Wow, that is quite a different comparison, with the Khartago being at least 2x the cost of the Vidar. That being said, I have personally heard a Khartago and they are very nice amps. Very high resolution and sound excellent. With your choice, I would definitely choose the Khartago. The Vidar is basically half the size of the Khartago and the Vidar doesn't even have as much power supply capacitance as the base version of the Khartago. I've heard the Schiit devices and I would be concerned that they would sound a little too "solid state".
Odyssey "Khartago" Stereo Extreme" amp compared to Schitt's "Vidar" amp
I am downgrading my amp to a smaller size and considering either Odyssey Khartago Stereo Extreme or the Schitt Audio "Vidar" Therefore, I need some feedback about which amp might sound better and more compatible with a Conrad Johnson PV-14L SE pre-amp. Also, which one would be more compatible with a variety of speakers
My current speakers are Golden Ear Technology model 7's which might possibly be replaced by Magneplanar .7 speakers, or something better than the GET 7's.
Thank you,
S.J.
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I was running GE Triton Ones with an Odyssey Stereo Extreme amp which was rated at 150 a channel compared to the 130 per channel of the Khartago. The Odyssey amps are the better buy and you get a 20 year transferrable warranty to boot. I sold my Odyssey amp when I moved on to McIntosh, but I am VERY sorry I did so. The Odyssey did a lot of great things right. Get the Odyssey, you will love it. |
Has anyone mentioned; Klaus offers a no-questions-asked, no-restocking-fee, 30 day, money-back, satisfaction guarantee?
http://www.odysseyaudio.com/sales-usa.html Hard to go wrong! |
Doesn’t Odyssey recommend a really long break in time on their amps? I’m going by memory here, I thought I’d read that somewhere. Ive got the Vidar and have become really impressed with it. It’s clearly superior to the Adcom amp it replaced as well as the Nad C375BEE’s amp section. Open, detailed and effortless come to mind in describing its characteristics. Owners report good synergy with Maggies. For a 100 wpc amp it really has grunt. |
Doesn’t Odyssey recommend a really long break in time on their amps? I’m going by memory here, I thought I’d read that somewhere. The manual states 6+ weeks with the amp remaining on the entire time for full break-in. It describes 4 distinct phases which the amp will go through. Owners report good synergy with Maggies. I have the Cyclops version of the Khartago (with extreme boards and upgraded ps) and ran it with MMG's for several years. Yes, there is a very nice synergy. Odyssey amps are higher current amps which, as well-reported, Maggies like and/or need. While the amp was powerful enough for my normal listening levels there were times I wished for a tad more. Adding a powered sub did alleviate much of that issue for me, fortunately. The sound quality of the Khartago is outstanding but if I were to do it again, I would opt for the more powerful Stratos to pair with Maggies. Sorry @sunnyjim, I have no experience with the Vidar. Best of luck. |
Thank you to all who have responded. One of the reason I was considering the Khartago or Schmit Vidar is size. I posted another thread a month ago about replacing my current BAT VK-200 with a smaller and lighter amp. The BAT at 70lbs is heavy and awkward to move in a component rack either to clean or make adjustments.to the speaker connections. The Khartago weighs about 33 lbs. Its width and depth about the same as the BAT. However, the Vidar weighs approx.13 lbs and is more compact in size This may seem like a downsizing of sound quality going from the BAT to the above amps, but I really like to reduce the sprawl of the system to be more accessible and streamlined. Don't get me wrong, the BAT and the CJ pre-amp work well together. The advice by Soix to wait until you decide on speakers is good and practical, but I have not found a "upgraded" replacement for the GET 7's The other alternative is to go with a integrated amp, like a Conrad Johnson CA-150 or the more powerful CA-200 (the SE versions are $2000 more). Though, both models have received excellent reviews. |
