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!
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!
20,890 responses
TJASSOC - In response to your post that you have yet to hear and optimally set up high end system- As a dealer I do realize the challenge it presents when you attempt to set up a high end system in a store environment. That is why our high end reference system is actually set up in a home environment. We have put in a great deal of effort to get superior sound in our offsite store location. I welcome you and any other members to audition such a system. Our store which is called Sound Insight is located in Huntington, New York, and our offsite store location that I was referring to is located in Massapequa, New York. |
About the Suncoast video. I really don’t think it’s a good idea for someone to tell his audio seller he has 100k $ or 200k$ to blow right away. Most sellers are on commission, so it’s their pocket interest before yours... Human nature is human nature, they will naturally sell you the products they make the most margin on... The guy in the video should have ask his customer what makes him think 200k will additionally get him instead of 100k...to begin with... |
I agree with Ron and Carey. It is us, right here, in this forum that keeps their businesses going. It's not the luxury buyers because they don't go changing out equipment as often as we do. It never ends and I think that there is an element of "equipment junkie" in all of us deep down or else we would not be replacing anything. Boulder 2110 and Magnepan 20.7 video is getting uploaded. Should be live in about 40 min. Get ready.... Everything you thought you knew about both linestages might completely change. You will have front row tickets to the "synergy show" I’ve been displaying over the past few weeks. |
I have a couple of friends that can afford the best of the best and really enjoy music but have a very modest system. They just don't care about getting as close to live music as possible....it just kills me...ugh. Every one of my audiophile friends have spent 2-3 times what they set out to spend or could afford to spend. It seems that in this hobby there is always room for improvement. Knowing that, is what drives us to find a way to make it work even when we can't afford it and know we really shouldn't. It makes us stretch, bend the truth, fib and outright lie to our significant others. We schedule deliveries when our spouse is at work or away. Pay with a cashiers check or cash to cover our tracks. Just like carey said, it's heroin. It's amazing how this hobby drives us and how much pleasure we get from it. I think the people with ultra high end systems don't participate in forums or care to talk about high end audio. Like Mike (Suncoast Audio) said, about 30% of his customers fall into that category. |
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First of all there are only a few people that buy the ultra high end like you’re talking about probably fewer than most people realize. So what kind of person would buy a Wilson Chronisonic? Personally I only know of one person that owns a pair, he’s on The Wilson community group on Facebook. The other question is how much do they listen. In my mind I think if I owned those they’d be playing all day everyday. However I think the reality is that you get used to what ever you own and the”equipment excitement” fades and now you listen to music and no longer worry about the equipment. Once you are at the top there is only the music and equipment is not questioned. Then there are also the real equipment junkies who live for the rush of a different piece with a different flavor. We will never be satisfied with just the music. We need to hear it presented in as many different ways as we can find. We are what keeps the manufacturers and dealers going. They love us. |
@carey1110 Good points. I just find it interesting how most of us have never really met an actual owner of ultra high end. We see these systems at shows but WHO are the owners ? Where are they? Are they high profile people ? It seems to me that this is the case with ultra high end gear. @tjassoc I have heard the chronosonic twice and i think the dealer had too much tube gear. It wasn’t jaw dropping BUT I can’t blame the gear. I am by no means a master of everything, but some dealers just don’t have a clue as to what maximizes system performance. |
WC I know a lot of people who could but would never put that kind of money in a system. It’s not about how much money you have it about how into this you are. I know people who save, scrimp and go to great lengths to own this stuff and others that could easily buy it but think it’s ridiculous to put that kind of money in a music system. Its about priorities and It’s all about how bad you want it. Just like heroin addicts some how they find a way to come up with thousands of dollars a day for their addiction. Most of us live vicariously through you WC because we don’t want to spend the money. More fun you watch you LOL |
Jay - I live in the northeastern NY/NJ/CT tri-state area, which relative to the majority of the other parts of our country, has a high medium income and I don’t know anyone with an "ultra" expensive stereo system. And - while I’ve heard "ultra" systems on multiple occasions, not one of them was set up to perform optimally, not a single one :-( ! So - until I get to audition an "ultra" system in a large room optimally set up, I won’t know what they can actually do. As a qualifier - the last mega system a friend and I listened to was the introduction of the Wilson Chronosonic’s. Out of sincere respect, gratitude and admiration for the dealer, I won’t comment any further. |
My guess on the new components is a new dac and clocking module or streamer of some sort. If I had to get very specific, I will guess EMMlabs but don’t have very high confidence level on this one. Reason for guess: don’t see WC going up ladder right now in amp, preamp or speakers compared to what in room now. That leaves source. Unless these are components for the budget system, then it could be anything |
Tecno, the amount of engineering that goes into the Wilson’s, the materials they use, the designs, it’s a bit of a work of art in that, in the engineering. Not having heard the higher Focals in person, only through videos, my preference between them and Wilson would be Wilson. I reserve the right to change that thought upon hearing them in person though. One I wish that would step up with some higher levels is B&W. The 800D3s are wonderful speakers, and it would be intresting to see what they could do at a higher level. I don’t think I’d bet for or against any one thing showing up in Jays videos. He’s changed directions many times, and that’s part of the fun. What will be next? It’s like Christmas all year. |
