I just asked about the ideal preamp for this amp in another thread, so we can stick in this thread to the amp suggestions...
(For the record, I must say that these speakers sound far better now that I am sitting further away... distance increased from 5 meters to about 8,5 meters, already with the old amp)
Looking forward to your responses guys! : ) |
Bikerduud,I just checked the specs on the Bryston 7B sst. It seems they only weigh 18 kg each for 900Watts at 4 Ohm...
This makes me a bit sceptical about sound imaging and depth. I do believe they will have power and control, but their specs seem more like pro amps? |
4bucc, can u describe the exact amps you used in the active system? my former system was active (altec 512 triamped towers) and the bass was indeed very good, better then my 800's... lower and tighter...
Stanwall, wich improvements do you think the musical fidelitys have over the krells? What was the best krell in combo with the b&w's 800?
Bikerduud, could u describe your system (preamp,cd?)
Rwwrear, my preamp is not balanced, will a fpb be an improvement over the older krells, opinions seem to be different on this? |
Any idea what the second price of the brystons would be? would a 4Bsst be good enough as well? remember the budget restrictions :)
thx! |
Ok so, Bryston and Musical Fidelity are on my check list now :)
Accuphase would be great but very expensive indeed...
Any other B&W 800 owners like to share their experiences?
Or other suggestions...? Nobody as mentioned levinson so far? Not a good match? |
Moltze, does your Ksa-250 produce a hiss or hum? I read in a review that the amplifier did hum.
How is the sound with only one Ksa-250? |
Capacitors seem to be a big problem for both krell and levinson? Is it ok to buy a second hand amp of these brands,that has not been serviced in the recent 10-15 years anyway? I assume replacing these big capacitors costs a lot...
and sending them back to Krell are Levinson is not an option for me as I live way over here in Belgium...
Still no remarks on how levinson amps would play with these speakers... Anyone? |
So... after missing out an ebay auction for musical fidelity nuvista and an auction for a Krell KSA-100, I got a good price on a Krell FPB200!
Installed yesterday...
After warm up the 3D soundstaging and details are all there, thats the good news! Less good news is that harmonically voices could use a bit more body, and highs could be sweeter. This was the case with an old Kustom PA amp I used, (more voltage amp then current amp), although I am wondering if the preamp is responsible for the highs... I have had the same highs on my active system I used before...
Any suggestions? stick with the new amp, and try another pre or just keep looking for another amp... |
Impressive system 4bucc. I am guessing your budget is just slightly bigger then mine :)
At the moment the Krel FPB 200 seems a less ideal match for my matrix 800's. Allthough the imaging is more precise then with the old Kustom Bias XII amp I use, I prefer the latter because it just sounds sweeter and more natural...
Isn't that crazy?
I wish I could unite both amps strengths...
It would be great to try out some stuff before having to buy it. I will launch another thread and try to find people in belgium who would be willing to compare stuff on my or their system... Meanwhile, advise on any good combinations for these speakers are welcome!
Thx to all for the advise so far! If only I could try or hear the suggestions someplace (bryston, mf nuvista,...) |
Hi @tattooedtrackman, thx for the reply, I did not get any mail notification of a reply in my thread, sorry.
I am just now discovering the importance of good power cables... |
@georgehifi thx for the reply, I use Rowland 725 amps now and looking for good powercords for them as they matter a lot.
they do not have 2 ohm specs though... would they be less then optimal? |
@georgehifi I also have Kef Blades (the big ones, not the two) and I still have not decided which speaker will stay, are these a better match for the Rowlands? I did notice that with stock powercords the Rowlands are not good in the bass on the 800s, but I discovered thats its crazy to use 10 euro cords on 35K amplifiers, and also that amps with switching power supplies are more in need of good power cords then normal amps...
I do like the sound of Sanken transistors generally, are these bipolar devices?
I heard these amps on a hifi show perform magic on Marten Design Tenor 3 speakers, with all Jorma Reference cabling... |
@georgehifi just found a review of the stereo version of my amps, the Rowland 625. measured output was 329 watt in 8 ohm and 590 watt in 4 ohm, (which apparently made the 6.3 amp fuse blow after few secs); dynamic power was 333w in 8 ohm, 623w in 4 ohm, 1060w in 2 ohm and 155w in 1ohm. The reviewer loved it, as it combined the charm and tranquility of a class a SET tube design with the tight control and grunt of a muscular class A/B amp.
And thats for the stereo version...
So for my 725 monos, I guess the answer truely lies in good powercords here. Have been testing some and so far really like Audioquest Storm series. I started a thread on that a while ago. |
@vegasears I have tried vtl preamps in my system and found them truly great products! I never had a tube poweramp though, as I do not like the idea of having to replace possibly costly tubes each 5000 hours or so.
@georgehifi no worries on the different planet thing regarding powercords. 10 years ago I did not have one brand or expensive cable in my system... and I enjoyed my music as well. Along the way I got to try some cables through friends or sometimes they came in a package deal when I bought a device. I kept what I heard made a difference. i have to say that results are cumulative though, so changing just one cable in a whole system, is like putting a reference preamp in a mediocre system... it’s not allowed to shine and you can’t really hear why it is supposedly a good cable or reference preamp... I was able to try a whole range of cords, and then, yep... then I understood why certain cables were good... The cumulative result goes at least as far as changing to a better source, it’s crazy |
@tattooedtrackman Nice to hear u have great results with the fpb600, what pre and source are you using? What about cabling? I use audioquest wild wood speaker cables |
