elnero
Headphoneus Supremus
Introduction
I was one of the first people to buy the original production PPX3 about six months ago. From day one I was smitten but recently I had to jump on the opportunity to buy one of the newer black chassis versions with the Solen Stage 1 upgrade. Having both amps here side by side I thought it might be interesting to do a brief comparison of the two if only to see how far Mikhail has come in the short time this amp has been available.
Fit & Finish
The original version of the PPX3 has a relatively small form factor silver chassis with wood side panels. The tubes are arrayed with the output tubes on either side and the driver tube in the middle and more forward all together creating a triangle. The transformer is mounted on the rear. While this looked rather precarious it seems like it was quite solid but I always felt the amp looked like it was missing something without the transformer on top. The feet were for me the really sore point. They were too big, too thick and offered no benefits. The felt on the bottoms allowed the amp to slide around and overall they made the amp look like some sort of alien ships landing gear. These relatively minor points aside the amp was quite attractive with its classic silver and wood.
In my opinion the new black chassis is just so much sexier. The form factor is now larger although still smaller than a standard piece of audio equipment. The tubes are now arrayed in an angled line on the right side of the amp with the driver tube at the fore. The transformer has not only been relocated to its rightful place on the top of the chassis but it’s also been given a cover that is finished with the same glossy black powder coat as the rest of the chassis. A blue power LED has been added. The feet are a smaller rubber affair that are less intrusive visually and give the amp a bit of damping as well as keeping it from sliding around. On the rear is the standard warning and contact info which was missing on the original and gold connectors which I believe is also an upgrade over the original. Overall the new amp has a much more professional feel and IMO looks sleeker and sexier than the original.
Circuit Changes
From my understanding not only have there been cosmetic changes but there have been some minor tweaks to the circuit, an extra level of filtration in the power supply and the volume pot has been changed to a Noble. Because my amp also has the Solen Stage 1 upgrade it’s a little hard to nail down exactly what each of these changes has made to the overall whole though.
Sonics
The original PPX3 can be characterized as a fun amp with a somewhat “tubey” character. It has a forward, lush midrange with punchy bass and smooth highs. In all respects it’s a better amp than anything I have owned previously and improves upon all areas like detail, soundstaging and imaging. If it lacks in any area it would be extension at either end of the frequency spectrum but I would say it’s probably still better than my previous amps in this regard. Overall I really liked the sound of the amp, so much so that I resisted the idea of upgrading to the new PPX3 at first but that was a very short hesitation. I figured if the new one improved upon what I was already hearing I had to get my hands on one.
For the most part the new PPX3 retains the same character as its predecessor but opens the amp up more. It’s not quite as forward as the original, there is more space around instruments and imaging is better defined. Bass is bigger, more detailed and extended. Mids retain their lush, sweet character and are more present and detailed. Highs, like the bass, are more detailed and extended. They retain that sweetness of the original amp and are even a hair smoother. This is not a bad smooth by any means, there have been times when listening to the RS-1’s that I’ve been just in awe of how realistic cymbals sound. I’m sure it gets even better moving up to Singlepowers more expensive amps but the PPX3 does a fine job for me at this point.
If there is one area the new version falls short of the original it’s the fun factor. It doesn’t lose out by much here but it does seem a bit less punchy and less forgiving which is probably a product of the increased detail retrieval and extension at the frequency extremes. But what the new PPX3 loses in fun it more than makes up for in overall refinement and class. It retains the base characteristics of the original version but builds on it’s weaknesses to give a better balanced product in all areas.
Conclusion
The price increase from the original PPX3 to the new black chassis version is more than made up for in aesthetics, add to this some serious sonic improvements and even with the cost of the Solen upgrade I think the amp is even more of a bargain than it was when it was first introduced. Mikhail should be commended for taking an already good sounding amp and making it better but what makes this even more significant is I can’t imagine he makes much off these amps yet he’s still committed to refining them to get the best possible sound for the money.
