Which amp with Wilson watt puppy 8


Hi there !

i live on an island with no audiophile shops around. 
I arrived in 2011 with a Jeff Rowland continuum 250 and Sonus Faber Cremona m speakers who were a great match. Unfortunately I blew the speakers a few times, then upgraded to columns, blew them also twice. I guess the amp is too powerful for them, but this time Sonus Faber was unable to provide me replacement tweeters and speakers, which is an enormous disappointment. I will never buy anything from them again. I ran through the web and found corresponding parts that I changed myself, but they seem to sound much higher in the trebles and lack bass, especially at high volume levels, (above 55%) . I tried swapping the cables, but it didn’t change anything. 
I now bought a pair of Wilson audio watt puppy 8 that arrived this week from a NYC store. I hope them to last lifetime. 
They have cost me around 11.5k$ door to door, look great and tough, but need to be driven above 60 % of volume otherwise nothing comes out of them, especially bass !
I also get the same sharp treble sound, which is very disappointing.
My problem is to find the issue : 

1/ room acoustic

2/ change my class D amplifier for tubes or transistors

3/ find better cables

4/ me turning old ?

what should I do next ? what amplifier would you recommend with this configuration (watt puppy 8, MIT Avtr 1, ps audio direct stream mk1, aurender n10, musical fidelity M6 CD) ?

thank you 


 

lendivf

Showing 7 responses by lendivf

@kofibaffour : thank you for your very detailed

answer, it seems to stick with chat gpt’s suggestion.  
 

✅ Recommended Actions – in Order of Impact

1. 📐 Treat the Room Acoustically

  • Add thick curtains, rugs, furniture, diffuser panels behind or around the speakers.

  • For discreet treatments, look into GIK AcousticsVicoustic, or Artnovion.

2. 🧪 Try a Different Amplifier (Warmer Character)

  • Consider amps that are warmer and more musical, such as:

    • Accuphase (E-480, E-5000)

    • Luxman (L-509X, L-590AXII)

    • Audio Research (tube amps – open soundstage and warmer tone)

    • GryphonVitus, or YBA for high-end richness

3. 🎛️ Try a Smoother DAC

  • Consider a DAC with a more natural, analog-like sound:

    • Denafrips Pontus II or Terminator II (R2R)

    • Holo Audio Spring or KTE

    • LampizatOr Amber (tube-based)


Under 40% the sound is quite low compared to the Sonus Faber who have smaller drivers. I guess that’s exactly how a greedy loudspeaker behaves. 
Sonus Faber also mentioned the fact that the amp could be responsible of the multiple driver failures I went through, but isn’t a class D 1and 0’s ? 
I guess if it had a problem, no sound would come out of it. 
I also feel that the Wilson Audio are much more solid and powerful than the SF’s. 

Mc 275 x 2 ! My dream. I am running with a Jeff Rowland continuum 250. It s a class D 2x250W integrated amp. It s actually a high end amp. My sources are m6 cd ft from Music fidelity and a aurender n10 streamer. The Dac is a ps audio direct stream mk1 cables are audio quest and mit. 
 

Hi folk’s

Wow this is my first post on audiogon and I got so many interesting answers in such a short time  ! Thank’s to you all. It would take me months to get a similar thread in French. God bless America ! 
I actually bought my w/p on audiogon, and to answer @hjdca, they arrived fully serviced and in extraordinary condition (no scratches, new pads) from a NYC Wilson Audio official reseller. So I am confident. 
I must correct something after 5 days (and nights😨) of listening. 
My house is very noisy during day time (5 kids multiplied by numerous friends). 
My living-room is an L form opened on the rest of the floor with no door (first thing to fix!). Walls are covered with books on one side and the floor is covered with carpets. A 50-80% volume during the day in a noisy environment turns into a 20-40% at night for a similar experience (normal/ loud) and I do get in that range a well developed bass and a cristal clear treble, which I would qualify as “ Powerfull and detailed” vs “acute and accurate” for the SF, but then I can only refer to a “non official” rebuilt pair of speakers (with original drivers from madisound, but not the ones coming from SF). The SF would start sounding very loud and distorted above 80% and burn between 90-100%. The Wilson Audio seem to be capable of holding those volumes, but I won’t risk it for the moment. I actually never listen music at those volumes, but I presume my boys have 🤔 
I am very concerned about those who advised me to have the amp checked, because it might cost me the price of an amp to do so from where I am. I did have a few accidents in the past (short circuits when moving the speakers for ex) and the amplifier did turn to protection mode once or twice. If any one know’s precisely how to test the different components on a class D, I could maybe give it a try with my multimeter.   I did compare a class D amp to 1 and 0’s, but it was more of an image because obviously the entering signal is analogic and not digital. Thus, the ice modules have far less transistors and more chips and filters at équivalant power than a class  A/B amp, so I presume the effect on sound to be more brutal in case of defect. 
My issue is first to determine if my listening disappointment comes from a technical (faulty amp) aspect or an emotional aspect (lack of warmth and roundness of my class D) who maybe was giving me more satisfaction in my small Parisian apartment with bookshelves Sf Cremona M speakers than connected today in a bigger space to bigger speakers. 
I have a last issue regarding lamps : we have very fluctuant voltage on the island and sometimes electrical overpower. Of course my hi-fi is surge protected, but I was afraid to go for a McIntosh 275 in the past and having to deal with lamp problems, especially when those lamps will completely change the sound according to the brand you decide to buy ?  
If I manage to sell my current amp and speakers I could go for a second hand amp and preamp (although the ps audio dac works also as a preamp) in a 5-10k range. 
best regards. 
ps there is a pair of pass labs XA-100 for 6k on the French market. 
I cannot buy amps in the usa because of the voltage problem so I am looking at 220v units. 

I am looking @kofibaffour ’s advice who advised getting a mini dsp mic and going for tests. I will come back with that. 

Regarding placements and room config, this is an extract of WA’s manual. 
In many cases, L-shaped rooms (See Figure 2) offer the best environment for speaker setup. Ideally, speakers should be set up along the primary (longest) leg of the room.

They should fire from the end of the leg (short wall) toward the L, or they should be along the longest wall. In this way, both speakers are firing the same distance to the back wall. The asymmetry of the walls in L-shaped rooms resists the buildup of standing waves (see Figure 2). Wilson Audio Specialties P 18

i tried yesterday to call Jeff Rowland, and actually the man himself come’s in every day, but want yet present, so I will try to reach him today to see if I can get any advise from them.  

​​​​​​​

I spoke with Jeff Rowland in person over the phone. He confirmed that the amplifier cannot have a problem and would either work or won’t. The DC problem described above occurs only with class A/B, not D. He also suggested to work on the acoustics of the room. According to him, there is no reason to service the amplifier. 
He also confirmed that under powered amp will “blow” drivers, not over power, which also confirms some of the above sayings. The JR Continuum 250 delivers 500w per channel at 4ohms and should be enough for the w/p’s. Listening over 85% is a source of damage to the speakers. 
This brings me to the conclusion that I need to get that mic and find a way to work on my room acoustics. 

@kofibaffour thank’s for the advise. As a dentist working with a succion unit blowing in my ears 12 hours a day for the past 25 years, no doubt, I’ll end up with a hearing device one of these days. I must admit that I’ve always liked the loud listening, but moderately compared to some guys.