Personal amp evolution

Old 8 track wollensack, dual tt, sansui 9090

A couple receivers, onkyo tx 890, 860.
Onkyo m504

Carvin Dcm 2000's as monoblocks.

Crown studio ref 1, forced to sell, 30 amp plug could not use, never had chance to even plug it in, sold and bought rotel 1090, good amp, had inrush current limiter go out on me, sold and bought emotiva monoblocks,
Had my Sunfire signature fixed, which shelved the emotiva stuff.

Odyssey stratos mono's

McCormack dna-750. I'm done buying. For now

Just the ones I remember. There are others, either for a short stint, or some not worth mentioning.

Sansui 1000x receiver (still have), Concept 5.5 receiver (traded), Hafler DH200 kit (sold), Dunlap-Clarke Dreadnaught 500 (sold), Akai integrated (traded), Hafler DH220 (sold), Sony STR-AV 970 surround receiver (still have), Belles Model 1 (still have, surround rear in current system), McIntosh MC302 (primary in current system), McIntosh 7100 (center channel bridged for mono in current system).

I'm 62 years old, so I might be forgetting some of them:

1.  Kenwood integrated (probably 35 wpc).
2.  McIntosh MC225/Dynaco Pre-Amp.
3.  McIntosh MC275/Dynaco Pre-Amp.
4.  Marantz 2275 Receiver.
5.  Tandberg TR2060 Receiver.
6.  Various NAD Receivers.
7.  NAD Masters Series M3 Integrated.
8.  McIntosh MAC6700 Receiver.
9.  McIntosh C50 Pre-Amp/MC452 Power Amp.

Here’s my amp/int amp/rec’r journey from 1984 to 2017:

1. Yamaha M50, crown straight line 1 preamp
2. Sansui AU717
3. NAD 2155, Luxman preamp & Acoustat TNP pre
4. B&K ST140, Acoustat TNP pre, Music reference RM5 mkII pre & dyna PAS 2
5. Dynaco ST70, Dyna PAS 3
6. McIntosh MC225, Music Reference pre
7. B&K EX442 Sonata - sounded almost exactly like the Paoli’s), Music Ref pre
8. Paoli M60 monoblocks, Music Ref pre
9. cj MV50, Music Ref pre
10. Music Reference RM9, Music Ref pre
11. AMC CVT-3030
12. Mac 1900 Rec’r
13. Mitsubishe DA-R7 rec’r
14. Creek 5050 int.
15. Acurus A80, Hegeman Hapi2 pre
16. Early Korneff 6bq5 SE int.
17. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded Conn organ amp
18. Custom KT66 SE int (from ebay)
19. Onix OA-21s
20. ads A-2
21. JVC AX-55, 80 watt Special class A int.
22. Musical Fidelity B1
23. Kailin 6bq5 int
24. Rawsonte Brick gainclones, Superphon Rev. Basic Dual Mono preamp
25. Audio Space Mini-Galaxy II
26. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded
27. Yamaha AX-550 int amp
28. Tandberg 3030 receiver
29. Fleawatt TPA3122 D2 Soft Maple amp
30. Fleawatt cigar box amp TPA3122
31. Fleawatt TDA7297 Zebrawood
32. Optonica SM-1515B int.
33. Onix OA-20/2
34. Ditton Elan DI-260
35. Denon DRA-700 receiver
36. Antique Sound Lab MG-si15DT
37. Tandberg TIA-3012

And the most memorable/best sounding: Mac MC225, Music Ref RM9, Korneff, 6bg6, the Onix’s, the B&K’s, Paolis, the Fleawatt’s, ASL, and the Tandberg 3012

And the worst sounding/bigest disappointment: cj (just didn’t mate up with the MR preamp & wish I had a PV5), Musical Fidelity B1, Kailin (fans just too darn loud), MAC1900 (great tuner but early SS harsh sounding amp)

Ok. I'll play.

Mark Levinson ML-9
Krell KSA-150
Ayre V-1, V-1x, V-1xe
Ayre MX-R, MX-R Twenty
D'Agostino S-250

With a hundred auditioned in between.
These were the "keepers".

