Reviewer: Paul Candy
Financial interests: click here
Digital source: CEC TL51X transport, Asus laptop, Win 8.1, J. River Media Center 20, JPlay 6, Audiomat Maestro 3 DAC
Analog source: Well-Tempered Lab Amadeus with DPS power supply, Pro-Ject Tube Box SE phono stage, Ortofon Rondo Blue MC cartridge
Amps: Audiomat Opéra Référence integrated
Speakers: Jean-Marie Reynaud Evolution 3, REL Q108 Mk II subwoofers (x 2)
Cables: MIT Magnum M1.3, Sablon Audio Panatela,Light Harmonic LightSpeed USB cable, Sablon Audio LAN cable
AC cords: MIT Magnum AC1, Sablon Audio Corona series, Wireworld Aurora & Silver Electra.
Stands: Ikea Besta, Ikea bamboo cutting boards
Powerline conditioning: BPT Pure Power Center, Blue Circle FX2 6 X0e, Blue Circle BC86 MK5
Sundry accessories: Acoustic Revive RR-77, Audio Magic/Quantum Physics Noise Disruptors, Caig Pro Gold, Echo Busters acoustic room treatments, Isoclean fuses, HiFi Tuning Disc Demagnetizer, Nitty Gritty record cleaning machine, Soundcare Superspikes (on speakers), dedicated AC lines with CruzeFIRST Audio Maestro outlets
Room size: 11x18x8', long wall setup, suspended hardwood floors with large area sisal rug, walls are standard drywall over Fiberglas insulation
Review component retails: PR1 $1'749, MB100 $1'299 ea

In hifi circles, Teddy Pardo isn’t exactly a household name. At least not yet. Prior to this review, all I knew about the brand was some sporadic web buzz about Pardo’s aftermarket power supplies, mostly for Naim gear. But after I scoped out the products offered for review, I quickly emailed the boss and claimed dibs. I had no idea that Teddy Pardo offered a full line of audio goods: DACs, pre/power combos, integrated amps, cables and even speakers. And all at what I think are very reasonable prices. Covering affordable products that promise to punch well above their weight and from smallish little-known audio firms is right up my alley. So, who/what is Teddy Pardo? Let’s hear from the man himself: "My name is Teddy Pardo and I am the owner of a company with the same name which you may have heard of. We are based in Israel and manufacture a range of audio equipment: power supplies, DACs, USB to SPDIF converters, amplifiers, phono stages, cables and recently speakers. We started our activity 7-8 years ago as a power supply manufacturer, mainly for Naim audio equipment, but soon realized that our power supply technology could be used to develop our own products. Our power supply developments led us to a different approach in the design, in which we rely on the fact that the power supply is very quiet. And we use simpler gain circuits, usually with no feedback, which resemble valve amplifiers in their concept. We also discovered the amazing effect of specialized power supplies on digital circuits. The result is equipment that sounds very natural, detailed, with a large 3D soundstage which allows listening to music for hours and hours without fatigue.

"I spent most of my life frustrated by the high prices of hifi. When I created my own company, I decided to do things different and offer high-end sound at affordable prices. To achieve this goal, we sell our products only direct through our website with no distributors. Our products are considered very good and exceptional value for money, but since we don’t have distributors, we get very limited exposure. Most of our reputation was gained by word of mouth, mainly through forums such as Pinkfishmedia where we are very popular. Saying that, even without distributors, we have managed to sell thousands of units so far."

Today’s review features the TeddyPre PR1 preamp and MB100 monoblocks. According to the PR1 manual, Pardo’s products are "designed around the concept that the audio circuits should be minimalist with the shortest possible signal path, while the complexity is in the power supply". I couldn’t agree more. Most of the better more musical components I have reviewed or auditioned generally followed this approach. These days, too much audio in my opinion is overly complex, not to mention overpriced. Somewhere along the line, music suffers in the pursuit of better sound. More on power supplies later.