For classical music lovers best amp for large orchestral forces?

The Benchmark is very inexpensive. In the world of high end audio one asks what is going on? I'm not doubting you I'm just thinking wow.

@McCarthy. Well said. 

Perhaps it’s the efficiency of my GoldenEar Triton1 speakers that are at play.

Its a remarkable amp though.

For less money the Jeff Rowland Group's Rowland 125 amp handles 4 ohm loads with ease. Transparency with great finesse for price under $4k. 

Hi @roxy1927 - a lot of good suggestions here and I’m not sure the amp is the source of compression, but the obvious upgrade is a bigger Pass amp. Even the smallest of the XA line, the XA30.8, should provide more headroom but if you favor realistic levels you may want to try the Class AB X line which is not quite as sweet but has more headroom. 
 

Bryston 4B3 is another good choice with tons of power but it won’t be as detailed and sweet as your Pass. re: Benchmark I haven’t heard it but have a fellow violinist friend who swears by his.

I have another left field suggestion: a Class D amp like the Legacy iV2. It might not click for you or your system - many really don’t take to Class D and I suspect it’s because of specific system interaction - but I found it to be even more transparent than a Pass XA30.5 and Bryston 4B3 as well as another Class A amp, way more powerful and fatigue-free than anything else and shockingly competitive with my Reference Gryphon amplification. In your price range and with your desire for more dynamics, it’s my strongest recommendation. 
 

Cheers,

TAWW

The ones with low distortion that also have plenty of power and dynamic headroom.  Take your pick!

Hi

What power cord are you using on the amp? Thanks!  
 

joe

The PS Audio M1200 Mono Blocks (Class D/ tube hybrid?) are about $6.5K and I believe they have a buy/try option. Their BHK 250 also has same option. affords in home audition.  Cambridge Audio mono blocks are also winning people over.

@roxy1927 I hope you've sorted out by now that the mismatch between the amp and speaker is the problem and not any of the components otherwise. If you like the sound of the amp at lower volumes, If I were you I would consider a speaker that is easier to drive and by that I mean a lot easier to drive. By about 10dB or so- something in the upper 90s instead of the upper 80s.

Then you won't be pushing your amp into clipping, which is the source of your 'compression'. Also, more efficient speakers have less thermal compression and so sound more dynamic on that account.

A class A amp that has very good current capability and is stable into very low impedances is hard to beat (and often, to pay for).

I use a pair of amps that put out 160 W into 8 ohms and 500 W into 1 ohm.

I dunno...   Marantz Ruby PM KI perhaps?  not super pricey

Although I put together the setup for jazz and baroque, JC 1 monoblocks driving KEF LS50 Metas augmented with a pair of KEF KC62 subs prove surprisingly credible at portraying Mahler’s 2nd. I’ve been surprised that I prefer the sound with an Ayre K-5xeMP preamp to that with the JC 2. I plan to replace the two JC 1s with a stereo Ayre V-5xe as a decluttering effort. I predict the dynamic range will be entirely adequate.

db

But shouldn’t 89dbs with the proper amp be able to comfortably handle large symphonic forces? They really are wonderful speakers.

The future of hi quality power amplification at sensible prices is here: I have a LSA Voyager 350 GaN amp. ~500 wpc++ @ 4 ohms (MSRP is a mere $3000). A couple days ago I spun Ernest Ansermat (London);  Rimsky Korsokov's Scheherazade. Played really big, especially after treating all my connections with Mad Scientist Graphene Contact Enhancer

We are late to the party on this post but I wanted to share this because Audionet is not a household name.   

We picked up the Audionet line last summer and it has done nothing but impress the heck up of me. This is just my opinion, but I’m putting this on this blog so other can consider Audionet.  Especially, if they are trying to get the very best out of your full symphonic recordings.

Why Audionet?

It’s extremely detailed, yet musical, (you need that detail in these types of recordings).

It provides a holographic sound stage rivals the best in tube gear. Think VAC Statement gear and imagine kettle and snare drums seeming to be 20 feet behind the speakers.

Its ability to start and stop the speakers on a dime is crazy. 

Add in: High bandwidth, impressive slew rates and some of the highest damping factors in the industry and this adds up to really good listening for all music, but especially large complex orchestral passages.

Try to check them out at a show or a dealer near you, I don't think you will be disappointed. 

Since the OP likes the Pass XA25 tube-like midrange, GanFET amplifiers maybe an ideal fit as it would give more power, otherwise a giant tube amp

Or, simply try a SS amp since his tube pre may be enough.