Guttenberg just did a video on that subject based on his time working at Singer in NYC. Both of those types you mention, but also some who are not so well off and sacrifice in many other areas just to get top equipment. Those were his favorite customers reading between the lines. With how many fewer hi-fi stores there are now, I think you have to be at least somewhat of an audiophile to even find your way into such a store. It’s not like they’re on every corner like in the 70s and 80s. Now you really have to seek them out. Most of the folks who just build big fancy houses get some POS whole house system installed with ceiling speakers and listen to spotify through that and think its the sh&t. And you so want to tell them it sucks but that would really break their heart cause everything else in the house is first rate, haha |
One thing I would like to discuss here is WHO BUYS ultra high end audio? Is it really audiophiles or luxury buyers? Mike touched up on both types of clients. Who really owns the WAMMS, Focal Utopia Grande, Magico M9s etc? Is it really audiophiles or just people with insane money that just want to own statement components rather than the product itself? One could argue that high rollers buy those ultra high end components so that they don’t have to wonder if there is something better. They go all out and bypass the "cheaper" stuff but do they really sit and listen to this kind of gear the way you and i would ? Actually, think about it like this: HOW MANY OF YOU know of someone who owns the 3 speakers mentioned above and have actually seen them in person? I bet there won’t be many of us who know someone... I personally DO NOT know of anyone who owns that level of gear. Hell, i don't personally know of anyone who owns focal Stella evo if I'm being honest. Does the same hold truth for you all? I’m curious to hear you all’s thoughts on this. |
@whitecamaross Re: the Mike @ Suncoast interview, Mike sounds like he has a good pulse on his audience and would be a great person to do business with. Dealers who are only selling components do not help the hobby, but those who focus holistically on system and room can provide a much greater value service to clients and a system that ultimately sounds much better. BTW, I'm in SoCal and do not know Mike and have never done business with him. But I do have a dealer that shares some of Mike's same business acumen. |
If you hadn't been abrasive at first with me, we wouldn't have had all this drama from the past. Some jaws will drop when i announce it next week. You never know where or when I'll be bringing something else. Before I announce what is coming, I need to give my opinion on the boulder and pandora. Many people have messaged me about this and they want to know my input so I'll do my review on both. |
Here is one good topic that should be discussed here. I want to know what you all think about the topic below?? This interview was just released a day ago. Let me hear your thoughts! https://youtu.be/EZgWnU2qy5s |
yes i moved it based on the diagram focal sent me. Remember, with focal you can add more mids (if that is what you wish for) by simply changing the jumpers and that is it. This tweeter is simply on another level and i think most of you can go back between both videos and easily tell the difference. The tremendous amount of additional information this tweeter adds is on leagues ahead. You don't eve need headphones to tell a difference. I think even using your phone's built in speaker - the clarity is noticeable. |
I'm obviously late to this thread, which has been underway for years, but I have been seeking input on upgrading my power amp. I currently have a pair of harbeth 30.2s, which I love, run by a vintage YBA Passion 400 power amp through a Prima Luna Evo 300 preamp. I purchased the YBA used last year with my new PL pre. I really like the clarity of the YBA, but still wonder if its 100 wpc is enough and whether/how much I would benefit from a different amp. Given whitecamerross', and others, vast experience with a wide variety of amps, I wondered if someone has any thoughts. I would prefer to run a SS amp into my tube preamp. I've given thought to a relatively low cost Van Alstine SS amp, but frankly don't have the resources to buy and sell high dollar amps as an experiment. If I could, no doubt i would. I am frustrated by Harbeth's forum because Alan Shaw consistently says he is amp agnostic and appears to have actually refused to allow amp discussions/recommendations on the forum. The Harbeth's work great in my listening room and I don't have the space for Maggie's or other large footprint speakers. What do you think? |
I imagine tricky in the "marketplace" sealing a deal on series 2 YGs. I wish I could compare hailey 2.2s or sonja 2.2s to Magico 2 and 3. Seem to be great comparators. Still lament not hearing the Mephisto/Pandora combination with Sonja 2.3s recently demoed, which from a couple of long time audiophile/dealer/25+ year show attendees, etc/ was the best they had ever heard across the full gamut of speaker types. And they are one of the few dealers that actually have a demo Mephisto in their shop as WC alluded to. But of course, just a few sets of ears and preferences... |
Lots of interesting thoughts. For the time being, all i can say is that I am "Wilsoned out". There is nothing under $100k msrp from Wilson that i am interested in. I've done my rounds with Wilson under $100k msrp. This doesn't mean I can't show up with a random Wilson speaker but that is not on my mind. It would be more of the speaker chasing me than me chasing it. |
I’m not predicting that he goes immediately back to Wilson (that would be too easy a prediction as that has happened last two times!), or even that he has already moved on from the Focals (tho wouldn’t be surprised), and no I didn’t prove any point that you made. What I will predict is that anything non-Wilson that comes in will not last as long as Wilson collectively did, which I submit is the ultimate barometer. Care to dispute that prediction? |
That’s an opinion, fair enough. But let’s see what happens in the room. My guess, and it’s only a guess, is that each time WC parts with Wilson he immediately begins to severely miss the authoratative slam and muscularity that so many others lack. Indeed, I heard it myself on the very first Focal video and said so right here on the thread, and WC agreed that for dynamics and muscularity Wilson is tops. And that was a $140k speaker competing against a $55k speaker!! I think those features are so important to WC that, once the initial shine wears off, everything else is gone before we know it. But let’s see. The proof will be in the pudding. Maybe the Focals are already gone??? In less than a month??? I wouldn’t think they’d be gone yet (I had set over/under for New Years if I recall), and I didn’t think they sounded bad, but last post WC waxing about Magico and Maggies in latest video, so I guess time will tell. At a minimum WC went to a lot of trouble to move the beasts out of the way and place the Maggies. Maybe not a good sign for Focal longevity??? Only guessing- |
