Unboxing a $300,000 Audio Note Stereo System

[@SantanKGhey1234]

I like Lewis, he doesnt interupt when someone is speaking... thats respect

[@thedude6478]

The way you put it: also respect !😊

[@digggerrjones7345]

Yes, "he who shall not be named" has no respect for others *nor* himself!

[@thedude6478]

@@digggerrjones7345 well that’s a bit strong. I’d be excited too. Maybe his excitement just came off as such. It was nonetheless a bit overbearing

[@pswitzeny]

Not to mention Lewis is pretty much the nicest guy you will ever meet! It doesn't come across in these videos, but he's actually a very funny guy, too.

[@georgemartinezza]

ha haha - is it serious?

[@68arild]

For that kind of money the amp should arrive in a really nice flight case, Amazing at this level it looks a lot like DIY. You got my attention would love to hear this system I have to beleilve it sounds amazing which is what it is all about!

[@edmaster3147]

I like my gear arriving in cheap cartboard boxes, it's quite usefull getting the fire started in the wood-stove. After all, one has to save a bit every now and then. So AN best make a nice packaging optional extra, I prefer the current one :)

[@OCDHIFiGuy]

Totally Ari....was thinking the same thing. I sell 20K monos that come in Pelican cases. This is a bitch slap. It's good but nowhere near its price. It's that "stupid" level of hifi made simply because they know there are people out there that throw money away at "stuff"... it's actually knowingly designed for these people..#ocdhifiguy

[@georgemartinezza]

I've seen Nikon Nikkor lenses in better cases.

[@Fluterra]

It’s because this is the Audio Note UK Copy - get the Ongaku from the original brand, Kondo AN Japan, and it comes in a proper wood crate.

[@McWhatevs]

A $800 phone comes in a better box. Ridic

[@AudioheavenDenmark]

It's a amazing amplifier. The best 211 amplifier out there. People need to understand than building those are freaking expensive. As all parts are made in house with the best materials ever. Just the inner core within the transformers ect are specially made. Core materials are the best ect ect ect. It might sound expensive. But it's not. It takes a lot of time to build them. All parts inside are audio notes own designs. Resistors. Capacitors. Wires. Valve bases ect. Everything is made by audio note UK.

[@Gez492]

Absolutely this company builds amazing products

[@burton7023]

300 thousand dollars my a- -

[@AudioheavenDenmark]

@@burton7023 if you have them there. That's fine lol

[@burton7023]

@@AudioheavenDenmark again 300 thousand dollars lmfao 🤣

[@AudioheavenDenmark]

@@burton7023 that's for both the amplifier and speakers. And Canadian dollar's. I know it's a lot of money. But it's also very good. You can easily burn more money and get a lot worse hehe

[@twochaudiomg2578]

The guy with the cap is a real comedian. He just keeps talking

[@robnorth-1372]

Loved the design of the Mk 1 Ongaku. Built one 25 ish years ago. Peter was very helpful, top bloke.

[@AudioheavenDenmark]

Spx is the wiring used inside. He is high efficiency. Signature is external crossover.

[@adrianlow2114]

thanks, yes finally figured it out

[@marantz7783]

Love Audionote UK--Peter has a great ear and killer LP collection-Hi peter

[@Hypofx]

Nice thanks, compare to Kondo Ongaku AN as well just from Japan

[@andrejensen7837]

Heard the ongaku some 35 years ago in copenhagen. Had no idea of the price, but could hear the sound was in another class than my nakamichi with diy planars.

[@swd7901]

Wow! Please compare these speakers with the much, much less expensive AN-J Hemp speakers that you have a rave review of a couple of weeks ago (+ other AN speakers you may have)

[@pswitzeny]

YES!! A double unboxing video!! Twice the fun....

[@adrianlow2114]

lol

[@chatrs1025]

Looks like this amp got pure silver RCA jacks. Its all signal internal wires might be pure silver too for this high price.

