I recommend the Holo Serene preamp or the Benchmark LA4 preamp with either the #8 or #16. They replaced the CODA 07x preamp on my office system. The Serene is a bit warmer than the LA4. They really make the amps shine because they do not add to the already great sounding amps.
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)
579 responses Add your response
We posted this info before on this thread. The information about the maximum current capability of all AGD amps is available on the AGD website under each product description. We do not consider any technical characteristic of our amps remarkable or not remarkable and we do not use them as a marketing tool, they just are what they are. In any case specifically for your question: Audion, Vivace and Tempo : 30Apk AGD Gran Vivace and DUET : 50Apk AGD Solo >70Apk |
@vthokie83 The Caladans take a very long time to break in. They tend to be a bit sharp out of the boxes. Once they settle in they are great. I am replacing a pair of Fyne F1-8 that with stands cost more than 3x. Really great imaging, great depth of textures, very musical. They are, at least in my system, ‘you are there’ speakers. The Caladans will reveal every little change upstream, so play with different cables, interconnects, power cords. in the Backert I am using 12sn7 tubes with adapters. These kick it up to another level. |
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Markmuse, I never did see anywhere that you posted your opinions on the Caladans since you got them.....I'd love to hear from you on them. Send a private message if you don't want to hijack this thread. I loved the Backert Labs Rhythm 1.4s that I test drove a few weeks ago, it came down to those and the Aric Audio Motherlode XL for me.....but the Backert was absolutely terrific. I'll try to get some thoughts together on the CODA/Caladan pairing, but it's 73 degrees and sunny here in Chicago today....and my wife has me cleaning up around the house today (and basement). She's definitely putting a "hitch in my getalong"....but she never complained about buying the Caladans/CODA/Aric Audio, so I owe her. |
@vthokie83 I too am interested in your comments on the Caladan / s5.5 pairing. I have Caladans. Currently a pair of AGD Tempo’s as mono blocks, using one channel of each amp - not bridged (don’t ask ;-). Regarding tube preamps, I have a Backert Labs Rhythm 1.3 which has an output impedance of < 80 per their specs. Doug at Coda said they would play well together. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the AGD / Caladan pairing, but sometimes you don’t know what you are missing until you aren’t. Call it curiosity on my part. Or neurosis if you wish. |
As far as I have been able to discern, the general rule of thumb for proper impedance component matching is that the input impedance should be at least 10x higher than the output impedance. Given that the input impedance of the Coda S5.5 is 10K ohms, then one could at least theoretically have a preamp with an output impedance of up to 1K ohms and still be okay. Have people found this to be true or should one strive for even lower output impedances, like 20x or more? As an example, I noticed that the Atmas-Sphere Class D amps have an input impedance of 100K ohms while their tube preamps have an output impedance of 250 ohms. That's quite a "cushion"! |
Im currently using a Coda CB preamp with the No.8. It sounds good but its very neutral in my opinion. My goal was to get a neutral power amp and let the speakers do their thing and tweek the sound via preamp. My goal was to find a truly balanced tube preamp preamp to pair with the No.8. But with the No.8 having only 10k input impedance balanced. I’ve been having a really hard time finding something to match. I recently came across another low key brand. Backert Labs Rhumba. Made in USA. He has three preamps.. balanced and all three have an output impedance of <75. . I believe the price ranges from 4000-12000. But you’d have to check his site. Either way.. if you already have a tube preamp that you want to try with whichever amp you decide on..it can’t hurt to try. Doug did say he builds his amps with balanced in mind.. but I’m sure using the single ended is just as good. Im curious to know why Doug’s amps have such a low input impedance..when using balanced. I guess it doesn’t matter when using a solid state pre amp.. But I’d still be curious to know why. I just don’t see it on other amplifiers. Sounds like you can’t go wrong with either amp. I’d trust his judgment..I’m wondering why Doug is steering you to the No.8 though. |
firefly627s, My only experience with Klipsch speakers is in other people's systems, and I've mostly been unimpressed.....but that may very well be the accompanying electronics. Twice they were being driven by a "mainstream" amp (can't remember but Technics/Onkyo/Sony/or the like). The one time I was impressed, my friend was driving a pair of Cornwall IIIs with a Tubes4hifi VTA ST-120 tube amp......which I later purchased and still own. But I don't own Klipsch and certainly have no extended experience with them. |
