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Amplifiers
Hand-winds its own output transformers and builds single-ended tube amplifiers as a family workshop near Vicenza.
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about mastersound
MasterSound was founded in 1994 by Cesare Sanavio together with his sons Lorenzo and Luciano, drawing on five decades of family experience building output transformers for other companies before turning that craft toward complete tube amplifiers under its own name. The hand-wound, in-house-designed output transformers remain the core of the brand and the part that distinguishes a MasterSound amplifier from anything else. The range now spans three preamplifiers, three power amplifiers, and roughly nine integrated amplifiers, including single-ended designs built around 300B and 845 triodes. The Compact 845 and the 300B S.E. integrateds are among the best-known models, alongside the Dueundici, with each unit hand-built in stages over as long as a week. Luciano Sanavio leads the company today. MasterSound competes in the single-ended-triode and tube-amplifier high-end, placed by reviewers in the same tier as Shindo, Audio Note, and Line Magnetic. US distribution currently runs through MoFi Distribution, after a historical run with May Audio Marketing, and is supported by specialty tube dealers including Atelier 13 Audio, USA Tube Audio, and Vinyl Sound USA. The brand carries multiple Stereophile reviews, including the 300B S.E. and the 845 Compact, plus a Dueundici review at Wall of Sound. Everything is hand-built at the family premises in Arcugnano, in the Vicenza area of Italy.