Which integrated for Wilson Sabrina's

 

 

cshadow OP

20 posts

12-25-2022 at 01:16pm

…

My current system sounds really good, but it lacks refinement in the top end and needs more weight and body in the midrange for my taste. The LTA has a lot of air for a tube pre, but can be a shade bright at times.

I have the Wilson Sabrina and drive them with Pass Labs XA30.8 Class A amp / Pass Labs XP12 linestage combo. The sound is exactly what you describe as your goal - luscious mids, refined top end, full deep bass. If you have a large room, the XA60.8 mono block amps should be more than enough. Pass Labs gear (especially their Class A amps) and Wilson speakers have excellent synergy.
Your preamp is fine.

IMO going from separates to integrated in a $9000 budget range is a big mistake.

One other note - the Sabrinas are picky when it comes to placement and room acoustics. It took me several weeks to fine tune.
A rug or carpeted floor is a must. The first reflection points and the front wall (the wall behind the speakers) must be treated as a bare minimum. Use furniture, acoustic panels, etc.

@panzrwagn 

The Mark Levison 5805 250 W/ch 4 Ohms dual mono intrgrated. Impeccably designed and built, fully specced analog, mm/mc phono, and digital including 32/384, 11.2 mbits/sec DSD and MQA. At 62 lbs it lacks for nothing on the front end or power amp and sounds terrific.
…

62lbs with all that 💩 in it? Lacks for nothing? 
 

It is a fantastic match for your Sabrinas in every way.

And you know this how? Let me guess…by looking at specs…

You apparently are seeking some kind of validation for your equipment. It’s fine. I get it.

@panzrwagn where did that come from? I don’t need anyone to validate my system.

Also, a pair of used XA60.8 are within the OP’s budget and there’s already a fine preamp there in the system.
 

But the current Pass Labs offerings, irrespective of quality, offer no solution in this case.

The above statement couldn’t possibly be further from the truth.
Class A amplification, and Pass Labs in particular, checks all of the boxes for the sound qualities OP is seeking. May be I missed the requirement for the phono stage and a DAC? But the solution I provided kicks the ML integrated down a flight of stairs.

@cshadow 

And if you are set on an integrated, once again, Pass Int250 will be close to what you are looking for sound wise and will provide plenty of power and control. Used can be had in your price range. Another excellent choice would be a used Luxman 595 Class A integrated that you can find now for under $10k but again if you have a very large room and looking for concert levels it might not be the right choice. 
Gryphon and D’Agostino are unlikely to be found in your price range used but you can stumble upon a Gryphon without the DAC module in or around your price range if you wait. 

Tweeters on the older Wilson models and on the Sabrinas are very different.
The W/P 8s that date back to mid/late 2000s used inverted titanium tweeter. Hotter sounding than the silk dome tweeter Wilson Audio implemented on the Sabrinas. With BAT you may end up taming a bit more than you intended.

Ultimately, home audition is a must. And unless it is possible or a decent return policy is in place, go used. You don’t want to drop this kind of dough blind buying a new component, end up not liking it and getting hosed on a resale.