Coda #8, Pass XA25, or Schiit Tyr to replace PS Audio M700

@thriftyaudio Glad to hear it! They really are crazy good outstanding amps. I think a lot of people ignore them because of the price or because they think of Schitt as some ‘discount-and-therefore-second-rate’ brand, but that is their loss. For power cords I have become a big fan of Ice Age Audio. Don Sachs recommended them to me originally and they really do make a difference. I’ve ended up converting all of my cable, i.e. power cords, enter connect, speaker cable to Ice Age wire. Worth considering if you’re in the market for other options. 

@sid-hoff-frenchman THE SHRILL IS GONE

Well the Tyrs are in place and so far so great.  Out of the box the sound stage expanded slightly (hoping for more), the instrument placing and detail improved nicely.  The high end shrill disappeared even at very high volume levels (won't be able to test completely at high volume for a few days).  There was a slight dip in bass, but I hardly noticed.  All of this is compared to the M700s. 

One thing that fooled me initially is the how loud they played.  I thought something was wrong because the volume was so much lower than with the M700.  The gain on the M700 is 30.5 and only 22 for the Tyr.  Once I adjusted for this then the comparison became clear.

I am letting the Tyr run continuously for a few days before getting more detailed.  I will also try out the higher end power cords I had to purchase for the M700 (their stock ones made my coffee maker cord look stout).  The Tyr folks say don't worry about the cord (The stock Tyr cords are heavy duty and well above most stock cords I have experienced).  

I have 15 days with the Tyr, but I believe they will be staying.  Just want to put them through the wringer right away.

@thriftyaudio , Now that you've learned your lesson, try and stay away from these Class D emperors with no clothes. Others in that list would be even some Class H crap with "shrill" SMPS, etc. If you don't see the big ol' transformer inside a power amp, run away.

Your TYRs would benefit a lot more from a power conditioner with transient current support, i.e. conditioners that hold a reservoir of current and supply it when your slamming music demands it (in addition to all the filters/clean up, surge protection, ovp, etc safety that it provides). Hence, put your money into such a conditioner, instead of expensive power cables..Plugging amps straight into the wall doesn't give you such things. The wall will also kill all your expensive things when surges and other power anomalies hit your house.

The power cable just needs to be triple shielded pretty good (or other forms of noise rejection deployed) so it doesn't leech any noise into your gear after it comes through the conditioner. So, look for something aftermarket better than the stock cord, but, don't throw all your money at it.

Here are some power conditioners at a few different price points, based on your wallet's capability.

- Audioquest Powerquest 707, 1300 dollars, 45 amps peak (reservoir on offer)

- Audioquest Niagara 3000, 3900 dollars, 55 amps peak (reservoir on offer)

- Audioquest Niagara 5000, 5900 dollars, 90 amps peak (reservoir on offer)

Hope that helps.

P.S.

Any speaker that dips down to 0.5 ohms is a problematic speaker that needs to be sent back to its daddy. In the future, don't accept such speakers as some kind of competent design from any Speaker Daddy, send him back to the drawing board. I'll spare the choice words for different Speaker Daddies who release such speaker designs. Speakers should not be dipping anywhere under 3 ohms (that's the minimum you should tolerate).

@deep_333

Thanks for the words regarding power conditioners. I have a great one, but may need to add a second. Still need to confirm draw at peak volume.

Regarding low ohm speakers. I have owned these speakers for 30 plus years (3rd owner). If you have never listened to true electrostatic speakers (not with a tweeter ribbon, or the abomination ones with a built in 15" driver) then you are truly missing out. The really good electrostatic speakers that I have had the opportunity to listen to have all been hard to drive. I suspect it is because of the variable ohm draw. Some speakers are just worth the extra effort to support their fantastic tone, speed, and presentation. The Tyr seem to be able to do it. I am certain the more powerful Pass Amps would do the same. The Nakamichi (Pass Stasis design) had no issue with the ohm draw. Definitely need to avoid class D with these speakers.

THANKS!

@deep_333 @sid-hoff-frenchman @erik_squires The Shrill went, but so did the Tyr.  Blew a fuse at 82 db from three meters away on day two.  The Tyr were very easy to listen to with decent instrument separation and a better stage than the M700.  

Replaced the fuse and listened at lower levels for a few days.  Reached out the Schiit Audio six times by email without a response.  Spoke with their guy at the retail location north of LA and asked him to have someone call or email me.  He said he would pass my information along, but I have not received a response.  I wanted to find out if a different pair of amps from Schiit would do what I want.  Since they won't respond to my requests I can only do one thing.  The Tyr are being returned within the fifteen day return window and I am moving on.

Just purchased a used Pass Labs XA25.  I have seen multiple reviews where it is suppose to be stable down to 0.5 Ohm.  I am concerned if it can fill my room.  If not, then I will need to flip it for something else.  Won't know till next weekend.

I really hope the XA25 works.  If not, then I may have to up my budget.