Dear Mr Poon:
I hope you are doing fine and that you got success at CES (someday I will go)

Recently I upgraded from my Paradigm speakers to world class (unless to me) 
Tannoy Dual Concentric's Definition D500. Wow! The Monarchy-Tannoy duo 
is amazing! The speakers have the same carachter than the amp, wich  makes 
the combo a VERY musical one. No one can believe that we are listening to CDs
(blame the DIP upsampler also). Highs are Sweeet but can be biting also when needed.
Midrange is an orgy. Bass is punchy, detailed and articulated. 
Tannoy doesn't inflate any frequency (maybe a little the midrange)
but the feeling is that every instrument is a soloist. I went on this HF-MF-Bass detailing 
but the true is that I don't think of it any more: 
I only enjoy the music. Also music that I found boring before! Music 
just flow inviting, colourful, powerful and dynamic. And what depth to the 
soundstage!
I guess one could build a dream system with a SM70pro and a couple of 
sensitive big Tannoy Studio Dual Concentric Monitors (another project).

Sorry, I have to get back to the living room.

Best regards
Mauricio
   

From: "mauricio rosas" <maxlorenz24@hotmail.com>
Date: Tue, 09 Dec 2003 00:26:47 -0300

Dear Mr. Poon:
This is it. The search is over. I knew it when I got my DIP upsampler. 
Quality like this is (almost) impossible to find at this price. While I 
was waiting for the SE100 Delux I read the reviews several times. The 
reviewers were very accurate in his comments, BUT, nothing could prepare 
us for the experience of listening to these Class A amps: my personal tastes includes 
Opera, symphonic and chamber music, and I understand now why your products 
are famous for vocal and strings reproduction and for layering and 
individualization of players. Bass reproduction is solid, tight and 
accurate. You can follow the bass lines easily. In fact, even with 
difficult scores, one could follow the music with a "partitura" on hand. 
The sweetness of tone, the delicacy and elegance of acoustic instruments 
engages you and allows for a joyfull listening sesion, wich is what it's 
all about. Opera and Choral music listening is quite a ghostly experience! 
Ella singed for me tonight.
The adjectives most related to the SE100 are "lovely" (from "love") and 
"charming" (in its original french meaning: "enchanting"; "bewithching"). 
Please note that I use entry level, rather old, Paradigm speakers and a 
NAD receiver as DAC/preamp. Even with this configuration the SE100's 
qualitys shine, wich makes me also note how constrained the DIP upsampler 
performance was when using the NAD as an amp! (do the DIP performance has 
a limit?)
I can't wait to upgrade DAC and speakers to see how far the amps can go. 
Also an improuvement in performance is anticipated as units burn-in.

I am most grateful to you for making such good products for us, 
third-world audiophiles.

Mauricio
 

From: RONNYBOYCUDA@aol.com
Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 04:43:34 EST

Dear Mr. Poon,
I  received the SE-100 Delux and 22C a couple of weeks ago and I just wanted to thank you and your staff for handling my order in a timely and professional fashion.  I have the system up and running and have allowed for some "run in" time.  The only way for me to describe the sound of the SE-100 Delux and 22C combo is "REMARKABLE"!!  My only complaint is that I am trying to find the time to "rediscover" my CD collection........they are that good!  I am also surprised at how cool they run; they do get warm to the touch, but not as hot as I thought they would being single ended Class A. I guess the substantial heat sinks really do the job.  I have Athena Technologies AF-S2 speakers and the combination is wonderful. The Athena's simply came to life after the amps were connected!  I could go on and on about the sound of these amps but I believe I would not be adding anything new to all the wonderful reviews previously written about these products. Thank you again...I plan to enjoy the sound for a long time to come!! 
Ronald A. Grosso 
(ronnyboycuda @aol.com) 
 
 

From: <john_wittmann@hotmail.com>
To: <monarchy@earthlink.net>
Subject: SE-100
Date: Sat, 27 Jul 2002 09:49:02 -0400

