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Review of Dartzeel NHB-108 Amplifier

Dartzeel is a relatively new entry to the high-end game. Despite being reviewed by John Marks in a recent issue of Stereophile, the company's only current product offering, the NHB-108 stereo amplifier, hasn't gotten a lot of press on these shores. Hopefully this "review" will do its part in rectifying that.
As many of you probably already know, Switzerland-based Dartzeel is the brainchild of one Herve Deletraz. Herve is a wonderful guy who's dedicated to the very best customer service. As essentially a one-man operation, I'm sure his time is limited, but he's always responded to my e-mails in an extremely courteous, timely manner.

On to the amp. I'm not one for technical details, so I'll leave them to those of you who want to visit Dartzeel's website. Basically, the 108 is a "purist" stereo amp rated at a relatively modest 100 wpc. Its smallish dimensions belie its weight, which measures around 65-70 pounds.

Internally, the amp is incredibly well laid out (if tightly packed), with an attention to detail that one should expect--but doesn't always receive--from components in this price range.

Outside, it's purely love-hate. (Refer to the website for pictures). Either you get it or you don't. Personally, I've grown used to its appearance over time, but it's taken a while to become acclimated. If WAF factor is any sort of issue, practice up on your compliments. Then again, I may be overstating the case. While it's not Liv Tyler, it's not Janet Reno, either. Time reveals its inner beauty.

Performance-wise it's a much more straightforward issue. In my experience the 108 is the most balanced, natural-sounding amp I've ever heard. It has a way with timbre that's downright spooky--up there with the very best tube units one cares to mention. The sound is just "right"--every note is reproduced with a tonal correctness and warmth that is as close to the real thing as I've heard in an amp. Because of it's sheer naturalness, it can take a while to overcome the initial impression that it is somehow soft or rolled off. That is most emphatically not the case! Dynamics are crisp and fast, and the frequency extremes are right where they need to be--not overstated or highlighted at all, just perfectly natural and realistic.

The only potential weakness of the 108 is its power rating. It flows a nice amount of juice for 100 watts, but one could theoretically run into problems with particuarly current-hungry or inefficient speakers. Part of the amp's midrange purity, I believe, is attributable to the use of the bare minimum of bipolars in the output stage. That, of course, comes at the price of power, but in this case the tradeoff is more than worth it. Just take some care in speaker matching--as you should, anyway--and you'll be rewarded with a sound that balances the very best of solid state with a midrange that will make some question whether they even need to fuss with tubes.

Despite its novel physical appearance, the need for careful speaker matching, and the fact that the US dollar has been taking a Tyson-like beating lately, the Dartzeel is a serious contender in the super-amp category. Yes, there are amps out there that do this or that "better" than the 108, but I've yet to hear one that strikes a better balance between the various areas of performance. It's a stunning piece of engineering and a landmark amplifier.

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Product Weakness: Appearance is strictly take-it-or-leave-it. Power rating requires some attention to speaker load. Cost.
Product Strengths: Naturalness, midrange magic of the highest order, speed, dynamics

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Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier: Dartzeel NHB-108
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): EMM Labs DCC2
Sources (CDP/Turntable): EMM Labs CDSD
Speakers: Von Schweikert VR-4 Jr.
Cables/Interconnects: Jena Labs Pathfinder
Music Used (Genre/Selections): Rock, blues, country, some classical
Room Size (LxWxH): 24 x 20 x 7
Room Comments/Treatments: Echo Buster, ASC
Time Period/Length of Audition: 3 months
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): Shunyata Hydra-8
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner
hooper
dazzdax
599 posts
 
Hi Hooper, I have two questions regarding the DarTZeel: 1. Why does Hervé call his amp DarTZeel? Is it a character from a cartoon? 2. Do you know the Accuphase A-50V? This amp has some similarities to the DarTZeel (and costs about the same as the DarTZeel). I'm curious how the DarTZeel sounds in comparison to the Accuphase.

Chris
hooper OP
396 posts
 
Hi, Dazzdax:

Great question. I have no clue why Herve calls the company DarTZeel. I'll have to ask him. Or perhaps Jonathan (JTinn) will know. I have heard the A-50V in NYC, but I've never done a direct comparison with the Dart. Personally, I never been a huge fan of the Accuphase sound. It's just a little too warmish for my taste. I like something more transparent and accurate. The Dart is the polar opposite. IMO, it's one of the very best amps on the planet. Then again, how do you really define "best"? Anyway, it's an incredible amp that does everything right, at least to my ears. The dynamics are lightning quick and powerful, especially for a 100-watter. Clarity and transparency are mesmerizing. I've never heard an amp reveal as much information as this one does. But, most of all, it's effortlessly natural and nonfatiguing. When paired with the right gear, you can listen for hours and hours on end. It would probably take a plastic surgeon to remove the smile from your face! It's that good. But I own two, so of course I'm biased. But I've heard a lot of the top contenders out there, both in my home and at shows, and I can say without reservation that the DarTZeel is at the very top of the heap.
sadeek's avatar
sadeek
2 posts
 
Herve's last name is Deletraz. He must have coined Dartzeel from his name.
jtinn
1,124 posts
 
Dazzdax & Hooper: darTZeel is an anagram for Deletraz. Hervé's last name. :)

Hooper to correct you, due to your owning two amplifiers, you would be twice as biased as most. :)
henryhk
648 posts
 
Jtinn, Mike and others who have exp: I currently have the Kharma 2.3Fs...not the beloved 3.2s...tried them and personally thought the 2.3Fs were better at image solidity and bass articulation without sacrifcing that great disappearing act. The Midis are out of my price range and so are the VR9s...well actually if I want to I can upgrade to them but the size of these speakers especially the VR9s are a bit daunting plus WAF. When I purchased them I also got the Focal tweeter not the new diamond tweeter as I would have to waited another 4-6 months or so as I live in HK. The question is as I will b moving early next yr I am re-thinking my set up (once again: but its actually fun to do so). This being HK again a very large dedicated listening rm is out of the question and probably the VR9s are out of the question: they may sound great still but just visually too dominant (yes, I am acknowledging that indeed it is a factor to me: not beauty necessarily but just avoid being visually dominant). The Meitner front end is here to stay. What I am trying to think about is what to investigate: How would upgrading my tweeters in the Kharma's be like? What about the smaller VR speakers such 7 or even 4jr? Or Avalons? In this process, what amps should I investigate to "upgrade" my "old" (5 years) Linn Klimaxx Solo mono blocks? The Linns are quick and open but lack that mid range beauty (not looking the excessive lush though given the type of music I listen too I guess) and compared to other amps I have heard at times sound somehow "recessed", for a lack of better description. This is the background for me to read Audiogon etc: I know I should first know the dimensions of my listening room (basically living room) first and audition but still trying to narrow my field of investgation and devise a more methodical way of thinking about this. Should I start with amps or speakers? My current thinking was keep the speakers, investigate amps, then consider the speakers again (tweeter upgrade or say chging cables etc)...but reading this post has confused me once again. Any feedback or suggestions would be welcomed. Consider it as some advice to a fellow music lover. I listen to all sorts of jazz, rock, fusion, funk, a bit of classical...I don't need something to be very visceral if you know what I mean but I do want clarity, mid range beauty, bass articulation (really deep bass extension would be nice to have but not a decisive priority for me) and a open, high & deep sound stage (& do not like speakers which have a very narrow sweet spot: not conducive to my listening habits...that's why I have ruled a lot of speakers: including the Aerial 20Ts: sound chged too much according to listening height).
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