My Long List of Amplifiers and My Personal Review of Each!
So I have been in a long journey looking to find the best amplifiers for my martin logan montis. As you know, the match between an amplifier and speakers has to be a good "marriage" and needs to be blend exquisitely. Right now, I think I might have found the best sounding amplifier for martin logan. I have gone through approximately 34-36 amplifiers in the past 12 months. Some of these are:
Bryston ST, SST, SST2 series NAD M25 PARASOUND HALO PARASOUND CLASSIC KRELL TAS KRELL KAV 500 KRELL CHORUS ROTEL RMB 1095 CLASSE CT 5300 CLASSE CA 2200 CLASSE CA 5200 MCINTOSH MC 205 CARY AUDIO CINEMA 7 OUTLAW AUDIO 755 LEXICON RX7 PASS LABS XA 30.8 BUTLER AUDIO 5150 ATI SIGNATURE SERIES 6005
With all that said, the amplifiers I mentioned above are the ones that in my opinion are worth mentioning. To make a long story short, there is NO 5 CHANNEL POWER AMP that sounds as good as a 3ch and 2ch amplifier combination. i have done both experiments and the truth is that YOU DO lose details and more channel separation,etc when you select a 5 channel power amplifier of any manufacturer. My recollection of what each amp sounded like is as follows:
ATI SIGNATURE SERIES 6005 (great power and amazing soundstage. Very low noise floor, BUT this amplifiers NEEDS TO BE cranked up in order to fully enjoy it. If you like listening at low volume levels or somewhat moderate, you are wasting your time here. This amp won’t sound any different than many other brands out there at this volume. The bass is great, good highs although they are a bit bright for my taste)
NAD M25 (very smooth, powerful, but somewhat thin sounding as far as bass goes) Bryston sst2(detailed, good soundstage, good power, but can be a little forward with certain speakers which could make them ear fatiguing at loud volumes)
Krell (fast sounding, nice bass attack, nice highs, but some detail does get lost with certain speakers)
rotel (good amp for the money, but too bright in my opinion)
cary audio (good sound overall, very musical, but it didn’t have enough oomph)
parasound halo (good detail, great bass, but it still holds back some background detail that i can hear in others)
lexicon (very laid back and smooth. huge power, but if you like more detail or crisper highs, this amp will disappoint you)
McIntosh mc205 (probably the worst multichannel amp given its price point. it was too thin sounding, had detail but lacked bass.
butler audio (good amplifier. very warm and smooth sweet sounding. i think for the money, this is a better amp than the parasound a51)
pass labs (very VERY musical with excellent bass control. You can listen to this for hours and hours without getting ear fatigue. however, it DOES NOT do well in home theater applications if all you have is a 2 channel set up for movies. The midrange gets somewhat "muddy" or very weak sounding that you find yourself trying to turn it up.
classe audio (best amplifier for multi channel applications. i simply COULDNT FIND a better multi channel amplifier PERIOD. IT has amazing smoothness, amazing power and good bass control although i would say krell has much better bass control)
Update: The reviews above were done in January 2015. Below is my newest update as of October 2016:
PS AUDIO BHK 300 MONOBLOCKS: Amazing amps. Tons of detail and really amazing midrange. the bass is amazing too, but the one thing i will say is that those of you with speakers efficiency of 87db and below you will not have all the "loudness" that you may want from time to time. These amps go into protection mode when using a speaker such as the Salon, but only at very loud levels. Maybe 97db and above. If you don’t listen to extreme crazy levels, these amps will please you in every way.
Plinius Odeon 7 channel amp: This is THE BEST multichannel amp i have ever owned. Far , but FAR SUPERIOR to any other multichannel amp i have owned. In my opinion it destroyed all of the multichannel amps i mentioned above and below. The Odeon is an amp that is in a different tier group and it is in a league of its own. Amazing bass, treble and it made my center channel sound more articulate than ever before. The voices where never scrambled with the action scenes. It just separated everything very nicely.
Theta Dreadnaught D: Good detailed amp. Looks very elegant, has a pleasant sound, but i found it a tad too bright for my taste. I thought it was also somewhat "thin" sounding lacking body to the music. could be that it is because it is class d?
