That’s a helluva jump from a Bryston amp to 90k amps. I hope it works out for you and hope you now have speakers that will be commensurate with that level of performance.
I listened to a pair of Audio Research Reference 330Ms
I finally got a chance to listen to these amps. I've waited 3 years to hear these things. Here are my thoughts.
First of all the fit, finish, form and fancy of these amps is really impressive. It's an elegant design. They feel massive and substantial. They feel luxurious.
The first thing I noticed is that they threw off very little heat. I assumed that KT 170 tubes would blaze with heat- like the 6550s in my ARC amp at home do. Wrong. These tubes are not wound up tight. They feel more like they are idling.
As for the sound- mids, highs, details, depth, breadth are what you'd expect from a $90,000 set of amps. Exceptional and satisfying. But not much better than the Burmester 909 Mk 5. Maybe just as good. Not worse though.
IMO ALL ARC tube gear has the same "voice". Warmly analytical but not a warm bubble bath (with somewhat grey water) like, say the McIntosh MC 9011.
Where the amps made me smile was the slam bass. No flab, no mud, no exhausted bass extension. Not tube-y. They are LOUD. Surprisingly so. Loud like a 1000 watt Bryston SS Monoblock is loud. Surprisingly driving the Magico M7s at background music level there were layers of detail and wonderful bass.
Are they worth the ask? I have a pair on order. Definitely outside my budget but I suspect that long after the price is forgotten the quality and sonic purity will continue to reward me.
Bravo! ARC! You have outdone yourselves with this one.
- ...
- 22 posts total
@wolf_garcia -- My Dennis Had Inspire 45 "Fire Bottle" amp and LP3.1 preamp also kick some serious rear-end, especially with Emission Labs tubes. My Forte II's sing. Dennis Had gear is woefully underappreciated...and I'm glad! I can still get his custom, hand made gear at a reasonable price. |
I certainly hope that new ARC management is not expecting a 90K tube monoblock to restore consumer confidence post recivership. ARC has had a lot of QA issues due to outsourced parts and lack of repair techs that forums don’t report because fans ignore them and haters are ignorant of because they are not owners. Some issues have been addressed but others not. I've owned ARC gear since the late '70s and I have more issues with the 6SE/3SE/160S than any other previous ARC gear. |
My assumption about Had amps is that he doesn't make enough of 'em to make a dent in the gear consumer world. Also, you need efficient speakers to get the most out of these amps (I've owned 2...a Firebottle HO SEP and a newer Firebottle Hotrod...My original HO sounded a little better than the Hotrod so I kept it). Simply a hand wired masterpiece that costs somewhat less than 90 grand. I would not trade it for any other amp, although I do sometimes swap in a Pass XA-25 to let the HO rest (that sounded sketchy), and the two amps sound amazingly similar for my tastes although the differences are fun to experience. |
I am a middle-class audiophile and new ARC prices 5 years ago seemed like crazy expensive gear. My system is the only thing I really splurge on so buying used one generation back ARC gear is where I landed so spending about $15k on the gen 1 of the 160M amps that were $30k retail is the top of the mountain for me. That is still insane territory for many. While $90k for ARC amps is a pretty significant leap, it seems they took a significant leap in technology and power as well. When you start visiting the top dealers and see who ARC is competing with, that $90k for a pair of amps is around the median and that is their top model. Look at Burmester, Gryphon and D'Agostino...you can quickly get to multiples of that...and do they sound better?? I love ARC products and the people of ARC that make ARC who and what they are. I'm really hoping their business management makes wise decisions and they are able to continue to rebuild the trust from their clients and grow their business to offer both the 'modest' top gear along with some of the next-level components as well. I stocked up a couple years ago with enough KT 150s to run my 160Ms for about 10 years...by then maybe I can get a pair of 330Ms for...oh..maybe $28k? ; ) |
- 22 posts total