@viber6
The GTA may be more clear sounding, but they lack dimensionality and heft. I would get tired listening to these.
The GTA may be more clear sounding, but they lack dimensionality and heft. I would get tired listening to these.
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
Hey Henry201 when did you hear the speakers because the speakers have been redesigned they are using completely different mid range drivers and even with the older model we have many customers who have auditioned the 20.7‘s and 30.7’s and it was no contest I can give you their names if you like and you can speak with them directly. Please bring your speakers over I will gladly hook them up and compare them to ours put your money where your mouth is. |
Just to show you that I’m not full of crap this is one of my customers who’s listened to every speaker out there including Magnaplanar. https://youtu.be/-B8gmhkqFE8 |
The recording quality of Boulder/Wilson and Soulution/Magico videos is not the same, the latter is much better. If you noticed, I posted a video by someone playing top of the line Boulder combo with $200k Wilsons. That was the very best, I think. In any case, Boulder-Gryphon-D'Agostino/Wilson for some and whatever/Magico for others. I expect Gryphon Diablo 300 to be worse overall with Magico than Soulution 530, though perhaps more dynamic. I would try Boulder/Magico and Mephisto/Magico. Pass or even D'Agostino wouldn't make sense to me, they wouldn't match Magico's transparency. |
He does that. Posts videos of his speakers and then when they get criticized he can’t handle it and lashes out. Mostly people just ignore the desperate cries for legitimacy of continually advertising here. We are focused on WC’s stuff on this thread. The times recently that WC has purchased similar speakers he declined the GTAs and chose Maggie 3.7i, 20.7 and Martin Logan 15a all within a 3 month period despite the incessant advertising on this thread. He’s a dealer of the speakers but violates A’gon’s policy of clearly stating such, btw. Just ignore is easiest |
henry201, In practice, there are no serious mismatches of products, except for obvious errors like high output impedance from tube preamps going into low input impedance of power amps, which will roll off HF. The 91 dB decent efficiency of the M6 means that except for a few pieces of highly dynamic music, it can be driven by low watt amps. Amp quality is more important than power quantity for sonic purity. No inefficient speakers of less than 80 dB efficiency are being considered here, so all amps are game here. |
henry201, As you said, "The GTA may be more clear sounding, but they lack dimensionality and heft. I would get tired listening to these." That's an honest statement of your preferences. You acknowledge what the GTA does, but your preferences are for a certain type of sound that dynamic speakers deliver. That's OK. |
Lots of scenarios but let’s wait until you hear pass labs tomorrow... You all might be QUITE SURPRISED... When it comes to quality watts, let’s just say i am currently playing with an amplifier behind the scenes that I’ve never owned and it is insane (as expected)... I will unveil it in about 2 weeks. |
Hey Henry021 you claim I have anger issues any reasonable person in my shoes would clearly be angry with someone like you who clearly stated that they have never heard our speakers but nevertheless criticizes them for lack of dimensionality when all the reviews extol them as extremely 3 dimensional. And Kren00O6 - you never indicated what system you have and don’t have the guts to post a video of your system. Also how do you know what is happening behind the scenes with Jay and our company. Jay never declined auditioning our speakers. I promise you - once the dust settles you will eat your words. |
Kren0006, Only from what I've read, the Soulution 500 series is more euphonic than the older 700 series. Jay said that the Soulution 530 is more transparent/neutral than the Pass combo. I'd love to hear a shootout between a top Boulder and a Soulution 700. If you like neutrality, the Boulder 1160 is good value and worth considering. The Boulder 1161 is the only one I can lift by myself. Decent peak power capability, only $22K MSRP, price not going up, unlike big increases in other Boulders. |
oops, how could I have forgotten the system shaming that faxer also always does. But there it is again. Pathetic WC clearly stated he had zero interest in purchasing GTA speakers and instead purchased the Maggie’s and raved about them and also purchased the MLs. Sure if you let him test yours without buying them I’m sure he will, just like he did with Tekton. Good luck |