[@xfloodcasual8124]

I'm familiar with most of their components, they say break-in is 200-ish hours, but I've heard changes up to 350 hours every time. Keep track of your hours, because the sound will change a lot.

[@vilipmak3973]

Audionote would not be the only gear to need hundreds of hours for break-in.

[@xfloodcasual8124]

@@vilipmak3973 Exactly

[@sidesup8286]

For the price of that amp oe even just the speaker you could buy a nice house in some places. Of course the house won't make sound. Unless it's an old house.

[@adrianlow2114]

lol

[@christopherspiro9857]

Japanese samurai made. By a master ! Big time!

[@zeppelin2900]

Can't wait for next video You guys are great

[@georgebartolo8856]

I remember seeing the amp in the PMC room @ the Toronto audio fest.

[@AmazonasBiotop]

Wow that is great with a speaker that has no crossover! That is how ALL speakers should be done. Then for convince or lack of knowledge there is the option to buy the external crossover. For all others that wants to take it to level 6. It is now easy to exclude the crossover when it is external and hook up a amp directly to each driver! There is many advantages by doing that and that is maybe one reason AN did not put the crossover in the speaker box. That audiophiles can go active! 😍

[@artyfhartie2269]

Good decent bloke. It shows. God bless.

[@UberPilot]

72k for a Snell type E. Ouch. Is this Ongaku hand wired? Asking for a friend.

[@MsCorbacho]

Cannot understand how such an expensive amp does not come in a wooden crate , Is the price not high enough to do that ?????

[@Nephilim-81]

Holy shit, guys! Now that is an amp!!

[@philhunter9134]

I can’t help but wonder what ‘Xanadu’ sounds like through the Ongaku.

[@adrianlow2114]

The Olivia Newton John version?

[@philhunter9134]

@@adrianlow2114 Rush.

[@adrianlow2114]

@@philhunter9134 I was being facetious :)

[@philhunter9134]

@@adrianlow2114 Yeah. I should have known. ✌️

[@mikeg5054]

$300,000 amplifier and $5 power cable I guess I don't believe in snake oil !!!

[@nicktube3904]

I suppose you a allot the learn, in both audio and the healthy openminded world.

[@jackhu112]

Anyone spend this amount of money probably have quit a few high end cables to match according to their own taste ! But at the of the day its a personal hobby , for all I know they might use the amp with amazon basic cables drive a pair of $500 speakers and be happy about it ! But one thing for sure audio note is cutting corners or at least cutting unnecessary cost!

[@vilipmak3973]

@@jackhu112 AN sounds best with AN including all their cables.

[@louisperlman8030]

Please let us know what the amp sound like with 224 hours of use 😅

[@adrianlow2114]

lol

[@fredericvasquez316]

Very generous guys, Wonderfull

[@adrianlow2114]

Thanks

[@FiveFingerDeathPunch213]

Totally madness 😂

[@SantanKGhey1234]

Does Philip own pants? Isnt it winter in Toronto? or hes one of those?

[@vilipmak3973]

That's Vilip, Manny…

[@mikelm222]

There is an Audionote UK - If you check it out you see this is so - and I understand that the amps are different from the Japanese ones.

[@pyntzer]

Kids in a candy store! Nice.

[@fatphoca5009]

why did they give the spe crossover? shouldn't it be spx?

[@vilipmak3973]

We've asked the factory to rectify this situiation. The SPe crossover still sounds good.

[@fatphoca5009]

@@vilipmak3973 I'm sure it does but glad they will give you the correct matching crossover.

[@jamesschneider3828]

Villip is already selling accessories (power cord).

[@vilipmak3973]

AN makes some nice ones too. Email me for pricing…

[@deneszoltan2160]

Why this copy, and not the original Kondo?

[@vilipmak3973]

What is Kondo is really no longer the original Audionote Japan. Kondo san passed away several years ago.

[@jensastrup1940]

You should probably learn some more about your products if you are to a dealer 😂 Like, SPx is the kind of cabling used. Also, make sure to break these babies in with bass-heavy music for 3-500 hours before you start listening to them. It sure about this model, but my E’s took +400 hours before they were listenable.

[@adrianlow2114]

Yes we should, though I did try, and the website wasn't helpful. And just to be spiteful, we are uploading our first impressions with only 100 hours!

[@leoham4756]

One can nearly build a concerthall: for the real sound

[@psyphonyxaudio]

When is the AudioNote open house?

[@hifi-photo-Brian]

Audio Inputs on the side? Is having cables everywhere a new trend I don't know about? 🤣

[@Gez492]

Cannot wait to hear what you guys think. Audio Note is such a left field British brand its already Iconic. Its probably going to ruin you if you listen to Audionote knowing you can only really afford Mackintosh...just saying

[@edmaster3147]

The best spent money on audio gear was on AN for me, along a lot of modding by guys who have good contacts to AN. Better spend a bit more on something great, there is no shame in saving up.

[@Fluterra]

You Unboxed the Copy! The brand to have is Kondo Japan Audio Note. AN UK is literally a copy. And not a good one. Look at the components and build quality - there’s no comparison. It is NOT the ‘fabled’ anything. The fabled unit is from Kondo Japan!! As usual, this site gets it wrong.

[@shanestephenson8423]

I LOVE the unboxing video's 😂😂😂😂😂

[@adrianlow2114]

haha, we do them just for you!

[@shanestephenson8423]

@@adrianlow2114 l feel special now thanks Adrian 😂😂😂

[@adrianlow2114]

@@shanestephenson8423 You are!

[@thedude6478]

I can’t believe he just put the tube on the floor. Place the amp on its final resting spot and THEN get to the tubes

[@JohnVander70]

That’s a sexy amplifier.

[@robertogarlaschi7826]

All this money for to listen 1 record or cc?.

[@groovesick]

That speaker is Level 4, not 5. still f*ing amazing though !!

[@gregglowery3452]

I wonder if that amp would drive a pair of LRS+

[@nathanbell6962]

No

[@gregglowery3452]

@@nathanbell6962 Maybe 2 of them as monoblocks?😊

[@austenrichardgeorge842]

Yes - the best sound I have ever heard from Magnepan was when it was run with Audio Note gear. In fact, the sound is the ONLY time I have heard Magnepan sound good enough that I would consider buying Magnepan. Maggies are typically impedance stable speakers and sit mostly 4ohm - as such so long as the amplifier has four ohm taps that don't suck - it's not that difficult for AN or other good SET amplifiers. Soundhounds in Victoria sells Magnepan and often had AN amps or the Wyatech Labs 211 amp (transformers from Audio Note) and it sounded great. Then you listen to their flagship Rote/Sim Audio/Classe and Bryston amps and the Maggies turned to utter shyte. Maybe they play louder but that's a bad trade IMO. The AN Soro and Maggie is a great match - and the SORO is quite reasonably priced - well for Audio Note it is reasonable.

[@jmbaug1229]

Excellent content 👌🏼

[@adrianlow2114]

Thanks!

[@HarriAlajaaski]

Crossover said SPE HE..., not SPx. I think it is wrong xover.

[@metroboom25289]

Proceeds to the sale of audio note gears should go to charity

[@urimaimon3763]

I usually like Adrian's level headed approach to review components expensive and not. It is amazing that before listening to the unit you are already making fun of it. I am sure someone had forced you to represent this brand.

[@adrianlow2114]

Thank you for your comment. We're just trying to have fun in general. The negative comments about the packaging are real, however, and the factory acknowledges that. Never made fun of the performance as we had not heard the Ongaku nor the speakers at the time. And no, no one forced me to represent this brand.

[@urimaimon3763]

@@adrianlow2114 Thanks for your reply and all the best.

[@adrianlow2114]

@@urimaimon3763 Same to you

[@jeffkalina7727]

Audio Note is the perfect example of the inherent problems of inbreeding. Once they see this video you may not be the dealer.

[@mikelm222]

You could argue that if an amplifier's sound improves when you change the mains lead, perhaps they should have designed the Power Supply more carefully 🙂

[@edmaster3147]

Don't let the look fool you....really, AN does not put just any cord in.

[@Coneman3]

Audio Music amps wid blow them away for a fraction of the price.

[@AmazonasBiotop]

All that talk about silver and it is level 5!!! Why use copper on top? Yes I get it shields the internal components from EMI. But to honor all that silver in the transformers and to keep making this a statement plus that silver is a better conductor and probably then better in dispatch EMI faster.. So all that cooper should be silver instead! Maybe polished and transparent protective paint. That is probably on level 6!👍

[@edmaster3147]

The copper casing sounds better, no doubt.

[@AmazonasBiotop]

@@edmaster3147 👍🤣

[@mrgiggles7840]

I am disappointed that it was not the real Japanese Ongaku

[@BuzzardSalve]

There's no way these dinky two way speakers will reproduce bass down to 18Hz. And they look so light like book shelf speakers from the 80's. Sorry but the poms are having a lend of you :D LOL

[@markpreston3406]

18-23Hz dependent on the room and they look old because they're 70s Peter Snell designs that PQ bought the rights to and engineered to the Nth degree.. Trust me it's best not to comment on (any) AN speaker until you've heard them hooked up to an AN amp (at any of their 'levels')...

[@edmaster3147]

i guess you should have a listen. Hopefully i'll have that one day.

[@tomehCanada]

After visiting the Toronto Audio Fest for the first time in five years I'm still shocked that companies and people presenting anything > $5,000 wouldn't have a dedicated room with operational samples????

[@adrianlow2114]

The samples arrived just before the show, so the decision was made to show them statically

[@tomehCanada]

@@adrianlow2114 Thanks for the reply. You were not alone in "static" systems. Goldmund was a dead room. All the way from Switzerland to be looked at??

[@vilipmak3973]

@@tomehCanada Well - you could sorta almost touch them too…

[@tomehCanada]

@@vilipmak3973 A 3D viewing instead of a picture on a computer screen. I really don't understand marketing or pop culture. No more "audio shows" for me.

[@dodie7431]

Is Vilip really that annoying in person?😂😂😂✌️✌️✌️

[@vilipmak3973]

And in written format too…

[@azoique]

I package with more care when i sell $200 stuff on ebay..

[@wraspire]

The package really needs to be improved for a $200K amp

[@gaborozorai3714]

I ordered a Shuguang amp from China, similar size, also running 211 power tubes, $1400 with premium tubes (1100 for the base model). The packaging was way better than this, although worse than most other Chinese amps that I have dealt with.

[@vilipmak3973]

And what about the sound?

[@gaborozorai3714]

@@vilipmak3973 That's a longer story. It had undersized output transformers. No bass at all, terrible sound. I had them replaced with properly sized ones, also had the driver tubes mechanically isolated from the chassis (2A3's which are terribly microphonic as preamp tubes) and now it sounds really really good. It beats me how they could take an otherwise well designed 35 kg beast of an amplifier and make it completely useless by putting in - admittedly much cheaper - undersized OPT's. Final verdict: soundwise, even with the additional costs it's a bargain. Practicality is poor, with only 2 inputs, switchable on the back and no remote for volume.

[@harryburnett7086]

Does it not make no sense to have a zillion dollar amp and it not come in a wood and or a big metal flight case

[@stephenlegg262]

Should not have left the knife on the floor after opening the speakers.

[@MrBazsi888]

bling-bling shiny exterior looks pristine on the speaker, but the matt version sounds a tad better.

[@alexandermikhailov2481]

I am so glad I bumped into this channel! Proper audiophiliac hardcore porn at its best 😂

[@adrianlow2114]

Thanks!

[@TheFibtastic]

I wouldn't ship a bunch of pillows in that box. Audio Note HAS to be parody just to make us audiophiles look like idiots. "Level 5!" Well, must be better than level for but you're a dope if you think it compares to Level SIX.

[@billdunn8542]

❤ ❤ ❤

[@NosEL34]

Damn...

[@craigenputtock]

You should compare those speakers with the Sony CS5... My hunch is that they will not be $70,000 better.

[@colinsmall8170]

This gear is only for buyers who have immense wealth.

[@davidnguyen5028]

Snake oil

[@Michelenla]

Get rid of that guy 😊 and you know who I mean.

[@Fluterra]

The real Kondo Japan Ongaku retails for about USD80k with a street price of around $50-60k. So why on earth would anyone pay over $100k for this copy?! Totally bizarre. Go and look up the history of Audio Note UK…

[@faithhopelove6945]

What a Scam...LOL (:

[@harryburnett7086]

Nope not for me at these prices

[@Turboy65]

The included power cord reveals something important: If the amplifier's power supply is designed correctly, you don't HAVE to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on a power cord to get superb performance.

[@enniol8043]

These are four of the finest people I have ever met, even young Christian who is new to the place. Any disparaging remarks about them says more about the person saying it than these four.

[@twochaudiomg2578]

The Damn over-priced Thing. IS NOT EVEN double boxes Not Kool.

[@LeonFleisherFan]

Referring to the brand as "Audio Note UK" is entirely justified in view of the history of and between it and Kondo, the original Audio Note (Japan). The packaging is an absolute disgrace…

[@Coneman3]

Ridiculous price.

[@agentsmittie]

You really should explain The reason they are called audio note UK. And why the funny Japanese name Ongaku. For me I prefer the real thing.

[@vilipmak3973]

The "real" thing doesn't exist anymore. What is now the REAL thing is AN made in the UK.

[@gianfrancoluccio9798]

A $300,000 amp packed like a Christmas tree, just shameful. There are much cheaper products that are packaged with care, this also denotes the seriousness of a company.

[@deville2010]

this is 270 000 joke

[@yippie6862]

Now those are boxes that scream $300,000 audio system inside! 😂 I've seen $1000 amplifiers that came in better boxes. They should have have come in a wooden crate or a metal case.

[@Fluterra]

OMG, you guys are carrying the wrong Audio Note! It’s a shame it actually costs more than the original Kondo Japan line! Those crossover boxes should match the speakers and not have cheap $1 rubber feet. And the wire that shorts the 2 input terminals is so lame - that’s so they don’t have to make a separate binding post panel. I guess the “Level 6”?😂 is meant for bi-amping, and that’s why there are 2 RCA inputs. Overall, very disappointed that you guys are giving this sh~tty brand any kind of exposure. (We’ll see how long Audio Excellence keeps this post!)

[@georgemartinezza]

I don't like the design. no matters if it sounds like the heavenly voice of angels in the hell, the design is ugly. and it is not cecessary to the music I like.

[@rhwinner]

I tried it, but it was horrible. I mean I have transistor radios that sound better than that thing. I have 30-year-old fillings that sound better than that amp.

[@vilipmak3973]

You poor thing, how you must suffer from not being able to enjoy music.

[@josesolano1300]

$300,000…. I just unsubscribed from Your channel….bye.

[@VideoArchiveGuy]

Bye. Don't let the channel door hit you on the way out.

[@edmaster3147]

it's Canadian, so it just around 220/k €. Expensive. Luckily AN offers gear in more affordable price ranges.

[@jlo8775]

I’ve listened to Audio Note gear and I wasn’t the least bit impressed with it considering the price tag. This $300k stuff is beyond ridiculous, especially when you can have a complete end game Magico/Pillium/DCS rig for basically the same price.

[@carforumwanker]

Hifi for sad people...