Mr. Poon,

 I recently purchased a used (1 year old) pair of the SE-100 mono amps. I was taking a set of cables to "The Listening Room" in Baltimore to have them reterminated to fit my Quicksilver amps. I was not very familiar with your product but have heard about them. I bought them without even hearing them first. I was very skeptical as I am a lover of Vacuum tubes. I was a little dismayed at first, that is until they came to their operating temperature. I was very impressed with the amount of information these amps produce. The soundstage is very solid, detailed, and neutral. I was also suprised at how smooth they are. I didn't think solid state could be this smooth at least not at this price. Needless to say, I am very pleased with the SE-100 mono amps. I would not have believed that solid state would find a home in  my system. Kudos to you for a producing these little gems.

John Wittmann
Audio Enthusiast
 
 
 

From: Leake Steve <steve_leake@dofasco.ca>
To: "'monarchy@earthlink.net'" <monarchy@earthlink.net>
Subject: SE100 Deluxe Amps
Date: Wed, 17 Jul 2002 15:29:22 -0400
 

Dear Mr. Poon and Staff

It has been a little over 4 months since I purchased a pair of SE100 Deluxe
Mono amps, and I wanted to let you know that I think these are AMAZING.  I
upgraded from a top-line Digital receiver of comparable power, and one that
is considered "very musical".  There was an immediately noticeable
improvement in speed, dynamics and separation, but then over the course of 2
to 3 months (break-in time), I have noticed their beauty in spatial imaging
(soundstage) and detail (nuance).

Living in Canada, where there are no Dealers stocking these amps, I want to
thank You and your Staff for handling the Ordering and Shipping in so
Professional a manner. They arrived in excellent condition and on-time. Even
after the item price, currency exchange, tax and shipping, there still are
no mono amps. available anywhere near their price/power/quality in stores.

Thank You again for a High-Quality product at a reasonable price.

Steve L.
Ont. Canada

Please feel free to publish the above as a Testimonial.
 
 

Date: Tue, 22 Apr 2003 16:21:18 +0200
From: massimosalesi@tiscali.it
Subject: SE100delux
To: microwisesystems@earthlink.net

Hello Ming,

how are you?
I 'm very pleased to inform you that the problem with the SE100 seems to be solved.
I don't know exactly what's happened.
I changed both the power chord and the interconnect cable and now I can
hear a very slight hum from the speaker. Very strange!

Anyway the most important thing is that now I can concentrate on the music only, 
and I have to say that I'm really satisfied with the two amplifiers.
They sound absolutely stunning in a very natural and delicate manner. 
The detail is very good and bass is powerful and controlled.

I hope I will enjoy them for a very long time!

Thank you and best regards.
Massimo Salesi   (Rome, Italy)
 
 

From the coffee-stained 
keyboard of: C. Scott McSwain
mcswain@flash.net

Hi Mr. Poon, 
I was in your factory late on Friday a week or so ago. I just wanted to drop you a line to say how much I'm enjoying your amps. They replaced some very old VTL Compact 100s, so at first listen, I almost got a headache. That effect went away after a hour or so of warm up. By the next day, they were singing pretty well. 
I had noticed you used some pretty hefty speaker cables at your place, and as my Merlins need all the bass help they can get, I tried double runs of Geneva cable -- only available on ebay from what I can tell, but a design concept I like -- to the bass and a single run to the tweeter. That, and the SE-100's extra low frequency power over the tube amps, really opened up everything. 
I'm sure you've read the audioreview messages, and I concur with the majority of them. However, I've always been skeptical of them. There are so many references to a particular product's designer or the store that sold it, I get the impression that some of the reviews are planted. Either that, or audiophiles are an even needier lot than I thought. 
Thanks for the great amps. 
Scott 
 
 

From: "raymond shiu" <rs888888@hotmail.com>
To: monarchy@earthlink.net
Subject: Re: SE-100 delux price
Date: Fri, 07 Sep 2001 14:24:40 +0000
 

Dear Mr Poon,
I final got my SE-100 delux version 2001 on Wednesday. It really sound
great even not fully break-in, and sound just seductive as people said, 
like some tube amp.
However I got a few picecs of fuses shipped with the amp...I have came
up a question just now, as I browse your website, it said the 2001 version 
are using relay rather then fuse protection...how could I verify I am 
using a 2001 version of SE-100 delux...?
Sorry for troubling you all along.

