooth-as-silk controls, and you get the Stingray.

If the appearance of Manley amplifiers has changed over 15 years, so has the sonic character. The Mono 100s were all domination, control, hard. The Stingray is easy, open, less imposing. I think that more of the source comes through with the Stingray than with the old Monos, despite the possibility of kinship. On the wonderful Hogwood/AAM Beet-hoven Fifth [L’Oiseau Lyre 417605-2], I found a near-perfect demonstration: The sound was dry, clear, tight, and lean compared to "classic" tube amps, with incredible detail — clean, etched, "ripped" — a touch of edge but, after all, this is the signature sound quality of the AAM and their "original instruments." At the same time, the images were three-dimensional and solid, with a convincing stage and focus. The horns were glorious. I heard lines doubled that I did not recall knowing were doubled, inner voices that had never been so starkly evident. The stage was open and "light." At the same time, the bass was full, rich, reverberant, plump. The Manley provided a perspective on the players that placed me just below the orchestra, which spread above my seat.

Time and again I found that my "view" on the players was that indeed of a concertgoer in the orchestra section of a hall, below the performers. With Kleiber and the VPO [DG 447-400-2] in Beethoven, with Slatkin and the St. Louis [RCA 60174 2-RC] in Schubert, with Goodman and the Hanover Band [Conifer CLASS 70] in Schubert, with Previn/Ax and the RPO [RCA 74321 40418-2] in Beethoven, with Fleisher/Szell and the Cleveland in Beethoven [Sony SBK 60499], and with Belafonte and his back-up band at Carnegie Hall [RCA 6006-2-R], I was keenly aware of this phenomenon. I am not prepared to say that the Stingray mercilessly imposes such a perspective on every source it amplifies through every speaker it drives. But using the splendid Acarian Lotus speakers, I consistently experienced myself as below the stage.

The Stingray is tonally about as neutral as one could hope, neither dark nor light, and capable of capturing the signature of instrumentalists and vocalists. Once, as I was listening to the AAM in Beethoven, my four-year-old son, playing quietly on the carpet near me, made a sound, and I could not tell (until I looked at him) if the noise was real (a product of a human being in my room) or reproduced (a stage noise picked up by the microphones during the recording session). During that same session I noted that the Stingray seemed not to "favor" or glorify one instrument or orchestral choir at the expense of others. All sounded just as it should. Once or twice (e.g., with Belafonte at Carnegie Hall), I found the sound a touch dry, lacking the full richness it has with other amps. But such responses were counter-balanced by an overwhelming experience of smooth, rich, creamy, plush sound. The Manley got the analog character of the recording just right — easy, lush, rich, blended — whole milk as opposed to skim. The way the Stingray distinguished between two selections on the same CD [RCA Victrola 77533-2-RV — two Mozart symphonies recorded five years apart] was, while not extraordinary for High End equipment, remarkable for a small integrated amplifier. Final example: the Boult/New Symphony Chesky disc, Concert Favorites [CD 53] sounded full, with smooth searing highs and cataclysmic brass — I could not believe that a hackneyed warhorse like "Pomp and Circumstance" actually engaged me. It was not the music or the interpretation/performance that riveted attention. It was the sound. This was genuine High End sound, with no obvious compromises or shortcomings. Gigantic, room-sized stage — still eye-level perspective, but wall-to-wall. Dynamics. Imaging. Space. Stage. Coherence. Clean. Clear. Lucid. Spectacular.

Equally impressive, the little Manley, despite its wholly tube circuitry, does nothing to sugar-coat a source. Never in the several months I used it did I sense that the Stingray was euphonic, softening what was hard, mellowing what was harsh, darkening what was bright. Though I found the Kleiber/VPO Beethoven soft-edged and plush, I also noted that the sound was bright and that you would not think you were hearing a live performance. The DG engineers and their equipment, I thought, were not up to the VPO, as the JVC (CD player), Manley, and Lotuses revealed. Nor will the Manley create a soundstage where none exists. Imagine my disappointment when my much-anticipated audition of the Feltsman/ Rostropovich/NSO Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 [SONY SM 4575] utterly failed to yield a credible soundspace. The horns were stuck on the top front of the right speaker, the piano was smeared from center to right and was bigger than the pathetic orchestra, the supporting strings were a goopy mass. The winds seemed to be sitting inside the piano.

Via the Manley, Mravinsky’s great Tchaikovsky Fifth with the Leningrad [Russian Disc RDCD 10-908], sounded just as harsh as it has when amplified by far more expensive separate amplifier/preamplifier combinations. The Stingray did nothing to soften the painful glare encoded on this disc. Nor did it ameliorate the "harsh, bright, edgy" sound that the engineers provided for Maxim Shostakovich and the BBC orchestra in a horrible, stilted performance of Berlioz’ Harold in Italy [Carlton 15656 91532], an interpretation I found utterly lacking in lyricism, filled with jarring fits and starts.

