Unico P integrated amplifier

Light bulbs and semiconductors

By Brent Burmester

March 2005

Unico P integrated amplifier. $2500

Unico P amplifier You may not find it easy to get excited about yet another sub-100W integrated amplifier - they're hardly a dying breed. If you've got this far, however, rest assured it's worth reading on, for Unison Research's Unico P is not your common-or-garden stereo intergrated.

For a start, the Unico P, little brother to the much admired Unico, wasn't designed in Japan or thrown-together in China, but conceived and constructed to a very high standard in Italy. More intriguingly, it integrates not just pre- and power amplifier stages, but both valve and solid-state technologies. These elements should add up to a scary price tag but, while famous for design flair, Italians have yet to get the hang of accountancy, so the Unico P is a steal at $2500.

Beautiful skin

The physical format is familiar - a box of standard width and typical height, deep enough to fill a support-stand's shelf. Boring black is reserved for the top, back, and sides, while the fascia is a thick aluminum plate, sandblasted to achieve a satin finish and adorned with the manufacturer's wooden logo. The control knobs for source-select and volume are big handfuls of sculpted dial, the latter being remotely activated from a lovely handset of aluminium and mahogany which also controls the matching Unico CD player. Unlike the handset which comes with the more powerful Unico, which uses a radio frequency to talk to the amp, the P's handset is a standard infra-red implementation, but it will still exert control from the most remote corners of your listening space.

Not just skin-deep

The nominally 50W Unico is equipped with four line-level inputs, one tape loop, dual speaker terminals, and a phono stage. It's a mark of quality that the input selector switch is right at the back of the circuit board, as close as possible to the RCA inputs to minimise signal-path length. The switch is driven by a long shaft from the rear of the control knob on the fascia. The mains transformer is handmade by Unison Research to an original design, and makes a notable contribution to the weight of the amp.

The input stage is a pure triode design, featuring a single tried-and-true 12AU7/ ECC82 valve, whereas two are deployed in the Unico. The output stage is based on MOSFETs operating in Class A. These are attached to big chunky heatsinks together weighing over a kilo! W ith a stated frequency response of 2-100kHz, the Unico has no fear of new wide-bandwidth formats like SACD and DVD-A.

The internal phono board accomodates both MC (40-50dB) and MM (50-60dB) cartridges - gain and impedance are trimmed by positioning jumper links on the board inside the amp.

The sound of hybridisation

The idea here is to marry the power of transistors with the lucidity of valves. A hybrid of this kind is either going to sound great or absolutely dire, depending on whether the strengths or weaknesses of these two devices are combined. The verdict in this case is 'great'. Transistor-like weight combined with the light and grace of well-applied valves.

The Unico P knocks out the low stuff with vigor and precision, without exhibiting the obesity of certain tranny amps currently on the market. A touch more extension would not go amiss, but if you're not auditioning the P straight after a pair of Krell monoblocs you may never notice.

In terms of detail with freedom from grain or hardness, you'll not find another amp in this price range that approaches the Unico P. Some fancy all-valve amps would certainly have an advantage in these areas, but if you can afford one of them you're probably not reading this anyway.

What really surprised me were the rhythmic abilities of this amp - it immediately makes sense of whatever a CD or record is feeding it. From the very first, the Unico P distinguishes itself as a machine that understands music - it's a reviewer's finest cop-out, but nothing better describes the attributes of this amp than the adjective 'musical'. Sweet, warm, accurate and insightful - the Unico is all these things, but in short always unfailingly enjoyable to hear at its work.

No shortcomings at all? Well, apart from the slight shyness in the bass, the treble seemed ever-so-slightly rolled off, and there was an occasional emphasis of nasality in male voices. Then again, if I weren't employed to seek these flaws out, I wouldn't bother mentioning them.

Verdict

If you're considering a new integrated amp, I heartily recommend you have a listen the Unico P. Not the perfect amplifier, but the blend of virtues on offer here makes this a serious contender for best buy of the year. Quite a prediction given it's only the March issue.

For your nearest Unico dealer

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