With it I suddenly understood Donatas' voicing. Over Piu mini, Nelson's low-power amp was nowhere near as muscular as my English reference yet it sounded as agile as the Job 225 and easily surpassed it on tangibility and openness. By nature the Swiss amp is faster than the F7 but, shockingly, not in this instance. On extension the FirstWatt was closer to the Job but it brilliantly controlled the speaker's generous low end. Of course the DAC's passive volume control now sat between -3 and -10 on the dial to nearly max out system gain. But the F7 had an obvious edge over the two other amps especially on acoustic instruments. This difference was substantial. Not only was Piu mini able to brilliantly telegraph this difference, it revealed itself as rather picky about repertoire.
Some time ago I'd discovered tribal folk band Danheim, a solo project by an artist who clearly aims at a Wardruna-type effect with various drums, long-forgotten string instruments, ambiance, tone and space. If present at all, vocals are mere additives usually located deep in the background mix. Piu mini + FirstWatt F7 brilliantly grasped what this folk genre was all about. They meticulously showcased the difference in size and tension of the drums as well as the spatial ambiance and colours. The amount of information about each instrument was very generous and to hear such music served up this hauntingly was a rare treat. Add epic tear-jerker potential and the experience itself was simply beautiful.
When I questioned Donatas about his sonic brief for this model, the terse reply was 'natural, precise, energetic and involving'. With either of my synergistic amps of F7 and Job 225, I could easily agree with 'natural' and 'involving', somewhat with 'precise' and less so with 'energetic'. To my ears and with my amps, Piu mini clearly emphasized mood, tangibility and colours. It was energetic when needed but this aspect operated mostly in the shadows due to the generous bass and subdued treble. Whilst pleasantly weighty and with horn-like decay and tangibility, the tweeter was toned down and the opposite of lit up. The more musical hours passed by, the more I began to think that this suaveness was very much what its designer intended. When paired with the FirstWatt F7, the calm, very smooth, quite gutsy and generally well-seasoned Piu mini didn't sound flashy but majestic. It painted grand images which were very expansive, immersive, properly sorted and most convincing, with all instruments finely separated, substantial and working together in one organic space. Yet to hear this very pleasant, lively and satisfying outcome, not only careful amp matching was a must but also a selective repertoire. Mediocre recordings were a struggle to listen to. Rock/metal and similar genres (think AC/DC, Soundgarden, Therion, In Extremo and more) were off the table whereas playlists loaded with The Acid, Battles, Wardruna, Heilung, Danheim, A Challenge of Honour, Mari Boine, Smadj, Of the Wand & the Moon, Einstürzende Neubauten and Kodo were thoroughly enjoyable. Here the similarly priced Boenicke W8 are far more forgiving, bigger and bolder but also less romantic and a bit more distant. This Swiss also need far more space and power to fully shine. It's a different product aimed at enthusiasts after different things.
Summary. My date with the 8mm Audiolab Piu mini was quite the roller coaster. First impressions within my own four walls were very troublesome to put it mildly. Back then nothing indicated that things would get any better yet they did with a bang and it was a rare sight to witness a transformation this profound. The Lithuanian loaners turned out to be very good indeed and oftentimes simply spectacular yet also were above-average demanding and quite unpredictable. Very expensive, Piu mini looks and feels like a costly piece of meticulously crafted very stylish Art Deco audio furniture. As a newcomer, designer Donatas Tamoši?nas was aware that he needed to go the extra mile on every possible count. With proprietary terminals, quality stands, exchangeable grills/rings, superior packaging and top-notch execution in general he did just that. Solid Oak rather than veneered MDF justifies a steep price to some degree as do the quality tripods. If purchased separately, these unusually heavy critters would be far from affordable.
These speakers interacted quite unexpectedly with my limited amplification choices to remain somewhat of a mystery to me. Clearly not a 'me too' effort, I found them thoroughly enjoyable and rewarding once I'd identified my best amp. Voiced to sound pleasant, substantial, spacious and texturally generous, 8mm audiolab's Piu mini turned out to be a very captivating performer which proved especially fond of acoustic instruments and minimalist or atmospheric productions. Focused on beauty over utmost clarity, it had a charming and involving personality.
