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!


128x128jays_audio_lab
Hi,
i have not heard anything from them but their speakers. They were amazing speakers to say the least. 
Then you owe it to yourself to check them out! Just the HV line. They are a hidden gem here in US, but very popular in Europe. Top high end brand there bar none. Market share and reputation.

They have several dealers in US

https://www.ta-hifi.de/en/dealers/

@white

There’s a new player in class D. It’s a highly tweaked IcePower Dual Mono @ 600 wpc in an Italian Chassis. The EVS 1200 is the brainchild of Ric Schultz.

And it’s only a mere $2200. Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, even that pittance crushed my piggy bank, but it comes with a 30 money back, including return shipping.


My rock for well over a year has been a Audio Alchemy DPA-1, which @ 125 wpc is underpowered in my large room. I tried the PS Audio M700s, which did a fine job of filling the room, but sounded a lot like the DPA-1 with 2.5 times the power. Now that’s not a bad thing, but, I wanted a more incisive amp

Nothing to lose, I took Ric’s bait. It only has about 30 playing hours and I’m already spinning discs I’ve listened to hundreds of times, though they never sounded so good
If you're interested I started a thread

As soon as my ’new to me Emerald Physics 2.8s’ show up (likely within 2 weeks) if you want to come hear the EVS 1200, contact me. If you can’t wait for the big guns, this amp has made my EP KCIIs sing beyond where I could have imagined. I’m in Ft Lauderdale, a short 5 minute Uber/Lyft drive from the airport

T+A has horrific resale value in the USA and the OP only buys stuff he can later flip that retains close to what he paid for it. Unless you get T+A gear at 50% off MSRP you will get your butt kicked. SUNNY in CA had a REAL hard time unloading his HV gear at almost half price. He still has some of it left I believe after a year of trying to dump the remainder of his inventory. I wanted to get T+A but it turned out to be too "bassy" for me. Give me Luxman and its sweetness all day long at 35% or more discount to overpriced T+A
Post removed 
Hey @riaa_award... I replaced my Luxman L-509x with the T+A PA 3000 HV Integrated .... there is simply no comparison. The T+A is in a totally different league. Not even close.

Sunny is no longer a T+A dealer. So selling the Demo gear with no warranty of course will be tough. I do agree that the brand has very little awareness in US, which really a pity. As for resale value, I am pretty sure once one has a T+A there will likely be very little desire to upgrade. Besides, if upgrading, if you are working with the right dealer, they can take care of it with not much loss
The 509x is a little overrated in my opinion. It is nowhere close to the quality of the m900u (that's my opinion). The T+A 3000 HV integrated (heard at Sunny's) sounded better to me over the 509x on Wilson speakers. However, the separate T+A preamp and amp vs the Luxman c900u and m900u is a coin flip for me. I would be happy with either. So the Luxman is the way I am going due to price.
I bet you T+A PA 3100 HV at $23,000 MSRP will compete extremely well with Luxman c900u / m900u combo at $30,000 MSRP. And once you add the T+A PS 3000 that Sunny has for sale at ~ 7,000, it will blow the Luxman combo out of the water
I have also heard the T+A PA 3100 at Sunny's and also at the LA SHOW where Sunny's demoed the T+A with Wilosn. In the room, they had the T+A reps, ROON reps, MQA reps, and a heavy duty Wilson speaker. The room also seemed good to me.

I was surprised they used the T+A integrated instead of the T+A separates (which I have also heard). The use of the integrated indicated to me they had a lot of confidence in the integrated. They also used the separate power supply for the Integrated (you cannot with the 3000 HV integrated). So this was an ultimate setup for the T+A 3100 HV integrated. I sounded great and I am not a Wilson fan. 

However, the Luxman separates are the way I would go regardless of price. I just have more fun listening to the Luxman. Luxman make me feel like I am listening to music, not gear.  Others may hear differently.

Why is this guy comparing a Luxman Integrated which you can get for around 6K against a T+A Int which costs 2.5X more??? Ive never heard Luxman integrateds personally (509 or 590...Im sure I would prefer the 590)....just the 900 combo. 900 Combo you can get for 21K. Easy to get 30% off of Luxman...try getting that deal with T+A!!

The T+A 3000 is more pleasing to my ears than the 3100 where they jacked up the bass.

Luxman you will get all your money back upon resale if you buy it properly. Not so with T+A....not even close.

Go ask Mike at Suncoast which is better...T+A or Luxman Separates. He carries both lines.

@whitecamaross - what speakers do you use for home theater? I’m thinking of setting up my home theater and curious to find what you have?
Why is this “collectors on Facebook “ guy so angry? And who brought up Luxman?
Oh... and by the way I have asked Mike Bovaird about Luxman vs. T+A. Have you?

Mike is one of the reasons I even looked at T+A, and now own one

The OP is a frequent customer of Suncoast and knows the owner very well obviously. If he thought T+A was far superior to the Luxman or Constellation separates then WCSS would already have tried them. Common sense right??

