LFD zero vs plinius 9200 vs MF A5 for spendor 8se

I am answering my own question above. I have listened to the LFD Zero MkIII in my system yesterday. There was no comparison. In my system and to my ears the LFD is a superior unit to both Plinius/ARC separates and NVA integrated. The speakers used were Harbeth SHL-5's and the combination between the two could be described as a match made in heaven, just like what Sam Tellig had been preaching when he used the LFD to drive his Compact 7ES-3.

Does anybody own a Plinius amp prior to trying the LFD Zero Mk3 amp? I am wondering whether the LFD integrated would be a significant improvement to my Plinius and ARC combination. I'm currently looking at some good high-end integrateds as an alternative to my separates and the LFD(apart from the French-made Lavardin IT) has peaked my interest.

Has anybody compared the LFD Zero MkIII back-to-back with the Lavardin IT? Are these two integrateds in another level compared to the Plinius SA-100MkIII/ARC LS-16 combination in terms of quality and performance(taking system matching out of the context)?

Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the advice. will definitely check it out!!

Luxman was a great legacy brand from Japan in the day. Good to see it get resurrected after two decades of neglect.

Go look at the review from The Absolute Sound Magazine back in December,2007....they were comparing the Luxman L550 mk2 to a "Mcintosh c46 pre-amp and Mcintosh mc402 amp" and it SOUNDED just as good as the "high priced Mcintosh Reference gear" ....!

Go listen to a Luxman L550 mk2 before you buy anything...!

Both as very high in musicality.

LFDs seem to work well with English speakers that love the mid ranges, like your Spendors. Very clean sound with nice soundstaging. Vocals integrate well.

McIntosh will power through any music with real slam, and unlike most recent McIntosh amp designs, the 6300 does not seem to be overly "tubey" or "warm" on the high end. They seem to work with a wide variety of speakers, especially smooth sounding ones, top to bottom.

From an investment standpoint, LFD is a cult brand with a limited audience. The company is little known in their native UK and does not even have a website. It operates like a small cottage industry.

McIntosh is a luxury brand with huge built-in loyalty and will retain its value. My father had a 275 MAC amp in a custom JBL console. He died in 2004 and we had 45 bids on eBay for it. It surprised me and my brothers on just how strong their base is.

thx bongofury..how would you describe the sound difference between lfd and mc?

Agree on the LFD. Build quality is second to none. They individually match the electronics and the gear is completely handbuilt in the UK.

I might also want to look at the new MacIntosh 6300. At 150 watts, it will easily drive these.

LFD is a cult brand whereas Mac will have good resell in the future.

thanks dwhitt! very helpful input. any input on the sound difference between mf and lfd?

all three are excellent amps. I have owned plinius and musical fideity and heard the lfd. If you are going to keep this amp for a long time, i would buy the lfd....and keep it forever, it is that kind of amp, hard to find used and reasonable, but the plinius is somewhat more powerful in the bottomend than mf....so with the spendor which is bottom end very good i would suggest the mf....money wise and solid amp to use....but again the plinius is excellent...you have a great situation due to all three would do a great job as you probably already know...but my list would be ....lfd to keep, money wise...mf......then plinius,also think plinius will hold up longer and mf....