I had a chance to hear gt audio speakers at axpona 2018 and i thought they were one of the best speakers there. I know since then they have made improvements to their design so i expect them to be far better. I would love to hear them with Gryphon Amplifiers or Boulder. Speaking of Gryphon and Boulder; i gotta admit that i miss those suckers dearly. You never know what you got until it’s gone I guess? It's HARD AS HELL once you try the upper echelon... You simply have a hard time adjusting to lesser gear. |
Jay, Yes, any speaker will sound better with the Boulder or Gryphon. I'm glad that you are open to the GTA. For what I know you value, the GTA + two to six subs for $30-50K total, plus even modest electronics will give you more of everything you want, than M6 plus Boulder/Soulution 700's at many times the price. For your ultimate, GTA + subs + those top amps will still be well under $200K total. Since GTA is most revealing, the top amps will make a much greater contribution than they would for the M6. Your revealing DCS Rossini + GTA will be especially revealing. Also, Steve's room is much narrower than yours, so you will be able to place the GTA's much wider than he does, and will get all the spaciousness you desire. You will love the 7 foot total height of the panel and the even taller subs if you get the full sub system as well. |
4 hour listening session just wrapped up. The only thing i will say is that this secret amplifier here has COMPLETELY won me over... Managed to keep me glued to my chair and just unable to stop listening for hour after hour. I am completely speechless. In 2 weeks you all will know. Expect great things because what i am hearing is just world class. |
WC doesn’t want to use subwoofers. He’s reiterated that, oh, about 1,000 times. He primarily evaluates amplifiers, and subwoofers have their own integral, separate-from-main-amp, lower-quality amplifiers, typically, so that alone defeats the purpose of his ability to compare amplifiers, and the low-end control they provide (a key feature for the amps he compares). Any speaker in WC’s room has to stand, full-range, on its own merits, without any low-end help. Bass-wimpy speakers need not apply. |
Hi all - thought I would jump back in after catching up on the thread after several months of absence. I see there has been lively discussion that includes the GTA speakers. Anyone can search on my username and find my past contributions; I don't feel the need to repeat those. I will note that since my GTA purchase in 2019 the planar driver is updated and I plan to do that upgrade. Otherwise, my system is the same save for replacing the Coincident Statement MK II linestage with a Viola Crescendo. Better match for the Viola Symphony amplifier. And... just better all around... After having listened recently to the posted videos by WC, faxer, and others in other forums, I feel the GTAs are a good 'instrument' for judging electronics. As viber6 has hinted, some speakers may not be the best choice for ferreting out subtleties of amplifier/electronics' characteristics. I feel the GTA's abilities lend very well to that goal. I am still very happy with my GTA speakers and don't plan a change. I will, however, try to audition in my listening room different electronics as opportunities occur. Though the posted videos are good and can provide some level of guidance, I believe in-room listening is the ultimate arbiter for these subjective decisions. So I'd encourage those whom have not done so, to audition the GTA speakers at Steve's or any other owners' room. All are welcome here anytime. |
That makes 3 favoring Wilson over Magico. "Lively discussion" - ha! well yeah if you consider faxer and Viber advertising for the GTA and me and others telling them to stop on this thread. But whatever - I actually hope faxer gives WC a freebie pair so he can test them - I’d be interested to see if they could beat the Tektons in absolute, full-range performance. WC has said many times in response to Viber begging him to try GTA that he has zero interest in purchasing them because in a week when he wants to dump them nobody will buy them. So I guess the only option is if he gets a freebie pair to test, like the Tektons. He purchased the Maggies (3.7i, then immediately 20.7) and loved them (he didn’t have the same resale concern with Maggie that he has expressed re GTA) - said the 20.7 were best speaker under $20k that he’s had if I recall. Anyway, back to stuff that has actually been in WC’s room, not wannabe stuff that has never been in WC's room. |
I certainly hope every manufacturer doesn't join this thread and shill their products. Their proxies as well. While I am pretty sure its not sustainable, I've enjoyed WCSS having the freedom and independence to hail or bash a product at will, based on his experience alone. I'm personally indifferent whether someone used to be employed in the industry, be they in operations or whatever role. |
