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The new Coda S5.5 amplifier: It's a "Petite Beast"!

I have in-house the New Coda Technologies S5.5 amplifier for review for Stereo Times website. It will be awhile before I write the review. However, I'm so impressed by the performance of this petite amplifier, it only weights 45 pounds, that I wanted to give a heads up to you GON members if you are in the market for a balanced pure class A amplifier, delivers 50 watts @ 8 Ohms, and can drop 100 Amperes of current on a peak!

The world class build quality of Coda amplifiers is on display with the S5.5, along with the most beautiful purity of tonality, precise sound-staging, complete liquidity offered by pure class A design, and what might be the best top end regarding details, decays, and a natural shimmering without brightness or any edge at all.

The S5.5 uses extremely wide bandwidth output transistors instead of the usual TO3 devices used in most transistor designs. I own the Coda #16, which is great, but the midrange/high end is taken to another level of musical enjoyment with the S5.5. The S5.5 has a sense of speed/aliveness that is exciting to listen to that you experience in live music. The amp is dynamic as hell, has driven with ease any speaker I have tried it with, hence my nickname of the "Petite Beast". Remember, 50 watts pure class A, can drop 100 amperes of current and only weights 45 pounds.

Teajay (Terry London)

johnah5
ddafoe
259 posts
 

Has anyone using the S5.5 noticed they are playing their music louder than normal?

To try and protect what hearing I have remaining I tend to monitor my listening volumes but have noticed since I purchased the S5.5 I'm listening closer to the 90dBC mark rather than the 80dBC I aim for.

I find it so clean and dynamic, but yet not fatiguing.  I think that is why I'm turning it up some, to get the live music feel :)    It definitely is a beast with respect to bass, driver control, and dynamics..., at least with my easy to drive Spendor speakers.

charliee's avatar
charliee
233 posts
 

@ minatophase3

I just got around to installing the two Acme Audio Labs 12 amp fuses. The factory fuses however are 16 amp, not 12 amp. So I cant use these two Acme fuses, wrong value. So if you installed 12 amp as you posted, you used the wrong value. Unless your amp came with 12's instead of 16's like mine did. 

minatophase3
34 posts
 

@charliee - I asked Doug from Coda which fuses to use and he told me 2 of the 12 Amp fuses so that is what I have been using.  I didn't pay attention to the values of the stock fuses so am not sure if they were 12 or 16, but since Doug said the 12 Amp fuses were fine I went with it. 

I would suggest reaching out to Doug and see what he says. 

Post removed 
charliee's avatar
charliee
233 posts
 

@Teajay (Terry London),

Mr. London, if you are still monitoring this thread, what are your top recommendations for pre amps that match well with the S5.5? I have the amp but I am having some difficulty in pre amp shopping understanding what is a great match, and what isn't. The whole gain explanation gets very confusing real quick for me. There are some great pre amps that are very interesting in my price range such as the Spatial Audio Raven, Linear Tube Audio Micro ZOTL, Aric Audio Mother Lode, Cary Audio SLP 05. Yes, all of them are tube, thats my preference. 

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