Krell Duo 300: Good amp. Nice and detailed with enough power to handle most speakers out there. I found that it does have a very nice "3d" sound through my electrostatics. Nothing to fault here on this amp. Mark Levinson 532H: Great 2 channel amp. Lots of detail, amazing midrange which is what Mark Levinson is known for. It sounds very holographic and will please those of you looking for more detail and a better midrange. As far as bass, it is there, but it is not going to give you the slam of a pass labs 350.5 or JC1s for example. It is great for those that appreciate classical music, instrumental, etc, but not those of you who love tons of deep bass.
It is articulate sounding too Krell 7200: Plenty of detail and enough power for most people. i found that my rear speakers contained more information after installed this amp. One thing that i hated is that you must use xlr cables with this amp or else you lose most of its sound performance when using RCA’s.
Krell 402e: Great amp. Very powerful and will handle any speaker you wish. Power is incredible and with great detail. That said, i didn’t get all the bass that most reviewers mentioned. I thought it was "ok" in regards to bass. It was there, but it didn’t slam me to my listening chair.
Bryston 4B3: Good amp with a complete sound. I think this amp is more laid back than the SST2 version. I think those of you who found the SST2 version of this amp a little too forward with your speakers will definitely benefit from this amp’s warmth. Bryston has gone towards the "warm" side in my opinion with their new SST3 series. As always, they are built like tanks. I wouldn’t call this amp tube-like, but rather closer to what the classe audio delta 2 series sound like which is on the warm side of things.
Parasound JC1s: Good powerful amps. Amazing low end punch (far superior bass than the 402e). This amp is the amp that i consider complete from top to bottom in regards to sound. Nothing is lacking other than perhaps a nicer chassis. Parasound needs to rework their external appearance when they introduce new amps. This amp would sell much more if it had a revised external appearance because the sound is a great bang for the money. It made my 800 Nautilus scream and slam. Again, amazing low end punch.
Simaudio W7: Good detailed amp. This amp reminds me a lot of the Mark Levinson 532h. Great detail and very articulate. I think this amp will go well with bookshelves that are ported in order to compensate for what it lacks when it comes to the bass. That doesn’t mean it has no bass, but when it is no Parasound JC1 either. Pass labs 350.5: Wow, where do i begin? maybe my first time around with the xa30.8 wasn’t as special as it was with this monster 350.5. It is just SPECTACULAR sounding with my electrostatics. The bass was THE BEST BASS i have ever heard from ANY amp period. The only amp that comes close would be the jC1s. It made me check my settings to make sure the bass was not boosted and kept making my jaw drop each time i heard it. It totally destroyed the krell 402e in every regard. The krell sounded too "flat" when compared to this amp. This amp had amazing mirange with great detail up top. In my opinion, this amp is the best bang for the money. i loved this amp so much that i ended up buying the amp that follows below.
Pass labs 250.8: What can i say here. This is THE BEST STEREO AMP i have ever heard. This amp destroys all the amps i have listed above today to include the pass labs 350.5. It is a refined 350.5 amp. It has more 3d sound which is something the 350.5 lacked. It has a level of detail that i really have never experienced before and the bass was amazing as well. I really thought it was the most complete power amplifier i have ever heard HANDS DOWN. To me, this is a benchmark of an amplifier. This is the amp that others should be judged by. NOTHING is lacking and right now it is the #1 amplifier that i have ever owned.
My current amps are Mcintosh MC601s: i decided to give these 601s a try and they don’t disappoint. They have great detail, HUGE soundstage, MASSIVE power and great midrange/highs. The bass is great, but it is no pass labs 250.8 or 350.5. As far as looks, these are the best looking amps i have ever owned. No contest there. i gotta be honest with you all, i never bought mcintosh monos before because i wasn’t really "wowed" by the mc452, but it could have been also because at that time i was using a processor as a preamp which i no longer do. Today, i own the Mcintosh C1100 2 chassis tube preamp which sounds unbelievable. All the amps i just described above have been amps that i auditioned with the C1100 as a preamp. The MC601s sound great without a doubt, but i will say that if you are looking for THE BEST sound for the money, these would not be it. However, Mcintosh remains UNMATCHED when it comes to looks and also resale value. Every other amp above depreciates much faster than Mcintosh.
