Integrated Amp Reviews

Setup and game plan
While my status as a good boy is always open to question—I'm sure I was one sometime in the distant past—I honor manufacturer's wishes when I can. Hence, after friend Scott and I installed the fully-decked-out Vitus RI-101 Mk.II on the free top shelf of my Grand Prix Monza equipment rack, I plugged it directly into the wall, and so it stayed throughout the review.

A simple A-B-A test confirmed that replacing stock, nothing-special feet with Wilson Audio Pedestals delivered increased air and transparency and elevated the whole sonic presentation. Those supports may cost 10% of the price of the integrated itself, and my cabling costs many times more—but why not?

Aldo had told me that when the RI-101 Mk.II is first plugged in and set to "standby" mode, it requires 24–48 hours to heat stabilize. After that, once you power it up fully, it requires an hour's warm-up to reach optimal sonic levels. Again, I did as told before listening.

Vitus's shipping carton included a basic Apple remote. Although a customized remote was nearing completion and may be available as you read this, the Apple remote's mute, volume, and input controls, augmented by an iPad Pro outfitted with both Roon and MConnect, were all I needed to control the unit.

My review strategy was simple. First, I'd listen to the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II with my reference Innuos Statement NG music server/dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC/Upsampler Plus/Master Clock front-end connected to the integrated's XLR inputs, and output the signal to my Wilson Audio Alexia V loudspeakers and active LōKē subwoofers. Setting the Vivaldi's volume control to full (0) would remove it from the signal path and allow me to hear everything the Vitus's volume attenuator could do.

Next, I'd bypass my reference front-end and run Ethernet directly from my EtherREGEN's optimized 100Mbps port through the Nordost QNet switch's 100Mbps ports into the Vitus's Ethernet port and stream music through its optional DAC/streamer module. Because the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II has no internal storage, I stuck to Qobuz streams whenever possible. That limited me to a mere 130 million tracks, but somehow, I coped.

The sound
My first impression, using my reference Innuos/dCS front-end for DAC/streaming, was extremely positive. I chose American Counterpoints (24/96 FLAC, Bright Shiny Things/Qobuz), a recording of music by oft-overlooked Black composers Julia Perry and Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson performed by the Experiential Orchestra and violinist Curtis Stewart, conducted by James Blachly. Though the music's modernist bent didn't put wind to my sails, so to speak, the sound was enticingly full and colorful. Focus and solidity were impressive.

I was so impressed by the music and sonics of Takács Assad Labro (24/88.2 FLAC, Yarlung Records/Qobuz) that I chose to review it for our May issue. On this disc, the superb Takács String Quartet, vocalist/pianist/composer Clarice Assad, and bandoneon player/composer Julien Labro perform their own music and pieces by Bryce Dessner, Milton Nascimento, and Kaija Saariaho. The sound was transparent and colorful, with a beautiful midrange and detail so well conveyed that I felt no need to return to my reference amplification components, which together—amps and preamp—cost $100,000+ more than the Vitus integrated. (See Associated Equipment sidebar.)

When friend Scott visited, he requested "Four Kinds of Horses (Bright-Side Mix)" from Peter Gabriel's recent album i/o (24/96 FLAC, Real World Productions/Qobuz). Gabriel released this recording in three mixes, Bright-Side, Dark-Side, and In-side, each created by a different mixing/mastering engineer. As one might well expect, the Bright-Side Mix's top was bright and alive to a fault, but through the RI-101 Mk.II it was nicely balanced by a beautiful midrange and decent bass, and the soundstage was big. The Dark-Side mix was considerably easier to listen to.

It was hardly a surprise that the RI-101 Mk.II's bass wasn't as strong, tightly focused, and refined as that from my far more expensive reference monoblocks; strong and tight bass is a big advantage of listening with well-designed, premium-priced separates. The Vitus bass timbres were slightly off, a bit soft and powdery in the center and lacking the last iota of resonant overtones.

