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When I bought these SS-G1 MkII, in May 2020, I was sure that something
had to be wrong, as they were quite cheap for this set of speakers, and in
fact one of the two tweeters was not working. Waiting the original tweeters
to be repaired, I ordered at Amazon a pair of Pyle tweeters that had a
comparable size and technical characteristics. I fitted them slightly
'slanted' as their holes were not exactly aligned to those of the original
Wega-sourced tweeters, so I had to drill new holes. The sound quality of these little tweeters
was a huge surprise! They had brought new life and presence to
the vintage SS-G1, thanks to their very brilliant sound. They look quite nice too. I don't know if I will ever fit the original
units
again....
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(Written by Stan Wyman, in the Audioreview Forum, July 15, 2001,
about
the Sony TA N55ES power amp)
"...There
are a LOT of myths that are running rampant in audio land. The first great
myth is that you have to take out a second mortgage in order to buy an amp
that'll be satisfactory to your needs. The next great myth is that large
companies like Sony, who have multi-million dollar R&D budgets and top
engineers, cannot compete with people who make their amps in their garage
and sell them for $30,000.
The fact is Sony, and particularly the ES
line, are the "Best" value components in the world!! As I said above, they
devote millions to the development of their products and hire the best and
the brightest. In addition, they've achieved great economies of scale that
allow for them to produce products "Very" reasonably and pass that savings
onto their customers. Consequently, when you buy a Sony ES product, you're
getting a well made and excellent sounding product that is superior to
everything in its price class and better than many costing 2-6X more!
I have bought Sony ES products for years and the TA-55 happens to be the
latest purchase of mine. Anyhow, I'm extremly impressed with this giant
killer. As I said in my strength listing above, it has a taut bass that is
second to none. The bass that this amp creates will satisfy all those who
listen to chamber music or rock music. Next, it has great dynamics. It makes
the music really come to life. In addition, the sound is not fatiguing at
all unlike most power amps. I could listen to this amp for hours without any
ear problems. There are many other things I enjoy about this amp but the one
characteristic that stands out most in my mind is the quickness of this amp.
It seems like so many amps simply aren't quick enough to keep up with piano
and other sounds but this amp has NOOO problem with that as sounds just flow
out effortlessly!
This is, in my opinion, the best value power amp on
the market and I've auditioned nearly every one under 1k. As usual, Sony
produces a giant killer!"
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Personally, I think that very few
audio enthusiasts (and journalists) have ever understood the extraordinary
overall quality of the best Sony products as well as mr. Wyman. Stuff like
the PS-X9, the La Voce and SS-GR1 speakers, the 'ES'-series and the Esprit
electronics....! They are 'Halo'
equipment, where the Japan Moloch invests its enormous knowledge and
unlimited financial power to redeem the profitable but not pleasant
'low-end' image of its cheaper products. The PS-X9, for example, is way
above the level of any Technics or Denon professional deck and it is even
better than the splendid AEG/Telefunken studio turntables: it is a worthy
challenger of the best direct-drive EMT broadcast machines.
Today's
snobbish (and always fashion-obsessed, but often sadly uncultured)
'audiophiles' invariably look down at any equipment carrying the 'Sony'
badge with open disdain. They seem happy to take a second mortgage to buy
some obscure, 'exclusive' junk, not understanding that many of these Sony
machines, often directly inspired by the better European products and
sometimes even manufactured in the Old World, are objects of great beauty,
superb sound, and, very often, extremely convenient price. Thanks Stan!
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