Best Amp/pre-amp for Thiel 6s

I have great luck with Pass Labs x-1 and x-250 driving my Thiel 2.3's

Thiel used Krell amps in the design of their speakers (especially the 3.6s ) which are an older design. They are starting to branch out to other amps now that Krell is in the speaker business. I bought a pair of 3.6s last summer and realized that I needed a much bigger amp to drive them. I bought a used Krell KSA 100 MKII it only has single ended inputs but it was built when they were truly class A amps full output. It puts out so much heat they used fans to cool it as opposed to just large heat sinks. Anyway, I also picked up a Krell KSP 7b which was in mint condition and sounds very good. But recently I found a web site by Arthur Salvatore who had a list of reccomended components among which was a list of preamps to try. On his recommendation I purchased an Audio Research SP 8 and I have to say they are a great match. The sound is warm yet very detailed. Vinyl is fantastic. I recently heard a AR ref 2 with a Krell FPB 200 and I think my vintage combo blows it away. According to Salvatore some of the old arc gear was the best to own. The arc Krell combo blew away the Krell Krell combo. However, I caution that newer Arc stuff does not sound anywhere near as good. In terms of the amp though I would definitely stick with the Krell. However, a great preamp will give you the subtle inner detail for days and days and days and not just the macro dynamics. The sound should sound good and detailed and low as well as high volumes.

Thanks for your feedback. I am awaiting arrival of my Krell FPB 300cx with a KCT pre-amp.

I can only speak from personal experience - I have a CJ Premier 14 with Classe 200 and just installed Alpha-Core MI-2 speaker cables and the synergy is the best I've had. These cables really opened up my Thiel 3.6's, far exceeded my expectations. I was switching back and forth between MIT 750+ S3's and Kimber 8TC's. The improvement is one of the biggest upgrades I've ever made...

I had a pair of CS 6's and found that Classe Amps work real well with them. If you look back at some of the Audio shows you will see alot of Thiel, Classe combo's. The Classe amps IMHO are much more mucical than Krell and you can find several on this site for sale. I would recommend the Ca 300 0r the newer 301. I also used Audio Research pre-amps as I thought they worked well together along with MIT cables. With Thiel speakers I dont think you can have to much power, just make sure all other componets are top shelf or your Thiels will let you know. But as always let your ears be the judge. Good Luck!

You might consider a pair of SimAudio W-5 amp's and perhaps Sim's P5 preamp. If you want a no-holds-barred powerful (300wpc@8ohm) and extremely fast amp at a reasonable price, look for a used McCormack DNA-2 at about $1800 and send it to Steve McCormack who for $2500 will upgrade the sonics that few can come close.

I posted on audiogon some time back asking others what they were using with their Thiel 3.6s. You are lucky to have a lot of room to work with for the speakers.

I use a Krell amp through Thiel 3.6 speakers. I don't have a lot of experience with how other amps would match up to the Thiels, but I never felt the amp to be a weak link in my chain of components. I like a "fast" sound, and I don't hear my amp sagging behind or make the music woolly.

The Krell does get warm and is limited to balanced inputs (something to think about when you match pre-amps). Good resale value if you do find it lacking after living with it for some time.

Another thing to think about: I've found that Cardas cables work great on my system, especially for Joni Mitchell CDs. They add richness and warmth to voices and acoustic guitars without curbing that quickness I like.

Please let us know what you find and hear as you listen around. E-mail me offline if you want to talk more about my system.