Teac Reference Series

[Seth=L]

This thread is for the discussion of Teac Reference series components and also a nice place to share pictures of your Teac Reference components.

I'd also welcome the trade and sale of Teac Reference components in this thread as long as it's handled via PM. Keep in mind, I'm always interested in Teac Reference components. The AG-H550 and A-H500 are at the top of my list for desired Teac Reference components.

I recently sold this Teac A-H300 integrated amplifier. It's rated 35 watts per channel into 8 ohms and 50 watts per channel into 4 ohms. It's got a pair of 4200uF capacitors and bipolar discrete output transistors on a cast aluminum heatsink.


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[Seth=L]

Here's the Teac AG-H300 stereo receiver. This receiver is rated 35 watts per channel at 6 ohms. It has bipolar discrete transistors, but not as hefty as the ones found inside the A-H300 integrated. The heatsink also isn't as robust nor is the power supply. I think a bit was sacrificed to have that tuner and display in the unit.

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[Seth=L]

The AG-H300 had a matching CD player, the PD-H300. The Reference series CD players aren't as interesting to me personally, but it's still nice to have the matching components.

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[Seth=L]

Here are the AG-H300 and PD-H300 together, personally I think they look excellent.

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Now I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of my next Teac Reference series components, the AG-H500 receiver and PD-H570 7 disc CD changer. It will be the first time I've had my hands on the 500 series components and I'm so excited.

 

[3db]

I can't get over how small this unit is. My first trip into audio was with old Radio Shack integrated amp rated at 25 watts per channel which I bought new. It had all discrete components, no ICs and it was longer and wider then the TEAC but not as deep.

 

[Seth=L]

I can't get over how small this unit is. My first trip into audio was with old Radio Shack integrated amp rated at 25 watts per channel which I bought new. It had all discrete components, no ICs and it was longer and wider then the TEAC but not as deep.

What absolutely warps my mind is that there's not many companies that seem to be taking this approach in the US market. With more people renting now than ever, I would think it would be a booming market. Europe and Japan have lots of stuff like this, but then they don't have the "bigger is better" mentality like North Americans do.

 

[3db]

What absolutely warps my mind is that there's not many companies that seem to be taking this approach in the US market. With more people renting now than ever, I would think it would be a booming market. Europe and Japan have lots of stuff like this, but then they don't have the "bigger is better" mentality like North Americans do.

I think there's a direct correlation of the size of audio/video equipement and to the size of the country.

 

[its phillip]

I used to live in japan, and I recall seeing a large number of gold/champagne Teac products stacked on display in this store near the base. It was before I was into audio and all that and I never bothered to take a closer look at em :/

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I think there's a direct correlation of the size of audio/video equipement and to the size of the apartment.

Fixed
Most apartments in EU much smaller

Edit: And Japan

 

[Seth=L]

I used to live in japan, and I recall seeing a large number of gold/champagne Teac products stacked on display in this store near the base. It was before I was into audio and all that and I never bothered to take a closer look at em :/

That's too bad.

I figure I'll add the pictures of the Teac CR-H220 to this thread. Please forgive the poor quality of the pictures, the camera I had at the time was a cheap Fujifilm.

 

[PearlcorderS701]

I just happened to stumble across this thread started by Seth, and it's interesting because I was checking out TEAC's latest stereo receiver/CD player duo which was recently reviewed in The Absolute Sound -- the models that are part of their Reference line, as discussed here. They did look pretty impressive in the article, and were reviewed favorably by the writer but like everything in that esoteric high-end audio world, because of the receiver's relatively "affordable" price tag, there were the inevitable comments of "good for what it costs" and "able to stand with some of the truly hi-fi components of the industry..." and remarks like that -- as if the person that drops over a few grand on this gear shouldn't be satisfied that they own something a bit "better than average"...

Still, audio snobs aside, the TEAC pieces looked rock-solid, with nice, chunky aluminum frontplates and an impressive heft to them. It was nice to see somewhat "high end" gear falling into the dedicated 2-channel stereo receiver category...made me feel better about my Onkyo 8555 purchase. The only thing is, are these models Seth pointed out in the beginning of the thread TEAC's latest models? I could swear the stereo receiver reviewed in TAS was much larger in chassis size -- unless it just appeared that way in the magazine.

