Forte 1A or Threshold 400A

Long ago I had a 400 a driving some KEF 104ab with a CJ tube preamp...great sound.

I would look at a Forte 4A. 50 WPC Class A amp. I had one for years. Wish I never sold it.

I heard great things about the Forte 4A. Nelson Pass doesn't seems to be in love with BJ1T outputs of these amps.

I owned a Forte "55" that was and, likely for the guy who bought it from me, still is, a GREAT amp...I was told it was the last of the line and didn't use the IGBT transistors...still...nice...

I have in-house right now a recapped Threshold 400A that is a wonderful warm, meat-on-the-bones imaging, and powerhouse that drives any of my speakers with ease.  Yes, its timbres and overall smoothness are tube like, much more so then the Forte 4A.

I would go for the Threshold 400A for the reasons I stated.

You might want to consider expanding your options to include amps from: Coda, Legacy, and Sanders Sound.

400 A ...but did you contact Steve McCormack about replacing your boards, and upgrading other aspects of the design....very musical....I know it is too late ( as you sold it ), but, am interested to know. I ask, because, I was in the same situation, and decided to do the same as you and sell it, but made this decision out of anger. Never had another amplifier situation like this one, and I have owned hundreds....never heard of boards, other than by McCormack, that could not be repaired, but needed to be replaced ( this has been my experince ). I am sure there are others..........Enjoy ! MrD.

You might want to consider expanding your options to include amps from: Coda, Legacy, and Sanders Sound.

Aren't these all manufactured by Coda??

^Yes, and Coda is an offshoot of Threshold/Forte’.

I'd take the Threshold over the Forte or even a Threshold S200.  I've actually never heard a Threshold amp before, but it's a Threshold - it can't suck, right?

Mr. Decibel. I refurbished the DNA0.5 Deluxe myself. Here in Canada with exchange from Can To Us, it was too costly with shipping to made upgrades by SMC. Steve mentioned me that even if I redone all the solders on the main board, it would fail in the future. I also replaced all the caps. This was a lovely amp but I didn't trust it for long term use. It was a bit overly detailed for my taste. I still have a pair of Monarchy SM-70 They are very musical but lack a bit of definition. Yesterday I tried an EL34 PP in triode and loved it. It lacked power when I want more. A blend between the EL34 in PP in triode and the DNA 0.5 DeLuxe should be perfect for my taste.  My new speakers are 3A Reference 2002. They are kind of dipole 5 ft high with a planar ribbon in the mids. I still have the idea to build a pair of mono blocks PP 211/VT4C. I have 16 American 211 NOS and a pair of Peerless S275S OPTs. As this project would be long to do, I need an amp to do the job before ending this project.

I have a Threshold 400A/Cascode driving Kef LS 50's. I bought it new and recently had it recapped and replaced the power switch and input connectors, and added an Anti Cables power cord. I've owned this amp since new. Over the years I've used it with Dayton Wright electrostats, Tympani Maggies and Fuseliers .   I didn't realize just how great this amp is until I decide to upgrade the desktop system with the LS 50's. Maybe one of Pass Labs amps is better but I  really love listening to music with the Threshold.