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Opera Consonance Cyber 800's, built like a tank, purposely good looking, excellent quality of manufacture, dog reliable, gutsy, great dynamics, musical.
Cheap to re-valve and affordable to purchase. |
I thought my h/k citation 19 would be until someone told me the caps were like listening through mud.
I've recently uped to a rotel rb-1080. |
I've mentioned my Edge NL 12.1s previously; they are definitely a keeper. The big Karans (don't own them but have heard them) certainly make the list. The entry that has my attention right now, and something I am dying to hear about and hear in person is Tom Maker's (Maker Audio) NL14 stereo and the NL14+ monos....I have to find a way to hear them but surmised based upon details I was given about all the lessons learned that have been applied to them, I suspect they will find a place on this list. |
All very well unless you have owned a Coda S100 or their new 15.0! Or for that matter a Coda of any vintage!
Coda is two ex Threshold guys.
They have been producing as Coda for over 25 years
Then we'll talk! |
BTW...my Pioneer Spec1/4 comes a very, very close second!
Bless the 70's !!!!!!
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Absolutely!!! Extremely happy with my SHERWOOD S 6040 CP!
No one can part me from this thing. I have 2 and block them. Dual MosFet 100 WPC and handles my 2 sets of speakers with little effort. (HPM-100's / Energy C100's)
As tubelike a sound as there is without having tubes. Warm,
yet very capable of keep up with music of all genres. Yes. it runs warm, but fans resolve that problem.
Rock solid...ROCK STEADY!!! Paired with my Marantz 600AV Pre-Processor...I AM GOOD!!! System total = (3,100 USD) |
Quicksilver V4 ...... magic with my CJ pv 12 |
ARC VT130 with sonic frontiers SFL2 and dunlavy SC4s - like someone else said - keeps things warm in winter and still sounds amazing 18 years later. Recently compared to current very hot-dawg ARC stuff driving mid-level Wilson Audio - either my ears have truly gone south or the old stuff still stacks up pretty cotton-pickin' good - Bless Chris Johnson, Bill Johnson and John Dunlavy |
FFG late ninties
I also realize the age of the MC240.My point being old Macs were decent its just there is so much better out there now |
Tobb, with all due respect, he's talking about a 51-year-old unit.
How far back did they fall from grace? |
JL the only thing I will say here is Mac is one of those companies who got worse over time.
There is just so much better out there for less money. |
Mc240 - I grew up listening to my father's McIntosh Mc240 which he bought in 1962. We still have it. It still sounds fantastic so it is probably a keeper for 2 lifetimes. |
Chalice Audio 'Grail' SET monoblocks...possibly the best SET amps made..would not trade them for any amps at any price |
A surprise for me is the NAD M3 integrated, for build quality, design and most of all sound. The NAD sounds like a dead ringer for the Krell 402/202 combo I had a couple of years ago....now how's that for a bargain!! Maybe can't drive mega speakers, but for most people it is a gift from the Audio God's:) |
Snich have you heard Coda's 60.0 Monos? |
Even before upgrade, my Threshold SA/2's were likely to be with me for a long time! Now, having modernized the rectifiers, updated the small electrolytic caps and tripled power supply capacitance, I would be very hard pressed to have these torn from my 'cold dead hands'. |
Will never sell my EXPOSURE XV. |
Fully restored pairs of MC60's and MC75's that I'd never part with. I haven't heard anything else that's so musical with the power reserves to drive the speakers I like to listen to. |
A Hafler DH-500 would my choice of an afforedable amp that is a keeper .Very smooth with lots of power ! |
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I've owned a pair of Luxman MB3045's for about twenty years now. They have been converted to KT-88 and again to KT-120, re-capped with Audience for the signal path and Nichicon for the power. I don't foresee any change now or in the future. My hearing will probably fade away before these do. |
I might agree only if it had not been for Coda. Coda comprises of two of Nelson's former employees at Threshold.
The designer and the head research engineer.
I'll put a 15.0 against your XA100.5 any day of the week for half the price.
We will however agree with your comment
"I mean no sound of its own. It merely passes what is fed. I've always had big power and now I've come to realize it is not necessary when you have the right parts for your own synergy of sound"
Coda does this and more! My only comment to Doug Dale after auditioning the 15.0 in our listening room was WOW !!
My only complaint with Coda is it has how it has revealed the garbage in my music collection.
Its unbearable to listen to some of it now.
What you get with Doug Dale's group is no nonsense real Class A less the bullshit.
I was a big tube fan until I got a Coda 15.0.
The only thing close is Ayon's Crossfire at 13K plus vs Coda's 10 K.
We have pushed this amp 24 hours straight and it barley breaks a sweat.
IMHO there is no other choice |
Dollar for Dollar pound for pound they can't shine Codas's shoes and they are made in Quebec! lol |
I've had a number of amps as so many people have in our search for nirvona. I can now say that I truly believe the PassLabs XA100.5 is a clearly top choice. As a class 'A' amp rated to 100 watts @ 8ohms. It does everything right with no, and I mean no sound of its own. It merely passes what is fed. I've always had big power and now I've come to realize it is not necessary when you have the right parts for your own synergy of sound.
