Amp/Preamp Asylum: REVIEW: Red Wine Audio Teac AL700P Amplifier (SS) by franjy

Model:	Teac AL700P
Category:	Amplifier (SS)
Suggested Retail Price:	$449
Description:
Manufacturer URL:	Red Wine Audio
Manufacturer URL:	Red Wine Audio

Review by franjy ( A ) on December 11, 2005 at 08:48:38
IP Address: 205.188.116.71

Add Your Review
for the Teac AL700P

It had been a month since I replaced my Mac MC-122 with Red Wine's modded Teac. The amp that Vinnie's (yes, that Vinnie) Teac replaced was originally $1200.
Not the costliest amp I've ever bought, but one of the nicest amp's I've ever owned.
The first week spent with the Teac was as expected. Even though I had used the stock Teac for 3 weeks before sending it to Vinnie, it was like
starting from scratch again. The big caps Vinnie installs probably take longer to break in than the much smaller stock ones.
In either case, improve it did...to the point where I knew I'd be keeping the Teac. But not before I gave my old favorite a last chance. After all, I hadn't listened to it in a month.
The differences were far greater than I expected! The Red Wine Teac was even clearer than I thought. The clarity and detail surprised me.
Some of the glare that I associated to poor recordings or to Titus' metal tweeter was gone, replaced by as sweet and airy a treble as I've ever heard.
Some who say the Titus 202 is harsh should look upstream (It seems Triangle has brought back this classic and renamed it the Elite, smart move).
I've read many reviews that referred to "grain", something I never fully understood. Until Vinnies modded Teac removed it.
With so much greater detail and nuance, the added richness it brings to singers voices makes Barber, Krall, and Allyson seem real.
Piano is remarkable. The forceful "pings" of hard hit keys are perfect, just the right bite without going over the top. And there's absolutely no hum. Full volume, ear to speaker.
But what about the bass you say? So much tighter and punchier than the Mac, there's no comparison.
At this point, I've owned the Teac 6 months and am thoroughly pleased with it.
I'm no "golden ear" but I don't think you could beat this amp at 3 times the price. (Batteries Inc.)
The mods are quite extensive as you can see below.
Be sure to check out Vinnie's website and his site at Audio Circles. He's modding All kinds of things.
Information from Red Wine Audio website,
-- Power output: ~ 30W into 6-ohms (at 0.01% THD+N)
-- Battery type: two 12V SLA, 3.4 Ah each
-- Battery charger: 12V SLA 1,000mA "Auto-Charger"
-- Recommended maximum play time between charges: 10 hours
Power Delivery Modifications
i. Complete removal of the noisy, under-performing stock switch-mode power supply
ii. Installation of two 12V SLA batteries (each rated at 3.4Ah) for the purest possible power
supply
iii. Installation of a high quality ON/CHARGE toggle switch (silver plated contacts) mounted to
the front of the unit, centered between the Teac logo and blue power LED (see picture above).
When the included 1000mA battery charger is not connected, this is essentially an
ON/OFF switch.
iv. Installation of a DC charger jack on the back panel for the SLA battery charger plug
Stereo Amplifier Board Modifications
i. Direct wiring of the +24V power line directly to the Tripath TP2050 chip. This provides the
cleanest and most direct power path to the Tripath chip, reducing noise as well as the series
resistance and inductance contained in the amplifier board traces.
ii. Replacement of the cheap, under-rated 35V, 1,000uF power supply decoupling cap with a
low ESR 50V, 1,500uF Panasonic FC capacitor (the Tripath datasheet specifies that a 50V
rating is required for this application)
iii. Installation of an additional 50V, 3,300uF Panasonic TSHA power supply storage
capacitor (low ESR) for the +24V power line, bypassed with a 0.1uF poly cap
iv. Direct wiring of the +5V power line from the voltage regulator to the amplifier board, plus the
addition of a hard-wired Panasonic FC decoupling capacitor for the +5V rail.
Two-Channel Conversion Modifications
i. Removal of the cheap volume potentiometer board
ii. Installation of new gold RCA input jacks (one stereo pair)
iii. Direct wiring from the RCA stereo input jacks to the amplifier board via Auricap signal
coupling capacitors. This completely bypasses the cheap stock RCA jacks, connectors
and cable to and from the potentiometer board, and the connector and board traces to the
amplifier board.
iv. Removal of unused center channel amplifier board
Vibration Control
i. Vibration dampening sheets applied under top cover and inside unit where needed to
minimize resonance

Product Weakness: 10 hour max. playing time. 3 year battery replacement.
Product Strengths: Clarity, detail, tight bass, no hum, no power cables required,
Automatic charger turns on and off with amp switch.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	Teac Tripath
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	Custom Goldpoint Passive (Vishay)
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Sony SCD 555 es Oade Mods
Speakers:	Triangle Titus 202/Rava SE 24 DB@50HZ
Cables/Interconnects:	AP 12's/ DIY 26 ga silver-Eichman plugs
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Singers, jazz, classical
Room Size (LxWxH):	24 x 15 x 8 to12
Room Comments/Treatments:	Minimum- Listen near field
Time Period/Length of Audition:	6 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Jon Risch for CD only.
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

Product Weakness:	10 hour max. playing time. 3 year battery replacement.
Product Strengths:	Clarity, detail, tight bass, no hum, no power cables required, Automatic charger turns on and off with amp switch.