Yaqin MC10L Tube Integrated Amp

[murali_n]

Hi all,

FM Metalmickey has purchased this amp from FM Bimal Ved, and same was sent to my residence by Courier. I received the amp yesterday evening in good condition. Metalmickey stays away from Chennai and wanted to audition some speakers with this amp in chennai when he comes here, so he wanted me to retain the amp for a couple of days. He also requested me to have a listen to the amp, and post a small review in our Forum, for the benefit of all members.

So I write this ,with a little bit of reluctance, and a limited knowledge of Tubes, hoping that this thread, will be of some use to people who plan to go the tube way sooner or later.

Here is the link to the product link with photos :

Yaqin MC-10L

The amp is a Integrated amp with a power of about 50wpc @ 8 Ohms, it uses 4 x 61Ns tube for the pre-amp stage and 4xEL34-B tube for the power stage. There are 3 nos transformers(one power and 2 for isolation ) as can be seen in the photos. There are also trim pots, adjustable from the top of the chassis, to adjust the bias points of the power tubes.

There are 2xRC input gold plated sockets for Tape, DVD, CD and Tuner and its selector switch located in the front. The speaker output terminals are made of gold plated terminals with option to connect either 4 or 8 ohms speakers at the back.

The whole body is made of metal, with the tubes being exposed for better ventilation. The whole package is sleek but hefty weighing about 20 kgs.

The front face plate is made up of acrylic material 8-10 mm thick, with volume and Selector switch controls and power push button, along with a blue LED which illuminates the Yaqin logo.

My listening impression will follow.

Some photos in my set up :

 

[captrajesh]

Sometime back my trusted audiophile friend and FM Sashi had brought his Cayine MT35 EL34 tube amp which uses similar tubes to see how it pairs with my Cadence speakers.We were really enamored by SQ of the combination.

Wonder how this amp sounds with my speakers!

 

[denom]

Sometime back my trusted audiophile friend and FM Sashi had brought his Cayine MT35 EL34 tube amp which uses similar tubes to see how it pairs with my Cadence speakers.We were really enamored by SQ of the combination.

Wonder how this amp sounds with my speakers!

Request FM M Mickey to allow you to take him amp from FM Murali for pairing with your speakers & find out the results post which you may also write a review in the same thread & oblige the FM's with your views. It would be nice if it is possible. Over to M Mickey for allowing the same.

 

[jaudere]

The amp is looking superb, much better than the snaps which were there in the "For sale' thread by Bimal.

 

[captrajesh]

Request FM M Mickey to allow you to take him amp from FM Murali for pairing with your speakers & find out the results post which you may also write a review in the same thread & oblige the FM's with your views. It would be nice if it is possible.

Would love to do that.:licklips:

 

[metalmickey]

oops never saw this thread until now!
@capt-apologies for not bringing the amp to your place as i was on a short visit to chennai & sure would bring it soon and we can listen with your speakers!...am eager too!

@jaudere-yup the amp is quite a stunner not just on the aesthetic part but also on the sound department!...would give amps upto 600$! a serious run for the money!...

sound wise-
i believe the amp was literally untouched by the seller as the tubes has no usage marks and sounded lifeless!boy!i was actually happy!...so began the first audition at murali_n's house
before that my biiiiiiiig thanks goes to bimal for lots of understanding/helping and the packing was the best ive seen...unlike my speaker which came with grills smashed to bits!thanks to the a** H***s at gatti!...and many thanks to murali sir for being the best gude and friend in my budget audiophile journey!
Coming back to how the amp sounded & sounds!-
during initial listening(1 month back!) with murali sir's ms aviano2-the bass sounded deep but bit loose and adequate,but the mids sounded somewhat strained especially on high pitched female vocals,highs sounded a bit bright unlike what ive heard of an tube amp!...i.e warmer tone...but overall it was love at first listen...most of all the 50 watt sounded like an 100 watt and thanks to the yaqin's boarding speaker terminals for both the ohms!...

and next was audition with fm rajagopals lyrita harmony one?speaker(apologies dont remember the model)
man!i was stunned with his lp collection ranging from billy j to metal super stars metallica...the speakers sounded flat?and good with his lyrita amp though i felt it sounded too flat and dry? for me...next with the yaqin it sounded almost the same to my non gloden ears except for the high notes sparkle but obvious the speaker sounded far better with his amp...thanks rajagopal!

