Quad 989 vs. SoundLab Millennium 2

Atmasphere-

A belated thanks for the comment. If I had known your adroitness and willingness I would have sent the amps to you!

I sold the Wolcotts and the Levinson. The Levinson kept crapping out due to thermal shutoff. I had a old carver amp as a backup 200WPC? that worked better than it did. The 432 was the nadir of the Levinson line as I found out later. What a dog.

Now using a Sandersound Magtech amp and I couldn't be happier. I would love to get your amps but you folks are beyond my pay grade, more's the pity.

I now have an Oppo BD-105 handling digital audio. Wonderful, flexible product. I've only used the Ikeda (the real kind with the Decca design) about 50 hours since it was retipped/updated by the late man himself so I am going to sell it and put the Ortofon on the Linn. It's been awhile since I've been on Agon and it is good to be back.

Scousepasty, uh, sure- I was helpful somehow??

FWIW about 80% of our MA-2s production seem to be running on Sound Labs.

I have in what is my second system, ELS 63's and tried 989's when I was upgrading, and then SoundLabs - chalk and cheese! SoundLabs excelled and surpassed the 989's in every area.
I went on to build my high-end system around a pair of SoundLab U1-Px. These proved a little hard to find the best tube amplifiers to drive them but I got good advice from the Stateside dealers, thanks again Atmasphere.

Ivanj, unless you have a damaged transformer the Wolcott should not be that hard to sort out.

I own m2's and drive them with audiovalve challanger 180 monoblocks and jeff roland model 6 monoblocks.
My speakers have tordial transformer,impedance mod and copper diffusion ring.
I moved from Dunlavy sc3's to the m2's and have been extremely impressed with them.I have not experienced any reliablity problems or hard failures since I bought them used here on Audiogon over 2 yrs ago.I do not leave them on 24/7 but this is just my preference;it does take a little more than 1 hr to sound their best after powering up but the tube amps do as well.
I play music ranging from Diana Krull,Choir with organ,Eric Clapton and even Pink Floyd performs in my living room;all I can say is they play everything I can throw at them and it is extremely enjoyable.
When I switch to the Roland amps they play very close to the sound of the tubes but I find the tube sound to be a little bit more involving with the music but again probally just a personel preference;I could easily live with the Rolands alone if I had too without regret.
I have never heard a quad speaker so I can not compare the m2 to them;but if you can listen to a soundlab it should be heard.

since then I have gone to an all Pass preamp/phono amp system with Sound Labs u-1 PXs. I use SACD, DVDA, Hires computer feeds, a Don Scott modified Accuphase T100 and a Linn with an Ikeda cartridge and an old linear Yamaha with an Ortofon MC.

The Wolcotts have died and I cannot find any relief at their website. It was glorious while it lasted.

Now I have a Levinson 432 with updated biasing.

What can I do to improve a very very good amplifier that takes balanced inputs.

I'm back!

I recently listened to SL M-1s at Audiokinesis. I feel that these are the most re-creative speakers I have heard. They are more transparent than any other electrostatic I know of. Wolcotts amps were used to good effect, I played the first disk in the Solti Die Walkure reissue. I tell you it was exactly as the stage direction/orchestral layout is depicted in the liner notes. The tonality of the horns and then double basses when Hunding enters, etc., was almost visual in its naturalness. (I did not like the S/S monblocks - warners or something - they sounded like a bad phonostage.) I just ordered a pair....of M1s - amps later if the Pass can't cut it and if the exchequer recovers...Oh yes Duke is a class act....

I too have questions about these speakers. I am trying to decide to keep my Q63/sub combo or go to the 989s or Soundlabs. Any info would be appreciated.