The speakers I used throughout my evaluation of the Manley Stingray were the Lotus units from Acarian, whose high-impedance drivers present amplifiers, especially low-power tube amplifiers, with a "friendly" load. They have, in two dedicated listening rooms in two houses, performed magnificently when connected to amplifiers rated as low as 13 watts a side. Hence my surprise when, more than once at high volume levels, the Stingray’s 50 watts a side, produced sound that seemed strained. As Slatkin and the St. Louis opened up in climactic passages in Schubert’s Great C Major, the Manley seemed pushed to, maybe even beyond, its limit. When the orchestra let go, the amp tended to lump all the players together into a mass. And at big climaxes, the sound "went hard." Yet even so, the Manley still had enough stuffing to punctuate a line. I could hear the bass drum pronouncements clearly even when the amp was really working hard. The Goodman/Hanover Band traversal of the same score revealed a related trait: At high volumes I felt I was in the laps of the players. But as the decibel level decreased I seemed to move away — a weird sensation because the soundspace itself did not shift with volume swings. Rather I seemed to move. Later in that session with the amp I noted that as the volume increased the stage seemed to compress — not that it moved forward at high levels or away as the sound pressure decreased, but that under maximum load in my quite large room the amp struggled to maintain a stage as wide and deep as that which it presented at lower levels. The classic Horenstein/LSO Mahler First [Unicorn UKCD 2012] concludes with a cataclysm of sound. Faced with this challenge, the Stingray seemed a bit overmatched. It just did not seem to have the reserves to separate strands of sound under such circumstances.

Do not conclude that the Stingray cannot perform brilliantly at high levels, for it can, and often does. The same ensemble and engineers that stressed the Manley in Schubert [Hanover Band/Nimbus], allowed it to show off in an equally challenging Beethoven [Nimbus NI7002]. Here, under heavy load, the sound was brilliant, crystalline, solid, resonant. At fff and beyond, the Manley seemed as if it could go on pumping out volume forever — smooth, seamless increases in decibel level, no sense that it was ratcheting the volume up in incremental segments or steps — plump rich sound even at deafening levels.

At ppp the Manley is beyond reproach. Few pianists can match Emanual Ax for beautiful, nuanced playing, and he shines in Beethoven’s Emperor with Previn and the RPO [RCA 74321 40418-2]. The Manley gave this disc a sound quality that was complex, harmonically rich; it took on what I can only describe as a "particulate" quality that has the feel of the real thing. The microdynamics in the pp-ppp range were delightful, and Ax’s delicate fingering was captured by the RCA engineers and clearly displayed by the amplifier. Every subtle change of pressure on the keys seems audible.

The Manley Stingray is a delightful product, both visually and sonically. It operated beautifully from its first unpacking, and has surprised me time and again with performance that belies its size and moderate price. While its size will lead some automatically to select it for second systems or small listening venues (mated to "bookshelf" speakers), it can more than hold its own in far more "serious" environments, mated to other components that purport to push the very limits of design. Its striking appearance will tempt many to place it, and perhaps their primary audio system, in public locations where spouses and appreciative visitors can share the pleasure of looking and listening. Do not be fooled into concluding from its design and finish that it is more for show than for performance. This is a serious amplifier that merits your attention.

[hypertriode]

The Manley's have arrived:
1. Stingray integrated amp
2. Shrimp preamplifier
3. Mahi-Mahi monoblock power amplifiers
4. Snapper monoblock power amplifiers

Audition at HYPERAUDIO on Monday, March 21 (or if we're lucky Saturday, March 19 after Pacquiao ko's Morales... i hope/pray)

[keith]

Hi Rene,

Congratulations on the Manleys.

Could you PM me the price of the Mahi-Mahi and the Snapper.

Many thanks

[KD]

Parang menu ng sashimi.


Stingray


Shrimp


Mahi


Snapper

[m_shoe_maker]

Hoy KD, bumalik ka na sa thread mo at mag post ka na lang ng pictures ng chicks.

[KD]

Eto chicks. Introducing EveAnna Manley, aka "The Tube Chick"

[KD]

Eto pa.

[m_shoe_maker]

Astig pala si Eva ah. Harley Girl

[keith]

Kaya pa la pati designs niya mabilis ... pwedeng pang headbanging.

[vintage_dog]

congrats rene!

i first saw this amp at the Chicago Hifi show. maybe it was the 97 show. i also met eveanna briefly. the amp drew a modest crowd as it was a "novelty" at that time. didn't spend enough time though to listen to it carefully...nice to know it has now reached our shores

[hypertriode]

Manley's available for audition on Saturday, March 19, 1:00 - 7:00 pm at HYPERAUDIO.

[JackD201]

Let it be said that this Big Speaker, Big Amp lover has chosen the stingray as his first peice of tube gear. I worked with a lot of Manley professional gear from mic preamps to stereo EQs and they always presented what I can only describe as a "ballsy" sound in tagalog may b*y*g. I brought a pair of speakers to Rene's to check for system synergy. Both units were straight out of their boxes and we all (Hypertriode, ihatejazz, and myself) could see the potential. The stingray has a new home now and all I can say is this early on, I am one happy aquarium owner! Incidentally, I left that pair of speakers with Mod Master Rene but this is his corner and I'll leave it to him to fill you guys in.

Hay....back to burn in duty!

[hypertriode]

thanks jackD,
awesome combination! the stingray drove the VR-1 with aplomb and ease (eiji oue - dance of the tumblers, tutti); both amp and speakers out of the box at that! if your speaker budget is in the P50k range, the VR-1 deserves a serious listen; speakers for tube amps esp. the STINGRAY.

[Audioboy]

I had a brief time listening to the stingray yesterday and i was so amazed with its great sound hooked with titus triangle speakers and thorens TD-165 with shure92 as a source. the amp has crystal sparkle clean, a very smooth clean tone consistent on low and surprisingly even on high volumes. a highly commendable amp! if youre looking for an amp at a 100k plus budget, the stingray manley amp is a MUST audition and a MUST buy!

[rem67]

boss rene,

just registered here. i must say i am very happy with my stingray, got the sound i like from my proac ref 8 signature...... very very nice combi.

ty ulit sa accomodation, see u around pre.....

ruel

[hypertriode]

Free Manley "TUBES RULE" car stickers.
Limited stock only.
First come, first served.
Get yours now!