Without any flick switching (bass and treble) the VorzAMP Duo is just my type of ‘on the go’ tonality. Warm almost tube like tonal quality with faster transients, a coherent bass and a very slight roll on the highs. I remember a while back when the V2 and the National amps where out there was a lot of debate on whether to get the lows of the National and sacrifice the lush mids of the V2. That was a really narrow debate when I think about because the VorzAMP Duo is the answer to that question for me with a healthy mix of both.
The mids on the VorzAMP Duo are front and center but not in any way aggressive. In a way for me the VorzAMP Duo stock signature is about the focused mid section combined with a very coherent and textured bass that toes the lines sensibly and doesn’t really color playback too much. For bass dominant but neutral headphones such as the M50 this might be a blessing in disguise given the M50 already has an abundance of bass and a sparkling treble.
The sound stage is really top notch. Much more spacious sounding than the warm and musical Just Audio uHA-120 and more in line with the AHA-120. The VorzAMP Duo really delivers a big sounding vibe but have to say with a slight loss of imaging accuracy. That is not to say its wild or all over the place just with that mid centric focus your going to find most things take second place. Thankfully the sheer musicality and smooth tonality tends to outweigh any concerns over a desire for analytical and precise positioning. I guess with the tubey vibe you can forgive that aspect and certainly for an amp ‘on the go’ I want musicality front and center.
The VorzAMP Duo’s stock sound really does match well with a lot of neutral or treble headphones bringing in a degree of calm and smoothness sometime necessary fro prolonged listening. That’s the best balance I can find. It is not too muddy for warm or bassy cans and can handle Grado’s pretty easily due to its slightly laid back signature. Honestly just about most of my headphone enjoyed the VorzAMP Duo stock experience except all but the most power hungry planers, there is not a hard note anywhere to be found in the presentation. For IEM and CIEM users the VorzAMP Duo handles very well indeed with little or no channel imbalance, low levels of hiss if any on more sensitive earphones (so long as you dont mess too much with the gain switches) and works even better on the cleaner more neutral earphones such as the Final Audio FA-SS-BA that require a touch of warmth to even out the sometimes overly transparent presentation.
Flicking the switches
Now this is where the fun really begins – the bass and treble switches. Without these switches I would rate the VorzAMP Duo as an excellent amp but somewhat lacking in dynamics in the bottom and top end. The quality is there for sure but perhaps not quite the oomph. Well with the bass switch at roughly 10db and the treble at again approximately 5db these are in no way slight enhancements – these bring in massive coloration at the bottom end and touch of sparkle at the top end. Out go the highly sensitive earphones and headphones, they will either hiss or distort given the boost at both ends of the spectrum – these switches are for impact and fun over precision and enhancement. Sadly being switches you dont have a choice, it is all or nothing and I know a few who would prefer more control such as what you get with the variable knobs on the ALO RX-MK3 or even a gain selector level (low/high) such as what you get on the FiiO range. Vorzuge even offer to tune the gain down a notch on you ramp if you find it too much.
In certain matches though I honestly couldn’t care less as it gives some of my most treble sensitive cans a healthy and richening boost that almost changes the sound entirely for the better in terms of musicality. Take for instance the dry, bass light super fast treble heavy Beyer T70P. A great match with the Theorem 720 but a really fun match with the VorzAMP Duo with the bass switch flicked on. All of a sudden the T70P is hitting those low end notes with severe authority yet still keeping its tight top end intact and benefiting from the smooth tonality from the rest of the amp’s presentation. The treble switch didn’t gel as well with increased sibilance on a few matches such as the T70P but much better with darker cans such as the Philips L1 and the TMA-1. It is really a case of mix and match with the bass and treble to get the desired tonality just right.
Now hard EQ switches is nothing new, I have seen on quite a range of amps such as the Go Vibe Vulcan, ALO Audio’s RX MK3 to name but a few and they do their job quite nicely – even the Zo 2.3 is quite adapt at some nice EQ change-ups in the lower range, but the VorzAMP Duo has that wow factor when you flick on the switches, even more so when you get the match just right.
Click next page for final thoughts…
