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Tube
Power Amp Reviews

Dynaco Stereo 70 II power amplifier Manufacturer's Comment

Manufacturer's Comment

Editor: My response to Corey's incompetent review of the Stereo 70/II should
be just that—a letter to Corey:

Point/Counterpoint: Corey. You incredibly misguided wordmeister. If,
as you say, you want to find the best-sounding affordable tube gear, the
new Stereo 70/II should have lit your fire. After all, every major audiophile
publication in the world has rated the ST-70 as a great value, with The
Abso!ute Sound concluding that its "clarity and detail are nothing less than
stunning."

First of all, using a ProAc Response Two with a sensitivity of 86dB and a
minimum power rating of 50W is a mismatch. A speaker with at least 90dB
efficiency must be used to audition the Stereo 70/II. Next, what the hell is an
Aunt Corey's Passive Preamp doing in a so-called high-end critic's system? I've
never seen it rated by any publication, including Stereophile, and doubt
whether it can drive the ST-70 to full output. I've heard all about your room,
with its slap-back echo and compressor noise, so enough is wrong with your setup
to invalidate your opinion altogether. Now, let's look at your critique.

Regarding the use of bandwidth-limiting filters: This is known in the biz as
"prior art," and neither Van Alstine nor Dynaco can claim that it is an original
concept. In any case, we are not old enough to be geezers, and name-calling is
just another way for you to distract your readers with your gonzo bull. Putting
the circuit board on top as you say for easy access, also allows dirt, dust, and
humidity to attack the board. We use a much larger circuit board than any of
your modifier friends, with tube sockets PC-board$nmounted to eliminate one
sonic variable, the wiring placement. Further, the circuit board on the new
ST-70 is under the chassis to shield the circuitry from both electrical
interference and tube heat radiation. It is fully protected from the environment
by a removable metal cover for service or modkateers. It is obvious you just
won't let go of the past, and that brings us to the next rub.

No audio dealer in the US or anywhere else carries the old Stereo 70.
Consumers cannot go into any store we know of and compare the old vs the
new, but since you insist on comparing the two, I must point out that reviewers
the world over have covered that topic already. There is simply no comparison.
The Stereo 70 Series II outperforms the original in every area of performance,
and that is, again, old news. Tom Norton of Stereophile pointed out in
his review of the Genesis IM-5200 Vol.14 No.10, p.172 that the new Stereo
70 outperformed the Audio Research Classic 120s in the bass, treble,
imaging, and depth categories, but doubted if a passive preamp could drive the
ST-70/II adequately. Ken Kessler also raved about the bass and treble
improvement in the new 70 in his report in Hi-Fi News & Record Review
in April. Since we are already the best-selling 35W stereo tube amp in the world
again, consumers have written to tell us as well how the new 70 is the
best-sounding amp they found at any price. So what are we to believe? That you
are right and the rest of the world is wrong?

Comparing the new 70 to a $5000 pair of VTLs is also ludicrous. Although we
admire and respect the VTL, within the 1 to 30W range, there is just not $4000
worth of difference. In fact, I challenge you to a blind test wherein we can A/B
compare the two systems. If you want to be credible again, you will take up the
challenge. Although I have been invited to resubmit the Stereo 70/II for another
review by your publisher, we at Dynaco have invested too much time, effort, and
money to let you or any of your other associates play fast and loose with our
reputation. Your personally biased approach is an insult to your readers and
manufacturers alike, and serves no useful purpose. This time you picked on the
best-loved brand of all time. And we say, enough is enough.

Your conclusion that we sound better than most of the sub-$1000 solid-state
"dreck" out there is contradicted in the very next paragraph. Get it straight.
Which "dreck" are you talking about? Which other gear don't we keep pace with?
Name names if you dare, or was this just more of your typical BS? You clearly
have no idea what materials, labor, and overhead costs of manufacturing are in
the US today, or you would know why the new 70 is such an achievement. There are
no other tube amps at $995 selling in stores. It is, in fact, the greatest amp
for the money, and that's why it is the best seller in its category. You take
yourself way too seriously, and you do the readers of Stereophile a great
disservice with your misinformation. I'm not the first manufacturer to make this
claim, but I hope I'm the last.

We at Dynaco abhor the lack of professionalism you employ to reach your
conclusions, and know without a doubt that your review was written to generate
controversy and thus sell more magazines. It is pathetic that you have to resort
to this kind of tabloid journalism to make a living.—Bob Rapoport, Dynaco

P.S. After reading your latest article ("As
We See It," Vol.15 No.7), it is obvious to all that your methodology is
flawed. Your catharsis shows your immaturity as a reviewer and further erodes
your credibility. Thanks for putting your foot in your mouth before our
review came out!

To the publisher and editor of Stereophile:

As with any product, the Stereo 70/II has its flaws and its virtues. All we
expect from any publication is a fair, unbiased, and thorough approach.
Virtually every other critic has used a few different speakers with the new 70
to find its strengths and weaknesses, whereas Corey only used a speaker which is
too inefficient to be driven by a 35W amp. He made no attempt to explain this
limitation in his review, which most other professional audio critics would have
done. I suppose if he had written a rave review, we would not be writing this
kind of letter. But I must say, the impact of your reviews on people's lives is
profound, and for that reason, you should be mindful of doing a good job.

We believe in free speech and know your readers are intelligent enough to
take what you write with a grain of salt. We now join a growing number of
manufacturers who will not submit products to you for evaluation. We are not
afraid of the truth, as evidenced by our willingness to submit our products to
any publication interested in reviewing them. Our experience with
Stereophile has been marked by a feeling that we are not part of your
"clique," and this has troubled us the most.