Rich |
DarTZeel 108 NHB for two reasons. It sounds so good; and is not a giant machine gobbling up space and tubes. I might add superb serve from Hervé himself. |
Classe Cam 350's mono's - simply superb. |
If you love amps, there's more than one: LSR&D Superamp monos, Meridian 105 monos, Acoustat TNT200/120, G.A.S. 500, Bedini 100/100, Sunfire Signature 600-2, BEL(Brown Electronic Labs), Perreaux 2150b/3150, to name a few. But imo, the holy grail would be non other than the elusive Yamaha MX10000. Haven't heard nor seen one except on the net. One came up for sale on CAM a little while ago. Like the Scarlet Pimpernel, it appeared and then disappeared without a trace! Wonder what happened there? |
My TRL Samson monoblocks. Good power, clean sounding, and run cool. The previous owner had immediate seller's remorse as soon as he sold them to me. I won't make that same mistake. |
I feel like my BelCanto ref1000ms could be based on their outstanding performance yet I know Class D amp technology is still relatively young and will likely continue to improve over time (more so than other older more established amp technologies) and I am curious exactly how far new technology might yet push the limits accordingly down the road. |
Any Spectral Amplfier. Though the evolve, there is a basic house sound that is clear and detailed. During the CD evolution, some found this sound thin or too detailed. Now that we have excelent computer driven DACS and servers, as well as resurgence of Vinyl, you can appreciate the life like quality of the music, without any added tones. |
Never say never because you don't know what Doug Dale of Coda will come up with next.
Having said that when I hooked my 15.0/CP Coda combination to my Whisper XDs after listening for an hour I sent Coda an email that simply said WOW !!! |
I've been through some nice amps in my time, David Berning, Wolcotts, Classe CAM350s but after getting my most recents, the Quicksilver V-4s, I think my search is over. LOL
...But I must say my whole system has evolved over that time period as well, so one should consider it might be more of a case of synergy over a single piece of gear that makes a system great. But all of you know that! ;) |
Well I've been through a few from Adcom to Bryston to ARC VS115 to my latest - and last - ARC REF 150. Time to throw away the magazines, stop looking, and listen for life! I continue to be very impressed with ARC service. Good Luck. |
My new Symphonic Line Kraft 250 Class A monos. I dunno about for life, but for the next decade or maybe more I could see them staying seated in my system. Deep, powerful but refined bass without excess fat, purity in the mids, and detailed without any fatigue in the highs. Macro dynamics are of course great as they should be with this level of amp, but their micro dynamics are incredible.
They are extremely powerful high current amps that drive my large 86db sensitivity Revel Salon 2s to concert SPLs while maintaining dynamics, tonal balance and detail throughout the volume dial. Despite the manufacturer's listing a putative 250 watts into 8 ohms output, they play much louder than the 310 wpc Plinius SB-301 they replaced (a damn good amp in its own right). They are also very fast and play without any overhang but without sounding the least bit clinical.
In the end, while I'm describing gear attributes here, all this leads to a place where late at night I can close my eyes and hear musicians making music and not pay any attention to the stereo. I feel pretty lucky being able to do that.
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Pass XS-150's....keepers for life. |
rebuilt EICO HF-60s - with GEC CV4085s, good 6SN7s, Mullard 5AR4s, and vintage Mullard EL34s. Updated with new caps,they're the best I've heard so far - something about those Acrosound TO-330 transformers. |
I think I am done now that I purchased a pair of Quicksilver V-4 mono amps. They just sound great running EL 34 tubes and driving Proac Response 2.5 speakers. |
Jolida, I owed at one time 5 Jolida Tube Amps, two JD1000P and Three JD502P amps.
For getting into tubes I think they are the way to go, however they would not rank them as a "Keeper Amplifier", the build quality is not the best, but not the worst. |
i have had nice jolida pieces too. loved a jd202, but had some minor problems. tube gear can be problematic no matter the brand. that is why so many years ago solid state was higher, and thought to be a wonderful advancement. i got a dealership with jolida.com. there is a big deal going on now about jolida.net and jolida.com and who is the real deal. which website has been around the longest? they would be the real deal. i would think. that is jolida.com. we all know how the asian markets can be about doing knock offs. china and korea and hong kong are real bad about it. you can find tons of it on ebay- it is a dumping ground for cheap knock offs on electronics, leather products, and other name brands. the china factory is trying to usurp the jolida name and business. this is going to be a problem for other companies too. i have said this for the past 10 years. if you want to buy jolida go to jolida.com find the number, call mike allen and order. or get in touch with me. i have a demo unit now for sale. this china outfit has been doing other unethical things as well. and, right now the website jolida.net is inaccesible as it is under construction. korean company will knock off china company and on and on it goes. they just have a perfect environment for doing this, and a usa market always looking for a cheap deal and believing they can get one. this is a shame because jolida.com was on the way to becoming a well respected brand. please, please spread this info around. i do not have the time to visit so many forums. have a hard time typing due to seizure activity. please? thank you. jolida.com was around first. |
Sherbourn 5/1500A. So good i got a second one, this way i can biwire my fronts in my Paradigm Ref. Studio v.2 complete 7.1 setup. |
I won't be getting rid of my JWN Eico MF20 monoblock rebuilds anytime soon. I would probably have to spend significant coin for a 5-10% improvement - maybe |
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Ayre..quality great sounding amps with a wonderful Customer Service department if you should ever need it. |
Zapho, I agree with you. The Cherry 180s are very special. |
My Bob Carver Cherry 180M, I will keep these beautiful mono amps, I cannot see myself replacing them. Lots of power and sound absolutely stunning, at least to me. Even if one day I do buy another pair of amps, I will not sell these. |
Plinius SA 103..Class power,beautiful top end,mids and highs as good as Tube amps I have owned(bat,Cary) controlled bottom end .First amp that fully controls bass on my Apogee Diva's |
mark levinson ml 23.5 is for keeps It plays music as it
is ment to be enjoyed.
I have had a lots of amps. |
Just had 10th anniversary w/ my ARC VT200MKI. No plans to change. |