That said, my future purchase (when i can find a steal of a deal) will be the Pass labs 350.8. I am tempted to make a preliminary statement which is that i feel this amp could be THE BEST stereo amp under 30k dollars. Again, i will be able to say more and confirm once i own it. I hope this update can help you all in your buying decisions!
WC, You stated regarding the Merrill pre "It’s so dynamic that it almost startles me at times which can be a bad thing if there’s too much of it at once...." IMHO that's a great thing for any component to come across showing. Live music is often startling at times. Just my thoughts.
@whitecamaross I also am not sure of what your available or current sources are...such as Cd Player , TT, Tidal, JRiver,Pandora .. etc . I assume now that the DAC is the Esoteric K1.. ???
viber, why you think a system with excellent slam and soundstaging, cannot have detail and clarity, is beyond me. I believe wc is getting it all, but as YOU appreciate detail and clarity more than other attributes, HE is enjoying slam and soundstaging as his favorite attributes. You seem to be doing it all over again, stating how wc should listen more like you. Enough ! And, listening at 110 db when you were 25, I do not believe that for one minute. Not based on EVERYTHING you have ever stated about loud listening. Enjoy ! MrD.
rsf507. I am with you, unless some particular recordings have certain characteristics ( overly eq'd, poorly mic'd ) that make you want to " turn it down ".
WC, my own experience with the ROWLAND PSU is that, amongst other things, it has enhanced significantly slam, authority, and macrodynamics to the Rowland Aeris DAC... AlStewart can comment on his findings on PSU applied to the Corus linestage.
BTW, the Rowland M925 has a 2500W DC power supply in each chassis... I have found over the years that quality aftermarket power cords have benefited significantly its slam/macrodynamics/authority... I can only guess that high end power cords may also benefit the other amps you are working on... But at least with Rowland M925, I found stock PCs to be chokers of just about every audible parameter I can think of.
G., I know that you are a big fan of Rowland gear, as am I. Although I'm a Rowland fan, I agree with WC's opinion. Based on actual listening I submit Rowland doesn't have the slam of some amplifiers. I've heard Rowland 625s, 725s, and 925s. None of them have the slam of the Gryphon that I listened to, but do other things just as well.
My Constellation Centaur 2s are using the $2 dollar powercords they come with and the slam/thump/bass is ridiculous to say the least.. My source is going to be the Simaudio 650d until the Esoteric k1 arrives in about a week or so. I almost bought a Gryphon set up last night consisting of a Mephisto and the Pandora preamp, but i had to sacrifice my Constellation set up and i just can not seem to dare to sell it to try something else. Maybe one day i go up the ladder and the get Constellation Altair preamp which is designed "suspended in air" internally. Nothing inside the unit is bolted down, but rather sitting on some sort of spring mechanism that completely repels vibrations.
Klh007, just a point of correction about alsyvox “ribbon” speakers. Alsyvox uses true ribbon divers for the midrange and tweeters. The bass driver is actually planar magnetic. All confirmed by the designer himself.
mrdecibel, As I stated with my early misguided listening, I played classical music at average levels of 90 dB which had plenty of peaks at 110 dB. This was totally unnaturally loud. Thankfully I stopped doing that, or else I would be deaf by now. BELIEVE IT, instead of jumping on me again. WC objectively and accurately reports that some electronics like Rowland have higher accuracy/detail/clarity but are short on slam/soundstage, while other electronics like Constellation emphasize the slam/soundstage at the slight cost of accuracy/detail/clarity. In fact, at times he found the sound too syrupy, which got him to move on from the Lampi to Esoteric dac. Maybe the source of the syrup is not the Lampi, but the Connie. He will find out soon. Although I have not heard at home either Rowland or Connie, it is generally true that electronics emphasize one category compared to the other. Tubes are particularly noted for slam (within their comfortable power ratings, tube 100 watts may sound more powerful than SS 300 watts), but the bloated soundstage and loose bass give away the fact that tubes are not accurate but are pleasantly euphonic to some listeners. I don't know how much classical music you listen to, but live unamplified classical music is just plain detailed, and not full of slam. String, tuba, piano and organ bass do not hit you in the stomach with slam. It is particularly difficult to discern accurate pitches in low piano notes from C at 32 Hz down to A at 27 Hz, and in order to do so, accuracy is required, not boominess and slam. To distinguish these low freq sounds, it helps to have their harmonics at higher frequencies clearly presented live or accurately reproduced in audio systems.