Thanks and Regards,
Raymond Shiu
from Hong Kong
 
 

Reply-To: "Scott McSwain" <mcswain@flash.net>
From: "Scott McSwain" <mcswain@flash.net>
To: "C.C.POON" <monarchy@earthlink.net>
Subject: My SE-100 Deluxes
Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2001 10:37:54 -0700
 

Hi Mr. Poon,
    I was in your factory late on Friday a week or so ago. I just wanted to drop you a line to say how much I'm enjoying your amps. They replaced some very old VTL Compact 100s, so at first listen, I almost got a headache. That effect went away after a hour or so of warm up. By the next day, they were singing pretty well. 
    I had noticed you used some pretty hefty speaker cables at your place, and as my Merlins need all the bass help they can get, I tried double runs of Geneva cable -- only available on ebay from what I can tell, but a design concept I like -- to the bass and a single run to the tweeter. That, and the SE-100's extra low frequency power over the tube amps, really opened up everything. 
    I'm sure you've read the audioreview messages, and I concur with the majority of them. However, I've always been skeptical of them. There are so many references to a particular product's designer or the store that sold it, I get the impression that some of the reviews are planted. Either that, or audiophiles are an even needier lot than I thought.
    Thanks for the great amps.
Scott

Mr. Poon,

I have listened to the SE-100 amps with the low noise rectifier mod, and 
the results are stunning. There is greater instrumental detail, better 
articulation, and more ambience and space around the instruments. 
Soundstaging is improved, with greater precision of localization, and 
greater depth. The treble region is cleaner and smoother. Low strings have 
a harmonic richness and "guts" previously missing. Overall, the sonic 
presentation is more musical and less analytical, even though much more is 
revealed than before.

Based on my past experiences with low noise rectifiers, this is no 
surprise, but it is good to hear these amps revealing more of their true 
design potential.

Attached is a .jpg photo of a modified amp. As you can see, I used a piece 
of 1/8 inch aluminum stock, 4 1/4 inches X 1 inch, as a heatsink for the 
regulators. The aluminum bar is bolted to the transformer washer.

Thanks for sending new rectifiers for the SM-70 amps. I gather that only 1 
bridge is needed for each SM-70.

Best,
Gary
Attachment Converted: "c:\eudora\attach\SE-100 Rectifier Mod #2.jpg"

Gary Galo
galoga@potsdam.edu

"Great art presupposes the alert mind of the educated listener."
Arnold Schoenberg

"A true artist doesn't want to be admired, he wants to be believed."
Igor Markevitch 

Brief Reviews by Gary Galo
The SM70 amplifier is an excellent performer, particularly when used as a
monoblock. It is incredibly punchy and dynamic, belying it's modest power
rating. The excellent inner detail and rich harmonic presentation are
amazingly satisfying during long-term listening. These amps really shine
when used in the balanced mode, fed by the Monarchy 22C or 33 D/A
converter/line amp units. 

The SE100 is a world-class amplifier, delivering the finest soundstaging I
have ever heard from my system. The individual detailing of instruments, and
the superb sense of air and space, make the SE100 worth far more than the
asking price. These amps also mate superbly with the Models 22C and 33
feeding the balanced inputs.

Anyone looking for an entry-level D/A converter will find the Model 18B a
steal at the close-out price of $299.99, and Monarchy's "parallel DAC chip"
mod improves the performance even further. This is an ideal, cost-effective
way to upgrade any inexpensive, stand-alone CD player. 