I have a product from TEAC's "professional" division, TASCAM, in one of their CD recorders.

 

[Seth=L]

Sorry I missed your post. I was trying to keep on top of this thread and not allowing it to slip. I would really like to see it begin to appear at the top of Google and Yahoo's top search results when people are either looking for information for these units, or looking to buy/sell them, etc...

I'm assuming you're talking about these?

The Absolute Sound Teac PD-H600 CD Player and AG-H600NT Stereo Receiver

The 600 series is entirely new. The Reference series now has 7 distinct tiers.

The 100 series is no longer in production to my knowledge, and was the least expensive offering. The 100 series had more of the mini/executive stereo look with the option to expand by adding Minidisc recorders and tape players. Typically the head unit was an AM/FM/CD (alternatively Minidisc) receiver with 2-3 inputs and tape loops.

The Teac 200 series is almost exclusively a AM/FM/CD receiver with 2-3 inputs (the newer ones have iPod interfaces as well as USB host capabilities) and two tape loops. The 200 series is the same width as the entire 300 series, allowing you to add Minidisc recorders and tape players of higher quality that would match the appearance of the 200 series AM/FM/CD receivers.

The 300 series has garnered much respect because they operate like full size components at nearly exactly half the width. Often times you will see two stacks of components side by side such as a stereo receiver, 5.1 Dolby Digital/DTS receiver (no longer in production and very rare), CD player (they offer a single and used to offer a 3 disc changer in this series), CD recorder (no longer offered), Minidisc recorder (no longer offered), DVD player (no longer offered as a stand alone unit), integrated amplifier, single cassette player (no longer offered), and/or tuner. The 300 series has one odd one out, an AM/FM/DVD receiver that looks and operates much like the 200 series AM/FM/CD players.

Teac CR-H225

Teac DR-H300

The 400 series was extremely short lived, and to my knowledge it was blended with the 500 series components. The most notable would be the A-H400 integrated amplifier which is basically the A-H500 with minor revisions.

Teac A-H500

The A-H500 is probably one of the most sought after Teac reference components in the series because of it's sheer power capability in a compact unit. It has a largish toroidal transformer, 4 dedicated bipolar transistors for each channel, and 4 x 6800uF capacitors making it a formidable micro integrated with style and finesse.

Teac A-H500 Insides

The 500 series components are popular in a certain crowd and many pieces are rare in the United States, none are in production. The A-H500 , as previously mentioned, is rare as well as the Teac AG-H550, a 5.1 receiver with a full set of preamplifier outputs and a respectable on-board amplifier and it tips the scales at 20 pounds. It truly can function as a full size component in virtually every way. Included in this series was the AV-H500 a 5.1 ready integrated amplifier (it has a display, but lacked an internal tuner). The AV-H500 is one of my least favorite components, yet it still fetches a decent dollar amount because it has a decent amplifier section. I just don't like Dolby Pro Logic only receivers and I am annoyed that Teac did not offer an AC-3 decoder for the series at the very least. Also included in this series are a couple of DVD players, one without component video and one with, two CD players, a 7 disc changer and a single disc player, as well as a tuner, single cassette deck, and stereo receiver.

Teac AG-H550 with DV-H550

Teac AG-H550 / DV-H550 Rear

The Teac 600 series is completely new, and is in a different price field all together. The claim is that they borrow technology from the Esoteric line but this seems far fetched being that most of the stuff they deal with appears to be in the Class A realm and the AG-H600NT seems to use some sort of switching amplifier. They certainly look nice to be sure, but I am a bit more nostalgic at this point.

The final series is the Legacy series, which is an odd duck all one its own. The series has 4 components; a 5.1 Tripath receiver, a single disc DVD player, a 2.1 Tripath AM/FM/DVD receiver with preouts for center and surrounds, and the 3 channel Tripath powered amplifier. I will include pictures of some of those components in the next post.

 

[Seth=L]

I just received my Teac AG-H500 and PD-H570 today USPS. They needed a little bit of light cleaning (mostly surface finger prints etc...) but they are looking quite nice and sounding like they should as well. Keep in mind I only have the Jensen C-JR bookshelf speakers connected for testing purposes. In the unlikely event I blow a speaker, I'd rather it be ones I don't care too much about. They sound decent for cheap boxes with a tweeter and woofer in them.

