You could say there are two lines of sight towards the same objective in audio amplification. The hifi industry has chosen one route by and large- increasingly high powered amps, often in the hundreds or thousands of watts, coupled with low efficiency loudspeakers. The OMA way is entirely different. We created Parallax PL519 as a low power single ended amp to be used with high efficiency loudspeakers. The result of this combination is a truly startling level of naturalness, detail, and ease. None of these qualities are usually associated with audio equipment today.

Parallax is unique in using a little known and very special tube, one which is not technically a triode at all. This tube, the PL519, was invented as a European television sweep tube, and built with extreme ruggedness and durability for long term operation. It was never intended, as the famous low powered triodes such as the 10, 45, 50, 2A3 or 300B to be used as an audio tube. Whilst other designers have used this tube in various designs over the years, that is where the similarity ends, because OMA has created a whole new triode tube by reconnecting the internal elements of the PL519 to use the screen as a plate, which we call Screen Mode. In Screen Mode the (mesh) screen becomes the plate, (the original plate is now disconnected) and a true, new triode tube is born, with characteristics that surpass any other triode in its quality of sound. The brilliant concept of screen mode was created by C.J.Brakenhoff. Until you hear what the PL519 sounds like in Parallax, you may find it difficult to understand why OMA's first power amplifier produces only 2.5 watts and uses an unknown tube. Once you have heard it, you will understand.

The Parallax is constructed with OMA's typical attention to materials, workmanship, and design ethos. The two chassis are constructed from solid Pennsylvania walnut by hand, as the joinery shows, and finished with hand rubbed Tung oil. The amp itself is built on heavy sheets of steel which are powder coated, and then covered with a slate top plate, which is also an excellent resonance damping device. Unlike many manufacturers who produce a two chassis "monobloc" configuration, the power supply of Parallax is built on one chassis, and the signal is built onto the other. The robust, isolated power supply ensures that the output power of the Parallax exceeds what one expects of an amplifier rated at less than 5 watts. All wiring is done, of course, point to point, and we won't belabor the quality of the components you will find inside.

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