Hey Joe, Wish I could answer your question about how much current the AGD amps drop into different loads. However, I have never seen that spec on any of their different amp models, As we both know Coda has some of the highest ratings of current loading on the market which contributes to their superlative performance and ability to drive virtually any speaker effortlessly. Teajay |
Vthokie83, Thank you for your reply and we’ll patiently wait for your S5.5 and Caladan’s to settle in. Looking forward to your review comments on both the S5.5 and Caladan’s, as well as the Motherlode XL down the road. Not sure if you have any experience with Klipsch quasi horn speakers such as the Heritage line Forte 3, 4 or Cornwall 4. If you do, my interest in your opinion as to how the Caladan’s compare isn’t a matter of which sounds better to you as they will be definitely different, but more of what you feel are their relative strengths and weaknesses. Understandably, this is only possible if you have had some experience with the quasi horn speakers mentioned. Thanks again for your comments on the S5.5, Caladan’s, and the Motherload XL, as all three are on my ’candidates of high interest’ list! Thanks again, joe
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firefly627s, The CODA S5.5 just arrived and installed today, I just turned it on all day and left it to settle in with no listening.....I'll do a little of that tomorrow. The Caladan's are only a little over a week old, but sounding great. I did leave a rather detailed post on my initial listening thoughts if you want to look that over; though those thoughts were with the existing Denafrips Thallo amp. Until I receive the Aric Audio Motherlode XL, I'm using my current Denafrips Hades SS preamp |
iovi66 and tmac1700, Your comments are very much appreciated and I second both your comments on Doug Dale and Coda. I had a lengthy phone conversation with Doug Dale a couple of days ago. I cannot praise Doug and Coda enough. Doug is a pleasure to talk with, so knowledgeable , possessing exemplary ethics and integrity! I am so thankful I tuned into this company and certainly Terry London and James of Destination HiFi were very influential in my decision. I am now trying to decide on adding a Coda No.8 or S5.5 to my current CSiB and control either with the internal ss preamp (07x topology based) in the CSiB. I was initially leaning to the S5.5 and I believe it should perform very well only in talking with Doug, the topic of current came up for my maggies and possibly a set of Totem Acoustic speakers I am considering. Doug's views are steering me more in the direction of the No. 8 and he is right on the advantages of the CSiB essentially controlling twin No. 8s over an S5.5 and a No.8. You can't go wrong with either amp though, only I may want to experiment with my ARC SP-8 tube amp and not so sure it's going to have as a good a synergy with the S5.5 as the No.8. Final decision on this not made yet and in no hurry. Any comments on tube preamp synergy with the S5.5 and No.8 are factors in the decision process, along with the need for more current with some of my speakers. I see vthokie83 is proactively having AricAudio modify the Motherlode XL tube preamp, so his feedback on that will be interesting. For every problem there is a solution; it's finding it that's the challenge. Thanks again all, joe |
iovi66, Fair point about the input impedance on XLR. I've already had this conversation with Aric Kimball of Aric Audio, who is building a Motherlode XL preamp for me. He is modifying it to work with the low impedance of the CODA S5.5.....I believe he is adding an additional 1.0uf cap to compensate. |
Doug is a great guy. Really enjoyed all our conversations. He made it known to me that he's not to fond of tube gear. I've been having tje same issue looking for a balanced tube preamp.. that 10k impedance is usually low. Side note.. every discussion i find on different platforms..where CODA is discussed they are always polite and informative. There are a lot of toxic people I'm this hobby and reading through this discussion is a breath of fresh air. |
