Ayre V-1Xe vs VTL 450

Rfogel8- I couldn't agree more with what you said about Ayre equipment, I had the exact same impression in my auditions. Didn't sound like music to me, and next to even VTL's entry level ammplifiers I thought it didn't sound as good. I am no engineer but I would say the first thing Ayre is doing wrong, particularly in the context of VTL, is using transistors.

Let's not forget that the proprietor (Chucky Hansen) of Ayre also spends alot of time in Audio Asylum arguing with potential customers, which is just comical.

No one here ever called Chucky an buffoon, although now that you put it that way, maybe it is fitting. Anyway, not important..What is important, and helpful to answer the question at hand is when comparing these two designs, other than the stale dry nature of the Ayre sound, there is only one thing wrong with Chucks designs.....

He uses transistors.