That's additional reason of why it would be very interesting to hear Magico with big powerful Boulders and Gryphons. I think, the Soulution is 'masculine enough' but not that big for such demanding 'feminine' speakers. And we are going to get a surprise amplification in about two weeks. I am intrigued. |
You guys are your worst enemies... You now realize HOW things really REALLY change when you go from top tier amps such as gryphon, boulder, etc to second tier amps such as pass labs, simaudio , etc ? I was criticized for only bringing expensive stuff in and now that i tried the cheaper offerings, the speaker i now have seems to be taking all the heat and criticism 😂 You all can hear the change in quality through youtube when changing tier groups of electronics. Now imagine how it is to live with this stuff? You gotta admit that i had you all very VERY spoiled with crazy electronics... I have less room for error than before because i set the bar so high for myself that anything below it is considered a failure. I get the feeling most of you want the pass labs stuff out of here and don't have really any interest in any brand in the same category. I created a monster huh 😂 |
If faxer is confident enough in his product, send them to Jay to demo them. I sent him the Tektons and I’m not even a manufacturer, just interested in seeing how they’d stack up after all the discussion about them. There’s good in most products, along with areas they don’t excel in. And as always price has to be taken into context. Instead of attacking products for what they arnt, maybe find the good at what they are. No product, no matter the cost is perfect, and what’s best for me, may likely not be best for someone else. Let’s have a discussion rather than argument. I’d even cover the shipping costs if that is what would hold faxer back from sending them. The gauntlet has been laid down, so let Jay give them a whirl and see how they do. Lol. |
No it’s just that you need stuff at the same level to compare against. I had suggested the idea of bringing in 6 or 7 (whatever it was) integrated amps in the under $20k category and let them battle it out, head to head contemporaneously. That would be really interesting. Instead, if just a single low cost thing is brought in and played in relative temporal isolation, the only thing in recent memory to compare to is the gryphon/Boulder, so that’s what people do and the result is entirely predictable |
You’ve been doing the vids for at least a year now and I’ve probably watched every one, many multiple times. And the best ones IMO are always the head2heads of two competing components. When presented in isolation it’s too hard to compare. Most don’t have time to rummage for the comparison. Viber compiled a recent comparison which was cool but even that with time passage and your rate of turnover meant that components had changed so that not a true comparison Wilson to Magico, as you mentioned. I know there are limitations on the super expensive ( I get it you couldn’t keep Alexx and M6 at same time) stuff but the integrated shootout i suggested would have cost way less then the boulders by themselves |
We are willing to have Jay audition them in our showroom in NY I just got vaccinated with J&J and Jay and have been discussing the possibility of him auditioning them here once he is vaccinated as well. I indicated I would pick him up at the airport and drive him back to the airport. A round trip flight is under $200. If he likes them we can arrange at some point to get him a pair. We are confident he will love the speakers but these speakers are not mass produced and the technology involved is quite time consuming. He has heard our older model in basically a hotel room the size of a bathroom and still indicated they were one of the best speakers at Axpona. We are extremely back ordered and are presently not in a position to have our customers wait additional time in order to get Jay a pair to audition. |
mglik, Good question about GTA and Maggies. The GTA designer owned and loved Maggies for many years and wanted to make a better version. The closest Maggie to the GTA is the 3.7i. Its planar driver is a little wider than that of the GTA, and its baffle is much wider. The result is that the 3.7i has fuller lower midrange down to deep bass. The 3.7i extends to about 40 Hz; the GTA to 50 Hz. If most of your music doesn't have deep bass, the 3.7i doesn't require a sub, but fewer people will find the bass of the GTA panel enough, so it is usually used with 1-3 stacked servo subs per side. You will need a wider room for the complete package. Maggies are cheaper because of the lower quality of materials, but also because manufacturing costs are low with mass production. GTA speakers are handmade in smaller numbers. Listen to my 3 videos on the last page of the song, Iron Hand, for the 3 speakers, Alexx, M6, GTA. As for how they all rate, draw your own conclusions based on what YOU hear. If you want to discuss further, message me rather than this thread. |