Returned back to United Streets of Ambur!!!!!!grrrr...and paired it to my humble and most favourite budget speaker namely super star wharfedale diamond 10.1...when it comes to mids no other book shelfs sounded this good in upto 20k price range...
with the diamond babe i let the yaqin mate! initial listening was good but not upto aviano 2's due to size factor of the drivers...but still the bass was adequate but not tight,mids still strained and top notes sizzled....but after 15 hours the bass was tighter,mids more smooth and forward(would love this combo if you into vocal jazz like me)and the high notes were a lot smoother and laidback now...overall after opening up the 10.1's rear ports i loved what i heard for my money
i was ASSURED that the yaqin was a best buy!
until i got greedy and wanted bigger but still bookshelfs and a bit forward on the mids and highs and landed up with fm mpw's paradigm titans
And what i got was super neat REGRET!!!!!!!!wtf!?...starting from the second murali sir called me up to inform that speakers grills were smashed to bits to an hour back when i last heard it with the yaqins...BY ALL MEANS NO OFFENNCE INTENDED AT MPW who is a neat matured man to talk to but though i was quite surprised by his reaction to my loss and now when i get my speaker grills new its going to set me back by 6 k which actually was an brand new titans selling price back then...i request future sellers here to please double pack their products on sale when shipping to other states...even if its an morel fat lady or top of the line b&w's the courier guys would still handle the same way and i believe its the sellers responsibility to pack it up wisely and sensibly...

about the paradigm titans-
the speakers have good but few reviews online and for me it was an blind buy just like the yaqin which gave me no regrets at all but rather lucky!...
the yaqin and the paradigms are a nightmare atleast for me...god! the high notes could kill a man with its sharp sword edged highs,the mids were nothing to write about but the bass was the best?NO but lot better and i unplugged my wharf sw 150 out of my stereo rig with no regrets...my belief is i guess the paradigms needs an really laidback and literally no high notes amp?!...my 3 hours of daily music with the wharf?yaqin has come down to 1 hour of anger management and tolerance test!...now my car stereo has become my favorite thanks to my 1 hour travel to work place!...
As of now am confused which one to sell off! the yaqin which has my admiration or the hopefully easy to push off paradigm titans...and advice needed from the stalwarts here.....
I wish i had listened to fm srinisundar's advice against blind buy...

ONCE AGAIN NO OFFENCE MEANT EVEN ACCIDENTALY TOWARDS ANYONE
&
NO HUMANS,ANIMALS OR INSECTS WERE HARMED DURING THE WRITING OF THE REVIEW(blame it on the mortein mosquito replellant if you still want to!)

 

[srinisundar]

Nice write-up, enjoyed the sun-day morning.

Just try to insert an DAC in between your chain and of-course an neutral cable like VDH and see whether you can see any difference.

Not advise to sell it off try to get adjusted and taking your amp to Rajiv house may fetch you an good advice to get along.

Regards

oops never saw this thread until now!
@capt-apologies for not bringing the amp to your place as i was on a short visit to chennai & sure would bring it soon and we can listen with your speakers!...am eager too!

@jaudere-yup the amp is quite a stunner not just on the aesthetic part but also on the sound department!...would give amps upto 600$! a serious run for the money!...

sound wise-
i believe the amp was literally untouched by the seller as the tubes has no usage marks and sounded lifeless!boy!i was actually happy!...so began the first audition at murali_n's house
before that my biiiiiiiig thanks goes to bimal for lots of understanding/helping and the packing was the best ive seen...unlike my speaker which came with grills smashed to bits!thanks to the a** H***s at gatti!...and many thanks to murali sir for being the best gude and friend in my budget audiophile journey!
Coming back to how the amp sounded & sounds!-
during initial listening(1 month back!) with murali sir's ms aviano2-the bass sounded deep but bit loose and adequate,but the mids sounded somewhat strained especially on high pitched female vocals,highs sounded a bit bright unlike what ive heard of an tube amp!...i.e warmer tone...but overall it was love at first listen...most of all the 50 watt sounded like an 100 watt and thanks to the yaqin's boarding speaker terminals for both the ohms!...

and next was audition with fm rajagopals lyrita harmony one?speaker(apologies dont remember the model)
man!i was stunned with his lp collection ranging from billy j to metal super stars metallica...the speakers sounded flat?and good with his lyrita amp though i felt it sounded too flat and dry? for me...next with the yaqin it sounded almost the same to my non gloden ears except for the high notes sparkle but obvious the speaker sounded far better with his amp...thanks rajagopal!

