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D'agostino amplifiers: where's the beef?

So I've owned two of the classic monster Krell amplifiers from the distant past, the KSA 50 and later the KSA 250.  Both great amplifiers in their time and both collectible for those interested in that kind of stuff.  I'm generally a fan of D'agostino as a consequence.

I'm currently shopping for a new solid state amplifier to pair with potentially new speakers (Wilson or YG or Von Schweikert or Magico or Joseph - long story for another day).

 So recently while auditioning at my local dealer the system was powered by the current D'agostino M400 mono amplifiers.  While the sound was good I couldn't help but notice how TINY the $65K amplifiers were sitting on stands near the speakers.  OK they had nice metal work and were shiny but I couldn't help wonder WHY are these things so expensive?!  Later at home photo's of the insides of these amps on Google led me to wonder even more!!  The power supplies and interior construction in these things are nothing like the monster supplies and parts in the classic Krell's

Plus while the Krell's were expensive in their day (with great sound) the current D'agostino's have absurd pricing, far exceeding inflation.  

Are people spending this kind of money for fancy heat sinks?  Really?

I'd rather have an old Krell and a new Porsche Boxster or C8 Corvette for the same money.

Any one else have similar impressions?
bobbydd

Showing 1 response by minorl

minorl
1,018 posts
 
The OP never said anything in the initial post about the sound quality.

So what it's expensive?  So is a lot of other stuff out there.  Cars, clothes, airplanes, yachts, cameras, Art, and don't get me started on watches.  Oh man!

How does it stack up (sound) in an A/B comparison with other similar quality and costs amps?  That is the test.  Don't change anything but the particular equipment to be tested.

I've heard these and other D'agostino products many times.  I can tell you that they are top quality sound.  He wasn't held back by the issues he encountered at Krell.  

Yeah, they are expensive.  So is Boulder, and a lot of other audio equipment out there.  Everything here is relative.  I don't even discuss the price of my equipment with people that don't know about or appreciate sound quality.  They think I am crazy probably.  But they have no problem distinguishing between a Subaru (nice, by the way) and a Mercedes S-class or Bentley.  But go buy a Patek Phillippe watch and you are on the far side of nuts to them.  Even an Omega watch may be too much.

So, it's all relative.

enjoy






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