Ayre or Rowland Amp?


I am thinking seriously about stepping out of my tubed ARC VT100 MKII amp into something that doesn't require retubing. The Rowland 201s or the Ayre V5xe look interesting from reviews, but I haven't heard either. These will be fed by an ARC LS5MKIII (which I love) and will feed Watt/Puppy 7s.

There don't seem to be that many of either amp 'out there' so info is relatively hard to come by, especially on the newer incarnation of the Ayre.

Any feedback would be appreciated!

Bob Wood
woodburger

Showing 4 responses by muralman1

ICE is a good class D module to start with. It shares with tubes a liquidity and spaciousness. The 201, and 501 sound much the same, according to people who have heard both. The 300 series amps are better sounding, due to their linear power supply.

I am an owner of the new H2O Signature monos. They power my 1 ohm speakers. These are ICE based too. Like the Rowland 300 series, the H2O is built with a robust analog power supply.
Being an H2O owner, instead of concluding ICE technology has, "A way
to go," On the contrary, I'm wondering what more amp evolution is
possible.

There is a down side. When one commits to the H2O, or any ICE amp, one has
committed to a total system change, eventually. The ICE amp will take due
note of all deficiencies in your system, and magnify them.

For instance, I changed all my wires to ones well shielded from EMI, and RFI.
It is amazing what pollution gets into your system without you knowing it,
because it is fainter than the provided signal.

You are welcome, Bob. I have no worries about service, should my H2O amps
need it. Henry Ho, builder of the H2O (hence the name) will service his
creations for life. He is just that kind of guy. What's more, a service technician
has noted any amp repair shop can service the H2O.

I meant to say power cords need full shielding for all components. A good
example is Shunyata. They offer full shielding for both EMI, and RFI.

Dedicated lines, are good. Power filtering can be good. I am sure you are up
on the tradeoff in current loss when it comes to some conditioners.

Henry will send a trial amp upon request. You only need pay shipping. You
might look at audiofankj's review of his Sigs, and check out his system for
pics.

What did I leave out? I agree with audiofankj, that the music is just there.
There is no mids/highs/bass about it.

What do you have for a preamp? The H2O needs an active preamp. It should
be top notch. The H2O is a stern task mistress. Same goes for the front end.
Bob, that sounds like a good start to use with the H2O. BTW, the H2O sigs will be featured at the NY HE Show at the end of next month. They will be powering Analysis ribbon speakers. I'm flying from California for that one.