Conrad Johnson amplifiers are certainly not cheap, but that is to be expected with a brand renowned for high quality amps. Conrad Johnson has a large army of dedicated followers that certainly feel the prices are well worth it. To listen to your music in stereo you'll need two Twelve Tube monoblock Amplifier and at $7000 lets find out what you get for your cash.
Well design wise beyond the fantastic brand name you get a sleek brushed brass style amplifier, quite straight forward circuitry with a big output transformer, which according to the specs give high phase linearity and a wide bandwidth. Basically, nothing too out of the ordinary. The success of this amplifier is really down to performance more than design.
The CJ Twelve Tube's overall sound is extremely rich and open with a fantastic transparency, superb mids and a deep down racey bass. It manges the transitions between frequencies with ease, even at extremes, as well as through the upper and mid ranges. Something that even amplifiers of similar price tags often struggle with.
Tube amplifiers quite often have diffiulculties when it comes to transients, especially with rock and pop songs. The Twelve Tube handles these with ease with a focused and coherent sound throughout, being perhaps the finest I have heard in years.
Conrad Johnson is well known for the reliability of their amplifiers, and there is no exception when it comes to the Twelve Tube. Tube amplifiers are often seen to give problems in this area, but with the Twelve Tube you should have no worries.
The internet is a great place to start your amplifier search, whether you're looking for a Twelve Tube, another Conrad Johnson or any other amplifier. There are some great deals around!