It's probably a bit too soon to comment, but Simon asked me if I would and he is such a great guy, how could I say no?
First of all, I have but 330 hours of actual music-time on the Spectron Musician III Signature, and I have been told to hold back on any judgments until I have used the amp for at least 500 hours. That said, I can still make a few comments. Cutting to the chase, I like the amp so much that I ordered a second one to use in a vertical bi-amp mode with my MBL 101Es.
For the past 5 years I have enjoyed a pair of Avantgarde Trios and have run them with a couple of dozen of the finest low-power, mostly single ended tube amplifiers available (including Jadis 845, 300B, several Wavelength models, Audiopax, Kronzilla, Wavac, Lamm 2.1 and finally, the best of the bunch - the Tron 300B amps which are just simply magical on the Trios.)
I had beautiful custom-built woofers specially made for the Trios (their stock woofers are junk!) and bi-amped them and equalized the bass. The sound was about as good as it gets with Trios, and that is very, very good.
Recently, I took delivery on a pair of MBLs and after doing a bit of research, decided to give the Spectron a try. How can you lose with a 30-day money back guaranty. I had my doubts, since I was of the opinion (as are many audiophiles) that class D is great for bass, but not particularly worthy of being used with the finest speakers.
How wrong I was. Remember that my previous reference sound was a magnificent 300B amp that has, to my experience, no equal in the mid-range, and is very extended and sweet on the top end. Bass was great, being run with a dedicated solid state amp and well equalized. The MBLs are being driven, full range, with a single Spectron.
Here are my feelings after two weeks: The treble is clearly the finest I have ever heard. The sound stage is in a class by itself. Depth, height, width, layering - it's all there in abundance. Dynamics rival the big Trio horns. Even micro dynamics are all there, and that is an area that the Trios are very strong in. The mid-range "magic" is not quite up to the Trons, but then I need 800 watts, not 7 watts. And - the amp is not fully broken in yet.
I have definitely come to the conclusion that the Spectron is VERY power cord sensitive. If you like detail, transparency and tight bass, use the Nordost Brahma. If you want more of a "tube-like" sound, warmer, rounder, but very natural, the Top Gun CCCP is a great choice.
The problem I have with this review of the Spectron is that I am really commenting on TWO new products at the same time and it is, as you know, impossible to attribute all of the results to either the speaker or the amp. Still, I think the potential of the Spectron is great enough that I purchased a second one. It's sound is natural and uncolored. Perhaps the 300B sound is a bit euphonic, which I happen to like a lot.
If you need a high powered amp, I can't think of anything else that will do a better job at anywhere near the price. It is a great effort and one that will remain a secret to the vast number of audiophiles who need to spend more or will avoid it because it is class D. Their loss!
This is an amp you can buy with confidence and chances are, you will never return it after the 30 days are up.
First of all, I have but 330 hours of actual music-time on the Spectron Musician III Signature, and I have been told to hold back on any judgments until I have used the amp for at least 500 hours. That said, I can still make a few comments. Cutting to the chase, I like the amp so much that I ordered a second one to use in a vertical bi-amp mode with my MBL 101Es.
For the past 5 years I have enjoyed a pair of Avantgarde Trios and have run them with a couple of dozen of the finest low-power, mostly single ended tube amplifiers available (including Jadis 845, 300B, several Wavelength models, Audiopax, Kronzilla, Wavac, Lamm 2.1 and finally, the best of the bunch - the Tron 300B amps which are just simply magical on the Trios.)
I had beautiful custom-built woofers specially made for the Trios (their stock woofers are junk!) and bi-amped them and equalized the bass. The sound was about as good as it gets with Trios, and that is very, very good.
Recently, I took delivery on a pair of MBLs and after doing a bit of research, decided to give the Spectron a try. How can you lose with a 30-day money back guaranty. I had my doubts, since I was of the opinion (as are many audiophiles) that class D is great for bass, but not particularly worthy of being used with the finest speakers.
How wrong I was. Remember that my previous reference sound was a magnificent 300B amp that has, to my experience, no equal in the mid-range, and is very extended and sweet on the top end. Bass was great, being run with a dedicated solid state amp and well equalized. The MBLs are being driven, full range, with a single Spectron.
Here are my feelings after two weeks: The treble is clearly the finest I have ever heard. The sound stage is in a class by itself. Depth, height, width, layering - it's all there in abundance. Dynamics rival the big Trio horns. Even micro dynamics are all there, and that is an area that the Trios are very strong in. The mid-range "magic" is not quite up to the Trons, but then I need 800 watts, not 7 watts. And - the amp is not fully broken in yet.
I have definitely come to the conclusion that the Spectron is VERY power cord sensitive. If you like detail, transparency and tight bass, use the Nordost Brahma. If you want more of a "tube-like" sound, warmer, rounder, but very natural, the Top Gun CCCP is a great choice.
The problem I have with this review of the Spectron is that I am really commenting on TWO new products at the same time and it is, as you know, impossible to attribute all of the results to either the speaker or the amp. Still, I think the potential of the Spectron is great enough that I purchased a second one. It's sound is natural and uncolored. Perhaps the 300B sound is a bit euphonic, which I happen to like a lot.
If you need a high powered amp, I can't think of anything else that will do a better job at anywhere near the price. It is a great effort and one that will remain a secret to the vast number of audiophiles who need to spend more or will avoid it because it is class D. Their loss!
This is an amp you can buy with confidence and chances are, you will never return it after the 30 days are up.