I was one of the first people to buy the original production PPX3 about six months ago. From day one I was smitten but recently I had to jump on the opportunity to buy one of the newer black chassis versions with the Solen Stage 1 upgrade. Having both amps here side by side I thought it might be interesting to do a brief comparison of the two if only to see how far Mikhail has come in the short time this amp has been available.
Fit & Finish
The original version of the PPX3 has a relatively small form factor silver chassis with wood side panels. The tubes are arrayed with the output tubes on either side and the driver tube in the middle and more forward all together creating a triangle. The transformer is mounted on the rear. While this looked rather precarious it seems like it was quite solid but I always felt the amp looked like it was missing something without the transformer on top. The feet were for me the really sore point. They were too big, too thick and offered no benefits. The felt on the bottoms allowed the amp to slide around and overall they made the amp look like some sort of alien ships landing gear. These relatively minor points aside the amp was quite attractive with its classic silver and wood.
In my opinion the new black chassis is just so much sexier. The form factor is now larger although still smaller than a standard piece of audio equipment. The tubes are now arrayed in an angled line on the right side of the amp with the driver tube at the fore. The transformer has not only been relocated to its rightful place on the top of the chassis but it’s also been given a cover that is finished with the same glossy black powder coat as the rest of the chassis. A blue power LED has been added. The feet are a smaller rubber affair that are less intrusive visually and give the amp a bit of damping as well as keeping it from sliding around. On the rear is the standard warning and contact info which was missing on the original and gold connectors which I believe is also an upgrade over the original. Overall the new amp has a much more professional feel and IMO looks sleeker and sexier than the original.
Circuit Changes
From my understanding not only have there been cosmetic changes but there have been some minor tweaks to the circuit, an extra level of filtration in the power supply and the volume pot has been changed to a Noble. Because my amp also has the Solen Stage 1 upgrade it’s a little hard to nail down exactly what each of these changes has made to the overall whole though.
Sonics
The original PPX3 can be characterized as a fun amp with a somewhat “tubey” character. It has a forward, lush midrange with punchy bass and smooth highs. In all respects it’s a better amp than anything I have owned previously and improves upon all areas like detail, soundstaging and imaging. If it lacks in any area it would be extension at either end of the frequency spectrum but I would say it’s probably still better than my previous amps in this regard. Overall I really liked the sound of the amp, so much so that I resisted the idea of upgrading to the new PPX3 at first but that was a very short hesitation. I figured if the new one improved upon what I was already hearing I had to get my hands on one.
For the most part the new PPX3 retains the same character as its predecessor but opens the amp up more. It’s not quite as forward as the original, there is more space around instruments and imaging is better defined. Bass is bigger, more detailed and extended. Mids retain their lush, sweet character and are more present and detailed. Highs, like the bass, are more detailed and extended. They retain that sweetness of the original amp and are even a hair smoother. This is not a bad smooth by any means, there have been times when listening to the RS-1’s that I’ve been just in awe of how realistic cymbals sound. I’m sure it gets even better moving up to Singlepowers more expensive amps but the PPX3 does a fine job for me at this point.
If there is one area the new version falls short of the original it’s the fun factor. It doesn’t lose out by much here but it does seem a bit less punchy and less forgiving which is probably a product of the increased detail retrieval and extension at the frequency extremes. But what the new PPX3 loses in fun it more than makes up for in overall refinement and class. It retains the base characteristics of the original version but builds on it’s weaknesses to give a better balanced product in all areas.
Conclusion
The price increase from the original PPX3 to the new black chassis version is more than made up for in aesthetics, add to this some serious sonic improvements and even with the cost of the Solen upgrade I think the amp is even more of a bargain than it was when it was first introduced. Mikhail should be commended for taking an already good sounding amp and making it better but what makes this even more significant is I can’t imagine he makes much off these amps yet he’s still committed to refining them to get the best possible sound for the money.
