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Listening Room
initial impression was that it sounded
much like the reference amplifier, which
is of course much more expensive and
packs four fewer channels. None of the
recording’s exquisite detail got lost. The
timbres of the many solo instruments
used in this orchestral suite were not
only plausible, but gorgeous (which may
or may not come to the same thing). The
bassoon was especially nice, and made
us all smile. There are a lot of softer
instruments playing in the background
in sections of the suite, and so good is the
amplifier’s transparency that none was
ever hidden. The tiny clues that reveal
the reverberation were of course present.
The rhythm was flawless, and William
Walton’s clever counterpoints emerged
intact. Really, there’s not much more we
could have asked for.
Nor did the AV-6 disappoint us on
the Rutter Requiem (RR-57). The opening
of the Requiem Æternam is soft, with
the tympany marking the rhythm, and a
solo cello adding strong emotional tension.
This was a promising beginning,
and we could hear to the back of the hall.
Would the voices of the singers sound
as they would at a live concert? Pretty
much, yes. The counterpoint involving a
solo harp and the male and female choirs
was strikingly beautiful. Sibilance was
audible, as it is in real life, but without
exaggeration. The flute solo near the
end was clear and beautiful. Both Reine
and Albert used the word “majestic” to
describe the sound of the orchestra and
chorale.
Once again we were struck by the
similarity of tone between our reference
amplifier and this one. “It doesn’t have
a different coloration, either warmer or
cooler,” said Albert. “It has the same
personality as our reference, and I mean
that in the best sense.”
Clearly this Vecteur has a talent for
rendering subtle detail, and we were
certain that would stand it in good
stead on our harp recording: Marcel
Tournier’s Vers la source dans le bois (from
the Reference Recordings Sound Show
LP, and also found on a Klavier CD,
Caprice). Certainly nothing was missing.
This astonishing piece alternates
between gossamer-soft notes that could
easily vanish into the haze and powerful
chromatic chords you may not be used
to hearing from the harp. This amplifier
handled both extremes with ease, following
the melody through all of its myriad
transformations. The rhythm was rendered
with sureness. The sonic virtues of
this famous recording were all there too,
including the eerie sense of great depth.
Reine labelled the performance perfect,
and Albert wondered whether possibly
the AV-6 might be outperforming our
reference amplifier.
We knew by then that we weren’t in
for any unpleasant surprises.
Of course the Vecteur didn’t disappoint
us on the legendary Jazz at the
Pawnshop recording. We selected the
old Gershwin standard, Lady Be Good,
and enjoyed every second. The legendary
depth and ambience of this live
pub recording were well reproduced.
The percussion was excellent, neither
too light nor unduly emphasized. The
overall sound was light (in the good
sense, not because the bass is weak) but
with superb impact on the drums. The
Summing it up…
Brand/model: Vecteur AV-6
Price: C$4790/US$3590
Dimensions: 43 x 46 x 11.5 cm
Rated power: 6 x 120 watts into
8 ohms
Most liked: Warm, detailed, delightful
sound
Least liked: One channel too few, or
is it one too many?
Verdict: Audiophiles turned off by the
“AV” label won’t know what they’re
missing
cymbal, which is often troublesome, was
entirely natural.
So was the piano, the heart of
this piece (appropriately enough for a
Gershwin song). The string bass, which
can all but vanish on some systems, was
easy to follow, but without the stodginess
than can weigh down the music. Arne
Domnérus’s saxophone was clear and
sensuous, without a hint of shrillness in
the higher registers.
As sometimes happens with this
recording, the voices of the pub’s more
sobriety challenged patrons were all
too clear. At the same time, they did
seem to be farther away than usual,
and indeed we could easily gauge the
distance between ourselves and each of
the instruments.
We know from experience that some
very refined amplifiers begin to sound
gritty when they are called upon to do
heavy lifting. We looked for a recording
with challenging dynamics. For two
speaker reviews in this issue we had used
Pink Floyd’s classic Dark Side of the Moon.
We put it on. Would the Vecteur run out
of breath if we got ambitious with the
volume control?
Well, no, and we hadn’t really
expected it to. The sheer impact of the
two selections (Breath and Time) was
impressive. The nearly buried voices
underneath the layers of music and
sounds were nicely projected in space.
The famous clock sequence was crystalline
without getting shrill or annoying.
“I could have counted the clocks,” said
Reine. Added Albert, “It was a fireworks
display. It sounded at least as good as
with our reference.”
ULTRA HIGH FIDELITY Magazine 51