Octave Audio V 70 CLASS A
Octave’s V 70 Class A marries velvety tube colour with stunning clarity, disciplined transients and a spacious, precisely layered soundstage. Twittering Machines heard exceptional control and low noise, while LowBeats praised its natural, open presentation. Flexible tube options, auto-bias protection and analogue-friendly connectivity complete a refined integrated built for immersive listening across a broad range of speakers.
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Deliciously Crispy
Sound Quality
93/100
Build Quality
94/100
Features Connectivity
91/100
Value for Money
82/100
Pros
Exceptionally clear, low-noise and naturally voiced presentation with rich tube timbre.
Open, precisely layered imaging with convincing space around performers and fine detail retrieval.
Robust build and thoughtful ownership features, including tube monitoring, ECO mode, protection circuitry and optional phono capability.
Cons
Prioritises refinement over maximum bass slam and perceived forcefulness compared with powerful solid-state amplifiers.
High listening levels are better suited to sensitive loudspeakers or smaller rooms.
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What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 93/100
Reviewers consistently describe an unusually clean, natural and musically involving tube presentation, combining strong image focus and air with substantial control. Its most notable caveat is that one reviewer found it refined rather than especially forceful in bass-heavy, head-banging material.
Transparency Resolution
94/100
Twittering Machines praises stunning clarity and an absence of self-noise, while LowBeats hears pleasant clarity with a velvety finish. Hi-fi+ also notes strong retrieval of quiet details, and Stereophile’s measurements found an excellent signal-to-noise ratio.
Tonal Balance Musicality
95/100
The V 70 Class A is repeatedly praised for natural tone, rich timbre and an engaging balance of control with musicality. LowBeats calls it exceptionally natural, while hi-fi+ and HiFi News highlight its tonal richness, liquidity, warmth and emotional involvement without undue bloom or grain.
Dynamics
90/100
Several reviewers found the Octave fast, effortless and composed at high volume, with accurately rendered transients and surprisingly powerful bass for a 50W tube design. HiFi News provides an important qualification: it drove demanding speakers capably but sounded more refined and polite than truly hard-hitting, with less perceived slam than expected.
Soundstage Imaging
94/100
Reviews describe a large, open and precisely organized soundstage, with layers remaining distinct and performers convincingly placed in space. Twittering Machines heard a huge, sharply defined image, while HiFi News found the presentation cavernous, airy and naturally spacious rather than clinical.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
94/100
Construction receives emphatic praise: Twittering Machines calls it robust and superbly built, and LowBeats cites immaculate workmanship alongside carefully considered protective circuitry. Enjoy the Music also reports stringent tube selection and quality-control practices, while HiFi News simply calls the build superlative.
Features Connectivity
91/100
The V 70 Class A provides a strong analogue-focused connection set, including multiple RCA line inputs, a balanced XLR input, tape and regulated preamp outputs, and home-theater bypass. Useful ownership features include an optional MM or MC phono stage, remote volume control, ECO standby, bias monitoring, tube compatibility settings and comprehensive protection circuitry; it does not offer onboard digital audio or streaming.
Value for Money
82/100
At roughly €11,000 or $10,990–$12,750 before some options, this is a serious investment. HiFi News says the price deserves careful consideration, suggesting that some of the premium pays for the extensive tube-management provisions, inputs and convenience features rather than a simple sonic-performance bargain; the other reviews do not make a direct value case.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
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Specifications
- Basic Model
- V 70 Class A Line
- Options
- Phono MC or MM
- Design
- Silver or Black
- Tube Configuration
- 4 x KT 88-S4A-Carbon, optional 4 x KT 120 TS
- Inputs
- 5 x line level RCA (one is a bypass input and one is a phono input with the phono option) / 1 x XLR
- Outputs
- 1 x pre-out regulated / 1 x record output RCA / 1 x loudspeaker output
- Dimensions
- 451 x 150 x 415 mm (W x H x D)
- Weight
- 22.1 kg
- Full metal remote control
- Volume control
- Eco Mode
- Power saving mode
- Bias Control
- Quiescent current display and setting
- Adjustable Pre-Out
- Preamp output RCA
- HT Bypass
- Bypass-function for multichannel receiver / TV
- Protection system
- Soft Start; Protection circuit for amplifier and output tubes
- Power selection
- Adaptation to alternative output tubes
- Output Power
- High: 2 x 50 W / 4 ohms; Low: 2 x 25 W / 4 ohms
- Frequency response
- 20 Hz – 70 kHz @ 50 W - 1 / - 3 dB
- Total harmonic distortion
- 0.1% at 10 W / 4 ohms
- Signal-to-noise ratio
- - 100 dB / 50 W unrated
Manufacturer's Description — Octave Audio
Class-A. A circuit concept that has bewitching midrange in both push-pull and single-ended amplifiers due to the low distortion. But unfortunately it is paired with low power, dynamics and excessive heating of the amplifier. Features that do not match the product profile of our popular integrated amplifiers 100%. It was therefore important to develop a concept that would bring the undisputed tonal advantages of this principle to life.
