Which Krell models were you looking at, and what are you trying to accomplish? |
Krell is MUCH more expensive gear than Arcam generally, though there is some overlap between Arcam's high end and Krell's entry level stuff. Arcam gives great sonic/video value for dollar. Only you - through personal auditions - can decide if Krell offers you enough more to justify the price. Don't let any salesperson psych you out by bad mouthing your Arcam stuff as "mid-fi" or any such nonsense. For most people in most circumstances, it is great equipment. |
The P7 is just 125 watts per channel. I am thinking of buying the B&W 802's and the 125 watts will not be ablw to drive them. I totally love the ARCAM stuff the musice is extraordinay and very worm, even the krell monoblocks cant give this much wormth. But my onl problem is power. The dimentions of ARCAM are also perfect. |
I don't think I would assume your Arcam gear won't drive the B&W's just fine. I know B&W's by reputation do their best with gobs and gobs of power driving them, but you may be very happy with the sound out of them with your Arcam.
When I first got back into the hobby I had an Arcam A-65 (40 watts). One dealer told me he would normally never recommend trying to drive B&W's with something that had only 40 watts, but because of the quality and stability of Arcam's poweramp output, he thought I shouldn't hesitate to give it a try. The problem is that you need an amp that can keep pace the B&W low ohm dip (around 2 ohms I believe) which can really tax lesser amps. I suspect your Arcam is up to this. I am not saying that more high quality power wouldn't be ideal, it just may not be necessary. |
The only Problem here is that I will have 5 B&W's, The 805's are very happy wiht this amp. I put in the HTM1 and the sound really went down as compared to the HTM2. Now I do not have the HTM 2 any more and because of that I am going up to the 802's, the HTM 1 really overwhelms all the other speakers. I am using Transparent Reference MM technology cables for the front 3 channels. The 802's will also be connected to the same cables and they are 8 ohmes. the interconnects are Transparent Reference MM 75 ohmes which connect the Processor and the amp. I am using the DV 29 as my DVD player and the Shanling T 200 as the CD player. The CD is connected also in the same manner. So when I am playing my CD player only 2 channesl are working. |
Okay, I'm convinced - you need probably could use the heavy iron. Krell is not the only option in high-powered, quality amps, though I'm sure it is a good one. |
I would love to get a recommendation form you on which other can be used. I have not used the Krells but have read that they are good on sound but do not give that musch wormth. Please provide your input. |
I am not the best source for information on heavy, high-powered amps, but based on my experience you might want to look into Sim Audio for more warmth. McCormack isn't bad either. But there are many others here who know much more on this subject.
For myself, I simply cannot abide the huge torroidal power supplies, the heavy aluminum casing and completely unaesthetic, wife-unfriendly footprint of most Krell amps. They just dont cut it in the average living room, for instance. But also, and more to the point, I personally don't think those I have heard sound as good as my Linn amps, which use a switch mode power supply (thus are in comparision light and small), are stable into any speaker load, and are pleasing to any eye. Unless you are going for the Klimax solos (10K each), Linn amps are lower powered than the big Krells. Mid level Linn amps like the 2250 or the 5125 (multi channel) are around 230 watts into 4 ohms. Still, if you have a Linn dealer where you live, they most certainly should be auditioned. They are also a great value used, if you would consider buying that way. |
I had the Krell TAS as the AMP in mind. I would stick with the ARCAM DV 29. I wanted to keep the AV 8 too but will move to the Krell HTS. I wanted to drive my HTM 1 and the 802's with some more power. B&W's require a lot of power. |
I have a DV27 into Meridian 861 / Krell Showcase. I have had the Krell driving much harder loads than my Sonus Fabers (Wilson, B&W, Martin Logans). Whilst at entry level, it is not the most powerful 5 channel amp (125W), at over 30 kilos it does have a serious power supply on board to cope (if not excel). I believe in bench tests they do tend to rate higher than specified. |
I have the Krell TAS in my system right now and it is driving my Paradigm Studio 100s, CC370, and my Studio 20s. Even in high reference volumes, you will have enough head room driving your speakers. The Krell also doubles down from 200 watts at 8ohms to 400 watts at 4. Although I have not auditioned any Arcam amp, based on specs alone the power of the Arcam amp will not be enough for your speakers.
Multi channel amp with similar specs to Krell TAS
Plinius Odeon
BAT VK6200
Simaudio Moon Titan
Anthem P5
Parasound A51
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You may want to consider Sherbourne, Outlaw, ATI or Gemstone for very powerful amps that will not break the bank.
No one says that a powerfull amp needs to cost as much as a Krell or that you need to go to monoblocks to get more than 125W. The above are know as good values and the Outlaw and Gemstone have free demo's (plus shipping though). In particular the gemstone has some good word of mouth. |
If you want power and quality with warmth and a step up from the Arcams do check out Cary amps. Their ss multi channel amps are killers.
I'll also second the Plinius and BAT. Haven't heard the Sim. |
If you like the way your Arcam amp sounds, have you considered upgrading to their P1 monoblocks? At 175wpc and with a dedicated power supply for each channel, they would very likely provide all the grunt needed to drive your HTM1 and 802's with power to spare...
JZ |
Thank you all.
I changed my system to the T+A stuff. I got the ARCAM at first. T+A is amazing stuff |