I see this thread hasn't quite died out, so I'll add another update.  I enjoyed the rebuilt GAS for a good four years but in addition to simply wanting more volume, I wanted better speakers too, so I once again picked up another Ayre, the VX-5 Twenty.  This is my 4th different model Ayre over the last 16 years, so there's definitely something I like about these.

Since my last post here, 8 years ago on 12-16-09, I traded up from the very good sounding Clayton M200 monos to their big brothers, the M300s. The list below picks things up from there.

Clayton M300: 300/600 wpc into 8/4 ohms, fully in Class A. There are so many things these amplifiers do well that I really need to cover them in a review. The main thing with Clayton amps is that they sound outstandingly real so you think less about electronics and more about the beauty and power of the music. Clayton amps provide much more power into Class A than the competition, and particularly at their price points. The M300s are about $17K.

Acoustic Imagery Atsah: 400 wpc. I replaced the Clayton M300s with these in a quest to have it all. The variety of NC1200 amps (i.e., Acoustic Imagery, Merrill, Mola-Mola, etc.) all offer a quiet, powerful, rich sound in a small, cool-running, package. They offered everything I wanted, except ultimately the sound. IMO, their sonic deficiency has to do with what I perceive as an absence of ambient information. I  do not know how that could actually be, but the sound reminds me of musicians individually playing in a studio rather than performers on a stage together. This is an inadequate explanation so, for those interested in understanding more completely what I ultimately could not live with, I recommend reading the review of the Mola-Mola Kaluga amps in Mono and Stereo linked below;

http://www.monoandstereo.com/2015/08/mola-mola-makua-and-kaluga-review.html

McCormack DNA-2 LAE with SMc Audio Platinum Upgrades: Steve did pretty much everything he could to upgrade this powerful (300/600 wpc into 8/4 ohms) stereo amplifier and it sounds very good indeed. It is clear, powerful and quiet, with a very nice tone. When I decided I couldn’t live with the Ncore sound, I took an opportunity on the somewhat rare LAE version of this amplifier and did not regret the result. I have owned several McCormack amps including a standard DNA-2 and the DNA-500. Of the four amplifiers listed in this update post, this is one of the two I still own.

Lamm M1.2 Reference: The biggest 110 wpc (into 8 or 4 ohms) I have ever heard. I previously owned the M1.1 and except for a somewhat dark sound, I completely enjoyed my time with them. These 1.2 Reference monos fixed the dark sound and kept all the other things I liked about the Lamm hybrid amps. The sound was full and tonally rich but with my speakers I ultimately found they did not offer quite the “slam” I was looking for and had a point where 110 wpc into 4 ohms was just not enough.  

Clayton M300: 300/600 wpc into 8/4 ohms, fully in Class A. Hey wait, did I not mention these at the top of this post? Sure did. After going through the three very good amps that replaced my previous M300s, I first tried to buy the original pair back and found that my buyer would not part with them. We still stay in touch to occasionally discuss things that work well with our Claytons. I finally purchased another pair used and sent them to Wilson Shen who fully upgraded them, as he did with my previous factory-purchased pair, and the result is spectacular. The somewhat large size and hot-running temperatures are small trade-offs for the outstanding sound I have achieved using these Class A amplifiers.  Wilson did not hold my temporary absence from Clayton ownership against me and in addition to being a wonderful manufacturer to work with, he is also a good friend.

A truly heartening story.  Especially for someone who had Clayton M-100's for a 10 years and moved up to the M300s 18 months ago.  While I wasn't totally loyal (I have a Berning 270), I never sold the M100's until I went to the M300s.
At this point can't imagine owning other amplifiers.  On the other hand, I'm glad someone took the journey.  Kind of like having a car pass me way above the speed limit.  I'm always happy to have a runner <g>.  And you are right about Wilson.  He actually made a house call when I had a problem.  Welcome home.

NAD 302
Redgum RG5500
MF A308CR
Cymer Audio 6550
Ayre VX5
Ayre MX-R

I just noticed this thread was still active and I has the first reply, 16 years ago! I don't think I ever updated so here is my list of amps to date.