WC, while Rowland bass may be quantitatively less than Connie bass, I suggest you listen for accurate pitches in bass notes, where you might find that Rowland delivers the accuracy of tone and pitch better. Just my speculation--tell us what you hear for all 3 ambitious systems, Merrill, Rowland, Connie.
dracule1, I believe you are wrong, maybe the term "ribbon" is confusing. In their own tech page, all their drivers are "push-pull ribbon (planar)", with magnets in front and behind the planar diaphragm. A true ribbon driver employs a usually aluminum, often pleated, strip suspended between the north and south poles of 2 magnets and the strip is both voice coil and diaphragm. The term ribbon is used but their tech is planar magnetic, and their speakers are out of this world sensational.
If you occasionally play music loud, luxman and constellation are killers at this. They never make you leave the room or turn the volume down. The Rowland will get a fair shot in here with its matching preamp and the psu unit. Both are pretty much broken in so it should be ready to plug in and wait for 2-3 days of play time and let it rip. Keep in mind, I’m not going to be coming to say one rips apart the other but rather which one I choose over the other and why. Again, maybe that Rowland preamp with PSU comes in here and blows me away. I’m not biased at all because I own both set ups and I can keep either one so it won’t matter. All I can say is “let the best man win”.
What kind of DAC are you thinking of that's solid state? MSB? EMM Labs? I heard great things with the EMM Labs. It's cheaper than the ridiculously expensive MSB.
WC, Yes, Lux and Connie amps will let you play loud without fatigue, but you found it useful to evaluate amps at 85-90 dB which enables easier discrimination among amps. I found I could get all the detail AND excitement at those moderately loud levels from accurate amps. But a slightly syrupy amp like the Classe D200 when pushed louder could not reveal the snap/excitement of percussion like triangles, cymbals. I got more snap from my baby Bryston even at lower volumes. You'll see if Rowland or Merrill gives you more snap/sparkle at lower volumes than Connie at louder levels. The real shootout might be between the accuracy oriented Rowland and Merrill. Maybe mrdecibel is right that you can have everything--accuracy AND dynamics both to the highest standards--with Merrill. Perhaps the no feedback design of Merrill enables both criteria to be maximized. As Merrill says, the circuit is faster so everything moves without impediments. The review of the 116 by Dr. Michael Bump, professional classical musician and professor of percussion, suggests that you can have everything with the 116. He was informative after I asked questions, in the entry of comparative review of Veritas and 116 on the Merrill Element thread.
- smaller soundstage - warmer sound signature - detail is there but not as obvious - mids are good but not as articulate - highs are smooth but sound as if I turned the treble down a few clicks - bass is clean but lacks that visceral punch that makes my chair vibrate - separation is good - lacks the decay of the constellation set up - less 3D effect - dynamics might have been decreased - less sense of depth.
what stands out for me from this combo? I’d say that occasionally I hear things that weren’t as apparent with the constellation set up. An instrument to the left or right, a clap, whispers here and there, etc.
With that said and to be fair, the 925s have beeb unplugged for a few days and I just plugged them in so they are cold and need playtime so that I can do another analysis. It appears that the star of the show is the constellation centaur 2 monos. They let me hear the differences between both preamps rather easy. They also force 3D images out of the speakers that really blow me away. Cranking things up on these amps and me resting my head on the chair means my head feels the vibration on the chair. They also make the wall behind the speaker seem to be farther away creating a sense of more depth in the music. This is indeed superb.
WC, " detail is there but not as obvious "...or..." I hear things that weren't as apparent " with the Constellation set up . which is it ? … viber, I have never known " slam " to be a characteristic of tubes, as you say tubes are known for that ( ime ). Enjoy ! MrD.
For "slam" in classical music, one only need try The Rite Of Spring by Igor Stravinsky... I suggest the version conducted by Pierre Boulez, but there are many excellent recordings out there...
