I have a pair of 3.8 with Cary 211 Aniverssary Edition Amplifiers. The preamplifier is an Jadis JP 200.
Its sound spectacular in a big room (about 30 mts2) |
Alun,i would have bought the 250 a while ago,but i just hate the maintenance of tubes.i knew they were producing the 300.2,so i figured i would wait until it came out and give it an audition.enjoy your amp.one of the best.you must try the anaconda alpha power chord by shunyata with your amp.it will make your amp even better[enormously so]. |
Alun,i would have bought the 250 a while ago,but i just hate the maintenance of tubes.i knew they were producing the 300.2,so i figured i would wait until it came out and give it an audition.enjoy your amp.one of the best. |
Yes I bought the D250mkII. It's excellent as well. My wife would disown me if I got rid of it!
I will keep the SS ARC in mind though and would love to hear one.
Thanks for your reply |
Alun,did you already purchase d250? great amp!if you didnt,try 300.2 by arc.like 100.2,it is tube-like,but with tremendous power.like you,i love pro-ac,but opted for dynaudio.arc is made for pro-ac.try the 300.2.my dilema was the same as yours.with this amp it is solved.finally arc made a sweet sounding amp with great power.only gigital switching at the output.this allows it to have lots of power without digital sound.most natural sounding amp i have owned.remember,i wanted to upgrade from 100.2 but could never find a sonic match.some had more power,but at midrange cost.i heard 300.2 and bought it.magical midrange but with power,and very natural. |
Thats one I haven't heard of! |
300.2 from arc=100.2 with balls!!!! |
Well I am finally listening to the 3.8s through the D250MII tube amp. 250 tube watts is really amazing but I'm not sure I want to go with the glowing inferno of bulbs. They really scare the crap out of me an I'm not sure about all the biasing that would be required. I'm thinking the D400mkII but am not sure that it will have the same dynamic slam of the tubes. I have heard that tube power is much different than solid state and I may need a pair of D400's to achieve the same raw power.
With that out of the way I can honestly say that there is no going back and I don't think that the VT100 would ever satisfy my needs. There are just too many times that I want to crank it up, and these Proacs love it. |
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Sorry Alun, my fat finger typo (never could hit the symbols and numbers right). Should have said ARC 2*4*0 Mk IIs--the D240s are 120WPC SS amps--not tubes... |
Jb0194, It's not that the 3.8's don't have bass, they actually have a beautifull bottom end in my room. I like the Ayre a lot and if I could afford a pair of them it would probably be a no brainer. The fact is the Ayre is a loner from a pal until he gets room for it in his place (renovations) I could never afford one of these bad boys!!! I have heard a LOT of amps in my days (just not the ARC's) including huge Krells and Classe's but the Ayre just makes good music. Until the day I can afford one I have to look eleswhere. I am hoping that tonight my buddy will lend me the ARC D250MKII tube jobby to drive the speakers. I have to admit though that I'm leaning towards the ss D400MKII just for ease of use.
By the way Adire does have some really nice looking stuff and the DIY thing has always been of interest. I used to build my own loudspeakers but find time a little tight these days. If I was to do it again I'd be looking at those GR Research Line kits or the Linkwitz dipole. I'm certain they offer excellent value.
Again thanks for the replies |
If you already have great synergy with the Ayre you may consider getting a PAIR of quality subs and "dialing in" the low end according to your preference.
I have stereo DIY subs using Adire Tumult drivers which gave me the bottom I was after.
Kevin Haskins of www.diycable.com is offering Tumult subs in a VERY small volume sealed cabinet (higher Q, but not the monsters I have). The drivers are pricey at about $450 each, but are incredibly powerful and accurate.
I have no connection whatsoever with Adire or DIY cable. I'd just hate to see you break up a nice marriage of amp and speakers, such a crucial element in good sound. |
carver lighstar 2.0 very easily thanks |
Edesilva, looks like you have lots of ARC/Proac experience :-), and you have touched upon a subject that has interested me. You mention that you also use the D250MKII amps. I know of a local friend with one for sale and a monster it is. I am a little leary of having to retube this creature (16 tubes!!!!) I didn't know they could be mono blocked yowza!!! Do you prefer these amps to the VT100's? It would cost me around the same amount for the D250MKII or the VT100MKII, is there something special to note about either? As I am still into solid state and the D400mkII is still of interest, can it be mono blocked as well?
Thank you all for your replies as it is a great help in designing a top notch system in my budget range. |
I'm running a pair of ProAc RS2s with a pair of ARC D250 Mk IIs (each bridged to mono) in my study and a pair of 3.8s off a pair of horizontally bi-amped ARC VT 100 Mk IIIs in my main rig. I was also using an ARC D400 Mk II with the 2s downstairs for a while, but the 400 went upstairs to the pool room to power another system. While I prefer the 400 over the 2x240s, I'm just not gonna carry that gazillion pound monster back down four flights of stairs.
Oh, I would def. recommend the tubes for your 3.8s. I've tried the 3.8s with both ARC solid state set ups and the VT 100s and the VT100s are the hands down winners... Much more musical. |
I ran a pair of ProAc 3.8s with the VT-100 MKII for 5 years. A great combination which makes wonderful sound. More than enough power too. At one time I did try a 100.2 but found it very uninvolving and sterile compared to the VT-100 with the 3.8. I would go with an ARC tubed amp like the VT100 with the ProAc. |
I have heard an Aloia for a short period of time driving B&W 801's. I couldn't get over how much power they presented. I wonder if this could be an option, any ideas on this combo.
Thanks |
Alun,
I'm currently am using a pair of 3.8's with a VT130se, which is close to a VT100 and it has all the dynamics that I could want. I haven't heard the 100.2.
Steve |
Hmm, The D400 is definately a possibility. My wife and I like the tunes to be fairly loud and punchy so I think the tubes may be out unless I go for a big power tube. A local fellow has a D250MkII 250 watt tube amp from ARC for sale, but it uses 16 output tubes and would be a bear to retube with my little experience.
The Odysee amps are of interest as well.
The nice thing about the 100.2 is that it will fit in my stand easily and I have read many good things about it. Some even prefer it to the ARC VT100mkII.
I'm going to check into this matter further
Thank you for your responses. |
I did not like the 100.2 with my Proac 3.8's. My room is fairly large and I found the soundstage to be very flat. It may have been a power issue due to my large room. I liked a Classe ca200 better, but the Rogue M-150's I use now are much better than that. |
ARC D400 MKII is an outstanding and often over-looked solid state amp; a very solid value used as Cytocycle indicates. But it is still a solid state amp. I used one with my old Proac Response 2's and it did sound very nice - - but I ended up moving on to get back to tubes, and they really made the Proac's sing. I'd stay with the ARC 100. |
Find a ARC D400 MKII amp, control and musical 200 watts! this was a $6k new amp that sells for $2000 and it is amazing! |
I once powered my old Proac 2.5s with a VT100. I thought they were an exceptional combination, but would not go overly loud. Very detailed, open, natural sounding. I bought the same drivers for use in my truck. I believe they could have used a bit more power.
I once considered the 3.8s. How sensitive are they. I see the new D38 is 90db, and the D25 88 db.
If you listen at moderate to semi loud levels, I bet 100 watts would be just fine.
Good luck |
I use a 100.2 going into Magnepan 1.6's which are very inefficient (86db). The amp has no problems at all. (However, my ARC D-130 did have some troubles.) The 100.2 is a very good amp. You shouldn't have any problems with your Proac's. |