Onkyo receiver
Bryston B-60
c-j premiere 11A
Air Tight ATM-1
Cary 300B monoblocks
Kron can't remember the model it  used two 842 tubes
Graaf GM5050
Deja Vu Audio custom stereo pushpull EL34 amp- current last 12 years

Here’s my amp/int amp/rec’r journey from 1984 to 2019:

1. Yamaha M50, crown straight line 1 preamp
2. Sansui AU717
3. NAD 2155, Luxman preamp & Acoustat TNP pre
4. B&K ST140, Acoustat TNP pre, Music reference RM5 mkII pre & dyna PAS 2
5. Dynaco ST70, Dyna PAS 3
6. McIntosh MC225, Music Reference pre
7. B&K EX442 Sonata - sounded almost exactly like the Paoli’s), Music Ref pre
8. Paoli M60 monoblocks, Music Ref pre
9. cj MV50, Music Ref pre
10. Music Reference RM9, Music Ref pre
11. AMC CVT-3030
12. Mac 1900 Rec’r
13. Mitsubishe DA-R7 rec’r
14. Creek 5050 int.
15. Acurus A80, Hegeman Hapi2 pre
16. Early Korneff 6bq5 SE int.
17. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded Conn organ amp
18. Custom KT66 SE int (from ebay)
19. Onix OA-21s
20. ads A-2
21. JVC AX-55, 80 watt Special class A int.
22. Musical Fidelity B1
23. Kailin 6bq5 int
24. Rawsonte Brick gainclones, Superphon Rev. Basic Dual Mono preamp
25. Audio Space Mini-Galaxy II
26. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded
27. Yamaha AX-550 int amp
28. Tandberg 3030 receiver
29. Fleawatt TPA3122 D2 Soft Maple amp
30. Fleawatt cigar box amp TPA3122
31. Fleawatt TDA7297 Zebrawood
32. Optonica SM-1515B int.
33. Creek 4330
34. Onix OA-20/2
35. Ditton Elan DI-260
36. Denon DRA-700 receiver
37. Antique Sound Lab MG-si15DT
38. Tandberg TIA-3012
39. early B&K ST140/Technics SU-9070 pre
40.  Gemtune GS-01
41.  Muse Model 100 amp/Model 1 preamp

And the most memorable/best sounding: Mac MC225, Music Ref RM9, Korneff, 6bg6, the Onix’s, the B&K’s, Paolis, the Fleawatt’s, ASL,  Tandberg 3012 & Muse combo

And the worst sounding/bigest disappointment: cj (just didn’t mate up with the MR preamp), Musical Fidelity B1, Kailin (fans just too darn loud), MAC1900 (great tuner but early SS harsh sounding amp) 

Carver 1.0

Adcom 565 mono's

Classe 15

Plinius SA100 MK2(Then upgraded to MK3 status)

BAT Vk75

ASL 1009 mono's

Ars-Sonum Filarmonia

Ars-Sonum Gran Filarmonia 

Sansui 800
Sansui  8
McIntosh 6100
McIntosh separates ( forgot model--did not own long)

Theshold 400e
ML 336
Boulder 850 Mono amps

Going back to 1972,I was 12,worked my ass of all summer & got:
Radio Shack receiver.
Harman Kardon receiver.
Sherwood Newcastle receiver..
Yamaha receiver.
Marantz surround receiver.
Bigger Marantz,latest surround receiver..
HUGE Integra 7.1 surround receiver..
GIGANTIC Pioneer Elite 9.1 surround receiver..
Bob Carver Sunfire surround receiver..
Harman Kardon integrated amplifier..
Arcam integrated amp..
Yaqin EL34 integrated..
Cayin EL34 integrated
Yaqin EL34 S.E.integrated..
Cayin KT88/EL34 integrated..
Creek Evolution 50a with Ruby DAC board...
Back to Cayin KT88/EL34 integrated..
And currently looking at my end game tube integrated from either Mastersound or Unison Research...