If you have followed this thread then you already know the OP’s stance regarding value and resale ability. T+A here in the USA is not highly sought after which is why you will take a bath when you try to flip it as previously stated. That could very well be the reason WCSS hasn’t had it to this point...much like Accuphase. Has nothing to do with the quality of the product....just a bad investment if you don’t plan on keeping it for very long.

Mike is the one who pointed out on his own webpage about the differences between the 3000HV and 3100HV.

No anger here. Just stating the facts. Glad your happy with your 3000HV. Since you bought it used you probably wont get killed on it.

There are multiple threads about T+A gear on the site. I have no skin in the game so no need to make something up. What would be the point? Mike was asked specifically what the difference was between the 2 models and he mentioned a couple of things, one being the bass. Another T+A guy (Kouppis) said the same exact thing about the Bass being more prominent on the newer model. Mike’s comment may or may not have been made on the T+A thread...maybe in the Integrated section. I’ll let you spend your time dwelling on it.

As you already know there is somebody looking to ditch their 3100 Int AND CD/SACD spinner on Audioshark so maybe you should be all over it.

Here is Mike's personal list of Top Amp/Pre Combos...14 of them in all.   Whoops.....No T+A on the list.

https://www.audioshark.org/amplifiers-8/best-pure-musical-amplifiers-power-not-important-15645-page6.html

My ears were ringing... :)

The Luxman M900u/C900u separates are giant killers.  There is no integrated I would take over them.  The T+A PA3100HV and the Gryphon Diablo 300 are my two favorite integrated amps.  They are excellent and for the many folks who don't have the space for separates or don't want to be bothered with the extra cables involved, these two are tops.

As for my list, I was remiss in missing a big one:  NAIM.   T+A is definitely another top musical amp, but I haven't had the separates in the store to comment.  

I mentioned on this thread many many pages ago, Whitecamaross is a client of mine, great guy with a wonderful family.  We talk on a regular basis and it's kind of scary how much we agree on.   We both really like VALUE products like the Luxman M900u/C900u.  Do the M900u monos and the whole setup goes to another level.
Exactly. What’s the point of your anger and animosity against T+A. I have spoken with Mike personally about T+A and other dealers and owners before getting my PA 3000 HV. And I own it. Playing it daily. If I had the cash for the $30,000 Luxman separates 900s, I would buy them in a heartbeat. I know they are great. I have listened to them multiple times at my local dealer. Even if someone gave me the outrageous 35% discount on Luxman you mentioned before, I would not be able to swing it. I paid less than $9K for my PA 3000. All in.

Anyways, case closed. Enjoy your Luxman. Excellent stuff.
Post removed 

Why do you keep imagining there is any anger involved here? You need to develop thicker skin and not take somebody's opinion on audio gear as a personal attack.

Don't see any posts in this discussion where I mention any gear I own. All I said was I have NEVER heard luxman 509 or 590 but would probably prefer the Class A 590's.

The Topic of this conversation WAS why hasn't WCSS tried T+A Gear and I told you why...because of the pathetic resale value which he doesn't want to eat. If WCSS lost 30-40% on his gear swapping habit he wouldn't own a nice house, have a wonderful family etc.... He would be sharing a cave with Sasquatch in the Florida Everglades and dumpster diving at McDonalds.

For the Record...I own Dag 400 Monos, ARC 160M Mono's, First Watt SIT-3 Mono's, Pass XA-25, Valvet E2 SE, Audio Note Jinro, Luxman 900 and other gear from Ayre, Esoteric, Conrad Johnson etc    Like I said no skin in the game.

Pretty sure I answered your initial question to WCSS thoroughly. Its all about being able to recoup a substantial amount of your investment.

@whitecamaross @gwalt Apologies if this was discussed earlier, but are either of you attending RMAF next weekend?  Would love to meet and head over to the Alsyvox room to see if WCSS feels they trump his Neoliths (I suspect they might).  PM me
Hey Alexbpm
we respectfully asked Mr. Coen from Alsyvox to bring his speakers to 2019 Capital Audiofest so the attendees can decide for themselves how they compare to GT Audioworks GT3 AR 3.1 System and of course Martin Logan.
This request was made on What’s The Best Forum. 
Whitecamaross 
my Sony AVR STR ZA5000ES will outperform Mcintosh MX160 processor you got out there I mean the sound quality 
and any Home theater applications 
try out 
That's a lot of amps. Nice work. I am a PS Audio fan. Extremely clean, powerful amps. For the money, they can not be beat. In fact, they can't be beat by most amps that cost a whole lot more.
Trainsam,
Look at the new thread on the EVS 1200 by tweak1.  His experience with this new amp is that it beats PS Audio and Audio Alchemy for power and incisiveness, for just $2200.  Still, I have no doubt that PS Audio beats many more costly amps.
Is tweak1 someone from Tweak Audio?  Tweak Audio is selling the EVS 1200 and I'm guessing Ric Schultz is part of Tweak Audio?
Dave
No, tweak1 is just a customer of Tweakaudio.  Ric Schultz is the one and only whole part of tweakaudio.  Tweak is a common name in audio.  There used to be a tweakshop in Santa Rosa.  Then there is Tweekgeek who makes the DMT Cubes I use in the amps.
hi, 
i am fine, but have been too busy. My neoliths are leaving on Monday and i have decided to hold off from buying another speaker. i have my Dynaudio c4 Platinums to play with in the meantime. i don't know what i will be doing. Sasha Daw, Focal Scala Evo, Salon 2s, 800D3s, Sonus Faber Cremonese, etc. Not sure what will end up happening because i have a lot in my head. 