This hardly diminished my enjoyment of music. Cellos were warm and plush, and music exhibited a natural, seductive flow. Even if I didn't hear every last iota of detail in Rafael Payare and the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal's recording of Mahler's Symphony No.5 (24/96 FLAC, Pentatone/Qobuz), I was swept away by the music, performance, and recording. Soprano Sandrine Piau's moving rendition of Carl Loewe's lieder "Ach neige, du Schmerzenreiche" from Chimère (24/96 FLAC, Alpha/Qobuz) sounded nothing short of wonderful, distinguished by excellent air and extreme beauty.

Next, bypassing my reference front-end, I used Roon to stream files through the Vitus's optional streamer/DAC board. I was delighted by how much color, drive, and emotional energy the Vitus streamer/DAC conveyed. There may have been less organic flow to Payare's recording of the famed Adagietto from Mahler's Fifth than I hear with my far more expensive reference source components. On the other hand, I was surprised to hear a faint gong approximately 4:28 into the movement. For all the times I've been seduced by this music on my reference system, I had never before heard that accidentally activated gong.

Beyond transmitting a surprising amount of detail, the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II's optional DAC/streamer pleased in the beauty department. On Piau's recently recorded Reflet (24/96 FLAC, Alpha/Qobuz), with L'Orchestre Victor Hugo conducted by Jean-François Verdier, Duparc's great song "Chanson triste" sounded gorgeous. In absolute terms, the piano could have sounded richer, the voice more substantial, but color and midrange warmth were right on and seductive.

The Vitus boys told me that some of their clients prefer the sound of MConnect software (or other playback options) with the Vitus DAC/streamer, so I gave MConnect a try (footnote 5). Overall texture, color, transparency, and focus improved on the above tracks, and I heard more warmth and fullness in the midrange. When Scott and I played "The Plum Blossom" from oboist Yusef Lateef 's marvelous, superbly remastered Eastern Sounds (24/192 FLAC, Craft Recordings/Qobuz), the first word out of my friend's mouth was "nice." I couldn't have agreed more. One of these days, Scott and I need to ditch our busy schedules, stop taking notes, and spend 39 minutes listening to this album in silence.

Just days before I needed to pack up the Vitus for shipment to John Atkinson for measurement, Jim Austin asked me if I could suggest a recording that deserved to be the May issue's Recording of the Month. I proposed to expand my short rave review of the new recording of Benjamin Britten's Violin Concerto (and other early Britten works) performed by violinist Isabelle Faust and the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, conducted by Jakub Hrůša (24/96 WAV, Harmonia Mundi/download). Once Jim gave the okay, I began listening anew, using my reference front-end to send signal through the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II.

If you look at that full-page review, you'll read multiple paragraphs filled with detailed descriptions of musical and emotional changes. It isn't possible to write "Just as tension builds to the breaking point, the orchestra re-enters, filled with grief. ... The music almost grinds to a halt as everything seems in danger of crashing down" unless your electronics are capable of transmitting the essential visceral and emotional impact of great music. In getting to the musical essence of Britten's marvelous concerto, the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II did itself proud.

In sum
As someone spoiled by preamplifier/monoblock combinations that cost more than five times the price of the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II, I did my best to temper expectations before beginning this review. What a relief to discover that throughout my time with this integrated amplifier, the phrase "I could live happily with this baby for a long time" played on repeat in my head. Music through the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II sounded in line with the sensational sound I heard through the 17-times-more-expensive Vitus Masterpiece series DAC, preamp, and monoblock system I heard at AXPONA 2023. As tempting as it was to note what was absent, I instead found myself celebrating all that was present.

If you're looking for an integrated with optional DAC/streaming capabilities that you can live with for a long, long time, the Vitus RI-101 Mk.II is solidly recommended.

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Footnote 5: The basic version of MConnect is free. It is also far clunkier than Roon and feature-poor.