Atoll IN400 Evo Integrated Amp, $7000 (160×2)
{5.11h, 17.3w, 14.6d, 43 lbs)
Atoll has just updated its flagship integrated amp. IN400 is built like a Mac truck. Don’t worry about the modest power claim. That’s just Atoll being conservatively French.
When an amp is built with massive transformers and power supply caps, it produces a much weightier sound than its wattage rating would imply. Atoll builds this big boy like a brick out house. It can crush virtually any speakers you’ll ever own. IN400 has a silky smooth sound but wields Thor’s hammer just in case you ask for it. It’s ideal for speakers that have a LOT more to give- if you have the muscle on board.
Speakers from Bryston, Magnepan and Atohm, among many, will sound good with a cost effective integrated like Atoll’s IN100 ($2100, 100×2). But if you pair these speakers with Atoll’s big boys, IN300 and now IN400- get ready for a new level of impact and dynamics.
The IN400 is a tour de force! It starts as a dual mono design with two toroidal transformers. One is a 1050VA monster with dual windings and handles the audio. There is a second 1.6VA toroidal for control logic.
The chassis is made of steel.
The face plate is just under a half inch of brushed aluminum.
Filter capacitance is huge at 96,680uF.
MATCHED MOSFET Output Transistors
IN400 runs eight MATCHED MOSFET transistors per channel. Why the matching?
No two transistors are exactly the same in their distortion characteristics. Think of tuning forks that are supposed to play at middle C= 261.63 Hz. If you have 16 tuning forks and they’re all a bit different from that reference, what you’ll hear is some fuzziness or distortion. You won’t hear the intended pure tone of middle C. Precious few companies take the trouble to hand match transistors. Atoll does- even on its little brothers. By taking the time to test and use MOSFET transistors in groups of precise tolerance, you won’t hear the grainy distortion characteristics of miss matched transistors.
This takes more time, and subsequently expense, but that’s one of the advantages of Atoll vs almost everyone else.
IN400 comes in line stage configuration. You can add a DAC board for $320 and an MM phono board for $130. While these prices might sound cheap for a serious DAC or phono addition, the quality is top shelf. The reason these boards are so inexpensive is that they’re going into an integrated amp that already has a hearty power supply. You don’t have to pay for a chassis, face plate, knobs, jacks and power supply- all over again. The infrastructure is already there.
Inputs: Aux, CD, Tuner, DAC, Tape LOOP, Bypass, Two XLR
Outputs: Two RCA pre outs
General Manager
I often write that as owner of Audio Emporium I’m the equivalent of a general manager of a baseball team. In all the years I’ve been in the hi-fi business, which goes back to 1971 in high school, I’ve never seen a full line as good as Atoll.
When it comes to integrated amps and CD players in particular, what Atoll offers in terms of industry leading performance at great price points is a staggeringly strong lineup. Atoll knocks everyone else, similarly priced, off the team.
Atoll is built in France with a 3 year warranty. Atoll is so good that this GM had to release NAD and Hegel, both of whom are built in China with a 2 year warranty. Atoll has made both expendable. Regardless of the price point, Atoll is such a clear winner that I am happy to not do business with Chinese made competitors. Time… marches on.
Hazel Scott (1920-1981)
We all know about Jackie Robinson. Hazel Scott was the first black pianist/singer to have her own TV show (1950) after a successful career in music and movies. She was a child prodigy on the piano and could play virtually anything she HEARD. She went to Julliard at age 8. She was active in civil rights and made over $75k by 1945 (worth $1.3m today). Talk about a lady ahead of her time!