• Replace the stock preamp tubes with two premium mil-spec Mullard CV4003's (12AU7s). These are 10,000 hour ultra low noise tubes with ultra low microphonics
• Two MultiCap PPFXS polypropylene film and tin-foil interstage coupling capacitors
• Two 1uf Auricap metallized polypropylene preamp input coupling capacitors
• 24 x Japanese Riekn ½ and 1 watt signal path carbon resistors with gold-plated leads
• 8 x Vishay-Telefunken SF4007 ultra-fast soft recovery diodes to rebuild 2 existing bridge rectifiers + 2 x IR Hexfred diodes
• 6 x BlackGate power supply electrolytic capacitors
• 2 x Burr-Brown OPA627 op am- based PCB assemblies for amp driver stage
• 2 feet of DH Labs "Revelation series" pure 99.999% silver solid core input signal wire with Teflon tape-wrap dielectric
• 2 premium Vampire "direct gold plated over copper body" RCA female input jacks
• 4 x WBT 0763 single output speaker binding posts
• 3 sheets of SoundCoat chassis damping material cut & applied where applicable
• 4 EAR large Sorbothane isolation feet
• TRT WonderSolder used throughout
• 8 hours labor
  

Sonic improvements of Level-2 mod

• We make a major improvement to the midrange. It is more liquid and tube-like. It sounds more like a tube amp and less like a hybrid. This was the major design goal of the mod and we think that we have accomplished the task.
• The amp is quieter, silences are blacker. It thus resolves more low level detail, has better ambiance retrieval and is much more three-dimensional.
• Bass response is improved big time. Both bass extension and mid-bass slam are affected.
• Imaging is more focused while the entire soundstage is both deeper and wider.
• Transparency is dramatically improved. You get a much cleaner look into the musical soundstage.
• Dynamics are dramatically improved. It's as though the modified amp gained power. The stock unit is rated at 140 watts. Once modified, it sounds like a few dB of additional headroom. The stock unit's real forte is its beautiful midrange performance. The Level-2 adds killer dynamics and has much better pace. It seems to play much louder on peaks. There is a lot more excitement in the music. It now plays with the competition that has as much as 250 watts per channel.
• Treble detail, both micro and macro, is improved and now keeps up with anything we've heard under $5,000.

We have just began offering two dramatic upgrades to the Unico Integrated amp.The Unico has received rave reviews as a killer $1500.00 integrated amp. It was Sam Tellig's Stereophile Product of the Year, 6moons' Product of the Year 2002 and received a very complimentary review from Ken Kessler. We feel that the stock Unico with RF remote is a state-of-the-art example of a hybrid design for under $2000.00 retail.

By now, the first review is in, and Paul Candy of 6moons came to the following conclusion: "I will honestly confess that I've never yet cranked an amp to levels as uninhibited as the Level-2 Unico without being troubled by distortion. The amp was so clean and controlled that listener fatigue never became an issue. This was quite an incredible experience! The Level-2 had no difficulty with any musical genre or volume I chose to throw at it. It became child's play to identify the slightest system change effects such as a cable or support footer substitution. Not only was this a great analytical tool, it was a thoroughly involving, musical piece of kit with terrific immediacy and presence. Frankly, given the mere $400 cost difference, I was completely taken aback by the superiority of the Level-2 over the Level-1. I can only guess at the differences compared to the stocker. If I were contemplating upgrading an existing model or purchasing a modded unit, I'd spring for the Level-2. At only $2,295, Walter and Chris believe the Level-2 Unico bests the likes of the BAT or Mark Levinson integrated amps. I suspect a great deal of the noted sonic differences were due to the substitution of the stock opamps in the amplifier driver stage since greater resolution and high-frequency extension are two of the claimed characteristics of Burr-Brown's OPA-627...

If you haven't the shekels, beg, borrow or steal the green. Ultimately, the Level-2 Unico should be compared to $4000-$5000 integrated amplifiers. I cannot conceive of anyone not completely satisfied with it. It's definitely one of the best-sounding amplifiers in its price range I've heard this past year. If I were a professional racecar driver, I'd sure want Walter and Chris on my team. It'd convey the peace of mind knowing that they'd wring every last drop of possible performance from my car..."

Unico Level-1 mod - $2,690 + shipping ($650 + freight retro-fit)

This modification installs the following:

• Two sheets of SoundCoat chassis damping material to the inner chassis
• 2 premium mil-spec, ultra low noise/microphony Mullard CV4003/12AU7 designed for 10,000 operation
• Two Multicap PPFXS polypropylene film and tin foil inter-stage coupling capacitors
• Two 1uf Auricap metallized polypropylene preamp input coupling capacitors
• Twenty Japanese Riken 0.5- and 1-watt signal path carbon resistors with gold-plated leads
• Two feet of DH Labs Revelation Series pure 99.999% silver solid-core input signal wire with Teflon tape-wrap dielectric
• One pair of premium Vampire direct gold-over-copper-plated RCA female jacks
• Four WBT 0763 single output binding posts
• TRT WonderSolde used throughout
• 4.5 hours labor
  
  

Unico Level-2 mod - $3,280 + shipping ($1,190 + freight retro-fit)

This modification adds the following over the Level-1 upgrades:

• An extra sheet of Soundcoat chassis damping material
• Eight Vishay-Telefunken SF4007 ultra-fast soft recovery diodes to rebuild two existing bridge rectifiers
• Six Black Gate electrolytic capacitors to the power supply
• Two custom-made Burr-Brown OPA-627 opamp-based PCBs to dramatically upgrade the amp driver stage
• Four large EAR Sorbothane isolation feet to further dampen the chassis
• An extra 3 hours of labor for a total of 7.5 hours versus the 4.5 hours on the Level-1
  
  

Sonic improvements with the Level-1 are:

The midrange sounds more liquid and tubelike to make the Level-1 unit more like a tube rather than hybrid amp This was the major goal of this modification. Imaging is more focused while the entire soundstage is both deeper and wider.

Sonic improvements with the Level-2 are:

While our Level-1 mod is a notable upgrade from the stock unit, the Level-2 is like a shot of adrenaline. It makes this high value amp into a true category killer. Transparency is improved over both the stock unit and Level-1 mod. You get a cleaner look into the musical soundstage. Dynamics are dramatically improved as though the amp gained more power. The stock unit is rated at 80 watts but doesn't dynamically excel compared to more powerful and expensive competitors. The stock unit's real forte is its beautiful midrange performance. The Level-2 adds major dynamics and much better pace, playing much louder on peaks and adding excitement to the music. If the stock unit is 80 watts, the Level-2 mod seems to increase power to at least 120 watts.

The amp is quieter, with blacker backgrounds, to resolve more low-level detail and render ambience more three-dimensional. Bass response is significantly upgraded in both extension and mid-bass slam. Treble detail both micro and macro is demonstrably better to now keep up with anything we've heard under $5k.

The Level-2 Unico is an amazing amplifier that simply has no match anywhere near its cost.

Warranty is 90 days parts & labor on new modified units as well as on modifications we perform on pre-owned units. See the manufacturer's website for further information.