2. amps-preamps
  3. 1244326880

advice on amp - $3,500 maximum budget

I am looking to buy an amplifier that would be a good match in my system. My speakers are Sehring 703s. They are not well-known in the US, as they are German and primarily marketed in Europe. They are 86db sensitivity at 8ohms, but supposedly have a fairly stable/forgiving impedance curve, which means they are not that difficult to drive. My preamp is a Manley Shrimp. I live in a New York apartment and the amp has to go into a cabinet, so very heavy tube amps are out of the question. But I am looking for tube-like warmth/bloom. (FWIW, reviewers of the Sehrings say they sound best with tube amps.)

Right now, I am considering the following amps:
1. Music Reference RM-200 -- a hybrid tube amp that doesn't weigh too much or get too hot, 100w per channel. Some say it basically sounds like a solid state amp but has all the hassles associated with tube gear. Others say it sounds fantastic. Main concern is that Music Reference is a one man operation run by the designer, who is frankly hard to reach a lot of the time.
2. Blue Circle SB100S -- solid state, 100w per channel. This is the lowest end power amp Blue Circle makes. Reviews are generally good, but provide generic praise rather than incisive comments. I am a little concerned that I could get the essentially the same sound quality for less money from a bigger company.
3. Butler 2250 -- a powerful 250 watt hybrid amp. Provides a lot of power but also some valve warmth as well.
4. Bryston 4B-SST -- supposed to sound good and I like the idea of a 20-year warranty. Reviews suggest it may be a little bright/forward, which causes some concern. But value holds up well in the used market, so I could probably sell it without taking too big a hit if I don't like it.

Any thoughts on the relative merits of these amps and whether I have left off some obvious candidates in my price range? (I am trying to avoid Class D, although I do plan to audition a Bel Canto to see if my concerns about compatibiity with my speakers are misguided.)
mcondon

Showing 3 responses by petland

petland
85 posts
 
I have been a tube fan for twenty years and have owned many listed here including the RM200. Recently dipped back into SS after many years and threw my hat in the ring with a Marantz SM11-s1, driven with a tube preamp.

This amp is very very good. Although it would never be confused with a tube amp (as Fremmer noted in his review) it has a very delicate and open top end that is very addictive. best of all it has a sense of organization and speed that delivered the goods big time on my big harbeths. best thing is that despite conventional wisdom about what is needed to sound good, it is biased heavily in AB and barely gets warm externally.

It was so good in fact I sold it and I pulled the trigger on a pair of Ma9s2, we'll see........
petland
85 posts
 
Mcondon,
i had the Ayre V5xe (very good) and a pair of Rowland 501 monos (which I thought were awful) on loan for two weeks awaiting my Ma9s2 (still waiting) and I would hands down take the Marantz sm11-s1 over both of them despite the price difference, if that is any help.

I am also a big fan of the MC275.......
petland
85 posts
 
Lets just say the Marantz has been somewhat of a revelation for me.

I should preface by saying that transistors have not had much of a place in my system, at any level, for a long time. I still feel quite strongly that is far easier assembling a musically satisfying system around tubes than transistors and i have never been successful with transistors alone. The Marantz however has opened my eyes to how far things have come. That being said, the other SS amps I have had around recently are better than in years past for sure but still reminiscent of what I did not care for before. The Marantz seems to strike a note with me, even though its not easy to describe why.

I can tell you what the marantz is not: it is not dry or analytical or overly sharp or unnatural. It also is not warm, fuzzy, bloated slow or forgiving.

Now how well it may match with your speakers I cant say, not having heard them. With my 40.1, which are fairly neutral with a nice hard hitting midbass, the Marnatz was superb. What I loved the most about it, and which I hope is present in the 9s2, was its spatial organization. It was uncanny here. it also has speed with texture and dimension.

Anyway it should be on your list at 2k used although you dont see them often. I also found it to be very flexible with a front panel switch between the SE and Balanced inputs with adjustable input gain for both. i used both the balanced 101d and SE 6h30 outputs of my Supratek preamp into it and it was nice to have two different signatures in hand at the flick of a switch.
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