WCSS.... Sad to see the Neoliths go. Curious as to why you didn't try them 1st in the new sound room. I'm really going to miss that speaker.
Glad to hear things are ok and ruminations continue. Bigddesign asked the question i imagine a number of us were thinking.  also, in the new room, would you now consider the sonja 2.2s? they seem to have made their latest impression at ramf. i know you were previously concerned about their dispersion...
Interesting that are once again thinking of the Salon2’s for your system. This would be what...the third Time? Not that I would blame you, they do so much right and even 11 years after their release they still hold their own against most newer (and much pricier) contenders. They are however, very hard to drive but I think your journey has given you a new understanding of what a power amp can do for a speaker. I also think the others you have short-listed are very capable performers, you may want to add Rockports to your list. Should be very interesting. 
Rockports are also on my radar. I keep hearing different opinions from different people. Some say they are not coherent speakers and some others say they are good speakers. i really dont know what to think about them since i have never heard them before. 
Tidal? The larger of the Vimbergs?  Of this style of speaker that I've heard at shows, I thought they were some of the best.
That’s always a possibility. However, I think I’ve narrowed my choices to these:

focal scala evo (51%) 
wilson Sasha daw (49%)

ok guys, state your case as to WHY I should choose one over the other. My percentages above are where I’m leaning. 
I know you can't believe everything you read, but there seems to be consistent opinions that coherency is one of the strong points for Rockports.  There's a store here in Phoenix that sells Rockports.  I should go some time and listen for myself.

Dave
I’ve heard the Focal and Wilson, and personally I’d take the Focal by a mile. In particular the Wilson sounded analytical and lacked bass. 
Prior to Daryl Wilson voicing their speakers I agree with adamwest, but since he's taken over including the Yvette and DAW, Wilsons have been much better voiced, more engaging, less analytical, more "musical", and fuller.
Neoliths have left my home. I am officially speaker hunting. I’ve yet to hear comments on the scala Evo vs DAW. Let me hear your thoughts !

Hello Whitecamaross, what persuaded you to sell your wonderful MLs? Did you try them in your new listening room?


Regards, G.



Hi,
it was a combination of a financial and room space. The ceiling is about 8ft and there was only going to be about a foot above the Neoliths. I thought it was just too small of a room for them so I am now looking for a speaker that will hopefully somewhat satisfy me. Yes this might mean I need to have about 3 shots of tequila before each listening session so it doesn’t allow me to be in much of a shock each time. I don’t expect the same wall of sound though. It’s something I’ll have to deal with.
Right now, it’s looking like the new focal scala Evo will be my next speaker. It will be my first rodeo with their utopia line so im
excited to be honest. 
Curious what amps/pre will you be using? It's always about matching speaker and amp IMHO.
Good luck in your new journey.
@whitecamaross
Sure wish you would try what many have recommended
See below:


09-17-2019 4:49pm
Hi Ray - Now that you’ve had your Moabs for a little while, do you have any further thoughts?


malus1511 posts09-17-2019 5:36pmJaytor-

We have since added some custom diffusion panels to our rear wall. I’m hearing sounds and layers I have never heard before in songs I’ve enjoyed for 20 years.

I am totally satisfied with this speaker and I can’t believe it’s not Tektons top model. I can’t imagine “better”. As I said before.. room treatments are immensely important.

I know people have room and financial constraints.

My magnepans were magic. These are another level that I didn’t know existed. If they don’t sound good to you, whatever your gripe is (soundstage, bright.. anything) It has to be your room or your equipment. Two of my wife’s friends have cried listening to Stevie Nicks. It’s eerie.

My thoughts are, I’m very very happy.



Ray. Report thisgawdbless1,225 posts09-17-2019 7:37pm
Sounded rather good to me at the RMAF 2019.
WC,
I just had a lovely conversation with Merrill W.  I will meet him at the 9/29 event at the VPI house in NJ.  He likes the smallest Genesis model which is just over 4 feet tall, has lots of body with clarity throughout the freq range.  Most important, it is very adjustable with many drivers, enabling tailoring of the sound to your liking.  

Ask yourself why the Dynaudio C4 doesn't satisfy you.  If you still have the Paradigm Persona 3F, it might give a fuller sound in the new room with the low ceiling.  I still say that the ML CLX with REL subs would give the purest full range sound that is reasonably dynamic although not like the Neo.  You will soon get bored with any dynamic speaker whose clarity is no match for the CLX/REL.  The CLX is the right height for the new room.  
Whitecamaross should listen to Audio Physic speakers . Being a stat owner and dynamic speaker collector I can say Audio Physic will be right up any stat lovers alley . The highs are very close to stats and the imaging and sounstaging is better than any panel speaker I have heard . Worth a audition .