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Older news - November, 2003
We have a lot of photographs to share this month - please be patient with the load times
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Special version of nOrh 3.0 done in Thai style.
New nOrh 3.0 styles
The images above are nOrh 3.0s done with traditional Thai art. Last month, we showed some nOrh 3.0s that we had painted in automobile colors. The nOrh 3.0s have become very popular and we are getting many requests for new colors and new designs. In a sense, the nOrh 3.0s are becoming the Swatch of loudspeakers. They are high quality, inexpensive, functional and artistic. The Thai motif that you see above are priced at $250.00 USD per pair (shipped).
Special Wood Finish Process
Lek is holding up a nOrh 3.0 showing off a new process we have found here in Thailand. The finish is amazing. We have only tested this process on the 3.0s but we will make this available for our other speakers as well. The process creates one of the most beautiful wood finishes we have seen. We are offering this for $250.00 USD per pair on the 3.0s. If you are interested in the wood 4.0s, 5.1s, 6.1s or 7.0s, please ask for a quote.
nOrh Loudspeakers has updated our most popular nOrh 3.0s just in time for Christmas. While the color of natural wood is quite beautiful, for some people, the "all wood look" is just a bit too drab. We have set up a new paint line and we are now offering the nOrh 3.0s in designer colors. These loudspeakers have the same beautiful finish as a new automobile.
We can now do wood 3.0s in designer colors. We haven't picked all the colors yet so we are interested in hearing from customers what colors they would like. These speakers are using automobile type colors.
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Norh 3.0 wood in designer colors (click to enlarge)
Dear folks at Norh,
A couple of days ago I received the 3.0 drums I ordered. After reading about everything I could find on the net on Norh's my expectations were high. But they lived up to it.
I have to thank all of you for such a beautiful even brilliant product. From the guys who engineered it, to the craftsmen that routed and assembled it and the administration that took care of my order. Everything was smooth and flawless. It took TNT only two days to bring them my doorstep. When I opened the box I was stunned to see two classy, shiny speakers. I do some occasional woodwork myself and I recognize quality when I see it. These were quality, no doubt about it. I immediately hooked them up to my stereo and was really amazed. Compared to the speakers I was used too, these were so much clearer and livelier. I know discover music on my CD's I never heard before on my previous setup. Voices really sound like ... well voices. The stereo image has greatly improved and so has the sweet spot. It's a pity that they don't produce much bass. Modern music is not for them so my daughter or son won't monopolize the stereo (lucky me).
Another advantage is that in real life they are more beautiful then on whatever picture I could find on your site. This has definitively helped the Wife Approval Factor. She still doesn't find them beauties, but she can stand them. She already admires the musical capabilities and I think in time she will also learn to like the looks. When that happens I might go for something like the SM 6.9 or so. You definitively have a customer for life. If ever anyone needs convincing, send them my way ;-)
Greetings,
Marc Verwerft.
Loudspeakers and Fishing
The past few months have been very hectic for me. I have been on the road introducing new computer products for NorhTec. NorhTec is a separate company from nOrh. Many of the original nOrh staff now work for NorhTec. I started nOrh with only on purpose in mind, I wanted to create jobs during the economic crunch that hit Asia. My Thai friends were profoundly effected by this economic crunch. nOrh continues to create jobs and nOrh also continues to offer our customers excellent value and quality that simply are not available anywhere else.
The products we offer provide a degree of workmanship and craftsmanship that has all but disappeared. We combine art and technology to create handcrafted products that are unlike those available anywhere else. My goal is to have happy employees and happy customers.
Our factory is on the bank of the the mighty Chao Phraya River, referred to as the "River of Kings,". The Chao Phraya River has nurtured Thailand's growth for centuries and remains today the nation's main artery for water transportation and internal trade. At our factory, you can watch teak rice barges pulled by tug boats move up and down the river. From time-to-time, you will see long tailed boats cruising up and down the river.
At our location, the water is very deep. Our workers like to fish during lunch and in the evening, they spend an hour or two catching fish. For bait, they use bread. I don't know why Thai fish like bread but most of our staff can catch three large fish in an hour. The Thais like to say that "on the land there is rice and in the water there is fish". It is this attitude that has created a country that is known internationally as the "Land of Smiles".
Many Americans picture Asia as filled with sweat shops where workers labor hard for very low wages. This is not the case with nOrh. nOrh is dedicated to providing a better life for our employees. While nOrh customers get a very good value, our employees are getting something even more valuable.
Pan Fishing next to nOrh 6.1 Classic
The workday ends with an hour or two of fishing
Playing 33 1/3 Long Play Records
Lek with our tube phono preamp
One of the things that astonishes me is how expensive equipment to play long play records. Phono cartridges that used to sell for $75.00 are now selling for hundreds of dollars. I am glad I didn't throw my turntables away. 25 years ago, you could get a decent Dual turntable and a Shure Cartridge for $150.00 USD. I have not bought a new LP in over 10 years. I have no plans to buy any more. However, I have a collection of over 2,000 LPs. I have not replaced all of them on CD. Some of the LPs I have are rare. These days, fewer preamps and receivers include the facilities to play back LPs.
