So the JVC comes in to run things for a little while. Unsurprisingly, this amp gives up little to the 100 pound heavier Onkyo.
Differences I’ve noticed:
1 maybe a little brighter, but it’s not been on for a while yet.
2 it is a little less well defined in the upper bass and midrange. A little congestion is evident.
3 as with the above statement, the dynamics are a little suppressed. Both macro and micro, the picture is a little smaller.
4 bass is nearly equal, but is softer with the JVC. A little wooly and fat. Interestingly the M-L10 is a voltage reducing amp, capping power at 200 watts per at 4 ohms via voltage suppression. But in its operating range, it’s anything but dry and uninvolving. In fact it seems to keep pace with these speakers nicely.
5 that the Onkyo is essentially a step up isn’t a surprise. It cost double the money, has like 5x the transformer rating in the power supply and 28 large outputs to make use of that supply. What’s really neat is how well the JVC stacks up.
I’ll probably let it stay up on the pedestal for a while.