Amp/Preamp Asylum: REVIEW: Ultra Fi Sebring Stereo 300B Amplifier (Tube) by theromium

Model:	Sebring Stereo 300B
Category:	Amplifier (Tube)
Suggested Retail Price:	$3250
Description:	Class A; 8 watts/channel 300B Stereo Amp
Manufacturer URL:	Ultra Fi
Model Picture:	View

Review by theromium on July 21, 2008 at 13:31:06
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for the Sebring Stereo 300B

The Ultra Fi Sebring Stereo 300B is the 1st 300B amp that I have owned. The fit, finish, and build quality is absolutely top notch.
It appears somewhat minimalist but that very much lends to its graceful good looks.

I did have a few informative conversations with Larry Moore, the designer, but the technical aspect is not my area, so I wonâ€™t delve into that. The Sebring does have 4 James Audio transformers atop a narrow in height black base. It came stock with 2 current production EH 300B Power tubes and 2 early 70â€™s vintage NOS RCA 6SN7. I did swap out the RCA for late 50â€™s GE 6SN7-GTB tubes. They seemed to very slightly flesh out the tonality and add a touch of fullness to the sound. The front is without any knobs or switches and the back panel is simply 2 pairs of solid Cardas gold speaker binding postâ€™s, a pair of gold Cardas RCA inputs, ICE receptacle, and a toggle power switch.

If not for a gut feeling and the stellar comments about Larryâ€™s other amps I probably would not have chosen a 300B amp. My thinking at the time was that the 300B might be a little too romantic in the mid band for my tastes. Lets just say that in the case of the Sebring, I was wrong. I was quite surprised in my first listening sessions that it was actually very linear in nature. At 8w/ch it was more than enough to drive my 101dB efficient Druid. Neutral and quiet with just the right amount of mid range warmth and slight lushness. I let it burn in for a few weeks before any critical listening and it always sounded good.

I have come to really like this amp.
And although I will describe its different attributes, its real strength lies in itâ€™s natural,
realistic ease of presentation. No mater what the type of music, it never really seems to be stressed;..the music always has a very true to life quality.

For me this begins with the fact that it portrays the tone, timbre, prat, and note density
from a dark and quite background. The bodies of the notes have depth and extension that allow the tone an authority to convey a â€œlive in the roomâ€ sound. Proper attack, excellent note decay and resonance add to the equation. Acoustic instruments have body and texture, vocalists are in the room.

As expected, the Sebring excels with Jazz, Chamber, Baroque, Acoustical and Folk music
I was pleasantly surprised that it is also very good to excellent with full orchestral and rock and roll. Handling dynamic swings; going from dramatically loud to subtlety soft
with a certain deft ease. Although the dynamic drive and extension in the room is limited it never subtracted from the overall excellence. It reaches into the highs with clarity and a good sense of air and is even better at the low end. Tight, focused, and clear is what I consistently hear from the bass notes. They are never artificially loud or boomy and although my Druid only reaches down to the 35-40 level, I rarely felt that I was missing anything.

Sound staging from side to side is very good. Sound field depth is good, not getting excessively deep but stills allows for a layering of the players, front to back. Transparency is just ok, but again this was not an issue as all the music is there and there is a realistic spacing. One of the nicer aspects is that boundaries literal disappear; speakers and front wall are gone.

The only downside that I can mention is that it is sensitive to changes in the system. The hum level is almost non exsistant (only audible with ear direct to speaker at about 3 feet) But when a cable sometimes touched another, or when I went to put wood blocks under another piece of gear while the amp was on, the hum level went up. It was always easily resolved (packing peanut between the cables, speaker cables up off my synthetic carpet, turn the amp off before any changes. Anyway it always wen't back to its very silent manner, so it isn't really an issue. Soundstage depth and transparency is slightly less than some oter amps I heard, but again this is a minor nit pick on my part.

So overall it is obvious that I love what this amp does. Offering a refined detail that is tonally rich. Good extension in the highs and an excellent tight and deep bass. It is excellent or at least very good with a wide variety of music. It does so many things right that I truly just enjoy the music. It portrays all the details in a tonally correct manner and never really calls attention to itself;...it makes the music a presence in the room which is what makes it a great amp.

This is an exceedingly good amp and I highly recommend an audition to any one interested in a low powered type .

Product Weakness:	Soundstage depth could be deeper.
Product Strengths:	Tonal correctness and clarity from top to bottom. Excels with a wide range of music styles. Always sounds very natural.

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: Melody I2A3
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): CI Audio VPC-1
Sources (CDP/Turntable): AMR CD-77
Speakers: Zu Druid Mk. IV
Cables/Interconnects: Zu, AZ
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Orchestral, Jazz, Baroque, Acoustical, RocknRoll
Room Size (LxWxH): 15 x 23 x 8
Room Comments/Treatments: Carpet and vertical blinds
Time Period/Length of Audition: 4 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): Resonator
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner

Amplifier:	Melody I2A3
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	CI Audio VPC-1
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	AMR CD-77
Speakers:	Zu Druid Mk. IV
Cables/Interconnects:	Zu, AZ
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Orchestral, Jazz, Baroque, Acoustical, RocknRoll
Room Size (LxWxH):	15 x 23 x 8
Room Comments/Treatments:	Carpet and vertical blinds
Time Period/Length of Audition:	4 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Resonator
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner