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Older news - August, 2003

Few years ago, I got an e-mail from someone who worked for Mitsubishi. They wrote to me and told me that our Marble 9.0 loudspeakers had been put on their "Wall of Great Designs". This was a wall of other people's products they they believed were examples of original and innovative designs. I think that e-mail has inspired me more than any e-mail I have received. I had always wanted our products to look good but to get such recognition from professional designers was quite an honor, particularly because I never studied design.

I have been motivated to make sure that every product we manufacture looks great. Making products look great isn't necessarily a matter of making it expensive. The goal is to integrate form and function into an attractive package. This month, we have additional photos of our nOrh Classic 6.1. I am sure that everyone will agree that no loudspeaker in its class looks more expensive.

July was a very busy month for me. I have done my best to respond to all e-mails but I have had little time for posting on various web sites. At the end of June, there was a posting about NorhTec on Slashdot. In three days, the NorhTec web site had over 784,000 hits. We got 3,000 e-mails a day for several days. It took quite a while to follow up on all the e-mails. We then had to attend a computer show in Japan. Finding Internet access in Japan was very difficult. Japanese seem to have all the access they need in their mobile phones. On the train, you can see Japanese messaging each other and sending e-mail from their phones. There are a variety of low cost devices that plug into PDAs or laptops that provide 128 MB's wireless access at reasonable fees in Japan. Consequently, you don't see many Internet Cafes.

I did find an Internet KIOSK at the show. The price was 100 Yen for 10 minutes of Internet access. I need to access the Internet about three hours to respond to all my e-mail. I went to the Yahoo Cafe. There you can use the Internet for free so long as you buy a $12.00 soft drink. The problem was that all of the keyboards are Japanese keyboards. The punctuation on the keyboards is not the same.

Le Amp 2

I don't think there has been a product where we got more carried away and lost track of costs than Le Amp 2. It was very important to me to make sure that this amplifier be as good as we could make it and have its own look. Amplifiers were becoming like automobiles, they were starting to look alike. I can not take all the credit for the look. We got a lot of input from people and tried to incorporate as many of those ideas into Le Amp 2 as possible.

Le Amp 2 was delayed for a month because of the case. We paid our supplier up front for 100 amplifiers. He had estimated that the cases would cost about $25.00 each. It turns out that the actual cost of the case was about $60.00. We are very familiar with cases. We order cases in the 1000 quantity all the time. I could not believe how expensive Le Amp 2 case was. I contacted the suppler and he told me that the case had 8 pounds of aluminum just for the heat sinks. The heat sinks are custom molded. Each heat sink has to be hand finished, and then anodized.

The original supplier was trying to haggle the price back down as he had already collected the money. We agreed to pay the case supplier the difference. When we got back from Japan, the cases were done. I contacted our supplier and he told me that he still needed additional hardware and that the laser etching for the screen was not complete. He assured me that he would have the amps ready in just one more week.

One more week passed. I called him up and he told me that he would have the amplifiers very soon. It turns out that our supplier had not been paid for a large project that he had done for another vendor. This had tied up his cash. Because his cash was tied up, he couldn't make the payment to his supplier for parts he needed. The Toshiba parts for Le Amp 2 were tied up in that deal.

I told him that we could pay for the Toshiba parts separately so long as we could get the amplifiers built. He said he didn't want to take any more money from us and felt he could manage this himself.

Finally, today, we got the first two working Le Amps. The units should start shipping the first week of August. I am very pleased with the results of Le Amp. The look is exactly what I hoped for. We could have done something much faster but I was trying for a particular look.

Backlit Screen of the Le Amp 2

After a long wait, Le Amp 2 is ready to ship. Le Amp 2 will start shipping the first week of August. I explained above the delays we had. After seeing the photos, I am sure everyone will agree that Le Amp 2 is an astonishingly good looking amplifier. It would have been much easier to put a simple LED in the center of the amplifier. I wanted a look that would be different.

What inspired me to use a screen instead of an LED was the classic look of tubes. I have no preference between a great sounding solid state amplifier and a great sounding tube amplifier. Both can sound excellent when properly crafted. I do like the glow of tubes. It reminds me of a fireplace. Many products today have blue and green LEDs that look like little laser beams.

Le Amp 2: front view

The June 2003 issue of Stereophile had a photo of a Perreux R200i integrated amplifier. I was surprised to see it because the heat sinks looked a lot like the heat sinks we had custom ordered for our unit. From the photo, the heat sinks looked smaller but they looked very similar. Even more striking was that they were using an aluminum faceplate with a screen. This was ironic because we were also going after the same look.

I opened up the issue and started reading about the 200i. The article said that the amplifier is rated at 200 watts per channel. Our amplifier is also rated at 200 watts. Then I read that the 200i used six Toshiba MOSFETs per channel. We use six Toshiba devices per channel. We use three Toshiba JFETS for the gain stage and three Toshiba bipolar for the output. Like us, they also have an XLR connector.

The 200i looks like an outstanding integrated amplifier. The price includes a preamplifier. I am not trying to compare Le Amp 2 to the Perreux unit. I have not hear it but I do know Perreux builds outstanding products. The point is that just because Le Amp 2 is inexpensive ($300 each), doesn't mean that it sacrifices anything. We have built Le Amp 2 to be as good an amplifier as we can -- not just to build a high powered/low cost amplifier.

I believe everyone will agree that these features and this look is completely unexpected at this price. We want Le Amp 2 to be our flagship solid state amplifier for a long time. We believe that Le Amp 2 completely redefines what is possible for a low cost amplifier. We believe that Le Amp 2 is a stunning achievement.

Le Amp 2 has massive heat sinks to allow it to operate at 200 watts RMS into 8 ohms
(Click on the images to enlarge)

Le Amp 2 will feature several enhancements. Le Amp 2 will have standard and balanced inputs. We will also offer a profession jack for industrial or professional applications. We believe that Le Amp 2 will find double duty as a commercial amplifier and as an audiophile amplifier. You might notice the very expensive heat sinks Le Amp produces 200 RMS and features a CLASS A gain stage. These large heat sinks are expensive but required for high powered amplifiers such as Le Amp 2.

Le Amp 2 will not have a power LED. Instead it will have a backlit screen. The screen will read "Le Amp 2 200 watts RMS CLASS A/AB". Below the screen will be a small nOrh logo.

We will be working very hard to get Le Amp 2 out as soon as possible. As you can see, we are providing many features we didn't even advertise. Le Amp 2s will have more power than we originally stated. They will come with balanced inputs and the quality of the case is far better than you would expect from an amplifier even far more expensive than Le Amp 2.

The color was asked for is a tungsten color. The idea we have in mind is the same color as the Palm Pilot 515 or the newer Tungsten W.

All great amplifiers require sufficient power. Le Amp 2 uses a full-bit 800 V/A switching power supply. This means there is a 1600 V/A capacity for two channels. Le Amp's switching power supply is very advanced. While this power supply could have built three years ago, it would have cost ten times what it now costs us. Although the cost to build a high powered switching power supply is much lower, the know how to build one is as rare as it was three years ago.

Le Amp has a CLASS A gain JFET gain stage. Many high-end amplifiers that claim to be CLASS A or Pure CLASS A only use CLASS A for their gain stage. Even amplifiers that have CLASS A for their output stage only operate in CLASS A up to a small amount of power. We believe that the Le Amp 2 design can compete head-to-head with some of the best amplifiers available. We are using Toshiba devices as these are among the most linear available. Many of the most expensive amplifiers in the world use the same parts. The output stage is based on a CLASS A/B bipolar devices by Toshiba.

Back showing RCA and Balanced inputs

Le Amp 2 uses no negative feedback. We use a DC Servo circuit so there are no capacitors in the signal path and no DC offset. Le Amp 2 will put itself into standby if there is no input signal. Le Amp with then turn itself on when it senses an input signal. Le Amp will be completely protected from thermal and shorts. There is a relay that disconnects the loudspeakers as soon as Le Amp 2 is turned off and doesn't connect the loudspeakers until the power comes up to full.

Le Amp is designed so that the power board and power supply boards can be easily swapped out. This means that repairs can be made by swapping out any failed board. We plan to put a diagnostic system into Le Amp that will show what board has failed.

Think about it. 200 watts, CLASS A JFET input, Bipolar Output, 800 V/A switching power supply, DC Servo, and no negative feedback. How much would a Stereo amplifier with 1600 V/A power supply cost? We are talking very high-end territory here.

Le Amp 2 will retail for $300.00 USD each.

Don't let the low price fool you. This is a very high-end amplifier. We invite people to put Le Amp 2 up against any amplifier and write about the results on http://www.harmonicdiscord.com/, http://www.audioasylum.com/, or http://www.audiocircle.com/.

Tube Equipment

SE 9, Great Looks, Great Sound, Great Price

The SE 9 remains a best seller for us. We continue to get rave comments from customers who simply love their SE 9s. Here is an example. Please look at our previous newsletters for even more customer comments on the SE 9.

I received the amp today and everything was packed perfectly.  The amp sounds amazing I still can not believe the cost.  I have a couple of very efficient speakers in the Klipsch RF3II and the Klipsch Heresy. At the moment the RF 3 are connected and the volume is at 09:00 and that is more than enough volume for my listening room.  This is my fist venture into tubes and if  the sound improves after break-in I will probably not go back to solid state amps. In the future I will probably be getting the tube pre-amp.  Thanks again for an outstanding product.

One of the most common questions I get is about what speakers customers need to work with the SE 9. While some low cost tube amplifiers have outputs of only 2 or 3 watts, the SE 9 has 9 watts. While this might not seem like a lot of power, it is generally enough to play music from almost any loudspeaker to a comfortable listening level. The SE 9s and a pair of 3.0s will fill a room with plenty of sound. The SE 9 and a pair of Classic or SM 6.1s will play louder than most people will ever need.

We continue to get rave reports on the new ACA2b. We have also updated our product page and we include pages on Le Amp 2, SE 9, and SE 18.

SE 9 Integrated Amplifier

SE 9 powered on

nOrh Classic Real Wood Loudspeaker

The Classic 6.1 is efficient and will handle plenty of power. Rated at 90dB sensitivity and handles up to 120 watts

Over five years ago, we put up our web site. We opened our nOrh Loudspeaker showroom in Bangkok five years ago this month. Prior to that, nobody had ever seen a loudspeaker quite like ours. I designed the loudspeaker based on an observation. I was attending a concert in Bangkok. The group performing was Fong Nam. During the Intermission, a group of young Thai children came out and played Thai drums. There was on little Thai boy who was about six year old. He was beating the Thai drum with his hands. The sound was loud and spread throughout the hall.

I noticed that the Thai long drum had its own tuned port. It has a body and it had a flat surface. I could see a loudspeaker driver taking the place of the Thai boy and wondered wouldn't this be an ideal loudspeaker.

To test my idea, I went out and bought some used loudspeakers. I asked Yuths to mount the set of drivers in a a Thai drum and leave another set in the original case. The goal was to see if putting the drivers inside the drum improved the sound. I did a test for 10 different people and without them being able to see which speaker was playing, I asked them to tell which was better. All 10 picked the drum.

It isn't a surprise that the drum sounded better. I already knew that the box was not the ideal shape for speaker. The problem with a box speaker is that all sides are parallel. The sound echoes back and forth. The energy produced by the woofer strikes the back of the cabinet and the reflection actually presses on the inside of the woofer as the woofer is trying to move backwards.

Our first loudspeaker was the nOrh 6.0. We also introduced the 5.0 and the 6.5. Each of these original loudspeakers have been upgraded. The 5.0 became the 5.1. The 6.0 became the 6.1 and the 6.5 became the 6.9. We added the 4.0 and the 7.0 and ten the 9.0.

These numbers establish the sound relationship between the speakers. The 9.0 is currently the flagship loudspeaker. The 3.0 is our starter speakers.