Another amp to consider is this Van Alstine Vision Set-120. It is a mos-fet and would be a good match with your CJ preamp. https://avahifi.com/collections/solid-state-power-amplifiers/products/vision-set-120-power-amplifier |
To mtbrider: Thanks for the heads up; I did see the listing on TMR. I just need to check out the authenticity of the model from the serial number and possibly talk to Klaus about the difference between standard Khartago and the Extreme version. yogiboy, Thanks for the recommendation and the link. I will check it out S.J. |
@gochurchgo...…………... I ran the Odyssey amp with the following GE Triton speakers: I used the Triton Two’s, Triton Ones, and Triton References. The sound was always GE house sound with various subtlety’s. The amp sounded great on all 3 speakers, nothing cold, sterile, bland, or bright about it. I was very happy with all 3 incarnations and to be honest , if my wife hadn’t bugged me about the growing pile of unsold equipment in my office that I was supposed to sell to recoup some money, I would have kept it. It was/is that good. The power was effortless, bass deep and impactful, midrange was ever so slightly on the warm side and treble was clean and clear but never, ever bright. |
sunnyjim OP If you get speakers that are bi-amp’able, I would go these two amps horizontally bi-amped, still cheaper than one Odyssey. A Schiit Vidar on the bass of both, and the new Class-A Schiit Aegir, for the mids and highs. This should be a killer amp setup for bi-amp’able speakers. http://www.av2day.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/biamp1.jpg Cheers George |
To embrace what georgehifi was saying, you can get a pair of Nuforce STA 200’s at $499 each and, passively, vertically biamp the 7s. Most people are clueless to a configuration like this, but it is quite amazing. I am using the exact set up on a 3rd system, with a pair of older Signet towers I own since new, and it portrays excellence in sq. BTW, the Triton 7s, with the newer midbass drivers, are an excellent for the money speaker. BTW, the Nuforce STA 200 is very high gain, and likely will not work with the CJ preamp. My advice....get rid of the CJ and go passive ! Detail galore ! Ask georgehifi about that. YMMV. Enjoy ! MrD. |
his price points are incorrect.Over here in Oz there on the money, even "if" a bit more over there, the Schitt combo would still sound better than the equivalent Odyssey or higher for that matter. As you’ll have real 20w class-A running the mids and tops. The best A bias an Odyssey could manage would be 5-7w with their rail voltage and heatsink, and monoblocks are just bridged stereo amps Cheers George |
I have owned an Odyssey Stratos amp, Tempest and Candela preamp and had problems with the gear and very bad service. That was my experience and would not deal with them again. Also got a message from another Audiogon fella who had terrible problems with a deal very recently with Odyssey. I have a Schiit Audio Bifrost Uber DAC and it was really great sounding for the price. I would stay with Schiit or keep looking at other manufacturers. |
So- assumptions, now- to include Klaus(as being a fool, regarding EE design). Have you personally met him? I have(and been to his house, more than once). It’s been my experience; there’s much more to the sound of an amplifier, than just the operational mode. btw: Ever heard of a Germanic audio manufacturer, called, "Symphonic Line"? It was their EEs, that designed the circuitry, Odyssey employs. Please: name their less than competent circuit designers(ie: Rolf Gemein, perhaps?).