Many audiophiles believe that LPs sound better than CDs. I was slow to convert to CDs because the original CDs I heard sounded shrill compared to LPs. I believe that many audiophiles became jaded during early days of CDs. CDs can deliver astonishingly good playback. None-the-less, not all performances are available on CD and there are many recordings on Long Play recordings do sound much better than the CD versions. The nOrh Tube Phono Preamp is an excellent addition to your existing audio system. The nOrh Phono Preamp provides correct RIAA equalization. The nOrh Phono Preamp is suitable for moving magnet and high gain moving coil cartridges.
The nOrh phono preamp is only $250.00 USD shipped to your door. The nOrh phono preamp is a great add on for people who want to listen to or record from vinyl.
nOrh Tube Phono Preamp, only $250 shipped
For someone who has a collection of LPs who is building a new or replacing and old audio system, we offer the SE 18. The SE is an astonishingly beautiful product. The SE 18 is a single ended integrated amplifier. The SE18 has an active preamp and an integrated phono RIAA phono section.
Wat holding our SE 18 Single Ended Tube Integrated with phono stage
Last month, I moved into a new house. The new house is a better location for me and I now have a yard that I didn't have when I lived on the 14th floor of a Bangkok Condominium. The house has many advantages but one of the problems is space. My existing audio system will not fit in the new house. Actually, the real problem is that I had build the previous rooms around my audio systems. The audio equipment became the center piece of each room. My wife has taken over arranging the new house and she has not left any space for my audio and video equipment. She did leave a space for my speakers but I have no place to put the electronics.
My plan is to get rid of a lot of my existing gear and to start using the SE 18 as my secondary system in most rooms. The SE 18 has more than enough power to drive the nOrh 7.0s I use in my secondary systems and it will save me a lot of space. Furthermore, if I ever do get my LP collection out of storage, in the USA, the SE 18 will let me play my old LPs.
The SE 18 is Single Ended but it draws a lot less power than my CLASS A solid state amplifier. My 250 watts CLASS A amplifier draws 2000 watts while the SE 18 draws 180 watts. To be honest, I probably never need any more power than the SE 18 outputs. The SE 18 is probably the highest quality integrated amplifier available under $1000 USD.
SE 18 Single Ended 18 Watt Integrated Amplifier with Phono, only $795.00 delivered
Our Best Seller, nOrh SE 9
The SE 9, our best selling product
The SE 9 gets rave reviews from our customers. Nobody expects to be able to have this beautiful a product at this price. Most customers are pleasantly surprised that the SE 9 has enough power to play their systems at reasonable levels. Few of our customers were prepared for the improvement in sound they would enjoy from a true single ended tube product. The SE 9 has proved to be amazingly robust. We have sold nearly 600 of the SE 9s. I mistakenly wrote that we had had no units that went bad after the units were sold. One customer wrote to tell me that he had in fact had a problem. I am sorry I forgot. The SE 9 and the SE 18 have been two of our most reliable products we have ever sold.
There are now some other low-cost tube amplifiers on the market. Most of these are built in China. I have not seen any other low-cost tube amp that can compare with the SE 9 or SE 18 in looks, quality or sound.
This is what one customer wrote about the SE9:
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, 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.
nOrh's Highly Praised SE 9
ACA 2b (pronounced ACA tube)
ACA 2b (pronounced ACA tube)
The ACA 2b (pronounced ACA tube), is one of the least expensive preamps anywhere. The fact that it is so inexpensive has probably caused many people to pause and think that anything this inexpensive can not be any good. The fact is, audio products are simply over priced. The industry has been gouging its fans for years and the industry is now paying for these abuses. The last two years, we have seen many audio companies go out of business or their brand purchased by larger companies.
For over five years, we have been proving to the world that really great audio equipment should cost as much as a TV and not as much as a car.
nOrh ACA 2b
Review from our customer Vince
ACA 2b = Ear food!
