2. amps-preamps
  3. 1289755209

Amps for Sonus Faber Stradivari Homage

I have a pair of Stradivaris that I love, but I´m having a little trouble finding the right amps for them. My system consists of: Emmlabs CDSA SE latest version, Clearaudio Champion Level two/ SME V/ Benz Ruby, ARC REF3, MSB 202 monos.
I have driven the speakers with a set of Pass XA 100.5 before, but they sounded compresed quite quickly. The MSB´s offer more power than the 100.5´s and sound more detailed and airy, but also leaner and brighter.
I love detail and air, but I also crawe bass slam and body in the midths and highs. I absolutly hate lean and bright sound, no matter how detailed it might bee.
I have owned quite a lot of Krell gear in the past. I liked the bass of the ols stuf like the KSA s series + the first FPB stuff. The rest of the frequency range however, sounded rough and "solid state" to me. I liked the detail of the MCX 450´s, but they sounded to lean in the low frequences to me. I have tried tube amps as well, but I have not yet found a pair that did´nt sound like tubes in the bass region
So I am dreaming of a set of amps that delivers a full bodied, warm but detailed sound with bass slam and bass detail as well.
Any recomendations ?
NB: English is not my native language, so I hope for your understanding if my spelling is off !
0461

Showing 1 response by microstrip

microstrip
180 posts
 
When the Stradivari were presented at the Arcugnano factory by Franco Serblin he used Krell amplifiers. Our distributor says that the new E series Krell amplifiers sound great with ARC Ref5 preamplifiers - if you have the possibility and budget try the new Krell EVO402e in your system. I heard this combination with Maxx3 and it sounded very good - much better than the old FPBs.

When I owned the Stradivari I could not find a tube amplifier that could control the bass in my room - even the old VTL MB450s.
More to discover