Playback
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For the past few months we had only the Moon 600i V2 in the system, extremely long break-in time you know, and so the Advance Paris X-A600 takes some getting used to. After a few days we sit down and a few things become clear. Using the Sonnet Morpheus as a pre-stage we get plenty of insight, its transparent, lossless volume control proves to be an excellent combination with the A-X600!
The midrange is clearly the forte of this amplifier, and it is of prime importance when reproducing music. Voices sound honest and lovely. The treble is slightly rounded so that lesser recordings do not become unlistenable. So don’t expect an unrelenting “truth counter” but rather a rather generous, rounded amplifier that goes nice and deep.
There is plenty of power and control, especially in class A/B, and the overall reproduction we would describe as smooth with sufficient openness. We don’t notice any annoying s’s and t’s anywhere and are in the music. We also hear plenty of detail and conclude that the balance is really spot on with the X-A600.
Listening to the Advance Paris X-A600
For the listening test of the Advance Paris X-A600, we used four test tracks. We start off with “Pixels” by Eefje de Visser. This track contains a subsonic bass line that shakes our windows for the first time even though the Revels are far from full range. Impressive! You really feel the bass in your belly. That’s a first! So the bass gets an extra push, something that can be fine with a lot of music, but might be a little too much of a good thing with a chunky floorstander. Keep that in mind.
This song is also in our playlist because Visser’s lyrics are often very unclear, but the X-A600’s intelligibility is good. There are more insightful amplifiers but the X-A600 never makes music sound sharp and harsh and you hear plenty of detail.
we use “Strawberry Privilege” by Yves Tumor because it is such a complex, layered track. Take your time with this music and you will be doubly rewarded. The X-A600 does a decent job but we miss a bit of the compelling that this music has. The X-A600 is more of a laid-back amp. One that especially captures the flow of a track well. The drum section and tambourine come through nicely and support the vocals without crowding them out, but there are amps that unravel the various layers in this track better. Although those amps tend to be a lot more expensive.
Diversity
Another test song comes from Nina Simone. he needs me’ is a sparse song that has to do with the strong lyrics on the one hand and the special atmosphere the song evokes on the other. The Advance Paris X-A600 places the piano nicely in the middle and Nina Simone’s voice to the left of the stage. As it should be. Her voice has no edge and we imagine ourselves in a small, cozy jazz club. Music comes completely off the speakers and there is emotion in the playback. Nice.
Something completely different is “Never coming back” by Alan Braxe. A house track with beats that again come through deep and bold with plenty of control. This amp especially goes for timbre, warmth and glow. The high-hats sound a little friendlier than we’re used to but the rhythm is right on. This is an amp that never provokes or sounds aggressive and that is often a relief with digital sources. The A-X600 is an amplifier that effortlessly combines power and flow.