Gary Galo,
Review Editor
Audio Electronics Magazine
www.audioxpress.com

I have owned MGD (Michael Green Designs) modified Monarchy Audio Delux SE-100 solid state single ended mono block amplifiers now for about three months. The modifications performed by MGD involve incorporating mechanical grounding technology on the components inside the chassis. The end results of these modifications are amplifiers which are extremely fast, neutral in sound, capable of reproducing very natural sounding harmonic structures and are essentially transparent to source components feeding them. Having upgraded my digital front end from an already fine source, I found that these amps were capable of even more outstanding performance and detail than I was already enjoying up until the point of adding an even better sounding and more detailed digital front end. All types of music sound good through these amps, from small ensembles to large orchestral selections. Jazz and vocals are extremely well reproduced with an incredible amount of realism spread out over a wide and deep soundstage. I wrote a previous post here at Audio Review on my system's variable tuning capabilities from the source components, to the speakers to the acoustics of the room itself using MGD products. As outstanding as the performance was, after listening for about a month or so through careful listening, I noticed something about the mid-bass/lower midrange that I didn't particularly like and could not "tune out" on certain recordings. These were usually recordings which were not the greatest in terms of recording quality. What I have found using a variably tuned system is that even lesser quality recordings can always sound better on a variably tuned system and that these recordings, more often than not, have levels of detail that are not only more than acceptable, but whose sound is actually much better than that reproduced by a nonvariably tunable system. The only component I could single out as a possible culprit was the stock power cords on the Monarchy amps.After perusing the Monarchy Audio web site, I found that they had an upgrade power cord, the AC-1. After studying the information at the web site and making an inquiry by e-mail of Mr. C. C. Poon of Monarchy Audio, I was pretty well convinced that the AC-1 upgrade power cords could perhaps alleviate whatever it was I was hearing that I didn't like. C. C. Poon informed me by e-mail that the AC-1 would give an immediate and substantial increase in performance. He was right. I purchased the AC-1 upgrade power cords, installed them and the "problem" disappeared, with no burn-in time on the power cords. Now that the AC-1s have had break-in time, the amps are now transparent, to my level of satisfaction, and I can find no sonic faults with the amps at all on any program source material. Only better tunable speakers might reveal something that I currently cannot detect with my current tunable speakers and system. The preamp that I am using is a MGD modified Monarchy Audio 10A preamp which has a phono stage added (also by MGD). This preamp has the same level of transparency and sonic (non) characteristics as the Delux SE-100 mono block amps. Both the preamp and amps can reproduce dynamics from source material with incredible realism and impact. Music with very low levels or amounts of instrumentation (i.e., a vocal with a single or multiple guitars) can be just as moving and involving as fast paced selections with strong, rhythmic bass lines.The AC-1 power cords extended and tightened the bass even more than what was an already excellent bottom end. The AC-1s also extended and opened up the top end produced by the amps, as well as producing more detail throughout the entire audible range. The best part about the AC-1 power cords is that they only cost $75 each (total $150) for this performance increase! That is more than reasonable, in my experience, for a high quality power cord. The cheapest upgrade power cord I have ever used that made a difference over a stock power cord cost $150 (for one!) from Tice Audio. Anyone owning or considering purchasing the Monarchy Delux-100s should definitely purchase the AC-1 upgrade power cords in place of the stock power cords, based on the performance boost I found that I have experienced using them; especially at such an affordable price. These amps are what I consider to be my last purchase in amplifiers. That's how pleased I am with their and the AC-1 upgrade power cords' performance.  Up until now, I have been using Kimber 4TC speaker cable with spade connectors to connect the amps to my speakers. This is truly outstanding cable for the dollar (or so I thought). After several conversations with MGD (Michael Green himself and his hotline staff), I was urged to try some of MGD's solid core speaker cable. Knowing that I have a pair of MGD's top-of-the-line fully tunable (including variably tunable external crossovers mounted in their own ClampRacks) Chameleon speakers on order, I figured that I should consider the MGD cables, but I had great concern about their cost. Kimber advertises their cable as costing $7.00 per foot, but if you add the cost of spade plug termination, the cost balloons to ($140 total retail) $17.50 per foot for an 8 foot pair of 4TC speaker cables. I could only imagine what MGD speaker cable that goes on their top-of-the-line $15,000 speakers must cost. After a year (yes, a year!) of avoiding the question, I finally braced myself and inquired as to how much was the MGD cable cost per foot. The response I got back was $1.99 (that's one dollar and ninety-nine cents) per foot! How could a high end manufacturer offer speaker cable of any quality at this price, I asked myself? But, if this is what Michael Green himself uses in his totally variable tunable listening room (walls, ceiling, floors including joists) where he individually voices all his speakers for customers, I had nothing much to loose considering the fact that I only needed two 6 foot runs for a total cost of $24. MGD burned in the cable for about two weeks for me prior to shipment. Well, the solid core MGD cable finally arrived and it outperforms the Kimber in sound quality, detail, airiness, delicacy in reproducing harmonic structures, depth of soundstage, and tightness of sound throughout. To add insult to injury, I was told to use the MGD solid core cable by connecting it "bare wire" (for a better connection, I was told) to both the amps and speakers. The MGD speaker cable consists of what appears to be 3 twisted thin jacketed solid core cables per leg, going to each speaker, with "tinning" of some sort on the outer surface tips at each end. The MGD solid core speaker cable, used "bare wire", really works and is definitely another recommendation for the Monarchy Delux-100 mono blocks and the Monarchy AC-1 upgrade power cords.  Brian Tracy Barry audiotruth@hotmail.com System Components: (all components except turntable, VPI LP cleaner and tuner are clamped and variably tuned) MGD modified Monarchy Audio Delux SE-100 mono block amps Monarchy AC-1 upgrade power cords MGD modified Monarchy Audio 10A preamp Tice Power Block Signature Series 3B Line Conditioner MGD Monitor 5 variably tunable speakers MGD Hubbell AC Outlet Kimber Silver Streak Interconnect cables XLO digital cable (for digital recording purposes) MGD ClampRacks MGD tunable Monitor 5 speakers using MGD solid core speaker cable MGD modified Marantz CD-67 CD player Oracle Delphi Mk. V turntable with MGD custom MTDs (brass spikes), SME Series V tonearm  (damping device disengaged) with Benz Micro Glider cartridge 15 MGD Pressure Zone Controllers (variably tunable acoustical devices) Carver TX-8 tuner Phillips digital tape recorder VPI 16.5 LP cleaning machine Last stylus and record cleaner
 

