Visiting one of Tokyo’s oldest jazz kissas with filmmaker Nick Dwyer… Last November, I spent an evening visiting listening bars with my friend Nick Dwyer, a New Zealand-born, […]
Quad 303 Power Amplifier and 33 Pre/Tuner: The Budget Audiophiler
The Quad 303 and 33 are two of the best British vintage audio components from before you were born. How do they sound decades later?
As much as I want to say that all of the great vintage audio came out of New York in the 1960s, that’s certainly not the case. We’re going to take a trip across the pond this week to discuss one of the most important British audio brands that is still going strong as part of the International Audio Group (Wharfedale, Audiolab, Mission, Castle Acoustics) and whose vintage audio products are heavily sought after by audiophiles.
The Quad ESLs established the brand as a major player in the world of high-end audio in 1957, but we’re not going to focus on Peter Walker’s revolutionary electrostatic loudspeakers right now – our focus is going to be on the Quad 303 power amplifier and 303 Control Unit.
Started after WWII and under the direction of Peter Walker, Quad introduced their first amplifier, the Quad 1, and subsequently in 1953, the Quad 2.
Both were tube amplifiers and are quite collectible now if you can find a set. Everything changed for the company in 1957 with the introduction of the Quad ESL loudspeakers. The ESL, contrary to any other stories, was not their first loudspeaker. It was their first commercial success in the category.
This article originally appeared at ecoustics.com and an intro has been published here with permission.
Read the full article: https://www.ecoustics.com/products/quad-303-33/
