avantgarde UNO nano seeking a matching amp

I have the avantgarde uno's as well with a Cary 300sei and understand what you are saying. I did some checking with my local dealer, and he recommeneded the Quicksilver horn top amps. Quicksilver makes a tube monoblock amp that is suppose to be super quiet for horns but produce more power than the cary 300sei.

Also, he recommended a low power push pull amp such as the copland integrated, or pathos integrated. He said by giving the avantgarde's 50 watts of power in push pull should really light these up. I am in the process of changing my 300sei out as well. It sounds great as a good quiet amp for jazz, classical, etc. but do not really perform as expected.

Hope this helps,

Steve

I would go with either the Avant Garde Model 5 or Lavardin IS Reference or a Leben cs-600 or a Mactone XM-IIA - The Mactone would be far superior to the rest.

If you can swing them high output SET like Cary 805's or and 845 based set up.I liked Bel Canto 845 amp.If you want more power and 30 isn't' enough still check out review at www.6moons.com about battery operated Class T type (much less efficient and more expensive than Class D) Redwine Signature 30 amp's.They make a 30 watt with gain control for $1500 and a pair of 70 watt Mono's for $3K.They compared them to really nice (pricey) SET.Battery operated they are supposed to have all the tonal qualities of SET but of course no tube "bloom" as they are solid state.Was only non tube unit to make the 6moons best of 2006 of 6 products chosen.Worth a read and maybe trial if you can get from Vinny the owner.
Cheers
Chazz

I heard Avantgarde speakers on numerous occasions at different shows, dealers, and in owners' homes. Two of the best three setups were using the Audiopax Model 88 monoblocks and the third was based on the Lamm ML2's. The stereo Audiopax amp doesn't quite have the headroom of the big monos and the Timbre Lock function works a little differently, but still the overall character should be pretty close to the monos.

I have heard the Avantgarde Uno's paired with Audio Note Oto SE, and Graaf OTL. I have also heard the Duo's paired with Cary CAD-805AE.

Proper amp matching with these speakers is absolutely critical. I heard the Uno's with AN Oto and Graaf. The sound was simply unacceptable with Audio Note amplification - honky, flat, top rolled off, no detail. The dealer then changed the amp to a Graaf OTL amp - MUCH better. The speakers now started to make music but it still wasn't good enough. We could have experimented with more amps but we were running short of time.

The Duo's with the Cary did much better, probably because the Cary is exceptionally pure sounding in the first place. There was a problem with that demo as well but it was due to speaker setup not amplification. I agree with Chazzbo - the Cary 805's seem to be a good match.

Bottom line: on some equipment you can take an educated punt and buy with minimal auditioning. With your speakers, you MUST listen to how the amplifier performs. Good luck with your search :)

I have Duo Omegas which I formerly drove with Cary 300SEs, but now use Lamm ML2s - this is the best combo I've heard.

I've also heard standard Duos with Audiopax 88 monos - superb.

Other amps reputed to work well with Unos & Duos are Art Audio PX25s and the Pass/Aleph/First Watt 30 WPC solid-stae amps.

Happy hunting - the effort will be greatly rewarded!

After trying many, many amps and preamps with my Unos I followed the advice of three people who said to try the Tom Evans Linear A amp and his Pulse/Vibe preamp and now I could not be happier. Read Jeff Day's review of the Evans' gear on 6moons. He nails it in the review and he was using Avantgarde speakers. Awesome bass is just part of the great experience. The entire frequency range is fantastic. As you can see, I like the Evans' gear a lot!

My AVG UNO speaker sound fanastic with Cary 805C but I use Van Den Hul's revelation as pigtail and Supernova as speaker cables.

If you can get to NYC (Highwater Sound), have a listen to the TRON Syren tube pre and Cantata 300B power amp. They are stunning and designed specifically for the AVG horns by Graham Tricker (the UK importer for AVG and a tube amp designer of some repute). They are not cheap, but they are all hand built by Graham himself. Each one is individual and can be tailored to your requirements.

Charlie

I currently use a KR antares amp using both the factory 842 vhd tubes and the TJ mesh plate 300B with my uno and it sounded great with lots of detail and emotion.the 300B has much better extensions and tighter bass but can sound a tad on the bright side whereas the 842 KR tubes are much warmer but lacking in highs.I am having a tom Evans linear A sent to me for evaluation. I spoke with jeff day and he recommends it above all others. I will be using a passive preamp from placette to see how that goes for transparency and even more precise soundstaging.my digital is oracle 1500. I will post agin after these gear arrive in a few days.