Organization: TDS & Select Products
X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0C-WorldNet  (Win16; U)
To: "C.C.Poon" <monarchy@earthlink.net>
Subject: First impression

Mr. Poon,
Just received the Monarchy Delux 100 amps this afternoon.
To say I am impressed it an understatement altho these words are
probably not new to you.
I am simply amazed at the overall superlative quality of these amps in
terms of build quality, appearance and musicality. Only having a few
hours of listening time thus far it it very apparent that these amps are
by far the very best value in audio today that I am aware of, besting
the sonic efforts of amplifiers many, many times their cost...and size.
You have succeeded in producing a beautiful instrument and for a price
that is extraordinary. 
Two days ago I purchased a VPI turntable from a gentleman who owns new
Mark Levinson equipment (amps and CD player/pre-amp) whose cost exceeds
$13,000. This equipment is driving a top end speaker by Martin Logan and
large powered sub-woofers by Kinergetic Research thru about $5,000 worth
of Purist Audio cabling.  A very impressive/expensive system that has
been tuned to perfection by the owner.
Your amplifiers were installed into a system less impressive than the
above, with exception to the Monarchy 22B DAC I have, it is simply a
good system that I have used to evaluate equipment for some time.
You amplifiers transformed the system into a truly outstanding system
and is a joy to listen to...just amazing.
When you have the time, please contact me regarding representing your
entire product line for retail sales. As mentioned in my prior email to
you, I would also like to up-date the 22B DAC I took ownership of last
week.
Tomorrow I assemble speaker cables using the TDK wire I purchased from
Gino Yang, unless you have further advice, I will simply use three
cables per channel, and for the moment terminate using the bare wire to
assess their performance......
Which I assume from your products thus far, will be extraordinary. I
hope your move is going well.

Very Sincerely,

Kirk Neal
Option Audio