I had a S5.5, purchased from Mike at Audio Archon. Great guy to deal with. Had the newest and improved transistors according to Doug Dale. While their website and documentation leaves much to be desired, Doug answered all of my questions and concerns in a timely and respectful manner. It sounded very articulate, clean and detailed and easily drove my Selah Audio Ceramica speakers (6 nominal 4 minimum, 88 dB), however, musically it just never got my toes tapping. Beautiful amp, great build quality, never got more than a little warm, great confidence in its reliability and potential longevity. But I believe it would have sounded much better with a solid state preamp instead of my BAT VK-51SE tube preamp. Its XLR input impedance is only 10kOhms, so most likely too low and not a good match for an XLR tube preamp. Just wanted to point this out to anyone potentially considering use of this amp with a tube preamp. It sounded better with my Lyngdorf MP-40 as the preamp, but not even close to the overall fidelity level of the BAT tube preamp with the 2 amps I tried with over 100 kOhm input impedances. So I sold it to TMR and it sold within a couple of weeks. Of course, your results may vary with your tube preamp, but I can say, unfortunately, that I found it to be a mediocre match with the BAT tube preamp. |
My CODA S5.5 just showed up late yesterday, and I unpacked it this morning. What a gorgeous beast it is, mine is silver with gold buttons (both are available choices). It is moderately heavy but actually manageable, huge heat sinks, oozes quality, and I didn't expect the WBT highline connectors. I'll put it into place of the Denafrips Thallo amplifier this afternoon, and allow it to break in along with the Clayton Shaw Caladan speakers. I'll try to get some early thoughts together in the next day or so. |
Dr. Michael Bump is a renowned musician and among other things, Professor of Percussion Studies at the Truman State University (Department of Music) and a Director at the Percussive Arts Society Board of Directors. I guess the only regret your friends may have now, is the reduced heating in winter those CLASS-A amps provided that now have to be somehow provided by a more efficient means of heating generation, maybe a heat pump. On the other hand, maybe they will be happier in summer....personal taste of course. |
Hey grk, You did not highjack the thread, just sharing information about other's opinions/experiences with D amplifiers. Yes, indeed Dr. Bump raved about the pair of AGD amps he had in for review. Yet, I have listened to AGD's Vivace MKII amps and at best thought they were competent, nothing special or extraordinary to my ears. Of course this boils down to personal taste and system matching. No right or wrong answer. However, I know at least three buyers of AGD amplifiers who regretted selling off their Class A amplifiers and did not get connected to the music with the D amplifier. Obviously, the Dr. Bump had a very different experience compared to his VAC amplifier. Teajay |
"I find the comments regarding Class D amps lacking “soul” very interesting when compared to good Class A or AB SS amps and tube amps. I recently purchased some Class D mono blocks to be used in lieu of tubes during the summer and could not describe the difference any better. I think Class D have come a long way in the last few years, but also feel they have a ways to go." Well if one is willing to pay quite a bit more, it looks like the newest AGD Duet amps have achieved quite a lot! "The AGD DUETs anchored a truly stunning aural experience, retaining perfect control of image and musical energy regardless of amplitude through continued listening sessions. In essence, and with every reference example, I found the DUETs to be a key conduit to the soul of the recorded musician." So much for the amps lacking "soul"! |
Hey Guys, One of my audiophile friends, George came over because he wanted to hear the S5.5 after reading this thread. He immediately noticed the special high frequencies. His description was, "so airy and detailed with great sparkle without sounding harsh or in your face". He loved the overall clarity and said, "the tonality was very true to nature" and the S5.5 added a "kick" to the system's overall aliveness and dynamics compared to his Pass Labs X-250.5. Teajay |
Hi Teajay, My pleasure and will do. Thanks again and I'll keep you posted. It's great that you are very familiar with the #8 from your prior thorough analysis of it. Your conclusions on how the S5.5 compares to the #8 are of high interest. Looking forward to your S5.5 review and keep up the superb work! Joe
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Thanks Teajay for your thoughtful reply and advice on the preamp. I'll use the Csib pre outs. I agree, the synergy should be better and do appreciate your insight on this. I'll definitely tell Doug you said hello and get into some further discussion with him on the S5.5. I was leaning to it before I saw this thread, only uncertain if I should just get the #8 or the S5.5 as a second amp, so really appreciate the heads-up you have provided us on the Coda S5.5. Definitely sounds like the way to go. I wasn't familiar with AricAudio; however, from one your posts, I became interested and checked out the AricA site. I am impressed with the Motherlode Mk II and XL preamps and for my needs leaning to the Mk II line stage. You commented it goes well with the S5.5. That's good enough for me; I'm a believer and will let Aric know how I found out about him! Thanks again! Joe M |
