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MING DA<br />
DYNASTY DUET 300 PLUS £3,499<br />
EXOTICA<br />
materials have been selected for<br />
maximum audio quality and<br />
reliability. The transformers are hand<br />
wound using enamelled, low-oxygen<br />
wire around especially sourced<br />
Japanese steel laminations, made of<br />
an alloy chosen explicitly for sound<br />
quality. Even the amplifier’s feet<br />
are made inhouse from turned<br />
aluminium. Sometimes in the rarefied<br />
CONNECTIONS<br />
1<br />
A mixture of<br />
steam punk chic<br />
and Cold War<br />
charm make the<br />
Ming Da a highly<br />
desirable amp<br />
3<br />
world of high-end valve amplifiers,<br />
sound quality can come at the<br />
expense of build, but not here. The<br />
attention to detail fills me with<br />
confidence that a superlative<br />
engineering-led ethos extends<br />
through the entire signal path,<br />
even to the robust remote control.<br />
The quantity and types of tube is<br />
noteworthy. A 6LP is an unusual and<br />
very powerful driver valve for 300B<br />
triodes and this could well create a<br />
differentiated sound quality from<br />
other similar 300B designs. Ming Da<br />
has also opted for valve rectification<br />
and cathode bias over fixed bias, so<br />
I get all the power<br />
of the orchestra<br />
but can still pick out<br />
individual musicians<br />
the benefit for owners is that this<br />
amp doesn’t require constant<br />
tweaking. Bias should never need<br />
adjustment and you’re free to swap<br />
in alternative tubes of the correct<br />
specification to tune or ‘tube roll’ the<br />
sound to your liking.<br />
Connecting up my 91dB quoted<br />
sensitivity Cadence Arca speakers, a<br />
Shanling CD T-100 HDCD player and<br />
Timestep T-01MC phono stage (HFC<br />
371) via Black Rhodium Sonata VS-1<br />
(HFC 398) and Chord Company<br />
Shawline RCA interconnects, I switch<br />
on and let everything warm through<br />
ahead of serious listening.<br />
Sound quality<br />
Starting things off gently with Roxy<br />
Music’s Rain Rain Rain on HDCD, the<br />
opening bass line and synthesiser<br />
reveals this modest 9W amp is<br />
punching beyond its specification.<br />
Bass notes are far deeper and more<br />
defined than a single-ended triode<br />
2<br />
1<br />
2<br />
3<br />
RCA analogue<br />
inputs<br />
IEC mains<br />
input socket<br />
4 and 8ohm<br />
speaker taps<br />
amp has any right to achieve. The<br />
drum kit kicks in and this track has<br />
much greater drive and punch than I<br />
expect from just 9W. Bryan Ferry’s<br />
vocals are portrayed with a superb<br />
blend of richness and ethereal<br />
airiness. Soundstaging is strong with<br />
the sonic image extending very wide,<br />
but with possibly a little less front-toback<br />
depth than class-leading preamp<br />
sections. Pace, rhythm and timing<br />
is a beguiling quality in amplifiers<br />
and lower-powered triodes can<br />
occasionally be criticised for being<br />
too laid back, but here the Ming Da<br />
is grooving beautifully and exhibiting<br />
a speed and agility that perfectly<br />
communicates the track’s lilting,<br />
funky vibe.<br />
Spinning the glorious Sheffield Lab<br />
‘direct cut’ vinyl of the Los Angeles<br />
Philharmonic playing Wagner’s Ride<br />
Of The Valkyries, I’m really struck with<br />
its masterful authority. 300B triode<br />
output valves in a single-ended<br />
arrangement are often celebrated<br />
for a highly transparent portrayal of<br />
more intimate music and voices, but<br />
given the modest power on tap, they<br />
are rarely known for their drive,<br />
especially around more dense music.<br />
Consequently, single-ended 300Bs<br />
can sometimes struggle to portray<br />
the full scale and dynamics of larger<br />
orchestral works and can occasionally<br />
err on the side of a little extra<br />
creaminess, a slight smoothing of<br />
punchy dynamics and potentially a<br />
narrowing of the soundstage. Here,<br />
however, the Ming Da 300B tubes<br />
sound like triodes on steroids. This<br />
is a track that could embarrass a<br />
featherweight amp, but Wagner’s<br />
huge dynamic swings are handled<br />
with majestic ease. In particular, the<br />
power and detail in the orchestra’s<br />
bass instruments have a really<br />
forceful drive and a speed of attack<br />
that catches me off guard. This<br />
perceived speed is most likely the<br />
benefit of zero feedback being<br />
employed on this ‘Plus’ version<br />
of the amp. As a result, Wagner’s<br />
most complex, dense and dynamic<br />
passages sound more open and less<br />
congested and I’m getting all the<br />
power of the orchestra, but in a way<br />
that enables me to still pick out the<br />
timbre and virtuosity of individual<br />
musicians. Stereo imaging is again<br />
excellent, especially in width, with a<br />
highly focused and sweet triangle<br />
ringing high and bright above the<br />
other musical instruments.<br />
Coming bang up to date playing<br />
Låpsley’s Station on CD and the<br />
track’s evocative mix of stripped-back<br />
instrumentation, sound effects and<br />
haunting vocals is presented by the<br />
MAY 2016 43
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