We have worked with many different materials. We have made loudspeakers form wood, MDF, ceramic, synthetic marble and marble. We are probably best known for our wood loudspeakers. I get e-mail from people all the time asking if they can get more wood loudspeakers. We have been selling them but not promoting. The problem is that we could not produce enough wood cabinet to meet demand. There is a lot of labor in each wood speaker.

The wood speakers start out as logs. These logs are carved into the drum shape by hand. After that, the finished logs are baked in an oven for two weeks. They are then sanded and finished.

Copy of an ad placed in Bangkok five years ago -- Rosewood finish

The advertisement above shows the original nOrh 6.0. The nOrh 6.0 sold for $700.00 USD per pair. We sold so many of the wood loudspeakers that we could not keep them in stock. The very first pairs we made were cured using the sun. They would place plastic sheets over the cabinets and then let the sun dry out the speakers. This process worked fine for tropical climates but it wasn't enough to cure the wood for cold climates. We wound up having to replace most of the original cabinets we made. Many customers might remember us replacing their cabinets for no charge.

Real wood, Vifa Drivers, quality crossover -- all for only $500 per pair (special price)

Three years ago, I decided that we would build a run of wood loudspeakers and we would let them sit. We baked them twice. That means they have spent one month in an oven. After that, our plan was to let them to sit for three years in a climate controlled environment, which would season the cabinet quite well - in fact, the longer the better. At the time, I had a plan to release a nOrh Classic for a Christmas in the future. As we could not keep up with demand for the wood speakers, I decided to stop making them as a standard product and only offer them for a special promotion. The idea was that we would release a nOrh Classic sometime in the future.

As hard as this is to believe, we put the speakers away and forgot about them. It turns out that our cabinet maker had 300 of our wood cabinets stored and he wanted to know when we would pick them up. During the past three years, we have played with so many things that we simply forgot about these wood cabinets we were suppose to sell.

The cabinets are larger than the original 6.0 and 6.5. They are the same size as the nOrh 9.0 and the nOrh 6.9. The cabinets are absolutely beautiful -- among the best we have ever done.

The nOrh Classic is based on the 6.1. The 6.1 uses a 6.5 inch Vifa woofer and 1 inch silk dome tweeter. The efficiency is 90dB so the nOrh Classic is ideal to use with any lower powered receiver or tube amplifier. The sound is very smooth and detailed. The bass response is -3 dB at 48 Hz. The nOrh Classic is a very good loudspeaker for home theater because it is efficient and because it can handle a lot power. The nOrh Classic is rated at 120 watts per channel. We are offering to ship the nOrh Classic directly to your door for only $500.00 USD per pair. This is an astonishing deal and may be the last chance to own these beautiful wood loudspeakers.

Shown with grill

Prism 5.2 (MDF) Specials

We are extending the special on Prism 5.2 MDF till the stock lasts.

The beautiful loudspeaker above is the Prism 5.2. We now have the Real Teak Prism 5.2. This is the original. The difference is that instead of being made from solid teak boards, the original Prism 5.2 is made from MDF and covered with 3mm of teak veneer. The look is superb and it is available in teak, rosewood or black. We will offer the original Prism 5.2 for a limited time for only $400.00 USD shipped. The SE 9 and a pair of these beautiful loudspeakers is an unbelievable value.

We have added the nOrh Classic this month. This is a very special opportunity -- particularly for people who need an inexpensive, beautiful and efficient pair of loudspeakers. We will deliver a pair of nOrh Classic real wood loudspeakers to your door for $500.00 USD per pair. Quantities are limited. First come first served.

Links

Shafquat, our webmaster sent me the following two links. I suggest everyone read these:

http://home.cfl.rr.com/happysurfer/audio_bs.htm
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=72153&cid=6510236

TNT Audio did a report on the Midwest Audio Show, which was held on April this year. We attended that show. The report can be found here.

Feel free to browse our products and look at the older newsletters.

Sincerely,

Michael C. Barnes
nOrh Loudspeaker Company, Ltd.

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