Which is where the second HQA came into play. Switch to the vertically bi-amped set up, and the performance is transformed. It opens with air, space and an immediate impression of anticipation and tension. The hanging line of the violin solo is at once more delicate and fragile, but also more poised and focussed. The fragility comes from technique, the poise focus and intensity giving the notes, their length, modulation and the gaps between them a clarity and purpose that perfectly reflects Shoji’s live presence. That familiar opening line takes on an almost sculpted, filigree quality, illuminated by its tonal and dynamic shading. There’s an intensity to the playing that evokes the drama and emotional depth of the piece, a sense of purpose that extends to the intimate relationship with the conductor and orchestra. The central Adagio is beautiful but the third movement is a model of building energy, momentum and drama, maintaining that emotional tension right through the extended and convoluted finale. It shows Shoji as a musician as utterly in command of her instrument as Temirkanov is of his – which is praise indeed.
Using the bi-amped system isn’t just better, it’s captivating: The improvement might be expressible in sonic terms, but its importance is firmly in the realms of expression and communication. This is all about capturing the performance and bringing it, live, breathing and emoting to your room. I can talk about control and dynamic range, micro dynamic discrimination and harmonic development, the tail of notes and the gaps between them, the timing of the orchestral parts or their weight and tonality – and it would all be clearly audible in the sound. But this isn’t about sound. It is about a stunning performance, captured and reproduced, on cue. It’s about the very essence, the fundamental purpose of hi-end audio – and it’s being produced by a system that’s barely beyond mid-fi, at least in terms of price.
What works for solo violin clearly also works for the orchestra – as well as anything else you care to throw at the HQAs. Víkingur Ólafsson’s Goldbergs (DGG UCCG 45082) are lucid, sure-footed, and beautifully weighted, with explicit spacing between notes and pace through the phrases. Curzon’s seminal recording of the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 27 K.595 (Esoteric ESSD 90014) is fluid, delicate, graceful and precise, the agility in his playing bringing beauty and shape to what is so often an almost florid solo part. The earthy smooch that underpins ‘Autumn Leaves’ (Cannonball Adderley, Something Else – Blue Note 0777 7 46338 26) offers an enticingly seductive groove, Miles’ trumpet drawing sharp lines above it while Cannonball’s sax gets down and positively dirty. The undulating, interwoven arrangement on ‘September Song’ (Art Pepper, Straight Life – Galaxy CA802 98.175) is suitable articulate and motive, the perfect foil for Pepper’s inspired solo. Voices too – to many to list. This is a do it all system that doesn’t dominate the room or decimate your bank balance – and the cheapest single element? The amplifiers…
After you Claude…
A large part of what makes the HQA so musically engaging and allows it to play and partner way above its price point, is its ability to put the music first. While getting out of the path of musical proceedings should be the goal of every unit in the chain, it’s an area in which this amplifier excels. The extra immediacy and transparency, resolution and speed/control that it exhibits compared to the already impressive TMA allow it to step behind the signal rather than standing in its way. Just as the RW4 crossover and bi-amping have reduced the grubbily audible fingerprints left on the recording by the passive network, the carefully optimised elements in the amplifier allow it to do its job without fuss or fanfare. You don’t suffer the blurring of multiple, poorly matched output devices, the non-linearities that come with poor mechanical and power supply design, the timing errors introduced by overly complex circuits and sluggish reservoir caps. This amp can’t go as deep as the best, big amps. It doesn’t have the resolution, dynamic or harmonic discrimination of an amp like the CH Precision M1.1, the scale, substance and rich tonal colours of the VTL S-400. But it does better than most in most respects and (perhaps more importantly) has no intrusive failings. Doubled up, the HQA has a place for everything and everything stays firmly in its place. It’s a musical tour de force – and pretty darned impressive hi-fi, by the by.