 

[PearlcorderS701]

Sorry I missed your post. I was trying to keep on top of this thread and not allowing it to slip. I would really like to see it begin to appear at the top of Google and Yahoo's top search results when people are either looking for information for these units, or looking to buy/sell them, etc...

I'm assuming you're talking about these?

No problem about missing the post, Seth; I have done that multiple times too!
And yes, those were the TEACs I was referring to; pretty nice stuff!

The Absolute Sound Teac PD-H600 CD Player and AG-H600NT Stereo Receiver

The 600 series is entirely new. The Reference series now has 7 distinct tiers.

I didn't know there were that many tiers in the Reference lineup...

The 100 series is no longer in production to my knowledge, and was the least expensive offering. The 100 series had more of the mini/executive stereo look with the option to expand by adding Minidisc recorders and tape players. Typically the head unit was an AM/FM/CD (alternatively Minidisc) receiver with 2-3 inputs and tape loops.

Are you referring to the mini "desktop" systems in this lineup?

The Teac 200 series is almost exclusively a AM/FM/CD receiver with 2-3 inputs (the newer ones have iPod interfaces as well as USB host capabilities) and two tape loops. The 200 series is the same width as the entire 300 series, allowing you to add Minidisc recorders and tape players of higher quality that would match the appearance of the 200 series AM/FM/CD receivers.

The 300 series has garnered much respect because they operate like full size components at nearly exactly half the width. Often times you will see two stacks of components side by side such as a stereo receiver, 5.1 Dolby Digital/DTS receiver (no longer in production and very rare), CD player (they offer a single and used to offer a 3 disc changer in this series), CD recorder (no longer offered), Minidisc recorder (no longer offered), DVD player (no longer offered as a stand alone unit), integrated amplifier, single cassette player (no longer offered), and/or tuner. The 300 series has one odd one out, an AM/FM/DVD receiver that looks and operates much like the 200 series AM/FM/CD players.

Teac CR-H225

Teac DR-H300

The 400 series was extremely short lived, and to my knowledge it was blended with the 500 series components. The most notable would be the A-H400 integrated amplifier which is basically the A-H500 with minor revisions.

Teac A-H500

The A-H500 is probably one of the most sought after Teac reference components in the series because of it's sheer power capability in a compact unit. It has a largish toroidal transformer, 4 dedicated bipolar transistors for each channel, and 4 x 6800uF capacitors making it a formidable micro integrated with style and finesse.

Teac A-H500 Insides

The 500 series components are popular in a certain crowd and many pieces are rare in the United States, none are in production. The A-H500 , as previously mentioned, is rare as well as the Teac AG-H550, a 5.1 receiver with a full set of preamplifier outputs and a respectable on-board amplifier and it tips the scales at 20 pounds. It truly can function as a full size component in virtually every way. Included in this series was the AV-H500 a 5.1 ready integrated amplifier (it has a display, but lacked an internal tuner). The AV-H500 is one of my least favorite components, yet it still fetches a decent dollar amount because it has a decent amplifier section. I just don't like Dolby Pro Logic only receivers and I am annoyed that Teac did not offer an AC-3 decoder for the series at the very least. Also included in this series are a couple of DVD players, one without component video and one with, two CD players, a 7 disc changer and a single disc player, as well as a tuner, single cassette deck, and stereo receiver.

Teac AG-H550 with DV-H550

Teac AG-H550 / DV-H550 Rear

The Teac 600 series is completely new, and is in a different price field all together. The claim is that they borrow technology from the Esoteric line but this seems far fetched being that most of the stuff they deal with appears to be in the Class A realm and the AG-H600NT seems to use some sort of switching amplifier. They certainly look nice to be sure, but I am a bit more nostalgic at this point.

The final series is the Legacy series, which is an odd duck all one its own. The series has 4 components; a 5.1 Tripath receiver, a single disc DVD player, a 2.1 Tripath AM/FM/DVD receiver with preouts for center and surrounds, and the 3 channel Tripath powered amplifier. I will include pictures of some of those components in the next post.

Wow -- a LOT of information here; I don't even know where to begin responding!

The TEACs I was originally referring to were the dedicated, separate "internet" stereo receiver and matching CD player, which were reviewed in The Absolute Sound as pretty high-end pieces.

