Classe compared to the Theta Dreadnaught

The Theta Dreadnaught has gotten outstanding reviews by a very wide range of audio reviewers -- infact, in the current issue of "The Absolute Sound", this amp is chosen for two of the "recommended systems" in the $50,000 range. The critics' concensus on this amp is that it is among the 3-4 best multichannel amps for both HT and music.

Very nicely put SD :^)

What speakers and associated gear are you using?
I personally like both the amps, and think they do exellent jobs respectively. Depending on your gear, and especially for the money, the Classe is excellent stuff. I have extensive experience with both line of amps, and can say high things about them.
The Classe line isn't the strongest line of amps out there, power-wise(even though ratings say otherwise), so I'd go with at least 6 ohm or higher speakers for mulitchannel. Never the less, with any amp/speaker for HT, you should be crossing over at 80hz anyway, and letting powered subs handle bellow that.

SD -
Did it mention the other 3-4 top of the class 5 channel amps? Surely my Cal Audio CL-2500 wasn't mentioned, people just don't know how good this amp is.
Thanks,
Dan

Stop this foolishness. Buy a Yamaha receiver and give up the quest for the absolute sound. "The force be with you".

I believe the current Theta mono amps were designed by someone from Classe. Maybe he had input(!) on the Dreadnaught too...

I'm going to put my two cents worth in... Take the one persons advice and buy the Yamaha. HT is more about sound reproduction than musical purity.
I'm using a Yamaha to drive a Alon (I's) speaker setup with a Definitive Audio sub and a Marantz DVD player. Friends who have invested a LOT more than me in their system are shocked a system costing so little can entertain as well if not better than some of their high dollar set ups.

In Flash's post, he only asked for feedback on the Classe vs. the Theta Dreadnaught, and I didn't want to throw in a lot of additional info that might confuse matters. However, since there seems to be a bit of schism here on "what to buy" (receiver vs. separates), let me quickly mention the choices among multi-channel amps that TAS listed in their current issue:

Class 1 (highest category):
1. Balanced Audio Technology VK-6200 ($10,000)
2. Rowland MC-6 ($16,500)

Class 2:
1. Theta Dreadnaught ($6000) - rated as a "Best Buy"

Class 3:
1. Conrad-Johnson MF-5600 ($4000)
2. Integra Research RDA-7 ($5000)

Class 4:
1. Anthem PVA-7 ($1500)
2. Audio Refinement Multi5 ($2250)

Class 5:
1. Adcom GFA-7400 ($1000) -- rated as a "Best Buy"

I'd also add two other amps to this list which deserve serious consideration:
1. Bryston 9B-ST ($3800) -- a near-concensus choice in many of the HT and audiophile mags. Based on my own listening experiences, I'd place this amp in TAS's Category 3 in terms of audio quality as a multichannel amp.
2. Outlaw Audio multichannel amp -- $1100, and a steal at the price.

I'm going to suggest you check out the Sherbourn 5/1500 amp. I have a friend with a Bryston 9BST THX ULTRA. I borrowed it & was very impressed. I was planning to buy one. Then I checked out the Sherbourn. Same design basics as the Bryston - 5 discrete monoblocs in a common chassis.
400 VA tranformer & more power (200 watts into 8 ohms, 300 watts into 4 ohms). I ordered one last week - the day I got my tax refund. It definitely is not as good looking as the 9B, but it does have more power & costs less than 1/2 as much...

Theta is way way better. There is no comparing the two for asthetics or sheer musicality. I am actually selling a Dred only because it is just way more amp than i need. I love the Dred. I did compare Classe and except for their omega monoblocks it is crap. My problem is I am selling the theta but simply can not find anything new or used at 5k that even comes close. The only one would be the krell home theatre standard at $7500

You can also get an Adcom 5802 or 5500 2 channel amp, and get the 5503 3 channel amp. The 5802 is 300 watts, the 5500 and 5503 are 200 watts. This is a nice combo

The Classe HT amps are quality products that tend to sound somewhat tube like. Those reviewed have been praised and I as a 35 year audio hobbyist find it offensive when I read a poster like Vengerltc referring to a product as "crap." In a recent Stereophile, the SSP-75 was included as the preamp of choice for a $50,000 system if I remember correctly. Reviewers of the SSP-75 and CAV-500 proclaimed this to be the most musical HT setup when producing audio. Many must ask our HT setups to double as an audio system and to my ears both Theta and Classe produce wonderful products.