All this talk of energy, dynamics and attitude might lead you to the conclusion that these amplifiers are pushy or loud, leaning heavily on the leading edge and the upper levels. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, one of their most beguiling qualities is the solidity, grace and presence they bring to quiet passages and small ensemble pieces. The recent Sayaka Shoji/Gianluca Cascioli recording of Mozart Sonatas for Fortepiano and Violin (K301, K378 and K454, on Arcana A575) makes the point perfectly, the amps capturing Shoji’s big, vibrant instrumental voice and balancing it perfectly against the keyboard, so that even in the quietest passages the conversational quality and equality of the instruments is maintained. The incisive vigour in her bowing and the explosive dynamic demands and contrasts in the music are tracked without hesitation or compression, yet there’s also a grace and delicacy on tap when required. The particular delicacy and agility of the fortepiano is just as apparent – and captivating. It allows the players to extrapolate effortlessly from the apparently simple roots of each movement through each increasing layer of developmental complexity. The 995Rs will never match the sheer clarity, separation and structural layering of the CH Precision M1.1 (that amp’s ‘super powers’) but they still master overall shape, substance and musical purpose with a beguiling continuity and ease. Shoji flows through her lines with poise and grace: the Trilogies let you hear her doing it. Cascioli matches her every expressive accent or twist, so much more than just an accompanist. The Trilogies make that plain too.
The sense of musical purpose and emotional connection that the 995Rs bring to a system applies to all genres, from girl’n’guitar folk through to grand opera, the sense of directed body and presence the common quality. There’s a definite confidence to the amps’ sure-footed navigation of musical challenges and its forgiving treatment of failures, both those of recordings and its own. Unlike some amps, the 995Rs don’t get nasty if you demand too much of them. Under duress they’ll close in and roll off, but in a charmingly diffident and almost apologetic way.
Interestingly and perhaps fittingly, the amp that the 995R most resembles, both sonically and musically (as well as physically), is the VTL S-400 II. Both generate a sound of significant presence, colour and body. Both are fluid and musically articulate. Both possess exceptional expressive range. Which pretty much makes both of them class leaders in their particular amplification niche. Does it also make the Trilogy that audio Holy Grail – the solid-state(-ish) amp that sounds like tubes. Not so fast. The VTL is hardly your classic warm and wool-y tube amp: Its taught sound, low-frequency control and crisply defined dynamics definitely bring more than a hint of solid-state strengths to an all-tube circuit. The hybrid 995R approaches the same middle ground, but ironically almost sounds more tube-like than the S-400.