Or listen to some of the more dynamic movements of Gustav Mahler’s symphonies.... Particularly 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 9th...
WC, you still might not end up liking the music, but as a whole, and The Rite Of Spring in particular, are unlikely to let you fall asleep any time soon.
Mrdecibel: Detail is there With resolution but this detail feels as if it’s a little rolled off. I also hear things that are a little more obvious here that perhaps the constellation set up presents but it doesn’t push them out because it’s busy giving your ears tremendous bass control, insane mids, and a 3D effect. Your ears are entertained by other qualities from the presentation.
I had someone ask if a preamp intervenes with the presentation of an amplifier and the answer is YES. For example, the ref10 has the largest soundstage of any preamp I’ve owned. The luxman and constellation Virgo have sweetness and musicality and the merril has dynamics and bass control in spades.
Hey Guido. I am not questioning " slam " in music. I just never experienced ( with maybe the one exception, of some Jadis 500s ), slam, from tube power amplifiers, in the same way I have heard with big solid state amplifiers, such as some Krells, Brystons, or a pair of Parasound JC1s, even through efficient horns. viber continues with " loose bass " as a description of tube amps. I am just reading some inconsistencies and contradictions. Keep in mind, " slam ", as a characteristic in audio system music reproduction, is a term " we ", the audiophile community, made up. My own interpretation of slam is likely different from others. All good. Enjoy ! MrD.
For "slam" in classical music, one only need try The Rite Of Spring by Igor Stravinsky... I suggest the version conducted by Pierre Boulez, but there are many excellent recordings out there...
Or listen to some of the more dynamic movements of Gustav Mahler’s symphonies.... Particularly 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 9th...
WC, you still might not end up liking the music, but as a whole, and The Rite Of Spring in particular, are unlikely to let you fall asleep any time soon.
Good suggestions, Guido. Another choice would be the Telarc recording of Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite," coupled with excerpts from Borodin's "Prince Igor," Robert Shaw conducting the Atlanta Symphony. A digitized version someone created from the LP can be downloaded here:
That recording of the Firebird Suite may very possibly have the widest dynamic range of any recording I have ever heard, as particularly exemplified by the difference in volume between the whisper-like notes just prior to the start of the finale, and the concluding note of the work.
- bass is visceral, controlled and finely tuned -bass is layered with resolution - the room feels pressurized (depending on the volume) - effortless control of the woofers - feeling the bass in your chest or chair (depending on the volume of course)
Thank you Almarg, I was forgetting that Firebird and Polovesian Dances recording from Telark.. In those days at least, Telark had a 6 foot wide bass drum used whenever bassdrum was called for in the score... The effect was telluric. I believe the megadrum is featured on both the Firebird and in the Polovesian Dances by Borodin.
I have what is probably the first conversion of that original LP recording converted to CD by Telark during the 1980s... One of the first dozen CDs I purchased back them... I should listen to it again, and see how that old AAD 16/44 conversion sounds on my setup.
WC, Even though it is worthwhile to compare Rowland, Merrill and Connie as complete systems, it would be useful to compare preamps using the same amp. Many potential combinations, made more difficult by the warm up times which then make it difficult to remember what you heard 1-3 days before. Let's say you presently have the Connie warmed up. It is easy to keep 2 or 3 preamps plugged in and on simultaneously, so switching between preamps is easy because you just shut off the power amp for 5 min while you switch preamps. The power amp will sound the same after just 5 min of being off. During the 5 min the power amp is off, you think about what you just heard. So you use the Centaur, and report on the character of the Virgo and Merrill preamps, and soon with the Rowland Corus preamp. Then put the Centaur out to pasture, warm up and use the 925 to do the same preamp comparison. Then in July-August, use the Merrill 116 and compare all 3 preamps. Ideally, the comparison among all 3 preamps should be similar no matter which power amp you have used. Then you change gears, decide which preamp you like, and use it with different power amps. Repeat using another preamp, etc. Hopefully the conclusions you reach about all 6 pieces and 9 combinations are consistent, showing that each piece has its unique character by itself. As long as the input impedance of all power amps is more than 10x the output impedance of the preamp, there should be no incompatibility of the kind that you might get when using a tube preamp with very high output impedance and a power amp whose input impedance is less than 10x that output impedance.
