Beemer,
I love your experiences!! What does the 33Hs sell for in the preowned market? Also, any chance you have experience with the Classe CA-400 driving the 10Ts?
Dan |
Ahh, the Plinius! I've had it here for a short audition.
It did not unset the 33H's, however a great amp regardless.
Another I did not mention but feel is world class is the Gamut D200. This did not have enough control over the 10t woofers (not enough current) however did a rather splendid job of mid/high end. I only had one, I wonder how a biamp of Gamuts would do.
beemer! |
Gracie Beemer, gracie.
In no way, shape, or form am I saying the 7.1 is the best amp on the market, but feel it compares to amps MANY times its price. I have owner the 335, CA-400, BAT VK-500, VK-1000, McIntosh MC-1000 and one amp that I think sounds better than ALL is the Plinius 250IV. IMO, this is THE SS amp to have.
Any chance you have given this a chance? Your thoughts?
D |
Read and weep, here's a recipe for 10t satisfaction:
BAT VK50SE preamp
Sony SCD777ES SACD player
Sonic Frontiers SFD2MKII tube dac
or swap in
BAT VKD5SE tube CD player
Levinson 33H monos
Nordost Quattro fil SE from Sony to BAT (w/adaptors)
Transparent Reference Balanced from VKD5SE to VK50SE
Transparent Reference Balanced from SFD2MKII to VK50SE
Transparent Reference Balanced from VK50SE to 33H
Transparent Reference from 33H to 10t.
Your cabling choices may differ, however it'll take you many thousands more to put up something that will sound noticeably better than the above. It took me 2 1/2 years to get the synergy. Read and weep, or read and learn, your choice! |
Touche' D!
However, I guarantee you have not heard a "wimpy" pair of 33H monoblocks (150W@8 ohms) driving the 10t either.
What have I used:
Hafler 9500's strapped mono and
in stereo biamping
Hafler 9505 as above
Hafler 9500 with musical concepts mods as above.
Classe M-1000 monos
Classe CA-400
Classe CAM-200
Classe CAM-350
Levinson ML-3
Levinson 332
Levinson 333
Levinson 336
BAT VK-500
BAT VK-1000 monos
And last but not least, the 33H monos.
Let me remind, you are the one looking for an amp, not me!
I have my nirvana, and listen to it almost daily.
Good luck! |
Don't know the speakers well, but I bet Bi-Amped Marantz mono Blocks would make the speakers sing. Other then that, you can pick up Anthem Amp2 used for $1Kish and it is a great amp!!!! |
Beemer -
Here is the real question. Have you listened to the Citation 7.1 in a BIAMP configuration?
My guess is not....prove me wrong....
D |
Beemer, you are correct. The 10T's love lots of power and that's what it takes to make them sing.
With smaller budgets, I would certianly recommend a pair of monoblock Odyssey Stratos which should probably work just fine with the 10T's. One Stratos would not be very good but still wouldn't sound too bad.
I'm guessing of course since I've never actually listened to the Stratos.
|
10t. Been there, done that. You are in denial. Big current is what makes 'em sing. The run-of-the-mill short $$ amps will not get you where you want to be, but keep bangin' your head against the wall, its OK! Audio is a great adventure for sure. 10t will brutally show you EVERY flaw in front of them, LOL! But when you get it right, MAGIC!
beemer |
Odyssey Stratos new at $1000 plus a 20 year warranty. Never heard the Citation nor the Stratos, but if the multitude of reviews on the Stratos are even close to being accurate, there probably is not an amp that can compare value-wise and power-wise to the Stratos at less than $3k or $4k. |
You could try a pair of Meitner MTR 101s, used they run $800-1,000, depending on their vintage. |
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No personal experience, but at that price I'd probably look at the Muse 160 used. -Kirk |