Returned back to United Streets of Ambur!!!!!!grrrr...and paired it to my humble and most favourite budget speaker namely super star wharfedale diamond 10.1...when it comes to mids no other book shelfs sounded this good in upto 20k price range...
with the diamond babe i let the yaqin mate! initial listening was good but not upto aviano 2's due to size factor of the drivers...but still the bass was adequate but not tight,mids still strained and top notes sizzled....but after 15 hours the bass was tighter,mids more smooth and forward(would love this combo if you into vocal jazz like me)and the high notes were a lot smoother and laidback now...overall after opening up the 10.1's rear ports i loved what i heard for my money
i was ASSURED that the yaqin was a best buy!
until i got greedy and wanted bigger but still bookshelfs and a bit forward on the mids and highs and landed up with fm mpw's paradigm titans
And what i got was super neat REGRET!!!!!!!!wtf!?...starting from the second murali sir called me up to inform that speakers grills were smashed to bits to an hour back when i last heard it with the yaqins...BY ALL MEANS NO OFFENNCE INTENDED AT MPW who is a neat matured man to talk to but though i was quite surprised by his reaction to my loss and now when i get my speaker grills new its going to set me back by 6 k which actually was an brand new titans selling price back then...i request future sellers here to please double pack their products on sale when shipping to other states...even if its an morel fat lady or top of the line b&w's the courier guys would still handle the same way and i believe its the sellers responsibility to pack it up wisely and sensibly...

about the paradigm titans-
the speakers have good but few reviews online and for me it was an blind buy just like the yaqin which gave me no regrets at all but rather lucky!...
the yaqin and the paradigms are a nightmare atleast for me...god! the high notes could kill a man with its sharp sword edged highs,the mids were nothing to write about but the bass was the best?NO but lot better and i unplugged my wharf sw 150 out of my stereo rig with no regrets...my belief is i guess the paradigms needs an really laidback and literally no high notes amp?!...my 3 hours of daily music with the wharf?yaqin has come down to 1 hour of anger management and tolerance test!...now my car stereo has become my favorite thanks to my 1 hour travel to work place!...
As of now am confused which one to sell off! the yaqin which has my admiration or the hopefully easy to push off paradigm titans...and advice needed from the stalwarts here.....
I wish i had listened to fm srinisundar's advice against blind buy...

ONCE AGAIN NO OFFENCE MEANT EVEN ACCIDENTALY TOWARDS ANYONE
&
NO HUMANS,ANIMALS OR INSECTS WERE HARMED DURING THE WRITING OF THE REVIEW(blame it on the mortein mosquito replellant if you still want to!)

 

[kuruvilajacob]

Hi, I had Yaqin MC 10 for quite a while. I used to pair it with Yaqin MS=12B phono-pre and KLH Model 5 speakers. They were to me value for money. Solid built and quite musical. I had got hold of a Prima Luna prologue One and had an opportunity to compare. while it was no competitor to Prima luna, still Yaqin MC 10 L was a decent Tube amp which I believe could be tweaked to sound better
kuruvilajacob

 

[metalmickey]

@ srini sir-thanks again sir.yeah even I was thinking of an trip to tube guru rajiv's place!and am still waiting for murali_n to pass me his number...probably swapping tubes should help I believe...

 

[captrajesh]

@capt-apologies for not bringing the amp to your place as i was on a short visit to chennai & sure would bring it soon and we can listen with your speakers!...am eager too!

Having heard German speced China made Cayin MT35 which have similar tubes with my speakers, I was curious as to how this pure bred Chinese amp would sound.

Looking forward to your visit.

 

[Razerman]

I am vary intrigued by this amp and always chasing the sound of tubes warmth . I am really thinking now thanks Ray