Tubes Asylum: REVIEW: Thor Audio TPA-30 Amplifier (Tube) by mikem

After owning the Thor Audio TPA-30 monos for a couple of months now, I thought I would post my findings. The TPA monos are round like most of Thor Audio's other components. The amps are pleasant to look at and have a very clean look. The 2 EL-34, 1 - 12BH7 and 1 - 12AT7 provide a "simple" clean layout and look very cool sitting on the black diamond cones.
There is a bias meter built into the amp which makes checking the output tubes very easy and fast. The amps are hard wired using circuit boards only to hold the components in place. A discovery power cord, Cardas binding posts are standard and expected on amps in this class/price range.
The instruction manual said about 100 hours of break in are required before
the sound is "there". It even listed the different sonics that would be experienced during break-in.
I experienced one problem with the amps. I noticed one of them had a mechanical hum that was a bit louder than I expected. I called Paul Marks at Thor and explained the problem. He told me to run it for another week and see if it quiets down. Well.. it never did get any better. Paul had me send them back and found out the power supply was not within spec. He replaced both of them and sent them back. I was only without music for 4 days. Shipping was handled by Thor. Paul was very responsive and made sure the amps were returned quickly. The amps are packed very well and would easily handle a rough treatment.

The sound...

I had a few reasons for going with the Thor amps. One reason was the Thor linestage that I have had in my system now for about a year. After trying several other preamps including the Hovland, BAT, Cary, Heron.. nothing offered the musicality of the thor. Its all there.. detail, SS ,image.. and all in the form of music.. nothing distracts. Very natural and balanced.
The other main reason was the power rating. As much as I liked the SET world, they were still limiting. Cresendos, loud bass had their limits.
I wanted something that had the mid-range magic but could also handle the 1812 overture. The Thor TPA-30's fall in that range. They are capable of being detailed and sweet, and can blast and thump when necessary pushing my 91db sensitive speakers to whatever levels necessary without fear of clipping or distorting.
Vocals are sweet and full bodied with lots of air. The performers are in the room front and centered with life sized images. Full bodied with depth!
Big band sounds wide and laid back. The brass doesn't make me cringe anymore. It comes thru detailed and smooth, not squeeky and hard. Cymbals are clear and have life. They decay with detail and clarity that make me aware of what I was missing before.
The highs are smooth.. ever so smooth.. but they are real. Not rolled off. Just smooth, never fatiguing. I can sit for hours listening to the big band sound and not want to get up!
The bass.. again, natural and smooth. I fired up the Paula Cole "tiger"
CD. WOW! I never heard such deep low bass. I had a few people over and they were all stunned by the ability of these 30 watts pushing some deep bass.
More importantly is the way the bass sounds natural. The way it works with the mids and the highs.
The amps have a great top to bottom balance. Never sounding harsh, never artificial. Well balanced and smooth, but with finesse and detail.
A SET on steriods would be a way to describe the sound.
While the TPA-30 monos are not inexpensive, they do provide SET like qualities with full bodied top to bottom balance. They have simplified my system and made the music more enjoyable. They can play all types of music and drive real world speakers. I like the fact that I can have all these fine attributes in one package. I am enjoying the music more than ever not only because it sounds great, but also becuase life has become a bit less complicated.
mike

REVIEW: Thor Audio TPA-30 Amplifier (Tube) Review by mikem at Audio Asylum