Well it’s happened. Frankly I was not expecting it, and certainly not with a pair of solid-state monoblocks made in China and pitched at not a lot more than a bargain-bin price point. But there you go.
What’s happened was a recalibration, an overturning of prejudices, a recognition that contrary to the usual pattern in audio, the law of diminishing returns doesn’t always apply. What caused this epiphany is a combination of products that doesn’t just provide a sonic return fairly reflected its RRP, but one that delivers more than it has a right to for the money.
If I dub the Vincent SA-94 preamplifier and SP-995 monoblocks a sonic bargain, then that should accurately set expectations for what follows. I liked them very much. In fact having lived with them for the best part of a month I was sorry to see them go. It would be useful to have them stick around – rather in the manner of a strong neighbour who’s always there to help on those occasions when you need a lift with something weighty, or in the case of the Vincents drive a difficult speaker load. But there you go. We can’t buy everything and a consolation of reviewing is that at least one gets to try some interesting stuff from time to time.
Vincent is owned by German audio company Sintron GmbH. Sintron managing director Uwe Bartel has built an impressive brand by pairing German design with Chinese manufacture. Sadly, Vincent declined to answer my direct questions about the design philosophy and component choices used in the amps, but that doesn’t detract from the gosh-darn-honest, get-what-you-pay-for deal offered to buyers of these products. For all I know, others in the family may be even better. I am grateful to Kyri K. Christofi at vincentshop.co.uk, the exclusive Vincent dealer in the UK, who loaned me the review combo.
So, what do we have here? The SA-94 is a truly dual-mono active preamplifier that switches six sources. Cased in solid black anodised aluminium it has a front panel that enables selection of source, and control of volume and mute. On the back is a pair of XLR inputs and five pairs of RCAs. A remote controller additionally allows gain and channel balance to be adjusted.
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Thanks for such a great review. I don’t know why, but lots of people are simply sleeping on this brand…at least here in the USA they are. I own Vincent tubed power amps as well as the tube preamp and they are simply amazing at their price point…hard to beat. So I can agree with your review 100%….you are spot on in the way you described the characteristics of the Vincent products.
Vincent Audio gear is extremely underrated & has to be heard to be believed
I can understand why some people do not like Vincent because they are putting High End gear at real world prices! Ignore this company at your peril . Audition & judge for yourself!
Made in China is always a turn off for me, but it really depends on how well they are made and of course the sound quality. I like the sound quality of tubes, so the author being impressed by these amplifiers is a plus to me. I have a solid state amp made about 16 years ago, which can be switched from Class A to A/B. I like the feature, and it is useful for sound quality of different music. They can be switched to A/B to save energy.
Vincent products are “stupid good” for the money. Paired with the sublime SP-998 Mono Blocks the SA-94 Pre-Amp is superb, but it needs to be matched carefully and sounds best with Tubes from the source.
I own the SP-991 Plus power amps and I just can’t say, apart from being from China (that’s something that I really don’t care, sorry) is that after 17 years together, they ain’t been beaten for another set of amps (and I also own the most powerful stereo power amp from Electrocompaniet). Definition of their sound is smooth and ultra micro information power. They don’t sound big all the time, but only in the moments they should. I also have had Vincent’s preamplifiers like the SA-93, but to my own taste (they are not bad components at all and construction is just top) they are not in the same league of these monsters. The SP-995’s were a replacement, but they are not in the same league of the old 991’s. Same happens with the SP-998, not as much in all terms when compared.
It’s intriguing to see how the Vincent SA-94 and SP-995 defy the typical characteristics of solid-state amplification. As someone who has often found solid-state sound to be too sharp and digital, the promise of a more tonally rich and relaxed sound is quite enticing.
Thank you very much for the great review!
I have a Vincent SV-237 that was feeding my B&W 803D3, but then I had the opportunity to buy either the Vincent monoblocs SP-998 or the SP-995. Your review helped me a lot with my choice and I even got the Vincent Preamp SA-94 that I find incredible for the price. Just to make sure, I sent an email to Vincent in Germany to ask which of those monoblocs have the best performance and they replied that in their opinion, it was the the SP-995 . My speakers never sounded better, and I had a few amps before those Sp-995. Only thing I noticed is that the monoblocs are very hot all the time in class A ( I switch to class B for movies with the receiver and they are never hot then ), but that could certainly be because I never push them very loud . So here I have an amazing system with 100wpc pure class A for a fraction of the price you would pay with other renowned brands. Vincent is definitely way too underrated and I hope they can get the recognition they deserve in the HiFi world.