With the above said, I am not sure your post of 2:08 AM is comparing 925 + Merrill Christine with Centaur + Christine, or Centaur + Virgo, or 925 + Virgo. If you establish preamps as A,B,C, and amps as X,Y,Z, then you can compare and report A+X vs A+Y vs A+Z, then B+X vs B+Y, etc. That will make understanding easier. Sorry, my 1st paragraph is a long winded version of this 2nd. That's the beauty of math compared to verbiage.
mrdecibel, I think "slam" is a confusing term that seems to apply mainly to bass. I meant that tube amps have overall power that makes their 100 watts sound more powerful than SS amps of 100 or even 300 watts. Of course, most tube amps have deficient and loose bass. So it would be clearer to talk about power, dynamics, resolution, accuracy for bass, midrange, HF. Since these are technical terms, it would be also useful to describe how various instruments sound, since all instruments have various combinations of fundamentals and higher harmonics.
WC, Based on you statements you think the Constellation amplifier is better than the Rowland. The Constellation has better bass control and articulation, the soundstage is more open with better separation of instruments, and the all important midrange is much better than the Rowland. If my summary is correct it proves, "we don't know, what we don't know." It's easy to assume how great something sounds until you have a direct comparison with something that sounds better. That's exactly why I like comparing similarly priced components in the same system. I submit a direct comparison is the only way to differentiate between components and find your preference.
This is why I still think constellation is #1 with my current speakers. With the Neoliths having 12 inch and 15 inch drivers, TRUST ME they will let you know if the amp you are using doesn’t have enough muscle to push them. It’s EASY AS HELL with these speakers to find out if an amp has great bass, mids, highs, soundstage width and depth. The size of these panels make it easy to tell what changed when you swap out components. This is how I know the fact that the Rowland so far doesn’t have the bottom end fullness with the preamps I’ve used with it. That said, this might change when I use the preamp it was designed to be mated with. I generally WILL NOT like an amp that lacks 3 dimensional sound or a wide and deep soundstage. These are huge for me and if an amp lacks these traits, I end up not liking it.
So, the Rowland 925s lacks 3-dimensionality and the soundstage width and depth of the Constellation? In other words the Rowland 925s are a bad value when compared to similarly priced components?
WC, Re-reading your 2:08 AM post, I think there is some inconsistency in your statements. First, you say Rowland + Merrill shows less obvious detail, less midrange articulation, rolled off HF (again, compared to what? Centaur + Merrill, Centaur + Virgo?). These are all consistent qualities. But then second, occasionally you hear things that were not as apparent with the Connie setup, so that implies that Rowland + Merrill are more detailed/revealing, a reversal of the first assessment. And then third, the Centaur reveals differences in preamps more easily, another reversal back to the first assessment. But then at 10:37 AM, the Connie appears to concentrate on bass, 3D, "insane" mids (is "insane" sweet and 3D or detailed/accurate or what?) rather than details. Forgive me, I am confused still.
Ricred, first off, I didn’t say they were bad value. You are arriving to that conclusion on your own. Secondly, I stated very clearly last night that the amps were dead cold and they needed more days playing music in order to let them play at their best. Thirdly, I am also not using the matching Rowland preamp with PSU. There are too many variables to take what I just stated as gospel. I like to be fair and this is WHY I said that I will evaluate things again once I have the other pieces here. I’ve not arrived to any solid conclusion just yet, but rather preliminary findings and what my ears are picking up early on. I’ll keep playing music on these amps and keep listening and then add the preamp with the PSU and report again
WC, I'm sorry if I implied that you said Rowland's were a bad value, because that wasn't my intent. Reading what you wrote suggests that in your opinion the Constellation is significantly better than the Rowland. That's my thoughts based on what I read.
ricred1, Since you have a lot of experience with many Rowland power amps, can you tell us your comparisons with other brands at this level? Maybe you don't want to bias WC one way or the other, so it would be great if you told us after WC does his full evaluation by the end of Aug. I like his approach of not making judgments about what is better, but instead just telling what he objectively hears. I hope you do the same, at the appropriate time.