Very nice freediver especially when you made the move to tubes.  I’m still playing around making changes like sampling different flavors of ice cream.  I listed the preamps used with the amps as I believe it gives more useful information.  I’m downsizing soon back to an integrated and one less box soon.  But to update, here’s what I’ve had up to date:

Here’s my amp/int amp/rec’r journey from 1984 to 2020:

1. Yamaha M50, crown straight line 1 preamp
2. Sansui AU717
3. NAD 2155, Luxman preamp & Acoustat TNP pre
4. B&K ST140, Acoustat TNP pre, Music reference RM5 mkII pre & dyna PAS 2
5. Dynaco ST70, Dyna PAS 3
6. McIntosh MC225, Music Reference pre
7. B&K EX442 Sonata - sounded almost exactly like the Paoli’s), Music Ref pre
8. Paoli M60 monoblocks, Music Ref pre
9. cj MV50, Music Ref pre
10. Music Reference RM9, Music Ref pre
11. AMC CVT-3030
12. Mac 1900 Rec’r
13. Mitsubishe DA-R7 rec’r
14. Creek 5050 int.
15. Acurus A80, Hegeman Hapi2 pre
16. Early Korneff 6bq5 SE int.
17. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded Conn organ amp
18. Custom KT66 SE int (from ebay)
19. Onix OA-21s
20. ads A-2
21. JVC AX-55, 80 watt Special class A int.
22. Musical Fidelity B1
23. Kailin 6bq5 int
24. Rawsonte Brick gainclones, Superphon Rev. Basic Dual Mono preamp 
25. Audio Space Mini-Galaxy II (EL84 int)
26. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded
27. Yamaha AX-550 int amp
28. Tandberg 3030 receiver
29. Fleawatt TPA3122 D2 Soft Maple amp 
30. Fleawatt cigar box amp TPA3122
31. Fleawatt TDA7297 Zebrawood
32. Optonica SM-1515B int.
33. Creek 4330
34. Onix OA-20/2
35. Ditton Elan DI-260
36. Denon DRA-700 receiver 
37. Antique Sound Lab MG-si15DT 
38. Tandberg TIA-3012
39. early B&K ST140/Technics SU-9070 pre
40. Gemtune GS-01
40a.  GemTune GS-01 / Aragon 24 K preamp
41. Muse Model 100 amp/Model 1 preamp
42.  Custom EL84 amp / Museatex AVC1 preamp
43.  Nikko Alpha 130 / Museatex AVC1 preamp
44.  Jim McNally 6B4G SET / Museatex AVC1 pre
45.  Amber Series 70 / Museatex AVC1
45a.  Custom Dual 3118 chip amp / Museatex AVC1


And the most memorable/best sounding: Mac MC225, Music Ref RM9, Korneff, 6bg6, the Onix’s, the B&K’s, Paolis, the Fleawatt’s, ASL, Tandberg 3012, Muse combo, GemTune GS-01

And the worst sounding/bigest disappointment: cj (just didn’t mate up with the MR preamp), Musical Fidelity B1, Kailin (fans just too darn loud), MAC1900 (great tuner but early SS harsh sounding amp) 

To many to name, but journey has ended with a Toolshed Transcendence 300b Amp. Absolutely gorgeous looking but even better sounding. Matt is a master builder.

Adcom GFA-565 mono blocks
Threshold T-200
Krell KSA-250 for almost 30 years
D-Sonic M3a-600M, amazed

I posted in Nov 2017 how I picked up the Ayre VX-5 Twenty but I sold it the following July, so it didn't really work for me.  I then picked up a Magnus Audio MA-400, which has worked well with my current setup.  I'm in the process of selling my speakers so I can move to bigger full range speakers and eliminate the JL sub, which was similar to a system I had 15 years ago.

This amp evolution has been years in the making. Unfortunately its been a lot of mistakes with a need to play around. As you get older playing around gets tiring and looses it thrill.
Here goes.
NAD 2200 PE
Conrad Johnson MV 45A
B&K ST 140
Audio Research D60
Belles 150
OCM 200
Threshold SA 150
Bryston 3b
Bryston 3b NRB
PSE mono amps
Conrad Johnson Motif
Conrad Johnson 11a
Jeff Rowland model 1
Audio Research D240 Mk2
Audio Research D200
Audio Research D400 Mk2
Pass aleph 5
Audio Research Vt100 MK2
Audio Research VT100 MK3
VTL MB450 MK 2
VTL MB450 signature 
Ayre V2
Ayre V5
Ayre V1 evolution
krell m250
Jeff Rowland model 6
McIntosh 501
Mcintosh 452
Rogue m180
Rogue Medusa
Rogue Apollo’s 
Odyssey Kismets Extremes
Audio Research Ref 75
Audio Research Ref 75se
Audio Research Ref 150se
PS Audio BHK 300
Luxman M900U