Hey Joe M, First, thanks for the kind feedback regarding my reviews helping you purchase the Coda piece. I would go with using the preamp outs on your Coda CSiB V1 into the S5.5. Please tell Doug hello for me if you contact him regarding the S5.5. As you can tell, based on what has been shared on this thread, the S5.5 has become my favorite Coda amp. I believe the #8 and #16 are still great amplifiers, but this little beasty offers another level of fidelity/musicality to my ears. Teajay |
Terry, how do you feel about using the CSiB V1 preamp outs to control the S5.5? My other option is an ARC SP-8 Tube preamp that still performs well? I did some comparisons between the CSiB pre outs and the SP8 pre with a separate power amp (Mac MC2125). The 07x preamp section of the CSiB came very close to sounding like the SP 8 tube preamp in overall flavor; however, with improved detail/resolution, bass control, smoothness and a much quieter dark background and cleaner, more evident micro and macro dynamics. And the SP8 sounds beautiful so the Class A preamp section of the CSiB V1 has certainly surpassed my expectations. Coda=Impressive!!! What do you think though about the synergy of either of these preamps with the S5.5? I plan to touch base with Doug Dale at Coda as well on this. His knowledge and experience has been invaluable to me on prior calls and he is just great to talk with and learn from. With high respect, I do want to thank you for steering me to Coda with your No. 8 review! If you are excited about the S5.5; that's really enough for me to place an order. Thanks again! Joe M
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Terry, Your prior review on the No. 8 amp from Coda was very influential in my long thought out decision to purchase the CSiB. No regrets. It offers in my system everything you stated about the No.8 and what Richard Willie reported in his review in Stereo Times. I was researching amps for a couple years and very pleased with the CSiB decision. I am planning to replace my McIntosh MC2125 amp and looking seriously at the S5.5. I spotted it on the Destination Hi-Fi site a few months ago. Seeing your comments have revved me and I plan to talk with Doug Dale and James at Destination Hi-Fi. Both gentlemen have been extremely helpful to me. The quality and sound from the CSiB has narrowed my amplification preference to one manufacturer- Coda. Great quality, sound and value. |
@yyzsantabarbara I decided to start with the XP22 because it while maybe not the most excited or colored, it’s still very good as a neutral reference point since I was just starting my journey then.
Now that I’ve got the amplification leveled up, the goal is to try a great tube pre. |
@christianb5s4 The #16 definitely is a great amp. Now that I found some speaker cables that do not mess up the sound, I have no complaints with the #16. I actually had my #16 up for sale at the same price a month ago but I pulled the ad after the speaker cables were sorted out. Just looked up your gear. The #16 will play very nicely with that gear. I had a CODA 07x preamp at one time, which is likely similar to your PASS, it was a nice pairing.
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@yyzsantabarbara I am now the proud owner of that Coda 16, and my initial listening impressions are pretty stunned for the positive. I saw you share that and didn’t chime in to jinx anything until I bought it!
Compared to the JC5, everything is better. It was substantial enough where even my wife unsolicited was impressed. I didn't expect such a dramatic change just switching amps. I’ll continue listening and share as I go. |
I find the comments regarding Class D amps lacking “soul” very interesting when compared to good Class A or AB SS amps and tube amps. I recently purchased some Class D mono blocks to be used in lieu of tubes during the summer and could not describe the difference any better. I think Class D have come a long way in the last few years, but also feel they have a ways to go. |
I recently tried 3 different speaker cables with the CODA #16 | Holo Serene preamp | Yamaha NS5000 speaker.
I also tried a Benchmark AHB2 on the same system and tried the same cables as above (except WyWire Diamond) plus the following:
All of these cables had issues, fatigue, lack of clarity, except the Audience FrontRow. I was not 100% happy with the #16 previously because the AHB2 was better in some ways, such as clarity. However, after using the FrontRow the #16 really became more detailed and cleaner sounding. Closer to the AHB2 in that regard. So, in my experience the speaker cables matter a lot for the CODA #16, When I had the CODA #8, I used very short Audience FrontRow cables for a headphone setup and those cables also made a huge improvement. BTW - CODA No. 16 Amplifier (100w Class A) For Sale - US Audio Mart |