2. amps-preamps
  3. 1163978060

nuforce 9.02se/belles ref./ moscode 401hr?

nuforce 9.02se/belles ref/moscode 401hr/McIntosh 402 or 602/parasound jc-1's (concerned about the heat) as amp for my piega c-8ltd ribbon hybrid speakers. Other recommendations welcome. My budget is up to 5k used or new but prefer used and less than my upper range. My goal is to extract as much performance from the piega's as possible at this price point (top to bottom). My musical tastes are ecletic but I listen to acoustic (bluegrass and folk) nearly half the time. My room is medium sized and dedicated. Current amp is an aloia 15.01 and it sounds very, very good but I feel like there is much room for improvement. Amp has a low level hum that I can hear during quiet passages. Preamp is lector zoe with premium genelex tubes. Source is aloia cdp as transport partnered with the scott-nixon tube dac. I have used odyssey extreme monoblocs and liked them also but not as much as the aloia. In what way? I don't have the audio vocabulary to say but it just sounds better to me. All suggestions are appreciated and don't hold back. Thanks in advance.
twc
twc OP
42 posts
 
Thanks people. Some real good information and sound advice (pardon the pun). I may live with my current amp just a little bit longer. The moscode is so interesting. Everytime I have introduced a tube I have liked the results. The McIntosh's have a very positive reputation with piega's. I bet the others are very good also. Thanks again.
jack_dotson
210 posts
 
I just put the Belles 350A in my system last Friday. Problem is that I can't give a good evaluation until I buy a decent two channel pre-amp. I'm currently using the bypass mode of my Arcam AVP-700 and while it sounds good, I know there's much more. Source is Naim CD5i (one of my favorite pieces).

One thing that stands out with the Belles is bass control is as good as I've ever heard.

I first heard the Belles at a dealer hooked up to a Belles pre-amp and Naim CDP with OB power supply. The dealer (Blue Marble Audio) said his normal pre-amp was in the shop so he was using the small pre-amp. I didn't know what it was at the time, but now I think about it, I'm pretty sure he was just using a Soloist pre.

Speakers were Usher CP-8751's with the berrilium (sp?) tweeter. Every CD he put in sounded like I was hearing it for the first time. Such weight and realness from the horns. The snap or slam of the snare drum sounded as if it were gonig to leap and and hit you. Just all the little things that came through. Nothing sounded bad.

I'm not sure how one of the other amps would have done in this system, the synergy here was as good as I've heard. I do need to mention that the entire system was also wired with his own (pretty expensive) cables and they are something special too.

I don't understand how the bias does or doesn't affect the sound, so I can't comment on this. Rhyno indicated he had a problem tripping the breaker and I also read this might be an issue in the latest review of this amp. However, I have mine on a 15amp breaker and have no problem what so ever. As a matter of fact, the turn-on and off is about as quiet as any amp I've owned.

And, I have my TV and the rest of my components plugged into this same circuit as well.

For the price the Belles seems hard to beat, but I'm also a huge Odyssey fan. Although they're not on your list.
tecnofossil
2 posts
 
I'd opt for the Moscode. I am a fan of the old NYAL stuff that George Kaye sold in the 80's. While the build quality of the chassis of the old Mos 300 wasn't very impressive (rather resembled a collection of after thoughts) the amp itself was super. The new Moscode is in another league altogether.

-T
stltrains
845 posts
 
hey plato, tried your mini mod on my ref 9se amps and i must say you are correct, i like the sound better with out the cap, it makes a already fine amplifier much more musical thanks mike
More to discover