Manley Labs Stingray II integrated amplifier

REVIEW
Jason Kennedy
Dec 20, 2021

Its enthusiasm for vinyl doesn’t actually extend to sitting underneath a turntable, however; that caused mine to hum so I dropped the amp down a few shelves and all was well. Then it was possible to enjoy the fulsome bass of Conjure’s Untitled II [Music For The Texts Of Ishmael Reed, American Clavé] where the dynamics of the saxophone are spot on (at sensible levels) and the tune proves to be utterly charming. Ornette Coleman’s ‘Ramblin’’ [Change of the Century, Atlantic] also offers up a joyousness through blasting but not aggressive horns and fat double bass, the result being close to what they might have heard in the control room back in 1960 when this sort of tube technology was at its peak. The track reinforced the notion that the Stingray II is not an amplifier to sit in front of and stroke your beard but one for moving your body, or at least clicking your fingers (man).

It occurred to me that most of the music I had played through the Stingray II was not exactly power hungry so I dropped a few weighty tunes including contributions from Kraftwerk and Beck. These lacked a little in the low-end power department and anyone with a taste for visceral impact would be advised to get more sensitive speakers for the purpose, that would go a long way to delivering the required power. But this Manley is not about power… it’s about musical engagement and in this respect it has a lot to offer, making a good case for the EL84 pentodes in its output stage and a better case for kicking back and enjoying the vibe.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Type: Vacuum tube, 2-channel integrated amplifier with built-in headphone amplifier
Analogue inputs: Three single-ended line-level inputs (via RCA jacks), one single-ended rec input (via RCA jacks), one single-ended line-level inputs (via 3.5mm minijack)
Digital inputs: None
Analogue outputs: One rec output (via RCA jacks), one subwoofer output (via RCA jacks)
Supported sample rates: N/A
Input impedance: 12kOhm nominal
Output impedance (preamp): N/A
Headphone Loads: Not specified
Power Output: triode 18Wpc, ultra-linear 32Wpc (both 1.5% THD @ 1kHz into 5 Ohms)
Bandwidth: 22Hz-22kHz Source = 1kHz Sine wave
Distortion: THD+N Ratio: typically 64 db at 1W output
Signal to Noise Ratio: typically 72 dB A-WGT, 1W output, 20dB gain
Dimensions (H×W×D): 190 × 483 × 356mm
Weight: 15.9kg
Price: £6,499