New kid on the block....

I have the Linar 5x150, and it is an awesome amplifier. The dynamics and musicality blow away my Bryston 4B-SST. On my Magneplanar 3.6/Rs, the midrange comes to life, the high end is listenable even on mediocre recordings (can't fix those bad ones unfortunately). The bass is stronger than the Brystons. I was listening to a piece today with some folk drums, and I swear I could hear the real things. The dynamics of the attack, as well as the low fundamentals gave me the chills.

The new 250i (and new Linar line) uses a Mosfet output stage, which supposedly is even smoother on the highs. I love my 150s, but I may get the new 250i for my mains (using the 5x150s for the other 5 channels).

I've had the Linar 250 for just about 2 years now. With an upgrade which involved changing the 650KVA transformers to 850KVA Plitrons and upgrading capacitance from 80,000uf to 136,000uf and opening the bandwith from 80Khz to 250Khz. Best bang for the buck. It beats Simaudio products. Victor Sima didn't come back on the scene to start from where he left, but to do better, MUCH BETTER!
Pierre

I've never heard the Bryston 4B ST but Linar is a must to listen !
If you are looking for pure music reproduction, well...
I've listened to the new Linar 250i amp with the new linar preamp and i can tell that they both are a must to consider when searching for very top quality gear.
They cost $10750can. (US$7690) together and they can easily
be compared to much more expensive gears.
I bought the Linar 150 in 4 channels configuration
with the preamp in order to bi-amp my BESL S5 full range speakers that i'm presently building.
The 150 is presently used on some small french "Pierre Étienne Léon" monitors and using a DVP-S9000es and the sound and stereo image is incredible, the quietness in the background of the music is first class, i even enjoy my cheep $100 Kenwood digital tuner now with this amp and preamp !
I've replaced a good Copland CSA-28 hybrid integrated amp
and the Linar have much more life in the sound, much more powerfull and the pleasure to listen to music is increased
a big step up. I had first class service from the Linar team
too.

if you dont have the chance to listen to a Linar 250 only go on their web site www.linaraudio.com and youll see a test by the very respected UHF magazine.In that issue they say that the Linar 250 compared to their reference systems made them hear micro information they never heard before and more.....ive heard the new version the 250i and boy oh boy this is just and incredible amp at a bargain price.the band width has been opened to 1mghz and no need for special interconnects or speaker cables.A good thing is that these hi end audio are guaranteed lifetime.On the web they 3 years parts and labour but after that three years the customer pays for shipping both ways.And GUARANTEE IS FULLY TRANSFERABLE.