comparison between Theta, Bryston, Krell, Parasound

You might want to take a look at the Gemstone Bluediamond. It did really well in a shootout over in AVSForum. They had the bryston and theta amps, as well as Sherbourne, Plinius, Lexicon, ATI, and some others I think. Anyway, they felt the bryston was too polite, and the Theta was nice but lacked dynamics. The Gemstone did really well, and when you factor in price, around $2,200 (5ch version) it killed the others. It was interesting to read a review by amatures, most professionals will only compare products to much more expensive items and sum up with some canned responce about how great a value it is. The biggest difference in audio gear is the price.

Here, read it yourself-

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?s=6528ff09430bd46a47e665d79dcaf3c9&threadid=405527&highlight=shoot+out

I wasn't there, but apprarently the Theta did not have the bottom end of the Plinius or Gemstone, nor did any of the listeners place it in their top 3.