We have made a sincere effort to bring back a great American brand. To make
improvements in the original designs, build them with pride in the USA, and keep
the high-value reputation for which we are known, our primary concern.—Bob
Rapoport, Dynaco

Regarding the specific points made by the obviously angry Mr. Rapoport—he
would be wise to read Robert
Deutsch's article elsewhere in this issue—I am satisfied that there is no
mismatch between the ProAc Response 2's sensitivity and the power output of the
revised Stereo 70. Indeed, I feel that the kind modulus of impedance of the
ProAc makes it a prime candidate for use with tube amplifiers of limited current
delivery, such as the Nobis and Dynaco models. Indeed, this whole mismatch idea
is a red herring. Bob Rapoport told me during a telephone conversation on July
22 that he strongly recommends the Celestion
SL600Si for use with the Stereo 70/II, a loudspeaker at least 4dB less
sensitive than the ProAc. Ken Kessler even used the 6dB less-sensitive LS3/5a
in his evaluation.

Regarding Mr. Rapoport's comments on the quality of Corey's listening
environment, these are misinformed hearsay from, I was told by Mr. Rapoport,
Scientific Fidelity's Michael Maloney (whose Tesla speaker, of course, last
April received less than favorable reviews from a number of the magazine's
writers, including Corey). In fact, I have spent some time listening to music in
the room Mr. Maloney apparently described to Mr. Rapoport, and am convinced that
it suffered from neither slap echo nor "compressor noise" [presumably from
the refrigerator in the kitchen]. In any case, CG moved before undertaking
this amplifier review, and will describe his new room in a forthcoming "Matter
of Taste" article.

And if readers would care to re-read TJN's review of the Genesis IM-5200,
they will see that his doubts about passive preamplifiers were general, not
specific to the Stereo 70/II, and are actually not relevant to this discussion,
Corey's preamp having
an active output stage. (Having auditioned Corey's preamp, I am confident that
it is suitable for use as a reviewing tool.) Tom's preference for the Dynaco
over the Audio Research amplifier was also specifically meant in the context of
the Genesis speakers, which have a rather up-tilted balance. I suspect that the
Dynaco's deliberate treble-response tailoring was a strong factor here.

Regarding Corey's reference in the review to the sound of an original but
refurbished Stereo 70, I felt at the time the review was commissioned—and still
feel—that this is a fair comparison due to the large population of original
amplifiers still out there and still obtainable used from specialist sources.
Although Larry Archibald and Tom Norton discussed further coverage of the sound
of the Stereo 70/II in the magazine's pages in telephone conversations with Mr.
Rapoport, this was as a result of Mr. Rapoport informing them that he believed
Stereophile reports included comment from multiple reviewers and that he
wished this had been the case with this review. In fact, as regular readers will
be aware, this is not standard Stereophile procedure, though it is
at The Abso!ute Sound.

At Stereophile, I do organize further coverage when the outcome of
a review is controversial, as was the case with the EAD DSP-7000 also reviewed
in this issue. Although LA points out that he made no such offer to Bob
Rapoport, I did mention this policy to Bob in our aforementioned telephone
conversation. However, on behalf of Panor, Mr. Rapoport declined any further
coverage in Stereophile, both in respect to Dynaco products and to
products that Panor distributes, such as the Acoustic Energy loudspeakers.

On a more general point, I work hard to ensure that this magazine's value
judgments and sonic descriptions are both correct and not the result of bias.
There is also no "clique" of manufacturers whose products we recommend. I
am saddened, therefore, by Mr. Rapoport's flailing around to find any
reason—other than the Stereo 70/II's sound quality—to explain CG's value
judgments. Are we wrong and the "rest of the world" right? Personally, I
don't find it surprising that an amplifier with a deliberate bass rolloff was
found by my reviewer to sound lean. I was also saddened to read the following
letter, which was faxed to Stereophile's East Coast advertising
representative, Ken
Nelson, the day after I had what I thought was a civilized telephone
conversation with Mr. Rapoport. For the record, reviews in this magazine are
fair, thorough, correct, and unbiased; threats of withdrawal of advertising have
no influence on the publication of a review.—John Atkinson

To Ken Nelson, Nelson & Associates

Dear Ken, much to my dismay, the owner of Panor Corp., Dynaco's parent
company, has ordered that we cancel our ad program with Stereophile
magazine. I argued on behalf of keeping our ads going, saying that it would
serve no useful purpose, and perhaps would make us look bad, but he would not
hear of it. His argument is that any publication that publishes a review
that is unfair, not thorough, and biased, is not going to receive any support
from Panor now or in the future.

My rebuttal to Corey’s review says it all. This is all very unfortunate. If
you can do anything on your end to stop this review from being published until a
fair or more professional article can be written, it would help diffuse this
situation.

I spoke to JA yesterday in an attempt to reason with him, but he was an
asshole to me on the phone. As expected, he defended Corey.

I can tell you from my conversations with dealers and reps over the last
week, that Corey’s latest ranting and raving over which music to use to evaluate
systems has had a very negative response. Oh sure, some of the readers in his
age range will agree, but us boomers think it is just a further lowering of the
standards Stereophile used to represent.—Bob Rapoport,
Dynaco.

COMPANY INFO

Dynaco

125 Cabot Court

Hauppage, NY 11788

(631) 434-1200

http://www.dynaco.com/

ARTICLE CONTENTS

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