thoughts on MBL amps: 8011 vs 9007's

Hi Mribob,

You certainly have great speakers. You need to supply those bad boys with lots of current to make them shine. I have the MBL 9008A, and I thought it was definitely a worth while upgrade from the 8011 and even the 9007. I think you would be making a major improvement to your overall setup, especially in such a large room. I think you should stick with MBL so you get that Synergistic effect between your speakers and Amp. I would also look towards your meridian preamp as a possible upgrade area as well. I love Meridian for surround sound, but not so much for 2 channel. For what it's worth, here is a link about that topic:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=993995

Rich

Hey Mribob,

I'm using a pair of Kharma Mini Exquisites, MBL 9008A Amp, MBL 6010D Preamp, MBL 1611F DAC with Kubala-Sosna Emotion Speaker Cables and Interconnects throughout. I don't have power conditioning yet, as I will be redoing my place shortly and I plan on getting dedicated lines first and then getting power condioning later. I'm getting some decent results with Zu Audio Bok power cables at the present time.

I haven't listened to those big Brystons that you're talking about, however I never heard a Bryston that I didn't like. If I were you, I would seriously listen to the MBL 9007 with your speakers. I just don't think that the Bryston, will be able to match the synergy that you will get with your MBL speakers. Let's face it they were both designed by MBL to go together.

I wouldn't spend money upgrading your cables just yet, until you select an AMP, this way you could gear your choices towards system matching. Your MIT cables are fine for now, as well as being fairly neutral. I would rather see you put your money into your AMP, future Preamp perhaps, then into Cables, and then power conditioning. I would do the dedicated outlets though, since this will benefit whichever amp that you select.

I could only compare the MBL 9007 to the MBL 8011. The 9007's are going to sound quieter, more relaxed, and effortless, with a deeper, taller, and wider soundstage. The 9007's is a very "fast and dynamic" Amp, the bass will be tighter and deeper than the 8011's, and the midrange will be more organic and real. The treble will be smoother and not etched in any way. The harmonics are great for solid state gear. The overall presentation from top to bottom, is smooth, liquid, and whole, as has been stated many times before.

Where do you live?

Rich

I also think you would get more bang for your buck to put your money into an Analog Preamp such as the Noble MBL 5011 mentioned above, or even the Reference MBL 6010D, depending on your budget of course, before buying different Amps. Either one would match really well with your MBL 8011 Amps. Both of these preamps have a pass through for your Meridian Processor.

Rich