In short, a “Class A concept” technically means a higher quiescent current setting and therefore less distortion (almost only second-order harmonics, referred to as k2), but also a limited full modulation with less power. Push-pull concepts, on the other hand, can deliver 4-16 times the output power compared to Class-A, but lack with inharmonic distortions (i.e. odd harmonics k3 and k5). Two soundscapes with followers on both sides. Of course, Andreas Hofmann was tempted to combine both concepts into something new.
After extensive development, a new amplifier concept was created:
The V 70 Class A, a Class A push-pull amplifier in a pentode circuit.
For this, a new Class A technology had to be developed:
The Dynamic Bias Control
Dynamic Bias Control means that Andreas Hofmann has found ways to dynamically shift the limited dynamic range, and thus the limited power of the Class A concept, according to the requirements. The development of the dynamic operating point setting enabled a self-regulating Class A amplifier with approximately twice the output power of 50 W RMS with up to 70 W (with Super Black Box) peak power.
This technology combines the tonal purity of Class A with the dynamics and performance of push-pull A / B technology.
The modern concept of a Class-A push-pull amplifier in a pentode circuit makes it possible to guarantee the Class-A virtues over the entire frequency response up to maximum modulation. The enormous power, with up to 70 watts peak power, is significantly above the performance level of conventional Class A amplifiers and is more than sufficient for most speakers.
The integrated amplifier is equipped with a balanced input as standard. If a turntable is connected, the optional phono board (either MC or MM) offers the right solution.
In the case of the V 70 Class A, an auto-bias circuit is used. The amplifier adjusts itself to the tube used and does not require any adjustment controls. The proven BIAS measurement with the colored LEDs is still available, however, only to check that the four output tubes are working properly.
Similar to the other top models from Octave, the V 70 Class A also has the power preselection, Power High and Low, so that the device can be optimally adapted to different power tubes. Due to the high power in Class A operation, a KT 120 or KT 150 tube must be used for Power High. Less powerful KT88 or 6550 types should be operated at Power Low. Around 15 W Class A and 25 W music power are still available.
Octave typical measures, such as the Power Management with electronic monitoring are integrated as well as the Protection SystemECO Mode, the Home Theater Bypass circuit, the Power Selector, a (Super) Black Box Connection and the useful Regulated Preamp Output (for direct connection of a subwoofer).
Our special Power Supply Technology protects the amplifier against various types of mains interference. Mains fluctuations and high-frequency mains disturbances do not cause any sonic deterioration.
With the V 70 Class A we have the line of the legendary powerful Octave integrated amplifiers extended by a highly musical Class A concept.
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Authorized dealers for Octave Audio V 70 CLASS A
- Holt Hill — online and in-store — Andover, Massachusetts, United States (website)
- A 10 Audio Room 4 Music — in-store — Amsterdam Nieuw-West, Noord-Holland, Netherlands (website)
- Addicted to Audio — online and in-store — Epping, Victoria, Australia (website)
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- Audio Tempel — online and in-store — Zwolle, Overijssel, Netherlands (website)
- Audio Vision San Francisco — online and in-store — San Francisco, California, United States (website)
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