Old Krell vs new Krell amps...


Hello,
I actually have to choose between differents Krell amps, for roughly the same price :
a pair of Krell Audio Standard (KAS)
a Krell Evo 302
and for half the price a pair of KAS-2 amps

How do they compare, in terms of sound ?
The KAS is a legend, but is it actually still a good choice ? Its fiability is good ? The KAS is really better than the KAS-2 ?
And, what about the new Evo amps ? Are they better than the KAS or the FPB amps ?
My speakers are easy to drive : Tannoy GRF, but I may swap to big TAD or JBL...
I can't compare those amps directly because they are sold in different(and very far from each others) shops.
Thanks a lot for all informations and advices.
Best Regards,
nico_g
If the Krell KAS are the huge two piece mono's connected by solid copper (or brass?) bus bars that went for around $35K back in the mid 90's, then I have heard them extensively in various setups along with the KAS-2's, various KSA amps and all the FPB series. I have not heard many of the latest amps, and certainly not the Krell Evo series, but the KAS mono's were easily better than any of the FPB amps and remain perhaps the finest amps I have ever heard...amazing.

I did not care for the KAS-2 as they were very much like the FPB-600's - flat and lifeless (the FPB-300 too). Just my opinion, of course. For reasons others have mentioned, unless the price were too good to pass up, I do not believe I would purchase the KAS mono's due to complexity, age, and likely astonomical cost associated with repairs. I really do not know, however, and am just speculating: for all I know the amps might last another 100 years...they sure looked like they could.
Yes, the KAS are in 4 blocks : eahc channel has its separate power supply.
They were built around 1990 and I don't have precise information about their reliability...
I have to test them seriously and if the shop offers a warranty, it could be interesting.
If I try to summarize all the answers, I get mixed results :
- 2 first posts : FPB are better than KAS,
- then 2 posts : EVO are the best,
- 2 posts : KSA and KAS are better than FPB.

So, there is no clear winner, I think !
Last result : Pass X350.5 is another very good solution...
I would be surprised if you picked any Krell over your amp,YMMV,good luck,Bob
And we are forgetting the Krell Reference krs 200 monoblocks (a pair just showed-up at Audiogon today) - some people consider it one of the best amplifiers ever manufactured.
SME founder Alastair Robertson-Aikman used a pair in in famous listening room, and as far as I know they are still being used to drive his modified ESL63.