I ordered my ACA 2b from nOrh and it arrived two days later. Now that's quick! For pictures, you should check out the nOrh web site. I really like how the chrome chassis accents the transformer and tubes - very nice. The tubes, Sovtek 6922's, had already been installed and all I had to do was plug it in and play after unpacking. There's no manual, but that doesn't bother me. It's so simple to use, it becomes apparent that one isn't necessary. Besides, if you have questions, no matter how technical, just send an e-mail to nOrh. Now, about the sound. After the 90 seconds warm up/wait I threw in a Pat Metheny cd and began to listen. Whoa! This thing is LOUD! Loud and clear. That's not to say things were great from the start. Bass was bloated, midrange rough and edgy and the treble was thin. However, there was a rightness to what I was listening to which I hadn't heard before - I think I'd call it balance contrary to the above. After a couple of weeks things got much better. However, it wasn't until I changed the tubes when I really 'heard' this preamp. I bought a set (and spares) of Amperex Bugleboy 6DJ8's and the change was amazing! Keep in mind I'm talking about the preamp here, not the tubes. The human voice is REAL! What I mean is that when I hear a singer's voice I also get emotion, weight, and texture in the room with me. Has a vocalist ever given you chills from listening? The ACA 2b will and does just that. Every breath and pause are captured in a very stimulating fashion. Bass is very defined and powerful. Deep bass too is very rewarding, and overall this is the best I've heard from my speakers. The midrange is very open and energetic with no glare or coloration; in a word superb! When I hear a trombone or French horn, I'm completely convinced that it IS that instrument. A French horn, trombone, and baritone have three distinct sounds from my ACA 2b but can tend to sound alike with lesser components . If you like the piano, you're in for a real treat. Every note on the piano is defined and carries weight - try Diana Krall and you'll see what I mean. (I really do know how a trombone should sound, I have played one for over 15 years.) Treble is not airy, at least in my system. What the ACA 2b does for treble is what icing does for cake. Once again, it's not harsh or glaring, but very defined and accurate. I like the way cymbals shiver when they are struck. Clearly I can hear whether it's a stick or a brush on the cymbal, small or large. Here again, the ACA 2b differentiates the sounds of various cymbals with distinct sizzles and textures. This preamp defines and delivers. The sound stage is huge and accurate in it's presentation; depth and width are excellent with air between instruments. Imaging is spectacular! It adds nothing to the music as far as it having a particular sound. It recreates all types of music very well, no matter what style so don't worry. It will, however, not be so nice to poor recordings. The best part is that I have yet to hear it at it's best. My review of the ACA 2b is after about 80 hours of play. I'm almost certain it will only get better with time. I am extremely satisfied with this preamplifier and will have it for a very long time. My previous preamp was an Audio Research LS3 which served me well. The ACA 2b takes everything to a new level. It is simply excellent ear food! nOrh has won me over not because they are inexpensive, but because of the philosophy that everyone should be able to enjoy good music the way it was meant to be heard. Mr. Barnes is really quite humble when he says his products sound 'great'. He's building a very reputable company who's products I shall continue to enjoy for a long time. Thank you Mr. Barnes!
Vince
Travis and his Significant Other love the looks and sound of their Classic 6.1 and their new ACA 2b
Le Amp 2
Le Amp has been shipping slowly for several weeks. A few people who have received their units have posted reviews on Audiocircle. The reviews we are seeing for Le Amp 2 are amazing. People are saying the sound is everything they expected. If we could ship more units, we would be much happier. I can't really explain why the units are coming out so slowly. We subcontracted the amplifier and our supplier is way behind schedule.
We have not charged anyone for these amplifiers until they are shipped. In all cases, the customers who have received them tell us they were worth the wait and thanked us for building such a great product. We are working with other suppliers to build more Le Amp 2s. We are doing everything we can to keep up with demand.
The units we shipped out and the comments we are getting back confirm that Le Amp 2 is probably the finest value ever offered for a solid state amplifier. Le Amp 2 has everything. It has power, great sound and great looks. Unfortunately, one of the problems in having a product that looks great, sounds great and is inexpensive is that there is a huge demand.
For the past two months, I have been traveling to many different places. I was in Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Tanzania and displayed at the APEC Investor's forum. During this two months of travel, I have had very limited Internet access and I have not been able to keep up with the postings on various forums. Now that APEC is over and I am back in Thailand, I plan to get back on Audiocircle and HarmonicDiscord and keep our nOrhphiles up-to-date.
Photo of Le Amp 2
SPECIFICATIONS
| Continuous Average Power | 200 watts x 1 (8 ohms 0.1% THD), 400W x 1 (4 ohms 0.1% THD) |
| Dynamic Power per Channel | 400W x 1 |
| Power Bandwidth | 5 Hz - 50 Khz |
| Damping Factor | Greater than 100 |
| Input Sensitivity / Impedance | 2.0 V / 44 k ohms (rated power) |
| Frequency Response | 20 - 20,000 Hz +0, -0.5 dB |
| Signal to Noise Ration | Better than 120 dB |
| Total Harmonic Distortion | Less than 0.1% |
| Output Complement | 8 transistors |
| Power Supply | 800 V/A Switching adjusted to 500 V/A supporting 800 V/A peaks |
I have been receiving many e-mails from people who have asked us to show the insides of Le Amp 2. I asked the factory to send me some photos to show the inside. I apologize for the quality of these photos -- they were taken at our factory.
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Inside the Norh Le Amp 2
Le Amp 2 is nOrh Loudspeaker's most ambitious project yet. Our goal has been to improve quality while lower our price. Le Amp 2 is built like the most expensive amplifiers but it is probably one of the most inexpensive 200 watt per channel mono blocks available. Le Amp 2 uses a CLASS A JFET gain stage and a CLASS A/B Bipolar output stage. The output devices are from Toshiba. Le Amp 2 has over 7.5 pounds of custom molded and hand finished heat sinks. The power supply is one of the most powerful power supplies in its class. Le Amp 2 includes a balanced input and features very high quality, heavy duty connectors (look below).
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