 

[PearlcorderS701]

I just received my Teac AG-H500 and PD-H570 today USPS. They needed a little bit of light cleaning (mostly surface finger prints etc...) but they are looking quite nice and sounding like they should as well. Keep in mind I only have the Jensen C-JR bookshelf speakers connected for testing purposes. In the unlikely event I blow a speaker, I'd rather it be ones I don't care too much about. They sound decent for cheap boxes with a tweeter and woofer in them.

Are these actual photos of your new system? If so, nice!!

Did you just need something small without the size of larger, standard components for this room? Was there another reason you chose to go with the mini desktop system?

 

[Seth=L]

Are you referring to the mini "desktop" systems in this lineup?

They had mini desktop systems that were considered to be part of the Reference range, they no longer produce any such models. They were intended to directly compete with Denon, Onkyo, Sony, Panasonic, JVC and many others in the executive desktop influx that we saw in the mid to late 90's. JVC made a significant breakthrough in that market with the FS-1000 and following models and several manufacturers followed suite, some with much better hardware, some with much worse. I don't think anyone would debate that JVC had the compact, yet svelte, micro executive system down to a science for a while.

These pictures are an example of the JVC FS-1000 executive desktop stereo system, I pulled these off an auction on eBay.

Teac CR-H100

Teac CR-H100 with MO-H100 Minidisc recorder

If the above image isn't working it's because it's Japanese.

It is noteworthy that Teac has many different speakers that are meant to be matched with these systems. The ones that were included with my CR-H220 CD/Receiver were of extremely poor quality. Some of the other speakers they offer seem to be of higher quality, but it's very likely better value along with fit and finish are available through other manufacturers in terms of speakers. These systems wouldn't look bad with some Cambridge Audio S30 bookshelf monitors for example. Their size, finish, and quality are matched in my opinion.

The TEACs I was originally referring to were the dedicated, separate "internet" stereo receiver and matching CD player, which were reviewed in The Absolute Sound as pretty high-end pieces.

The 600 series, which is the ones that you referred to, are certainly the most "high end" that the line has gone. I'd still rather have the A-H500 than the AG-H600NT just because I like the raw design and layout. It looks like a miniature Nelson Pass design to me (although it probably isn't related in any way).

Are these actual photos of your new system? If so, nice!!

The last photo in the above post of the AG-H500 and PD-H570 accompanied by the Jensen speakers is a recent acquisition.

Did you just need something small without the size of larger, standard components for this room? Was there another reason you chose to go with the mini desktop system?

I don't particularly need something small, but my room is very small, so it does work out nicely. I live in a 3 bedroom duplex with 3 other people now (it used to be just 1, but oh how things change). I learned of Teac Reference components about 3 years ago and gradually became more interested in them. After I purchased the CR-H220 I was hooked. I knew that if the 200 series was that good, that the higher series must be better. I'm probably more obsessed with it than most people. I like them because they are fashionable, durable products that are not only fun to look at but function as a full size component would. I still like full size stuff, and there's no substitute for powerful amplifiers and large separates. Truth is, I only have the urge to utilize that much power 5% of the time. Any other time, I'm perfectly content with a mere 25 watts per channel from my little 200 series CD/Receiver.

 

[PearlcorderS701]

They had mini desktop systems that were considered to be part of the Reference range, they no longer produce any such models. They were intended to directly compete with Denon, Onkyo, Sony, Panasonic, JVC and many others in the executive desktop influx that we saw in the mid to late 90's. JVC made a significant breakthrough in that market with the FS-1000 and following models and several manufacturers followed suite, some with much better hardware, some with much worse. I don't think anyone would debate that JVC had the compact, yet svelte, micro executive system down to a science for a while.

These pictures are an example of the JVC FS-1000 executive desktop stereo system, I pulled these off an auction on eBay.

Teac CR-H100

Teac CR-H100 with MO-H100 Minidisc recorder

If the above image isn't working it's because it's Japanese.

It is noteworthy that Teac has many different speakers that are meant to be matched with these systems. The ones that were included with my CR-H220 CD/Receiver were of extremely poor quality. Some of the other speakers they offer seem to be of higher quality, but it's very likely better value along with fit and finish are available through other manufacturers in terms of speakers. These systems wouldn't look bad with some Cambridge Audio S30 bookshelf monitors for example. Their size, finish, and quality are matched in my opinion.



The 600 series, which is the ones that you referred to, are certainly the most "high end" that the line has gone. I'd still rather have the A-H500 than the AG-H600NT just because I like the raw design and layout. It looks like a miniature Nelson Pass design to me (although it probably isn't related in any way).

Thank you for the clarification here. I also have a question for you regarding your last comments in my 8555 thread; please see your PM inbox. Thanks.

 

[riker1384]

I also can't understand why this stuff is so hard to find in the US. Sure, people want more power for main systems, but little plastic "ipod docks" and things like that are selling like hotcakes, so why not a quality compact system?

I bought an Onkyo CR-805X from the MC35TECH minisystem, on Craigslist. The matching CD changer has a common problem. I get the impression that compact multi-CD changers aren't that reliable. Every time I look one up, they seem to have problems. I then decided to get CR-325, to have a built-in CD deck in one box, and a hopefully reliable single-disc one. In America the 325 is only available as the CS-325 minisystem: http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-CS-325-CD-Receiver-System/dp/B0016K990K I had to go on the Bay to find the CR by itself so I can use better quality speakers with it.

The Onkyos have subwoofer outs, but it's not clear whether they have a highpass filter to remove bass from the mains when a sub is attached. I emailed Onkyo to ask, and got an answer that contradicted itself.

The Onkyo CS-325 seems to be the cheapest way to get this type of stuff (aside from eBay), even if you have to toss the speakers. It doesn't have as much power as the Teac stuff here, though. Just 22 watts at 1 khz, which I guess is something like 10 or 15 real watts per channel.

 

[Seth=L]

JoeSchmoe, who used to post a lot here, had a similar unit to the Onkyo CR-325 if not the same one, and he loved it. He used to compare it to his other full size equipment and ended up prefering it for relaxed listening. He used it to drive an assortment of speakers without incident.

The 3 disc changer that Onkyo had with that system was a dud. It was just too small to work reliably with that design. Thankfully Teac was smart and made their 3 disc changer a little differently.

Each tray is separate unlike the Onkyo were they tried to pack them like sardines in an under 4" tall component.

The PD-H570 I'm completely surprised with, pictured above with the AG-H500 and Jensen speakers, because the mechanism that drives the 7 disc changer seems to operate smoothly and solid.

 

[Seth=L]

Finally got the components set up the way I wanted.

Bedroom system -

* DISPLAY - Panasonic TC-26LX50 26" Wide HD ready LCD television 720p (HD ready meaning it lacks a digital tuner ). I really like this set because it's solid. It weighs 38 pounds and was manufactured in Japan. The mount that connects to the swivel base is made of thick steel, they simply were not playing around when they designed this thing. It's outdated of course with its single HDMI input, but it has everything were it counts. It also has the best TV speakers I've ever heard.

* VIDEO SOURCE - Toshiba HD-A3 HD DVD player. It gets used to play the small selection of HD DVDs that I have as well as upscaling my standard DVDs, it doesn't do to bad of a job.

* SPEAKERS - Infinity Interlude 10 (IL 10) bookshelf speakers. They feature the CMMD drivers that have been Infinity's main bag for the last 10 years. Driver sizes are 1" dome tweeters and 6.5" midbass. They are bi-amp capable and are rear ported. I've had these speakers forever, and it just so happens they look fantastic next to the Teac receiver and CD player. Good thing I decided to keep the Infinity IL 10s.

* AUDIO SOURCE - Teac PD-H570 7 disc changer. I'm really surprised by the operation of this unit. I expected clunky, annoying mechanics but it performs quite well for it's size and disc capacity. It also sounds excellent, which means it wasn't filled with absolute garbage for parts. The remote control for the receiver also controls all the functions of the CD player without a hitch. Both components have a dimmer, unfortunately the displays can not be turned completely off.

* RECEIVER - Teac AG-H500 stereo receiver. The receiver is rated 40 watts per channel @ 8 ohms RMS. While it's not published, these units are typically 4 ohm stable and put out about 1/3 extra power into 4 ohms. So this one will probably put out 50-60 watts into 4 ohms. It has a reasonably sized power transformer and 6800uF 50v capacitors help significantly as well. I seem to recall the specifications of the output transistors that they are 50 watt @ 8 ohm transistors if memory serves me correctly. I've included pictures of the inside of the receiver after the picture of the room.