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Graham Slee Proprius

Monoblocks

Relative price

well below typical

Among the 25 monoblockss in the catalogue, this one is well below typical.

A band places a component against its peers and carries no price. It is deliberately the only price indicator on this page: a second one, measured against a different set, would narrow the two together far enough to give the figure away.

What it is

ASC-2 parity entry. Audited [439][441]; discussed [19][20][79][80][437]. Sweet-sounding low-bias AB; in the ASC bi-amp scenario keeps "its sweetness on the band you actually hear it" vs Exposure XM9 on bass [13369].

D9a BAY CO-LOCATION (LOCKED 11 Jun): two Proprius per speaker live in the 140mm void service bay stacked atop the XO box, 48V bricks behind it. HEAT: the pair idles ~20-30W continuous (est.; "barely gets warm" singly, ASC-2 [1942]) — chimney venting REQUIRED (inlet low/front, outlet high/rear), amps top of stack. Right-angle XLRs mandatory (205mm chassis vs 250mm bay depth). EMI: brick SMPS behind steel divider; twisted/ferrited DC leads; mains opposite side from XLR entry. This discussion is REQUIRED content wherever this pairing is reported (Rahul, 11 Jun).

Competition record

Assessed against 19 rivals across the sixty systems: 4 head-to-heads won, 56 lost.

Where it gives ground

The dimension the engine names as the weakest link, counted across every head-to-head it lost.

  • quietness at rest ×19
  • vocal presence ×19
  • bass control ×17
  • timing and drive ×17
  • low-level clarity ×9
  • bass weight ×3
  • midrange truth ×3

Who it comes up against

Longdog Audio P6100M Biamp 2x2 (4 units)

13 lost · Anchored, Artisan, Characterful, PRaT, Reference, Romantic

Against the Anchored brief, the Longdog Audio P6100M Biamp 2x2 (4 units) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

control, detail and overall lack of grainTNT-Audio (Husband)

NVA S80 Stereo

8 lost · Artisan, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Silent Path

Against the Characterful brief, the NVA S80 Stereo keeps the slot decisively.

With the NVA P50 MKII, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

With the Neat Iota 2, the pairing gives up most on timing and drive.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the stronger pair of monoblocks — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the NVA P50 MKII gives up vocal presence under the Characterful weighting.

Audiolab 9000P

5 lost · Anchored, Characterful, PRaT, Romantic, Silent Path

Against the Characterful brief, the Audiolab 9000P keeps the slot decisively.

With the Audiolab 9000Q, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

With the Neat Petite Classic, the pairing gives up most on timing and drive.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

THD just 0.002% at 1kHz, S/N >112dB A-weightedAudio Tailor 9000P review + manufacturer specs

Sugden ANV 50

4 lost · BBC Sound, Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Sugden ANV 50 keeps the slot decisively.

Leema Hydra II

4 lost · Cavity-Native, Characterful, Romantic

Against the Cavity-Native brief, the Leema Hydra II keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

With the Leema Neutron, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

control, detail and overall lack of grainTNT-Audio (Husband)

NVA S300 Stereo (Artisan)

4 lost · Artisan, Cavity-Native, Intimate, Reference

Against the Intimate brief, the NVA S300 Stereo (Artisan) keeps the slot decisively.

With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

With the ProAc Tablette 10 Signature, the pairing gives up most on timing and drive.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the stronger pair of monoblocks — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the NVA P50SA MKII gives up vocal presence under the Intimate weighting.

fast, propulsivePROXY: NVA S80 / INT400

Audio Note P1 SE

3 lost · Intimate, Silent Path

Against the Silent Path brief, the Audio Note P1 SE keeps the slot clearly.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.

With the Music First Audio Baby Reference V2, the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

sonic ease, natural instrument timbreStereoTimes — Proprius monoblock review

EAR Yoshino V12

3 lost · BBC Sound, Vocals-First

No completion of this shape fits that slot's budget.

Exposure XM9 Biamp 2x2 (4 units)

3 lost · Artisan, PRaT, Reference

Against the Artisan brief, the Exposure XM9 Biamp 2x2 (4 units) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on timing and drive.

With the Exposure 3510 Preamplifier, the pairing gives up most on vocal presence.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

only matched in terms of dynamicsStereo Magazine 2021

EAR Yoshino 890

2 lost · Intimate

Against the Intimate brief, the EAR Yoshino 890 keeps the slot decisively.

With the EAR Yoshino 868L (Line), the pairing gives up most on midrange truth.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on low-level clarity.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the stronger pair of monoblocks — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the EAR Yoshino 868L (Line) gives up midrange truth under the Intimate weighting.

sonic ease, natural instrument timbreStereoTimes — Proprius monoblock review

Chord ULTIMA 6

1 lost · Cavity-Native

Against the Cavity-Native brief, the Chord ULTIMA 6 keeps the slot decisively.

With the Emmae Reginae (custom), the pairing gives up most on bass control.

With the Music First Audio Baby Reference V2, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the stronger pair of monoblocks — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Emmae Reginae (custom) gives up bass control under the Cavity-Native weighting.

control, detail and overall lack of grainTNT-Audio (Husband)

Longdog Audio P6100M (pair)

1 lost · Anchored

Against the Anchored brief, the Longdog Audio P6100M (pair) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Neat Petite Classic, the pairing gives up most on bass weight.

With the NVA P50SA MKII, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

Rega io

1 lost · Twin Arms

No completion of this shape fits that slot's budget.

Leak Stereo 230

1 lost · Vocals-First

No completion of this shape fits that slot's budget.

Creek 4040A

1 lost · BBC Sound

No completion of this shape fits that slot's budget.

Quad Artera Stereo

1 lost · Silent Path

Against the Silent Path brief, the Quad Artera Stereo keeps the slot clearly.

With the Music First Audio Baby Reference V2, the pairing gives up most on quietness at rest.

On its own merits the Graham Slee Proprius is the weaker pair of monoblocks for that brief.

Exposure 3510

0 lost· 1 won · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Graham Slee Proprius takes the slot clearly.

Sugden A21 Signature

0 lost· 1 won · BBC Sound

Against the BBC Sound brief, the Graham Slee Proprius takes the slot by a whisker.

What the reviewers said

sonic ease, natural instrument timbre StereoTimes — Proprius monoblock review· Harmonic texture
vivid imaging StereoTimes — Proprius review· Spatial resolution
unusually sweet and open for a transistor design TNT-Audio (Geoff Husband), Majestic/Proprius, Jul 2015· Tonal consistency
control, detail and overall lack of grain TNT-Audio (Husband)· Bass control

How it scores

Clarity

  • Electrical noise floor 79 from specification
  • Spatial resolution 76 from listening evidence

Voice

  • Harmonic texture 76 from listening evidence

Bass

  • Bass control 76 from listening evidence
  • Physical impact 59 from specification
  • Bass extension 59 from specification

LowerVolume

  • Low-level noise floor 79 from specification
  • Micro-dynamic resolution 72 from specification
  • Tonal consistency 76 from listening evidence

Specifications

is monoblockTrue
power classAB
power 8ohm w26.0
power 4ohm w45.5
accepts rcaFalse
accepts xlrTrue
input impedance xlr kohm47.0
input sensitivity xlr mv575.0
gain db27.5
snr db87.0
thd pct0.047
dimensions mm105/55/205
power consumption w120
sold as pairFalse
notes