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High end high quality int. amp for low level listening

Hello to all Audigon members.  I'm quite in a dilemma weather I should upgrade my amplifier. Currently I own Pathos classic one MK3 driving Sonus Faber Sonetto's speakers, and I must say I'm very happy with sound filling my 35 square meters room. However, it's known that the speakers are power hungry as they rated at 86db sensitivity and 4 ohm impedance and I think they will surely benefit from a bigger power supply. With all that being said I'm not sure if I will hear any improvement mostly because 90% of the time I listen at ~60dBs SPL. My budget is around 5k $ and these are the amplifiers I've been considering:  Hegel H390, Anthem STR, Cambridge Audio Edge A, McIntosh MA5300/MA252, Accuphase e280, Rotel Michi x3 or used Pass Labs INT 25, Mark Levinson 5805.

What do you think guys, will any of the amplifiers make ay difference at 60dB SPL ? 
celestial__sound

Showing 7 responses by celestial__sound

celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
@holmz Thank you for your wise words. You remind me of person called 'jan.vigne'. He was a very knowledgeable hones and rational person active on stereophile and ecoustics forums (but sadly not here). 
celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
Why give up the tube preamp section on the Pathos? If you are very happy with the sound that you have now I doubt going solid state will be better. Save your money instead of making a side step or backwards move! BTW, that Pathos is rated at 130 watts at 4 ohms so it is plenty powerful with the speakers that you are using!
@yogiboy Yes, you are right. I'm very happy with the pathos and I have plenty of headroom as I'm not listening to high SPLs. However, I was under impression that I may get better sound quality (resolution, soundstage size, imagining focus etc) If I upgrade to a more powerful amplifier event at low listening levels. 
celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
This is Why Audigon is great place full of helpful audience. Thank you guys for all your feedback. It’s clear that replacing the amp will be just a side step and not a step forward. Different sound signature but not necessarily better. I guess i will invest in a better cabling and will upgrade my DAC considering that currently i own Pro-Ject DAC Box S2+. Denafrips Ares II or event Pontus comes first on my mind :)
celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
@hshifi Thank you for your feedback. I actually have 1 SVS sb1000 sub with crossover set at 50hz. I agree it really makes a difference, especially at my listening habbits. 
celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
@realworldaudio tbh i wasn't aware that higher power amps have lower resolution on low level listening. Can you name any specific integrates that have great resolution on low level listenings? 
celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
I see that this thread has become a hot topic, and I'm happy for that. However I can also see that many people misinterpret  my question or maybe I wasn't clear enough. I never said that i was missing bass or highs at 60dBs SPL. My question was: Will i hear any difference at 60dBs if i get better quality amp with better power supply etc . That means, will I get improved resolution, better clarity, improved soundstage, better imaging, blacker background  etc. 

Also, I do not agree with everyone who claim that speakers with higher sensitivity will sound better at low listening because, at 60dBs sensitivity shouldn't make any difference at all. I think the opposite applies, if I want to listen at let say at 90+ dBs SPL then i will surely benefit from higher sensitivity speakers.   
celestial__sound OP
102 posts
 
It would be interesting of the OP has access for demo’ing some amps.
Sadly I don't have a chance. Here we have one official McIntosh distributor and none of the other brands can be found on stock.  However, yesterday I was going to audition McIntosh MA 7200 integrated but as i told you they didn't had on stock BUT, they had Sonus Faber Olympica II with a 25% discount because it was the last pair (before they jumped to NOVA). That really bugs me as of this moment and brought me sleepless night :D 
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