Raven Audio Nighthawk

MC?

 Your door is a knockin'.

We had someone recently with a Blackhawk delivered with bad tubes who wasn't happy. But then in spite of that he wound up buying one anyway, used, killer deal, and is quite happy now. I've been looking at a new integrated for about a year now and Raven is at the top of the list. In fact it pretty much is the list! 

The only other contender would be Decware, and I hear he is a good 6 months out. What's the expected wait time on your Nighthawk?

Trust me...you made a great selelction.  You will love it.  I owned the Raven Reflection MK2.  Great Customer service.  A phenomenal selection of tubes and sound quality is upper tier in that price point.  Plus you get a 45 day money back guarantee.  What's not to like.  

James said he could ship it next week, it’s an update, he called it MK3.1. 

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/review-raven-audio-blackhawk-integrated-soniquil-cables 

I have the Raven Blackhawk LE with Reference 3A MM de Capo i speakers and it is a perfect amp for those wonderful speakers. Exceptional build quality and the best sonics of any of probably 20 amps I've owned over the last several decades. Exceptional customer service, as well.

Any details on what the updates are?

Any details on what the updates are?

No specifics, just upgrading some of the internals to reduce total distortion. 

Whatever they update is only making an already excellent value even better. What I know, mostly from Willgolf, its the familiar story of first we make something as good as we can and its great but costs a fortune and so then we figure out how to get most of that performance down to a price point. What Eric did with Moab, Dave has done with Raven's Avian series.  

Then they come back from doing that and figure out how to make the top end one even better. That's where they are now, trying to make the Elite series even better. So at this point in time the Nighthawk you got is close to Elite and just crazy good value. Would love to hear one, see how much better it is than my Melody. On paper they all look pretty similar but the real black art is in the transformers, and the only way to know there is to listen.

i had a nighthawk and blackhawk for a while. they were both excellent sounding and quite similar. at that time they were shipping with nos svet winged c and nos rca, amperex tubes. tubes greatly affect the sound quality.
hard to beat with both low efficiency speakers in a smaller room or he speakers in a med large room.
transparent, colorful sound.
eventually i wanted more scale and moved on to kt 120 based tube amps and then solid state power amp with tube preamp driving large brit mons.
the first time i heard the nighthawk it was driving a set of kef ls 50s.
possibly the sweetest sound i have ever heard regardless of system cost.
enjoy !

Music to my ears.

By the way, I had KT 150's in my Reflection MK2

I think you made an excellent choice. A Raven and their CeLest’ speakers will be the second 2 channel system in my home. I bought a Jolida Fusion 6802 last year to try a tube integrated out. I’m sold on tubes. I’ll be adding a pair of Tekton Double Impacts to the Jolida in the very near future. 

I got my Blackhawk Mk 3.1 in November.

Sounds great with excellent bass and power. 

----------
Oppo UDP-203 
Peachtree nova500
Ascend Acoustics Sierra Towers w/RAAL speakers
Custom built Roon Server
PS Audio PerfectWave Transport
PS Audio DirectStream DAC w/ Bridge II
PS Audio DirectStream Power Plant 12
Raven Audio Blackhawk Mk. 3.1 interegrated amp
* Raven audio, power and speaker cables
various upgraded interconnect and power cables

I've had a Raven Osprey MK 3.1 for the last month. Doing side-by-side comparison with McIntosh MA252, PrimaLuna EVO 300, and Octave V 40 SE. Raven Osprey is my choice of the four. Perfect blend of tube fullness and transparency.

Thinking about writing up my experience in next few weeks.

MC, The Decware is 20 weeks as of yesterday when I talked to Steve,I will be ordering the Decware Zen TorII MK IV sometime next week and I should be able to pick it up by late July or Early August.I will probably end up getting the Zen Triode Preamp also.

Read my Raven Blackhawk review.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/review-raven-audio-blackhawk-integrated-soniquil-cables

You could have made worse choices. 

My system https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/9143

Only other integrated I would consider is a Pathos Acoustics Classic One MKIII. I have one also and it is the best of both worlds Tubes and SS. Sonically it is right there with the Blackhawk MK3 and silent at idle, zero tube noise. 

Pathos...https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/9141

I've had a Raven Osprey MK 3.1 for the last month. Doing side-by-side comparison with McIntosh MA252, PrimaLuna EVO 300, and Octave V 40 SE. Raven Osprey is my choice of the four. Perfect blend of tube fullness and transparency.

Thinking about writing up my experience in next few weeks.

@gareents

I look forward to your further thoughts on the latest Osprey. I have the original version of the Blackhawk LE and have been considering the new Osprey.

It's a significant upgrade (~$3k delta if I sold the Blackhawk) so wondering if 3.1 Osprey is that much better than an original version Blackhawk LE.

i owned a nighthawk and blackhawk.  listened long and seriously to the osprey when a local dealer carried them.  
the osprey sounded better for sure, sweeter and more holographic. 
i loved the sound.  
since the amps had the same basic layout, specs and tube specifications, the differences in sound came from upgraded internal parts, caps, rectifier, etc. similar to upgrade packages some amplifier makers offer.  the tube brands (NOS) were also upgraded and included some expensive amperex and mullards at that time.  
consider this when you decide if it is worth the additional cost to you.  

@ avanti1960
Do you mind sharing why you sold your nighthawk and blackhawk?

I've had the Raven Nighthawk for almost a year and love it. Playing with preamp tubes made a difference.  Goes well with my focal speakers.

Interesting. I had the Pathos Classic Mk3 for a few years and really enjoyed it. Went to a Lyngdorf 2700 and couldn't get rid of it fast enough. Then almost bought a Raven Blackhawk before finding a Line Magnetic 518 that's now making me happy.

I simply love my Raven Reflection prototype.  Dave is a great guy and customer service is above and beyond anything I've experienced before.

@jetter 
yes, i moved on from the raven amps to drive larger, less efficient speakers at more scale than it was comfortable with.  
the ravens are actually more capable than people give them credit for.  they can fill a medium room quite well driving the low efficiency kef ls 50s for example.  
for larger rooms higher efficiency speakers are you friend as raven dave recommends.  

Thanks avanti1960 for providing that explanation. Out of coincidence I am considering purchasing a pair of LS50 metas for a bedroom system. I have never heard a Ravens integrated, but have to say that to the questionable extent you can judge an amplifier from a you tube video they seem to stand out as having a pleasing sound, especially with the Raven speakers they are paired with.

raven amps and ls50s is one of the best sounding combinations i have ever heard regardless of price.  just awesome. 

I have known the company for practically it’s entire existence. It is a phenomenal achievement given the uncompromising quality and the price. You’re getting a Bugatti at a corvette price point with personal service that is unparalleled. As an aside, I hope we can have a review of their speakers which I think is. the most versatile in the industry for all kinds of music. 

Congratulations.  I was ready to try an all tube amp, and just based on the reviews gave Raven a try. I was not disappointed! In addition to sounding more life like than anything I have experienced, it is built like a tank and beautiful to look at.  

Save your money! You’ll get more bang for your buck elsewhere!

they’re playing on your patriotism by saying made in America, while charging top dollar and using inexpensive parts!

For example the AC line connector is a cheap press in part that wobbles in and out when the cord is moved….Most high end brands use a quality screw in Furutech IEC connector.

Then lightweight transformers have a difficult time driving a 86db 4 ohm speakers to their full potential!

I much prefer a Line Magnetic amp, it uses much higher quality parts for much less money!

 

@bob7296 this thread is a year old dude…

Well I have had it for almost a year, and I couldn’t the happier. Especially since many of the parts are made in my hometown.