FYI: I am the Viola Audio Labs representative/distributor in California (I think it's important that you know this as I have no wish to mislead anyone or be accused of being a "shill" as others have). This discussion has referenced a number of fairly good products, and a few IMO, not so good. Since your planning to invest a rather large sum of money, you would be foolish not to personally audition the top contenders before making the purchase (if geographically possible).
I would strongly suggest that you find a way to listen to the Viola amps. Specifically, in your application, the Symphony stereo power amplifier. The amp is conservatively rated at 200W/channel into 8 ohms, and extremely high current. It is certainly powerful enough to drive your speakers. Last week in fact, I was running a speaker with an impedance of less than one ohm (more accurately, closer to one half ohm) with a Viola Symphony amplifier. The sound was nothing short of spectacular, particularly in the bass and its ability to set the sound stage.
If you are not familiar with Viola, I would encourage you to visit their web-site at WWW.VIOLALABS.COM. These are the same engineers that designed the early Mark Levinson equipment (before Mark sold the company) and nearly all of Cellos electronics & speakers. Since the company was formed in 2001, nearly all of the production has gone straight to the Far- East, where their equipment is very well known and highly regarded. Despite the Viola factory being located in Connecticut, they have only recently decided to market their equipment in the U.S.
The downside of Viola equipment, besides being VERY expensive, is that it will immediately show you how bad the rest of your equipment is. It wont just show you the weak links in your system; it will show you how really bad those weak links are. Yes, I know that youve heard that line before, but you have NEVER heard anything like this stuff before (particularly the Cadenza preamplifier). It IS that exceptional. Dont take my word for it I wouldnt if I were you. Find a way to listen to it Youll thank me.
Best regards,
Ken G.
I would strongly suggest that you find a way to listen to the Viola amps. Specifically, in your application, the Symphony stereo power amplifier. The amp is conservatively rated at 200W/channel into 8 ohms, and extremely high current. It is certainly powerful enough to drive your speakers. Last week in fact, I was running a speaker with an impedance of less than one ohm (more accurately, closer to one half ohm) with a Viola Symphony amplifier. The sound was nothing short of spectacular, particularly in the bass and its ability to set the sound stage.
If you are not familiar with Viola, I would encourage you to visit their web-site at WWW.VIOLALABS.COM. These are the same engineers that designed the early Mark Levinson equipment (before Mark sold the company) and nearly all of Cellos electronics & speakers. Since the company was formed in 2001, nearly all of the production has gone straight to the Far- East, where their equipment is very well known and highly regarded. Despite the Viola factory being located in Connecticut, they have only recently decided to market their equipment in the U.S.
The downside of Viola equipment, besides being VERY expensive, is that it will immediately show you how bad the rest of your equipment is. It wont just show you the weak links in your system; it will show you how really bad those weak links are. Yes, I know that youve heard that line before, but you have NEVER heard anything like this stuff before (particularly the Cadenza preamplifier). It IS that exceptional. Dont take my word for it I wouldnt if I were you. Find a way to listen to it Youll thank me.
Best regards,
Ken G.