Florida Audio Expo 2025

Stereophile's Julie Mullins walks us through Advance Paris’s high‐performance hybrid amplifiers in a Playback Distribution room. At the Florida International Audio Expo 2025, she spoke with Cédric Léon about the company's offerings, now available in the U.S. market.

The discussion began with the A12 Classic, which supersedes the earlier A10 model. This dual‑mono, fully integrated hybrid amplifier features a tube input stage and preamplification section coupled with solid‑state output delivering nearly 200W into an 8 ohm load. A standout design element is the use of two large toroidal transformers, mounted vertically and kept at a fixed separation to ensure complete isolation between the left and right channels. This design strategy contributes to a well-defined, musical soundstage, while the built‑in phono stage offers dual loading options for moving-coil cartridges, further enhancing its versatility.

Cédric explained that the back panels of these units are well-equipped, featuring an extensive array of analog (RCA and XLR) and digital inputs (coaxial, optical, USB, HDMI, and ARC). For headphone enthusiasts, two dedicated jacks (3.5mm and ¼") allow for individual gain adjustments to accommodate various impedance levels. A Bluetooth dongle supporting aptX HD and AAC is also available via a proprietary port.

Along with the A12 Classic, Advance Paris showed the $1199 X-CD9 CD player. This unit has military-spec tubes from Raytheon and integrates a Wolfson DAC, offering analog output on both RCA and XLR connectors.

Advance Paris also offers the MyConnect 250. Sharing the same core electronics as the A12 Classic, the MyConnect 250 adds a built‑in CD player, FM/DAB tuner, and full network capability via both Ethernet and Wi‑Fi. It supports AirPlay and Spotify Connect, and can stream services like Deezer, Qobuz, and Tidal through the Advanced PlayStream app. Despite its expanded feature set, the MyConnect 250 delivers the same 200 watts per channel, ensuring consistent performance across the lineup.

In the U.S., Advance Paris prices the A12 Classic at $3799 and the MyConnect 250 at $4299. According to Cédric, these models represent a significant evolution in hybrid amplifier design—merging the musicality and warmth of tube circuits with the precision and stability of modern solid-state technology in a single, integrated package.