Amp/Preamp Asylum: REVIEW: VIVA Solista Mk2 Amplifier (Tube) by nabcs

Model:	Solista Mk2
Category:	Amplifier (Tube)
Suggested Retail Price:	$15000
Description:	SET 845
Manufacturer URL:	VIVA

Review by nabcs on April 14, 2008 at 04:24:28
IP Address: 193.126.232.117 Add Your Review
for the Solista Mk2

One year has passed since I bought the Amp VIVA SOLISTA LT (SET 845).
Many hours of pleasures and emotions...a fantastic amp.

But my dealer calls me last month..."I received a new amp that will replace your Solista LT".

I donâ€™t change components frequently, and told to my dealer this is not the time to change again..."But Nuno you have to listen this...is brilliant, fantastic...one of the best amp Iâ€™ve ever heard" said my dealer.

Such a enthusiastic words convinced me, and next day the amp was in my house.

Surprise!!...but this is a VIVA amp !?...My dealer: "This is the new amp from VIVA, model SOLISTA Mk2. This new amp from VIVA is the SOLISTA (not the LT, but the big brother) with new transformers and other modifications...and a new price...a big price (15.000 Euro!!).

Sincerely I look to the new amp with mistrust..."humm...maybe this is the sound of VIVA LT but with more power...I donâ€™t need this"...my thoughts.

Description of VIVA SOLISTA Mk2:

A Integrated SET Amp equipped with two 845 for power and two 211 for rectifiers (yes is true, big 211s has rectifiers!)...and 22 watts of power (the LT only have 16 watts).
This thing is a beast...50 Kg of weight in a really big chassis. The design is similar to the Solista LT, simple, beautiful, painted with gloss black.

The Sound:

The 1st impression was the bass...more controlled, deeper and better definition than my LT, but was the clarity and transparency that stroked me...so much better than the Solista LT...not a step, but a full stairs above my LT. Compared to the SOLISTA MK2, the LT seems veiled, muted.

One of the strengths of the LT is the dynamics, but my friends, the MK2 put the LT to shame. The drums on "Nina Nastasia and Jim White - You Follow Me" was fast, solid, lifelike...never heard this CD like this, and I have listen this on big solid state amps, like Musical Fidelity KW500 (have a bass more tight, but not full and less expression...unnatural); the double bass on "Antony and the Johnsons - I am a bird now" was so natural and full like I heard live on concert last year.

On "Beirut - The flying club cup" the LT had some trouble with more complex passages with many instruments, but the MK2 donâ€™t have this kind of problem and the music of Beirut won a new dimension through the Mk2.

Resuming, the Mk2 is a big upgrade in sound, with natural dynamics like I never heard before, with real and natural bass...not only full, but fast and dynamic. The clarity is another big step compared to the LT, while retain the beautiful midband that we appreciate in SET designs.

True, 15.000 Euro is big money for a integrated amp, but the sound is in another league...I have to listen a better amp, and believe me, I heard all kind of amps in my house (solid state, push pull and SET amps).

Guess what? I bought this amp.

Product Weakness:	None.
Product Strengths:	Dynamics, natural bass, clarity, transparency.

Associated Equipment for this Review:

Amplifier: Solista LT
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): None
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Esoteric X01D2
Speakers: Tannoy Prestige Kensington
Cables/Interconnects: Auditorium 23
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Jazz, Pop/Rock Alternative, Americana, etc.
Room Size (LxWxH): 6 x 4,5 x 3
Room Comments/Treatments: Some plants and a carpet.
Time Period/Length of Audition: 1 month
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): Isotek Titan
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner

Amplifier:	Solista LT
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	None
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Esoteric X01D2
Speakers:	Tannoy Prestige Kensington
Cables/Interconnects:	Auditorium 23
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Jazz, Pop/Rock Alternative, Americana, etc.
Room Size (LxWxH):	6 x 4,5 x 3
Room Comments/Treatments:	Some plants and a carpet.
Time Period/Length of Audition:	1 month
Other (Power Conditioner etc.):	Isotek Titan
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner