Some amplifiers make it immediately clear from the very first notes just what they’re capable of. They give the bass a bit more punch, bring the detail slightly to the fore and, within a few minutes, make you feel that something special is happening.
The Pilium Leonidas takes a different approach. Of course, you can tell almost immediately that this is a serious amplifier, but precisely because it barely makes its presence felt. The first impression is, above all, one of tranquillity.
Design and power
That might sound a bit strange for an integrated amplifier weighing around a hundred kilos. Technically speaking, too, the Leonidas is anything but modest. The amplifier is built entirely in a dual-mono configuration and delivers 200 watts into 8 ohms, 400 watts into 4 ohms and 800 watts into 2 ohms. Each channel has a separate power supply and even its own mains connection. In fact, you’re not so much buying a practical all-in-one amplifier as a substantial pre-amp and power amp that just happen to be housed together in a single cabinet.
Calm, control and dynamics
Yet it is not the figures that stick in the mind after a few evenings of listening. What the Leonidas does particularly well is to let the speakers sound exactly as they were intended to. It adds little emphasis and never seems to be in a hurry. Music emerges from a quiet background and is thus naturally given space. A voice stands freely between the speakers, a piano has weight without becoming ponderous, and a solidly recorded bass line enters the room with conviction, yet stops precisely when it should.
It is precisely this combination of power and ease that makes the Leonidas so interesting. Even at low volumes, the music retains its full integrity. Subtle dynamic variations, reverberation and the positioning of instruments do not disappear as soon as the volume control is turned slightly further to the left. If you turn it up, the character hardly changes at all. It becomes bigger and more physical, but not sharper or more frantic. That’s when you realise just how much headroom there is.
Recordings and tonal character
It also reveals clear differences between recordings. A good recording naturally gains depth and airiness, whilst a lesser recording isn’t suddenly made to sound better than it is. Yet it rarely feels harsh. The Leonidas lays things bare without pulling the music apart. That’s an important distinction, especially if you don’t just want to play a handful of audiophile demonstration albums.
The midrange is full and natural, without artificially warming the sound. High frequencies are open and clean, but aren’t used to create an impression of extra detail. That detail is certainly there; it simply becomes part of the whole. As a result, you can listen for a long time without constantly focusing on the system itself.
Listening with the Pilium Leonidas
Perhaps that is ultimately the greatest compliment you can pay the Leonidas. This is an amplifier that is technically almost over-engineered, yet musically demands remarkably little attention for itself. No spectacular gimmicks, no polished presentation and no pronounced signature. Just control, scale and, above all, a great deal of calm.
In a good system, the Leonidas simply fades into the background after a while. And that’s precisely when it really starts to justify its price tag.
Now available in the second-hand section.
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