A Soulution 725 preamp showed up on a'gon for under $16K when converted to 110vac. Would be interesting to see what WC thinks about Soulution products. Dave
I thnk if you're going to spend serious cash like WCSS is..... that the system should have a capability to throw some massive 3D sound when asked for. Some don't have the ability to do that due to their surroundings. Others like me have been in a brochure for playing the stereo loud, and the cops knew me by name at that time. Now I'm much more restrained, and don't play Peter Frampton at 4am with the windows open. But I live in an area that has a concert hall 1/2 mile away from me, and my home is insulated so well that you can't hear a hurricane when you in one. To each his own. My car stereo business designs were always audiophile and ear splitting, and not bass heavy in a way that would be "all about the bass". It is wonderful to have some "slam" when it's time to blast it. I could not imagine life without some "slam" to it.
WC. How are things taking shape w the build out? Are you getting any listening time during this transitional phase? Take it easy and looking forward to the next phase of your journey
The room is about halfway through. the audio for movies has been purchased and will hit my door next week. It consists of the following:
Marantz 8805 martin logan axis inwalls for FR, C, FL, SR, SL (behind a perforated screen) martin Logan helos for in ceiling Atmos klipsch thx 6502 in walls for SBL, SBR Four REL 1508 Predator subwoofers Epson 6050 projector 135 inch acoustically transparent screen wireworld xlr throughout
after careful analysis, I decided to go with a mark Levinson 533h 3 channel amp to drive my 3 front inwalls and the ATI 528 8 channel class D amp for the surrounds and Atmos speakers. These 2 amps keep things simple without the need to use too many amps. As far as audio rack, I have ordered a SOLID TECH RACK 7 in silver. The room still needs the walls sanded, painted, ac unit needs to be installed, the floor riser needs to be built and lighting needs to be done as well as carpeting, Comcast needs to come out and wire the room for internet and I need to buy another row of recliners towards the end too. Once all that has bee done then I’ll begin to move all the equipment inside the room and begin the madness of installing all the electronics, protector, the screen, assemble the audio rack, etc etc. I also had four 20a dedicated outlets installed on the front wall so that power is never an issue. I will need to figure out what kind of power surge protector I’m going to buy just to get me through the next few months. Im not going to spend big money on a power conditioner at this time to only have the home theater electronics connected to it. I’m thinking of a furman unit and calling it a day.
Nice choice on HT equipment your gonna be impressed. Have you picked a screen manuf? If not Screen Innovations Black Diamond's are really nice and if there are windows allowing light in the room light washout is not an issue like some others, the picture remains clear and bright, worth a look IMO.
@whitecamaross That should be a damn fine Home Theater setup. The ONly thing I would change or consider changing if it were me , is the subs . Those REL 1508 are 6 db down at 21 HZ. That means that they will play flat to 27 HZ and by the time you get to 21 HZ ,the output is 6 db less than what it is at 27 HZ. Regardless, it will still be damn good IMO . Enjoy
WC, I think ATI 523 or the more powerful bridged version, the 543 would be a better choice than the ML 533H. From your long ago comments about ML 532H, and all my experience with past ML electronics, they are euphonic and probably not as neutral and accurate as ATI. Even for the less critical applications of HT compared to stereo, it is important to have accuracy so when visual effects are accompanied by exciting transients, you don’t want to be bored with euphonic ML type sound. Clarity is important for dialogue. Your HT speakers probably have moderate impedance, so the 543 would be comfortable offering more power than the 523. For low impedance speakers, the 543 is not as comfortable as the 523, according to my conversation with an ATI tech a few years ago.
If you are already committed to the ML 533H, please do an A/B with the ATI 528 using 2 channels of each, before you dismantle the Neo system in your present room. My guess is that the ATI class D amps are a best budget buy hands down, and are not embarrassed by any amp regardless of price. Let’s see what you find, thanks.
Of course, either the ATI 523 or 543 would save you plenty of money.
It would be nice if A-gon had a search function within a thread. Lacking that, WC discussed the Gryphon Diablo 300 about 6 months ago or so. His posts could be reviewed around then, or a separate search for this item could be done. My recollection is that he found it OK, pleasant but not very detailed.
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