http://www.symphonic-line.de/eng/
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So- assumptions, now- to include Klaus(as being a fool, regarding EE design).I believe you are for now trying to put words into my mouth by twisting what I said. I said Mike Moffat is no fool, (not Klaus) I'd back him over Klaus. And yes a friend of mine was to become the Australian agent for Odyssey, got all the range samples, but when lifted the lid I showed him that the monoblocks were just the normal stereo amps bridged with blanked off input and speaker connections on the back, he and others that were on hand were not amused, then sold the samples he had, and didn't re-order again. |
I asked a couple questions, that you left unanswered. Did you directly compare the Odyssey Khartago Extreme, with the Schitt combo, or- are you making assumptions? To expand slightly, on the second: have you any personal contact or experience, with ANY of the above EEs(Bunge or Moffat, in particular), by which to judge their relative knowledge/capabilities? Yeah, you said, " And we know Mike Moffat is no fool in Electronic Engineering design, I’d back him over Klaus any day.", which implies you assume Klaus IS one. Further, regarding Class A operation; read the portion of this article, dealing with heatsinks and Rolf’s design goals. https://www.stereophile.com/content/rolf-gemein-heart-matter Far as a chassis with, "blanked off" holes: Klaus has to keep his costs down somehow, to offer the values he does. Having one chassis, covering a couple variations in amp design, is one excellent method. |
And we know Mike Moffat is no fool in Electronic Engineering design, I’d back him over Klaus any dayNo! I believe you "think" I believe he is. so credit should be given to Jason, as well as Mike.Yes agreed, but we all know who is the front man of the two, with the highest profile and accolades. He made Theta Audio one of the best in hiend you could get. Cheers George |
Given you’ve ignored my second question, I’ll assume, the answer is, "No!", to both. The design parameters of Odyssey amps(base models) provide for slightly over 23% of their first wattage, to be Class A. (ie: 35 W, out of the Stratus’ 150 W / 23 W, of the Khartago’s 100 W) Some may have heard; Alon Wolf uses Odyssey, to voice his highly regarded Magico speakers. Seems a pretty solid reference, but- that’s just my opinion. Happy listening! |
35w Class-A per channel out of the 150w StratusYou have been conned, "if" you were told this. You need to go to EE school, "35w of Class-A per channel on a 150w amp"!!!!, Means it would have massive heat sinks and be the size of a coffee table to dissipate the amount of heat, or have serious fan forced cooling, what a crock of **** Alon Wolf uses OdysseyI don’t care! LMAOMe too ’D" talk about feeding BS to the gullible, just like it’s never advertised you get just bridged stereo amps when you buy the "premium" Monoblocks. Cheers George |
This is a laugh, rodman99999 you need to look at things better, and try to understand them. I just had a look at the site. 35W IS THE POWER CONSUMPTION. NOT!!!! THE CLASS-A PER CHANNEL !!! The Stratos at 150w would be lucky to have 2w of Class-A per channel with 35w idle power consumption Joan Armatrading, I listened the the track just yesterday "Save Me" |
Those figures were the result of bench-testing, in one of Odyssey’s many favorable reviews, NOT the idle currents of the amps. Perhaps ’The Audiophile Voice’, that mentioned the Stratus’ figures in their review as well, read something incorrectly(not that I give them that much credence)? Had you looked at the reference I provided earlier; that’s Rolf’s philosophy(more and better heatsinking for increased Class A capabilities). YES; I know you don’t care(about anything but your own opinions). I’ll leave the ubiquitous last word, to you(seems you need the validation). |
@georgehifi - Thinking about it; I’ve been challenging you, regarding personal experience and assumptions. The specs that I quoted, were from one article, then repeated in another, neither author of with whom I’ve had any personal contact/experience. The figures were not obtained on my test bench, or- in my presence. In that confabulation(brainfart, basically); I got the, "ASS" part of, "assumptions", to a tee. My bad and my last word(MMMM, crow, yummy)! |
Your are incorrect and delusional Read 35w idle draw at the bottom of the specs http://www.odysseyaudio.com/products-stratos-mono.html And as I explained, no chance in the world 35w Class-A per channel from a 150w a/b amps with those heatsinks, never ever!! |
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Alon Wolf also appears to use a QSC GX3 pro power amp and so do I (cost around 200 bucks new), although mine is occasionally pressed into service for live concert monitor duties. Not sure what Alon uses his for (saw a pic of it from a Magico shop tour article), but my wife uses mine as a footstool under her home office desk (the amp lives in a small road case). Alon also uses "red book" CDs for demos, etc., so we have that in common also. Me and Alon...nearly the same person... |
"Your are incorrect and delusional"? Nah! Just repeated something I shouldn’t have. "How’s $1,000.00 for a preamp, another $1,000.00 for a (150Wpc) amp (the first 35 watts are pure class A)...The sound was excellent with outstanding ability to go way down into the nether regions." That’s a verbatim quote, from the second(Audiophile Voice)
of the two articles, regarding the Stratus amp’s output, to which I’ve briefly alluded, twice now. AND- like I said: had no business quoting those two personally unsubstantiated articles(whether correct, or not). |