NAD 3020 integrated
Bryston 3B
Krell KSA 50
VTL ST-80
Sunfire
Air Tight ATM-1
BAT VK-60
Spectral DMA-180 II
Cary Rocket 88
Berning ZH-270
Atmasphere MA1 monoblocks
BAT VK-150 SE monoblocks
Lamm M2.1 hybrid monoblocks
Krell FPB-300

Cheers,
Spencer

Lafayette Receiver
Technics Amp (?)
Dennon Receiver
Harmon Kardon Citation
Yamaha 301
Yamaha 801
Moon by Simaudio 240i
Moon by Simaudio 390/440A
NAD M10
Pathos Classic One MK3 (still have)
McIntosh MA252
Raven Blackhawk MK3 (still have)

Updated for 2022:

 

Here’s my amp/int amp/rec’r journey from 1984 to 2022:

1. Yamaha M50, crown straight line 1 preamp
2. Sansui AU717
3. NAD 2155, Luxman preamp & Acoustat TNP pre
4. B&K ST140, Acoustat TNP pre, Music reference RM5 mkII pre & dyna PAS 2
5. Dynaco ST70, Dyna PAS 3
6. McIntosh MC225, Music Reference pre
7. B&K EX442 Sonata - sounded almost exactly like the Paoli’s), Music Ref pre
8. Paoli M60 monoblocks, Music Ref pre
9. cj MV50, Music Ref pre
10. Music Reference RM9, Music Ref pre
11. AMC CVT-3030
12. Mac 1900 Rec’r
13. Mitsubishe DA-R7 rec’r
14. Creek 5050 int.
15. Acurus A80, Hegeman Hapi2 pre
16. Early Korneff 6bq5 SE int.
17. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded Conn organ amp
18. Custom KT66 SE int (from ebay)
19. Onix OA-21s
20. ads A-2
21. JVC AX-55, 80 watt Special class A int.
22. Musical Fidelity B1
23. Kailin 6bq5 int
24. Rawsonte Brick gainclones, Superphon Rev. Basic Dual Mono preamp
25. Audio Space Mini-Galaxy II (EL84 int)
26. John Ecklund PP6bg6 triode - moded
27. Yamaha AX-550 int amp
28. Tandberg 3030 receiver
29. Fleawatt TPA3122 D2 Soft Maple amp
30. Fleawatt cigar box amp TPA3122
31. Fleawatt TDA7297 Zebrawood
32. Optonica SM-1515B int.
33. Creek 4330
34. Onix OA-20/2
35. Ditton Elan DI-260
36. Denon DRA-700 receiver
37. Antique Sound Lab MG-si15DT
38. Tandberg TIA-3012
39. early B&K ST140/Technics SU-9070 pre
40. Gemtune GS-01
40a. GemTune GS-01 / Aragon 24 K preamp
41. Muse Model 100 amp/Model 1 preamp
42. Custom EL84 amp / Museatex AVC1 preamp
43. Nikko Alpha 130 / Museatex AVC1 preamp

43a. Nikko Alpha 130 / DB Systems 1a
44. Jim McNally 6B4G SET / Museatex AVC1 pre
45. Amber Series 70 / Museatex AVC1
46. Custom Dual 3118 chip amp / Museatex AVC1

47. PS Audio 2C+, PS Audio IVH preamp, ST1 tuner

48.  Acurus DIA-100

49. Fleawatt Strayhorn TPA3116D2 amp & matching Kenny Burrell 5670 Tube Buffered Volume Control

50. Linn Majik I int amp

51. Meridian 551 int amp


And the most memorable/best sounding: Mac MC225, Music Ref RM9, Korneff, 6bg6, the Onix’s, the B&K’s, Paolis, the Fleawatt’s, ASL, Tandberg 3012, Muse combo, GemTune GS-01

And the worst sounding/bigest disappointment: cj (just didn’t mate up with the MR preamp), Musical Fidelity B1, Kailin (fans just too darn loud), MAC1900 (great tuner but early SS harsh sounding amp)