Please recommend amp or integrated for Polk LSI 15

Hi Lush,

Thanks! I wish you had got to me before as I Alllllmost
pulled the trigger on that one a couple of times. But
I took a chance today and ordered a BN Jungson DA 200IA
200 W/PC integrated. We'll see what it does, but could not
help try it for the price. It will be here
Friday. Wish me luck!

Bob

Hello,

I had the LSi 9's for several years and went through many integrated's including NAD 320BEE, SimAudio i-5080 (basically an i-3) and a Krell 400xi. I found the Krell worked the best. It was a very smooth presentation; I thought the SimAudio was a little lean with the LSi 15's when I borrowed those for a period of time. The bass seemed a little bloated; with the Krell this changed as did inner detail and soundstage.

Thanks Kirklin! Cannot find one at moment. I ended up selling
my amp afterall, and am looking hard & heavy now. I am
considering one of the Xindak or monster Jungson integrated
amps.( Jungson DA200 or CA 280) Anyone heard one of those??

Hello Friend,

I'm currently running LSi series (9's and 15's), and I discovered they LOVE Yamaha equipment! ! ! Initially I was dissapointed, because my heart believes my Parasound can make 'everything' sound great, but isn't the case with the LSi's. I've several comments about the LSi series being "too laid back." Perhaps, that's why the seem livelier with Yamaha equipment (historically, Yamaha's are very 'forward' (emphasize Highs and Mids). Add that to Polks and . . . . . more livelier/balanced LSi speakers. This is the 'kicker.' I am currently running a Yamaha RX-Z1 (reciever/integrated amp). That worked great, BUT . . . honestly, it's a gloriified pre-amp with my old&faithful M-80 (Vintage Yamaha am - originally was a C-80 pre-amp/M-80 amp combination). As I said, I was using my Parasound initially, but . . . .like Krell, the low-end was emphasized more. A very long-winded way of saying/recommending finding a higher-end Yamaha power source (hint: the M-80 is 250wpc, and wasn't a 'slouch' by any means, back-in-it's-day) AND it still sounds great (If interested - there is more to the M-80. I tweaked on it, changed the connecting post, etc)

Thanks again for the replies, but it looks like I
am going to keep my Wyred amp & PS pre for the LSI's
as it is magical. I'll try to cut some corners
somewhere else.

Thanks again!

I have no experience with Krell equipment, but really like the Musical Fidelity A3.5 and A5 integrated amplifiers. Have listened to them critically with Totem, B&W and Revel speakers and felt they did a superb job controlling each and highlighting their strengths. At low to moderate volumes I have a hard time telling much difference between the two amps. The LSi's look like they might be a handful to drive, but unless you want to run them to near concert volumes in a large room, the 150W A3.5 should have enough umph to do the trick. Saw an A3.5 on Agon recently for $1100. I think it would be difficult to find a good A5 for that kind of money or even a few hundred more. The A3.5 is physically smaller, so that fits your "downsizing" approach.

Having no remote was what made me sell the Portal also. Thought I was upgrading with the Classe but was mistaken so I sold it and bought a NAD C-352 as an interim. In all honesty I preferred the warmth of the NAD to the dry lifeless Classe. My search ended with the Bel Canto evo2i integrated. You might look into it for the Polks. I considered the Krell but what I liked about the Bel Canto is the cool running aspect. Oh yeah, it sounds wonderful also. The only amp I'd consider leaving it for now is the newer Bel Canto integrated. Good luck whichever way you go.

Thanks for the posts guy's! Owned the Portal and really
liked it a lot. If it only had a remote! I have to
have a remote.
Read a lot about the NAD C372, and owned a lot on NAD
in the past and think it's realy great gear. I am looking
in maybe a Krell or MF integrated!? Any thoughts? I am
amazed with the imaging of these speakers and want a
good enough amp to retain that.
Might just have to keep what I have if all else fails.

Any other suggestions?

Can stretch budget to maybe $1300-$1400

Try NAD C372. Good sound, low price, lots of head room. Abbreviated review here:

http://nadelectronics.com/reviews/Stereophile-C372-Review

Interested to hear about Polk LSi's.

I owned the LSi-15s about two years ago and agree they are very nice sounding speakers. Much more refined than I expected. During the time I owned them I used two different integrated amps, a Portal Panache, and a Classe CAP-151.
Even though the Portal was only 100 watts versus the Classe's 150 watts, I much preferred the sound with the Portal. The Portal Panache is a very natural and robust sounding amp which was a good match with the Polks. Good luck with your search.